Information processing device, information processing method, and recording medium

Abstract

This information processing device comprises: an information acquisition means that acquires authenticated person information regarding an authenticated person; a determination means that determines whether the authenticated person is a subject on the basis of the authenticated person information; and a billing means that bills a charge related to the authenticated person to a payer associated with the authenticated person when it is determined that the authenticated person is a subject.

Description

Information processing device, information processing method, and recording medium

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical fields of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium.

[0002] One such device proposed is one that performs facial recognition by comparing the facial information of a person in an authentication range with the facial information of a registered person based on an image of the authentication range, and controls the opening and closing of an aisle door located in the aisle based on the facial recognition results (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2021-149257

[0004] An object of this disclosure is to provide an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium that aim to improve upon the techniques described in prior art documents.

[0005] One aspect of the information processing device includes an information acquisition means for acquiring authenticated person information regarding the authenticated person, a determination means for determining whether the authenticated person is a target based on the authenticated person information, and a billing means for billing a payer linked to the authenticated person for a fee related to the authenticated person if the authenticated person is determined to be a target.

[0006] One aspect of the information processing method involves obtaining authenticated person information regarding the authenticated person, determining whether the authenticated person is a target based on the authenticated person information, and if it is determined that the authenticated person is a target, charging a fee related to the authenticated person to a payer linked to the authenticated person.

[0007] One aspect of the recording medium has recorded thereon a computer program for causing a computer to execute an information processing method that acquires authenticated person information regarding an authenticated person, determines whether the authenticated person is a target based on the authenticated person information, and, if it is determined that the authenticated person is a target, bills a payer linked to the authenticated person for fees related to the authenticated person.

[0008] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing device. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a registration information database. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a ticket gate system. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing another example of the configuration of an information processing device. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a ticket gate area. FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the person tracking process. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an ID correspondence table. FIG. 9 is an example of an image showing the history of railway use. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing another example of the configuration of an information processing device. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information processing device according to the third embodiment. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of warning information related to a lost child.

[0009] First Embodiment A first embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3. Hereinafter, the first embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described using an information processing device 10.

[0010] 1, an information processing device 10 includes an information acquisition unit 11, a determination unit 12, a billing processing unit 13, and a registration information database 14. The registration information database 14 will be hereinafter referred to as "registration information DB 14" as appropriate.

[0011] The information processing device 10 may bill users of places where a fee is charged for at least one of entering and exiting, such as a station or a theme park.

[0012] The information acquisition unit 11 acquires authenticatee information related to the authenticatee. Here, the authenticatee information is information used for matching with the registered information registered in the registered information DB 14. The authenticatee information may be, for example, at least one of an image including the authenticatee (in other words, an image in which the authenticatee is captured) and identification information for identifying the authenticatee. The identification information may be optically readable information such as a two-dimensional barcode. In this case, the identification information may be read from the image including the authenticatee. The identification information may be information electrically or magnetically read from a recording medium such as an integrated circuit (IC) chip. The two-dimensional barcode may be displayed on at least one of paper (e.g., at least one of a student ID card, a commuter pass, and a ticket), a terminal device screen, a tag (e.g., a luggage tag), and clothing.

[0013] The determination unit 12 may identify a registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated by comparing the person to be authenticated with the registration information registered in the registration information DB 14. Note that "registrant" refers to a person whose registration information is registered in the registration information DB. If the person to be authenticated is an image (i.e., an image including the person to be authenticated), the determination unit 12 may identify a registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated by performing biometric authentication (e.g., at least one of face authentication and iris authentication). If the person to be authenticated is the above-mentioned identification information, the determination unit 12 may identify a registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated by comparing the identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit 11 with registration information corresponding to the identification information registered in the registration information DB 14.

[0014] The determination unit 12 determines whether the person to be authenticated (in other words, the registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated) is a target. If it is determined that the person to be authenticated is a target, the billing processing unit 13 bills the payer linked to the person to be authenticated for the fee related to the person to be authenticated.

[0015] For example, the "subject" may be a ward such as a child. In this case, the "payer" may be a guardian such as a parent. Note that the ward is not limited to a child and may include, for example, at least one of an adult ward and a person under guardianship. The guardian is not limited to a parent and may include, for example, at least one of a relative, an adult guardian, and a guardian. For example, the "subject" may be a member of a group (e.g., a participant in a group tour). In this case, the "payer" may be at least one of the group leader (e.g., a tour conductor), the organization to which the leader belongs (i.e., a corporation), and the representative of the organization.

[0016] Here, a specific example will be described in which the "subject" is a protected person and the "payer" is a guardian. First, the registration information DB 14 will be described with reference to FIG. 2. In FIG. 2, an authentication ID is registered in the registration information DB 14 as identification information for identifying each of a plurality of registrants. Information on each of the plurality of registrants is linked to the authentication ID and registered in the registration information DB 14. The authentication ID of one registrant may be linked to at least one of authentication information, guardian information, protected person information, and payment information.

[0017] The authentication information may be information to be matched with the authentication subject information. For example, when a registered person corresponding to the authentication subject is identified by biometric authentication, the authentication information may be at least one of facial information and iris information. In this case, the authentication information may be at least one of a facial image and an iris image of the registered person. The authentication information may be at least one of a facial feature amount and an iris feature amount of the registered person. For example, when a registered person corresponding to the authentication subject is identified by identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit 11, the authentication information may be character information corresponding to the acquired identification information.

[0018] In FIG. 2 , a registrant with an authentication ID of "00001" and a registrant with an authentication ID of "00002" are assumed to be parent and child. In this case, the authentication ID (i.e., "00001") of the parent registrant is linked to the authentication ID (i.e., "00002") of the child registrant as protected information. The authentication ID (i.e., "00002") of the child registrant is linked to the authentication ID (i.e., "00001") of the parent registrant as guardian information. Furthermore, the authentication ID (i.e., "00001") of the parent registrant is linked to payment information. On the other hand, the authentication ID (i.e., "00002") of the child registrant does not need to be linked to payment information.

[0019] The payment information is information related to a payment method. The payment method may include, for example, at least one of a bank account, electronic money, a credit card, a debit card, and a prepaid card. If a registrant is neither a guardian nor a ward, guardian information and warded person information may not be linked to the authentication ID of the registrant in the registration information DB 14 (for example, the guardian information field and the warded person information field may be blank). Two or more guardian information items may be linked to the authentication ID of a registrant who is a ward. Similarly, two or more warded person information items may be linked to the authentication ID of a registrant who is a guardian. A maximum limit may be set for the number of guardian information items that can be linked to the authentication ID of a registrant who is a ward. Similarly, a maximum limit may be set for the number of warded persons that can be linked to the authentication ID of a registrant who is a guardian. Protected person information does not need to be registered in the registration information DB 14.

[0020] The determination unit 12 may determine that the person to be authenticated is a target (e.g., a protected person) when guardian information is linked to the authentication ID of a registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated. The determination unit 12 may determine that the person to be authenticated is not a target when guardian information is not linked to the authentication ID of a registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated.

[0021] If the determination unit 12 determines that the person to be authenticated is a target, the billing processing unit 13 may identify a registrant as the guardian of the person to be authenticated based on guardian information linked to the authentication ID of a registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated. The billing processing unit 13 may acquire payment information linked to the authentication ID of the identified registrant. The billing processing unit 13 may invoice the registrant (i.e., the payer of the fee related to the person to be authenticated) for the fee related to the person to be authenticated based on the acquired payment information.

[0022] Next, the operation of the information processing device 10 will be described with reference to the flowchart in Fig. 3. In Fig. 3, the information acquisition unit 11 of the information processing device 10 acquires authentication-subject information (step S101). The determination unit 12 of the information processing device 10 determines whether the authentication-subject person is a target based on the authentication-subject information (step S102).

[0023] If it is determined in the processing of step S102 that the person to be authenticated is the target (step S102: Yes), the billing processing unit 13 of the information processing device 10 bills the payer linked to the person to be authenticated (for example, if the person to be authenticated is a protected person, the guardian of the person to be authenticated) for the fee related to the person to be authenticated (step S103).

[0024] If it is determined in the process of step S102 that the person to be authenticated is not the target (step S102: No), the billing processing unit 13 bills the person to be authenticated for the fee related to the person to be authenticated (step S104).

