Patent Publication Number: US-2022225019-A1

Title: Notification apparatus, notification method, and program

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a technique for emitting a warning sound from a vehicle. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     Currently, automobiles that are equipped with various sensors to avoid a collision are on the market. In such an automobile, when a danger is detected by a sensor, a warning sound is emitted from a speaker to prompt the driver to perform an operation to avoid the danger. What is important in such a case is to make the driver immediately discern the type of the danger and the direction in which the danger exists, and make the driver quickly perform an operation to avoid the danger. 
     According to a conventional technique, only the type of the danger is notified by using a warning sound, and the direction in which the danger exists is separately notified by using an image (see NPL 1). 
     CITATION LIST 
     Non Patent Literature 
     
         
         [NPL 1] TOYOTA PRIUS PHV safe performance, [online], [searched on Apr. 17, 2019], the Internet &lt;URL: https://toyota.jp/priusphv/safety/support/&gt; 
       
    
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
     Such an image enables the driver to discern the direction in which the danger exists, but the driver cannot determine the location of the danger until they look at the image. Therefore, there is a problem in that the driver takes a long time to make a decision and will be late in starting an operation to avoid the danger. 
     Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a notification technique that makes it possible to notify the driver of the direction in which a danger exists, using a sound. 
     Means for Solving the Problem 
     One aspect of the present invention is a notification apparatus including: an audio signal determination unit that determines, from information (hereinafter referred to as type information) regarding a type of a danger estimated based on sensor data that is data acquired by a sensor, an audio signal corresponding to a type indicated by the type information; an audio image forming unit that determines, from the audio signal and information (hereinafter referred to as direction information) regarding a direction in which the danger has occurred estimated based on the sensor data, audio image information that are combinations of a speaker that is to emit a sound to prompt a driver to pay attention to the direction indicated by the direction information and an audio signal that is to be played back by the speaker, by performing beam forming; and speakers that play back an audio signal input thereto, wherein the audio image information is determined based on a positional relationship between the speakers, a structural object of a vehicle, and the driver so that the driver perceives a sound emitted from the speakers and reflected by the structural object of the vehicle as a sound coming from the direction indicated by the direction information. 
     One aspect of the present invention is a notification apparatus including: an audio signal determination unit that determines, from information (hereinafter referred to as type information) regarding a type of a danger estimated based on sensor data that is data acquired by a sensor, an audio signal corresponding to a type indicated by the type information; a fluctuation adding unit that generates, from information (hereinafter referred to as direction information) regarding a direction in which the danger has occurred estimated based on the sensor data, new direction information by adding directional fluctuations to the direction information; an audio image forming unit that determines, from the audio signal and the direction information, audio image information that are combinations of a speaker that is to emit a sound to prompt a driver to pay attention to the direction indicated by the direction information and an audio signal that is to be played back by the speaker, by performing beam forming; and speakers that play back an audio signal input thereto, wherein the audio image information is determined based on a positional relationship between the speakers and the driver so that the driver perceives a sound emitted from the speakers as a sound coming from the direction indicated by the direction information. 
     One aspect of the present invention is a notification apparatus including: an audio signal determination unit that determines, from information (hereinafter referred to as type information) regarding a type of a danger estimated based on sensor data that is data acquired by a sensor, an audio signal corresponding to a type indicated by the type information; a fluctuation adding unit that generates, from information (hereinafter referred to as direction information) regarding a direction in which the danger has occurred estimated based on the sensor data, new direction information by adding directional fluctuations to the direction information; an audio image forming unit that determines, from the audio signal and the direction information, audio image information that are combinations of a speaker that is to emit a sound to prompt a driver to pay attention to the direction indicated by the direction information and an audio signal that is to be played back by the speaker, by performing pan control; and speakers that play back an audio signal input thereto. 
     Effects of the Invention 
     According to the present invention, a driver can discern the direction in which a danger exists by hearing a sound. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a notification apparatus  100 / 200 / 300 . 
         FIG. 2  is a flowchart showing examples of operations of the notification apparatus  100 / 200 / 300 . 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of an audio image forming unit  220 . 
         FIG. 4  is a flowchart showing examples of operations of the audio image forming unit  220 . 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of an audio image forming unit  320 . 
