Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Takehiko Shida

Toshiki Kindo

Kunio Yoshida

Motohiko Naka

Mie Saitoh

Masaaki Sato

Hideyuki Yoshida

Takehisa Tanaka

Makoto Shimizu

Ikuo Akamine

Yasuhiro Maenishi

Katsuhiko Fujiwara

Akira Yokouchi

Masamichi Morimoto

Ikuo Yoshida

Natsuki Oka

Takayuki Imai

Makoto Hirahara

Hiroshi Takase

Yoshiaki Uchida

A visiting plan generation method and system for promptly carrying out optimum formation of groups, optimum destination assignment to the groups, and optimum planning for each of the groups in an optimization problem of an action plan. In implementation, at least information on plural groups which are to take visiting actions, information on members of each of the plural groups, and information on destinations are received by input means, and optimum formation of the plural groups and optimum destination assignment to each of the plural groups are performed by cost calculation means which provides a cost function for evaluating a visiting plan. Thus, in preparation of a visiting plan for a plurality of groups to visit a plurality of destinations on a task-sharing basis, it is possible to carry out optimum formation or the plural groups, optimum destination assignment to the plural groups, and optimum planning for each of the plural groups.

Visiting plan generation method and system

In an e-commerce system which rearranges merchandise information pieces distributed to a consumer to match preferences of the consumer based on a personal profile with which various keywords contained in the merchandise information pieces and evaluation values corresponding to the keywords are registered where the evaluation values are learned in advance based on preferences of the consumer, while withdrawing a charge of merchandise from an account designated by the consumer to pay to the seller when receiving an order from the rearranged merchandise information pieces, an order for merchandise from the merchandise information pieces distributed to one consumer is placed using the personal profile of another consumer.

E-commerce system and method

The following processing is performed when a line gang pickup head can simultaneously pick up a maximum of n (here, 4) components. First, groupings of components of the same type, out of all of the components to be optimized, are set as component tapes and the component tapes are arranged descending order of the number of components to produce a component histogram (). Next, a partial histogram (), which is part of the component histogram (), is taken from the component histogram (), and is arranged at two-dimensional coordinates where a horizontal axis (the Z-axis) represents an arrangement of component cassettes and a vertical axis represents a number of pickup operations by the line gang pickup head. After this, the component tapes are lined up, by arranging the partial histograms (and), so as to produce a diagram () whose width (number of components) in the horizontal axis is n (=4).

Method for optimization of an order of component mounting, apparatus using the same, and mounter

A method and an apparatus for retrieving images which allows easy retrieval of a desired image from an image database stored in an electronic or optical recording medium or a communication network. As the first step of searching, through the menu entry section, the user enters multi-leveled retrieval requests for the keywords associated with an image. Received the requests, the retrieval section evaluates the user's necessity for the image based on at least the entered requests and the number of the requests. Then the retrieved image is displayed on the screen, according to the calculated necessity. The method and apparatus thus provide the user with a much-needed image in order of precedence by qualifying the user's necessity for the image.

Method and apparatus for image retrieval

An information inquiry support apparatus including means for creating a profile, that is, an evaluation table about each one of plural key words expressing the information content, relating to the user's concern, on the basis of the evaluation about plural pieces of information by the user evaluating presence or absence of concern about presented plural pieces of information, means for entering the specific information for inquiry, information evaluation means for calculating the need signal quantitatively expressing the degree of concern about the specific information for each user by using the profile, and means for quantitatively evaluating the fitness for inquiry, by the magnitude of the value of the need signal, and issuing each name of the plural individual and/or group users.

Information inquiry support apparatus, information inquiry support method, information distribution apparatus, and information distribution method

A solid-state image taking apparatus includes a photodiode converting incident light into a corresponding signal voltage. A measurement is given of a time until the signal voltage reaches a predetermined reference voltage. The measurement is executed by counting up pulses of a clock pulse signal during the time until the signal voltage reaches the reference voltage. The number of the counted pulses represents the time until the signal voltage reaches the reference voltage. The intensity of the incident light determines the time until the signal voltage reaches the reference voltage. Accordingly, the number of the counted pulses represents the intensity of the incident light.

Solid-state image taking apparatus including photodiode and circuit for

A picture processing apparatus is composed of an infrared ray sensor for producing an infrared picture in which a heat distribution of a measured area is recorded, a picture processing section for processing the infrared picture to extract pieces of personal characteristic data and environmental characteristic data from the infrared picture, and a picture information detecting section composed of a neural network for detecting pieces of personal information and environmental information according to the characteristic data. To be concrete, one or more human-areas respectively recording one or more persons are picked out from the infrared picture, and representative points of the human-areas, the number of human-areas, the number of pixels in each of the human-areas and shapes of the human-areas are extracted as the personal characteristic data. Also, the number of persons in each of the human-areas, foot positions of the persons, person's postures, skin temperatures of the persons and the volume of person's clothes are detected as the personal information according to the personal and environmental characteristic data.

Picture processing apparatus for processing infrared pictures obtained

A pattern classification system includes a plurality of classification sections. Each of the classification sections includes a device for storing information of N coefficients W representing a reference pattern, a device for calculating an evaluation value V on the basis of N input signals S and the N coefficients W, the N input signals representing an input pattern, the evaluation value V representing a relation between the input pattern and the reference pattern, a device for storing information of a fixed threshold value R, and a device for comparing the evaluation value V and the threshold value R and for outputting an estimation signal depending on a result of the comparing, the estimation signal including a category signal P which represents a category. A selection section is operative for selecting one of categories in response to the category signals outputted from the classification sections and for outputting a signal Px representing the selected one of the categories. An adjustment section is operative for adjusting parameters in the classification sections in response to the output signal Px of the selection section and a teacher signal T, the parameters including the coefficients W.

Pattern classification system

An automatic adjusting apparatus for adjusting equipment which comprises an adjustment state detecting section and a processing section. The detecting section detects an adjustment state of the equipment so as to output one or a plurality of adjustment state indexes on the basis of the detected adjustment state and the processing section performs the process on the basis of the adjustment state index to adjust the equipment. The processing section is equipped with an adjustment state evaluation section for calculating and outputting, on the basis of the adjustment state index, an adjustment evaluation value and an adjustment amount calculation section for calculating, on the basis of the adjustment state index, adjustment amounts for one or a plurality of portions of the equipment. Also included in the processing section is an adjustment control section for selecting, on the basis of the adjustment evaluation value, an adjustment amount from the outputs of the calculation section. The control section controls the calculation section so as to control the adjustment amount on the basis of the selection result. The calculation section has a function to learn the relation between the adjustment state index and the adjustment amount and a function to calculate the adjustment amount in accordance with the learned relation.

Automatic adjusting apparatus for equipment

A color correction apparatus for use in an apparatus such as a color copier for operating on data obtained by scanning and color analysis of a source image to obtain color density data for use in printing a copy of the source image, the correction apparatus containing a neural network. Parameter values of the neural network are established by repetitive computations based on amounts of difference between color density data previously used to print a plurality of color samples and color density data produced by the neural network in response to color analysis data obtained by analyzing these color samples.

Color data correction apparatus ultilizing neural network

An apparatus for printing signal correction and printer operation control, for use in applications such as color copiers, utilizes a neural network to convert input image signals, derived for example by scanning and analyzing an original image, into printing density signals which are supplied to a printer. In addition, a detection signal expressing at least one internal environmental condition of the printer, such as temperature, is inputted to the neural network, so that the output printing density signals are automatically compensated for changes in internal environment of the printer.

Growing community of inventors

Yokohama, Japan

Takehiko Shida