[0025] In this way, the information processing device 10 obtains the authenticated person information regarding the authenticated person, determines whether the authenticated person is a target based on the authenticated person information, and if it is determined that the authenticated person is a target, an information processing method is performed in which the fee related to the authenticated person is charged to the payer linked to the authenticated person.

[0026] The information processing device 10 described above may be realized by a computer reading a computer program recorded on a recording medium. In this case, the recording medium can be said to have recorded thereon a computer program for causing a computer to execute an information processing method that acquires authenticatee information about a person to be authenticated, determines whether the person to be authenticated is a target based on the authenticatee information, and, if it is determined that the person to be authenticated is a target, bills a payer linked to the person to pay the fee related to the person to be authenticated.

[0027] (Technical Effect) Even a protected person, such as a child, may incur service fees (e.g., train fares, theme park admission fees, etc.). On the other hand, protected persons often do not have their own means of payment. For example, if a protected person visits a place where payment can be made using biometric authentication, and the protected person is unable to make payment using biometric authentication because the protected person does not have their own means of payment, this could reduce convenience for the protected person.

[0028] For example, theme parks sometimes charge lower prices for group visitors than for regular visitors. In addition, the group visitor fee is often paid collectively by a group representative (e.g., a guide). For example, if biometric authentication is used to manage admission to a theme park and collect admission fees, and the admission fees are collected (in other words, billed) using payment information linked to each authenticated person, it may be difficult for the system to distinguish between group visitors and regular visitors.

[0029] In response to these requests, when the information processing device 10 determines that the authenticated person is a target (e.g., at least one of a protected person and a member of an organization), the fee for the authenticated person is billed to a payer (e.g., at least one of a guardian and a group leader) associated with the authenticated person. For example, when the protected person visits a location where payment can be made using biometric authentication, the information processing device 10 allows the protected person to use payment using biometric authentication. Furthermore, the information processing device 10 can easily distinguish between group guests and general guests, for example. Additionally, the information processing device 10 can appropriately collect fees from the authenticated person, who is, for example, at least one of a protected person and a member of an organization.

[0030] Second Embodiment A second embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described with reference to Figures 4 to 9. The second embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described below using an information processing device 20. Note that, for the second embodiment, descriptions that overlap with those of the first embodiment will be omitted as appropriate.

[0031] In the second embodiment, an example in which the information processing device 20 is applied to a railway ticket gate system 1 will be described.

[0032] (Overview of Ticket Gating System 1) An overview of the ticket gate system 1 will be described with reference to Figure 4. In Figure 4, the ticket gate system 1 includes an information processing device 20, a station server 41 and an information acquisition unit 31 installed at station A, and a station server 42 and an information acquisition unit 32 installed at station B. The information processing device 20 and each of the station servers 41 and 42 are connected via a network NW. At station A, the information acquisition unit 31 and the station server 41 may be connected via a narrow area network such as a local area network (LAN). Similarly, at station B, the information acquisition unit 32 and the station server 42 may be connected via a narrow area network.

[0033] The information acquisition units 31 and 32 may include, for example, at least one of an optical reader such as a camera or a barcode reader, and a reader that electrically or magnetically reads a recording medium. The information acquisition unit 31 may transmit the acquired information to the station server 41. The station server 41 may transmit the information acquired from the information acquisition unit 31 to the information processing device 20 via the network NW. The information acquisition unit 32 may transmit the acquired information to the station server 42. The station server 42 may transmit the information acquired from the information acquisition unit 32 to the information processing device 20 via the network NW.

[0034] The ticket gate system 1 does not necessarily have to include at least one of the station servers 41 and 42. In this case, at least one of the information acquisition units 31 and 32 may be connected to the information processing device 20 via the network NW.

[0035] (Configuration of information processing device 20) The configuration of the information processing device 20 will be described with reference to Fig. 5. In Fig. 5, the information processing device 20 includes a calculation device 21, a storage device 22, and a communication device 23. The information processing device 20 may further include an input device 24 and an output device 25. The information processing device 20 may include a registration information database 26 (hereinafter, appropriately referred to as "registration information DB 26"). Note that the information processing device 20 does not need to include at least one of the input device 24 and the output device 25. In the information processing device 20, the calculation device 21, the storage device 22, the communication device 23, the input device 24, the output device 25, and the registration information DB 26 may be connected via a data bus 27.

[0036] The arithmetic device 21 may include, for example, at least one of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), a TPU (Tensor Processing Unit), and a quantum processor.

[0037] The storage device 22 may include, for example, at least one of a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a hard disk device, a magneto-optical disk device, an SSD (Solid State Drive), and an optical disk array. In other words, the storage device 22 may include a non-transitory recording medium. The storage device 22 is capable of storing desired data. For example, the storage device 22 may temporarily store a computer program executed by the arithmetic device 21. The storage device 22 may temporarily store data that is temporarily used by the arithmetic device 21 when the arithmetic device 21 is executing a computer program.

[0038] The communication device 23 may be capable of communicating with devices external to the information processing device 20. The communication device 23 may perform wired communication or wireless communication.

[0039] The input device 24 is a device capable of accepting information input to the information processing device 20 from the outside. The input device 24 may include an operating device (e.g., a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, etc.) that can be operated by an operator of the information processing device 20. The input device 24 may include a recording medium reading device that can read information recorded on a recording medium that is detachable from the information processing device 20, such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory. Note that when information is input to the information processing device 20 via the communication device 23 (in other words, when the concession processing device 20 obtains information via the communication device 23), the communication device 23 may function as an input device.

[0040] The output device 25 is a device capable of outputting information to the outside of the information processing device 20. The output device 25 may output visual information such as text or images, auditory information such as sound, or tactile information such as vibration, as the information. The output device 25 may include, for example, at least one of a display, a speaker, a printer, and a vibration motor. The output device 25 may be capable of outputting information to a recording medium detachable from the information processing device 20, such as a USB memory. Note that when the information processing device 20 outputs information via the communication device 23, the communication device 23 may function as the output device.

[0041] The computing device 21 may have an information acquisition unit 211, a tracking unit 212, a determination unit 213, a billing processing unit 214, and a registration processing unit 215 as logically realized functional blocks or as physically realized processing circuits.

[0042] At least one of the information acquisition unit 211, the tracing unit 212, the determination unit 213, the billing processing unit 214, and the registration processing unit 215 may be realized in a format in which a logical function block and a physical processing circuit (i.e., hardware) are mixed. When at least some of the information acquisition unit 211, the tracing unit 212, the determination unit 213, the billing processing unit 214, and the registration processing unit 215 are function blocks, at least some of the information acquisition unit 211, the tracing unit 212, the determination unit 213, the billing processing unit 214, and the registration processing unit 215 may be realized by the calculation device 21 executing a predetermined computer program.

[0043] The arithmetic device 21 may acquire (in other words, read) the predetermined computer program from the storage device 22. The arithmetic device 21 may read the predetermined computer program stored in a computer-readable, non-transitory recording medium using a recording medium reading device (not shown) included in the information processing device 20. The arithmetic device 21 may acquire (in other words, download or read) the predetermined computer program from a device (not shown) external to the information processing device 20 via the communication device 23. Note that the recording medium for recording the predetermined computer program executed by the arithmetic device 21 may be at least one of an optical disk, a magnetic medium, a magneto-optical disk, a semiconductor memory, and any other medium capable of storing a program.

[0044] In addition, the "information acquisition unit 211", "judgment unit 213", "claim processing unit 214" and "registration information DB 26" are components corresponding to the "information acquisition unit 11", "judgment unit 12", "claim processing unit 13" and "registration information DB 14" in the first embodiment described above, respectively.

[0045] (Overview of the ticket gate area) The ticket gate area of ​​Station A will be described with reference to Figure 6. In Figure 6, the dashed line indicates the boundary between inside and outside the ticket gates of Station A. In Figure 6, the area above the dashed line corresponds to the area inside the ticket gates of Station A (i.e., the area where a usage fee is incurred). In Figure 6, the area below the dashed line corresponds to the area outside the ticket gates of Station A. Note that the dashed line is shown merely for convenience of explanation. A line corresponding to the dashed line in Figure 6 does not need to be drawn in the actual ticket gate area of ​​Station A. Note that a gate device having an openable and closable member (e.g., a flap) may be located at the position corresponding to the dashed line.

