JP2002352039A - Electronic voting device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To provide an electronic voting device that can perform electronic voting without impairing the voting feeling of a voter, eliminate impropriety, and physically leave voting results. thing. [Solving Means] The voter receives an electronic ballot 2 from the reception desk in the polling place.
01 is received and inserted into the electronic voting paper 101. Device 2
Reference numeral 01 reads the information of the IC chip mounted on the paper 101 and authenticates its validity. The voter performs a voting operation input using the touch panel 108 or the numeric keypad 114 in accordance with the guidance displayed on the display 106 or the headphone 116 and played back by voice. The voting result is printed on the ballot paper 201, and the voter posts it in the ballot box. The voting result is recorded in the voting paper management database 112 in the counting device 121, and after the voting time is over, the votes are electronically counted for each candidate.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a voting paper (card) and a voting device used in elections, referendums, and the like. The voting of the present invention includes not only elections and referendums, but also voting at private institutions (voting at general meetings of shareholders, classes at schools, etc.), and the form thereof is not limited. In addition, the voting destination is not limited to a person, but also includes approval for the agenda.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the current election voting, automation of voting is not advanced, and since counting and counting are performed manually, there is a problem that much time and cost are required until counting is completed, resulting in poor efficiency. Was. Also, in the current voting method, in which a voter intends to vote for a candidate or a political party, a mistake may be made in the form of an invalid vote due to a mistake in entry.

[0003] In addition, since the ballot paper used for current election voting is only printed on paper, it is illegal to forge the ballot paper itself or take it back and transfer it to other voters. It was possible to work.

[0004] In order to cope with such a problem, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-16862 discloses an electronic voting method technology for electronically voting by an elector using a token card instead of a voting sheet. According to this conventional technique, an elector receives a token card (a memory card or a magnetic card incorporating a semiconductor memory chip) at a reception desk, inserts the token card into an electronic voting terminal device, and activates the terminal device (voting state). ), And performs a voting action by selecting an elected candidate who wants to vote from the elected person list displayed on the touch panel screen of the terminal device. The input voting content is electronically recorded in a predetermined storage device.

[0005]

According to the above prior art, electronic counting of voting data recorded in the storage device is possible, so that the counting time can be reduced and the counting can be made more efficient. become able to. In addition, since no voting paper is used, problems of invalid votes, forgery of voting paper, and take-out due to entry errors can be solved. However, Japanese voters are accustomed to the current voting style of filling in the ballot contents on a ballot and posting it in a ballot box. . In addition, in the above-described conventional voting method, a voter cannot confirm his / her own voting result in a physical form such as a voting paper, and thus cannot obtain a guarantee that his / her voting result is correctly counted.

In addition, even if a question is raised in the counting result and an election lawsuit occurs, recounting cannot be performed because no physical evidence is left.

[0007] In order to solve these problems, an object of the present invention is to enable electronic voting without impairing the voting feeling of voters, to eliminate fraud, and to physically leave voting results. The present invention is to provide an electronic voting device and a ballot that can be used.

