Control system, control method, and program

Abstract

According to the present invention, activities such as surveillance and investigation using multiple mobile objects can be carried out more efficiently. [Solution] A control system that detects objects by controlling the operation of multiple moving bodies equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting objects, comprises an object detection unit that detects the objects based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensors, and a unit composition command determination unit that determines an organization command that specifies the organization configuration of the platoon to form a single or multiple platoons from multiple moving bodies, and when the object is detected by the object detection unit, the unit composition command determination unit determines the organization command for the platoon depending on the current state or predicted future state of the detected object.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a control system, a control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, in marine areas, manned ships have been used to monitor the ocean for the purpose of preventing nuisances and illegal fishing caused by ships navigating on the sea or divers navigating underwater, inspecting offshore infrastructure, and conducting ecological surveys of marine life such as whales and dolphins. However, the range of marine areas subject to monitoring, inspection, or survey is very vast, so there is a limit to the area in which manned ships can be deployed for the purpose of monitoring, inspection, survey, etc., and there is a demand for more efficient monitoring, inspection, survey, etc. In addition, in recent years, the utilization of multiple mobile objects such as unmanned ships has been considered against this background, and it is expected that they will be utilized for the above-mentioned monitoring, inspection, survey, etc.

[0003] As a technology for controlling multiple drones, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for a control device that includes an other-machine information acquisition means for acquiring information about the status of other machines in order to optimize the behavior of the entire drone group while each machine in the drone group autonomously selects its own behavior, an action comparison means for acquiring information about the status of other machines from the other-machine information acquisition means and acquiring a sensor signal including information about the status of the drone itself, and calculating a comparison value for multiple types of actions to be taken by the drone itself using the acquired information about the drone itself and the other machines, an action selection means for selecting an action to be taken by the drone itself based on the comparison value of the multiple types of actions calculated by the action comparison means, an operation amount calculation means for calculating an operation amount of the drone itself using information about the action selected by the action selection means and information about the status of the other machines obtained from the other-machine information acquisition means, and an operation setting means for setting an operation setting value of an actuator that operates the drone itself using the calculation result of the operation amount calculation means. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Re-tabled publication No. 2018-105599 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] When using multiple mobile objects to more efficiently monitor or investigate a moving object, it is desirable to form a group of multiple mobile objects and assign to each group post-discovery operations such as tracking, preemption, and surrounding the object after it is discovered. Patent Document 1 discloses a method for controlling the operations of multiple drones, but does not consider dividing multiple drones into multiple groups and performing post-discovery operations for each group.

