CN102903313B - Digital billboard device, digital billboard system and operation method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a digital signage device, a digital signage system and an operation method thereof. The digital signage system includes a display panel, a handheld electronic device and a signage player. The signage player of the digital signage system can synchronously play a digital image to the handheld electronic device and the display panel through the connection with the display panel and the handheld electronic device. This allows the user not to directly look at the display panel, but also through the handheld electronic device. The electronic device watches the same digital image played on the display panel.

Description

Digital kanban device, digital kanban system and method of operation thereof

technical field

The present invention relates to a digital signage system, a digital signage device and an operating method thereof; specifically, the present invention relates to a digital signage system capable of synchronously playing images on a signboard and a handheld device, a digital signage device and an operating method thereof.

Background technique

With the development of population and the expansion of cities, how to effectively convey product information to the public has become an important key to the market competition of department stores, stores, companies, media advertising companies and other enterprises. Therefore, these companies mostly place digital billboards in public places where crowds gather to achieve the effect of effectively conveying product information to the public. A digital signage is a display device used to display the information to be conveyed to the audience with a dynamic or static picture.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the digital signage 100 usually displays dynamic or static images through a digital image player 110 . The digital video player 110 generally includes a network module 120 , a storage module 130 and a processor unit 140 . The network module 120 can usually receive image information through a physical network connection, so that the digital image player 110 can play image information through the digital signage 100, wherein the image information can be stored in the storage module 130 through the processor unit 140, and can be processed at any time The device unit 140 captures and sends to the digital signage 100 for display and playback.

Taking general digital signage as an example, digital signages are usually placed at a height that is convenient for users to watch easily, and at the same time can attract users' attention. For example, it is often seen that digital signage is set up near elevator entrances, department stores, subways, MRT trains and other transportation stations and places with many people. However, when there are too many people, the viewers who are far away from the digital signboard cannot clearly see the image picture of the digital signage in the crowd. Specifically, when there are too many people watching in front of the digital signage, viewers who are far away from the digital signage will not be able to see the image information displayed on the digital signage because several viewers in front block their sight. In this way, if a viewer who is far away from the digital signage wants to watch the information displayed on the digital signage, he must ask the person in front to give way and move towards the digital signage. Because the action of squeezing forward is inconvenient for ordinary people, most people will give up watching the information displayed on the digital signboard here. In addition, for viewers in action, because they cannot stay and watch the information displayed on the digital signage for a long time, even if they really see interesting information or pictures, they usually have to give up and continue to act. From the standpoint of companies and advertising companies, in order to improve the convenience of viewers and improve the advertising efficiency of billboards, it is necessary to solve the above problems.

Contents of the invention

An object of the present invention is to provide a digital signage system for use with a hand-held electronic device. Through the handheld electronic device, the user can watch the same image as that displayed on the digital signage, which is convenient for the user to watch the same image as that displayed on the digital signage. images without being limited by space.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a digital signage device, which uses a smart mobile device to allow users to quickly establish a connection with the signboard they are watching, so as to transmit real-time images and data to achieve a more complete interaction.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an operation method for transmitting real-time images of billboards to handheld electronic devices, so that users can operate simply, quickly and intuitively, so that the system can transmit real-time images to digital billboards and handheld electronic devices, and use The transmitted real-time images can be simultaneously displayed on the digital signage and handheld electronic devices to overcome the problem that the digital signage is too far away or too many people block the line of sight.

The digital signage system of the present invention includes: a display panel, a handheld electronic device, and a signage player, wherein the display panel is used to receive and play digital images; the signage player is used to output digital images to the display panel. The Kanban player includes: an image capture module, a communication module, and a processor unit, wherein the image capture module is used to capture digital images, the communication module is coupled to the image capture module, and the processor unit is used to electrically connect the images The capture module and the communication module transmit the digital image from the image capture module to the hand-held electronic device, so that the hand-held electronic device can play the digital image synchronously with the display panel.

