Advertising effectiveness estimation device and advertising effectiveness estimation method

Abstract

In the present invention, an acquisition unit acquires a captured image of the surroundings of a moving body equipped with an advertising medium. A determination unit determines a region of interest in the captured image on the basis of the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the advertising medium. A presentation unit presents information regarding the effectiveness of advertisements that use the moving body, on the basis of the behavior of at least one person shown in the region of interest.

Description

Advertising Effect Estimation Device and Advertising Effect Estimation Method

[0001] The present invention relates to an advertising effect estimation device and an advertising effect estimation method.

[0002] Conventionally, an advertising method using a moving object such as a truck as an advertising medium has become widespread. As a method for evaluating the effect of such an advertising method, a technique is known in which an image around the moving object is captured and it is determined whether the line of sight of a person in the image is directed at the advertisement. For example, the point signage device described in Patent Document 1 below is a bag-type device that can be carried on the back, and an information display unit (monitor) is provided on the back. The point signage device has an imaging unit (camera) that can image the side where the information display unit can be visually recognized. The advertising effect indexing unit extracts information on a person existing within a specific distance in the video information from the imaging unit, and indexes the advertising effect based on the information.

[0003] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-172320

[0004] In the above-described conventional technology, among the people shown in the captured image of the camera, a person existing within a specific distance from the point signage device is extracted, and the advertising effect is estimated based on the information about the person. A person existing within a specific distance from the point signage device is highly likely to be able to visually recognize the information display unit. Therefore, for example, compared with estimating the advertising effect based on information about all the people in the captured image, the estimation accuracy of the advertising effect is higher.

[0005] On the other hand, whether a person who has seen the information display unit can understand the information displayed there depends on the characteristics of the information. For example, text information displayed in a relatively small font has a limited visible range compared to text information displayed in a relatively large font (it cannot be visually recognized unless the position is close to the information display unit).

[0006] An object of the present invention is to more accurately estimate the effect of advertising using a moving object.

[0007] An advertising effectiveness estimation device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises: an acquisition unit that acquires an image of the surroundings of a mobile body equipped with an advertising medium; a determination unit that determines a region of interest in the image based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the advertising medium; and a presentation unit that presents information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement using the mobile body based on the behavior of at least one person captured in the region of interest.

[0008] An advertising effectiveness estimation method according to one aspect of the present invention involves acquiring an image of the surroundings of a mobile body equipped with an advertising medium, determining a region of interest in the image based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the advertising medium, and presenting information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement using the mobile body based on the behavior of at least one person captured in the region of interest.

[0009] According to one aspect of the present invention, the effectiveness of advertising using a mobile device can be estimated with greater accuracy.

[0010] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the advertising system 1 according to an embodiment. This is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of the ad truck 20. This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device 25. This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10. This is a schematic diagram showing the imaging range SR of the camera 24. This is a schematic diagram showing the captured image SG. This is a schematic diagram showing a first example of the area of ​​interest TS in real space. This is a schematic diagram showing a first example of the area of ​​interest TS in the captured image SG. This is a schematic diagram showing a second example of the area of ​​interest TS in real space. This is a schematic diagram showing a second example of the area of ​​interest TS in the captured image SG. This is a schematic diagram showing a third example of the area of ​​interest TS in real space. This is a schematic diagram showing a third example of the area of ​​interest TS in the captured image SG. This is a schematic diagram showing an example of the image G displayed on the display 22. This is a schematic diagram showing an example of the image G displayed on the display 22. This is a schematic diagram showing an example of the image G displayed on the display 22. This is a flowchart showing the operation of the processing device 140 of the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10. This is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of the ad truck 20A according to a fifth modified example.

[0011] A. Embodiment [System Configuration] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the advertising system 1 according to an embodiment. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of the ad truck 20. The advertising system 1 includes an advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and an ad truck 20. The ad truck 20 is an example of a mobile device.

[0012] The ad truck 20 is equipped with a display 22 on the cargo bed of the truck, and displays advertisements on the display 22. The display 22 is an example of an advertising medium. The ad truck 20 comprises a vehicle body 21, a display 22, a speaker 23, a camera 24, and a control device 25. The control device 25 and the display 22, the control device 25 and the speaker 23, and the control device 25 and the camera 24 are each connected by a wired or wireless interface.

[0013] The vehicle body 21 is the main body of the truck. The display 22 is a display device (for example, various display panels such as a liquid crystal display panel or an organic EL display panel) that displays information to the outside. The display 22 is positioned on the cargo bed of the vehicle body 21. The speaker 23 is a sound output device that outputs sound to the outside. The camera 24 captures images of the surroundings. In this embodiment, the camera 24 is positioned above the display 22, for example, as shown in Figure 2. As will be described in detail later, the imaging direction of the camera 24 is positioned toward the road surface R. This makes it possible to include pedestrians around the ad truck 20 in the captured image SG.

