Abstract: A display control apparatus that is capable of making a user feel a fact that a user's operation is received and of notifying the user that an end of a scrolling range has come. A display unit displays a displaying object. An operation detection unit detects a user's operation to the display unit. A display control unit scrolls the displaying object when the operation detection unit detects an instructing operation of scrolling, and displays a shadow of the displaying object and moves the shadow in a direction opposite to a direction of scrolling by the instructing operation when the instructing operation is not completed even if the displaying object has been scrolled to an end of a scrolling range.

Abstract: A communication system according to the present disclosure includes a camera configured to be able to photograph a user who is a communication partner and a microphone configured to be able to form a beam-forming in a specific direction. The control unit identifies a position of the mouth of a user using an image of the user taken by the camera and controls a position of a head part so that the identified position of the mouth of the user is included in a region of the beam-forming.

Abstract: A voice conversation system for questioning a target person to encourage him/her to perform an action recommended for him/her including a response content determination unit that determines, when the questioning is performed, whether there has been a response assumed in advance from the target person in response to the questioning and ends the questioning when the response content determination unit determines that there has been a response assumed in advance from the target person, and an engagement level determination unit that calculates an engagement level, which indicates how enthusiastic the target person is in continuing a conversation, when the response content determination unit determines that there has been no response assumed in advance from the target person, and when the calculated engagement level is a first threshold or higher, questions the target person again, while when the calculated engagement level is lower than the first threshold, ends the questioning.

Abstract: A communication device including: an utterance acquisition part configured to acquire an utterance of a user to a character; an information acquisition part configured to acquire information different from the utterance; a voice generation part configured to generate a response voice to be emitted by the character based on a content of the utterance acquired by the utterance acquisition part; and an expression generation part configured to generate a response expression to be expressed by a face portion of the character based on the content of the utterance acquired by the utterance acquisition part, wherein when the information is acquired from the information acquisition part, the expression generation part generates the response expression using the information together with the content of the utterance, the response expression generated when the information is acquired being different from a response expression generated when the information is not acquired.

Abstract: A display control apparatus that is capable of making a user feel a fact that a user's operation is received and of notifying the user that an end of a scrolling range has come. A display unit displays a displaying object. An operation detection unit detects a user's operation to the display unit. A display control unit scrolls the displaying object when the operation detection unit detects an instructing operation of scrolling, and displays a shadow of the displaying object and moves the shadow in a direction opposite to a direction of scrolling by the instructing operation when the instructing operation is not completed even if the displaying object has been scrolled to an end of a scrolling range.

Abstract: A display control apparatus that is capable of making a user feel a fact that a user's operation is received and of notifying the user that an end of a scrolling range has come. A display unit displays a displaying object. An operation detection unit detects a user's operation to the display unit. A display control unit scrolls the displaying object when the operation detection unit detects an instructing operation of scrolling, and displays a shadow of the displaying object and moves the shadow in a direction opposite to a direction of scrolling by the instructing operation when the instructing operation is not completed even if the displaying object has been scrolled to an end of a scrolling range.

Abstract: A communication device includes a structure, a controller, and sensors that detect the relative position of an object around the structure. The structure has a face unit that is one of the units of the structure. The controller controls the movement of each unit of the structure, thereby causing the structure to perform a gesture expressing a communication behavior. The controller controls the movement of the units so that the structure performs different gestures depending on the angle between the direction of the face unit and the direction of the user's face as viewed from the face unit.

Abstract: A voice interaction system performs a voice interaction with a user. The voice interaction system includes: ask-again detection means for detecting ask-again by the user; response-sentence generation means for generating, when the ask-again has been detected by the ask-again detection means, a response sentence for the ask-again in response to the ask-again based on a response sentence responding to the user before the ask-again; and storage means for storing a history of the voice interaction with the user. The response-sentence generation means generates, when the response sentence includes a word whose frequency of appearance in the history of the voice interaction in the storage means is equal to or smaller than a first predetermined value, a response sentence for the ask-again formed of only this word or a response sentence for the ask-again in which this word is emphasized in the response sentence.

Abstract: An image capturing control apparatus, comprises: at least one processor or circuit configured to perform the operations of following units: a display control unit configured to perform control to display a video that an image capturing unit is capturing on a display unit; a boundary setting unit configured to set a boundary in relation to the video that is displayed on the display unit; a detection unit configured to detect a change of a capturing range in the image capturing unit; and a notification unit configured to, in a state in which the capturing range displayed does not include the outer side of the boundary, and in a case where the boundary is close to the capturing range from the inner side of the boundary, perform a notification by a display.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a main assembly including an image forming portion configured to form an image on a sheet; a front cover mounted on a front side of the main assembly and configured to expose the image forming portion by being rotated from above toward below about a rotational axis crossing a vertical direction; a fixing portion configured to fix a position of the front cover in an open state; an exchange unit detachably mountable to the image forming portion in the open state of the front cover; and a projecting portion provided above the front cover in the vertical direction and configured to project information on exchange of the exchange unit onto an inner surface of the front cover in the open state when the exchange unit is to be exchanged.