The digital signage device of the present invention includes: a signage player and a display panel, wherein the signage player is used to provide digital images and coded images, and the display panel is used to receive and display digital images and coded images. The coded image is captured by the handheld electronic device, and the signage player synchronously provides digital images to the handheld electronic device and the display panel.

The operation method of the digital signage system of the present invention includes: generating a coded image, wherein the coded image is captured by a handheld electronic device; playing the digital image and the coded image on the display panel; receiving a connection request message, and making the handheld device according to the connection request message The portable electronic device communicates with the billboard player; and transmits the digital image to the handheld electronic device, so that the handheld electronic device can play the digital image synchronously with the display panel.

In an embodiment, the communication module transmits the digital image to the handheld electronic device in a wireless or wired manner. Encoded images include 1D barcodes, 2D barcodes, black and white images, or color images.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 schematically illustrates a traditional kanban player and a digital kanban;

Fig. 2 schematically illustrates an embodiment of the digital kanban system of the present invention;

FIG. 3A schematically illustrates the structure of the handheld electronic device in FIG. 2;

Figure 3B shows the digital signage system of the signage player of Figure 2, the display panel and the handheld electronic device of Figure 3A; and

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates the flow of the operation method of the digital kanban system of the present invention.

[Description of main component symbols]

100 digital signage

110 Digital video player

120 network modules

130 storage modules

140 processor units

200 Digital Kanban System

201 display panel

202 display screen

210 Kanban player

220 network module

230 storage modules

240 processor units

250 image capture module

260 communication module

270 encoded image

280 Handheld Electronic Devices

281 communication unit

282 image capture unit

283 input/output unit

284 decoding unit

285 display units

290 Other electronic devices

300 digital signage installations

Detailed ways

The invention provides a digital kanban system, a digital kanban device and an operation method thereof. In a preferred embodiment, in a crowded place or a scene where the line of sight to the signboard is obstructed, the user can easily, quickly and simply see the screen displayed by the digital signage device through the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of the digital kanban system 200 and the digital kanban device 300 of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2 , the digital kanban system 200 and the digital kanban device 300 of the present invention include a display panel 201 and a kanban player 210 . The digital signage system 200 further includes a handheld electronic device 280 . The display panel 201 is used to receive and play digital images, and the display panel 201 can also receive and play encoded images 270 at the same time. In this embodiment, the digital image can be a dynamic or static image and played continuously or intermittently, and the coded image 270 is a colored two-dimensional barcode, and is displayed on the lower left of the display screen 202 of the display panel 201 . However, in other embodiments, the coded image 270 can also be a black and white image code, a color code, a one-dimensional barcode or a two-dimensional barcode, and the display position is not limited to the lower left, but can be placed at any appropriate position on the display screen 202 or in a pattern displayed on screen.