         FIG. 6  is a flowchart showing examples of operations of the audio image forming unit  320 . 
         FIG. 7  is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of the audio image forming unit  320 . 
         FIG. 8  is a flowchart showing examples of operations of the audio image forming unit  320 . 
         FIG. 9  is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a delay amount application unit  328 . 
         FIG. 10  is a diagram showing an example of a beam forming design. 
         FIG. 11  is a diagram showing an example of a beam forming design. 
         FIG. 12  is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301 . 
         FIG. 13  is a flowchart showing examples of operations of the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301 . 
         FIG. 14  is a diagram showing fluctuations of an audio image localization position. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     The following describes embodiments of the present invention in detail. Note that components that have the same functions are given the same numbers and duplicative descriptions are omitted. 
     First Embodiment 
     A notification apparatus emits an alert sound to a driver to notify the driver of the type of the danger and the direction in which the danger exits, based on information regarding the type of the danger (hereinafter referred to as type information) and information regarding the direction in which the danger has occurred (hereinafter referred to as direction information), which are estimated based on sensor data that is data acquired by a sensor. 
     The following describes a notification apparatus  100  with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 .  FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the notification apparatus  100 .  FIG. 2  is a flowchart showing operations of the notification apparatus  100 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the notification apparatus  100  includes an audio signal determination unit  110 , an audio image forming unit  120 , and speakers  130 . Here, the notification apparatus  100  includes N speakers  130  (N is an integer equal to or greater than 2). The speakers  130  are components that play back an input audio signal to emit a sound. 
     The following describes operations of the notification apparatus  100  with reference to  FIG. 2 . 
     In S 110 , the audio signal determination unit  110  receives type information as an input, and determines and outputs an audio signal corresponding to the type indicated by the type information. For example, the notification apparatus  100  may record a correspondence table indicating a correspondence relationship between pieces of type information and audio signals in a recording unit (not shown) in advance, and the audio signal determination unit  110  may determine an audio signal from the type information by using the correspondence table. 
     In S 120 , the audio image forming unit  120  receives the audio signal determined in S 110  and direction information as inputs, selects, using the direction information, a speaker (hereinafter referred to as a playback speaker) that is to emit a sound to prompt the driver to pay attention to the direction indicated by the direction information and generates an audio signal that is to be played back by the playback speaker (hereinafter referred to as a playback audio signal) from the audio signal to determine audio image information that is a combination of a playback speaker and a playback audio signal, and outputs a playback audio signal specified in the audio image information to the speaker  130  specified in the audio image information. That is to say, the audio image forming unit  120  changes the position of the audio image according to the direction in which the danger has occurred. Here, an audio image is the location of a sound, perceived by the driver when the driver hears the sound. For example, based on direction information, the audio image forming unit  120  may determine the speaker  130  that is closest to the direction indicated by the direction information, as a playback speaker. 
     In S 130 , the speaker  130  specified in the audio image information determined in S 120  plays back the playback audio signal specified in the audio image information. 
     Although control of an audio image position performed to alert the driver is described above, control of an audio image position may be performed to alert a passenger, or performed to alert both the driver and the passenger. 
     Also, a danger of which the driver and/or the passenger are/is to be notified may be a danger that has occurred in the vehicle. If this is the case, the position of the audio image may be controlled according to a relative positional relationship between the person to be notified, such as the driver or the passenger, and the position and direction of the danger that has occurred. For example, the position of the audio image may be controlled by executing posture estimation processing based on data that has been acquired by sensors, such as an image or a point cloud. Also, when the danger that the driver is dozing is detected based on an acoustic signal collected by a microphone installed in the vehicle, the position of the audio image may be controlled so that a sound that is based on an audio signal that corresponds to the type that indicates dozing can be perceived by the passenger, from the position or the direction of the driver relative to the passenger that is to be notified. 
     With the embodiment according to the present invention, a driver can discern the direction in which a danger exists by hearing a sound. By selecting a speaker according to the direction in which a danger exits, and emitting a sound, it is possible to enable the driver to instantly discern the direction. That is to say, the driver is enabled to immediately perform an operation to avoid the danger without checking the screen. 