[0046] In Fig. 6 , authentication areas Ar1 and Ar2 may be set near the dashed line (i.e., the boundary between inside and outside the ticket gates of the station). The authentication areas Ar1 and Ar2 are virtual areas. A person entering a station (e.g., person P1 in Fig. 6 ) passes through the authentication area Ar1 from outside the ticket gates of Station A toward inside the ticket gates of Station A and crosses the dashed line to enter Station A. A person leaving Station A (e.g., person P2 in Fig. 6 ) passes through the authentication area Ar2 from inside the ticket gates of Station A toward outside the ticket gates of Station A and crosses the dashed line to exit Station A.

[0047] 6 are merely examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The authentication area (e.g., at least one of the authentication areas Ar1 and Ar2) may be appropriately set in consideration of at least one of the structure of the station building, the traffic rules, and the number of passengers getting on and off.

[0048] Camera CAM1 is installed so as to be able to capture an image of authentication area Ar1. Note that camera CAM1 does not have to be installed so that the entire authentication area Ar1 is included within its angle of view. In other words, camera CAM1 may be installed so as to be able to capture an image of at least a portion of authentication area Ar1. Note that in addition to camera CAM1, one or more other cameras capable of capturing an image of at least a portion of authentication area Ar1 may be installed in the ticket gate area.

[0049] Camera CAM2 is installed so as to be able to capture an image of authentication area Ar2. Note that camera CAM2 does not have to be installed so that the entire authentication area Ar2 is included within its angle of view. In other words, camera CAM2 may be installed so as to be able to capture an image of at least a portion of authentication area Ar2. Note that in addition to camera CAM2, one or more other cameras capable of capturing an image of at least a portion of authentication area Ar2 may be installed in the ticket gate area.

[0050] The cameras CAM1 and CAM2 correspond to specific examples of the information acquisition unit 31. In other words, the information acquisition unit 31 may include the cameras CAM1 and CAM2. The cameras CAM1 and CAM2 may be installed in a position that does not interfere with the passage of users at Station A (for example, a position higher than the heads of users). The cameras CAM1 and CAM2 may be high-resolution cameras such as 4K resolution cameras. Instead of the cameras CAM1 and CAM2, a single camera capable of capturing images of the authentication areas Ar1 and Ar2 may be installed in the ticket gate area of ​​Station A.

[0051] The ticket gate area of ​​Station B may be the same as the ticket gate area of ​​Station A shown in Fig. 6. In this case, the information acquisition unit 32 may include, at Station B, one camera capable of capturing an image of an authentication area corresponding to authentication area Ar1, and another camera capable of capturing an image of an authentication area corresponding to authentication area Ar2.

[0052] (Operation of information processing device 20) For example, at station A, the information acquisition unit 31 may transmit at least one of a first image including authentication area Ar1 generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of authentication area Ar1 and a second image including authentication area Ar2 generated by camera CAM2 capturing an image of authentication area Ar2 to the station server 41. The station server 41 may transmit at least one of the first image and the second image to the information processing device 20 via the network NW. Note that each of the first image and the second image may be assigned, for example, an image capture time (so-called a timestamp) and location information indicating the image capture location.

[0053] For example, at station B, the information acquisition unit 31 may transmit at least one of a third image including an authentication area corresponding to authentication area Ar1 and a fourth image including an authentication area corresponding to authentication area Ar2 to the station server 42. The station server 42 may transmit at least one of the third image and the fourth image to the information processing device 20 via the network NW. Note that each of the third image and the fourth image may be assigned, for example, an image capture time (so-called a timestamp) and location information indicating the image capture location.

[0054] The information acquisition unit 211 of the information processing device 20 acquires at least one of the first image, the second image, the third image, and the fourth image. If the person to be authenticated is included in at least one of the first image, the second image, the third image, and the fourth image (in other words, if the person to be authenticated is captured in at least one of the images), the information acquisition unit 211 may acquire the image including the person to be authenticated as the person to be authenticated. If at least one of the first image, the second image, the third image, and the fourth image includes a two-dimensional barcode, the information acquisition unit 211 may acquire identification information for identifying the person to be authenticated, which is indicated by the two-dimensional barcode, as the person to be authenticated.

[0055] If the information acquisition unit 31 includes a reader that electrically or magnetically reads a recording medium, the information processing device 31 may transmit first read information read by the reader to the station server 41. The station server 41 may transmit the first read information acquired from the information acquisition unit 31 to the information processing device 20 via the network NW. Similarly, if the information acquisition unit 32 includes a reader that electrically or magnetically reads a recording medium, the information processing device 32 may transmit second read information read by the reader to the station server 42. The station server 42 may transmit the second read information acquired from the information acquisition unit 32 to the information processing device 20 via the network NW.

[0056] The information acquisition section 211 of the information processing device 20 may acquire, as authentication-subject information, identification information for identifying the authentication-subject person, which is indicated by at least one of the first read information and the second read information.

[0057] The tracking unit 212 of the information processing device 20 performs tracking processing of one or more persons to be authenticated (in other words, station users) passing through the authentication area using an image including the authentication area (for example, at least one of the first image, the second image, the third image, and the fourth image).

[0058] As a specific example of the tracking process performed by the tracking unit 212, a case in which the tracking unit 212 performs tracking process on a person P1 passing through the authentication area Ar1 will be described with reference to FIG. 7 . Images IMG1, IMG2, and IMG3 shown in FIG. 7 are images including the person P1 corresponding to the person to be authenticated (in other words, images in which the person P1 is captured). Image IMG1 may be an image generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of the authentication area Ar1 at time t1. Image IMG2 may be an image generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of the authentication area Ar1 at time t2, which is later than time t1. Image IMG3 may be an image generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of the authentication area Ar1 at time t3, which is later than time t2.

[0059] Each of images IMG1, IMG2, and IMG3 may be an image corresponding to one frame of a video. In this case, image IMG2 does not have to be an image corresponding to the frame immediately following the frame corresponding to image IMG1. In other words, image IMG2 may be an image corresponding to a frame that is two or more frames after the frame corresponding to image IMG1. Similarly, image IMG3 does not have to be an image corresponding to the frame immediately following the frame corresponding to image IMG2. In other words, image IMG3 may be an image corresponding to a frame that is two or more frames after the frame corresponding to image IMG2.

[0060] The tracking unit 212 detects the head of person P1 included in image IMG1 from image IMG1. Since existing technology is applied to the method of detecting a person's head from an image, detailed description thereof will be omitted. The tracking unit 212 sets an area including the head of person P1 as tracking area TA1 based on the detected head of person P1. The tracking unit 212 may also detect the upper half or the entire body of person P1 included in image IMG1. The tracking unit 212 may set an area including the upper half or the entire body of person P1 as tracking area TA1 based on the detected upper half or the entire body of person P1.

[0061] When the tracking unit 212 sets the tracking area TA1, it sets a tracking ID, which is identification information for identifying the person P1 related to the tracking area TA1, to the person P1. The tracking unit 212 calculates the position of the person P1 (for example, the position of the feet of the person P1) based on the tracking area TA1. Note that since existing technology can be applied to a method for calculating the position of a subject included in an image from the image, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. The tracking unit 212 associates the tracking ID with the position of the person P1 and registers them in an ID correspondence table 221 stored in the storage device 22.

[0062] Here, the ID correspondence table 221 will be described with reference to Fig. 8. As shown in Fig. 8, in the ID correspondence table 221, a tracking ID, a tracking position (for example, the position of the feet of person P1), an authentication ID, and an authentication time may be linked to one another. Note that the "position of person P1" described above is an example of a tracking position.

[0063] When the tracking area TA1 is set, the tracking unit 212 determines whether or not the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA1. In other words, the tracking unit 212 performs face detection on the tracking area TA1. When it is determined that the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA1, the tracking unit 212 generates a face image including the face area of ​​person P1. The tracking unit 212 associates the generated face image with the tracking ID related to person P1 and transmits it to the face authentication unit 2131 of the determination unit 213. Note that when it is determined that the face of person P1 is not captured in the tracking area TA1, the tracking unit 212 does not need to generate a face image.