In a preferred embodiment, the signage player 210 of the digital signage system 200 is used to output digital images to the display panel 201 of the digital signage system 200 . Compared with the traditional kanban player 110 shown in FIG. 1, the kanban player 210 of the digital kanban system 200 of the present invention in FIG. 2 further includes an image capture module 250, a communication module 260, a processor unit 240, and a network module. 220 and storage module 230. The network module 220 can usually receive image information through a physical network connection, so that the digital image player 210 can play digital images through the display panel 201, wherein the digital images can be stored in the storage module 230 through the processor unit 240, and can be processed at any time The controller unit 240 captures and transmits to the display panel 201 for display and playback. The image capturing module 250 is electrically connected to the processor unit 240 and used for capturing digital images from the storage module 230 (such as buffer or memory) or from the network module 220 . The communication module 260 is coupled to the image capture module 250 , wherein the processor unit 240 is used to transmit the digital image from the image capture module 250 to the handheld electronic device 280 . In this embodiment, the communication module 260 of the kanban player 210 has connection information, which includes authentication information and connection type information required when the handheld electronic device 280 is connected to the communication module 260 . The authentication information is preferably a set of login account number and password, so that the handheld electronic device 280 can log in to the communication module 260 and connect with the signboard player 210 through the authentication information provided in the connection information. The content contained in the connection type information is preferably the connection methods that the communication module 260 can provide to connect the handheld electronic device 280 , such as wireless network, wired network, infrared and bluetooth. In a preferred embodiment, the connection type information of the communication module 260 preferably at least includes wired or wireless connection methods. At this point, the communication module 260 will encode the connection information and generate a coded image 270 , wherein the coded image 270 is transmitted from the communication module 260 to the display panel 201 of the digital signage system 200 via the processor unit 240 and displayed on the display screen 202 . That is, in one embodiment, the present invention also provides a digital signage device, which includes the above-mentioned signage player 210 that provides digital images and encoded images 270 and a display panel 201 that receives and displays digital images and encoded images 270, wherein the encoded The image 270 is captured by the handheld electronic device 280 , so that the signage player 210 synchronously provides digital images to the handheld electronic device 280 and the display panel 201 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , in a preferred embodiment, the display panel 201 in the digital signage system 200 can simultaneously receive and display digital images and coded images 270 . Wherein, as shown in FIG. 2 , on the display screen 202 of the display panel 201 , the display of the coded image 270 is superimposed on the digital image display, and placed at the lower left of the display screen 202 , or embedded in the display screen 202 . However, the size of the coded image 270 and its position in the display frame 202 of the display panel 201 are not limited thereto; in other embodiments, the coded image 270 can also be set at other suitable positions such as the upper right corner. In addition, in this embodiment, the display panel 201 and the kanban player 210 of the digital kanban system 200 are separated and connected with a high-speed transmission line, such as a high-definition multimedia interface (High Definition Multimedia Interface, referred to as HDMI), level 5 dual Stranded wire (Category 5 cable, referred to as CAT5) and other transmission lines. However, the Kanban player 210 and the display panel 201 are not limited to be connected by a transmission line; in other embodiments, the Kanban player 210 of the digital signage system 200 can also be built in the display panel 201, and therefore can save the use of transmission lines to generate Kanban The connection between the player 210 and the display panel 201 .

As shown in FIG. 3A , FIG. 3A is a structural diagram of the handheld electronic device in the preferred embodiment of FIG. 2 . In FIG. 3A , the handheld electronic device 280 of the digital signage system 200 preferably includes a communication unit 281 , an image capture unit 282 , an input/output unit 283 , a decoding unit 284 and a display unit 285 . Wherein, the decoding unit 284 is individually connected to the communication unit 281 , the image capture unit 282 , the input/output unit 283 and the display unit 285 . In this embodiment, the image capturing unit 282 is configured to capture the coded image 270 displayed on the display screen 202 of the display panel 201 , and transmit the captured coded image 270 to the decoding unit 284 . The decoding unit 284 has the function of interpreting the encoded image 270 , so that the decoding unit 284 can interpret the connection information included in the encoded image 270 . At this time, after the decoding unit 284 reads the connection information contained in the encoded image 270, the handheld electronic device 280 can automatically communicate with the digital signage system 200 through the communication unit 281 according to the authentication information and connection type information of the connection information. The communication module 260 of the kanban player 210 in the kanban player 210 generates a connection. In this embodiment, the decoding unit 284 is software on the handheld electronic device 280, and can select the most appropriate connection from the available connection methods provided by one or more communication modules 260 included in the connection type information. way of functioning. In this embodiment, the decoding unit 284 can determine the connection between the handheld electronic device 280 and the communication module 260 of the signage player 210 according to the communication connection mode that the communication module 260 can provide for the connection of the handheld electronic device 280 in the connection message. The communication connection with the best inter-connection quality is determined, and the connection mode between the handheld electronic device 280 and the communication module 260 is determined and adopted based on this judgment. However, in other embodiments, the decoding unit 284 of the handheld electronic device 280 can also be hardware built in the handheld electronic device 280, and also has the same functions as the above software, such as decoding the coded image 270, and according to The decoded information automatically generates a communication connection with the communication module 260 in the Kanban player 210 .