     Second Embodiment 
     The notification apparatus  100  controls an audio image by selecting a playback speaker. Therefore, the audio image can only be formed at a position where a speaker is provided. Therefore, a notification apparatus  200  makes it possible to localize an audio image at a position where a speaker is not provided, by causing a plurality of speakers to play back an audio signal based on a proportion that has been calculated in advance (perform pan control), according to direction information. For example, by performing pan control so that two speakers emit a sound at the same time, it is possible to localize an audio image between the two speakers. 
     The following describes the notification apparatus  200  with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 .  FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the notification apparatus  200 .  FIG. 2  is a flowchart showing operations of the notification apparatus  200 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the notification apparatus  200  includes the audio signal determination unit  110 , an audio image forming unit  220 , and the speakers  130 . Here, the notification apparatus  200  includes N speakers  130  (N is an integer equal to or greater than 2). The notification apparatus  200  is different from the notification apparatus  100  only in that the audio image forming unit  220  is included instead of the audio image forming unit  120 . 
     The following describes operations of the notification apparatus  200  with reference to  FIG. 2 . 
     In S 110 , the audio signal determination unit  110  receives type information as an input, and determines and outputs an audio signal corresponding to the type indicated by the type information. 
     In S 220 , the audio image forming unit  220  receives the audio signal determined in S 110  and direction information as inputs, determines, by using the audio signal and the direction information and performing pan control, audio image information that are combinations of a speaker (hereinafter referred to as a playback speaker) that is to emit a sound to prompt the driver to pay attention to the direction indicated by the direction information and an audio signal (hereinafter referred to as a playback audio signal) to be played back by the speaker, and outputs the playback audio signals specified in the audio image information respectively to the speakers  130  specified in the audio image information. 
     The following describes an example of the audio image forming unit  220  with reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 .  FIG. 3  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the audio image forming unit  220 .  FIG. 4  is a flowchart showing operations of the audio image forming unit  220 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , the audio image forming unit  220  includes a gain calculation unit  221  and multiplication units  222 . Here, the audio image forming unit  220  includes N multiplication units  222 . Note that N is the same as the number of speakers  130 . 
     The following describes operations of the audio image forming unit  220  with reference to  FIG. 4 . 
     In S 221 , the gain calculation unit  221  receives direction information as an input, calculates gains that are to be used by the multiplication units  222  respectively corresponding to the N speakers  130  based on the direction information, and outputs the gains to the multiplication units  222  respectively corresponding to the speakers  130 . For example, in order to localize an audio image at a desired position, the gain calculation unit  221  calculates gains corresponding to the desired localization position based on the relationship regarding the ratio between the position of the audio image and the playback volume at the time of stereo playback. Also, for example, the notification apparatus  200  may record a correspondence table indicating a relationship between an audio image localization position and a playback volume balance of the speakers in a recording unit (not shown) in advance, and the gain calculation unit  221  may calculate the gains by using the correspondence table. 
     In S 222 , each multiplication unit  222  receives an audio signal and the gain calculated in S 221  as inputs, calculates a playback audio signal based on the audio signal and the gain, and outputs the playback audio signal to the speaker  130  corresponding to the multiplication unit  222 . 
     In S 130 , each speaker  130  specified in the audio image information determined in S 220  plays back the playback audio signal specified in the audio image information. 
     Also in the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, control of an audio image position may be performed to alert a passenger, or performed to alert both the driver and the passenger. Also, as in the first embodiment, a danger of which the driver and/or the passenger are/is to be notified may be a danger that has occurred in the vehicle. 
     With the embodiment according to the present invention, a driver can discern the direction in which a danger exists by hearing a sound. By emitting a warning sound from a plurality of speakers in the proportion corresponding to the direction in which the danger exits, it is possible to localize an audio image at a position where a position is not provided, and enable the driver to more precisely discern the direction. 
     Third Embodiment 
     The notification apparatus  100  controls an audio image by selecting a playback speaker. Therefore, the audio image can only be formed at a position where a speaker is provided. Also, the notification apparatus  200  causes a plurality of speakers to play back an audio signal in the proportion that has been calculated in advance. Therefore, an audio image cannot be localized at a position that is not between speakers. Therefore, a notification apparatus  300  performs beam forming according to direction information so that an audio image can be localized at a position that is not between speakers. For example, by forming a beam (i.e. performing beam forming) so that the sound pressure is high at a position near the driver&#39;s right ear and the sound pressure is low at a position near the driver&#39;s left ear, using a plurality of speakers located in front of the driver who is the listener, it is possible to form an audio image on the right side of the driver. 