[0064] The tracking unit 212 may use the image IMG2 and the image IMG1 to identify the person P1 included in the image IMG2. Identifying the person P1 included in the image IMG2 is synonymous with associating the person P1 included in the image IMG1 with the person P1 included in the image IMG2. Therefore, at least one of a matching method and an optical flow method related to association between images can be applied to identifying the person P1 included in the image IMG2. Note that various existing methods can be applied to both the matching method and the optical flow method, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0065] When person P1 included in image IMG2 is identified, the tracking unit 212 detects the head of person P1. Based on the detected head of person P1, the tracking unit 212 sets an area including the head of person P1 as tracking area TA2. Since person P1 included in image IMG1 and person P1 included in image IMG2 are the same person, the tracking ID of person P1 related to tracking area TA2 is the same as the tracking ID of person P1 related to tracking area TA1. The tracking unit 212 calculates the position of person P1 based on tracking area TA2. Note that the tracking unit 212 may also detect the upper body or the entire body of person P1 included in image IMG2. Based on the upper body or the entire body of detected person P2, the tracking unit 212 may set an area including the upper body or the entire body of person P1 as tracking area TA2.

[0066] The tracking unit 212 associates the position of the person P1 with the tracking ID associated with the person P1 and registers it in the ID correspondence table 221. In this case, since the position of the person P1 calculated based on the tracking area TA1 is registered in the ID correspondence table 221, the tracking unit 212 registers the position of the person P1 calculated based on the tracking area TA2 in the ID correspondence table 221, thereby updating the position of the person P1.

[0067] When the tracking area TA2 is set, the tracking unit 212 determines whether the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA2. In other words, the tracking unit 212 performs face detection on the tracking area TA2. When it is determined that the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA2, the tracking unit 212 generates a face image including the face area of ​​person P1. The tracking unit 212 associates the generated face image with the tracking ID related to person P1 and transmits the associated face image to the face authentication unit 2131. Note that, when it is determined that the face of person P1 is not captured in the tracking area TA2, the tracking unit 212 does not need to generate a face image. Note that, even when it is determined that the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA2, when the tracking ID related to person P1 is associated with the authentication ID in the ID correspondence table 221 (i.e., when face authentication has already been successful), the tracking unit 212 does not need to generate a face image.

[0068] The tracking unit 212 may use the images IMG3 and IMG2 to identify the person P1 included in the image IMG3. When the person P1 included in the image IMG3 is identified, the tracking unit 212 detects the head of the person P1. Based on the detected head of the person P1, the tracking unit 212 sets an area including the head of the person P1 as a tracking area TA3. Since the person P1 included in the image IMG2 and the person P1 included in the image IMG3 are the same person, the tracking ID of the person P1 related to the tracking area TA3 is the same as the tracking ID of the person P1 related to the tracking area TA2. The tracking unit 212 calculates the position of the person P1 based on the tracking area TA3. The tracking unit 212 may also detect the upper body or the entire body of the person P1 included in the image IMG3. Based on the detected upper body or the entire body of the person P1, the tracking unit 212 may set an area including the upper body or the entire body of the person P1 as a tracking area TA3.

[0069] The tracking unit 212 associates the position of the person P1 with the tracking ID associated with the person P1 and registers it in the ID correspondence table 221. In this case, since the position of the person P1 calculated based on the tracking area TA2 is registered in the ID correspondence table 221, the tracking unit 212 registers the position of the person P1 calculated based on the tracking area TA3 in the ID correspondence table 221, thereby updating the position of the person P1.

[0070] When the tracking area TA3 is set, the tracking unit 212 determines whether the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA3. In other words, the tracking unit 212 performs face detection on the tracking area TA3. When it is determined that the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA3, the tracking unit 212 generates a face image including the face area of ​​person P1. The tracking unit 212 associates the generated face image with the tracking ID related to person P1 and transmits the associated face image to the face authentication unit 2131. Note that, when it is determined that the face of person P1 is not captured in the tracking area TA3, the tracking unit 212 does not need to generate a face image. Note that, even when it is determined that the face of person P1 is captured in the tracking area TA3, when the tracking ID related to person P1 is associated with the authentication ID in the ID correspondence table 221 (i.e., when face authentication has already been successful), the tracking unit 212 does not need to generate a face image.

[0071] However, it may become difficult for the tracking unit 212 to continue tracking the person P1, for example, because the head of the person P1 is hidden behind another person. When tracking of the person P1 is interrupted, the tracking unit 212 may perform the following process. After tracking of the person P1 is interrupted, the tracking unit 212 may determine whether a new person has been detected from a new image (for example, an image newly captured by the camera CAM1). A "new person" means a person for whom a tracking ID has not been set.

[0072] When a new person is detected, the tracking unit 212 may determine whether the person P1 and the new person are the same person by comparing the feature amount of the target tracking area (e.g., at least one of the tracking areas TA1, TA2, and TA3) related to the person P1 with the feature amount of the target tracking area related to the new person. If it is determined that the person P1 and the new person are the same person, the tracking unit 212 may set the tracking ID related to the person P1 to the new person. As a result, the tracking unit 212 can track the person P1 again.

[0073] The feature amount may be a feature amount related to the person's head, a feature amount related to the person's upper body, or a feature amount related to the person's entire body. In other words, the target tracking area (e.g., at least one of tracking areas TA1, TA2, and TA3) may include the person's head, the person's upper body, or the person's entire body. The feature amount may be obtained, for example, by person re-identification technology.

[0074] The tracking unit 212 may repeat the above-described process until the person P1 passes through the authentication area Ar1 (see FIG. 6). The tracking unit 212 may perform the above-described process for all persons to be authenticated who pass through the authentication area Ar1.

[0075] The face authentication unit 2131 of the information processing device 20 performs face authentication processing using the face image transmitted from the tracking unit 212. In this embodiment, the authenticated person information in the registration information DB 26 includes at least one of a face image of the registrant and facial feature amounts of the registrant. Note that various existing methods such as a two-dimensional (2D) authentication method and a three-dimensional (3D) authentication method can be applied to face authentication.

[0076] For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may calculate a facial feature amount indicating features related to the face of the person P1 from the face image. The face authentication unit 2131 may calculate a matching score from the calculated facial feature amount and a facial feature amount based on the authentication information of one registrant registered in the registration information DB 26.

[0077] If the calculated matching score is greater than a predetermined threshold, the face authentication unit 2131 determines that face authentication has been successful. In this case, one registrant corresponding to the person (e.g., person P1) indicated by the face image transmitted from the tracking unit 212 is identified from among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26. On the other hand, if the calculated matching score is less than the predetermined threshold, the face authentication unit 2131 determines that face authentication has failed. In this case, it is highly likely that the person corresponding to the person (e.g., person P1) indicated by the face image transmitted from the tracking unit 212 is not registered in the registration information DB 26. Note that if the calculated matching score and the predetermined threshold are "equal," either case may be included.

[0078] If the facial authentication is successful, the facial authentication unit 2131 associates an authentication ID indicating a registrant registered in the facial information DB 26 that corresponds to the person (e.g., person P1) indicated by the facial image transmitted from the tracking unit 212 with the tracking ID associated with the facial image, and registers the associated ID in the ID correspondence table 221. In addition to the authentication ID, the facial authentication unit 2131 may register an authentication time, which is the time when the facial authentication process was performed, in the ID correspondence table 221. Note that if the authentication time has already been registered in the ID correspondence table 221 (i.e., if facial authentication has been successful in the past), the facial authentication unit 2131 may update the authentication time registered in the ID correspondence table 221. If the facial authentication is unsuccessful, the facial authentication unit 2131 may associate information indicating that there is no corresponding person (e.g., “N / A (Not Applicable)”) with the tracking ID associated with the facial image transmitted from the tracking unit 212, and register the associated information in the ID correspondence table 221.

[0079] Therefore, in the ID correspondence table 221, when a tracking ID is linked to a specific authentication ID, it indicates that a registrant corresponding to the person for whom the tracking ID is set is registered in the registration information DB 26. When a tracking ID is linked to the character string "N / A", it indicates that a person corresponding to the person for whom the tracking ID is set is not registered in the registration information DB 26. When a tracking ID is not linked to an authentication ID (i.e., when the authentication ID field is blank), it indicates that face authentication processing has never been performed.