[0014] The control device 25 controls all parts of the ad truck 20 other than the vehicle body 21. For example, the control device 25 controls the display of images on the display 22. The control device 25 also controls the image acquisition by the camera 24. The control device 25 is installed, for example, on the cargo bed or in the passenger compartment of the vehicle body 21.

[0015] The advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 estimates the effectiveness of advertising using the ad truck 20. In this embodiment, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 acquires an image SG of the surroundings of the ad truck 20 and estimates the advertising effectiveness by counting the number of people J in the image SG who are looking at the ad truck 20. The information regarding the advertising effectiveness estimated by the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 is fed back to, for example, the client of the advertisement or the operator of the advertising business (operator of the advertising system 1). Specifically, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 is an information processing terminal such as a personal computer, tablet terminal, or smartphone.

[0016] The advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25 of the ad truck 20 can be connected via, for example, connection interfaces 210 and 120, which will be described later. The connection interfaces 210 and 120 may be connectors to which, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable is connected, or they may be communication modules that utilize short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth®. Furthermore, if the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25 are each equipped with communication devices, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25 may be connected via a network (not shown).

[0017] [Control device 25] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device 25. The control device 25 comprises a connection interface 210, a storage device 220, and a processing device 230. The connection interface 210, the storage device 220, and the processing device 230 are connected by a bus 240.

[0018] As described above, the connection interface 210 is an interface for connecting the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25.

[0019] The storage device 220 is a recording medium that can be read by the processing device 230. The storage device 220 may consist of at least one of the following: ROM (Read Only Memory), EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM), RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The storage device 220 stores the program PG2, advertising data AD, output history data RD, and image data SD.

[0020] Program PG2 is a program for operating the control device 25. Advertising data AD is advertising data output by the ad truck 20. Advertising data AD includes image data to be displayed on the display 22. Advertising data AD may also include audio data output from the speaker 23. In this embodiment, it is assumed that multiple advertising data ADs are recorded in the storage device 220. Each of the multiple advertising data ADs is assigned an advertising data ID. Each of the multiple advertising data ADs can be identified by the advertising data ID.

[0021] The output history data RD is data that records the output history of advertisements in Ad Track 20. The output history data RD includes, for example, time information and an advertisement data ID. The output history data RD indicates that the advertisement data AD identified by the advertisement data ID was output at the time indicated by the time information. The time information may be information indicating the period during which the advertisement was output (for example, from 11:11:10 AM to 11:11:30 AM on November 11, 2024), or information indicating the time when the advertisement output started (for example, 11:11:10 AM on November 11, 2024).

[0022] The captured image data SD is the data of an image captured by camera 24. The captured image SG from camera 24 may be a still image or a video. Whether the captured image SG is a still image or a video, each captured image SG (or each frame image in the case of a video) is accompanied by capture time information indicating the time the image SG was captured. By comparing the capture time information with the time information in the output history data RD, it becomes possible to identify the content of the advertisement being output by ad truck 20 at the time each captured image SG was captured.

[0023] The processing unit 230 includes one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units). By executing the program PG2, the processing unit 230 functions as an imaging control unit 231 and an output control unit 232. At least one of these functional units may be implemented by a circuit such as a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a PLD (Programmable Logic Device), and an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0024] The imaging control unit 231 controls the image acquisition by the camera 24. For example, the imaging control unit 231 continues to capture images with the camera 24 while the advertisement is being displayed on the ad truck 20.

[0025] The output control unit 232 controls the output of advertisements in the ad truck 20. The output control unit 232 outputs advertisement data AD based on, for example, output control data (not shown). The output control data is, for example, data indicating the output order of the advertisement data AD. More specifically, the output control data may be data in which advertisement data IDs are arranged in chronological order. In this case, the output control unit 232 outputs multiple advertisement data AD in the order specified by the output control data. Alternatively, the output control data may be data in which time and advertisement data ID are associated. In this case, the output control unit 232 outputs the advertisement data AD associated with the time specified by the output control data.

[0026] [Advertising Effectiveness Estimation Device 10] Figure 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10. The advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 includes, for example, an input device 100, a display 110, a connection interface 120, a storage device 130, a processing device 140, and a bus 150 connecting these devices.

[0027] The input device 100 is an input device that accepts input from the outside (for example, a keyboard, mouse, switch, button, or sensor). The display 110 is a display device that displays information to the outside (for example, various display panels such as a liquid crystal display panel or an organic EL display panel). The input device 100 and the display 110 may be integrated, for example, as a touch panel.

[0028] As described above, the connection interface 120 is an interface for connecting the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25.

[0029] The storage device 130 is a recording medium that can be read by the processing device 140. The storage device 130 may consist of at least one of the following: ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, RAM, etc. The storage device 130 stores the program PG1. The program PG1 is a program for operating the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10.

