JP2013058872A - Voice communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a voice communication system that can distribute a voice signal to transmission destinations narrowed down to reception terminals in a transmission area determined depending on the position of a transmission terminal.SOLUTION: A voice communication system comprises: a transmission terminal comprising a microphone for generating a voice signal and a radio communication unit for transmitting the voice signal; a plurality of reception terminals comprising a radio communication unit for receiving the voice signal; one or more APs; and a server device for communicating with the transmission terminal and reception terminals via the AP and for relaying the voice signal from the transmission terminal to the reception terminals. The server device is comprised of: a positional information acquisition unit for acquiring a transmission position and reception positions where the transmission terminal and reception terminals are situated, respectively; a transmission area determination unit for determining a transmission area based on the transmission position; a transmission destination selection unit for selecting reception terminals to which the voice signal is transmitted based on the transmission area and the reception positions; and a network communication unit for receiving the voice signal from the transmission terminal via the AP and for transmitting the voice signal to the selected reception terminals by specifying them as transmission destinations.

Description

  The present invention relates to a voice communication system, and more particularly, to an improvement in a voice communication system in which a server device communicating with a transmission terminal and a reception terminal via an access point relays a voice signal from the transmission terminal to the reception terminal.

  When working under high noise, such as in a tunnel excavation construction site, it is difficult to establish a conversation between workers. In particular, when the speaker wears a dust mask, it is difficult for the listener to hear the speaker's voice. Even if the dust mask is removed and the speaker is spoken to, the speaker must speak loudly. For this reason, it has been conventionally desired to realize a voice communication system that can talk while wearing a dust mask under a loud noise.

  Therefore, it is conceivable to relay a conversation between workers by wireless communication using an intercom equipped with a microphone for sending and a speaker for receiving. However, such a conventional voice communication system has a problem that a voice signal transmitted from a speaker's income is distributed to all workers in a communicable area.

  Patent Document 1 discloses an HMD (Head Mounted Display) device that calculates a direction in which the user is facing and establishes communication with the terminal if there is a communication target terminal in the direction in which the user is facing. Is described. However, the HMD device described in Patent Document 1 downloads and displays video content from a server device, reproduces audio data, and cannot transmit a user's voice.

JP 2010-273031 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides an audio communication system that can distribute an audio signal by narrowing down a transmission destination to receiving terminals in a transmission area determined according to the position of the transmitting terminal. The purpose is to do.

  In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide an audio communication system that can distribute an audio signal within a certain distance range from a transmitting terminal and within a certain angle range including the direction of a user as a transmission area.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an audio communication system that can output an audio signal at a different reception volume depending on the distance between a transmission terminal and a reception terminal. Another object of the present invention is to provide an audio communication system that can output an audio signal at a different reception volume according to an angle formed by a user's direction and a receiving terminal direction as viewed from a transmitting terminal. .

  In addition, the present invention remotely operates an operation target device by distributing an audio signal within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angle range including the direction of the user as a transmission area. It is an object to provide a voice communication system capable of Furthermore, the present invention enables remote operation of an operation target device by uttering an operation command with the user of the transmission terminal facing a virtual point, regardless of whether or not the reception terminal exists in the transmission area. It is an object of the present invention to provide a voice communication system capable of doing so.

  The audio communication system according to the first aspect of the present invention includes two or more transmission terminals including a microphone that generates an audio signal, a wireless communication unit that wirelessly transmits the audio signal, and a wireless communication unit that receives the audio signal. Receiving terminal, one or more access points, and a server device that communicates with the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal via the access point and relays an audio signal from the transmitting terminal to the receiving terminal. .

  The server device includes a position information acquisition unit that acquires a transmission position and a reception position where the transmission terminal and the reception terminal are located, a transmission area determination unit that determines a transmission area based on the transmission position, Based on the transmission area and the reception position, a transmission destination selection unit that selects the reception terminal that is a transmission destination of the voice signal, and a voice signal received from the transmission terminal via the access point and selected. And a network communication unit that transmits the audio signal by designating the receiving terminal as a transmission destination. According to such a configuration, the audio signal can be distributed by narrowing down the transmission destination to the reception terminals in the transmission area determined according to the position of the transmission terminal.