In the conventional voting method, a part of a candidate who wants to be voted is selected by touching the candidate list displayed on the touch panel screen, so that there is no irregularity indicating the position of the candidate list. However, it is hard to say that the interface is easy for the visually impaired to vote.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an electronic voting apparatus having a voting interface that makes it easy for a visually impaired person to vote using a tactile sense or an auditory sense.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has a configuration in which electronic voting and physical voting, for example, by paper, are arranged at the same time. That is, the voting contents are stored electronically (or magnetically or optically), physical voting such as printing on paper is also executed, and the voting contents are linked with identification information. An example is shown below. (Means 1) In a voting device used for election and referendum of the present invention, means for reading information stored in an electronic storage medium attached to a voting card, input means for receiving a voting operation by a voter, And printing means for printing information on the voting result input by the voting operation on the voting card. (Means 2) A voting card used for an election or a referendum of the present invention has a printable area and a medium capable of storing electronic information. (Means 3) The electronic voting card in Means 2 of the present invention is:
3. The electronic voting card according to claim 2, wherein the electronic voting card is a paper to which an IC chip or a magnetic stripe is attached. (Means 4) In the electronic voting apparatus in Means 1 of the present invention,
The input means for accepting a voting operation by the voter is a numeric keyboard having numeric keys from 0 to 9, and voice output means for confirming the input content by voice. Item 3. The electronic voting device according to Item 1. (Means 5) In the electronic voting apparatus in Means 1 of the present invention,
The printing means prints information on a voting result to be printed on the voting card as characters, numbers, symbols, bar codes, or graphics. (Means 6) The voting result confirmation device used in the election and the referendum of the present invention has means for reading information on the voting results printed on the voting card, and output means for explaining the voting results by voice. It is characterized by the following. (Means 7) In the voting apparatus used for election and referendum of the present invention, a display means for displaying an image image of a poster bulletin board on which each candidate poster set by the Election Administration Committee is attached, Means for enlarging and displaying a part. (Means 8) In the device used for election and referendum of the present invention, a display means for displaying guidance for voting operation, a voice output means for providing voice guidance having contents different from the above guidance, and a voting operation by a voter Input means for accepting the received voting operation, and means for determining whether the input voting operation follows the display guidance or the voice guidance.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a block configuration of an electronic voting apparatus 101 and a system configuration of an electronic voting system using the electronic voting apparatus 101 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, a plurality of electronic voting devices 101 are installed in a polling place, and are connected to a tallying device 121 via a wired or wireless polling place network 123. Voters are the electronic voting paper 201 and the electronic voting device 1
Voting action is performed using 01. The result of the voting in the electronic voting device 101 is converted into electronic data by the tallying device 121.
Sent to and stored. After the voting time ends, the counting device 10
The voting data stored in No. 2 is counted, and the voting results for the polling place can be calculated.

Prior to the description of the electronic voting apparatus 101, the electronic voting form 201 and the counting apparatus 102 will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 2, the electronic voting paper 20
Reference numeral 1 denotes a sheet on which an IC chip 202 is pasted as an electronic storage medium and necessary items 203 are printed. The storage medium of the electronic voting paper 201 is not particularly limited to an IC chip, but may be a magnetic storage medium such as a magnetic stripe. The voting paper 201 is not limited to paper, but may be any paper having a printable area 204, and may be, for example, a pet card which is entirely magnetically coated with a polyester material. The identification numbers are assigned to the ballots to be distributed so as not to be duplicated, and the numbers are encrypted and stored in the IC chip in the ballots. The identification number is
It need not be encrypted.

In FIG. 1, a totaling device 102 is a computer having a voting paper management database 121 stored in its memory. The database 121 stores information on voting papers to be distributed at the polling place in the format of the table shown in FIG. Each row of the table shown in FIG. 3 corresponds to information on a voting sheet for each sheet.
The voting paper number orchid registers the above voting paper number of each voting paper, and the "voting not completed" orchid records whether or not voting was performed on that voting paper (the initial state is " Not "),
The content of the voting on the ballot is recorded in the "voting content" orchid (the initial state is blank).

Now, referring to FIG.
Equipped with a CPU, a RAM, a hard disk, a display control unit, a display, a touch panel control unit, a touch panel, a reader control unit, an IC chip reader, a print control unit, a print head, a ten key control unit, a ten keyboard, a voice processing unit, and headphones. It is a computer. A CPU 102 controls the operation of the entire electronic voting apparatus. 1
03 is a RAM for loading programs and data for the CPU 102 to run, and 104 is a hard disk for storing the programs and data on a magnetic disk. Reference numeral 106 denotes a display for displaying guidance on an operation method of the voting device 101 and displaying a menu of candidates, and the like.
A display control unit 105 performs the control. 1
Reference numeral 16 denotes a headphone for playing back guidance or the like of the operation method of the voting apparatus 101 by voice, and reference numeral 115 denotes a voice processing unit for performing voice processing.

