Information processing device, information processing method, and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus configured to properly calculate a terminal holding rate even when signals are transmitted intermittently from a mobile terminal.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus 1 includes: a number-of-terminal acquisition unit 13 which acquires the number of mobile terminals existing in a target area, in accordance with observation in a predetermined observation period using one or more sensors for transmission signals including physical addresses transmitted intermittently from the mobile terminals located in the target area which is included in a coverage area of the one or more sensors; a number-of-person acquisition unit 14 which acquires the number of persons existing in the target area, using a captured image in the observation period for an imaging area including the target area; and a calculation unit 15 which calculates a terminal holding rate on the basis of the number of terminals in the target area and the number of persons in the target area. The length of the observation period is equal to or longer than a longest interval which is the longest transmission interval out of transmission intervals of the transmission signals of the mobile terminals.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device or the like that calculates the ownership rate of a mobile terminal. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a demand for understanding the number of people and the flow of people in places where many people gather, such as train stations, commercial facilities, and tourist spots. By understanding the degree of congestion and the flow of people, it is possible to, for example, carry out promotions tailored to the flow of people, develop new businesses, and improve business efficiency. In addition, when natural disasters such as floods (e.g., typhoons), earthquakes, or the spread of infectious diseases occur, the results of understanding the degree of congestion and the flow of people can be used to implement crisis management measures.

[0003] In response to such demands, the degree of congestion and the flow of people are grasped using MAC (Media Access Control) addresses contained in Wi-Fi (registered trademark) wireless signals transmitted from mobile devices such as smartphones (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1). This method has the advantage of eliminating blind spots and being low-cost compared to capturing the degree of congestion and the flow of people using cameras, but it has the problem of measuring only people holding mobile devices, which may result in discrepancies with the actual number of people.

[0004] To solve such problems, the number of mobile terminals is obtained using radio waves transmitted from the mobile terminals, and the actual number of people is obtained using images captured by a camera to calculate the detected terminal rate of the terminals, and the number of people in areas where cameras are not installed is estimated using the detected terminal rate and the number of mobile terminals obtained using radio waves in areas where cameras are not installed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2019 / 239756 [Non-patent literature]

[0006] [Non-Patent Document 1] Junji Nishida, "Overcoming Challenges to Commercialize Wi-Fi Packet Sensors - A Traffic Flow Analysis System Born from Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration," Information Processing Society of Japan Digital Practice Vol. 11 No. 3, pp. 489-510, July 2020 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, for a specific location, the detected terminal rate is calculated using the number of mobile terminals acquired using radio waves at a certain time and the actual number of people acquired using camera images. Here, when radio waves are transmitted continuously from the mobile terminal or at intervals short enough to be considered continuous, the number of mobile terminals acquired using radio waves and the actual number of people acquired using camera images can be temporally and spatially matched as described above, and the detected terminal rate can be calculated appropriately. On the other hand, when radio waves are transmitted intermittently from the mobile terminal, there is a possibility that the mobile terminal is not transmitting radio waves during the time when the number of mobile terminals is to be counted, making it impossible to properly match the two, resulting in a problem that the detected terminal rate may be an inaccurate value.

[0008] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an information processing device, etc. that can appropriately calculate the holding rate of a mobile terminal using signal observation results and captured images, even when signals are transmitted intermittently from the mobile terminal. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, an information processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a terminal number acquisition unit that acquires the number of mobile terminals present in a target area in accordance with observation by one or more sensors during a predetermined observation period of transmission signals including physical addresses that are intermittently transmitted from multiple mobile terminals present in a target area included in the coverage area of ​​one or more sensors; a number of people acquisition unit that acquires the number of people present in the target area using images captured during the observation period of a shooting area that includes the target area; and a calculation unit that calculates a terminal holding rate based on the number of terminals in the target area and the number of people in the target area, wherein the length of the observation period is longer than the longest interval, which is the longest transmission interval among the transmission intervals of the transmission signals of the multiple mobile terminals. With this configuration, by setting the length of the observation period to be equal to or longer than the longest interval, the transmission signal of a mobile device present in the target area throughout the entire observation period is observed at least once. Therefore, even if a transmission signal is transmitted intermittently from a mobile device, the number of mobile devices acquired using the transmission signal can be appropriately time- and spatially matched with the actual number of people acquired using the captured images, making it possible to calculate a more accurate device ownership rate.

[0010] In the information processing device according to an aspect of the present invention, the terminal number acquisition unit may set the length of the observation period in accordance with observation of transmission signals from a plurality of mobile terminals. With this configuration, it becomes possible to set the length of the observation period to an appropriate value using the observation status of the transmission signal.

[0011] In addition, in the information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the target area may have a length equal to or greater than the length obtained by multiplying the speed of a person moving through the target area by the length of the observation period. With this configuration, for example, a mobile device carried by a person who entered the target area at the start of the observation period will transmit a transmission signal at least once while that person is in the target area, making it possible to more reliably observe transmission signals sent from mobile devices in the target area, and therefore to calculate a more accurate device ownership rate.

[0012] In addition, in an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, transmission signals sent from multiple mobile terminals are observed by multiple sensors, and the target area may be included in an overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas corresponding to the multiple sensors, respectively. Such a configuration makes it possible to limit the range of the target area.

[0013] In the information processing device according to the aspect of the present invention, the target area may be an area in which the radio wave intensity of the transmission signal in the coverage area exceeds a predetermined threshold. With this configuration, a part of the coverage area can be set as the target area, and the range of the target area can be limited.

[0014] In addition, in an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the terminal number acquisition unit may also acquire the number of mobile terminals present in the estimated target area in accordance with observation of transmission signals sent from multiple mobile terminals present in an estimated target area, which is an area different from the target area and through which people passing through the target area pass, for the same length of time as the observation period by other sensors, and may further include an estimation unit that estimates the number of people in the estimated target area based on the number of mobile terminals in the estimated target area and the terminal holding rate. With this configuration, it becomes possible to estimate the number of people in an estimation target area using the device holding rate. Furthermore, by using a more accurate device holding rate, the estimated number of people also becomes more accurate.

[0015] In addition, in the information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the target area may include an area of ​​a gate through which a person passes. With this configuration, people move slowly in one direction at gates at the entrance and exit of an event venue, security gates passed through when entering a company, automatic ticket gates, and other gates. Therefore, by obtaining the number of terminals and people in such areas, more accurate values ​​can be obtained, and as a result, the terminal ownership rate can be calculated with greater precision.