  In the voice communication system according to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, the server device includes a direction information acquisition unit that acquires the direction of the user from the transmission terminal, and the transmission area determination unit includes the transmission position. And the transmission area is determined based on the orientation of the user. According to such a configuration, it is possible to distribute the audio signal by narrowing down the transmission area in the direction in which the user of the transmission terminal is facing.

  In the voice communication system according to a third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, the transmission area is within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angular range including the user's direction. Configured. According to such a configuration, the audio signal can be distributed within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angle range including the direction of the user as a transmission area.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a voice communication system according to the present invention, wherein the receiving terminal includes a speaker that outputs a received voice signal, and the server device corresponds to a distance between the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal. The reception volume adjustment unit for changing the reception volume of the audio signal is provided.

  In this voice communication system, the server device varies the reception volume of the voice signal according to the distance between the transmission terminal and the reception terminal. For this reason, the receiving terminal can output the audio signal received from the server device at a different reception volume depending on the distance.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a voice communication system according to the present invention, wherein the receiving terminal includes a speaker that outputs a received voice signal, and the server device is viewed from the user's direction and the transmitting terminal. It is configured to include a received sound volume adjusting unit that varies the received sound volume of the audio signal according to an angle formed with the direction of the receiving terminal.

  In this voice communication system, the server device varies the reception volume of the voice signal according to the angle formed by the direction of the user and the direction of the receiving terminal viewed from the transmitting terminal. For this reason, the receiving terminal can output the audio signal received from the server device at a different reception volume according to the angle formed.

  In the voice communication system according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above-described configuration, the receiving terminal is based on an operation command storage unit that holds two or more operation commands each having a certain voice pattern, and a received voice signal. An operation command selection unit that selects the operation command and outputs it to the operation target device.

  In this voice communication system, the server device distributes a voice signal within a certain distance range from the transmission terminal and within a certain angle range including the direction of the user as a transmission area, thereby Can be operated remotely. Further, by narrowing down the transmission destination of the audio signal to the receiving terminals in the transmission area, it is possible to suppress erroneous operation of an unintended device by the user of the transmitting terminal.

  In the voice communication system according to the seventh aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, if the network communication unit faces a virtual point that is predetermined by the user corresponding to the reception position, the reception terminal transmits the transmission. The voice signal received from the transmitting terminal is transmitted regardless of whether or not it exists in the talk area.

  According to such a configuration, the user of the transmission terminal utters an operation command while facing the virtual point, so that regardless of whether or not the reception terminal exists in the transmission area, the operation target device Can be operated remotely.

  In the voice communication system according to the present invention, the voice signal can be distributed by narrowing the destination to the receiving terminals in the transmission area determined according to the position of the transmitting terminal. In particular, a voice signal can be distributed within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angle range including the direction of the user as a transmission area.

  In addition, it is possible to output an audio signal at a different reception volume depending on the distance between the transmission terminal and the reception terminal or the angle formed by the user's direction and the direction of the reception terminal viewed from the transmission terminal.

  In addition, the operation target device can be remotely operated by distributing an audio signal within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angle range including the direction of the user as a transmission area. Furthermore, the operation target device can be remotely operated regardless of whether or not the reception terminal exists in the transmission area by uttering an operation command with the user of the transmission terminal facing the virtual point. .

1 is a system diagram showing a configuration example of a voice communication system 100 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is the block diagram which showed the structural example of the transmission / reception terminal 10 of FIG. It is the block diagram which showed the structural example of the relay server 23 of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which showed typically the directional area formed on the basis of direction 2 of the face of the speaker. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation at the time of audio signal distribution in the audio communication system 100 of FIG. 1, in which a transmission area 3 formed in a direction 2 of a speaker 1 is illustrated. It is the figure which showed another example of the operation | movement at the time of the delivery of the audio | voice signal in the audio | voice communication system 100 of FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation at the time of voice distribution in the relay server 23 of FIG. 3. It is the block diagram which showed one structural example of the receiving terminal 50 in the audio | voice communication system 100 by Embodiment 2 of this invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation at the time of audio signal distribution in the audio communication system 100 of FIG. 8, in which a case where the receiving terminal 50 exists in the transmission area 3 is illustrated. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating another configuration example of the voice communication system 100 of FIG. It is the figure which showed the other structural example of the audio | voice communication system 100 of FIG. 8, and the case where the inside of a fixed distance range from the virtual point 71 is made into a virtual reception area is shown.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
<Voice communication system>
FIG. 1 is a system diagram showing a configuration example of a voice communication system 100 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The voice communication system 100 includes three or more transmission / reception terminals 10, one or two or more APs (access points) 21, and a relay server 23 to which these APs 21 are connected via a LAN (local area network) 22. This is a mobile call system.

