JPH10290442A - Videophone equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] The present invention provides a videophone device that enables reliable one-sided control of a partner terminal. A noise level greatly changes with respect to a connection start signal input from another videophone device, and it is determined whether all past five data levels including the present data are greater than n (step 1004). -1006) Further, since the level of the noise is not constant, the normal connection start signal is generated at a constant level, so that the absolute value p1 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data and the latest And the absolute value p2 of the difference between the previous data and the previous data (steps 1008 and 1009), respectively.
By judging whether p2 is smaller than q (step 10
10), distinguish the legitimate connection start signal from noise.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a video telephone apparatus and system for transmitting and receiving image data simultaneously with audio data.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the recent development of a highly information-oriented society, a demand for a communication medium for transmitting a large amount of various kinds of information at a high speed is increasing more and more. Therefore, in 1988, TTC (Telecom)
munication Technology Com
ittee: JJ-40.10 “Analog telephone band still image communication system” has been established as a standard communication system of the Telecommunication and Telephone Technical Committee, whereby black-and-white image data is mutually transmitted and received via a communication line. The TTC standard communication method was revised in 1989,
It is possible to transmit and receive not only black and white image data but also color image data, and various videophone devices have been developed in accordance with these TTC standard communication systems.

[0003] Such a videophone device can transmit information, which is difficult to be transmitted to the other party only by voice explanation, as visual appealing information, such as an image.
Prospects for further spread are promising, depending on the type of communication network to be connected and the type of image and audio transmission function, for example, connecting to an analog public line to transmit black-and-white still images and color still images. And those for transmitting color moving images.

[0004] Among them, in a black and white still picture video telephone apparatus for transmitting a black and white still picture by connecting to an analog public line,
The image data is transmitted without compression without compression. For example, when one screen handles 100 × 160 pixels and 64 gradation (6 bits) monochrome image data,
00 × 160 × 6 = 96,000 bits of data is converted into about 8,
The transmission is performed at a transmission speed of about 740 bps (Bit Per Second). However, in this case, in the case of image data having a large amount of information, it takes about 11 seconds to transmit one screen, and therefore, due to memory capacity, communication speed, etc., it is practically used for purposes other than the storage type. Not a target.

Therefore, by compressing the image data and the audio data to be transmitted, for example, to about 1/20 to 1/100, and transmitting the compressed data, the analog telephone band is used.
2. Description of the Related Art A moving picture videophone device capable of transmitting and receiving a color moving image of about 10 sheets / second has been put to practical use.

[0006] In this case, since the compressed transmission of image data transmits an extremely large amount of data, even if a slight transmission delay occurs, the influence on the progress of the call is not so large. , CCITT Recommendation H.2
61, etc.) is generally used. In the compression transmission of audio data, the average generated bit length can be compressed by digitizing the audio data. However, in general, entropy compression (for example, Huffman coding, etc.) for which the maximum bit length is not guaranteed is used for audio transmission. When applied to a signal, if the audio signal is generated with a long bit length by entropy compression, a large transmission delay occurs in the audio signal and the effect on the progress of the call becomes large. It is encoded and transmitted.

By the way, in a videophone device using such an analog communication network, when starting to use the same,
First, a connection is made as a normal analog telephone, and then a connection for a videophone is made. At this time, it is general that the connection between the videophone devices must be started almost simultaneously.

[0008]

However, for example, when a user who is unfamiliar with the operation of the apparatus operates the apparatus, the timing of starting the use of the video phone is erroneous, and the connection of the video phone cannot be performed well in many cases. I do.

Therefore, in order to avoid such a situation,
For example, a device having a so-called one-sided start function has been considered in which a videophone device on the other end automatically starts a connection when a videophone device on its own side starts a connection.

[0010] However, in the one having such a one-side start function, in particular, in the case where the analog telephone is not provided integrally with the video telephone, noise when a telephone handset is put down or during a telephone call by the analog telephone is generated. ,
There is a problem that a signal indicating the start of the one-sided start may be erroneously recognized, and the connection of the videophone device is performed when the signal is not intended. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a videophone device that enables reliable one-side control of a partner terminal.