[0080] Furthermore, if an image (for example, at least one of the first image, the second image, the third image, and the fourth image) contains a two-dimensional barcode, the tracking unit 212 may perform a tracking process to track the position of the two-dimensional barcode on behalf of the person to be authenticated.

[0081] For example, if an authenticated person moves through authentication area Ar1 of Station A from outside the ticket gates of Station A toward inside the ticket gates of Station A, and the tracking position linked to the tracking ID of the authenticated person for whom a corresponding registered person has been identified (in other words, for whom facial authentication has been successful) indicates a position after passing through authentication area Ar1, the judgment unit 213 of the information processing device 20 may determine that the authenticated person has entered Station A.

[0082] For example, if an authenticated person moves through authentication area Ar2 of Station A from inside the ticket gate of Station A to outside the ticket gate of Station A, and the tracking position linked to the tracking ID of the authenticated person for whom the corresponding registered person has been identified (in other words, for whom facial authentication has been successful) indicates a position after passing through authentication area Ar2, the judgment unit 213 may determine that the authenticated person has exited Station A.

[0083] For example, if the tracking position linked to the tracking ID associated with a two-dimensional barcode moving through the authentication area Ar1 of Station A from outside the ticket gates of Station A toward inside the ticket gates of Station A indicates the position after passing through the authentication area Ar1, the judgment unit 213 may determine that the person to be authenticated identified by the one two-dimensional barcode has entered Station A.

[0084] For example, if the tracking position linked to the tracking ID associated with a two-dimensional barcode moving through the authentication area Ar2 of Station A from inside the ticket gate of Station A to outside the ticket gate of Station A indicates the position after passing through the authentication area Ar2, the judgment unit 213 may determine that the person to be authenticated identified by the one two-dimensional barcode has exited Station A.

[0085] If the information acquisition unit 31 includes a reader that reads recording media electrically or magnetically, the judgment unit 213 may determine that a person to be authenticated has entered or exited Station A, provided that the recording media of the person to be authenticated has been read by the reader.

[0086] When one authenticated person enters station A, the determination unit 213 may associate the authentication ID of the registrant corresponding to the one authenticated person with the ticket gate passage information indicating that the person entered station A, and store them in the storage device 22. When one authenticated person exits station A, the determination unit 213 may associate the authentication ID of the registrant corresponding to the one authenticated person with the ticket gate passage information indicating that the person exited station A, and store them in the storage device 22.

[0087] The determination unit 213 may determine the entry / exit of an authenticated person at station B, as with station A. When an authenticated person enters station B, the determination unit 213 may associate the authentication ID of the registrant corresponding to the authenticated person with ticket gate passage information indicating entry at station B, and store the associated information in the storage device 22. When an authenticated person exits station B, the determination unit 213 may associate the authentication ID of the registrant corresponding to the authenticated person with ticket gate passage information indicating exit at station B, and store the associated information in the storage device 22.

[0088] As a result, for example, the fact that a registrant corresponding to one authenticated person entered station A and then exited station B is stored in the storage device 22. The billing processing unit 214 of the information processing device 20 may calculate the railway fare (e.g., fare) from station A to station B. The billing processing unit 214 may bill the registrant corresponding to the above-mentioned one authenticated person for the calculated railway fare based on payment information linked to the authentication ID of the registrant. The billing processing unit 214 may also transmit information indicating the railway usage history to a terminal device carried by the above-mentioned one authenticated person via the communication device 23.

[0089] In particular, in this embodiment, the determination unit 213 determines whether the person to be authenticated (in other words, the registrant corresponding to the person to be authenticated) is an eligible person. If it is determined that the person to be authenticated is an eligible person, the billing processing unit 214 bills the payer linked to the person to pay the fee related to the person to be authenticated (for example, a train fare). In this case, the billing processing unit 214 may transmit information indicating the train usage history of the person to be authenticated to a terminal device carried by the payer via the communication device 23. On the other hand, if it is determined that the person to be authenticated is not an eligible person, the billing processing unit 214 bills the person to be authenticated for the fee related to the person to be authenticated.

[0090] For example, if the person to be authenticated is a child (i.e., a protected person) and the payer is a parent (i.e., a guardian), the billing processing unit 214 may bill the fee for the child by, for example, withdrawing the fee for the child from a bank account or electronic money linked to the parent who is the payer. With this configuration, even if the person to be authenticated is a child who does not have a payment method, the train fare (e.g., fare) for the person to be authenticated can be properly billed to the parent. In addition, a child who does not have a payment method can use the train even if he or she does not have money.

[0091] An example of information indicating a railway usage history will now be described with reference to FIG. 9 . In FIG. 9 , assume that Nichiden Hanako is the guardian (e.g., parent) and Nichiden Taro is the protected person (e.g., child). In this case, the determination unit 213 determines that Nichiden Taro is the target. As a result, the railway usage fare for Nichiden Taro is billed to Nichiden Hanako, who is the guardian (in other words, the payer). As shown in FIG. 9 , the terminal device possessed by Nichiden Hanako contains, as the railway usage history, a record indicating that Nichiden Hanako entered station A and exited station B, and a record indicating that Nichiden Taro entered station A and exited station B. This configuration allows a guardian, such as a parent, to confirm which stations their protected child, such as a child, used and when (i.e., the protected child's railway usage history functions as monitoring information), thereby providing peace of mind to the guardian.

[0092] Incidentally, railway fares are sometimes categorized based on, for example, the user's age. In this case, even if a person is a legal minor, the same railway fare as a legal adult may be incurred (or charged). On the other hand, legal minors often do not have their own payment methods, such as credit cards. In other words, when a fare related to an authenticated person who is a legal minor is charged to a payer linked to the authenticated person, the fare charged may vary depending on the age of the authenticated person.

[0093] Therefore, in the registration information DB 26, the date of birth of a registrant may be linked to the authentication ID of the registrant. In this case, the billing processing unit 214 may calculate the railway fare for a single authenticated person based on the date of birth linked to the authentication ID of the registrant corresponding to the single authenticated person. If it is determined that a single authenticated person is eligible, the billing processing unit 214 bills the payer linked to the single authenticated person for the fare for the single authenticated person.

[0094] With this configuration, it is possible to appropriately bill the train fare for one authenticated person whose corresponding registrant is identified through facial authentication processing by the facial authentication unit 2131, for example. Note that the registration information DB 26 may store the registrant's age and the date of age registration instead of or in addition to the registrant's date of birth. In this case, the billing processing unit 214 may correct the age registered in the registration information DB 26 based on the age registration date and the current date. The billing processing unit 214 may calculate the train fare for one authenticated person based on the corrected age.

[0095] For example, the determination unit 213 may estimate the age of the person to be authenticated based on an image (e.g., at least one of the first image, the second image, the third image, and the fourth image). Alternatively, the determination unit 213 may determine whether the person to be authenticated falls under the "child" category for railway fare based on the image. An example of a method for estimating age based on an image is a method of estimating age from a facial image of the person to be authenticated. The determination unit 213 may determine that the person to be authenticated falls under the "child" category for railway fare when a predetermined object (e.g., at least one of a school bag, a uniform, and a school bag) is detected from the image. The determination unit 213 may estimate the age of the person to be authenticated or determine whether the person to be authenticated falls under the "child" category for railway fare based on at least one of the person's head-to-body ratio and shoe size estimated based on the image.

[0096] The billing processing unit 214 may calculate the train fare for the person to be authenticated based on the age of the person to be authenticated estimated by the judgment unit 213, or based on the judgment result by the judgment unit 213 as to whether the person to be authenticated falls into the ``child'' category for train fare.

[0097] The registration processing unit 215 is a device that performs a pre-registration process that a person who wishes to use the ticket gate system 1 (hereinafter referred to as an "applicant") must perform before using the ticket gate system 1. In addition to the pre-registration process, the registration processing unit 215 may also perform, for example, an information change process that changes the registration information of a person who is already using the ticket gate system 1.

[0098] The prospective user may perform the pre-registration process by accessing the information processing device 20 using a terminal device (e.g., a smartphone) that the prospective user owns. In the pre-registration process, the prospective user may input, for example, their name, date of birth, telephone number, email address, payment information, and a facial image.

[0099] The registration processing unit 215 may link the information entered by the prospective user in the pre-registration process, such as name, date of birth, telephone number, email address, and payment information, to identification information (e.g., authentication ID) related to the prospective user (i.e., new registrant), and register it in the registration information DB 26.