  The transmission / reception terminal 10 is a headset including an audio input device such as a microphone, an audio output device such as a speaker, and an audio signal wireless communication device, and is used while being worn on the user's head. The AP 21 is a communication device that communicates with the transmission / reception terminal 10 in the wireless service area using radio waves in a predetermined frequency band.

  The relay server 23 is a server device that communicates with each transmission / reception terminal 10 via the AP 21 and relays an audio signal from the transmission terminal to the reception terminal. When an audio signal is transmitted from any of the transmission / reception terminals 10, the relay server 23 receives the audio signal via the AP 21 and transmits a speech determined according to the position of the transmission terminal and the orientation of the user. The transmission destination is narrowed down to the transmission / reception terminals 10 in the area and the audio signal is distributed.

  By narrowing the transmission destination of the audio signal to the transmission / reception terminal 10 in the transmission area, the audio signal is distributed to the speaker, that is, the transmission / reception terminal 10 that is not intended by the user of the transmission / reception terminal 10 that is the transmission source of the audio signal. Can be prevented.

<Transmitting / receiving terminal 10>
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the transmission / reception terminal 10 of FIG. The transmission / reception terminal 10 includes a microphone 11, an audio processing unit 12, a transmission control unit 13, a wireless communication unit 14, a speaker 15, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiving unit 16, a position calculating unit 17, and a gyro sensor 18. And an orientation detector 19.

  The microphone 11 is an audio input unit that generates an audio signal, and the speaker 15 is an audio output unit that outputs an audio signal. The voice processing unit 12 includes a VAD (Voice Activity Detection) unit 31 and a noise suppression unit 32, and performs processing to detect a speech segment and suppress noise.

  The VAD unit 31 detects an utterance interval for the audio signal input from the microphone 11. For example, the volume level is compared with a predetermined determination threshold value, and an utterance section is detected based on the comparison result. The noise suppression unit 32 is a noise removal filter unit that removes noise from the audio signal. For example, the noise suppression unit 32 generates a noise pattern based on the audio signal in the non-speech interval and superimposes the noise pattern on the audio signal input from the microphone 11 to cancel the noise.

  The wireless communication unit 14 is a transmission / reception unit that wirelessly communicates with the AP 21 and transmits / receives audio signals to / from the relay server 23. The transmission control unit 13 controls whether or not to transmit a voice signal depending on whether or not it is an utterance section. That is, the transmission control unit 13 performs transmission control such that the voice signal of the utterance section is transmitted to the relay server 23 while the voice signal is not transmitted in the non-utterance section. Such transmission control can suppress the traffic in the voice communication system 100 and the processing load of the relay server 23.

  The audio signal generated by the microphone 11 is processed by the audio processing unit 12, and the processed audio signal is transmitted to the relay server 23 via the transmission control unit 13 and the wireless communication unit 14. For example, the audio signal is packetized and transmitted. On the other hand, the audio signal received via the wireless communication unit 14 is input to the speaker 15 via the audio processing unit 12 and reproduced.

  The GPS receiver 16 receives a GPS signal from a GPS satellite and outputs the reception result to the position calculator 17 in order to detect the position of the terminal itself. The position calculation unit 17 detects the position of the terminal itself based on the reception result of the GPS signal. For example, when GPS signals are simultaneously received from three or more GPS satellites, the position of each GPS satellite and the distance to the GPS satellite are obtained from the reception result of the GPS signal, and the position of the terminal on the earth is calculated.

  The position of the own terminal is represented using, for example, longitude, latitude, and altitude, or is represented using XYZ coordinates with a predetermined reference point as an origin, and the position information is transmitted via the wireless communication unit 14. It is transmitted to the relay server 23.

  The gyro sensor 18 is an angular velocity sensor for detecting the orientation of the user of the own terminal. For example, the gyro sensor 18 detects the angular velocity of the own terminal based on the Coriolis force applied to the vibrating body. The orientation detection unit 19 detects the orientation of the user's face based on the output of the gyro sensor 18 and outputs the detection result to the wireless communication unit 14.