[0030] The processing unit 140 includes one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units). By executing the program PG1, the processing unit 140 functions as an acquisition unit 141, a determination unit 142, and a presentation unit 143. At least one of these functional units may be configured by circuits such as a DSP, ASIC, PLD, and FPGA.

[0031] The acquisition unit 141 acquires captured images SG of the surroundings of the ad truck 20 equipped with the display 22. More specifically, the acquisition unit 141 acquires captured image data SD captured by the camera 24 from the control device 25. For example, the ad truck 20 moves through a predetermined area while displaying an advertisement on the display 22. During this time, the camera 24 continuously captures images. That is, the captured image data SD includes multiple captured images SG. When the ad truck 20 finishes patrolling the area and returns to, for example, the base of the operator of the advertising system 1, the control device 25 and the advertising effect estimation device 10 are connected via connection interfaces 120 and 210. The acquisition unit 141 acquires the captured images SG by reading the captured image data SD from the storage device 220 of the control device 25.

[0032] Furthermore, the acquisition unit 141 acquires output history data RD and advertising data AD along with the captured image data SD. The advertising data AD may be pre-stored in, for example, the storage device 130 of the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10.

[0033] Next, prior to describing the determination unit 142, the presentation unit 143 will be explained. The presentation unit 143 presents information regarding the effectiveness of advertising using the ad track 20 based on the behavior of at least one person J that appears in the attention area TS. In this embodiment, the presentation unit 143 includes an estimation unit 144. The estimation unit 144 estimates the effectiveness of advertising using the ad track 20 based on the behavior of at least one person J that appears in the attention area TS. The behavior of person J is, for example, whether or not they are looking at the display 22.

[0034] The estimation unit 144 uses, for example, AI (Artificial Intelligence) to detect the direction of each person J's gaze in the area of ​​interest TS. The estimation unit 144 estimates that the more people J are looking at the display 22, the more effective the advertisement using the ad truck 20 is. A large number of people J looking at the display 22 may mean a large absolute number of people J looking at the display 22, or it may mean a relative number of people J in the area of ​​interest TS who are looking at the display 22. If the captured image SG is a video, the estimation unit 144 may also detect the duration of time that people J are looking at the display 22. In this case, for example, the larger the cumulative duration, the more effective the advertisement using the ad truck 20 is estimated to be.

[0035] Furthermore, if it is difficult to detect the direction of the gaze of person J from the captured image SG, the direction of person J's face may be detected. In this case, if person J's face is facing the display 22, then person J is considered to be facing the display 22.

[0036] Thus, in this embodiment, the at least one person J that appears in the area of ​​interest TS includes at least one first person whose face and gaze are directed toward the display 22, at least one second person whose face is directed toward the display 22, and at least one third person whose gaze is directed toward the display 22. Information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement indicates that the greater the number of at least one first person, at least one second person, and at least one third person, the more effective the advertisement is.

[0037] The display unit 143 may, for example, display information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement on the display 110. Alternatively, the display unit 143 may print out information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement using a printer (not shown). Alternatively, the display unit 143 may transmit information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement to another information processing terminal via a network (or connection interface 120) (not shown). In this case, the information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement is output (display output or print output, etc.) at the other information processing terminal.

[0038] The determination unit 142 determines the area of ​​interest TS in the captured image SG based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the display 22. This can also be rephrased as the determination unit 142 determines the person of interest in the captured image SG based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the display 22. The area of ​​interest TS is an area of ​​the captured image SG that is used for the advertising effect estimation process in the estimation unit 144. The estimation unit 144, as described above, detects whether the person J (person of interest) in the area of ​​interest TS determined by the determination unit 142 is looking at the display 22.

[0039] More specifically, the decision unit 142 selects one captured image SG (hereinafter referred to as the "selected image") from among multiple captured images SG. The decision unit 142 refers to the capture time information of the selected image. The decision unit 142 also identifies the advertisement that was displayed at the time the selected image was captured, based on the output history data RD. Then, the decision unit 142 determines the area of ​​interest TS in the selected image based on the characteristics of the advertisement that was displayed at the time the selected image was captured.

[0040] Below, we will first explain the area of ​​focus, TS, and then explain the characteristics of advertising.

[0041] [Area of ​​Interest TS] Figure 5A is a schematic diagram showing the imaging range SR of camera 24. Figure 5B is a schematic diagram showing the captured image SG. As described above, camera 24 is positioned on top of the display 22 (truck bed) with the imaging direction facing the road surface R. The reason for orienting the imaging direction toward the road surface R is that the people J around the ad truck 20, which is the target of imaging, are located on the road surface R. Camera 24 has a field of view with an angle θ0 on the horizontal plane (a plane parallel to the road surface R) with respect to a lens (not shown). The imaging range SR can be considered as a sector with radius R0 and central angle θ0. In reality, radius R0 is at infinity, but in Figure 5A, the outer edge of the imaging range SR is conveniently shown by a dotted line.