     The following describes the notification apparatus  300  with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 .  FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the notification apparatus  300 .  FIG. 2  is a flowchart showing operations of the notification apparatus  300 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the notification apparatus  300  includes the audio signal determination unit  110 , an audio image forming unit  320 , and the speakers  130 . Here, the notification apparatus  300  includes N speakers  130  (N is an integer equal to or greater than 2). The notification apparatus  300  is different from the notification apparatus  100  only in that the audio image forming unit  320  is included instead of the audio image forming unit  120 . 
     The following describes operations of the notification apparatus  300  with reference to  FIG. 2 . 
     In S 110 , the audio signal determination unit  110  receives type information as an input, and determines and outputs an audio signal corresponding to the type indicated by the type information. 
     In S 320 , the audio image forming unit  320  receives the audio signal determined in S 110  and direction information as inputs, determines, by using the audio signal and the direction information and performing beam forming, audio image information that are combinations of a speaker (hereinafter referred to as a playback speaker) that is to emit a sound to prompt the driver to pay attention to the direction indicated by the direction information and an audio signal (hereinafter referred to as a playback audio signal) to be played back by the speaker, and outputs the playback audio signals specified in the audio image information respectively to the speakers  130  specified in the audio image information. 
     The following describes two beam forming methods. 
     (Method 1) A Method Using Filters 
     This method uses the transmission characteristics of a sound from each speaker to the position where the sound pressure is desired to be high and the transmission characteristics of a sound from each speaker to the position where the sound pressure is desired to be low. According to this method, the filter coefficients of the filters corresponding to the speakers are calculated so that the sound pressure at the position where the sound pressure is desired to be high is as high as possible, and the sound pressure at the position where the sound pressure is desired to be low is as low as possible. 
     The following describes an example of the audio image forming unit  320  with reference to  FIGS. 5 and 6 .  FIG. 5  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the audio image forming unit  320 .  FIG. 6  is a flowchart showing operations of the audio image forming unit  320 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , the audio image forming unit  320  includes a filter coefficient calculation unit  321  and filters  322 . Here, the audio image forming unit  320  includes N filters  322 . Note that N is the same as the number of speakers  130 . 
     The following describes operations of the audio image forming unit  320  with reference to  FIG. 6 . 
     In S 321 , the filter coefficient calculation unit  321  receives direction information as an input, calculates filter coefficients that are to be used by the filters  322  respectively corresponding to the N speakers  130  based on the direction information, and outputs the filter coefficients to the filters  322  respectively corresponding to the speakers  130 . 
     In S 322 , each filter  322  receives an audio signal and the filter coefficient calculated in S 321  as inputs, calculates a playback audio signal based on the audio signal and the filter coefficient, and outputs the playback audio signal to the speaker  130  corresponding to the filter  322 . 
     (Method 2) A Method Using Delays 
     According to this method, delay amounts that are to be given to an audio signal played back by the speakers are respectively calculated so that the delays at the position where the sound pressure is desired to be high are the same. 
     The following describes an example of the audio image forming unit  320  with reference to  FIGS. 7 and 8 .  FIG. 7  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the audio image forming unit  320 .  FIG. 8  is a flowchart showing operations of the audio image forming unit  320 . As shown in  FIG. 7 , the audio image forming unit  320  includes a delay amount calculation unit  326 , again calculation unit  327 , delay amount application units  328 , and multiplication units  329 . Here, the audio image forming unit  320  includes N delay amount application units  328  and N multiplication units  329 . Note that N is the same as the number of speakers  130 . 
     The following describes operations of the audio image forming unit  320  with reference to  FIG. 8 . 
     In S 326 , the delay amount calculation unit  326  receives direction information as an input, calculates delay amounts that are to be used by the delay amount application units  328  respectively corresponding to the N speakers  130  based on the direction information, and outputs the delay amounts to the delay amount application units  328  respectively corresponding to the speakers  130 . 