  The orientation of the user's face is obtained from the direction at the start of measurement and the integrated value obtained by integrating the angular velocity with the elapsed time from the start of measurement, and the orientation information is sent to the relay server 23 via the wireless communication unit 14. Sent.

<Relay server 23>
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the relay server 23 of FIG. The relay server 23 includes a network communication unit 201, a position and orientation information acquisition unit 202, a position and orientation information storage unit 203, a transmission area determination unit 204, a transmission destination selection unit 205, an audio signal storage unit 206, and a received sound volume adjustment unit. 207.

  The network communication unit 201 is a transmission / reception unit that communicates with each AP 21 via the LAN 22 and transmits / receives an audio signal to / from the transmission / reception terminal 10 in the wireless service area of the AP 21. The position / orientation information acquisition unit 202 acquires position information indicating the position of the transmission / reception terminal 10 and direction information indicating the direction of the user of the transmission / reception terminal 10 from each transmission / reception terminal 10.

  Here, when an audio signal is received from the transmission / reception terminal 10, the transmission / reception terminal 10 that is the transmission source of the audio signal is referred to as a transmission terminal, and the transmission / reception terminal 10 other than the transmission terminal is a transmission / reception existing in the wireless service area. Terminal 10 will be referred to as a receiving terminal. Further, the AP 21 used by the transmitting terminal and the AP 21 used by the receiving terminal may be the same AP 21 or may be different.

  The position and orientation information acquisition unit 202 periodically acquires the transmission position and the reception position where the transmission terminal and the reception terminal are respectively located, and the orientation of the user of the transmission terminal. For example, a transmission request for position information and orientation information is repeatedly transmitted at regular time intervals by designating all transmission / reception terminals 10 in the wireless service area as transmission destinations. Alternatively, the transmission request is transmitted according to a predetermined distribution schedule.

  The position and orientation information storage unit 203 holds position information and orientation information acquired from the transmission / reception terminal 10. The position information and the orientation information are managed as management information for each terminal including, for example, identification information of the transmission / reception terminal 10, position information and orientation information, and address information such as an IP address, and the position and orientation information acquisition unit 202 Updated regularly.

  When the voice signal is received from the transmission / reception terminal 10, the transmission area determination unit 204 selects a reception terminal to which the voice signal is to be distributed based on the transmission position of the voice signal and the orientation of the user of the transmission terminal. Determine the transmission area to narrow down. This transmission area is an area where a voice signal is transmitted, and is, for example, within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angular range including the direction of the user of the transmitting terminal.

  Here, the case where the transmission area is mainly composed of one closed region in the horizontal plane will be described. That is, the audio signal received from the transmitting terminal is inside the circle centered at the transmission position, includes the direction of the user of the transmitting terminal, and the direction of the user and the direction of the receiving terminal viewed from the transmitting terminal. A sector area in which the angle formed is within a certain range is transmitted as the transmission area.

  The transmission destination selection unit 205 selects a reception terminal as a transmission destination of the audio signal from the reception terminals registered in the position and orientation information storage unit 203 based on the transmission area and the reception position. When the network communication unit 201 receives an audio signal from the transmission terminal, the network communication unit 201 designates the reception terminal selected by the transmission destination selection unit 205 as the transmission destination and transmits the audio signal.

  The audio signal storage unit 206 temporarily holds the audio signal received from the transmission terminal for the above-described processing of determining the transmission area and selecting the transmission destination reception terminal. The received sound volume adjustment unit 207 performs a volume adjustment process on the audio signal held in the audio signal storage unit 206 to vary the received sound volume of the audio signal according to the distance between the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal, for example.

  Alternatively, the received sound volume adjustment unit 207 performs a volume adjustment process for varying the received sound volume of the audio signal according to the angle formed by the direction of the user of the transmitting terminal and the direction of the receiving terminal viewed from the transmitting terminal. By changing the reception volume of the audio signal according to the distance between the transmission terminal and the reception terminal, the reception terminal can output the audio signal received from the relay server 23 at a different reception volume according to the distance. it can.