[0016] In addition, an information processing method according to one aspect of the present invention includes the steps of: acquiring the number of mobile terminals present in a target area in accordance with observation by one or more sensors during a predetermined observation period of transmission signals including physical addresses that are intermittently transmitted from multiple mobile terminals present in a target area included in the coverage area of ​​one or more sensors; acquiring the number of people present in the target area using images captured within the observation period of a capture area that includes the target area; and calculating a terminal holding rate based on the number of terminals in the target area and the number of people in the target area, wherein the length of the observation period is longer than the longest interval, which is the longest transmission interval among the transmission intervals of the transmission signals of the multiple mobile terminals. [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] According to the information processing device and the like according to one aspect of the present invention, even when a signal is transmitted intermittently from a mobile terminal, it is possible to calculate a more accurate terminal holding rate. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of an information processing system including an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an information processing device according to the embodiment; [Figure 3] A flowchart showing the operation of the information processing device according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the length of a target region in the embodiment. [Figure 5A] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating observation of a transmission signal in the embodiment. [Figure 5B] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating observation of a transmission signal in the embodiment. [Figure 5C] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating observation of a transmission signal in the embodiment. [Figure 5D] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a previous period and an observation period in the embodiment. [Figure 6]FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a target region in the embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of a target region in the embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 shows an example of the configuration of a computer system according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] An information processing device according to the present invention will be described below using an embodiment. Note that in the following embodiments, components and steps denoted by the same reference numerals are the same or equivalent, and repeated description may be omitted. The information processing device according to this embodiment can obtain a more accurate number of terminals by obtaining the number of terminals of a plurality of mobile terminals in accordance with observation of transmission signals during an observation period that is equal to or longer than the longest transmission interval among the transmission intervals of transmission signals of a plurality of mobile terminals that intermittently transmit transmission signals, and as a result, can calculate a more accurate terminal retention rate.

[0020] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an information processing system 100 including an information processing device 1 according to this embodiment. The information processing system 100 includes the information processing device 1, a plurality of sensors 3-1 and 3-2 for observing signals transmitted from a mobile terminal 5, and a camera 4 for photographing a person 6. When there is no need to particularly distinguish between the sensors 3-1 and 3-2, they may be simply referred to as sensor 3. The same applies to the other components.

[0021] The mobile terminal 5 may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a smartwatch, or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant). The mobile terminal 5 transmits a wireless signal to the access point 2. In this embodiment, a case will be mainly described in which the access point 2 is an access point of a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) and the mobile terminal 5 is a wireless LAN terminal. The access point 2 may be, for example, a Wi-Fi router. Note that the mobile terminal 5 does not move by itself, but moves in conjunction with the movement of the person 6 carrying the mobile terminal 5. However, for convenience of explanation, such movement may also be referred to as movement of the mobile terminal 5. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1 , many people 6 carry mobile terminals 5, but some people 6 may not carry mobile terminals 5.

[0022] It is assumed that a transmission signal, which is a wireless signal transmitted by the mobile terminal 5, includes a physical address. The physical address may be, for example, a MAC address or other information that can identify the mobile terminal 5. In this embodiment, a case where the physical address is a MAC address included in a wireless signal conforming to the IEEE802.11 standard will be mainly described.

[0023] Furthermore, from the viewpoint of privacy protection, the physical address included in the transmission signal may be anonymized using a one-way hash function or the like before processing. Even in this case, the physical address itself and the information after the physical address has been anonymized using a one-way hash function or the like have a one-to-one correspondence, and the properties of identifying the mobile terminal 5 are essentially the same, so such anonymized information will also be referred to as a physical address.

[0024] The transmission signal including the physical address transmitted from the mobile terminal 5 may be, for example, a probe request, or may be some other signal. The transmission signal may be, for example, a signal of a standard other than Wi-Fi. Note that in this embodiment, a case where the transmission signal including the physical address is a probe request will be mainly described. The transmission signal including the physical address is assumed to be transmitted intermittently and repeatedly from the mobile terminal 5 at regular or irregular intervals. It is known that probe requests are usually transmitted at intervals of approximately 60 to 90 seconds.

[0025] The sensor 3 observes a transmission signal including a physical address transmitted from a mobile terminal 5 to the access point 2, and acquires the physical address contained in the transmission signal. For example, it is assumed that the sensor 3-1 can observe a signal transmitted from a mobile terminal 5 present within an area 31. This area 31 is referred to as the coverage area of ​​the sensor 3-1. Note that in FIG. 1, the coverage areas 31 and 32 of the sensors 3-1 and 3-2 are respectively indicated by solid-line circles, and the coverage areas 21 and 22 of the access points 2-1 and 2-2 are respectively indicated by dashed-dotted circles. In this embodiment, the case where the coverage area 31 is a target area for acquiring the number of terminals will be mainly described. Therefore, it is also referred to as the target area 31. Note that, as will be described later, the target area may be a portion of the coverage area 31. The sensor 3 is known as a packet sensor, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted. For details of packet sensors, see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the sensor 3 is fixed, i.e., the position of the sensor 3 does not change over time.

[0026] When the sensor 3 observes a transmission signal including a physical address transmitted from the mobile terminal 5, the sensor 3 may transmit the physical address included in the transmission signal and observation information including an observation time to the information processing device 1 via a wired or wireless communication line. The observation time may be, for example, a time indicating the time at which the transmission signal was observed, or may be a date and time indicating the time at which the transmission signal was observed. The observation time may be acquired, for example, from a clock unit or a calendar unit. For example, by using the observation time, the information processing device 1 can identify the physical address included in the transmission signal observed by the sensor 3 during a predetermined observation period. The observation information may include, for example, an identifier of the sensor 3 and radio wave intensity. Note that the identifier of the sensor 3 may be, for example, the position of the sensor 3 (e.g., latitude and longitude) or another identifier. The radio wave intensity may be, for example, a received signal strength indicator (RSSI). The communication line may be, for example, the Internet, an intranet, a public telephone network, or the like. Furthermore, the information may be transmitted to the information processing device 1 via multi-hop wireless communication between multiple sensors 3.

[0027] The camera 4 acquires a captured image of a capture area including a target area. The target area may coincide with the capture area or may be a part of the capture area. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a case will be mainly described in which the coverage area 31, which is the target area, coincides with the capture area 41 indicated by the dashed circle. The captured image acquired by the camera 4 may be, for example, a still image or a video. In the latter case, the number of people, which will be described later, may be acquired using one frame of the video. Furthermore, it is preferable that the captured image has a resolution that allows people included in the image to be recognized. Furthermore, the captured image may be, for example, a grayscale image or a color image.

[0028] When the camera 4 acquires a captured image, it may transmit the captured image and image information including the capture time to the information processing device 1 via a wired or wireless communication line. The capture time may be, for example, the time indicating the time of capture, or the date and time indicating the time of capture, or, if the captured image is a video, may be, for example, a time code. Note that if the capture time is a time code, it is preferable that the time code indicates the time of capture. The capture time may be acquired, for example, from a clock unit or a calendar unit. For example, the information processing device 1 can identify the captured images captured by the camera 4 during a predetermined observation period by using this capture time. Furthermore, for example, an existing surveillance camera or security camera may be used as the camera 4.