[0011]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A video telephone device connected to a communication line for transmitting and receiving image data and audio data by compressing / expanding the data. A receiving means for receiving a connection start signal input from another video telephone device, and a connection start signal received by the receiving means. It is constituted by identification means for identifying a legitimate connection start signal based on at least the reception level of the signal, and control means for controlling its own terminal based on the legitimate connection start signal identified by the identification means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the identification means samples the reception level of the connection start signal, and all of the reception levels of the connection start signal of a plurality of samples are larger than a predetermined value. A legitimate connection start signal is identified based on whether or not this is the case.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, the identification means further determines an absolute value of a difference between the reception level of the connection start signal of the latest sample and the reception level of the connection start signal of a predetermined number of times before. I am trying to do it.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first to third aspects, the control means further controls a power supply of a device connected to the own terminal based on a legitimate connection start signal identified by the identification means. have.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a video telephone which is connected to a communication line and compresses / decompresses image data and audio data for transmission / reception and receives a command signal inputted from another video telephone. And control means for controlling the power supply of a device connected to the terminal based on the command signal received by the receiving means.

As a result, according to the first aspect of the present invention,
Since a legitimate connection start signal input from another video telephone device can be identified, it is possible to prevent a situation where an unintended connection of the video telephone device is made when the handset of the telephone is put down or noise during a call is made. .

According to the second or third aspect of the present invention, a legitimate connection start signal can be accurately identified. Claim 4
According to the invention described above, it is possible to control the power on / off of the external device connected to the own terminal in accordance with the legitimate connection start signal input from another videophone device. According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to control turning on / off of an external device connected to the own terminal by a command signal input from another videophone device.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) In this case, the videophone device includes:
A television and a telephone are connected, and a television and a telephone are connected to the video telephone of the other party, and these video telephones are connected to a general analog public telephone line (PSTN), and image data, audio data, etc. Is transmitted and received.

In this case, the connection cable is connected to the telephone line connection terminal of the video telephone, and the telephone is connected to the telephone connection terminal of the video telephone via the connection cable.
Connect the TV to the video output terminal and audio output terminal of the videophone device via the cord, and connect the AC input terminal to the power input terminal.
The cord is connected and power is supplied.

First, the circuit configuration in the videophone device will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the videophone device includes a camera unit 91, a video circuit unit 92, a video processing unit 9
3. Video display unit 94, NCU (Network Co.)
control unit) unit 95, audio processing unit 96, CP
U (Central Processing Uni)
t) unit 97, modem (MODEM, Modulatio)
and a DE / Modulation unit 98, a key / LED 99, a DIP switch 611, and a remote controller 62.

The camera section 91 is for taking in images of the surroundings into the videophone device, and includes a lens 911 and a CCD (C
charge Coupled Device) 912,
An analog LSI including a CCD driver 913, an A / D converter, a D / A converter, a filter, etc.
/ DA) 914, a DSP (Dig for color processing)
ital Signal Processor) 915
It consists of. Here, the lens 911 is an optical lens made of glass or plastic,
Numeral 12 generates an electric signal based on the intensity of light formed by the lens 911. The generated electric signal is amplified by the driver 913 and A / D-converted by the analog LSI 914. The A / D-converted image digital data is subjected to color processing by the DSP 915, and then again processed by the analog LSI 914. D /
The A signal is converted and output as a video signal.

The video circuit section 92 is a discrete circuit such as a sync separator and a filter. The video circuit section 92 has inputs from the camera section 91 and an image input terminal as inputs, and switches between these two inputs under the control of the remote controller 62. I do it. Then, the video signal input processed by the video circuit unit 92 is provided as an input signal of the video processing unit 93.

The video processing unit 93 has an A / D converter, a D /
Analog LSI 931 including A converter, PLL circuit, filter circuit, etc., image input control circuit 932, RAM
(Random Access Memory) 93
3. It comprises an image compression / decompression circuit 934.

