Patent Publication Number: US-2003233152-A1

Title: Data processing apparatus and method for manufacturing the same

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] 1. Field of the Invention  
       [0002] The present invention relates to a data processing apparatus, which is used as a terminal for establishing a connection with a communication network.  
       [0003] 2. Description of the Related Art  
       [0004] In recent years, a typical communication network such as the Internet has socially come into wide use, and network users are rapidly increasing. Under such circumstances, various services using the communication network have been provided.  
       [0005] For example, in many restaurants, it takes time inn some degree that ordered food and drinks are served to users. For this reason, some restaurants prepare a terminal device connectable with the Internet for each table in order to realize an environment such that the users can enjoy themselves during the waiting time as described above. Moreover, a coffee shop capable of receiving Internet service, a so-called Internet cafe appears, and the number of the Internet cafes is increasing.  
       [0006] The above shops such as Internet cafe and restaurants have employed a data processing apparatus such as a personal computer as a terminal, or a data processing apparatus developed as a dedicated terminal. However, the conventional data processing apparatus as described above must be installed on a table. For this reason, in the case where the conventional data processing apparatus is employed as the terminal, there is a problem of taking up space on the table which is otherwise used by the customer.  
       [0007] In this case, many shops have no extra space for customers&#39; use in view of space economy. Unless there is an extra space in some degree, it is undesirable to take up space for any reason on the table otherwise usable for the customers. Therefore, for realizing an environment capable of using the Internet in many shops, larger tables must be prepared so as to make up for the taken-up space such that the space is sufficient for the customers use.  
       [0008] If the shop prepares such larger table, the number of shop employees cannot but to be reduced. Depending upon the situation, the need for remodeling the shop arises. Moreover, such reduction of the number of shop employees can affects shop&#39;s earnings. Thus, in the case of realizing an environment which allows use of the Internet, the above problem causes an economical demerit. As a result, it is important to solve the problem such that the reduction of the number of shop employees must be avoided.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a data processing apparatus, which can prevent a reduction of the number of persons accommodated in shop, and can be used as a terminal for realizing an environment capable of using a communication network such as Internet.  
       [0010] The data processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention is manufactured on the premise that it is used as a terminal for making a connection with a communication network, and includes the following means.  
       [0011] In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect, the present invention provides a data processing apparatus, which is used as a terminal for making a connection with a communication network, comprising:  
       [0012] a display device manufactured and used on the premise that something is put thereon, and having a display screen facing a flat-plate transmitting portion capable of transmitting a light;  
       [0013] communication means for making a communication with the communication network;  
       [0014] input means for inputting a request by a user; and  
       [0015] control means for carrying out a control in a manner that a data corresponding to the request inputted by the input means is received by the communication means receives, and the received data is displayed on the display screen by the display device.  
       [0016] In the data processing apparatus, the display device further includes selection means for selecting a direction of displaying a data on the display screen by the user, and the control means carries out in a manner that the display device displays the data on the display screen according to the direction selected by the selection means, that is, the user.  
       [0017] In the data processing apparatus, preferably, in the case where a plurality of the input means is provided, the control means selects a valid input means from the plurality of the input means according to the direction selected by the selection means, that is, the user.  
       [0018] Further, according to another aspect, the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a data processing apparatus, which is used as a terminal for making a connection with a communication network, comprising the following steps of:  
       [0019] providing a transmitting portion capable of transmitting a light at a surface used for putting something on a table;  
       [0020] providing a display device having a display screen facing the transmitting portion provided at the surface; and  
       [0021] mounting communication means for making a communication with the communication network, input means for inputting a request by a user, and control means for carrying out a control in a manner that a data corresponding to the request inputted by the input means is received by the communication means receives, and the received data is displayed on the display screen by the display device, which constitute the data processing apparatus, to the table.  
       [0022] According to the present invention, the data processing apparatus is used as a terminal for making a connection with a communication network, and is mounted to a table. Further, the data (image) is displayed on the display device provided at the surface of the table used for putting something.  