[0029] Transmission of information from the sensor 3 or camera 4 to the information processing device 1 may or may not be performed in real time. In the former case, the sensor 3 or camera 4 may transmit observation information or photographed information to the information processing device 1, for example, each time a transmission signal is observed or a photographed image is acquired. On the other hand, in the latter case, the sensor 3 or camera 4 may, for example, accumulate observation information or photographed information and transmit the accumulated information collectively to the information processing device 1 regularly or irregularly. When transmission to the information processing device 1 is performed in real time, for example, the observation information or photographed information transmitted from the sensor 3 or camera 4 to the information processing device 1 may not include the observation time or photographed time. This is because the time when the information processing device 1 receives the information may be the observation time or photographed time. Furthermore, the sensor 3 or camera 4 may transmit the observation information or photographed information in response to a transmission request from the information processing device 1, for example. In this case, for example, the information processing device 1 may request the sensor 3 or camera 4 to transmit information during a predetermined observation period, and the sensor 3 or camera 4 may transmit the observation information or photographed information for the observation period to the information processing device 1 in response to the request. This transmission may be, for example, a real-time transmission, or a collective transmission of information acquired during an observation period. In this way, when information within an observation period is transmitted in response to a request, for example, the observation information or shooting information does not need to include the observation time or shooting time.

[0030] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an information processing device 1 according to this embodiment. The information processing device 1 according to this embodiment includes a reception unit 11, a storage unit 12, a terminal number acquisition unit 13, a number of people acquisition unit 14, a calculation unit 15, an estimation unit 16, and an output unit 17. As shown in FIG. 1, when a person 6 holding a mobile terminal 5 is present in a target area 31, a transmission signal transmitted from the mobile terminal 5 is observed by a sensor 3-1, and the person 6 present in the target area 31 is photographed by a camera 4. Then, observation information including a physical address contained in the transmission signal and photograph information including a photographed image are transmitted to the information processing device 1, and the number of mobile terminals 5 and the number of people 6 within the target area 31 during the observation period are acquired. The device holding rate is calculated based on the acquired results. Similarly, in area 32, a transmission signal transmitted from the mobile terminal 5 is observed by a sensor 3-2, and observation information is transmitted to the information processing device 1 accordingly. Then, the information processing device 1 can estimate the number of people in the target area 31 by using the terminal holding rate calculated for the target area 31 and the number of mobile terminals 5 observed in the area 32.

[0031] The reception unit 11 receives observation information from the sensor 3. This reception may be by reception. As will be described later, if the sensor 3 and the information processing device 1 are integrated, the reception unit 11 may receive the observation information directly from the integrated sensor 3. The reception unit 11 stores the received observation information in the memory unit 12. The reception unit 11 receives shooting information from the camera 4. This reception may also be by reception. Note that, as described above, if the observation time or shooting time is not included in the observation information or shooting information, the reception unit 11 may receive the time at which the observation information or shooting information is received from a clock unit or calendar unit (not shown), and store the observation time or shooting time in the memory unit 12 while including it in the observation information or shooting information.

[0032] The reception unit 11 may receive information via, for example, a wired or wireless communication line, or may receive information output from the sensor 3. The reception unit 11 may or may not include a device for receiving the information (for example, a communication device, etc.). The reception unit 11 may be realized by hardware, or may be realized by software such as a driver that drives a predetermined device.

[0033] The memory unit 12 stores the observation information and shooting information accumulated by the reception unit 11. The memory unit 12 is preferably realized by a non-volatile recording medium, but may also be realized by a volatile recording medium. The storage in the memory unit 12 may be, for example, a temporary storage of the received information. The recording medium may be, for example, a semiconductor memory or a magnetic disk.

[0034] The terminal number acquisition unit 13 acquires the number of mobile terminals 5 present in the target area 31 in response to observation by one or more sensors 3 of transmission signals intermittently transmitted from multiple mobile terminals 5 present in the target area 31 during a predetermined observation period. As described above, the transmission signals include the physical addresses of the mobile terminals 5 that transmitted the transmission signals.

[0035] In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1, a case will be mainly described in which the target area 31 coincides with the covered area 31 of one sensor 3-1, but the target area may also be an area included in the covered areas of one or more sensors 3. For example, the target area may be the entire area obtained by combining the covered areas of two or more sensors 3, or a part of that area. A specific example of this case will be described later.

[0036] The observation period may be a period with a fixed start and end, such as 70 seconds from 10:00:00 AM. The length of the observation period is preferably equal to or longer than the longest interval among the transmission intervals of the transmission signals of the multiple mobile terminals 5. The length of the observation period may be, for example, a predetermined fixed value (e.g., 90 seconds), or may be a value set according to the observation of the transmission signals.

[0037] When the length of the observation period is set in response to observation of transmission signals, for example, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 may set the length of the observation period in response to observation of transmission signals from multiple mobile terminals 5. The observation for setting the length of the observation period may be performed, for example, before the observation period. Furthermore, the observation for setting the length of the observation period may be performed, for example, only once or repeatedly. In the latter case, for example, the observation for setting the length of the observation period may be performed each time an observation is made during the observation period for calculating the terminal retention rate. Furthermore, the length of the observation period may be adaptively set in response to the observation. For example, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 may identify transmission intervals for multiple physical addresses using observation times corresponding to certain physical addresses for multiple pieces of observation information stored in the storage unit 12, and may set the longest transmission interval among the multiple transmission intervals as the longest interval. Note that the observation time corresponding to a physical address may be the observation time included in the observation information containing that physical address. The terminal number acquisition unit 13 may set the length of the observation period to be equal to or longer than the longest interval. Note that it is preferable that the length of the observation period be as short as possible. This is because, if a person 6 carrying a mobile terminal 5 is moving, the longer the observation period, the more people 6 will enter and leave the target area during the observation period, making it difficult to match the number of terminals acquired using radio waves with the number of people acquired using captured images. Therefore, the length of the observation period may be set to the length of the longest interval.

[0038] The start point of the observation period may be determined in advance, for example, 10:00:00, or may be determined when calculating the terminal holding rate. In the latter case, terminal number acquisition unit 13 may appropriately determine the start point of the observation period when acquiring the number of terminals, and may set the point in time when the length of the observation period has elapsed from the start point as the end point of the observation period.

[0039] For example, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 may read physical addresses from each of a plurality of pieces of observation information related to transmission signals observed during an observation period, i.e., a plurality of pieces of observation information stored in the storage unit 12, each of which includes an observation time within the observation period, and acquire the number of terminals, which is the unique number of the read physical addresses. The unique number may be acquired, for example, by performing unique processing on the plurality of physical addresses and counting the number of physical addresses after the unique processing. In this way, even if the sensor 3 receives a transmission signal from the same mobile terminal 5 more than once during the observation period, the accurate number of terminals can be acquired.