[0042] In FIG. 5A, it is assumed that there are 25 persons J in a 5 - person×5 - person matrix within the imaging range SR. In this case, 25 pedestrians are captured in the captured image SG shown in FIG. 5B. Among the 5×5 matrix, the row closest to the ad - track 20 is defined as the first row, and the farthest row is defined as the fifth row. Also, among the 5×5 matrix, the right - most column in FIG. 5A is defined as the first column, and the left - most column in FIG. 5A is defined as the fifth column.

[0043] FIG. 6A is a schematic diagram showing a first example of the attention area TS in the real space. Also, FIG. 6B is a schematic diagram showing a first example of the attention area TS in the captured image SG. The attention area TS is set in an area with a size less than or equal to the imaging range SR. In other words, the upper limit of the attention area TS is the imaging range SR. When the attention area TS is set to the entire imaging range SR, all the persons J captured in the captured image SG are used for estimating the advertising effect.

[0044] In the example of FIG. 6A, the attention area TS is a sector having a radius R1 (<R0) and a central angle θ0. In this case, the person J at the 4th row and 1st column, the person J at the 4th row and 5th column, and the 5 persons J lined up in the 5th row are not included in the attention area TS. That is, as shown in FIG. 6B, within the attention area TS in the captured image SG, 18 persons J excluding the person J at the 4th row and 1st column, the person J at the 4th row and 5th column, and the 5 persons J lined up in the 5th row are included.

[0045] FIG. 7A is a schematic diagram showing a second example of the attention area TS in the real space. Also, FIG. 7B is a schematic diagram showing a second example of the attention area TS in the captured image SG. In the example of FIG. 7A, the attention area TS is a sector having a radius R2 (<R1) and a central angle θ0. In this case, except for the 5 persons J in the first row, the 3 persons J lined up in the 2nd row from the 2nd to 4th columns, and the person J at the 3rd row and 3rd column, a total of 9 persons, are not included in the attention area TS. That is, as shown in FIG. 7B, within the attention area TS in the captured image SG, only 9 persons including the 5 persons J in the first row, the 3 persons J lined up in the 2nd row from the 2nd to 4th columns, and the person J at the 3rd row and 3rd column are included.

[0046] When comparing FIGS. 6B and 7B, the attention area TS in FIG. 7B is set to be narrower. Also, when comparing FIGS. 6B and 7B, only the range where the distance from the display 22 (more precisely, the camera 24) is small is selected as the attention area TS. When comparing with the same captured image SG, the smaller the attention area TS, the fewer the number of people J captured within the attention area TS.

[0047] In FIGS. 6A and 7A, an example of changing the range of the attention area TS by only changing the radius of the sector was shown. However, this is not the only case. For example, the radius and the central angle of the sector may be changed, or only the central angle may be changed.

[0048] FIG. 8A is a schematic diagram showing a third example of the attention area TS in the real space. Also, FIG. 8B is a schematic diagram showing a third example of the attention area TS in the captured image SG. In the example of FIG. 8A, the attention area TS is a sector having a radius R1 (<R0) and a central angle θ1 (<θ0). In this case, the person J in the first row and first column, the person J in the first row and fifth column, and the five people J lined up in the fifth row are not included in the attention area TS. That is, as shown in FIG. 8B, within the attention area TS in the captured image SG, the remaining 18 people J excluding the person J in the first row and first column, the person J in the first row and fifth column, and the five people J lined up in the fifth row are included.

[0049] Note that the distance in the depth direction in the captured image SG may be determined using, for example, AI. Also, for example, using the fact that the size of the person J on the captured image SG varies according to the distance from the camera 24 to the person J (the farther the person J is from the camera 24, the smaller it appears on the captured image SG), a person J whose face part occupies a predetermined area or more on the captured image SG may be regarded as a person J within the attention area TS.

[0050] [Characteristics of Advertisements] Next, let's explain the characteristics of advertisements. As an example, one characteristic of an advertisement is the amount of information it contains. The decision unit 142 narrows the area of ​​focus TS as the amount of information in the advertisement increases. More specifically, the decision unit 142 limits the area of ​​focus TS to a range closer to the display 22 as the amount of information in the advertisement increases. Generally, the greater the distance between a person J and the object of their attention (for example, the display 22), the more difficult it becomes to grasp the details of the object of their attention. Therefore, when an advertisement (especially an advertisement using images) contains a large amount of information, it becomes difficult for a person J who is far away from the display 22 to grasp the content in detail.