       [0023] In the case where the data processing apparatus has the above construction, the data processing apparatus is usable as a table, in addition to the terminal. Therefore, the data processing apparatus is installed, and thereby, it is possible to prevent a reduction of a space usable by the customer. As a result, it is possible to prevent a reduction of the number of persons accommodated in shop, and to realize an environment capable of using a communication network such as Internet and the like. 
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
     [0024] The above and further objects and features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:  
     [0025]FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a data processing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention;  
     [0026]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the data processing apparatus of the present invention according to the embodiment of the present invention; and  
     [0027]FIG. 3 is a view showing a configuration of a network system built up using the data processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
     [0028] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.  
     [0029]FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a data processing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.  
     [0030] A data processing apparatus  100  is manufactured on the assumption that it is used as a terminal of communication network as well as a table. More specifically, the data processing apparatus  100  is manufactured on the assumption that it is installed in a shop such as a coffee shop and the like. As the shown in FIG. 1, the data processing apparatus  100  is composed of a thick plate-shaped main body  101  formed with an intermediate recessed portion in the form of a relatively wide rectangular floor while opposite lateral side portions thereof are left in the form of raised platforms. Said main body  101  is supported on two legs  102 .  
     [0031] The upper portion of the main body  101  is provided with a flat plate  103  covering the entire surface thereof. The flat plate  103  is formed of a thick glass plate transmitting a light and prepared on the assumption that something is to be placed thereon. Thus, said main body  101  and said thick glass plate  103  placed thereon defines a rectangular space which can be reached by customers who are supposed to take seats in front of the data processing apparatus or the table  100 . Said space under the flat space  103  is equipped with a display device  104  including display screens  104   a  and  104   b  below the flat plate  103 . As described above, the display screens  104   a  and  104   b  are arranged below the flat plate  103  without the problem of taking up table space unnecessarily In this case, the flat plate  103  may be partially provided so as to cover only display screens  104   a  and  140   b  if the raised portions on opposite lateral sides are designed to extend into portions left uncovered by the flat plate  102 . Further, the flat plate  103  may be freely replaced with another thing.  
     [0032] Further, as shown in FIG. 1, there are provided input devices in front of the respective display screen  104   a  and  104   b  provided in the space defined by the main body  101  and the flat plate, said input devices including for example, keyboards  105  for various data input and pointing devices (joystick in this case)  106 . There are further formed card slots  107   in  the front sides of the raised portions of the main body  101 . It is to be noted that the input devices are provided reachable from the front sides of the main body  101 . Therefore, the data processing apparatus  100  is operable on both of two sides. By doing so, a user can select a position to be sat for operating the data processing apparatus  100 , and thereby, it is possible to improve the use of easiness for the user. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the side showing the input device  105  in FIG. 1 is referred to as a first side; on the other hand, a side facing the first side is referred to as a second side.  
     [0033] The display device  104  has two display screens  104   a  and  104   b  as described above. This considers the following points. That is, in the case where the user sits on the first side and operates the data processing apparatus, an image is displayed on the display screen  104   a  arranged on the first side in a direction where the user is easy to see. On the other hand, in the case where the user sits on the second side and operates the data processing apparatus, the image is displayed on the display screen  104   b  arranged on the second side in a direction reverse to the above direction where the user is easy to see. In order to readily see the display screen by the user, the display screens  104   a  and  104   b  are arranged at an angle, and not arranged parallel with the flat plate  103 . A changeover switch  108  provided at one side end on the upper surface of the main body  101  is used in the case where the user selects a display screen to be displayed from the display screens  104   a  and  104   b.    
     [0034] In addition, two display screens  104   a  and  104   b  are not arranged, and only one may be arranged so that only direction displaying the image can be changed. Further, the above two display screens  104   a  and  104   b  display the image independently from each other, and thereby, two users may simultaneously use the data processing apparatus  100 .  
     [0035] Moreover, the data processing apparatus  100  having the external appearance as shown in FIG. 1 is usable as a table; therefore, it is possible to solve the problem of taking up the space on the apparatus or the table  100  which is otherwise is usable by the customer. As a result, in the already existing shop, the old table is merely replaced with the data processing apparatus  100  without changing the table arrangement, interior and the like. By doing so, it is possible to realize an environment allowing the use of communication networks without the problem of having to reduce the number of shop employees. Further, a start-up cost for realizing the environment is saved; therefore, the shop can further readily realize the above environment. The data processing apparatus  100  has a larger size than the conventional apparatus; therefore, antitheft effect can be obtained.  