Abstract: Provided is a communication apparatus in which, when the moving image data composed of a plurality of frame images for expressing an emotion is switched from first moving image data to second moving image data to be reproduced and displayed on a display unit, a display control unit selects a frame image to start reproducing from the second moving image data in order to reproduce and display the second moving image data in such a way that a next frame image of a frame image of the first moving image data reproduced and displayed immediately before the switching becomes similar to the frame image of the second moving image data to be reproduced and displayed immediately after the switching.

Abstract: A communication robot controls a line-of-sight direction by changing at least one of an orientation of a head part and a position of a black eye. In the communication robot, in order to direct the line-of-sight direction to a reference direction of a communication target, when the reference direction is included in a specified range previously determined for a current line-of-sight direction, a control unit directs the line-of-sight direction to the reference direction by changing the position of the black eye without changing the orientation of the head part, whereas when the reference direction is not included in the specified range, the control unit directs the line-of-sight direction to the reference direction by changing both the orientation of the head part and the position of the black eye.

Abstract: A communication apparatus that can improve communication quality is provided. A communication apparatus including a face unit for achieving a configuration simulating right and left eyes by a mechanical movement or a display. The communication apparatus includes a detection unit configured to detect a distance to and a direction of a communication partner, and a control unit configured to control the mechanical movement or the display of the configurations in such a way that viewpoints of the right and left eyes are directed to the distance and the direction detected by the detection unit.

Abstract: A technique capable of accurately recognizing a voice input from a user and to uniform likelihood of depression of an outer skin is provided. A voice recognition device P includes an exoskeleton 5, a cushion member 6 that has elasticity and covers the exoskeleton 5, an outer skin 7 that covers the cushion member 6, a microphone 3 fixed to the exoskeleton 5, and a voice recognition unit 4 that recognizes a voice obtained by the microphone 3. In a voice input area 11, which is on an outer side of the microphone 3, the cushion member 6 has zero thickness. In a position in the vicinity of the microphone 3 that does not overlap the microphone 3, spring members 13 that are extended from the exoskeleton 5 to the outer skin 7 and are less compressed and deformed than the cushion member 6 are arranged.

Abstract: A communication device including: an utterance acquisition part configured to acquire an utterance of a user to a character; an information acquisition part configured to acquire information different from the utterance; a voice generation part configured to generate a response voice to be emitted by the character based on a content of the utterance acquired by the utterance acquisition part; and an expression generation part configured to generate a response expression to be expressed by a face portion of the character based on the content of the utterance acquired by the utterance acquisition part, wherein when the information is acquired from the information acquisition part, the expression generation part generates the response expression using the information together with the content of the utterance, the response expression generated when the information is acquired being different from a response expression generated when the information is not acquired.

Abstract: An image capturing control apparatus, comprises: at least one processor or circuit configured to perform the operations of following units: a display control unit configured to perform control to display a video that an image capturing unit is capturing on a display unit; a boundary setting unit configured to set a boundary in relation to the video that is displayed on the display unit; a detection unit configured to detect a change of a capturing range in the image capturing unit; and a notification unit configured to, in a state in which the capturing range displayed does not include the outer side of the boundary, and in a case where the boundary is close to the capturing range from the inner side of the boundary, perform a notification by a display.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a main assembly including an image forming portion configured to form an image on a sheet; a front cover mounted on a front side of the main assembly and configured to expose the image forming portion by being rotated from above toward below about a rotational axis crossing a vertical direction; a fixing portion configured to fix a position of the front cover in an open state; an exchange unit detachably mountable to the image forming portion in the open state of the front cover; and a projecting portion provided above the front cover in the vertical direction and configured to project information on exchange of the exchange unit onto an inner surface of the front cover in the open state when the exchange unit is to be exchanged.

Abstract: A communication device includes a face portion having a pair of eye portions; light-transmissive covers each covering a corresponding one of the pair of eye portions; a display panel configured to display a design in which expression of an eye is stylized; an optical fiber bundle configured to transmit the design displayed on the display panel to the light-transmissive covers; and a control unit configured to selectively display the design on the display panel.

Abstract: A technique capable of accurately recognizing a voice input from a user and to uniform likelihood of depression of an outer skin is provided. A voice recognition device P includes an exoskeleton 5, a cushion member 6 that has elasticity and covers the exoskeleton 5, an outer skin 7 that covers the cushion member 6, a microphone 3 fixed to the exoskeleton 5, and a voice recognition unit 4 that recognizes a voice obtained by the microphone 3. In a voice input area 11, which is on an outer side of the microphone 3, the cushion member 6 has zero thickness. In a position in the vicinity of the microphone 3 that does not overlap the microphone 3, spring members 13 that are extended from the exoskeleton 5 to the outer skin 7 and are less compressed and deformed than the cushion member 6 are arranged.

Abstract: A communication device includes a structure, a controller, and sensors that detect the relative position of an object around the structure. The structure has a face unit that is one of the units of the structure. The controller controls the movement of each unit of the structure, thereby causing the structure to perform a gesture expressing a communication behavior. The controller controls the movement of the units so that the structure performs different gestures depending on the angle between the direction of the face unit and the direction of the user's face as viewed from the face unit.