     In S 327 , the gain calculation unit  327  receives direction information as an input, calculates gains that are to be used by the multiplication units  329  respectively corresponding to the N speakers  130  based on the direction information, and outputs the gains to the multiplication units  329  respectively corresponding to the speakers  130 . 
     In S 328 , the delay amount application units  328  respectively receive an audio signal and delay amounts calculated in S 326 . Thereafter, the delay amount application units  328  respectively calculate delayed audio signals that have delays corresponding to the delay amounts, based on the audio signal and the delay amounts, and output the delayed audio signals to the multiplication units  329  respectively corresponding to the delay amount application units  328 . As shown in  FIG. 9 , each delay amount application unit  328  can be formed by using a FIFO buffer  3281  and an all-pass filter  3282 , for example. 
     In S 329 , each multiplication unit  329  receives the delayed audio signal calculated in S 328  and the gain calculated in S 327  as inputs, calculates the playback audio signal from the delayed audio signal and the gain, and outputs the playback audio signal to the speaker  130  corresponding to the multiplication unit  329 . 
     Note that, as shown in  FIG. 10 , the audio image forming unit  320  may determine audio image information based on the positional relationship between the speakers and the driver such that the driver perceives the sound emitted from the speakers as a sound coming from the direction indicated by the direction information. As shown in  FIG. 11 , the audio image forming unit  320  may determine audio image information based on the positional relationship between the speakers, a structural object of a vehicle, and the driver such that the driver perceives the sound emitted from the speakers and reflected by the structural object of the vehicle as a sound coming from the direction indicated by the direction information. In the latter case, beam forming is performed such that the sound will be reflected by the glass window and the driver will hear the sound from the direction of the window, for example. The position of the driver may be, for example, the position of the seat on which the driver sits. 
     In S 130 , each speaker  130  specified in the audio image information determined in S 320  plays back the playback audio signal specified in the audio image information. 
     Also in the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, control of an audio image position may be performed to alert a passenger, or performed to alert both the driver and the passenger. Also, as in the first embodiment, a danger of which the driver and/or the passenger are/is to be notified may be a danger that has occurred in the vehicle. 
     With the embodiment according to the present invention, a driver can discern the direction in which a danger exists by hearing a sound. By forming a beam according to the direction in which a danger exists and emitting a warning sound, it is possible to localize an audio image in any direction even if speakers are not provided so as to surround the driver, and enable the driver to more precisely discern the direction. 
     Fourth Embodiment 
     When a person perceives an audio image, if there is a change in the position of the audio image, it is easy for the person to perceive the position of the audio image. Therefore, the present embodiment describes notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301  that are formed by adding a component for adding fluctuations that change the position of the audio image over time, to the notification apparatus  100 / 200 / 300 . With such a configuration, it is possible to emphasize the location of the audio image to be perceived by the person. 
     The following describes the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301  with reference to  FIGS. 12 and 13 .  FIG. 12  is a block diagram showing a configuration of the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301 .  FIG. 13  is a block diagram showing operations of the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301 . As shown in  FIG. 12 , the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301  includes the audio signal determination unit  110 , a fluctuation adding unit  415 , the audio image forming unit  120 / 220 / 320 , and the speakers  130 . Here, the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301  includes N speakers  130  (N is an integer equal to or greater than 2). The notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301  is different from the notification apparatus  100 / 200 / 300  only in that the fluctuation adding unit  415  is included. 
     The following describes operations of the notification apparatus  101 / 201 / 301  with reference to  FIG. 13 . Here, only the operations of the fluctuation adding unit  415  will be described. 
     In step S 415 , the fluctuation adding unit  415  receives direction information as an input, generates, from the direction information, new direction information by adding directional fluctuations to the direction information, and outputs the new direction information. Here, directional fluctuations are fluctuations that change the direction thereof over time, and the newly generated direction information is direction information in which the direction changes over time. As described above, human beings are sensitive to rapid changes in the position of an audio image in a left-right direction, and such changes improve the perception of the audio image. Therefore, it is desirable that fluctuations are given to the position of the audio image such that the position changes several times per second in a left-right direction. For example, it is preferable that fluctuations of a sine wave of 3 Hz are given so that the position of the audio image changes in a horizontal direction. 