Reference numerals 108 and 114 denote input units for a voter to perform a voting operation input.
Reference numeral 114 denotes a numeric keyboard. Reference numeral 107 denotes a touch panel control unit that controls the touch panel 108, and reference numeral 113 denotes a numeric key control unit that controls the numeric keyboard 114, and has a function of notifying the CPU 102 of a voting operation input notified from the touch panel 108 and the numeric keyboard 114, respectively. . Reference numeral 110 denotes an IC chip reader that reads information from an IC chip attached to the voting paper 201, and reference numeral 109 denotes a reader control unit that controls the information. The reader control unit 109 has a function of notifying the CPU 102 of the read information. Reference numeral 112 denotes a print head that prints on the voting paper 201, and 111 denotes a printer control unit that controls the print head.

FIG. 4 shows an external view of the voting apparatus 101. The voting device 101 includes a CPU 102, a RAM 103,
It is a pen PC in which the hard disk 104 and the like are built. A touch panel type liquid crystal display 106 in which a display 106 and a touch panel 108 are integrated is provided on an upper portion of the apparatus 101. A voting paper reader device 402 is mounted on a front portion of the device 101. The voting paper reader device 402 includes a mechanism for inserting and fixing a voting paper to a predetermined position in the device, an IC chip reader 110 for reading information in an IC chip of the voting paper, and a print head 112 for printing on the voting paper 201. Be composed. Apparatus 1
01 is provided with a network interface 403 such as e-support or a wireless LAN card. A telephone-type numeric keyboard 114 composed of numeric keys from 0 to 9 and symbol keys of “*” and “#” and headphones 116 are connected to the front of the apparatus 101 as external devices.

In the present embodiment, by appropriately operating the electronic voting apparatus 101, the voting result, which is the object of the present invention, can be physically left, and electronic voting can be performed without impairing the voter's actual feeling of voting. It provides a voting interface that allows voting and makes it easier for visually impaired people to vote. Hereinafter, this operation will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

(Step 501) After the power to the apparatus 101 is turned on, the CPU 102 instructs the display control unit 105 and the voice processing unit 115 to display and output a message "Please insert a voting paper". Upon receiving this, the display control unit 105 displays the message on the display 106, and the audio processing unit 11
5 outputs the above message to the headphones 116 by voice. (Step 502) At the reception in the polling place, the voter makes an inquiry as to whether or not he is an elector using the electoral register, and if he is an elector, he receives the voting paper 201 from the reception. The voter may follow the voting device 10 according to the above guidance.
The voting paper 201 is inserted into the voting paper reader device 402 in the voting paper 201. At this time, the voter with visual impairment is headphone 1
16 is attached.

(Step 503) The reader control unit 109 detects that the voting paper 201 has been inserted into the reader device 402, and uses an IC chip reader to encrypt the voting paper number from the IC chip 202 in the voting paper 201. Read A and notify CPU 102.

(Step 504) The CPU 102 decrypts the original voting paper number A from the read data using a predetermined decryption key, and makes an inquiry to the voting paper management database 122 in the counting device 121. If the number A does not exist in the database 122, or even if it exists, the "voting not yet completed" ordinal of the number A is "completed", it is determined that the ballot paper is invalid, and step 505 is performed.
Proceed to. If the number A exists in the database 121 and the “voting not yet completed” orchid is “not yet”, it is determined that the voting sheet is valid, and the process proceeds to step 506.

