MULTIPLE DWELLING HOUSE INTERPHONE SYSTEM

Abstract

A multiple dwelling house interphone system includes a collective entrance machine, a dwelling room master device, and a management master device. The collective entrance machine is for calling a visit destination by a visitor. The dwelling room master device is for responding to the call by a dweller. The management master device is for speaking with the dweller by a manager. The management master device includes a speech permissibility storage section and a speech control section. The speech permissibility storage section registers a permissibility of calling and speaking to the dwelling room master device for each dwelling unit. The speech control section controls the calling and speaking. The speech control section does not perform the calling control when a calling operation by the management master device is performed towards the dwelling room master device of a dwelling unit registered as “unpermitted” in the speech permissibility storage section.

Claims

1. A multiple dwelling house interphone system comprising: a collective entrance machine for calling a visit destination by a visitor; a dwelling room master device for responding to the call by a dweller; and a management master device for the manager to speak with the dweller, wherein the management master device includes: a speech permissibility storage section that registers the permissibility of calling and/or speaking to the dwelling room master device for each dwelling unit; and a speech control section that controls the calling and/or speaking, wherein the speech control section does not perform the calling control when a calling operation by the management master device is performed towards the dwelling room master device of a dwelling unit registered as unpermitted in the speech permissibility storage section.

2. The multiple dwelling house interphone system according to claim 1, wherein the management master device includes a register control section that causes a display section to display a selection button to make a reply of permitted or unpermitted when a predetermined operation to change a registered content in the speech permissibility storage section is performed, the display section is an operation section of the dwelling room master device of a dwelling unit for which the change of registered content is intended, and the register control section updates the registered content in the speech permissibility storage section in accordance with the reply content from the selection button.

3. The multiple dwelling house interphone system according to claim 1, wherein the dwelling room master device includes: a speech permitted master device storage section that enables the calling and/or speaking to another specific dwelling room master device; a calling operation section that performs a calling operation to a specific dwelling room master device; and a master device speech control section that controls the calling and/or speaking, wherein the calling and/or speaking to the specific dwelling room master device is enabled.

4. The multiple dwelling house interphone system according to claim 2, wherein the dwelling room master device includes: a speech permitted master device storage section that enables the calling and/or speaking to another specific dwelling room master device; a calling operation section that performs a calling operation to a specific dwelling room master device; and a master device speech control section that controls the calling and/or speaking, wherein the calling and/or speaking to the specific dwelling room master device is enabled.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary multiple dwelling house interphone system according to the invention.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a management master device.

[0014] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a dwelling room master device displaying a selection button.

[0015] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the dwelling room master device.

[0016] FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a calling operation section for calling a dwelling room master device from another dwelling room master device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The following describes embodiments in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary multiple dwelling house interphone system according to the disclosure. The multiple dwelling house interphone system includes a collective entrance machine 1, dwelling room master devices 2, entrance slave devices 3, management master devices 4, and the like. The collective entrance machine 1 is installed at an entrance of a multiple dwelling house and used by a visitor to call a dweller. The dwelling room master devices 2 are installed in individual dwelling units and used for responding to the call from the collective entrance machine 1. The entrance slave devices 3 are installed at entrances of the individual dwelling units and used for calling the dwellers. The management master devices 4 are installed in a manager room and used for speaking with the dwellers and the like.

[0018] While at least one dwelling room master device 2 or at least one management master device 4 is installed in the individual dwelling unit or the manager room, a configuration in which two of both are installed at each location is indicated here. Reference character 5 denotes HUBs, and the devices are mutually connected by a LAN via communication lines L1. The communication between the devices is performed by an Internet Protocol (IP).

[0019] The collective entrance machine 1 includes a camera 11, an operation section 12, a display section 13, a microphone 14 and a speaker 15, a call button 16, and the like. The camera 11 obtains an image of a visitor. The operation section 12 is used for selecting or inputting the dwelling unit to be called. The display section 13 displays a calling destination and the like. The microphone 14 and the speaker 15 are used for speaking.

[0020] The dwelling room master device 2 includes a speech button 21 for responding to the calls, a microphone and a speaker for speaking, a monitor 23 that displays the video image taken by the camera 11, an operation section 24 for performing various operations, and the like. The operation section 24 consists of a touch panel and is integrated with the monitor 23.

[0021] The entrance slave device 3 includes a slave device camera 31 for obtaining an image of a visitor, a call button 32, and a microphone 33 and a speaker 34 used for speaking.

[0022] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the management master device 4. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the management master device 4 includes a monitor 41, an operation section 42, a handset 44, a sound emitting section 45, a speech permissibility storage section 46, a management master device CPU 47, a management master device communication IF 48, and the like. The monitor 41 includes an LCD that displays a video image obtained by the camera 11 of the collective entrance machine 1 and displays various information. The operation section 42 is integrally formed with the monitor 41 and includes a touch panel. The handset 44 is used for speaking. The sound emitting section 45 emits a call sound and a warning sound. The speech permissibility storage section 46 registers speech permissibility information for each dwelling unit. The management master device CPU 47 controls the management master device 4. The management master device communication IF 48 communicates with the collective entrance machine 1 and the dwelling room master device 2.

[0023] The following describes operations of the multiple dwelling house interphone system configured as described above. Note that for operations that are similar to those in a conventional interphone system such as a call to a visit destination from the collective entrance machine 1 by a visitor, a call to a dweller from the entrance slave device 3, a response by a dweller receiving the call using the dwelling room master device 2 while watching the video image obtained by the camera 11 or the slave device camera 31, the explanations are omitted.