     [0036]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the above data processing apparatus  100 .  
     [0037] As shown in FIG. 2, the data processing apparatus  100  comprises a CPU  201  for controlling the entirety of the apparatus  100 , a program memory  202 , a work memory  203  used for work by the CPU  201 , the above display device  104 , two input devices  105 , a wireless LAN apparatus  204  provided as a communication means, two pointing devices  106  (joystick) provided in the respective first and second sides, two controllers  205  provided for controlling said devices  106 , two interfaces  206  for two card slots  107  provided in the respective first and second sides, and a bus  207  for interconnecting the CPU  201  to the respective portions  202  through  206  and the input devices  105 . More specifically, the program memory  202  stores programs (including browser) executed by the CPU  201 , and the above two input devices  105  individually have a control panel provided on the first and second sides. Further, the above two pointing devices  106  are individually provided on the first and second sides, and two controllers  205  are prepared for controlling two pointing devices  106 . Further, the above two interfaces  206  for two card slots  107  are individually provided on the first and second sides, and the bus  207  interconnects the CPU  201  with the above sections  202  to  206  and  105 .  
     [0038] The above program memory  202  is a PROM such as flash memory, for example. The reason why the above PROM is employed as the program memory  202  is as follows; more specifically, the PROM has a lower failure rate and is durable to vibration as compared with a hard disk drive, and besides, is suitable for preventing a selfish setup by the customer.  
     [0039] In the present embodiment, the data processing apparatus  100  is mounted with a wireless LAN adaptor  204  for making a communication with communication network. In this case, the data processing apparatus  100  may be mounted with other communication hardware such as modem (telephone line, xDSL (for example, ADSL) line, or CATV line). Further, a plurality of communication hardware may be mounted in order to make a communication with plural kinds of communication networks.  
     [0040] The main body  101  is manufactured in a state that the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 2 is all mounted. By doing so, the data processing apparatus  100  is realized as a terminal connectable with the above communication network.  
     [0041] Based on the above configuration, an operation of the data processing apparatus  100  will be described below.  
     [0042] When a power supply (not shown) is turned on, the CPU  201  reads out the program stored in the program memory  202 , then, executes the program, and thereby, starts the control for the entirety of the data processing apparatus  100 . The above control is carried out according to the user&#39;s operation to the input device  105  or the pointing device  106 , or data received by the wireless LAN adaptor  204 .  
     [0043] The input device  105  is mainly used for inputting a keyword in URL and search or for authoring a mail and the pointing device  106  is used for clicking various icons and buttons (including link button or the like). The CPU  201  analyzes the data outputted from the above devices so as to specify a request from the user, and then, carries out the control corresponding to the request. The CPU  201  carries out the control so that an image (data) to be displayed can be displayed on the display screen  104   a  or  104   b  of the display device  104 , and thereafter, acquires a data to be acquired via the wireless LAN adaptor  204 .  
     [0044] Sequentially, the CPU  201  stores the data acquired via the wireless LAN adaptor  204  in the work memory  203 , and then, makes an analysis. Based on the analysis result, the CPU  201  generates an image to be displayed, and transmits the image data to the display device  104 , and thereby, the image is displayed on the display screen  104   a  or  104   b.    
     [0045] The above changeover switch  108  is used as an operating element included in one input device  105 . In the case where a state of the switch  108  changes, the input device  105  transmits a data indicative of the state after changed to the CPU  201 .  
     [0046] When receiving the data from the input device  105 , the CPU  201  makes a changeover of the display screen displaying the image with respect to the display device  104 . In accordance with the changeover, only one of two input devices  105  and two controllers  205  is used as being valid. More specifically, only input device  105  and pointing device  106  arranged on the display screen side, used for the display are made valid. In the manner as described above, even if the user sits on either of the first or second side, the user can comfortably use the data processing apparatus  100 . Of course, the operation to the changeover switch  108  is always valid.  
