Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and computer program product

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9699414-B2
Application number	US-201615206899-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 11, 2016
Priority date	Jul 14, 2015
Publication date	Jul 4, 2017
Grant date	Jul 4, 2017

Abstract

An information processing apparatus includes an imaging unit, a voice input unit, a cutting-out unit, a transmitting unit, an acquiring unit, and a cutting-out control unit. The voice input unit switches a sound pickup direction for voice. The cutting-out unit cuts out, as a cut-out image, a cutting-out area which is at least a part of an image captured by the imaging unit. The transmitting unit transmits video information including the cut-out image and voice data of voice input to the voice input unit. The acquiring unit acquires setting information including layout information indicating arrangement of seat areas at a time of a conference and priority information indicating a priority of each of the seat areas indicated by the layout information. The cutting-out control unit controls the sound pickup direction of the voice input unit and the cutting-out area of the cutting-out unit in accordance with the acquired setting information.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:
a camera that captures an image:
a microphone configured to capture audio data in a sound pickup direction of the microphone; and
processing circuitry configured to
cut out, as a cut-out image, a cutting-out area that is at least a part of the image;
transmit video information including the cut-out image and the audio data captured by the microphone;
acquire setting information including layout information indicating an arrangement of seat areas at a time of a conference, and priority information indicating a priority of each of the seat areas indicated by the layout information;
control, in accordance with the setting information and the priority information, an adjustment of the sound pickup direction of the microphone; and
adjust the cutting-out area in accordance with the setting information and the priority information.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the microphone includes
a microphone array, the microphone array including a plurality of sub-microphones with directionalities in mutually different directions and outputting audio signals of the audio data; and
a switching circuit configured to switch the sound pickup direction by changing a selection of a particular sub-microphone that outputs the audio signal used as the audio data.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the processing circuitry is configured to
perform a first control to control the adjustment of the sound pickup direction of the microphone such that a direction of the seat area with a highest priority indicated by the priority information included in the setting information is set as the sound pickup direction and audio data in the set sound pickup direction is collected, and
adjust the cutting-out area such that an area corresponding to the seat area in the image is cut out as the cut-out image.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the processing circuitry performs the first control at least at a first timing before a conference starts.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein when audio data is input to at least two or more of the sub-microphones, the processing circuitry is configured to
perform a second control to control the microphone such that a direction of the seat area with a highest priority indicated by the priority information included in the setting information is set as the sound pickup direction among directions of the directionalities of the sub-microphones to which the audio data is input and such that audio data in the set sound pickup direction is collected, and
adjust the cutting-out area such that an area corresponding to the seat area with the highest priority in the image is cut out as the cut-out image.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein
when audio data is input to any one of the sub-microphones and a priority corresponding to the seat area in a direction of a directionality of the sub-microphone to which the audio data is input is not registered in the priority information included in the setting information, the processing circuitry is configured to perform the first control, and
when audio data is input to any one of the sub-microphones and the priority is registered in the priority information included in the setting information, the processing circuitry is configured to
perform a third control to control the microphone such that a direction of a directionality of the sub-microphone to which the audio data is input is set as the sound pickup direction and audio data in the set sound pickup direction is collected, and
adjust the cutting-out area such that an area corresponding to the seat area in the direction of the directionality of the sub-microphone in the image is cut out as the cut-out image.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry acquires, as the setting information, the layout information accepted from an user interface operated by a user and the priority information corresponding to the layout information read from a storage.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein to acquire the setting information, the processing circuitry is configured to
specify the layout information from an image captured by the camera; and
acquire, as the setting information, the specified layout information and the priority information corresponding to the layout information read from a storage.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein to acquire the setting information, the processing circuitry is configured to
determine the seat area in which an average volume of audio data input to the microphone is changed by an amount greater than or equal to a first threshold and then the changed average volume is continued for a time longer than or equal to a second threshold, and
when the seat area is determined, specify the layout information and acquire the setting information.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the camera captures an image in each of the directions of the sub-microphones.

11. An information processing method performed by an information processing apparatus that includes processing circuitry, a camera, and a microphone, the information processing method comprising:
capturing, by the microphone, audio data in a sound pickup direction of the microphone;
cutting out as a cut-out image, by the processing circuitry, a cutting-out area that is at least a part of the image;
transmitting video information including the cut-out image and the audio data;
acquiring, by the processing circuitry, setting information including layout information indicating an arrangement of seat areas at a time of a conference and priority information indicating a priority of each of the seat areas indicated by the layout information;
controlling, by the processing circuitry and in accordance with the acquired setting information, an adjustment of the sound pickup direction of the microphone; and
adjusting, by the processing circuitry, the cutting-out area in accordance with the setting information and the priority information.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including computer executable instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of an information processing apparatus further including a camera and a microphone, cause the information processing apparatus to:
control the microphone to capture audio data in a sound pickup direction of the microphone;
cut out, as a cut-out image, a cutting-out area that is at least a part of the image;
transmit video information including the cut-out image and the audio data;
acquiring setting information including both layout information indicating an arrangement of seat areas at a time of a conference and priority information indicating a priority of each of the seat areas indicated by the layout information;
control, in accordance with the acquired setting information, an adjustment of the sound pickup direction of the microphone; and
adjust the cutting-out area in accordance with the setting information and the priority information.

13. The information processing method according to claim 11 , wherein the microphone includes
a microphone array, the microphone array including a plurality of sub-microphones with directionalities in mutually different directions and outputting audio signals of the audio data; and
a switching circuit configured to switch the sound pickup direction by changing

Assignees

• Kitazawa Kazuki
• Igarashi Kiyoto
• Uchiyama Hiroaki
• Kuwata Koji
• Takahashi Masato
• Goto Tomoyuki
• Gingawa Nobumasa
• Ricoh Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kitazawa Kazuki
• Igarashi Kiyoto
• Uchiyama Hiroaki
• Kuwata Koji
• Takahashi Masato
• Goto Tomoyuki
• Gingawa Nobumasa

Classifications

• H04L65/403

  Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences (data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15) · CPC title

• H04N7/15 Primary

  Conference systems · CPC title

• H04R3/005

  for combining the signals of two or more microphones (specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407) · CPC title

• H04R2430/20

  Processing of the output signals of the acoustic transducers of an array for obtaining a desired directivity characteristic (H04R2203/12 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04L67/52

  specially adapted for the location of the user terminal · CPC title