Fig. 3B is also a preferred embodiment of the digital signage system and digital signage device of the present invention shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3A. The image capture unit 282 captures, for example, a camera in the handheld electronic device 280 to obtain the encoded image 270 by using the camera function of the handheld electronic device 280 . However, as far as the handheld electronic device 280 captures the coded image 270, the way to capture the coded image 270 is not limited to capturing through the image capture unit 282 on the handheld electronic device 280. As shown in FIG. 3B, the handheld The electronic device 280 can also capture encoded images through other electronic devices 290 . For example, the handheld electronic device 280 can capture the coded image 270 through other electronic devices 290, such as digital cameras, other electronic devices such as handheld electronic devices, and capture the encoded image 270 in other electronic devices 290 after being connected with other electronic devices 290. The captured encoded image 270 of . In this way, the handheld electronic device 280 does not directly capture the coded image 270 , but indirectly captures the coded image 270 from the other electronic device 290 after the other electronic device 290 captures the coded image 270 . In other words, the handheld electronic device 280 does not need to use the image capture unit 282 to capture the encoded image 270 in the display screen 202 of the display panel 201; The output unit 283 retrieves the coded image 270 . Wherein, the input/output unit 283 may include a card reader, a universal serial bus interface (Universal Serial Bus interface, referred to as USB) and a mini USB interface and other related interfaces that can transmit information. The decoding unit 284 can capture and interpret the coded image 270 contained in the other electronic device 290 through other electronic devices 290 (such as SD cards such as notebook computers and flash memory) connected to the input/output unit 283, and according to the coded image The connection information interpreted by 270 automatically generates a communication connection with the communication module 260 .

As shown in FIG. 3B , when the communication unit 281 of the handheld electronic device 280 in the digital signage system 200 is connected to the communication module 260 of the signage player 210, the image capture module 250 of the signage player 210 will capture the The processor unit 240 transmits the digital image to the display panel 201, and transmits the captured digital image to the handheld electronic device 280 through the communication connection between the communication module 260 and the communication unit 281, and then passes between the communication unit 281 and the decoding unit 284. The connection is transmitted to the decoding unit 281, so that the decoding unit 284 and the display panel 201 of the digital signage system 200 can synchronously play and display digital images on the display unit 285 of the handheld electronic device 280 and the display screen 202 on the display panel 201. In this embodiment, the communication module 260 of the signboard player 210 preferably transmits the digital image to the communication unit 281 of the handheld electronic device 280 in a wireless manner. However, in other embodiments, the communication module 260 can also transmit digital images to the communication unit 281 in the handheld electronic device 280 in a wired manner, such as CAT5 network cable (Category 5 cable), CAT6 network cable (Category 6 cable), HDMI, Connection methods such as USB. In this embodiment, the communication module 260 actually transmits image information to the handheld electronic device 280 according to the type of communication connection generated between the handheld electronic device 280 and the billboard player 210 . For example, if the hand-held electronic device 280 establishes a communication connection with the kanban player 210 using the wireless network 802.1X protocol at the beginning, the kanban player 210 will use the same communication connection to return the digital image to the hand-held electronic device 280 .

The flow diagram shown in FIG. 4 is a preferred embodiment of the operation method of the digital signage system of the present invention, wherein the digital signage system includes a display panel and a signage player, and the operation method of the digital signage system includes the following steps.