[0100] In the pre-registration process or information change process, the registration processing unit 215 may link one registrant or one applicant for registration who is a guardian (e.g., a parent) to another registrant or other applicant for registration who is a protected person (e.g., a child). For example, the registration processing unit 215 may link an authentication ID related to one registrant or one applicant for registration with protected person information indicating the authentication ID related to the other registrant or other applicant for registration (e.g., see FIG. 2). For example, the registration processing unit 215 may link an authentication ID related to the other registrant or other applicant for registration with guardian information indicating the authentication ID related to one registrant or one applicant for registration (e.g., see FIG. 2).

[0101] Note that an instruction to link one registrant or one person wishing to register with another registrant or other person wishing to register may be issued from a terminal device owned by the one registrant or one person wishing to register, or from a terminal device owned by another registrant or other person wishing to register. For example, when linking a protected person (e.g., a child) to a guardian using a terminal device owned by the guardian (e.g., a parent), the guardian may operate the terminal device to launch a predetermined application. The guardian may select an item "Register Child" in a menu of the predetermined application. The guardian may register the child's identification information or information for generating identification information (e.g., name, date of birth, etc.) within a predetermined time after selecting the item. Alternatively, the guardian may authenticate the guardian using a predetermined application. The guardian may register the child's authentication information (e.g., a facial image) within a predetermined time after authentication. Alternatively, the guardian may select an item "Register Child" in a menu of the predetermined application or authenticate the guardian using a predetermined application. The guardian may then read out a predetermined gesture displayed on the screen of a predetermined application. The protected person may perform an action corresponding to the predetermined gesture read out by the guardian. This action may register the child's authentication information. This configuration can improve the convenience for users of the ticket gate system 1.

[0102] The registration processing unit 215 may request at least one of the one registrant who is a guardian (e.g., a parent) and the other registrant who is a protected person to update an image (e.g., a facial image) including the other registrant when a first predetermined period (e.g., several months) has passed since information related to the other registrant who is a protected person (e.g., a child) was registered in the registration information DB 26. If the image including the other registrant is not updated within a second predetermined period (e.g., several weeks) after the request to update the image including the other registrant, the registration processing unit 215 may cancel the link between the one registrant who is a guardian and the other registrant who is a protected person.

[0103] For example, the face of a young child changes relatively significantly as the child grows. Therefore, if an image (e.g., a facial image) including a registered child is not updated since registration, the registered child may not be identified by facial authentication. For example, if an image including a registered child is updated regularly, it is possible to appropriately respond to the child's growth. In addition, if an image including a registered child is not updated, the association between one registered parent and another registered protected person is dissolved, thereby preventing fraudulent use of the ticket gate system 1.

[0104] For example, in a case where information relating to one authenticated person who is a guardian (e.g., a parent) is registered in the registration information DB 26, while information relating to another authenticated person who is a protected person (e.g., a child) is not registered in the registration information DB 26, and when the one authenticated person and the other authenticated person pass through a predetermined position (e.g., an authentication area) together, the registration processing unit 215 may automatically register information relating to the other authenticated person (e.g., a facial image) in the registration information DB 26. With this configuration, the burden on the user of the ticket gate system 1 related to the registration process can be reduced.

[0105] For example, the registration processing unit 215 may extract multiple authentication subjects who move close to each other based on the tracking positions included in the ID correspondence table 221. If face authentication of one of the extracted multiple authentication subjects is successful while face authentication of another of the extracted multiple authentication subjects is unsuccessful (i.e., a person corresponding to the other authentication subject is not registered in the registration information DB 26), the registration processing unit 215 may determine whether the one authentication subject and the other authentication subjects are parent and child. For example, the registration processing unit 215 may determine whether the one authentication subject and the other authentication subjects are parent and child based on at least one of whether the one authentication subject and the other authentication subjects are holding hands, whether the one authentication subject and the other authentication subjects are facing the same direction, and the relative size and position of each body part of the one authentication subject and each body part of the other authentication subject. Alternatively, the registration processing unit 215 may determine whether one authentication subject and another authentication subject are parent and child based on the degree of similarity between the facial features of the one authentication subject and the facial features of the other authentication subject. For example, the registration processing unit 215 may calculate a relationship value indicating the possibility of a parent-child relationship between the one authentication subject and the other authentication subject based on the degree of similarity between at least one feature of the eyes, nose, and mouth of the one authentication subject and at least one feature of the eyes, nose, and mouth of the other authentication subject. If the calculated relationship value is greater than a predetermined value, the registration processing unit 215 may determine that the one authentication subject and the other authentication subject are parent and child. If it is determined that the one authentication subject and the other authentication subject are parent and child, the registration processing unit 215 may automatically register a new authentication ID related to the other authentication subject in the registration information DB 26 by linking the authentication information (e.g., a facial image) of the other authentication subject and the authentication ID of the registrant corresponding to the one authentication subject.

[0106] For example, the determination unit 213 may determine whether the person to be authenticated is a child or not from the appearance of the person to be authenticated that appears in an image acquired by the information acquisition unit 211 (for example, at least one of an image generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of authentication area Ar1 and an image generated by CAM2 capturing an image of authentication area Ar2).

[0107] When the determination unit 213 determines that the person to be authenticated is a child, the face authentication unit 2131 may preferentially compare authentication information associated with one or more authentication IDs for which guardian information is registered among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26 with authentication information related to the person to be authenticated determined to be a child. For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may extract authentication information associated with one or more authentication IDs for which guardian information is registered among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26. Thereafter, the face authentication unit 2131 may compare the extracted authentication information with authentication information related to the person to be authenticated determined to be a child.

[0108] With this configuration, it is possible to prioritize matching of the person to be authenticated with a registered person who is likely to correspond to the person to be authenticated, thereby enabling efficient face authentication processing. Alternatively, it is possible to reduce the population of registered people used in face authentication processing of the person to be authenticated, thereby enabling efficient face authentication processing.

[0109] (Technical effect) According to the information processing device 20 of the second embodiment, it is possible to appropriately charge a guardian (e.g., a parent) for the railway fare of a protected person (e.g., a child), who often does not have their own payment method.

[0110] Third Embodiment A third embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 12. Hereinafter, the third embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described using an information processing device 20a. The third embodiment is similar to the second embodiment described above, except that the calculation device 21 includes a warning unit 216. Therefore, the third embodiment will be omitted from the description that overlaps with the first and second embodiments.

[0111] In Figure 10, the calculation device 21 may have an information acquisition unit 211, a tracking unit 212, a judgment unit 213, a billing processing unit 214, a registration processing unit 215, and an alert unit 216 as logically realized functional blocks or as physically realized processing circuits.

[0112] At least one of the information acquisition unit 211, the tracing unit 212, the determination unit 213, the billing processing unit 214, the registration processing unit 215, and the warning unit 216 may be realized in a format in which a logical function block and a physical processing circuit (i.e., hardware) are mixed. When at least some of the information acquisition unit 211, the tracing unit 212, the determination unit 213, the billing processing unit 214, the registration processing unit 215, and the warning unit 216 are function blocks, at least some of the information acquisition unit 211, the tracing unit 212, the determination unit 213, the billing processing unit 214, the registration processing unit 215, and the warning unit 216 may be realized by the calculation device 21 executing a predetermined computer program.

[0113] The operation of the information processing device 20a will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 11. In Fig. 11, the information acquisition unit 211 of the information processing device 20a acquires authentication-subject information (step S201). The determination unit 213 of the information processing device 20a determines whether multiple authentication-subjects who are in a parent-child relationship have been detected at a certain station (e.g., Station A) based on the authentication-subject information (e.g., based on the result of face authentication using a facial image as the authentication-subject information, or based on identification information as the authentication-subject information) (step S202).

[0114] If it is determined in the process of step S202 that multiple authentication subjects in a parent-child relationship have not been detected (step S202: No), the operation shown in Fig. 11 is terminated. Thereafter, the process of step S201 may be performed again. In other words, the operation shown in Fig. 11 may be performed repeatedly, periodically or irregularly.

[0115] If it is determined in the processing of step S202 that multiple subjects to be authenticated who are in a parent-child relationship have been detected (step S202: Yes), the judgment unit 213 determines whether the distance between the multiple subjects to be authenticated who are in a parent-child relationship is greater than or equal to a predetermined distance, for example, based on the tracking positions included in the ID correspondence table 221 (step S203).

