Abstract: A time-to-contact estimation device for estimating a time to contact of a moving body to an object in surroundings of the moving body, includes: an image sensor provided on the moving body, and continuously capturing time-varying images of the surroundings of the moving body; a brightness change calculation unit calculating brightness changes in pixels between the time-varying images captured one after another; and a time-to-contact calculation unit calculating optimized brightness gradients based on the brightness changes calculated by the brightness change calculation unit, and calculating the time to contact of the moving body to the object based on the optimized brightness gradients.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is an information processing apparatus including: storage means for storing a recommendation degree that indicates a degree of recommendation of a content for a user; similarity degree calculation means for calculating a degree of similarity between a part of a user profile as updated and a content profile; recommendation degree variation calculation means for calculating, based on the degree of similarity calculated by the similarity degree calculation means, an amount of variation of the recommendation degree of the content for the user; and recommendation degree calculation means for calculating a new recommendation degree by adding the amount of the variation of the recommendation degree calculated by the recommendation degree variation calculation means to the recommendation degree stored in the storage means.

Abstract: An interest vector is configured using a parameter indicating a degree of interest in each category based on user interest information received by a control server on a peer-to-peer network. An interest vector having a short distance from the interest vector of a requesting user who sent a content retrieval request is selected to make an inquiry about the presence or absence of the requested content. Therefore, reliable content retrieval can be achieved without storing content in the control server. The interest vector can be updated under various conditions, thus maintaining the accuracy of the user interest information.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus and an information processing method, a recording medium, and a program make it possible to generate a positive history vector and a negative history vector. A negative history vector is generated from initially registered contents. If the initially registered contents are not changed, and an operation log is supplied, whether or not the supplied operation log is a positive history is determined. When the supplied operation log is a positive history, a program vector corresponding to the operation log is additionally stored as a positive history, and a positive history vector is generated from a sum of program vectors. When the supplied operation log is a negative history, a program vector corresponding to the operation log is additionally stored as a negative history, and a negative history vector is generated from a sum of program vectors.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus and an information processing method, a recording medium, and a program make it possible to generate a positive history vector and a negative history vector. A negative history vector is generated from initially registered contents. If the initially registered contents are not changed, and an operation log is supplied, whether or not the supplied operation log is a positive history is determined. When the supplied operation log is a positive history, a program vector corresponding to the operation log is additionally stored as a positive history, and a positive history vector is generated from a sum of program vectors. When the supplied operation log is a negative history, a program vector corresponding to the operation log is additionally stored as a negative history, and a negative history vector is generated from a sum of program vectors.

Abstract: A support apparatus for sense of vision includes: a filter device that extracts low frequency components, and respective high frequency components in at least a horizontal direction and a vertical direction from original images obtained by image capture by a plurality of image pickup devices, a frequency component combining device that combines the low frequency components of each of the original images extracted by the filter device to generate a combined low frequency component, and combines the high frequency components of each of the original images extracted by the filter device in at least the horizontal direction and the vertical direction to generate a combined horizontal high frequency component and a combined vertical high frequency component; and a composite image formation device that combines the low combined frequency component, the combined horizontal high frequency component, and the combined vertical high frequency component, generated by the frequency component combining device, to generate

Abstract: The object-detection device for vehicle provides a transmission-and-reception device; a reflection point calculation device; a segment setting device; a median point calculation device; and a relative speed calculation device, wherein the relative speed calculation device eliminates a calculation result of the relative speed in the car width direction, with respect to the reflection points calculated based on the electromagnetic waves which are irradiated to the most downward direction in the specified angle in the vertical direction, in case that the number of difference between the reflection points in the current processing and the reflection points in the previous processing is equal to or greater than a predetermined number.

Abstract: The object-detection device for vehicle provides a transmission-and-reception device; a reflection point calculation device; a segment setting device; a median point calculation device; and a relative speed calculation device, wherein the relative speed calculation device eliminates a calculation result of the relative speed in the car width direction, with respect to the reflection points calculated based on the electromagnetic waves which are irradiated to the most downward direction in the specified angle in the vertical direction, in case that the number of difference between the reflection points in the current processing and the reflection points in the previous processing is equal to or greater than a predetermined number.

Abstract: The present invention is intended to properly reflect the change in user's preference and properly infer the user's interest in newly added attributes, thereby realizing contents recommendation which is close to user's interest. A topic selection block deliberately selects the interest data which is low in the degree of importance and a dialogue generation block generates queries. A response input block accepts a response to a query displayed by a dialogue display block and changes the interest data in accordance with the contents of the accepted response. The present invention is applicable to personal computers or HDD recorders.

Abstract: A travel safety apparatus for a vehicle includes: a first object detector having a first detection area defined by a first detection angle; a second object detector having a second detection area defined by a second detection angle; a motion state determination unit; a collision determination unit determining whether there is possibility of collision of an object detected in at least one of the first detection area and the second detection area to the vehicle based on the motion state; a controller controlling the vehicle so that a collision is avoided; and an object identity determination unit determining whether the first object and the second object are identical, wherein when a first object detected in the first detection area and a second object detected in the second detection area are determined identical, the collision determination unit determines whether there is possibility of collision of the first object to the vehicle.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is an information processing apparatus for carrying out an information registration process to register preference information of a user for an item determined in advance. The information processing apparatus including: image feature quantity extraction means; an object image feature quantity database; an object image preference information database; matching image detection means; and preference information acquisition means.