[0051] As described above, in this embodiment, the effectiveness of an advertisement is estimated based on the number of people J in the captured image SG who are looking at the display 22. At this time, depending on the characteristics of the advertisement (e.g., the amount of information), people J who are far away from the display 22 may not be able to grasp the content of the advertisement even if they are looking at the display 22. If people J who do not grasp the content of the advertisement are counted, it may not be possible to correctly estimate the effectiveness of the advertisement. Therefore, in this embodiment, a focus area TS is set in the captured image SG based on the characteristics of the advertisement, and people J located in the focus area TS who are looking at the display 22 are counted. This makes it possible to count people J who can grasp the content of the advertisement, and improves the accuracy of estimating the effectiveness of the advertisement.

[0052] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an image G displayed on the display 22. Figure 9 shows images G1A and G1B. Image G1A shows a single bear character. Image G1B shows a streetscape including multiple buildings. Comparing images G1A and G1B, it can be said that image G1B contains more information. If the advertisement is image G, the amount of information may also be the number of objects contained in image G.

[0053] The determination unit 142 narrows the area of ​​focus TS when image G1B is displayed on the display 22 compared to the area of ​​focus TS when image G1A is displayed on the display 22. More specifically, the determination unit 142 limits the area of ​​focus TS when image G1B is displayed on the display 22 to a range closer to the display 22 than the area of ​​focus TS when image G1A is displayed on the display 22.

[0054] Furthermore, the characteristics of an advertisement may include whether or not it includes text display. The determination unit 142 narrows the area of ​​interest TS when the advertisement includes text display compared to when the advertisement does not include text display.

[0055] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of image G displayed on display 22. Figure 10 shows images G2A and G2B. Image G2A shows a bear character, similar to image G1A. Image G2B shows the same Kumano character as image G2A, in addition to the text "Visit X Park during winter holidays!". Comparing images G2A and G2B, image G2B can be said to contain more information due to the text display. The amount of information may also refer to the number of texts included in the advertisement.

[0056] The determination unit 142 narrows the area of ​​interest TS when image G2B is displayed on the display 22 compared to the area of ​​interest TS when image G2A is displayed on the display 22. More specifically, the determination unit 142 limits the area of ​​interest TS in the captured image SG when image G2B is displayed on the display 22 to a range closer to the display 22 than the area of ​​interest TS when image G2A is displayed on the display 22.

[0057] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram showing an example of image G displayed on display 22. Figure 11 shows images G3A and G3B. Image G3A displays the text "Visit X Park during winter break!" and prompts the user to perform a web search about X Park (a search box with "X Park" entered). Image G3B displays text with the heading "Follow the traffic rules!", showing important information about traffic rules. Comparing images G3A and G3B, image G3B has more text and therefore contains more information. Also, when there is a large amount of text, the font size used becomes smaller compared to when there is less text, reducing visibility from a distance.

[0058] The determination unit 142 narrows the area of ​​focus TS when image G3B is displayed on the display 22 compared to the area of ​​focus TS when image G3A is displayed on the display 22. More specifically, the determination unit 142 limits the area of ​​focus TS when image G3B is displayed on the display 22 to a range closer to the display 22 than the area of ​​focus TS when image G3A is displayed on the display 22.

[0059] Furthermore, the characteristics of the advertisement may also include whether it is a video advertisement or a still image advertisement. The decision unit 142 narrows the attention area TS when the advertisement is a video advertisement compared to when the advertisement is a still image advertisement. This is because video advertisements contain more information than still image advertisements.

[0060] Furthermore, the characteristics of the advertisement may include whether or not it includes sound. The determination unit 142 widens the attention area TS when the advertisement includes sound compared to when the advertisement does not include sound. This is because when the advertisement includes sound, i.e., when sound is output from the speaker 23, it becomes easier for a person J who is far away from the ad truck 20 to notice the presence of the ad truck 20 compared to when the advertisement does not include sound, i.e., when sound is not output from the speaker 23.

[0061] Furthermore, the determination unit 142 may determine the area of ​​attention TS based on the speed of the ad truck 20, in addition to the characteristics of the advertisement. In this case, the determination unit 142 narrows the area of ​​attention TS as the speed of the ad truck 20 increases. This is because the faster the ad truck 20 moves, the more difficult it becomes for person J to grasp the content of the information displayed on the display 22. In particular, when the advertisement is a video advertisement, it is more difficult to obtain the information unless one continuously looks at the display 22 compared to when the advertisement is a still image advertisement. If the ad truck 20 moves quickly, there is a possibility that the ad truck 20 will become invisible to surrounding person J before they can understand the content of the advertisement. Therefore, the determination unit 142 narrows the area of ​​attention TS as the speed of the ad truck 20 increases.

[0062] The speed of the ad truck 20 may be obtained, for example, from a drive recorder mounted on the ad truck 20. Furthermore, if the captured image SG is a video, the speed of the ad truck 20 may be estimated based on the amount of change in the captured area between adjacent frames.

