LightCollabo, A Remote Communication Tool

It is common to use a telephone or a video conference system when setting up communications or having a meeting between remote sites. However, only voice or pictures on the screen may interfere with smooth communication. For example, assuming that a problem occurs in a factory product line, it may be necessary for the product designer to give proper instruction in front of the product at that site to correct a problem promptly. However, the designer cannot immediately give instruction in front of the actual product unless he/she is present near the product line. Accordingly, Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. has developed LightCollabo, which is a technology allowing communication/collaboration even between remote sites as if the actual product were in front of the designer.

This technology is a system which combines a video camera, a projector, and a PC via a network on proprietary ideas. The usefulness of this system is described using Fig. 1. (1) First, capture the image of the product with a video camera integrated with a projector installed in the product line where the problem has occurred. (2) Then, the image of the product is displayed in real time on the screen or PC screen located in the Design Department. (3) The designer analyzes the cause of the problem by watching the image displayed on the screen while communicating with the responsible person at the site by telephone, etc., and actually writes necessary instructions on the screen. (4) The written instructions are projected onto the actual product from the projector in the product line. This system also allows the designer who gives instructions to use the system without selecting the location, since not only large screens but also simple mobile devices such as notebook computers are available in this system. In this way, instructions for an actual product that cannot be conveyed through only video conferencing or by telephone, for example, can convey the intention of "slightly moving this component."

It is also possible to establish communications by using a camera and a projector. However, only a normal combination of a camera with a projector cannot convey accurate instructions due to the displacement of the intended position from the position where the arrow is projected. This is because the object onto which the instructions are projected has unevenness. To solve such a problem, Fuji Xerox has developed its proprietary technology which can resolve the problem of displacement by working a camera in collaboration with a projector through use of a half mirror in the optical system in LightCollabo. Consequently, smooth collaboration is made possible even between remote sites with instructions given for an exact position on an operation panel even if the surface of the target object has unevenness.