Abstract: A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus is provided herein which is capable of determining an object type, particularly capable of determining an animal other than a human being among objects. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus which monitors the surroundings of a vehicle by using an image captured by a camera (2R, 2L) mounted on the vehicle, including an object extraction process unit which extracts an image area of the object from the captured image (steps 1 to 6) and an object type determination process unit which determines the object type according to whether the image area of the object extracted by the object extraction process unit includes a first object area in which the ratio of widths in different directions is within a predetermined range and a plurality of second object areas located below the first object area and smaller in area than the first object area (steps 31 to 37).

Abstract: Disclosed herein is an information processing apparatus including: storage means for storing a recommendation degree that indicates a degree of recommendation of a content for a user; similarity degree calculation means for calculating a degree of similarity between a part of a user profile as updated and a content profile; recommendation degree variation calculation means for calculating, based on the degree of similarity calculated by the similarity degree calculation means, an amount of variation of the recommendation degree of the content for the user; and recommendation degree calculation means for calculating a new recommendation degree by adding the amount of the variation of the recommendation degree calculated by the recommendation degree variation calculation means to the recommendation degree stored in the storage means.

Abstract: A time-to-contact estimation device for estimating a time to contact of a moving body to an object in surroundings of the moving body, includes: an image sensor provided on the moving body, and continuously capturing time-varying images of the surroundings of the moving body; a brightness change calculation unit calculating brightness changes in pixels between the time-varying images captured one after another; and a time-to-contact calculation unit calculating optimized brightness gradients based on the brightness changes calculated by the brightness change calculation unit, and calculating the time to contact of the moving body to the object based on the optimized brightness gradients.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are an information processing apparatus and method, a program, and a recording medium, in which a content is recommended to each user on the basis of even the metadata that is assigned with no classification. A metadata analysis block resolves metadata acquired by a metadata acquisition block into components. A dictionary data generation block generates dictionary data in which genre is correlated with keyword and each component. An associated-information database generation block references the dictionary data to assign genre to the metadata which are assigned with no genre, thereby generating an associated-information database of content. An associated-information search block references the dictionary data to identify a genre from a keyword of interest data to search for associated information, thereby recommending content to the user. The present invention is applicable to personal computers or HDD recorders.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are an information processing apparatus and method, a program, and a recording medium, in which a content is recommended to each user on the basis of even the metadata that is assigned with no classification. A metadata analysis block resolves metadata acquired by a metadata acquisition block into components. A dictionary data generation block generates dictionary data in which genre is correlated with keyword and each component. An associated information database generation block references the dictionary data to assign genre to the metadata which are assigned with no genre, thereby generating an associated information database of content. An associated information search block references the dictionary data to identify a genre from a keyword of interest data to search for associated information, thereby recommending content to the user. The present invention is applicable to personal computers or HDD recorders.

Abstract: A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus capable of recognizing the type of object existing around a vehicle with accuracy.

Abstract: A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus is provided herein which is capable of determining an object type, particularly capable of determining an animal other than a human being among objects. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus which monitors the surroundings of a vehicle by using an image captured by a camera (2R, 2L) mounted on the vehicle, including an object extraction process unit which extracts an image area of the object from the captured image (steps 1 to 6) and an object type determination process unit which determines the object type according to whether the image area of the object extracted by the object extraction process unit includes a first object area of an inverse triangular shape and a second object area located below the first object area and within a predetermined range from the first object area (steps 31 to 36).

Abstract: A travel safety apparatus for a vehicle includes: a first object detector having a first detection area defined by a first detection angle; a second object detector having a second detection area defined by a second detection angle; a motion state determination unit; a collision determination unit determining whether there is possibility of collision of an object detected in at least one of the first detection area and the second detection area to the vehicle based on the motion state; a controller controlling the vehicle so that a collision is avoided; and an object identity determination unit determining whether the first object and the second object are identical, wherein when a first object detected in the first detection area and a second object detected in the second detection area are determined identical, the collision determination unit determines whether there is possibility of collision of the first object to the vehicle.

Abstract: A travel safety apparatus for a vehicle, the apparatus includes: a first detector detecting an object in a first detection area; a second detector detecting the object in a second detection area; a braking device decelerating the vehicle; an alarm device which outputs an alarm to an occupant of the vehicle; a third detector measuring the traveling state of the vehicle; a collision determination device which determines a possibility of a collision between the vehicle and the object based on the traveling state; and a controller which operates at least one of the braking device and the alarm device when there is the possibility of collision, wherein the controller changes at least one of operation timing of the alarm device, operation timing of the braking device, and deceleration degree made by the braking device in accordance with whether or not the first detector and the second detector detect the object.