[0040] The terminal number acquisition unit 13 may acquire the number of mobile terminals 5 present in the estimated target area based on observation of transmission signals transmitted from multiple mobile terminals 5 present in the estimated target area by one or more sensors 3 for a period equal to the length of the observation period (hereinafter, this observation period may be referred to as the "estimated observation period"). The estimated target area is an area different from the target area and is an area through which people pass through the target area. The target area and the estimated target area may be, for example, different positions on the same road (e.g., one is on the upstream side of pedestrian flow on the road and the other is on the downstream side). In a place where people gather, such as an event venue, shopping center, or building, the target area may be an entrance / exit area, and the estimated target area may be an area other than the entrance / exit of the place. Furthermore, observation of transmission signals in the estimated target area is usually performed by one or more sensors 3 different from the one or more sensors 3 that observe the transmission signals in the target area. In the example of FIG. 1 , the terminal number acquisition unit 13 may acquire the number of mobile terminals 5 present in the estimation target area 32 in response to, for example, observation by the sensor 3-2 of transmission signals transmitted from mobile terminals 5 within the estimation target area 32, which is different from the target area 31. Here, it is assumed that the estimation target area 32 coincides with the coverage area of ​​the sensor 3-2. Note that it is generally preferable that the observation period during which radio waves are observed for the target area and the estimation observation period during which radio waves are observed for the estimation target area are close to each other. This is because the closer the two periods are to each other, the closer the values ​​of the terminal ownership rates in the target area and the estimation target area will be. Furthermore, when the two periods are different from each other, either period may be earlier in time. Furthermore, while FIG. 1 illustrates a case where there is one estimation target area, this is not necessarily the case. For example, the area in which the number of people is to be estimated may be covered by multiple estimation target areas. When multiple estimation target areas exist, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 may acquire the number of terminals for each estimation target area, or may acquire the number of terminals for all of the multiple estimation target areas. In the latter case, the total number of terminals in the multiple estimation target areas may be obtained, which is the unique number of all physical addresses included in the transmission signals observed during the estimation observation period for all of the multiple estimation target areas.

[0041] In addition, if a person 6 carrying a mobile terminal 5 within the target area is moving and the target area is small, there may be a mobile terminal 5 whose transmission signal is not observed within the target area during the observation period, even if the observation period is set to be equal to or longer than the longest interval. To avoid such a situation, as shown in FIG. 4, the target area 30 may have a length equal to or greater than the product of the speed V of the person moving through the target area 30 and the length T of the observation period. Note that FIG. 4 illustrates a case where the length of the target area 30, which is the coverage area of ​​the sensor 3, is V×T. Since the larger the target area 30, the wider the imaging range must be, it is preferable that the target area 30 not be large. From this perspective, it is preferable that the length of the target area 30 be V×T. The length of the target area 30 may be the length in the movement direction of the person 6 moving through the target area 30. Furthermore, the speed V of the person may be, for example, a predetermined fixed value (e.g., 0.8 to 1.2 m / s) or a value set according to the observation results of the movement of the person 6. In the latter case, for example, the moving speed of each person may be acquired by tracking the recognized person using the captured image, and a representative value (e.g., average, median, maximum, etc.) of the moving speeds of multiple people may be identified and set as the speed V. This setting of the speed V may be performed, for example, by the number of people acquisition unit 14 or by another component. If the speed V is not a fixed value, the size of the target area 30 will vary depending on the speed of the person 6 moving through the target area 30. In this case, as will be described later, a region of the coverage area where the radio wave intensity exceeds a predetermined threshold may be set as the target area, and the threshold may be changed depending on the speed V. Furthermore, the number of people may be acquired, as will be described later, in an area of ​​the captured image that corresponds to the target area 30 according to the speed V.

[0042] In this way, by setting the length of the target area 30 to V×T or more, for example, as shown in FIG. 5A, the mobile device 5 held by person A, who entered the target area 30 at the start of the observation period, will transmit a transmission signal at least once before A leaves the target area 30. This makes it possible to calculate a more accurate device holding rate. In FIG. 5A, the movement of people (A, B, and C in FIG. 5A) during the observation period is indicated by left-pointing arrows, and the timing of transmission of a transmission signal is indicated by upward-pointing arrows. Note that it is possible that the mobile device 5 held by person B, who is located within the target area 30 (e.g., near the center of the target area 30) at the start of the observation period, will not transmit a transmission signal before B leaves the target area 30. However, assuming that the flow of people is uniform in and around the target area 30, the holding rates of mobile devices 5 among multiple moving people 6 are equal, the distribution of transmission intervals of the transmission signals of each mobile device 5 does not change, and the transmission intervals are close to the longest interval, it is believed that it is possible to accurately obtain the number of devices based on observations during the observation period. For example, while it is not possible to observe the transmission signal of mobile terminal 5 of B, which is located within target area 30 at the start of the observation period and outside target area 30 at the end of the observation period, it is possible to observe the transmission signal of mobile terminal 5 of C, which is located outside target area 30 at the start of the observation period and within target area 30 at the end of the observation period. Note that "people flow is uniform in target area 30" may also mean that the number of people per unit time flowing into target area 30 and the number of people per unit time flowing out of target area 30 are approximately equal.

[0043] On the other hand, if the mobile devices 5 held by people 6 moving through the target area 30 include a mobile device 5 with a transmission interval significantly shorter than the longest interval, double counting may occur when obtaining the unique number of physical addresses (for example, as shown in FIG. 5B , for a mobile device 5 held by person B, who moved from near the center of the target area 30 to outside the target area 30 during the observation period, and a mobile device 5 held by person C, who moved from outside the target area 30 to near the center of the target area 30, only the transmission signal from one of the mobile devices 5 needs to be observed by sensor 3. However, if the transmission interval of the transmission signal is short, the transmission signal will also be observed at the timing indicated by the dashed upward arrow, resulting in double counting), and the accuracy of the number of devices may accordingly decrease. To solve this problem, observation may also be performed in the period immediately prior to the observation period (hereinafter, this period will be referred to as the “immediately prior period”), and the physical addresses included in the transmission signals observed by sensor 3 during the immediately prior period may not be included in the acquisition of the unique number in the observation during the observation period. For example, if mobile terminals 5 owned by A and B transmit transmission signals during the immediately preceding period as shown in FIG. 5C, the transmission signal from mobile terminal 5 owned by B is observed in target area 30, and the physical address included in the transmission signal may not be included in the unique number acquisition target for observation during the observation period. In other words, mobile terminal 5 owned by B may not be counted in the number of terminals during the observation period. Note that the temporal length of the immediately preceding period may be the same as or longer than the temporal length of the observation period. Also, as shown in FIG. 5D, the immediately preceding period and the observation period are continuous, i.e., the end point of the immediately preceding period coincides with the start point of the observation period.