     [0047] The above card slot  107  is connectable with a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, or a recording apparatus capable of using a recording medium such as a CD-RW. In the case of lending the recording apparatus according to the user&#39;s request, the data downloaded via the communication network is saved in the recording medium, and thereafter, the user may bring back the recording medium.  
     [0048]FIG. 3 is a view showing a configuration of a network system built up using the data processing apparatus  100  of the present invention.  
     [0049] The network system is built up so that the user of the data processing apparatus  100  can use Internet  306 . As shown in FIG. 3, a wired LAN  301  is connected with a plurality of access points  302 , which is a bridge for making a communication with the data processing apparatus  100 , and one personal computer (hereinafter, referred to as PC)  303 , which functions as a server.  
     [0050] The PC  303  is connected with a printer  304  and a modem  305 . The modem  305  is a modem for ADSL line, for example. Thus, the data processing apparatus  100  is connected with Internet  306  via the access point  302 , the wired LAN  301 , the PC  303 , the modem  305  and ISP (Internet Service Provider) for performing connection service to the Internet.  
     [0051] The above PC  303  is installed in order to restrict the access to data on Internet  306  by each data processing apparatus  100 , and to collectively manage a print designated by each data processing apparatus  100 . Besides, while the user does not use the data processing apparatus, advertisement and shop propaganda are displayed on the display screen so that the data processing apparatus  100  can be used as an advertising medium.  
     [0052] The above restriction of access means to inhibit from purchasing data delivered for payment or from making an access to page accessible for payment. The above print management means to charge the user for a fee in accordance to the number of printed sheets.  
     [0053] The network system as shown in FIG. 3 is built up, and thereby, the data processing apparatus  100  is usable as a terminal connected with the Internet  306 . Therefore, it is possible to realize an environment capable of using the Internet  306 .  
     [0054] In the present embodiment, in order to reduce a manufacture cost and improve an operating ratio, the data processing apparatus  100  is not mounted with a printing function and a recording apparatus. However, in this case, the data processing apparatus  100  may be mounted with the printing function and a recording apparatus, or other functions. The other functions include a function of counting the number of printed sheets, a function enabling the use by time corresponding to an amount of received money. As seen from the above description, the function and apparatus mounted to the data processing apparatus  100  are not limited to this embodiment, and various changes can be made.  
     [0055] The data processing apparatus  100  has an external appearance like table, but it is possible to reduce the thickness of the main body  101  depending on the employed display device  104 . That is, the main body  101  can be formed as one flat plate. Therefore, the data processing apparatus  100  may be used as a table for putting something thereon.  
     [0056] Further, in the present embodiment, in the case where the data processing apparatus  100  is used as a table, a premise is made such that the number of persons sat on the first and second sides is by two. Thus, only one of two display screens  104   a  and  104   b  is used for actual display, and the image is displayed thereon. The above-mentioned construction is employed in common to each data processing apparatus  100 ; however, the construction may not be always employed. For example, in the case where three or more persons sit on the one side, that is, in the case where the data processing apparatus  100  is made long in the longitudinal direction, plural users may simultaneously use the data processing apparatus  100  at least one side. In order to realize the above data processing apparatus  100 , one table may be mounted with a plurality of data processing apparatuses  100 . In this case, various changes may be made according to a shape of the external appearance.  
     [0057] The place where the data processing apparatus  100  is installed is not limited to shops such as a restaurant, a tearoom and the like. In addition, the data processing apparatus  100  may be installed on the place where a person stays therein for a certain time, such as a waiting room of airplane and bus.  
     [0058] As is evident from the above description, according to the present invention, the data processing apparatus is used as a terminal for making a connection with a communication network, and is mounted to a table. Further, the data (image) is displayed on the display device provided at the surface of the table used for putting something.  
     [0059] In the case where the data processing apparatus has the above construction, the data processing apparatus is usable as a table, in addition to the terminal. Therefore, the data processing apparatus is installed, and thereby, it is possible to prevent a reduction of a space usable by the customer. As a result, it is possible to prevent a reduction of the number of persons accommodated in shop, and to realize an environment capable of using a communication network such as Internet and the like.