  Further, the receiving terminal varies the reception volume of the audio signal in accordance with the angle formed by the direction of the user and the direction of the receiving terminal viewed from the transmitting terminal, so that the receiving terminal receives the audio signal received from the relay server 23. Depending on the situation, it can be output at a different reception volume.

  The network communication unit 201 transmits the audio signal after the volume adjustment processing by the reception volume adjustment unit 207. The audio signal is held in units of audio frames indicating an audio waveform at a predetermined time, and the transmission area determination process, the transmission destination selection process, and the reception volume adjustment process are executed for each audio frame.

<Directional area>
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a directional area formed on the basis of the face direction 2 of the speaker 1. (A) in the figure shows the directional area in the horizontal plane, and (b) shows the directional area in the vertical plane. When the speaker 1 is a user of the transmission terminal and utters a message or the like, an audio signal is distributed using the transmission / reception terminal 10 in the directional area as the reception terminal.

  The directional area in the horizontal plane is composed of a certain angle range including the face direction 2 of the speaker 1, and the directional angle θ indicating the angle range is about 80 to 120 degrees. That is, the directional area is composed of an angle range of angle θ1 on the right side of direction 2 and angle θ2 on the left side when viewed from speaker 1, and 80 ° ≦ (θ1 + θ2) ≦ 120 °. The angles θ1 and θ2 are, for example, about θ1 = θ2 = 40 to 60 degrees.

  Similarly to the directional area in the horizontal plane, the directional area in the vertical plane is composed of a certain angle range including the face direction 2 of the speaker 1, and the directional angle φ indicating the angle range is about 70 to 110 degrees. is there. That is, the directional area includes an angle range of angle φ1 above the direction 2 and angle φ2 below the direction 2 when viewed from the speaker 1, and 70 ° ≦ (φ1 + φ2) ≦ 110 °. The angles φ1 and φ2 are, for example, φ1 = about 30 to 50 degrees and φ2 = about 40 to 60 degrees.

<Transmission area 3>
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the operation at the time of distributing the audio signal in the audio communication system 100 of FIG. 1, and shows the transmission area 3 formed in the direction 2 of the speaker 1. This figure shows a case in which the received sound volume of the audio signal is changed in three stages according to the distance from the speaker 1.

  The transmission area 3 is a fan-shaped area formed in the direction 2 of the face of the speaker 1 and is inside a circle centered on the position of the speaker 1 (the position of the transmitting terminal), and the direction of the speaker 1 It consists of a certain angular range including two. The audio signal transmitted from the transmission terminal is distributed to the reception terminals 44 to 46 in the transmission area 3.

  Therefore, the audio signal is not distributed to the receiving terminals 41 and 42 that are within the directional area but outside the transmission area 3 and the receiving terminals 43 that are close to each other but outside the directional area. In this manner, by distributing the audio signal by narrowing the transmission destination to the receiving terminals in the transmission area 3 determined according to the position of the speaker 1, the audio signal is distributed to the receiving terminal not intended by the speaker 1. Can be prevented.

  Further, when the audio signal is distributed to the receiving terminals 44 to 46 in the transmission area 3, a volume adjustment process for changing the received sound volume is performed according to the distance TL between the position of the speaker 1 and the receiving terminal. . That is, the volume adjustment is performed so that the volume level at the time of reception decreases as the position of the receiving terminal is farther from the position of the speaker 1. This volume adjustment is performed, for example, by attenuating the volume level in multiple steps corresponding to the distance TL between the transmission terminal and the reception terminal.

  In this example, the transmission area 3 is divided into three areas having different volume levels at the time of reception, and the reception volume is changed in three stages according to the distance TL from the speaker 1. That is, the volume level of the received sound at the receiving terminals 44 and 46 belonging to the third area far from the speaker 1 is smaller than that of the receiving terminal 45 belonging to the second area close to the speaker 1. Therefore, the voice message uttered by the speaker 1 at a predetermined volume level is converted into an audio signal whose volume level is attenuated as the reception position is further away from the speaker 1 and distributed to the receiving terminals 44 to 46.

  By configuring in this way, the receiving terminal can output the audio signal received from the relay server 23 at a different reception volume according to the distance TL between the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal. It is easy to get a sense of distance as to how far speaker 1 is.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing another example of the operation at the time of distributing the audio signal in the audio communication system 100 of FIG. 1, and shows the transmission area 3 formed in the direction 2 of the speaker 1. This figure shows a case where the reception volume of the audio signal is changed in four stages according to the angle NA between the direction 2 of the speaker 1 and the direction of the receiving terminal viewed from the speaker 1.