[0024] Here, a description will be given of an operation of setting a call to “permitted” or “unpermitted” towards the individual dwelling room master device 2 from the management master device 4. The setting includes a collective setting operation in which the permissibility setting is collectively performed towards all of the dwelling units and an individual setting operation in which the permissibility setting is individually performed. The collective setting operation is performed at the start up of the interphone system, and the individual setting operation is performed when a dweller moves out and a new dweller moves in.

[0025] The collective setting operation is performed by displaying a collective setting screen (not illustrated) through a predetermined operation of the operation section 42. When a collective inquiry button 42a is displayed on the collective setting screen and the button is operated, the management master device CPU 47 performs a control to collectively transmit a signal to inquire whether to allow setting the call to be permitted or not to all the dwelling room master devices 2. In the dwelling room master device 2 receiving the inquiry signal, a response operation screen for making a response is displayed in the operation section 24 of monitor 23.

[0026] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the response operation screen, and two selection buttons M of “PERMITTED” and “UNPERMITTED” are displayed. When either of the selection buttons M is tapped on the display, information indicated by the selected button is sent in response to the management master device 4.

[0027] The management master device 4 receiving the replies from individual dwelling room master devices 2 registers the replied information in the speech permissibility storage section 46. The information indicating that the calling and/or speaking is permitted is saved for the dwelling units replying with “permitted,” and the information indicating that the calling and/or speaking is not permitted is saved for the dwelling units replying with “unpermitted.”

[0028] Meanwhile, the individual setting operation is performed by displaying the individual setting screen (not illustrated). In the individual setting screen, an individual inquiry button 42b and an input section for a dwelling unit number of an inquiry destination are displayed. When the dwelling unit number is input and the individual inquiry button 42b is tapped, two selection buttons M of “permitted” and “unpermitted” are displayed on the monitor 23 of the dwelling room master device 2 in a manner similar to the collective setting operation described above.

[0029] When the dweller selects either of the two selection buttons M and performs the response operation, the information in the speech permissibility storage section 46 is updated and registered in accordance with information indicated by the selected button.

[0030] The management master device 4 performs a calling control in accordance with the permissibility information set as described above. To the dwelling room master device 2 in which the call has been set as “unpermitted”, the call is not performed even when the dwelling unit number is input to select the dwelling unit and the calling operation is performed. Meanwhile, to the dwelling room master device 2 in which the call is set to be “permitted”, the calling control is performed in response to the calling operation, the dwelling room master device 2 to which the calling is performed emits the call sound, and a speech path is formed when the response operation is performed. Thus, speaking between the manager and the dweller is enabled.

[0031] The calling and speaking to the management master device 4 from the dwelling room master device 2 can be performed irrespective of the permissibility in the setting.

[0032] Thus, calls to the dwelling room master device 2 of the dwelling unit set as “unpermitted” are not performed even when the calling operation is performed from the management master device 4. Accordingly, dwellers who do not want to be called by the manager can set the permission setting to “unpermitted” in order to avoid unpleasant feelings. For example, when a new dweller moves in, the permissibility setting of the calling and speaking needs to be changed. However, since the control operates to obtain a permission from the dweller while the setting is being changed, it is unnecessary for the operator to perform an additional conformational operation with the dweller.

[0033] FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of a dwelling room master device 2 in another example of a multiple dwelling house interphone system. Here, in addition to the above-described configuration in which the dwelling room master devices 2 that can be called/spoken to from the management master device 4 are restricted, speech between some of the dwelling room master devices 2 is enabled.

[0034] Since the overall configuration of the multiple dwelling house interphone system and the configuration of the management master device 4 are similar to the configurations illustrated in FIG. 1, the explanations are omitted. The configuration and the operation of the dwelling room master device 2 will be described below.

[0035] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the dwelling room master device 2 includes a speech button 21, an audio section 22 including a microphone 22a and a speaker 22b, a monitor 23 that displays a video image obtained by the camera 11, an operation section 24 integrated with the monitor 23, and further, a speech permitted master device storage section 26. Reference character 27 is a dwelling room master device CPU that controls the dwelling room master device 2, and reference character 28 is a dwelling room master device communication IF that communicates with other devices.

[0036] The operation section 24 includes a master device call button (not illustrated) and a calling operation section 24a is displayed when the master device call button is operated.

[0037] FIG. 5 illustrates calling operation section 24a in a state where individual call buttons for calling dwelling units 201 and 402 in addition to the management master device 4 are displayed. When any of the call buttons is tapped, the dwelling room master device CPU 27 performs a control to call the tapped dwelling unit or manager room, and speaking is enabled when the response operation is received.

[0038] Multiple (for example, four) dwelling room master devices 2 can be set to be permitted for calling, and the setting is performed by displaying the individual setting screen in a manner similar to the above-described individual setting of the management master device 4 (not described in detail). In the individual setting operation, when a permission signal from the inquiry destination dwelling room master device 2 is received, the dwelling room master device CPU 27 performs a control to register the dwelling unit as the inquiry destination in the speech permitted master device storage section 26, and the call button illustrated in FIG. 5 is generated.

[0039] As described above, because calling and/or speaking with a specific dwelling room master devices 2 is enabled, for example, when parents and a child live separately in different dwelling units in a multiple dwelling house as a parent household and a child household, they can conveniently speak to each other using the dwelling room master devices.

[0040] While the multiple dwelling house interphone system has a configuration in which the communication between the devices is performed by the IP communication, the technique of the invention is applicable to a conventional configuration in which a controller to control the communication between the devices is disposed of and the devices are mutually connected by a two-wire transmission line.