(Step 505) The CPU 102 causes the display 106 to display a message “This voting paper is invalid”, and causes the headphone 116 to output sound. When detecting that the voting paper 201 has been removed from the voting device 402, the CPU 102 returns to the initial state of step 501. (Step 506) CPU1
02 calls a list of candidates (elected persons) and a candidate number of each candidate from the hard disk 104. Here, the candidate number is a number for identifying each candidate such as, for example, a report number of each candidate, and it is assumed that the candidate number has been announced to the voters in advance. The CPU 102 causes the headphone 116 to read out the candidate name and the candidate number in order, and in another voice, "Please enter the number of the candidate you want to vote from the numeric keypad, and finally press the"#"key." Output the message periodically.

(Step 507) The CPU 102 calls up the election poster image of each candidate and the image of the public poster bulletin board installed by the Election Commission from the hard disk 104, and displays a voting screen in the style shown in FIG. Display. In FIG. 6, an image 601 of the poster bulletin board and an image 6 of a plurality of candidate posters are displayed on the display 106.
03 and a voting operation guidance message 604 are displayed. A poster selection window 602 is further provided on the poster bulletin board image 601, and the window 602 can be moved left and right by touching the screen.

A poster of a plurality of candidates selected in the window 602 is displayed as an image 603. In the message 604, "Move the candidate selection window on the poster bulletin board to display the candidate poster you want to vote on.""Touch the poster of the candidate you want to vote on and vote.""Vote from the numeric keypad To do so, enter the candidate number using the numeric keypad, and press the “#” key for at least 3 seconds. Is displayed.

(Step 508) Among the voters, those who have visual impairment can recognize only the voting guidance from the headphones 116 in step 506, and perform the voting operation from the ten keyboard 114 as instructed by the guidance.
That is, enter the candidate number of the candidate who wants to vote, and finally press the "#" key. The voter who does not have visual impairment adds the voting guidance from the headphones 116 in step 506 and the display 106 in step 507.
Since the voting guidance from the user can be recognized, the voting operation is performed from the numeric keyboard 114 or the display 106. When inputting from the numeric keypad 114, as in the case of a visually impaired voter, input the candidate number of the candidate who wants to vote, and finally press the "#" key.

However, in accordance with the voting guidance 604 displayed on the display 106, the "#" key is depressed for as long as 3 seconds or more. When inputting from the display 106, the user touches and moves the window 602 on the poster bulletin board image 601 to display the poster 603 of the candidate who wants to vote, and touches it to vote.

(Step 509) When a voting input is made from the display 106, the CPU 102 inputs the poster image of the input candidate, a message "Are you sure you want to vote for this candidate", and "YES" and "NO".
A button screen is displayed on the display 106.
When a voting input is performed from the numeric keyboard 114, C
The PU 102 sends the input candidate's name and a message saying “Are you sure you want to vote for this candidate? Press the“ * ”key to vote or the“ # ”key to start over” to the headphones 116. Voice display.

(Step 510) The voter decides “vote confirmation” or “re-votes” according to the instruction of the above guidance.
Operation input. If “vote confirmation” is input, the process proceeds to step 511, and if “vote redo” is input, the process returns to step 506.

(Step 511) The CPU 102 determines whether or not the voter has visual impairment according to the difference in the operation input method performed by the voter. Display 10
If the input has been made from the number 6 or if the voting input has been made from the numeric keyboard 114 and the pressing time of the “#” key in step 508 is 3 seconds or more, the CPU 102 determines that the voter has no visual impairment. . If a voting input is made from the numeric keyboard 114 and the pressing time of the "#" key in step 508 is less than 3 seconds, the CPU 102 determines that the voter has a visual impairment.

(Step 512) The CPU 102 instructs the printer control unit 111 to print the voting result (name of the candidate who has been voted) on the voting paper 201.
At this time, if the CPU 102 determines in step 511 that the voter has visual impairment, the result of the vote is encrypted and expressed on the ballot paper 201 by expressing it as a series of numbers and symbols or a graphic such as a barcode. To do so. Such a determination may be made based on an input from the election administrator or an identification number. The identification number and the information related to the voter may be stored in association with each other and used.
This has the purpose of preventing people near the voter from seeing the result of the vote.