After synchronization separation by the video circuit section 92, the luminance and color difference signals are A / D converted by the analog LSI 931 and converted into digital data in accordance with the control of the image input control circuit 932.
33 is temporarily stored. The input image data temporarily stored in the RAM 933 is sequentially read from the image input control circuit 932 and sent to the image compression / decompression circuit 934 according to a command from the CPU unit 97 described later.

The image compression / expansion circuit 934 converts the input image into a predetermined encoding method, that is, a JPEG (Joint) according to the type of image to be handled (in this case, a still image).
Photographic Coding Exp
DCT (Discrete CosineT) for each 8 × 8 pixel block by an RTS Group algorithm
(Transform: Discrete Cosine Transform) A compression / encoding process is executed by quantization, Huffman encoding, or the like, and the processed data is sequentially written to the RAM 933. In addition, the image compression / decompression circuit 934
It also has a function of decoding and decompressing encoded image data in the opposite way to the above, and sequentially reads out image compression / quantization and encoded data in the RAM 933, decoding, dequantizing,
The decompression process is performed, and the data is sequentially written to the RAM 933. Thus, the RAM 933 stores the input image data, the compressed image data, and the decompressed image data in the respective storage areas, and stores the respective areas in the image input control circuit 9.
32.

The video display unit 94 includes a display control circuit 94
1, RAM 942, OSDC (OnScreen Di)
(Spray Controller) 943. The display control circuit 941 sequentially transfers the input image or the decompressed image temporarily stored in the RAM 933 to the RAM 942 according to an instruction from the CPU unit 97 described later, and performs interpolation and thinning of these images according to the display specification. An output image signal is generated and temporarily stored in the RAM 942. Also, according to a command from the CPU unit 97, O
The character ROM (Read
Only Memory) is read out, combined with the output image signal temporarily stored in the RAM 942, and the analog LS
It is also sent to I931. Analog LSI
Reference numeral 931 converts the digital signal from digital to analog and outputs the digital signal to the image output terminal as a video output signal.

The NCU unit 95 controls the switching between the telephone line and the telephone, a modem interface, and a circuit for simultaneously outputting an audio output signal to the telephone to the outside, a voice input signal from the telephone and an external voice input. , A discrete circuit including a circuit for synthesizing a microphone input signal. Then, the voice input signal from the telephone, the voice input signal from the outside, and the voice input signal from the external microphone input terminal are sent to the voice processing unit 96 for processing by synthesis. Conversely, the output signal from the audio processing unit 96 is output to the telephone and the audio output terminal.

The audio processing unit 96 has a CODEC 961, R
It comprises an AM 962 and an audio compression / expansion circuit 963. CODEC 961 is a filter A / D converter, D
A / D converter which A / D converts the audio signal (analog signal) from the NCU unit 93 and sequentially converts the audio signal
62 is temporarily stored. The audio compression / expansion circuit 963 converts the digital audio data temporarily stored in the RAM 962 into, for example, CELP (Code-Excit).
(ed Linear Prediction) algorithm, means for analyzing input data for a certain period of time, means for synthesizing waveforms based on analyzed parameters,
A compression / encoding process is performed by a predetermined encoding method using an error calculator for the input waveform and the composite waveform, and the compressed audio data is temporarily stored in the RAM 962.

Conversely, the compressed audio data compressed and encoded in the RAM 962 is decoded and expanded by an audio compression / expansion circuit 963, sequentially D / A-converted by a CODEC 961, passed through an NCU 95, and sent to a telephone. It is also output to an output or audio output terminal.

The CPU 97 includes a CPU 971 and a RAM 9
72, a GA (Gate Array) 973 and a flash memory 974. CPU971
Is to output various control signals for controlling each section in the videophone apparatus to each section via a bus, and to execute a communication control program according to the connection of the communication line to be connected. Key L consisting of a part and a display part
A DIP switch 611 for performing initial settings such as operation settings of the ED 99 and the videophone device is connected.

Further, the CPU 971 is adapted to compress / encode an image input from the camera unit 91 or the external image input terminal and temporarily store the image compression data in the RAM 933, and to output the image data from the telephone or the external audio input or the microphone input. The audio signal is compressed / encoded, multiplexed with the audio compression data temporarily stored in the RAM 962, and output as image / audio compression data to a later-described modem unit 98 via a bus.