     With the embodiment according to the present invention, a driver can discern the direction in which a danger exists by hearing a sound. By emitting a warning sound with fluctuations, it is possible to emphasize the location of the audio image to be perceived by the driver, and enable the driver to more precisely discern the direction in which a danger exists. 
     &lt;Supplementary Notes&gt; 
     The device according to the present invention, which is, for example, a single hardware entity, includes an input unit to which a keyboard or the like can be connected, an output unit to which a liquid crystal display or the like can be connected, a communication unit to which a communication device (for example, a communication cable) that can communicate with a device outside the hardware entity can be connected, a CPU (Central Processing Unit, which may include a cache memory, a register, and so on), a RAM and a ROM, which are memories, an external storage device, which is a hard disk, and a bus that connects the input unit, the output unit, the communication unit, the CPU, the RAM, the ROM, and the external storage device to each other so that data can be exchanged between them. Also, if necessary, the hardware entity may be provided with a device (drive) or the like that can read out and write data from/to a recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Examples of physical entities that are provided with such a hardware resource include a general-purpose computer. 
     The external storage device of the hardware entity stores, for example, programs that are required for realizing the above-described functions and data that is required for performing processing on the program (the programs are not necessarily stored in the external storage device, and may be stored in a ROM that is a read-only storage device, for example). Also, data or the like obtained through such processing performed on the programs may be appropriately stored in a RAM or an external device. 
     In the hardware entity, each program stored in the external storage device (or a ROM or the like) and the data required for processing the program are read into the memory as needed, and are appropriately interpreted, executed, and processed by the CPU. As a result, the CPU realizes predetermined functions (constituent elements described above as units, means, and so on). 
     As described above, when the processing functions of the hardware entity (a device according to the present invention) described in the above embodiments are realized by using a computer, the details of the processing to be performed by the functions that the hardware entity should have are described using a program. By executing the program on a computer, the processing functions of the above-described hardware entity are realized on the computer. 
     The program describing the details of processing can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium may be any medium such as a magnetic recording device, an optical disk, an magneto-optical recording medium, a semiconductor memory, or the like, for example. Specifically, for example, a hard disk device, a flexible disk, a magnetic tape, or the like may be used as a magnetic recording device, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), a DVD-RAM (Random Access Memory), a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), a CD-R (Recordable), a CD-RW (ReWritable), or the like may be used as an optical disc, an MO (Magneto-Optical disc) or the like may be used as a magneto-optical recording medium, and an EEPROM (Electronically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) or the like may be used as a semiconductor memory. 
     In addition, the distribution of this program is carried out by, for example, selling, transferring, or lending a portable recording medium such as a DVD or a CD-ROM on which the program is recorded. Furthermore, it is possible to employ a configuration with which the program is stored in the storage device of a server computer, and the server computer distributes the program by transferring the program to other computers via a network. 
     For example, a computer that executes such a program first stores a program recorded on a portable recording medium or a program transferred from a server computer in the storage device thereof. Thereafter, when performing processing, the computer reads out the program stored in the storage device thereof, and performs processing according to the program thus readout. Also, in another form of the execution of such a program, the computer may read out the program directly from a portable recording medium and perform processing according to the program. Furthermore, the computer may perform processing according to the received program every time a program is transferred from the server computer to the computer. Also, it is possible to employ a configuration with which the above-described processing is performed using a so-called ASP (Application Service Provider) type service, which realizes processing functions only by using an instruction to execute the program and acquiring the result without transferring the program from the server computer to the computer. Note that a program according to the present embodiment may be information that is to be used by an electronic computational machine to perform processing and is equivalent to a program (for example, data that does not directly provide an instruction to a computer, but has the function of defining processing to be performed by a computer). 
     Also, although the hardware entity is formed by executing a predetermined program on a computer in this embodiment, at least part of such processing may be realized using hardware. 
     The above description of the embodiments of the present invention is presented for illustration and description purposes. There is no intention to be exhaustive and no intention to limit the invention to the exact forms disclosed. Modifications and variations can be formed from the above teachings. The embodiments have been chosen and expressed to provide the best illustration of the principles of the present invention, and enable a person skilled in the art to use the present invention in various embodiments that suit well-considered practical use or with various modifications. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the present invention defined by the appended claims interpreted according to the range that is given fairly, legally, and impartially.