  When the audio signal is distributed to the receiving terminal in the transmission area 3, the received sound volume is varied according to the angle NA between the face direction 2 of the speaker 1 and the direction of the receiving terminal viewed from the speaker 1. Volume adjustment processing is performed. For example, the transmission area 3 is divided into a first area having a certain angle range including the direction 2 of the speaker 1 and a second area formed outside the first area. Then, as compared with the first area, the volume adjustment is performed such that the volume level at the time of reception decreases as the angle NA between the direction 2 of the speaker 1 and the direction of the receiving terminal increases. This volume adjustment is performed, for example, by attenuating the volume level in multiple steps corresponding to the angle NA between the direction 2 of the speaker 1 and the direction of the receiving terminal.

  In this example, the second area is divided into three areas having different volume levels during reception, and the reception volume is changed in three stages according to the angle NA formed. That is, the voice message uttered by the speaker 1 at a predetermined volume level is converted into a voice signal with the volume level attenuated as the angle NA formed by the reception position increases, and is distributed to the receiving terminals in the transmission area 3. .

  With this configuration, the receiving terminal can output the audio signal received from the relay server 23 at a different reception volume depending on the angle NA formed by the receiving position. It is easy to get a sense of direction as to which direction is.

  In the relay server 23, distribution conditions include volume adjustment for changing the reception volume of the audio signal according to the distance TL between the transmission terminal and the reception terminal, and volume adjustment for changing the reception volume according to the angle NA formed by the reception position. One can be arbitrarily selected. Moreover, the structure which enables selection of the volume adjustment which changes the receiving volume of an audio | voice signal based on both the distance TL between a transmission terminal and a receiving terminal and the angle NA which a receiving position makes may be sufficient.

  Steps S101 to S106 in FIG. 7 are flowcharts showing an example of the operation at the time of voice distribution in the relay server 23 in FIG. First, when the voice signal from the transmission terminal is received by the network communication unit 201, the transmission area determination unit 204 determines the transmission area based on the position (transmission position) of the transmission terminal and the direction 2 of the user. 3 is determined (steps S101 and S102).

  Based on the transmission area 3 and the position (reception position) of the reception terminal determined in step S102, the transmission destination selection unit 205 selects the audio signal from the reception terminals in which the position information and the direction information are registered. A receiving terminal as a transmission destination is selected (step S103).

  The received sound volume adjusting unit 207 is configured to change the received sound volume for each receiving terminal in accordance with the distance TL between the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal or the angle NA formed by the receiving position for the audio signal held in the audio signal storage unit 206 The received sound volume is weighted (step S104).

  The network communication unit 201 designates the selected receiving terminal as a transmission destination, and transmits the audio signal after weighting of the received sound volume (step S105). The processing procedure from step S101 to step S105 is repeated with the audio frame as a processing unit until the reception of the audio signal is completed, and when the reception of the audio signal is completed, this processing is ended (step S106).

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to distribute the audio signal by narrowing down the transmission destination to the reception terminals in the transmission area 3 determined according to the position of the transmission terminal. In particular, since the voice signal is distributed by narrowing the transmission area 3 in the direction in which the user (speaker 1) of the transmission terminal is facing, the voice signal is distributed to the reception terminal not intended by the speaker 1. Can be prevented.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, the example in which the receiving terminal outputs the received audio signal from the speaker 15 has been described. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, a case will be described in which the receiving terminal remotely operates the operation target device by selecting an operation command that matches the received audio signal.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the receiving terminal 50 in the voice communication system 100 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The receiving terminal 50 includes a wireless communication unit 51, an operation command storage unit 52, and an operation command selection unit 53, and controls an operation target device using a voice recognition technique.