Conversely, the CPU 971 receives image / audio data multiplexed and transmitted from the videophone device on the other end of the communication, and when this is demodulated and input by the modem unit 98 described later, the demodulated image / audio data is received. The audio data is separated and output to the RAM 933 via the image compressed data and the bus, and the compressed audio data is output to the RA via the bus.
Output to M962.

The RAM 972 is a semiconductor memory for storing program data used in the program processing executed by the CPU 971, compressed image and audio data, and the like.

The GA 973 is a group of random logics around the CPU 971, and has, for example, a circuit for receiving an input signal from a remote controller 62 for controlling the video telephone.

The flash memory 974 includes a CPU 971
Is a semiconductor memory for storing an extension program and the like. The modem unit 98 controls the modulation and demodulation by using DS.
P981, AFE (Analog Front End) 9 for controlling A / D converter, D / A converter, filter and NCU and interfacing with CPU 971
82, a ROM 983, and a RAM 984.

The DSP 981 and the AFE 982 have a CPU
Modulator (Modulator) that converts and transmits the multiplexed compressed image / audio data transmitted from 971 to a transmission signal (analog signal) that can be transmitted through a communication line.
and a transmission signal (analog signal) transmitted through a communication line,
The NCU 95 has a function as a demodulator (demodulator) for returning to a digital signal that can be decoded at 71, and can be used on a general subscriber line as a communication line used by the NCU 95.

The ROM 983 is a semiconductor memory for storing programs, data, and the like used by the DSP 981. R
AM984 uses the program executed by the DSP 981 as R
The purpose of booting from OM983 and storing, and DSP98
1 is a semiconductor memory used for program data used in the program processing executed and a transmission / reception data buffer or the like.

It should be noted that the modem section 98 in the present embodiment
And the NCU unit 95 has a transmission speed of 1 on an analog public line.
4,400 bps (bit per second) is possible, and as a processing unit, image data, audio data, or control data is transmitted in a time-division manner in each packet configuration, and image data for one screen (normal) is approximately 3.
The image is transmitted as an intermittent moving image at a rate of one frame every 5 seconds. In the case of fine image data, the image is transmitted as a still image over about 30 seconds.

Next, transmission and reception of image data and audio data by such a video telephone will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b).
This will be described below. In this case, as the transmission data and the reception data, the image data, the audio data, and the control data are transmitted in a time division manner in a packet configuration. Since a header and a CRC code are added to each data, the effective image data that is actually transmitted is about 7,000 bps, and the audio data is about 7,000 bps.

In other words, for example, when one screen handles 112 × 128 pixels and 4096 colors (12 bits) of color image data, the image data amount of one screen is 112 × 128 × 12 = 172,032 bits ( =
About 21.5 kilobytes), and by image compression processing,
By compressing the data to about 1/7, image data of 24,500 bits is obtained, and the time obtained by dividing the 24,500 bits by the number of bits that can be transmitted per second (about 7,000 bits), that is, 24,500 ÷ 7,000 = 1 in 3.5 seconds
Transmit intermittent video at the rate of the frame. Therefore, actually, 49,152-bit image data obtained by dividing 172,032 bits by 3.5 is compressed to about 1/7 and transmitted as about 7,000-bit image data.

On the other hand, audio data is treated as digital data sampled at a quantization bit number of 12 bits and a sampling frequency of 8 KHz.
6,000-bit audio data is compressed to about 1/14 and transmitted as about 7,000-bit audio.

FIG. 2 shows the structure of a multiplexing code. Since it is a 32bis modem, multiplexing codes are transmitted and received. Next, the operation of the embodiment configured as described above will be described.