[0063] [Flowchart] Figure 12 is a flowchart showing the operation of the processing unit 140 of the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10. The processing unit 140 functions as an acquisition unit 141 and acquires multiple captured images SG from the control device 25 (step S10). The processing unit 140 functions as a determination unit 142 and determines the area of ​​interest TS for each of the multiple captured images SG (step S11).

[0064] The processing unit 140 functions as an estimation unit 144 and estimates the effectiveness of the advertisement using the ad track 20 based on the behavior of the person J appearing in the area of ​​interest TS (step S12). The processing unit 140 functions as a presentation unit 143 and presents information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement estimated in step S12 (step S13).

[0065] [Summary of Embodiments] As described above, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 according to the embodiment determines a focus area TS in the captured image SG based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the ad truck 20, estimates the effectiveness of the advertisement using the ad truck 20 based on the behavior of the person J in the focus area TS, and presents it. Therefore, compared to, for example, estimating the effectiveness of the advertisement based on the behavior of all person J in the captured image SG, the processing load of the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 is reduced. Furthermore, since the effectiveness of the advertisement is estimated based on the behavior of person J who can realistically see the advertisement, the accuracy of the advertising effectiveness estimation is improved. In addition, since the focus area TS is determined based on the characteristics of the advertisement, the accuracy of the advertising effectiveness estimation is improved compared to estimating the effectiveness of the advertisement based on the behavior of person J within a uniformly defined range, such as "person J within a predetermined distance from the display 22".

[0066] If the characteristic of an advertisement is the amount of information it contains, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 narrows the area of ​​focus TS as the amount of information in the advertisement increases. Therefore, the effectiveness of an advertisement can be estimated based on the behavior of a person J who is positioned close enough to the ad truck 20 to grasp an advertisement with a large amount of information, thereby improving the accuracy of advertising effectiveness estimation.

[0067] When determining whether an advertisement is a video advertisement or a still image advertisement, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 narrows the attention area TS for video advertisements compared to the attention area TS for still image advertisements. Therefore, the effectiveness of the advertisement can be estimated based on the behavior of person J who is positioned close enough to the ad truck 20 to grasp the information-rich content of the video advertisement, thereby improving the accuracy of the advertising effectiveness estimation.

[0068] If the characteristic of an advertisement is whether or not it includes sound, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 widens the attention area TS when sound is included compared to the attention area TS when sound is not included. Therefore, the fact that a wide range of people J pay attention to the ad truck 20 due to sound can be reflected in the estimation of advertising effectiveness, improving the accuracy of the advertising effectiveness estimation.

[0069] If the characteristics of an advertisement include whether or not it includes text display, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 narrows the attention area TS when text display is included compared to the attention area TS when text display is not included. Therefore, the effectiveness of the advertisement can be estimated based on the behavior of person J who is positioned close enough to the ad truck 20 to grasp the content of the text, thereby improving the accuracy of advertising effectiveness estimation.

[0070] Furthermore, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 determines the attention area TS based on the characteristics of the advertisement as well as the movement speed of the ad truck 20. The advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 narrows the attention area TS as the movement speed of the ad truck 20 increases. Therefore, the effectiveness of the advertisement can be estimated by taking into account the time that surrounding people J can see the advertisement, and the accuracy of the advertising effectiveness estimation is improved.

[0071] B: Modifications The following are examples of modifications to the above-described embodiment. Two or more modifications can be arbitrarily selected from the following examples and combined as appropriate, within the bounds of mutual consistency.

[0072] B1: First Modification In the embodiment described above, an ad truck 20 was used as an example of a mobile body. However, the mobile body is not limited to this, and any vehicle capable of carrying advertising media is acceptable. More specifically, the mobile body may be, for example, a wrapped bus. Alternatively, the mobile body may be, for example, a bicycle. In this case, advertising media may be installed at any location on a rental bicycle (for example, on the luggage rack above the rear wheel or on the front of the front basket). Alternatively, the mobile body may be a drone equipped with advertising media.

[0073] B2: Second Modification In the embodiment described above, the display 22 was used as an example of an advertising medium. However, the advertising medium is not limited to this, and may be a medium whose display does not change, such as a poster. Furthermore, the advertising medium is not limited to a two-dimensional medium, but may be a three-dimensional object or a three-dimensional image, for example.

[0074] B3: Third Modification In the above-described embodiment, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 acquires the captured image SG and output history data RD after the ad truck 20 has finished patrolling the area, and estimates the effectiveness of the advertisement using the ad truck 20. However, it is not limited to this, for example, if the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25 are connected via a network, the captured image SG and output history data RD may be transmitted sequentially to the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 while the ad truck 20 is patrolling. In this case, the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 receives the captured image SG and output history data RD and estimates the effectiveness of the advertisement using the ad truck 20 based on these. According to the third modification, the effectiveness of the advertisement can be estimated almost simultaneously with the output of the advertisement, improving convenience.

