Described are implementations that facilitate group determination and association at entry into a facility so that activities of group members of the group are associated with the group and/or applied to a single account designated for the group. For example, if four individuals enter the facility together, the disclosed implementations determine whether the four individuals are to be associated as a group. If associated as a group, an account, such as an account of one of the individuals, is also determined and associated with the group. Activities, such as an item pick, performed by one of those individuals is associated with the group and if there is a fee or charge associated with the activity it is applied to the associated account.

A gate device is provided which prevents unauthenticated users from passing. The gate device is provided with an acquisition unit, an authentication request unit, a determination unit and a gate control unit. The acquisition unit acquires biological information of a person to be authenticated who is in an authentication area. The authentication request unit transmits to a server device an authentication request that contains the acquired biological information. The determination unit detects a person approaching the local gate device by using a sensor for detecting approaching persons, and determines whether or not the approaching person and the person to be authenticated are the same person. If authentication by the server device is successful and the approaching person and the authenticated person are the same person, then the gate control unit controls the gate to allow passage of the authenticated person.

Provided is a gate device that accurately determines a user to be authenticated. The gate device is provided with an acquisition unit, a setting unit, and a gate control unit. The acquisition unit acquires an upper image and a lower image respectively from an upper camera and a lower camera that is installed on a vertically lower side of the upper camera. When a plurality of users are captured in both the upper image and the lower image, the setting unit identifies a user in the forward-most row among the plurality of users by calculating the distance between each of the plurality of users and a camera installation surface, and then sets the identified user as a person to be authenticated. The gate control unit controls a gate on the basis of the result of authentication of the person to be authenticated.

Provided is a gate device that accurately determines a user to be authenticated. The gate device is provided with an acquisition unit, a setting unit, and a gate control unit. The acquisition unit acquires an upper image and a lower image respectively from an upper camera and a lower camera that is installed on a vertically lower side of the upper camera. When a plurality of users are captured in both the upper image and the lower image, the setting unit identifies a user in the forward-most row among the plurality of users by calculating the distance between each of the plurality of users and a camera installation surface, and then sets the identified user as a person to be authenticated. The gate control unit controls a gate on the basis of the result of authentication of the person to be authenticated.

A method includes sending a first safety instruction to a machine in response to, within an entry window of time, receiving an open alert that a movable barrier is in an open state, where the movable barrier is at an entry point of an enclosure protecting personnel from the machine, receiving tag information of a person from a reader at the movable barrier, and confirming that the tag information belongs to a person authorized to enter the enclosure. The method includes sending a second safety instruction to the machine in response to, within the entry window of time, receiving the open alert, and without receiving tag information or confirming that the tag information belongs to a person authorized to enter the enclosure. The first and second safety instructions are different and the first safety instruction is less restrictive than the second safety instruction in terms of actions to prevent injury.

A method includes sending a first safety instruction to a machine in response to, within an entry window of time, receiving an open alert that a movable barrier is in an open state, where the movable barrier is at an entry point of an enclosure protecting personnel from the machine, receiving tag information of a person from a reader at the movable barrier, and confirming that the tag information belongs to a person authorized to enter the enclosure. The method includes sending a second safety instruction to the machine in response to, within the entry window of time, receiving the open alert, and without receiving tag information or confirming that the tag information belongs to a person authorized to enter the enclosure. The first and second safety instructions are different and the first safety instruction is less restrictive than the second safety instruction in terms of actions to prevent injury.

A customer management apparatus (10) includes an acquisition unit (110) and a determination unit (120). The acquisition unit (110) acquires, from a registration terminal (20), first face information and card identification information. When the first face information satisfies a first criterion regarding whether authentication is possible, the determination unit (120) causes a storage unit (130) to store the first face information and the card identification information in association with each other (first registration processing), and performs processing for allowing a customer to enter a store. The processing may be, for example, issuing, to a store entry apparatus (40), a command to open an automatic door, or may be issuing, to the store entry apparatus (40), a command (so-called lock releasing) to cause an automatic door to open when the customer stands in front of the automatic door.

A visit assistance apparatus (100) includes: a registration unit (120) configured to register a face image of a visitor and visit assistance information in which identification information of a visitor is associated with identification information of a user to be visited; an authentication control unit (130) configured to cause face authentication to be performed by comparing the face image of the visitor captured by a camera installed in an entry control apparatus that restricts an entry to a floor with the registered face image of the visitor; a specification unit (140) configured to specify, when the face authentication has been successfully performed, identification information of the user to be visited based on the visit assistance information, and specify a seat position of the specified user to be visited based on floor information in which the identification information of the user to be visited is associated with the seat position of the user to be visited; and a generation unit (150) configured to generate guide information for guiding the visitor to the specified seat position of the user to be visited on the floor.

A visit assistance apparatus (100) includes: a registration unit (120) configured to register a face image of a visitor and visit assistance information in which identification information of a visitor is associated with identification information of a user to be visited; an authentication control unit (130) configured to cause face authentication to be performed by comparing the face image of the visitor captured by a camera installed in an entry control apparatus that restricts an entry to a floor with the registered face image of the visitor; a specification unit (140) configured to specify, when the face authentication has been successfully performed, identification information of the user to be visited based on the visit assistance information, and specify a seat position of the specified user to be visited based on floor information in which the identification information of the user to be visited is associated with the seat position of the user to be visited; and a generation unit (150) configured to generate guide information for guiding the visitor to the specified seat position of the user to be visited on the floor.

In example implementations, a method is provided. The method includes determining, by a processor, that a vehicle is approaching a door of a building based on a velocity vector of the vehicle, calculating, by the processor, a time of arrival of the vehicle at the door based on the velocity vector of the vehicle and a distance of the vehicle from the door, and controlling, by the processor, the door to begin opening at a time based on the time of arrival and an amount of time for the door to open such that the door is opened when the vehicle arrives at the door.