First, when the power of the apparatus is turned on, the main flow shown in FIG. 3 is executed. In this case, step 70
In step 1, the CPU 971 clears the internal RAM and the external RAM, and resets each device. Next, in step 702, the setting state of the dip switch 611 is read, and the value of each variable is set. Then, step 703
The value that changes depending on the state of the videophone device (hereinafter, referred to as
Mode), depending on the local mode, analog mode,
The flow branches to one of the nego mode and the videophone mode (steps 704 to 707). In this case, the mode in the initial state is the local mode, but each mode takes the form of a subroutine and always returns to the main routine.

First, the local mode is executed according to the flow shown in FIG. This local mode is a mode in which a single operation before making a videophone call is enabled. First,
In step 802, task processing in the local mode is performed. As this processing, for example, image data captured by the camera unit 91 is taken into the video circuit 92, transferred to the video display unit 94, converted into a video output signal, and
1 may be displayed.

Next, in step 803, the state of the hook of the telephone set 86 is monitored. If the hook has dropped by 6 l, in step 804, the state of the key operation on the videophone device or the remote controller 62 is read. It returns to the routine of FIG. On the other hand, if the hook is raised in step 803, it is determined in step 805 whether or not the telephone set 86 at that time is ringing.
06, responder, otherwise at step 807,
Configure the caller settings. This setting is used in a later-described negomote. Then, in step 808, the mode is set to the analog mode. In step 809, a sampling time T1 described later is set, and the process returns to the routine of FIG.

Next, the analog mode is executed according to the flow shown in FIG. In this analog mode, the telephone 8
The hook 6 is in a raised state. In this case, in step 901, a connection start signal from the other party is detected.
Then, in step 902, it is determined whether or not a connection start signal has been received from the other party based on the detection content in step 901. If the connection start signal has not been received, task processing is performed in step 903. This task processing
For example, it is a process of displaying a self-portrait on a television image, or capturing and storing an image.

Next, at step 904, the hook state of the telephone set 86 is monitored.
At 05, the mode is changed to the local mode, and the routine returns to the routine of FIG.

On the other hand, if the hook remains up in step 904, the state of the key operation on the video telephone or the remote controller 62 is read in step 906, and in step 907 the start / stop of the video telephone is started. It is determined whether the button 47 or the start / stop key 74 of the remote control 62 (the start button of the videophone device, the start key of the remote control 62 starts the videophone connection) has been operated. If not, the process returns to the routine of FIG. 3. If it is determined that the start button or the start key is operated, a connection start signal is issued in step 908, and the mode is changed in step 909. The mode is set to the nego mode, and the process returns to the routine of FIG.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 902 that a connection start signal has been received from the other party, the flow directly proceeds to step 909, sets the mode to the nego mode, and returns to the routine of FIG.

FIG. 6 illustrates a routine for detecting a connection start signal from the other party in step 901 in FIG. In this case, it is determined in step 1001 whether the sampling time T1 has passed. If the sampling time T1 has elapsed, a return value NOT-DETECTED is output in step 1002, and the process returns to FIG. On the other hand, if the sampling time T1 has not passed,
In step 1003, the reception level of the connection start signal is read. Then, in step 1004, the data corresponding to the reception levels of the past four connection start signals is read, and in step 1005, the oldest data is discarded.
Shift one by one to the oldest one.

Next, at step 1006, the sampling time T1 is reset, and at step 1007, it is checked whether all the past five data including the present data are larger than n.

If any one of them is smaller than n, it is determined that the noise is present, and in step 1002, a return value NOT-DETECTED is output, and the process returns to FIG. On the other hand, if all are greater than n, step 1
In step 008, the absolute value p1 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data and in step 1009 the absolute value p2 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data are determined.
In step 010, it is determined whether the absolute values p1 and p2 are smaller than q. If the absolute values p1 and p2 are smaller than q, it is determined that the other party is a legitimate connection start signal, and in step 1011 the return value DETE
CTED is output and the process returns to FIG. 5. If it is larger than q, the return value NOT-DE is set in step 1002.
TECTED is output, and the process returns to FIG.

That is, in the detection routine of the connection start signal, it is determined that all the past five data levels including the current data are greater than n, noting that the noise level is largely changed. It is possible that a value greater than n may occur continuously five or more times even in noise, but it is noted that the level of the noise is not constant, whereas a normal connection start signal is generated at a constant level. By taking the absolute value of the difference from the data of the past three times and determining whether the difference is smaller than q, it is possible to accurately distinguish noise from a legitimate connection start signal from the other party. Note that the above constant T1
, N, and q are arbitrary values.