[0044] Specifically, when acquiring the unique number of physical addresses included in transmission signals observed by sensor 3 during the observation period, terminal number acquisition unit 13 may acquire the unique number by excluding physical addresses included in transmission signals observed by sensor 3 during the immediately preceding period. For example, terminal number acquisition unit 13 may acquire physical addresses from observation information corresponding to transmission signals observed by sensor 3 during the immediately preceding period, and when acquiring the number of terminals using the observation information corresponding to transmission signals observed by sensor 3 during the observation period, terminal number acquisition unit 13 may acquire the number of terminals by excluding observation information including physical addresses acquired from the observation information during the immediately preceding period. In this manner, terminal number acquisition unit 13 can acquire the number of terminals using the first transmission signal transmitted from mobile terminal 5 within the observation period in target area 30, thereby avoiding double counting of mobile terminal 5 with short transmission intervals. Note that this process is preferably performed when a large proportion of people in target area 30 are moving. In other words, it is preferably performed when target area 30 is an area where people move, such as a road or a passageway. This is because if the target area 30 is an area where people are likely to stay, such as a store or restaurant, the acquired number of terminals may be inaccurate. Therefore, if the target area 30 is an area where people are likely to stay, the length of the target area 30 does not need to be V×T, and the number of terminals in the observation period may be acquired without considering the physical addresses included in the transmission signals observed in the immediately preceding period.

[0045] Note that, in the case where a person is moving in the estimation target area, the estimation target area may have a length equal to or greater than the length obtained by multiplying the speed of the person moving in the estimation target area by the length of the estimated observation period, as in the target area. For example, if the speed of the person moving in the target area is different from the speed of the person moving in the estimation target area, it is preferable that the estimation target area have a length corresponding to the speed of the person moving in the estimation target area. Furthermore, while it is preferable that the target area not be large in consideration of the shooting range, there is no such restriction on the estimation target area. Therefore, the estimation target area may cover a larger range as long as it is equal to or greater than the length obtained by multiplying the speed of the person by the length of the estimated observation period. Furthermore, in the case where a person is moving in the estimation target area, as in the case of the target area, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 may, for example, acquire the unique number of physical addresses included in transmission signals observed by the sensor 3 in the immediately preceding period, which is the period immediately preceding the estimated observation period, when acquiring the unique number. As with the target area, if the estimated target area is an area where a person is likely to be staying, the length of the estimated target area does not need to be greater than the length obtained by multiplying the person's speed by the length of the estimated observation period, and the number of terminals in the estimated observation period may be obtained without taking into account the physical addresses contained in the transmission signals observed in the previous period.

[0046] The number of people acquisition unit 14 acquires the number of people present in the target area using captured images of the shooting area including the target area. The captured images are captured within the observation period. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a case will be mainly described where the shooting area 41 and the target area 31 are equal, but the shooting area 41 may be larger than the target area 31. In this case, the number of people acquisition unit 14 may acquire the number of people using an area of ​​the captured images that corresponds to the target area 31. Furthermore, the captured image may be an image captured by one camera 4, or may be a composite of images captured by two or more cameras 4. In the latter case, it becomes possible to acquire the number of people for a wider area.

[0047] The number of people acquisition unit 14 may, for example, recognize people 6 present in the target area through image processing and count the recognized people 6 to acquire the number of people in the target area. Furthermore, the number of people acquisition unit 14 may, for example, acquire the number of people using an image captured at one point in time during the observation period, or may acquire the number of people using images captured at multiple points in time. In the former case, for example, an image captured at the start or end of the observation period, or any point between the two, may be used. In the latter case, the number of people may be acquired using images captured at multiple points in time, and a representative value of the multiple numbers of people may be the final number of people. The representative value may, for example, be an average value, a median value, or the like.

[0048] The target area may include the area of ​​the gate through which the person passes. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing people 6 passing through multiple gates 8. In FIG. 6, the multiple people 6 move from right to left in the figure and pass through gate 8 along the way. Gate 8 may be, for example, an automatic ticket barrier for a train, an entrance / exit at an event venue, or a security gate through which people pass when entering a company. In FIG. 6, the target area 30 and the photographing area 40 are set to include the area of ​​gate 8. When passing through such a gate 8, people 6 move slowly in one direction, so the number of devices and the number of people can be obtained more accurately, and as a result, the device ownership rate can be calculated with higher accuracy. In this case, one or more estimated target areas may be set in the area upstream or downstream of the people flow relative to gate 8.

[0049] Calculation unit 15 calculates the terminal holding rate based on the number of terminals in the target area acquired by terminal number acquisition unit 13 and the number of people in the target area acquired by number of people acquisition unit 14. Note that the target area from which the number of terminals and the number of people are acquired is the same target area. Also, it is assumed that the number of terminals and the number of people are acquired based on the observation results of transmitted signals and captured images during a certain observation period. More specifically, calculation unit 15 may calculate the terminal holding rate using the following formula. Device ownership rate = number of devices / number of people

[0050] The estimation unit 16 estimates the number of people in the estimation target area based on the number of mobile terminals 5 in the estimation target area acquired by the terminal number acquisition unit 13 and the terminal holding rate calculated by the calculation unit 15. More specifically, the estimation unit 16 may calculate the number of people in the estimation target area using the following formula. Estimated number of people = Estimated number of devices in the target area / Device ownership rate

[0051] In addition, when there are multiple estimation target areas, the estimation unit 16 may, for example, estimate the number of people for each estimation target area and add up the estimated number of people for each estimation target area to obtain the estimated number of people for the multiple estimation target areas, or may estimate the total number of people in the multiple estimation target areas using the number of terminals obtained for all of the multiple estimation target areas and the terminal ownership rate.

[0052] The output unit 17 outputs the number of people estimated by the estimation unit 16. Furthermore, for example, when the number of people is estimated using the terminal ownership rate by a device other than the information processing device 1, the output unit 17 may output the terminal ownership rate calculated by the calculation unit 15. Here, this output may be, for example, a display on a display device (e.g., a CRT or an organic EL display), a transmission to a predetermined device via a communication line, a printing by a printer, an audio output by a speaker, storage on a recording medium, or a transfer to another component. The output unit 17 may or may not include a device that performs output (e.g., a display device or a communication device). The output unit 17 may be realized by hardware, or may be realized by software such as a driver that drives those devices.

[0053] Next, the operation of the information processing device 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. (Step S101) The reception unit 11 determines whether observation information or photography information has been received. If observation information or photography information has been received, the process proceeds to step S102, and if not, the process proceeds to step S103.