[0116] If it is determined in step S203 that the distance between the plurality of authentication subjects is less than the predetermined distance (step S203: No), the operation shown in Fig. 11 is terminated. Thereafter, the process of step S201 may be performed again.

[0117] If it is determined in the process of step S203 that the distance between the multiple authenticated persons is equal to or greater than a predetermined distance (step S203: Yes), the warning unit 216 transmits warning information regarding the lost child to a terminal device (e.g., a smartphone) carried by one of the multiple authenticated persons, who is a parent, via the communication device 23 (step S204). As a result, for example, an image 100 shown in FIG. 12 may be displayed on the terminal device carried by the one authenticated person, who is a parent. The notification 110 included in the image 110 corresponds to an example of the warning information. Note that "Nichiden Taro" included in the notification 110 indicates the child's name.

[0118] In addition, the warning unit 216 may send warning information regarding a lost child to a terminal device used by at least one of a station attendant and a security guard, in addition to the terminal device carried by the above-mentioned parent, who is the authenticated person.

[0119] In the processing of step S203, instead of determining whether the distance between multiple subjects to be authenticated who are in a parent-child relationship is greater than or equal to a predetermined distance, the judgment unit 213 may determine whether the time difference between the time when one of the multiple subjects to be authenticated who are in a parent-child relationship is detected and the time when another of the multiple subjects to be authenticated who are in a parent-child relationship is detected is greater than or equal to a predetermined time difference.

[0120] (Technical Effect) According to the information processing device 20a according to the third embodiment, it is possible to issue warning information particularly regarding a lost child.

[0121] <Fourth embodiment> A fourth embodiment relating to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described. Hereinafter, the fourth embodiment relating to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a recording medium will be described using an information processing device 20 shown in Fig. 5. Note that, with regard to the fourth embodiment, descriptions that overlap with the first and second embodiments will be omitted as appropriate.

[0122] In the registration information DB26, the affiliation of a registrant may be linked to the authentication ID related to the registrant. "Affiliation" may refer to the group or organization to which the registrant belongs. The affiliation may be represented by the group name or organization name. The affiliation may be represented by identification information for identifying the group or organization. The group or organization to which the registrant belongs may include, for example, at least one of a school, a company, and a local government. The group or organization to which the registrant belongs may include, for example, a temporarily formed group or organization such as a travel group.

[0123] For example, the determination unit 213 may identify the affiliation of the person to be authenticated from the registration information DB 26 based on the authentication ID of the person to be authenticated whose authentication ID has been identified by the facial authentication process performed by the facial authentication unit 2131 (i.e., the person to be authenticated whose tracking ID is linked to a specific authentication ID in the ID correspondence table 221).

[0124] The determination unit 213 may determine that the person to be authenticated is a target if the person to be authenticated belongs to a specific organization. On the other hand, the determination unit 213 may determine that the person to be authenticated is not a target if the person to be authenticated does not belong to a specific organization.

[0125] If the determination unit 213 determines that the person to be authenticated is an eligible person, the billing processing unit 214 may acquire payment information related to the group or organization to which the person to be authenticated belongs. Based on the acquired payment information, the billing processing unit 214 may bill the group or organization to which the person to be authenticated belongs for the fee related to the person to be authenticated.

[0126] The payment information relating to the group or organization to which the person to be authenticated belongs may be stored in, for example, the storage device 22. The payment information relating to the group or organization to which the person to be authenticated belongs may be linked to the authentication ID of the person to be authenticated in the registration information DB 26. The specific affiliation may be, for example, a group or organization that has a contract with a railway company under which the group or organization will pay the fees related to persons belonging to the group or organization (corresponding to the person to be authenticated).

[0127] For example, the computing device 21 may identify the affiliation of the person to be authenticated from the appearance (e.g., a uniform, employee ID card, etc.) of the person to be authenticated that appears in an image acquired by the information acquisition unit 211 (e.g., at least one of an image generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of authentication area Ar1 and an image generated by CAM2 capturing an image of authentication area Ar2). Note that the process of identifying the affiliation of the person to be authenticated from an image may be performed by, for example, the tracking unit 212.

[0128] For example, when the affiliation of the person to be authenticated that belongs to a certain group or organization is identified, the information processing device 20 can recognize that a person belonging to the certain group or organization is present in the authentication area Ar1 or Ar2.

[0129] For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may preferentially compare authentication information (e.g., facial images or facial feature amounts) of one or more registrants who belong to the above-mentioned group or organization among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26 with authentication information of the person to be authenticated. For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may extract authentication information of one or more registrants who belong to the above-mentioned group or organization among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26. Thereafter, the face authentication unit 2131 may compare the extracted authentication information with authentication information of the person to be authenticated.

[0130] For example, an example of application of the present disclosure to a group of students entering a theme park will be described. First, the computing device 21 identifies the school of the person to be authenticated from the uniform reflected in the image acquired by the information acquisition unit 211. Next, the facial authentication unit 2131 extracts authentication information related to a registrant who is a teacher at the identified school from among multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26. Then, the facial authentication unit 2131 compares the extracted authentication information with the authentication information related to the person to be authenticated. If the comparison results in the presence of a teacher, the facial authentication unit 2131 counts the number of students wearing uniforms from the image acquired by the information acquisition unit 211. The billing processing unit 214 may bill the teacher or the elementary school to which the teacher belongs for the admission fee for the number of teachers and students based on payment information linked to the authentication ID related to the identified registrant. The counting of the number of students may be triggered by determining the presence of a teacher through facial recognition, and may involve counting people wearing a uniform corresponding to the identified school within a predetermined period of time. Alternatively, the number of consecutive detections of a person wearing a specific uniform may be counted when a teacher is determined to be present. As in this example, the person with the appearance and the person undergoing facial recognition may not be the same person. Alternatively, the scheduled entry time may be acquired in advance, and, for a predetermined period of time from the scheduled entry time, authentication information relating to a registered teacher belonging to a specified school may be preferentially extracted from among multiple registered users, and facial recognition may be performed. By performing facial recognition of the representative teacher and counting the number of students led by the representative, there is no need to perform facial registration and facial recognition of the students, improving processing speed and convenience.

[0131] For example, in the registration information DB 26, in addition to the affiliation of the registrant, the name of the registrant may be linked to the authentication ID of the registrant.

[0132] For example, the computing device 21 may identify the name of the person to be authenticated from the appearance of the person to be authenticated (e.g., characters written on a uniform, name tag, or employee ID card) that appears in an image acquired by the information acquisition unit 211 (e.g., at least one of an image generated by camera CAM1 capturing an image of authentication area Ar1 and an image generated by CAM2 capturing an image of authentication area Ar2). Note that the process of identifying the name of the person to be authenticated from an image may be performed by, for example, the tracking unit 212.

[0133] For example, when the name of the person to be authenticated is identified, the information processing device 20 can recognize that a person with the identified name is present in the authentication area Ar1 or Ar2.

[0134] For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may preferentially compare authentication information related to one or more registrants having the specified name among multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26 with authentication information related to the person to be authenticated. For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may extract authentication information related to one or more registrants having the specified name among multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26. Thereafter, the face authentication unit 2131 may compare the extracted authentication information with authentication information related to the person to be authenticated.

[0135] For example, the name of the person to be authenticated may be identified from a pattern (e.g., a barcode or two-dimensional barcode) printed on a name tag or employee ID. For example, by printing a pattern on a side (e.g., the back) of the name tag or employee ID card that is different from the side (e.g., the front) on which the name is printed, and then turning the name tag or employee ID card over when commuting to school or work so that the back side is visible in the image, the name of the person to be authenticated can be identified from an image that includes the back side of the name tag or employee ID card, and privacy can be protected without handing over personal information to others.

[0136] For example, in the registration information DB 26, in addition to the affiliation of the registrant, the name of the registrant may be linked to the authentication ID of the registrant.

[0137] For example, the computing device 21 may identify the affiliation and name of the person to be authenticated from the appearance of the person to be authenticated that appears in an image acquired by the information acquisition unit 211 (for example, at least one of an image generated by the camera CAM1 capturing an image of the authentication area Ar1 and an image generated by the camera CAM2 capturing an image of the authentication area Ar2). Note that the process of identifying the affiliation and name of the person to be authenticated from the image may be performed by, for example, the tracking unit 212.