Next, the nego mode is executed according to the flow shown in FIG. In the nego mode, the modem unit 98 is connected to each other by digital signals when switching from the analog telephone state to the video telephone.
Shows a case where handshake is performed.

In this case, a mode check is performed in step 1102, and it is determined in step 1103 whether the handshake of the modem unit 98 has been completed. Here, if the processing has been completed, it is determined in step 1104 whether or not the negotiation has succeeded. If the negotiation has been successful, the mode is set to the videophone mode in step 1105, and the process returns to the routine in FIG.
If unsuccessful, in step 1106, the mode is set to the analog mode, and the routine returns to the routine of FIG. on the other hand,
If the handshake has not been completed yet, the state of the hook of the telephone set 86 is monitored in step 1107, and if the hook is down, the mode is changed to the local mode in step 1108 and the routine returns to the routine of FIG. If it has been raised, in step 1109, a process of reading the state of the key operation on the videophone device or the remote controller 62 is performed, and the process returns to the routine of FIG.

Next, the videophone mode is executed according to the flow shown in FIG. In this case, step 1202
Then, a data receiving process is performed. The receiving process in this case is
It is necessary to perform data processing received from the other party so as not to delay the communication speed at this time. Next, step 120
At 3, the image data to be sent to the other party is created and the image data sent from the other party is processed. Similarly, step 1
At step 204, processing is also performed on the voice, and
Then, a process for transmitting the data on the line is performed.
Then, as in the other modes, task processing is performed in step 1206. In step 1207, the hook state of the telephone set 86 is monitored.
At step 8, the mode is changed to the local mode, and the routine returns to the routine of FIG.
At step 9, a process of reading the state of the key operation on the videophone device or the remote controller 62 is performed, and the process returns to the routine of FIG.

Therefore, by doing so, it is noted that the noise level greatly changes with respect to the connection start signal input from another videophone device, and all the past five data levels including the current data are used. It is determined whether the value is greater than n, and the value greater than n may occur more than five times in a row even with noise. The absolute value p1 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data, and the absolute value p2 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data are calculated. p1 and p2 are q
By judging whether the signal is smaller than the normal connection start signal or not, the normal connection start signal can be distinguished from the noise. As a result, even if noise is picked up when the handset of the telephone is hanged up or during a call, such noise can be ignored without fail, and unintended connection of the videophone device caused by these noises can be prevented. This can be reliably prevented.

In this embodiment, in order to observe the level change, the absolute value p1 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data and the absolute value p1 of the difference between the latest data and the immediately preceding data are determined. Although the value p2 is being viewed, any combination may be viewed. In addition, the past data is compared to see if it is larger than the lower limit n. However, an upper limit condition may be set so that a level that is too large may not be recognized. Further, the history of the level to be stored is set to the past five times, but the number of times is not limited to five. (Second Embodiment) In the first embodiment, in the analog mode shown in FIG. 5, a connection start signal from a partner is detected in step 901 and a signal from the partner is detected in step 902 based on the detected content. When the connection start signal is received, the mode is immediately switched to the nego mode. However, in the second embodiment, when the connection start signal is received,
The power of the image monitor can be turned on.

In this case, in the analog mode, as shown in FIG. 9, the same parts as those in FIG.
At 01, a connection start signal from the other party is detected. And
In step 902, it is determined whether a connection start signal has been received from the other party based on the detection contents in step 901. If the connection start signal has not been received, step 90
The process proceeds to task 3 and subsequent steps. On the other hand, in step 902,
If a connection start signal from the other party has been received from the detection content in step 901, the process proceeds to step 910, the power of the image monitor is turned on, and the process proceeds to step 903 task processing.