[0054] (Step S102) The reception unit 11 stores the received information in the storage unit 12. Then, the process returns to step S101.

[0055] (Step S103) Calculation unit 15 determines whether to calculate the terminal retention rate. If the terminal retention rate is to be calculated, the process proceeds to step S104, and if not, the process proceeds to step S108. Note that calculation unit 15 may, for example, periodically determine to calculate the terminal retention rate, or may determine to calculate the terminal retention rate in response to an instruction to calculate the terminal retention rate.

[0056] (Step S104) The terminal number acquisition unit 13 identifies the longest interval based on the observation of the transmission signal before the observation period, and sets the length of the observation period to be equal to or longer than the longest interval.

[0057] (Step S105) The terminal number acquisition unit 13 acquires the number of mobile terminals 5 within the target area in response to the observation of the transmission signal during the observation period of the length set in step S104.

[0058] (Step S106) The number of people acquisition unit 14 acquires the number of people 6 in the target area using the captured images acquired within the observation period.

[0059] (Step S107) The calculation unit 15 calculates the terminal holding rate using the number of terminals acquired in step S105 and the number of people acquired in step S106, and then returns to step S101.

[0060] (Step S108) The estimation unit 16 determines whether to estimate the number of people in the estimation target area. If the number of people is to be estimated, the process proceeds to step S109; if not, the process returns to step S101. Note that the estimation unit 16 may, for example, periodically determine to estimate the number of people, or may determine to estimate the number of people in response to an instruction to estimate the number of people.

[0061] (Step S109) The terminal number acquisition unit 13 acquires the number of mobile terminals 5 within the estimation target area in response to observation of the transmission signal during the period of time set in step S104.

[0062] (Step S110) The estimation unit 16 estimates the number of people in the estimation target area using the terminal holding rate calculated in step S107 and the number of terminals acquired in step S109.

[0063] (Step S111) The output unit 17 outputs the estimated number of people acquired in step S110, and then the process returns to step S101.

[0064] In the flowchart of FIG. 3, if the number of terminals in the estimation target area is acquired before the terminal holding rate is calculated, the length of the observation period may be set before the number of terminals is acquired. In this case, the number of people in the estimation target area may be estimated after the number of terminals in the estimation target area is acquired and the terminal holding rate is calculated. In addition, if observation information or photographic information is transmitted in response to a transmission request from the information processing device 1, the information processing device 1 may transmit a transmission request to the sensor 3 or the camera 4 when calculating the terminal holding rate or estimating the number of people in the estimation target area. In addition, the processing order in the flowchart of FIG. 3 is an example, and the order of each step may be changed as long as similar results are obtained. In the flowchart of FIG. 3, the processing ends when the power is turned off or an interrupt is issued to end the processing.

[0065] Next, the operation of the information processing device 1 according to this embodiment will be described using a specific example. In this specific example, it is assumed that batch processing is performed in the information processing device 1. Therefore, it is assumed that one day's worth of observation information and photographic information is stored in the information processing device 1, and that this information is used to perform processes such as calculating the terminal ownership rate and estimating the number of people at a predetermined time (such as 2:00 AM in this specific example).

[0066] In this specific example, as shown in Fig. 1, the device holding rate is calculated in a target area 31, and the number of people in an estimated target area 32 is estimated using the device holding rate. In Fig. 1, a person 6 is assumed to be moving along the road from the right to the left in the figure. In this specific example, the start time of the observation period is assumed to be predetermined.

[0067] When a probe request is transmitted from the mobile terminal 5, each sensor 3 receives the probe request, reads the MAC address, which is the physical address, from the probe request, and acquires the observation time from the clock unit or calendar unit. Then, the sensor 3 transmits observation information including the read physical address and observation time to the information processing device 1.

[0068] Furthermore, the camera 4 periodically captures a captured image of the image capturing area 41 and acquires the capture time from the clock unit and calendar unit. Then, the camera 4 transmits to the information processing device 1 capture information including the captured image and the capture time.

[0069] When the reception unit 11 of the information processing device 1 receives the observation information transmitted from the sensor 3 and the photographic information transmitted from the camera 4, it stores them in the storage unit 12 (steps S101 and S102). Note that the reception unit 11 stores the observation information received from the sensor 3-1 and the observation information received from the sensor 3-2 in a manner that allows them to be distinguished from each other.

[0070] At 2:00 AM, the calculation unit 15 determines to calculate the terminal holding rate and sends an instruction to the terminal number acquisition unit 13 to acquire the number of terminals, and sends an instruction to the number of people acquisition unit 14 to acquire the number of people (step S103). Upon receiving the instruction, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 identifies observation information for a predetermined period (e.g., 10 minutes) prior to the observation period from the observation information stored in the storage unit 12. The observation information to be identified may be, for example, observation information received from the sensor 3-1 or from the sensor 3-2. The terminal number acquisition unit 13 then acquires an observation time corresponding to a certain physical address from the identified observation information, identifies the interval between the acquired observation times, and acquires a representative value of the interval. The representative value may be, for example, an average value, a median value, a minimum value, a maximum value, or the like. For example, if a person carrying a mobile terminal 5 leaves the coverage area of ​​the sensor 3 and then returns to the coverage area, the transmission interval identified using the observation information may be longer than the actual transmission interval of the mobile terminal 5. To avoid this, for example, the minimum value may be used as the representative value.The terminal number acquisition unit 13 then repeats this process for each physical address to acquire the transmission interval for each of the multiple physical addresses, identifies the longest interval among the transmission intervals, and sets the length of the observation period to the identified longest interval (step S104).

[0071] Next, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 identifies observation information including an observation time included in the observation period from the start point of a predetermined observation period to the end point according to the length of the set observation period. The observation information to be identified is transmitted from the sensor 3-1. The terminal number acquisition unit 13 also reads out the physical addresses from the identified observation information, acquires the number of terminals, which is a unique number of the multiple physical addresses, and passes the number of terminals to the calculation unit 15 (step S105).

[0072] Furthermore, upon receiving an instruction from the calculation unit 15, the number of people acquisition unit 14 identifies shooting information including shooting times included in the observation period from the start point of a predetermined observation period to the end point according to the length of the observation period set by the terminal number acquisition unit 13. If there are multiple pieces of shooting information for the identified target, the number of people acquisition unit 14 identifies the shooting information including the shooting time closest to the start point of the observation period and the shooting information including the shooting time closest to the end point of the observation period. In other words, the first shooting information and the last shooting information in the observation period are identified. Then, the number of people acquisition unit 14 recognizes people in the captured images included in the identified shooting information, counts the number of recognized people, and acquires the number of people in the target area 31, and passes the number of people to the calculation unit 15 (step S106). If two pieces of shooting information are identified, the average of the number of people acquired from each of the two captured images is set as the final number of people.