[0006] In addition, when performing post-discovery operations for each group, the group composition and per-group operations required to perform the post-discovery operations change depending on the situation, but it was not easy to appropriately determine such group composition and per-group operations and control the moving body.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of at least one of the above problems, and one object of the present invention is to provide a system or control method, etc., that can more efficiently carry out activities such as monitoring and investigation using multiple mobile objects. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] According to the present invention, a control system for detecting an object by controlling the operation of a plurality of moving bodies equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object is obtained, the control system comprising: an object detection unit for detecting the object based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor; and a unit composition command determination unit for determining a composition command regarding the composition of the platoon to form a single or multiple platoons from a plurality of the moving bodies, wherein when the object is detected by the object detection unit, the unit composition command determination unit determines the composition command for the platoon depending on the current state or predicted future state of the detected object. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, activities such as surveillance and investigation using multiple mobile objects can be carried out more efficiently. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a control system 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an implementation image of the control system 1 in a real space. [Diagram 3] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a collaborative system 5000 and an external system 6000. [Figure 4] 1 is a conceptual diagram showing how an unmanned boat system 1000 deployed on the sea searches for an object 7000, etc. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an unmanned boat system 1000 made up of a plurality of unmanned boats. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a formation of unmanned boat systems 1000 deployed on the sea. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the unmanned boat 1010. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of an overall control system 2000. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of advance information acquired by an information import unit 2100. [Figure 10] This is a state transition diagram showing the state transition of squadron operation commands determined by the pre-discovery squadron operation decision unit. [Figure 11] A figure showing a list of platoon operation commands determined by a pre-discovery platoon operation determination unit. [Figure 12] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a determination result regarding the state of an object determined by an object state determining unit 2420. FIG. [Figure 13] 13 is a diagram showing an example of determination items for future state prediction determination by a future state prediction unit 2500. FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing a processing flow of the control system 1. [Figure 15] 2 is a sequence diagram showing signal exchange between systems in the control system 1. FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow for determining a search command by the pre-discovery operation determination section 2200. [Figure 17] FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an example of a display in which a search command determined by a pre-discovery operation determination section 2200 is proposed to a user. [Figure 18] FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a search operation execution process flow. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow for determining the state of an object by the object detection and determination unit 2400. [Figure 20] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow for predicting a future state of an object by the future state prediction unit 2500. FIG. [Figure 21] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a display for proposing to a user the determination result of the future state prediction by the future state prediction unit 2500. FIG. [Figure 22] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow for determining a post-discovery operation of a company by the company control command determination unit 2600. FIG. [Figure 23] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a display that suggests to a user the results of a decision made by the company control command decision unit 2600 regarding the post-discovery operation of a company. FIG. [Figure 24]FIG. 26 is a diagram showing the manner in which a first post-discovery action determined by the company control command determination unit 2600 is executed. [Diagram 25] FIG. 26 is a diagram showing the execution of a second post-discovery action determined by the squadron control command determination unit 2600. [Figure 26] FIG. 26 is a diagram showing the execution of a third post-discovery action determined by the squadron control command determination unit 2600. [Figure 27] FIG. 26 is a diagram showing the execution of a fourth post-discovery action determined by the squadron control command determination unit 2600. [Figure 28] FIG. 26 is a diagram showing the execution of a fifth post-discovery action determined by the squadron control command determination unit 2600. [Figure 29] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow for determining an action to be taken after the unmanned boat 1010 is discovered, performed by the platoon control command decision unit 2700. FIG. [Diagram 30] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a display in which the results of the decision made by the platoon control command decision unit 2700 on the post-discovery action of the unmanned boat 1010 are proposed to the user. FIG. [Diagram 31] This is a state transition diagram showing the execution state of the role of each platoon when performing post-discovery operations. [Diagram 32] This is a state transition diagram showing the execution state of roles related to response actions for each platoon when performing post-discovery operations. [Diagram 33] This is a state transition diagram showing the execution state of roles related to auxiliary support actions for each platoon when performing post-discovery operations. [Diagram 34] FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the overall control system 2000. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] The present invention will be described below with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof. [Item 1] A control system for detecting an object by controlling the operation of a plurality of moving objects equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting the object, comprising: an object detection unit that detects the object based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor; a unit organization command decision unit that decides an organization command regarding the organization of a platoon for organizing a single platoon or a plurality of platoons by a plurality of the moving objects; The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command for the platoon depending on the current state or future predicted state of the detected object when the object is detected by the object detection unit, a control system. [Item 2] In the control system according to item 1, A control system, wherein the organization command for the platoon determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes information regarding the number of the platoon. [Item 3] In the control system according to item 1 or 2, The unit organization command determination unit determines a role for one or more of the platoons depending on the current state or future predicted state of the object, and determines the organization command including designation information for the number of the platoons depending on the role. [Item 4] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 3, A control system, wherein the platoon organization command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes information regarding the number of mobile objects belonging to each platoon of a single or multiple platoons. [Item 5] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 4, The unit organization command determination unit determines a role for one or more of the platoons depending on the current state or future predicted state of the object, and determines the organization command including designation information for