[0075] B4: Fourth Modification In the above-described embodiment, the advertising data AD was stored in the control device 25. For example, if the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 and the control device 25 are connected via a network, the advertising data AD may be transmitted from the advertising effectiveness estimation device 10 to the control device 25 while the ad truck 20 is patrolling. This allows for dynamic changes to the advertisements displayed on the ad truck 20, for example, improving convenience. Furthermore, by combining the third and fourth modifications, for example, it becomes possible to selectively output advertisements that are responsive (highly effective) in real time.

[0076] B5: Figure 13 of the fifth modified example is a schematic diagram showing the appearance of the ad truck 20A according to the fifth modified example. In the ad truck 20A according to the fifth modified example, a poster 26 is attached to the cargo bed of the truck instead of a display 22. That is, the advertising medium in the fifth modified example is the poster 26. The ad truck 20A is also equipped with a lighting device 27 that illuminates the poster 26 with light.

[0077] Because the display 22 emits light itself, it maintains a certain level of visibility even in dark conditions, such as at night or in bad weather. In contrast, the poster 26 does not emit light, so its visibility is significantly reduced in dark conditions. For this reason, the ad truck 20A is equipped with a lighting device 27, and the visibility of the poster 26 is ensured by turning on the lighting device 27 when it is dark.

[0078] In the fifth modified example, the characteristic of the advertisement is whether or not the lighting device 27 is in operation. The determination unit 142 widens the area of ​​interest TS when the lighting device 27 is in operation compared to when the lighting device 27 is not in operation. This is because when the lighting device 27 is in operation, a person J who is farther away from the poster 26 can also grasp the content of the poster 26 compared to when the lighting device 27 is not in operation. According to the fifth modified example, when a lighting device 27 that irradiates light onto the advertising medium is provided, the effectiveness of the advertisement can be accurately estimated based on whether or not the lighting device 27 is in operation.

[0079] Furthermore, the processing performed by the decision unit 142 may be limited to situations where the surroundings of the ad truck 20 are dark. In other words, in situations where there is sufficient brightness to see the poster 26 without operating the lighting device 27, the decision unit 142 does not need to perform the processing described above.

[0080] C: Other (1) In the embodiments described above, ROM and RAM were given as examples of storage devices 130 and 220, but storage devices 130 and 220 may be flexible disks, magneto-optical disks (e.g., compact disks, digital multipurpose disks, Blu-ray® disks), smart cards, flash memory devices (e.g., cards, sticks, key drives), CD-ROMs (Compact Disc-ROMs), registers, removable disks, hard disks, floppy® disks, magnetic strips, databases, servers, and other suitable storage media.

[0081] (2) In the embodiments described above, the information, signals, etc. may be represented using any of the various different techniques. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof.

[0082] (3) In the embodiments described above, the input and output information may be stored in a specific location (e.g., memory) or managed using a management table. The input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or appended to. The output information may be deleted. The input information may be transmitted to other devices.

[0083] (4) In the embodiments described above, the determination may be made by a value represented by one bit (0 or 1), by a Boolean value (true or false), or by a numerical comparison (for example, a comparison with a predetermined value).

[0084] (5) The processing procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc., exemplified in the embodiments described above may be rearranged in order, as long as there is no inconsistency. For example, in the methods described herein, various step elements are presented using an exemplary order and are not limited to the specific order presented.

[0085] (6) Each function illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 is implemented by any combination of at least one of hardware and software. Furthermore, the method of implementing each function block is not particularly limited. That is, each function block may be implemented using one device that is physically or logically coupled, or it may be implemented using two or more physically or logically separated devices that are directly or indirectly connected (for example, using wired, wireless, etc.). A function block may also be implemented by combining the above one device or the above multiple devices with software.

[0086] (7) The programs illustrated in the embodiments described above should be broadly interpreted to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, procedures, functions, etc., whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages ​​or by any other name.

[0087] Furthermore, software, instructions, information, etc., may be transmitted and received via a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using at least one of wired technology (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, or digital subscriber line (DSL)) and wireless technology (such as infrared or microwave), then at least one of these wired and wireless technologies is included in the definition of a transmission medium.

[0088] (8) In each of the above-mentioned forms, the terms “system” and “network” shall be used interchangeably.

[0089] (9) The information, parameters, etc. described in this disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, relative values ​​from a given value, or other corresponding information.

[0090] (10) In the embodiments described above, the portable device may be a Mobile Station (MS). A Mobile Station may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or several other appropriate terms. In this disclosure, terms such as “mobile station,” “user terminal,” “user equipment (UE),” and “terminal” may be used interchangeably.

[0091] (11) In the embodiments described above, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” or any variation thereof means any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are “connected” or “coupled” with each other. The coupling or connection between elements may be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. For example, “connection” may be read as “access.” As used in the present disclosure, two elements may be considered to be “connected” or “coupled” with each other using at least one of one or more wires, cables, and printed electrical connections, and, in some non-limiting and non-exclusive examples, electromagnetic energy having wavelengths in the radio frequency domain, microwave domain, and optical (both visible and invisible) domain.