  The wireless communication unit 51 wirelessly communicates with the AP 21 and receives an audio signal from the relay server 23 via the AP 21. The operation command storage unit 52 holds two or more operation commands, each of which has a certain voice pattern. The operation command selection unit 53 selects an operation command that matches the received audio signal and outputs it to the operation target device. In the operation target device, an operation corresponding to the operation command input from the receiving terminal 50 is performed.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the operation at the time of audio signal distribution in the audio communication system 100 of FIG. 8, and shows a case where the receiving terminal 50 exists in the transmission area 3. The transmission area 3 is a fan-shaped area within a certain distance range from the speaker 1 and within a certain angle range including the direction 2 of the speaker 1.

  If the receiving terminal 50 exists in the transmission area 3, the operation command generated by the speaker is distributed to the receiving terminal 50. That is, the receiving terminal 50 can be remotely operated by speaking the operation command in the direction of the receiving terminal 50.

  According to the present embodiment, the relay server 23 distributes an audio signal within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angular range including the direction 2 of the speaker 1 as the transmission area 3. Thus, the operation target device can be remotely operated. In addition, by narrowing down the transmission destination of the audio signal to the receiving terminal 50 in the transmission area 3, it is possible to suppress an erroneous operation of an unintended device by the speaker 1.

  In the second embodiment, the example in which the audio signal is distributed only to the receiving terminal 50 in the transmission area 3 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention includes a configuration in which an audio signal is distributed to the receiving terminal 50 regardless of the position of the receiving terminal 50 if the speaker 1 faces a predetermined virtual point.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another configuration example of the voice communication system 100 of FIG. 8, in which virtual points 71 determined in advance corresponding to the position of the receiving terminal 50 are illustrated. The voice communication system 100 uses the tunnel mine 6 as a communicable area, and remotely operates the laser pointer 70 using the command output of the receiving terminal 50.

  The laser pointer 70 is an operation target device that is remotely operated by an operator at a separated position, and is disposed in the tunnel mine 6 and irradiates a drilling target on the face with a laser beam 7.

  The virtual point 71 is determined by setting position information indicating the irradiation position of the laser beam 7 to the relay server 23. If the speaker 1 faces the virtual point 71, the network communication unit 201 of the relay server 23 sends the reception terminal 50 to the transmission destination regardless of whether the reception terminal 50 exists in the transmission area 3 or not. Send an audio signal. That is, if the virtual point 71 is included in the transmission area 3, the audio signal is delivered to the receiving terminal 50 regardless of the position of the receiving terminal 50 itself.

  With this configuration, the speaker 1 utters an operation command while facing the virtual point 71, so that the laser pointer can be used regardless of whether or not the receiving terminal 50 exists in the transmission area 3. 70 can be remotely operated. By this remote operation, for example, the laser output can be turned on or off, or the irradiation position of the laser beam 7 can be changed.

  FIG. 10 illustrates an example in which a voice signal is delivered to the receiving terminal 50 if the speaker 1 is facing the virtual point. However, the transmitting terminal exists within a certain distance from the virtual point 71. For example, a configuration in which an audio signal is distributed to the receiving terminal 50 is also included in the present invention.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another configuration example of the voice communication system 100 in FIG. 8, and shows a case where a virtual distance is set within a certain distance range from the virtual point 71. In this voice communication system 100, a drilling wheel 9 for forming a drilling hole in the face 8 is disposed in the tunnel pit 6, and the speaker 1 receives the received call within a certain distance range from the virtual point 71. When in the area, the laser pointer 70 can be remotely operated.

  The hole cutting wheel 9 is a heavy machine called a jumbo, and forms a hole by bringing a rotating drill 91 into contact with the face 8. When the drilling wheel 9 irradiates the drilling target on the face 8 with the laser beam 7 of the laser pointer 70, the roll angle, yaw angle and pitch angle of the drill 91 are automatically set in conjunction with the marking operation. It is possible to adjust and form a hole in the irradiation position of the laser beam 7.

  The network communication unit 201 of the relay server 23 receives the signal regardless of whether or not the receiving terminal 50 exists in the transmission area 3 when the speaker 1 is in the reception area centered on the virtual point 71. The terminal 50 is designated as the transmission destination and the audio signal is transmitted. That is, the speaker 1 can remotely operate the laser pointer 70 by voice by moving into a predetermined reception area corresponding to the position of the receiving terminal 50.