the number of moving objects belonging to each platoon depending on the role. [Item 6] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 5, A control system, wherein the organization command for the platoon determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes command information for switching the mobile bodies belonging to multiple platoons between multiple platoons. [Item 7] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 6, a user input receiving unit that receives user input information related to the organization of the platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command for the platoon in response to the user input information, the control system. [Item 8] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 7, A control system, wherein the organization command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes information specifying the organization contents of the platoon, which is composed of a plurality of the mobile bodies that are directly connected to each other via a wireless communication network or indirectly connected via other the mobile bodies. [Item 9] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 8, The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command, which includes information regarding the connection configuration of the multiple mobile bodies via the wireless communication network, in accordance with the determined organization content of the platoon, in a control system. [Item 10] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 9, a user input receiving unit that receives user input information related to the organization of the platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command, which includes information regarding the connection configuration of the wireless communication network of the platoon, in response to the user input information, in a control system. [Item 11] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 10, The unit organization command determination unit determines a platoon operation command that specifies a role for each of the single or multiple platoons, a control system. [Item 12] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 11, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: Pursuing, surrounding, delaying, anticipating, taking over, continuously measuring, capturing, or lying in wait for said object; Or storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data; or relaying communication with other mobile units; Or charging a power storage device mounted on the moving object, The control system includes information that designates at least one of the roles for each platoon. [Item 13] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 12, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: A first role includes pursuing, surrounding, delaying, preempting, taking over the pursuit, capturing, or lying in wait for the object; A second role including at least one of storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data, and relaying communication between other mobile bodies; A control system including information that designates either one of the roles for each platoon. [Item 14] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 13, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: A first role includes pursuing, surrounding, delaying, preempting, taking over the pursuit, capturing, or lying in wait for the object; A second role including at least one of storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data, and relaying communication between other mobile bodies; The control system includes information specifying the roles of both the above for each platoon. [Item 15] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 14, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: A first role includes pursuing, surrounding, delaying, preempting, taking over the pursuit, capturing, or lying in wait for the object; A second role including at least one of storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data, and relaying communication between other mobile bodies; information that designates one of the roles for a portion of the plurality of platoons; A control system including information assigning both the first role and the second role to other portions of a plurality of the platoons. [Item 16] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 15, a user input receiving unit configured to receive user input information regarding a role of each platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the platoon operation command regarding the role of each platoon in response to the user input information, the control system. [Item 17] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 16, The unit organization command determination unit determines a mobile object operation command including at least one of a role and a moving target for at least a portion of the mobile objects belonging to the platoon in accordance with the platoon operation command for a role specified for each platoon, in accordance with the platoon operation command for each platoon. [Item 18] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 17, The unit organization command determination unit determines a movement target including at least one of a movement target position and a movement target time for each platoon in accordance with the platoon operation command for a role designated for each platoon, in a control system. [Item 19] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 18, The unit organization command determination unit: A control system that determines a platoon deployment command regarding the formation or deployment of a platoon, which includes at least one of the formation position, formation time, or formation shape of each platoon when forming the platoon with the determined formation content, or the target movement position, target movement time, or the target movement position and target movement time of each platoon after the platoon with the determined formation content is formed. [Item 20] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 19, a user input receiving unit configured to receive user input information related to the content of a platoon deployment command for each platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the platoon deployment command for the platoon in response to the user input information, a control system. [Item 21] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 20, A control system comprising a display unit that displays and outputs information regarding the commands generated by the unit organization command determination unit. [Item 22] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 21, A control system comprising a control command transmission unit that transmits commands generated by the unit organization command determination unit to the mobile body. [Item 23] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 22, A control system comprising an information transmitting unit that transmits information regarding the command generated by the unit organization command determining unit to an outside. [Item 24] In the control system according to any one of items 1 to 23, A control system, wherein the mobile body is an unmanned vessel capable of moving on the sea by remote control or autonomous navigation or automatic navigation, and detects the target object using the measurement sensor. [Item 25] A control method for detecting an object by controlling the operation of a plurality of moving objects equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting the object, comprising: an object detection step of detecting the object based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor; A control method which executes a unit organization command determination step, which, when an object is detected by the object detection step, determines an organization command which specifies the organization contents of the platoon for forming a single or multiple platoons using multiple moving objects, depending on the current state or future predicted state of the detected object. [Item 26] A program for controlling the operation of a plurality of moving objects equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting an object, and detecting the object, comprising: On the computer, An object detection command for detecting the object based on the measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor, and When the object is detected based on the measurement data, a unit formation command determination command for determining the formation details of the unit for forming one or more squads by the plurality of mobile bodies according to the current state or the predicted future state of the detected object. A program for causing execution.