When the CPU 102 determines that the voter has no visual impairment, the CPU 102 instructs the voting result to be expressed in characters and printed on the appearance sheet 201. Upon receiving this, the printer control unit 111 controls the print head 112 to control the voting paper 2
01 is printed as instructed above. After printing,
The CPU 102 causes the display 106 to display a message “Please receive the ballot paper and mail it to the ballot box”, and output sound to the headphones 116.

(Step 513) The voter receives the voting paper, checks the voting result printed on the voting paper, and posts it in the ballot box. For voters who have no visual impairment, the voting result is printed in text, so that it may be checked visually. The voter with visual impairment is asked to confirm the voting result using the voting content confirmation device shown in FIG. The voting content confirmation device will be described later.

(Step 514) The CPU 102 transmits the voting result to the counting device 121 and updates the voting paper management database 122. The ballot number A of the ballot paper used for this voting is searched from the database 122,
Update the "vote not / already" orchid to "already" and "vote contents"
Record the above voting result in the column.

Voting is performed using the electronic voting form 201 and the electronic voting apparatus 101 as described above. Each voting result is sequentially recorded in the database 122 in the counting device 121, and after the voting time is over, the votes are electronically counted for each candidate. Since the counting of votes in the current election is not required, the counting time can be greatly reduced, and the counting can be made more efficient.

Now, referring to FIG.
Reference numeral 01 denotes a computer including a CPU, a RAM, a hard disk, a scanner control unit, a scanner head, an audio processing unit, and headphones. A CPU 702 controls the operation of the entire voting result confirmation device. 703 is a CPU 10
R for loading programs and data for running 2
An AM 704 is a hard disk that stores the programs and data on a magnetic disk. Reference numeral 706 denotes a scanner head for optically reading a symbol string or figure printed on the voting paper 201, and 705 a scanner control unit for controlling the scanner head. Reference numeral 708 denotes headphones for playing back the voting results printed on the voting paper by voice.
Is a headphone that reproduces the guidance and the like of the operation method of the voting apparatus 101 by voice, and 115 is a voice processing unit that performs the voice processing.

The operation of the voting result confirmation device 701 will be described. The voter wears the headphones 708 and places the ballot paper 201 at a predetermined position on the device 701. The scanner control unit 705 detects that the voting paper 201 is placed, reads a symbol string or a graphic printed on the voting paper 201 by using the scanner head 706, and notifies the CPU 701 of the read.
The CPU 701 decodes the original voting result (candidate name) from the read information, and instructs the voice processing unit 707 to reproduce the voting result by voice. The voice processing unit 707 outputs the voting result to the headphone 708 by voice. In this way, even a visually impaired voter can confirm that the voting result is correctly printed.

As described above, the electronic voting paper 201, the electronic voting device 101, and the voting result confirmation device 7 of this embodiment
Electronic voting can be performed using 01 or the like. Due to the act of posting the ballot paper in the ballot box, the feeling of voting is not impaired, and the voting result can be left as physical evidence. Since an electronic storage medium such as an IC chip is attached to the voting paper, and the voting paper number is authenticated in step 504, it is impossible to work forgery or fraud of the voting paper.

In addition, since the voting is performed by operating the voting apparatus 101 as shown in step 508, there are also problems with the current voting method, such as errors in filling out the voting paper and making the self-written characters difficult to read and invalid. Will be resolved. In addition, since the final confirmation of the vote is performed as shown in step 509,
The risk of voting for another person due to an operation error is reduced.

Also, as shown in step 506, a voting interface using a numeric keyboard and headphones is provided, so that even a visually impaired person can vote without any special assistance. Also, as shown in step 507, the poster bulletin board is displayed small on the voting screen, and the voter selects an arbitrary area from the poster bulletin board and enlarges the candidate who wants to vote. Thus, even when the number of candidates is very large, many candidates can be displayed on a screen of one page. For example, if all the candidates are displayed, there is no display unfairness such that a certain candidate is displayed on a subsequent page.