[0092] (12) In the embodiments described above, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based solely on" unless otherwise specified. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based solely on" and "based at least on".

[0093] (13) The terms “determinating” and “deciding” as used in this disclosure may encompass a wide variety of actions. “Determinating” and “deciding” may include, for example, judging, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up, search, inquiry (for example, searching in a table, database or other data structure), and confirming. Furthermore, "judgment" and "decision" may include considering something as a "judgment" or "decision" based on actions such as receiving (e.g., receiving information), transmitting (e.g., sending information), input, output, and access (e.g., accessing data in memory). Additionally, "judgment" and "decision" may include considering something as a "judgment" or "decision" based on actions such as resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, and comparing. In short, "judgment" and "decision" may include considering something as a "judgment" or "decision" based on some action. Furthermore, "judgment (decision)" may be reinterpreted as "assuming," "expecting," or "considering."

[0094] (14) Where the terms “include,” “including,” and variations thereof are used in the embodiments described above, these terms are intended to be inclusive, as is the term “comprising.” Furthermore, the term “or” as used in this disclosure is not intended to be exclusive OR.

[0095] (15) In the present disclosure, if articles are added by translation, for example, a, an, and the in English, the present disclosure may include the fact that the noun following these articles is plural.

[0096] (16) In this disclosure, the term “A and B are different” may mean “A and B are different from each other.” The term may also mean “A and B are each different from C.” Terms such as “separate” and “combine” may be interpreted in the same way as “different.”

[0097] (17) Each aspect / embodiment described herein may be used individually, in combination, or switched between as needed during implementation. Furthermore, notification of certain information (e.g., notification that "it is X") is not limited to explicit notification, but may also be implicit (e.g., by not providing such notification).

[0098] 1... Advertising system, 10... Advertising effectiveness estimation device, 20... Ad truck, 21... Vehicle body, 22... Display, 23... Speaker, 24... Camera, 25... Control device, 100... Input device, 110... Display, 120... Connection interface, 130... Storage device, 140... Processing device, 141... Acquisition unit, 142... Determination unit, 143... Presentation unit, 144... Estimation unit, 210... Connection interface, 220... Storage device, 230... Processing device, 231... Imaging control unit, 232... Output control unit, J... Person, SD... Imaging image data, SG... Imaging image, SR... Imaging range, TS... Area of ​​interest.

Claims

1. An advertising effect estimation device comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires an image of the surroundings of a mobile body equipped with an advertising medium; a determination unit that determines a region of interest in the acquired image based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the advertising medium; and a presentation unit that presents information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement using the mobile body based on the behavior of at least one person captured in the region of interest.

2. The advertising effect estimation device according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic of the advertisement is the amount of information in the advertisement, and the determination unit narrows the area of ​​focus as the amount of information in the advertisement increases.

3. The advertising effect estimation device according to claim 1, wherein the characteristics of the advertisement are whether the advertisement is a video advertisement or a still image advertisement, and the determination unit narrows the area of ​​interest when the advertisement is a video advertisement compared to when the advertisement is a still image advertisement.

4. The advertising effect estimation device according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic of the advertisement is whether or not the advertisement includes sound, and the determination unit widens the area of ​​interest when the advertisement includes sound compared to when the advertisement does not include sound.

5. The advertising effect estimation device according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic of the advertisement is whether or not the advertisement includes text display, and the determination unit narrows the area of ​​interest when the advertisement includes text display compared to when the advertisement does not include text display.

6. The mobile body further comprises an illumination device for irradiating the advertising medium with light, the characteristic of the advertisement is whether or not the illumination device is in operation, and the determination unit widens the area of ​​interest when the illumination device is in operation compared to when the illumination device is not in operation, the advertising effect estimation device according to claim 1.

7. The advertising effectiveness estimation device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one person includes at least one first person whose face and gaze are directed toward the advertising medium, at least one second person whose face is directed toward the advertising medium, and at least one third person whose gaze is directed toward the advertising medium, and the information relating to the effectiveness of the advertisement indicates that the greater the number of the at least one first person, the at least one second person, and the at least one third person, the more effective the advertisement is.

8. The advertising effect estimation device according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines the area of ​​interest based on the moving speed of the moving body in addition to the characteristics of the advertisement.

9. The advertising effect estimation device according to claim 8, wherein the determination unit narrows the area of ​​interest as the speed of the moving body increases.

10. An advertising effectiveness estimation method comprising: acquiring an image of the surroundings of a mobile body equipped with an advertising medium; determining a region of interest in the image based on the characteristics of the advertisement displayed on the advertising medium; and presenting information regarding the effectiveness of the advertisement using the mobile body based on the behavior of at least one person captured in the region of interest.

Images