Step 10 includes generating an encoded image, wherein the encoded image is captured by the handheld electronic device. In a preferred embodiment, the coded image is generated from the communication module 260 in the kanban player of the digital signage system, and the generated coded image is preferably a color image, such as a color two-dimensional barcode, so that the handheld electronic device can capture the code image, the captured encoded image will be clearer, making it easier for the hand-held electronic device to clearly define the features on the captured encoded image during subsequent encoded image processing. That is to say, it is preferable to encode the Service Set Identifier (SSID) of the wireless network access point (that is, wireless base station, Access Point, AP for short) in the Kanban player by using the color barcode coding method. An encoded image is formed. However, the coded image is not limited to a color image or a 2D barcode, and the coded image can also be a black and white image or a 1D barcode in other embodiments. In this embodiment, the handheld electronic device is preferably a smart phone; however, in other embodiments, the handheld electronic device can also be related electronic devices such as non-smart phones, notebook computers, tablet computers, and digital cameras. In this embodiment, the captured coded image is preferably captured by an image capturing component of the handheld electronic device, such as a camera in the handheld electronic device, so as to obtain the coded image by using the camera function of the handheld electronic device. However, as far as the hand-held electronic device captures the coded image, the way to capture the coded image is not limited to the image capture component on the hand-held electronic device, and the hand-held electronic device can also capture the coded image through other electronic devices. image. For example, a handheld electronic device can capture encoded images through other electronic devices, such as digital cameras, other handheld electronic devices, etc., and after connecting with other electronic devices, capture the captured codes in other electronic devices image. In this way, the handheld electronic device does not directly capture the coded image, but indirectly captures the coded image from other electronic devices after the coded image is captured by other electronic devices. In addition, in other embodiments, the handheld electronic device can also retrieve coded images from the network.

Step 20 includes playing the digital video and coded image on the display panel of the digital signage system. The digital image and coded image are preferably transmitted and played on the display panel from the kanban player of the digital signage system, wherein the coded image is embedded in the display screen (such as a corner) of the display panel. In this embodiment, because the digital signage system is usually used for advertising and other related information exchange purposes, and because of this, the digital image played by the digital signage system has a high probability of being a static image, so that when it is played on the display panel, the user Allow enough time to watch and absorb digital video content. However, in other embodiments, the digital images of the digital signage system can also be dynamic images or only sound information. While playing the digital image, the coded image is also displayed on the display panel. In this embodiment, when the coded image and the digital image are displayed on the display panel, the coded image is preferably displayed on the lower left of the display area of the display panel, and the coded image is displayed and embedded in the playing digital image frame. Specifically, when the display panel simultaneously displays the digital image and the coded image, the coded image is overlapped on the digital image, so that the coded image will cover a small part of the digital image. In other words, in this embodiment, on the display panel of the digital signage system, the preset position for displaying the coded image is the above-mentioned lower left, and covers a part of the digital image frame. After displaying the digital image and the coded image on the display panel, the coded image will be captured by the handheld electronic device, for example, by an image capturing component in the handheld electronic device.

Step 30 includes receiving a connection request message, and making the handheld electronic device communicate with the signage player according to the connection request message. In this embodiment, after the handheld electronic device captures the coded image, the handheld electronic device can decode the connection information from the coded image through the software installed on it. Here, the handheld electronic device provides a connection request message to the signboard player according to the connection information of the coded image (such as the SSID of the wireless AP). Therefore, the connection request message is preferably transmitted from the handheld electronic device and received by the signage player, wherein the connection request message can be transmitted in a wired or wireless manner. In this embodiment, the connection request message is wirelessly transmitted from the handheld electronic device to the billboard player. Specifically, when the handheld electronic device is connected to the kanban player for the first time, the connection request message is a request from the handheld electronic device for the connection of the kanban player, and the connection request message preferably includes a set of login accounts and The password can be provided by the hand-held electronic device to the signboard player for confirmation of receipt.