[0138] For example, when the affiliation and name of the person to be authenticated are identified, the information processing device 20 can recognize that there is a person in the authentication area Ar1 or Ar2 who belongs to a certain group or organization as the identified affiliation and who has the identified name.

[0139] For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may preferentially compare authentication information related to one or more registrants who belong to the above-mentioned group or organization and have the above-mentioned specified name, among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26, with authentication information related to the person to be authenticated. For example, the face authentication unit 2131 may extract authentication information related to one or more registrants who belong to the above-mentioned group or organization and have the above-mentioned specified name, among the multiple registrants registered in the registration information DB 26. Thereafter, the face authentication unit 2131 may compare the extracted authentication information with authentication information related to the person to be authenticated.

[0140] (Technical effect) According to the information processing device 20 of the fourth embodiment, when multiple people belonging to a group or organization simultaneously use trains, theme parks, etc., for example, for a school or company event, or a group trip, it is possible to reduce the expense settlement process for a group or organization.

[0141] Furthermore, the information processing device 20 according to the second embodiment can prioritize matching of a person to be authenticated with a registered person who is likely to correspond to the person to be authenticated, thereby enabling efficient face authentication processing. Alternatively, the population of registered people used in face authentication processing of a person to be authenticated can be reduced, thereby enabling efficient face authentication processing.

[0142] <Supplementary Notes> The following supplementary notes are further disclosed regarding the above-described embodiment.

[0143] (Supplementary Note 1) An information processing device comprising: an information acquisition means for acquiring authenticated person information relating to an authenticated person; a determination means for determining whether the authenticated person is a target based on the authenticated person information; and a billing means for billing a payer linked to the authenticated person for a fee relating to the authenticated person when the authenticated person is determined to be a target.

[0144] (Supplementary Note 2) The information processing device described in Supplementary Note 1, wherein the determination means determines whether the person to be authenticated is a child of the target, and if it is determined that the person to be authenticated is a child, the billing means bills the parent of the person to be authenticated, who is the payer linked to the person to be authenticated, for the fee related to the person to be authenticated.

[0145] (Supplementary Note 3) The information processing device according to Supplementary Note 1 or 2, wherein the authentication-subject information includes at least one of a first image including the authentication-subject and identification information for identifying the authentication-subject.

[0146] (Supplementary Note 4) The information processing device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 3, wherein the information acquisition means acquires a second image as the person to be authenticated, and the determination means has a biometric authentication means that performs biometric authentication of the person to be authenticated based on the second image.

[0147] (Supplementary Note 5) The information processing device according to Supplementary Note 4, wherein the determination means determines the affiliation of the person to be authenticated based on the image, and the biometric authentication means performs biometric authentication of the person to be authenticated based on the image and biometric information of a registered person who belongs to the affiliation.

[0148] (Appendix 6) The information processing device according to Appendix 2, wherein if the person to be authenticated is determined to be a child, the billing means bills the fee for the person to be authenticated by debiting the fee for the person to be authenticated from a bank account or electronic money linked to the parent of the person to be authenticated.

[0149] (Supplementary Note 7) The information processing device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 6, wherein the determination means determines whether the person to be authenticated is a child of the target, and includes a notification means that issues a predetermined notification to a parent of the person to be authenticated if it is determined that the person to be authenticated is a child.

[0150] (Supplementary Note 8) The information processing device described in any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 7, wherein the determination means determines whether a first person to be authenticated as the person to be authenticated is a child as the target, and if it is determined that the first person to be authenticated is a child, the determination means further determines whether a distance between the first person to be authenticated and the second person to be authenticated is equal to or greater than a predetermined distance based on a position of the first person to be authenticated and a position of a second person to be authenticated who is the parent of the first person to be authenticated, and if it is determined that the distance is equal to or greater than the predetermined distance, the information processing device further comprises a warning means for issuing a warning regarding a lost child.

[0151] (Supplementary Note 9) The information processing device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 8, further comprising a registration means for linking first registrant information relating to a first registrant who is a parent with second registrant information relating to a second registrant who is a child of the first registrant.

[0152] (Supplementary Note 10) The information processing device described in Supplementary Note 9, wherein the second registrant information includes a third image including the second registrant, the registration means requests at least one of the first registrant and the second registrant to update the third image, and if the third image is not updated after the update of the third image is requested, the registration means cancels the link between the first registration information and the second registration information.

[0153] (Supplementary Note 11) The information processing device according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the registration means links the second registrant information to the first registrant information in response to an instruction from a terminal device carried by the first registrant or the second registrant.

[0154] (Supplementary Note 12) The information processing device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 9 to 11, wherein the registration means automatically registers the second registrant who passes through a predetermined position together with the first registrant when the first registrant passes through the predetermined position.

[0155] (Supplementary Note 13) An information processing method comprising: acquiring authenticated person information relating to a person to be authenticated; determining whether the person to be authenticated is a target based on the authenticated person information; and, if it is determined that the person to be authenticated is a target, billing a payer linked to the authenticated person for a fee relating to the person to be authenticated.

[0156] (Supplementary Note 14) A recording medium having recorded thereon a computer program for causing a computer to execute an information processing method, which includes acquiring authenticated person information relating to an authenticated person, determining whether the authenticated person is an eligible person based on the authenticated person information, and, if it is determined that the authenticated person is an eligible person, billing a payer linked to the authenticated person for fees relating to the authenticated person.

[0157] This disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but may be modified as appropriate within the scope of the claims and the gist or idea of ​​the invention as can be read from the entire specification, and information processing devices, information processing methods, and recording media that involve such modifications are also included in the technical scope of this disclosure.

[0158] 1 Ticket gate system 10, 20, 20a Information processing device 11, 211 Information acquisition unit 12, 213 Determination unit 13, 214 Billing processing unit 14, 26 Registration information database 212 Tracking unit 215 Registration processing unit 216 Warning unit 2131 Face authentication unit

Claims

1. Information acquisition means for acquiring certified person information about the certified person, A determination means for determining whether or not the person to be certified is the target, based on the certified person information, If the person being certified is determined to be the subject, a billing means for billing the payer associated with the person being certified for the fees related to the person being certified, An information processing device equipped with the following features.

2. The determination means determines whether the person to be certified is the child in question, If the person being certified is determined to be a child, the billing means will bill the parent of the person being certified, who is the payer associated with the person being certified, for the fees related to the person being certified. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The authenticated person information includes at least one of an image including the authenticated person and identification information for identifying the authenticated person. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

4. The information acquisition means acquires an image as the authenticated person information, The determination means includes a biometric authentication means that performs biometric authentication of the person to be authenticated based on the image. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

5. The determination means determines the affiliation of the person to be authenticated based on the image, The biometric authentication means performs biometric authentication of the person to be authenticated based on the image and the biometric information of the registered person belonging to the organization. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4.

6. If the person being certified is determined to be a child, the billing method will charge the person being certified by deducting the fee for the person being certified from the bank account or electronic money linked to the parent of the person being certified. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

7. The determination means determines whether the person to be certified is the child in question, If the person being certified is determined to be a child, the system includes a notification means for sending a predetermined notification to the parent of the person being certified. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

8. The determination means determines whether the first person to be certified as the person to be certified is the child as the subject, If the first person to be authenticated is determined to be a child, the determination means further determines, based on the position of the first person to be authenticated and the position of the second person to be authenticated, who is the parent of the first person to be authenticated, whether the distance between the first person to be authenticated and the second person to be authenticated is greater than or equal to a predetermined distance. If the aforementioned distance is determined to be greater than or equal to the predetermined distance, the system is equipped with a warning means that issues a warning regarding a lost child. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

9. Obtain information about the person being certified, Based on the aforementioned certified person information, it is determined whether or not the certified person is the target, If the aforementioned certified person is determined to be subject to the aforementioned charges, the payer associated with the certified person shall be billed for the charges related to the certified person. Information processing methods.

10. On the computer, Obtain information about the person being certified, Based on the aforementioned certified person information, it is determined whether or not the certified person is the target, If the aforementioned certified person is determined to be subject to the aforementioned charges, the payer associated with the certified person shall be billed for the charges related to the certified person. A recording medium on which computer programs for executing information processing methods are stored.