  Further, in the first and second embodiments, an example in which the transmission / reception terminal 10 receives a GPS signal from a GPS satellite and detects the position of the own terminal has been described, but the present invention is a method for detecting the position of the own terminal. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the position of the terminal itself may be detected using an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration. Further, when a communicable area is formed from a plurality of different radio service areas for each AP 21, the reception strength of the broadcast signal transmitted from each AP 21 is measured for three or more APs 21, and the own terminal is based on the measurement result It may be configured to detect the position.

  Moreover, although Embodiment 1 and 2 demonstrated the example in case the relay server 23 acquires position information from the transmission / reception terminal 10, this invention does not limit the acquisition method of position information to this. For example, by using the information indicating the AP 21 used by the transmission / reception terminal 10, the transmission / reception terminals 10 in the communicable area are grouped to identify the position of the transmission / reception terminal 10 in units of wireless service areas for each AP 21. It may be a simple configuration.

  In Embodiments 1 and 2, an example in which transmission area 3 is a fan-shaped area within a certain distance range from the transmission terminal and within a certain angle range including direction 2 of speaker 1 is used. However, the present invention does not limit the configuration of the transmission area 3 to this. For example, when a communicable area is formed from a plurality of different radio service areas for each AP 21, the transmission area is selected from the radio service areas for each AP 21 that are fixedly formed. Also good.

  In Embodiments 1 and 2, an example in which an audio signal is distributed to a receiving terminal in transmission area 3 has been described. However, an audio signal is always transmitted to a receiving terminal in a predetermined fixed area. A configuration that is distributed is also included in the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Audio | voice communication system 10 Transmission / reception terminal 11 Microphone 12 Audio | voice processing part 13 Transmission control part 14 Wireless communication part 15 Speaker 16 GPS receiving part 17 Position calculation part 18 Gyro sensor 19 Direction detection part 21 AP
22 LAN
23 Relay server 201 Network communication unit 202 Position and orientation information acquisition unit 203 Position and orientation information storage unit 204 Transmission area determination unit 205 Transmission destination selection unit 206 Audio signal storage unit 207 Received volume control unit 1 Speaker (use of transmission terminal) Who)
2 Speaker direction 3 Speaking area 41 to 46 Receiving terminal 50 Receiving terminal 6 Tunnel tunnel 70 Laser pointer 71 Virtual point

Claims (7)

A transmission terminal including a microphone that generates an audio signal and a wireless communication unit that wirelessly transmits the audio signal;
Two or more receiving terminals including a wireless communication unit for receiving an audio signal;
One or more access points;
In a voice communication system comprising a server device that communicates with the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal via the access point and relays a voice signal from the transmitting terminal to the receiving terminal.
The server device includes a position information acquisition unit that acquires a transmission position and a reception position where the transmission terminal and the reception terminal are respectively located;
A transmission area determination unit that determines a transmission area based on the transmission position;
Based on the transmission area and the reception position, a transmission destination selection unit that selects the reception terminal that is a transmission destination of an audio signal;
A voice communication system comprising: a network communication unit that receives a voice signal from the transmitting terminal via the access point, and transmits the voice signal by designating the selected receiving terminal as a destination. . The server device includes an orientation information acquisition unit that acquires the orientation of the user from the transmission terminal,
The voice communication system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission area determination unit determines the transmission area based on the transmission position and the orientation of the user.   The voice communication system according to claim 2, wherein the transmission area is within a certain distance range from the transmitting terminal and within a certain angular range including the direction of the user. The receiving terminal includes a speaker that outputs a received audio signal,
The voice communication system according to claim 3, wherein the server device includes a reception volume adjustment unit that varies a reception volume of a voice signal according to a distance between the transmission terminal and the reception terminal. The receiving terminal includes a speaker that outputs a received audio signal,
The server device includes a reception volume adjustment unit that varies a reception volume of an audio signal according to an angle formed between the direction of the user and the direction of the reception terminal viewed from the transmission terminal. The voice communication system according to claim 3. The receiving terminal includes an operation command storage unit that holds two or more operation commands each consisting of a certain voice pattern;
The voice communication system according to claim 3, further comprising: an operation command selection unit that selects the operation command based on the received voice signal and outputs the operation command to an operation target device.   If the user is facing a predetermined virtual point corresponding to the reception position, the network communication unit is configured to transmit the transmission terminal regardless of whether or not the reception terminal exists in the transmission area. The voice communication system according to claim 6, wherein the voice signal received from the terminal is transmitted.

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