Step 40 includes transmitting the digital image to the handheld electronic device, so that the handheld electronic device can play the digital image synchronously with the display panel. When the kanban player receives a connection request message from the handheld electronic device, the digital image will be transmitted from the kanban player to the handheld electronic device and displayed after the content authentication of the connection request message allows the handheld electronic device to connect with it. panel, and the Kanban player can adjust and transmit digital images to the handheld electronic device and display panel according to the real-time situation (such as the connection quality, bandwidth, transmission speed and other factors with the display panel and the handheld electronic device), causing the handheld electronic The digital images played and displayed by the device and the display panel can achieve a synchronous effect. The way of transmitting digital images can be wireless. However, the transmission method is not limited to the wireless method; the digital image can also be transmitted to the handheld electronic device in a wired method. However, in this embodiment, the method of transmitting the digital image to the handheld electronic device is preferably the same as when the handheld electronic device is connected to the signage player. For example, if the kanban player receives the connection request message in the form of wired transmission, it is preferable that the kanban player also returns the digital image in a wired way. Of course, if the way in which the signboard player receives the connection request message is wireless transmission, it is preferable that the signage player also transmits the digital image in a wireless way. However, the transmission of digital images is not limited to this conditional transmission, and in other embodiments, the digital images can also be transmitted back in a different manner from the original connection request message. The signage player can judge the most suitable transmission method, transmission volume and speed and other factors according to the above conditions and conditions to transmit digital images to handheld electronic devices and display panels, and can achieve synchronous playback of digital images on handheld electronic devices and digital signage The function of the display panel of the system.

For those skilled in the art, it is obvious that, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, there are many different modifications and improvements to the digital signage system, digital signage device and related operating methods of the present invention. possibility of change. Accordingly, the present invention is to cover all modifications and changes within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims (12)

1. a banner system, comprises:

One display panel, in order to receive and to play an image;

Handheld electronic device; And

One billboard player, in order to export this image to this display panel, this billboard player comprises:

One image acquisition module, in order to capture this image;

One communication module, is coupled to this image acquisition module; And

One processor unit, in order to be electrically connected this image acquisition module and this communication module, and transfers to this portable electric device by this image from image acquisition module, causes this portable electric device synchronously can play this image with this display panel;

Wherein this communication module produces the coded image comprising a link information, this display panel further receives and plays a coded image, this portable electric device has an image capture element, in order to capture the coded image that this display panel is play, this portable electric device to be decoded this link information by this link information automatically and this communication module communication of this billboard player according to this coded image of acquisition.

2. banner system as claimed in claim 1, is characterized in that, this communication module by wireless or cable by this image transmission to this portable electric device.

3. banner system as claimed in claim 1, it is characterized in that, this coded image comprises bar code or two-dimensional bar code.

4. banner system as claimed in claim 1, it is characterized in that, this coded image comprises black white image or coloured image.

5. a method of operating for banner system, this banner system comprises a display panel and a billboard player, and the method comprises the following step:

Produce a coded image, wherein this coded image is for handheld electronic device acquisition;

Play an image and this coded image in this display panel;

Receive a line demand message, and according to this line demand message, this portable electric device is connected with this billboard player communication; And

Transmit this image to this portable electric device, cause this portable electric device synchronously can play this image with this display panel.

6. method of operating as claimed in claim 5, it is characterized in that, this coded image comprises bar code or two-dimensional bar code, and this coded image is black white image or coloured image.

7. method of operating as claimed in claim 5, it is characterized in that, this portable electric device captures this coded image by an image capture element.

8. method of operating as claimed in claim 5, is characterized in that, this portable electric device decodes a link information by a software from this coded image and provides this line demand message according to this link information.

9. method of operating as claimed in claim 5, is characterized in that, synchronous this image of broadcasting comprises synchronously plays static image, dynamic image or audio information.

10. a sign board device, comprises:

One billboard player, for providing an image and a coded image; And

One display panel, in order to receive and to show this image and this coded image;

Wherein this coded image is for a hand-hold electronic device acquisition, and makes this billboard player synchronously provide this image to this portable electric device and this display panel;

Wherein this billboard player comprises:

One image acquisition module, in order to capture this image;

One communication module, is coupled to this image acquisition module, in order to by this image transmission to this portable electric device; And

One processor unit, in order to be electrically connected this image acquisition module and this communication module, and transfers to this portable electric device by this image from image acquisition module;

This coded image results from this communication module and comprises a link information.

11. sign board devices as claimed in claim 10, is characterized in that, this communication module by wireless or cable by this image transmission to this portable electric device.

12. sign board devices as claimed in claim 10, it is characterized in that, this coded image comprises bar code, two-dimensional bar code, black white image or coloured image.