In FIG. 9, step 90 shown in FIG.
The issuance of the connection start signal of No. 8 has been deleted. Therefore,
In this way, when a connection start signal is received from the other party, the power of the image monitor can be turned on. For example, the image monitor 101 is connected to the power control unit 102 as shown in FIG. Even if the user cannot turn on the power of the image monitor 101 because of the connection type, the signal confirmation unit 1 sends a signal to start connection from the other party.
When 03 is received, the power of the image monitor 102 can be automatically turned on by the power control unit 102 based on the control signal of the signal confirmation unit 103 at this time, and the usability of the videophone can be improved.

In this embodiment, it is assumed that the power of the image monitor is turned on. However, a toggle operation of “ON” and “OFF” may be performed, or a plurality of signals may be prepared and “ON”.
“Off” may be controlled separately. Further, the power-on is not limited to the image monitor, and the power of other devices may be controlled. (Third Embodiment) In the third embodiment, a control command is output as digital data during digital connection of a videophone to control an external device.

In this case, in step 1201 of the videophone mode shown in FIG. 8, data processing received from the other party is performed. Here, the flow shown in FIG. 11 is executed. First, in step 1501, the type of the received data is determined.
Step 1503 if it is the audio processing of 2 or image data
If the control command is a control command, it is determined in step 1504 whether the control command is a power control command.

If it is determined that the command is a power control command, the power of the image monitor is turned on in step 1505. If it is determined that the command is not a power control command, in step 1506, the power is turned on according to the command at this time. Is performed.

Therefore, even in this case, if a control command is received from the other party during the digital connection of the videophone,
Since the power of the image monitor can be turned on, the image monitor 201 is connected to the power supply control unit 202 as shown in FIG.
03 from its own video telephone 204
Is received, the power of the image monitor 202 can be automatically turned on by the power control unit 202 according to the control command at this time, and the usability of the videophone can be improved in the same manner as described above. The power control units 102 and 202
By connecting a device other than the image monitors 101 and 201 to the power supply, the power supply of other devices can be controlled.

[0065]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a videophone device capable of appropriately performing one-side control on a partner terminal and extending the use form.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a videophone device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a multiplexing code according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an application example of the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an application example of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference numeral 91: Camera unit 92: Video circuit unit 93: Video processing unit 94: Video display unit 95: NCU unit 96: Audio processing unit 97: CPU unit 98: Modem unit 99: Key / LED 911 ... Lens 912: CCD 913: CCD Driver 914,931 ... Analog LSI (AD / DA) 915 ... DSP 932 ... Image input control circuit 933,942,962,972,984 ... RAM 934 ... Image compression / expansion circuit 941 ... Display control circuit 943 ... OSDC 961 ... CODEC 963 ... Audio compression / expansion circuit 971 ... CPU 972 ... RAM 973 ... GA 974 ... Flash memory 981 ... DSP 982 ... AFE 983 ... ROM 101 ... Image monitor 102 ... Power supply control unit 103 ... Sign confirmation unit 201 ... Image monitor 202 ... Power supply Control units 203, 204 ... Bi-telephone device

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A video telephone device connected to a communication line for compressing / decompressing image data and audio data for transmission / reception, receiving means for receiving a connection start signal input from another video telephone device, Identification means for identifying a legitimate connection start signal based on at least the reception level of the connection start signal received by the control means, and control means for controlling the own terminal based on the legitimate connection start signal identified by the identification means. A videophone device characterized by: 2. The identification means samples a reception level of the connection start signal, and identifies a normal connection start signal based on whether or not all of the reception levels of the connection start signals of a plurality of samples are larger than a predetermined value. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein
The videophone device as described. 3. The television according to claim 2, wherein said identification means further determines an absolute value of a difference between a reception level of a connection start signal of a latest sample and a reception level of a connection start signal of a predetermined number of times before. Telephone equipment. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising control means for controlling a power supply of a device connected to the terminal based on a legitimate connection start signal identified by said identification means. Video phone equipment. 5. A video telephone connected to a communication line for compressing and expanding image data and audio data for transmission and reception, receiving means for receiving a command signal input from another video telephone, A videophone device comprising: control means for controlling a power supply of a device connected to the terminal based on a received command signal.