[0073] Upon receiving the number of terminals and the number of people, the calculation unit 15 uses them to calculate a terminal holding rate and passes the calculated rate to the estimation unit 16 (step S107). Furthermore, upon receiving the terminal holding rate, the estimation unit 16 determines to estimate the number of people and passes an instruction to the terminal number acquisition unit 13 to acquire the number of terminals in the estimation target area (step S108). Upon receiving the instruction to acquire the number of terminals in the estimation target area, the terminal number acquisition unit 13 identifies observation information including an observation time included in a predetermined estimation observation period, reads each physical address from the identified observation information, acquires the number of terminals, which is the unique number of multiple physical addresses, and passes the acquired number of terminals to the estimation unit 16 (step S109). This number of terminals is the number of terminals in the estimation target area 32. The observation information to be identified is transmitted from the sensor 3-2. Furthermore, as described above, the length of the estimation observation period is assumed to be the same as the length of the observation period. Furthermore, it is preferable that the start point of the estimation observation period and the start point of the observation period are close to each other, for example, within 30 minutes. In this example, it is assumed that the start points of both periods are the same.

[0074] Upon receiving the number of terminals, the estimation unit 16 calculates the number of people in the estimation target area 32 using the received terminal holding rate and number of terminals, and passes the calculated number of people to the output unit 17 (step S110). Upon receiving the estimated number of people from the estimation unit 16, the output unit 17 outputs the estimated number of people (step S111). In this way, it becomes possible to know the number of people in the estimation target area 32, estimated based on the terminal holding rate calculated using the number of terminals and the number of people in the target area 31, and the number of terminals in the estimation target area 32. Note that in this specific example, a case where batch processing is performed has been described, but in the case of real-time processing, substantially the same processing is performed after the end of the observation period, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0075] As described above, according to the information processing device 1 of this embodiment, by setting the length of the observation period to be equal to or greater than the longest interval, the sensor 3 can observe the transmission signal of each mobile terminal 5 present in the target area at least once throughout the entire observation period. Therefore, even when a transmission signal is transmitted intermittently from a mobile terminal 5, a more accurate terminal holding rate can be calculated. As a result, the accuracy of the estimation result of the number of people in the estimation target area can be improved. Furthermore, by using the physical address included in the transmission signal, double counting can be prevented even if a transmission signal is observed more than once. Furthermore, the number of people can be estimated at a lower cost than when a camera is used to acquire the number of people in the estimation target area. Furthermore, by having the terminal number acquisition unit 13 set the length of the observation period in accordance with the observation of transmission signals from multiple mobile terminals 5, the length of the observation period can be set to an appropriate value in accordance with the actual transmission status of the transmission signal, thereby improving the accuracy of the terminal holding rate.

[0076] Furthermore, by setting the length of the target area to be equal to the product of the speed of a person moving through the target area and the length of the observation period, it becomes possible to properly observe the transmission signals sent from the mobile terminals 5 held by people moving through the target area, and as a result, it becomes possible to calculate a more accurate terminal holding rate.

[0077] Next, a modification of this embodiment will be described. [Target area that is a part of the coverage area] In this embodiment, the case where the target area coincides with the coverage area has been mainly described, but this is not necessarily the case. The target area may be a part of the coverage area. In this case, for example, the target area may be an area in the coverage area where the radio wave intensity of a transmission signal exceeds a predetermined threshold. For example, by acquiring the number of terminals using transmission signals received by sensor 3 whose radio wave intensity exceeds a predetermined threshold, the target area can be limited to an area in the coverage area where the radio wave intensity of a transmission signal exceeds a predetermined threshold. In this case, as described above, for example, the observation information may include radio wave intensity, and the number of terminals may be acquired using only the observation information whose radio wave intensity exceeds a threshold.

[0078] [Target area included in the overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas] As shown in FIG. 7 , transmission signals transmitted from multiple mobile terminals 5 can be observed by multiple sensors 3, and the target area 33 may be an overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas 31 and 32 corresponding to multiple sensors 3-1 and 3-2, respectively. While FIG. 7 illustrates a case in which the target area 33 coincides with the overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas 31 and 32, the target area may also be included in the overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas. Furthermore, the target area may be included in, for example, the overlapping area of ​​two coverage areas, or the overlapping area of ​​three or more coverage areas. Furthermore, while FIG. 7 illustrates a case in which the capture area 40 captured by camera 4 coincides with the target area 33, the capture area 40 may also include the target area 33. In this way, the target area can be further limited by being included in the overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas. Even in this case, the target area can be limited to an area narrower than the overlapping area of ​​multiple coverage areas, for example, by acquiring the number of terminals using a transmission signal whose radio wave intensity exceeds a predetermined threshold.

[0079] [Other variations] In the present embodiment, the physical address has been mainly described as a MAC address included in a wireless signal conforming to the IEEE802.11 standard, but the physical address may be a MAC address conforming to other standards. For example, the physical address may be a MAC address conforming to Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0080] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a case has been described in which information processing device 1 also estimates the number of people using the device holding rate, but this is not necessarily the case. The number of people may be estimated using the device holding rate by another device. In this case, information processing device 1 does not need to include estimation unit 16, and terminal number acquisition unit 13 does not need to acquire the number of terminals in the estimation target area. Furthermore, output unit 17 may output the device holding rate calculated by calculation unit 15.

[0081] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the case where observation information acquired by the sensor 3 and photographic information acquired by the camera 4 are transmitted to the information processing device 1 via a communication line has been mainly described, but the method by which the observation information and photographic information are input to the information processing device 1 is not important. For example, the observation information and photographic information may be input to the information processing device 1 via a recording medium or the like.

[0082] In addition, in the present embodiment, the case where the information processing device 1 and the sensor 3 are separate devices has been mainly described, but this is not necessarily the case. For example, any of the sensors 3 may have the functions of the information processing device 1.

[0083] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the case where the information processing device 1 and the camera 4 are separate devices has been mainly described, but this is not necessarily the case. For example, the camera 4 may have the functions of the information processing device 1.

[0084] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, each process or function may be realized by centralized processing by a single device or a single system, or may be realized by distributed processing by multiple devices or multiple systems.

[0085] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the transfer of information between components may be performed, for example, by one component outputting information and the other component receiving information if the two components transferring the information are physically different, or by moving from a processing phase corresponding to one component to a processing phase corresponding to the other component if the two components transferring the information are physically the same.

[0086] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, information related to the processing performed by each component, such as information accepted, acquired, selected, generated, transmitted, or received by each component, and information such as thresholds, formulas, and addresses used in processing by each component, may be temporarily or long-term stored in a recording medium (not shown), even if not explicitly stated in the above description. Furthermore, the storage of information in the recording medium (not shown) may be performed by each component or a storage unit (not shown). Furthermore, the reading of information from the recording medium (not shown) may be performed by each component or a reading unit (not shown).