In addition, a voter who remembers the location of the poster of the candidate who wants to vote on the public poster bulletin board can efficiently search for the candidate who wants to vote and vote. Become. In addition, since it is a method of selecting a candidate poster, if a person who wants to vote can remember the face of the candidate, even a person who cannot read and write Japanese, such as a foreigner living in Japan, can vote.

In addition, as shown in step 512, the voter can print out his / her own voting result on paper and physically check it, so he / she said that the electronic data of his / her voting result may have been forged or altered. You will be able to dispel your worries. Voting results are printed on ballots for visually impaired voters in a way that cannot be seen at a glance, such as symbol strings and figures, to prevent others from looking into the ballots. The voting result can be confirmed using the confirmation device 701.

As shown in step 511, "#"
Since it is automatically determined whether or not the voter has visual impairment according to the difference in the time during which the key is pressed, no extra input operation is required of the voter.

In step 514, the voting result and the voting paper number are stored as a pair, so that double voting in which the same voting paper is repeated many times can be prevented. In addition, even if the voter wants to re-vote after voting, the voted ballot number and the voting result can be invalidated, and the voting can be performed with another new ballot.
In addition, since the voting results are recorded electronically, a quick counting operation is possible.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, since the voting style using the voting paper is provided, the voting feeling of the voter can be obtained, and the voting result is physically left. It becomes possible. In addition, since the ballot is filled by operating the electronic voting device,
The problem of invalidating votes due to entry errors or typographical errors is eliminated. In addition, since an electronic storage medium such as an IC chip is attached to the voting paper, forgery can be prevented. In addition, since a voting interface using a numeric keyboard and headphones is provided, a visually impaired voter can easily vote without any special assistance.

[0045]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a user-friendly electronic form device that is more user-friendly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of an electronic voting system and a block diagram of an electronic voting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external view of an electronic voting paper according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an example of a format of a voting paper management database according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an external view of an electronic voting apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an operation process at the time of voting in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an example of a voting screen displayed on a display according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a voting result confirmation device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: electronic voting device, 102: CPU, 103: RA
M, 104: hard disk, 105: display controller, 106: display, 107: touch panel controller, 108: touch panel, 109: reader controller,
110: IC chip reader, 111: Printer control unit,
112 print head, 113 numeric keypad control unit, 114
Numeral keyboard, 115 Voice processing unit, 116 Headphones, 121 Totaling device, 122 Voting paper management database, 123 Network in polling place, 201 Electronic ballot paper

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Masatoshi Furuya 1099 Ozenji Temple, Aso-ku, Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside System Development Laboratory, Hitachi, Ltd. No. Within the Public Works Division, Hitachi, Ltd. (72) Izumi Anaiyama, Inventor Izumi 1-6, Shinsuna, Koto-ku, Tokyo F-term (Reference) 3E038 AA01 BB03 BB04 CB10 GA01 KA01 5B021 AA30 DD19 QQ01

Claims (4)

[Claims] An electronic voting device used for voting, reading means for reading identification information for identifying the voting card stored in an electronic storage medium added to the voting card used for voting, Input means for accepting a voting operation by a person, correspondence means for associating the read identification information with voting content information indicating voting content specified by the voting operation, and printing means for printing the voting content information on the voting card And an electronic voting device comprising: 2. The electronic voting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a connection means for connecting to storage means for storing said associated identification information and said voting content information. 3. The electronic voting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein
Furthermore, an electronic voting apparatus comprising: a receiving unit that receives an input of a total result of voting content information printed by the printing unit; and a comparing unit that compares the storage content of the storage unit with the total result. 4. The electronic voting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the comparing means compares the printed voting content information corresponding to the identification information with the stored voting content information. Electronic voting device.