[0087] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, if the information used by each component, such as thresholds, addresses, and various setting values ​​used by each component in processing, may be changed by the user, the user may or may not be able to change the information as appropriate, even if not explicitly stated in the above description. If the information is changeable by the user, the change may be realized, for example, by a receiving unit (not shown) that receives a change instruction from the user and a changing unit (not shown) that changes the information in accordance with the change instruction. The change instruction may be received by the receiving unit (not shown), for example, from an input device, by receiving information transmitted via a communication line, or by receiving information read from a predetermined recording medium.

[0088] Also, in the above embodiment, when two or more components included in the information processing device 1 have a communication device, an input device, etc., the two or more components may physically have a single device, or may have separate devices.

[0089] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, each component may be configured with dedicated hardware, or, for components that can be realized by software, may be realized by executing a program. For example, each component may be realized by a program execution unit such as a CPU reading and executing a software program recorded on a recording medium such as a hard disk or semiconductor memory. During execution, the program execution unit may execute the program while accessing a storage unit or recording medium. The software for realizing the information processing device 1 in the above-described embodiments is the following program. That is, this program causes a computer to function as: a terminal number acquisition unit that acquires the number of mobile terminals present in a target area in response to observation by one or more sensors of transmission signals including physical addresses intermittently transmitted from multiple mobile terminals present in a target area included in the coverage area of ​​one or more sensors during a predetermined observation period; a number of people acquisition unit that acquires the number of people present in the target area using images captured during the observation period of the capture area including the target area; and a calculation unit that calculates a terminal holding rate based on the number of terminals in the target area and the number of people in the target area, wherein the length of the observation period is equal to or longer than the longest interval, which is the longest transmission interval among the transmission intervals of the transmission signals from the multiple mobile terminals.

[0090] Note that the functions realized by the program do not include functions that can only be realized by hardware, such as a modem or interface card in an acquisition unit that acquires information or an output unit that outputs information.

[0091] This program may be executed by being downloaded from a server or the like, or by being read from a predetermined recording medium (for example, an optical disk such as a CD-ROM, a magnetic disk, or a semiconductor memory). This program may also be used as a program constituting a program product.

[0092] Furthermore, the computer that executes this program may be a single computer or multiple computers, and may perform centralized processing or distributed processing.

[0093] 8 is a diagram showing an example of a computer system 900 that executes the above program to realize the information processing device 1 according to the above embodiment. The above embodiment can be realized by computer hardware and a computer program executed thereon.

[0094] 8, computer system 900 includes an MPU (Micro Processing Unit) 911, a ROM 912 such as a flash memory that stores programs such as a boot-up program, application programs, system programs, and data, a RAM 913 connected to MPU 911 that temporarily stores instructions for application programs and provides temporary storage space, a wireless communication module 915, and a bus 916 that interconnects MPU 911, ROM 912, etc. Note that a wired communication module may be provided instead of wireless communication module 915. An input / output device such as a touch panel may also be provided, and instead of the touch panel, a display and input devices such as a mouse and a keyboard may be provided.

[0095] A program that causes the computer system 900 to execute the functions of the information processing device 1 according to the above embodiment may be stored in the ROM 912 via the wireless communication module 915. The program is loaded into the RAM 913 when executed. The program may also be loaded directly from the network.

[0096] The program does not necessarily include an operating system (OS) or a third-party program that causes the computer system 900 to execute the functions of the information processing device 1 according to the above embodiment. The program may include only instructions that call appropriate functions or modules in a controlled manner to achieve the desired results. How the computer system 900 operates is well known, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0097] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible, and it goes without saying that these modifications are also included within the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0098] 1. Information processing equipment 3, 3-1, 3-2 Sensor 5. Mobile devices 4. Camera 11 Reception 12 Storage section 13 Terminal number acquisition unit 14 Number of people acquisition part 15 Calculation section 16 Estimation part 17 Output section

Claims

1. a terminal number acquisition unit that acquires the number of mobile terminals present in a target area included in the coverage area of ​​one or more sensors in response to observation by the one or more sensors of transmission signals including physical addresses that are intermittently transmitted from the mobile terminals present in the target area, during a predetermined observation period; a number-of-people acquisition unit that acquires the number of people present in the target area using images captured within the observation period of the imaging area including the target area; a calculation unit that calculates a terminal ownership rate based on the number of terminals in the target area and the number of people in the target area, An information processing device, wherein the length of the observation period is equal to or longer than the longest interval, which is the longest transmission interval among transmission intervals of transmission signals from a plurality of mobile terminals.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the terminal number acquisition unit sets the length of the observation period in accordance with observation of transmission signals from a plurality of mobile terminals.

3. 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the target area has a length equal to or greater than a length obtained by multiplying a speed of a person moving through the target area by a length of the observation period.

4. The signals transmitted from multiple mobile devices are observed by multiple sensors, The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the target area is included in an overlapping area of ​​a plurality of coverage areas respectively corresponding to the plurality of sensors.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the target area is a coverage area in which the radio wave intensity of a transmission signal exceeds a predetermined threshold.

6. the terminal number acquisition unit also acquires the number of mobile terminals present in the estimated target area in response to observation by another sensor of transmission signals transmitted from a plurality of mobile terminals present in an estimated target area, which is an area different from the target area and through which people passing through the target area pass, for the same length as the observation period; The information processing device according to claim 1 , further comprising an estimation unit that estimates the number of people in the estimation target area based on the number of mobile terminals in the estimation target area and the terminal holding rate.

7. The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the target area includes an area of ​​a gate through which a person passes.

8. A step of acquiring the number of mobile terminals present in a target area included in the coverage area of ​​one or more sensors in response to observation by the one or more sensors of transmission signals including physical addresses intermittently transmitted from the mobile terminals present in the target area, during a predetermined observation period; obtaining the number of people present in the target area using images captured within the observation period of the imaging area including the target area; and calculating a terminal ownership rate based on the number of terminals in the target area and the number of people in the target area, An information processing method, wherein the length of the observation period is equal to or longer than the longest interval, which is the longest transmission interval among transmission intervals of transmission signals from a plurality of mobile terminals.

9. Computer, a terminal number acquisition unit that acquires the number of mobile terminals present in a target area included in the coverage area of ​​one or more sensors in response to observation by the one or more sensors of transmission signals including physical addresses that are intermittently transmitted from the mobile terminals present in the target area; a number-of-people acquisition unit that acquires the number of people present in the target area using images captured within the observation period of an imaging area including the target area; a calculation unit that calculates a terminal ownership rate based on the number of terminals in the target area and the number of people in the target area; The program, wherein the length of the observation period is equal to or longer than the longest interval, which is the longest transmission interval among transmission intervals of transmission signals from a plurality of mobile terminals.

Images