[0012] <A. First Embodiment> Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. Further, the embodiments shown below are merely examples, and other known elements and alternative means can be adopted according to the use, purpose, scale, etc.

[0013] [A. Configuration] (A-1. System Configuration) First, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, the system configuration of the control system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0014] (A-1-1. Outline of System Configuration) FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a control system 1 (hereinafter also referred to as "system 1") according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the control system 1 includes an unmanned boat system 1000 and a general control system 2000. The general control system 2000 is configured to be able to communicate with an external collaborative system 5000 and an external system 6000 via an Internet line or the like, and is capable of inputting and outputting information. The general control system 2000 can transmit control commands to the unmanned boat system 1000 deployed on the sea via a terrestrial base station 4000 and a communication satellite 3000, and can also receive the operation status and measurement data of the unmanned boat system 1000. Therefore, the overall control system 2000 can remotely control the operation of the unmanned boat system 1000, which has multiple unmanned boats 1010 (also called "unmanned ships") that can navigate and move on the sea and are equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting the target object 7000, or can autonomously navigate or automatically navigate the unmanned boat system 1000, and can perform tasks such as searching for the target object 7000 and tracking it after it is found using the measurement sensors in a specified area (first area) on or under the sea. Here, the specified area is any area that can be set by the user or set in advance.

[0015] The unmanned boat system 1000 includes a single or multiple unmanned boats 1010. When the unmanned boat system 1000 is configured with multiple unmanned boats 1010, the multiple unmanned boats 1010 are connected to each other by wireless communication and can form a communication network. The unmanned boat 1010 also has a function of measuring targets 7000, including ships, divers, drifting objects, castaways, marine life such as whales, breakwaters, harbors, offshore infrastructure facilities (wind power generation facilities, wave power generation facilities, offshore plants, offshore runways, etc.), floating buoys, fish pens, and other objects, using measurement sensors (optical cameras, IR cameras, laser sensors such as LiDAR, radar sensors such as millimeter wave sensors and microwave sensors, and sonic sensors such as sonar) mounted on the unmanned boat 1010.

[0016] The detection determination results and measurement data of the object 7000 detected by the unmanned boat system 1000, as well as various information on the operation status of each unmanned boat 1010 in the unmanned boat system 1000, are transmitted to the overall control system 2000 via the communications satellite 3000 and the terrestrial base station 4000. The overall control system 2000 determines operation commands for the unmanned boat system 1000 based on information acquired from the unmanned boat system 1000 and request information acquired in advance. Information such as the generated operation commands is transmitted to the user terminal device 8000 and displayed and output to the user. In addition, intervention commands regarding operation commands and the like from the user can be acquired via the user terminal device 8000.

[0017] (A-1-2. Example of control system 1 implemented in real space) Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an implementation image of the control system 1 in real space. In the example shown in Fig. 2, a terrestrial base station 4000 and a general control system 2000 are provided on the ground side shown in the upper right of the drawing. Also provided on the ground side are a cooperative system 5000, an external system 6000, and a user terminal device 8000, all of which are connected to the general control system 2000 via a network.

[0018] Meanwhile, on the ocean side shown on the left side of the drawing, unmanned boat system 1000 is deployed to search for and track target object 7000 in the ocean. Also, unmanned boat system 1000 has multiple groups (1000a, 1000b, 1000c) consisting of a master unit and multiple slave units, and communication can be performed between each group directly or via a communication satellite 3000.

[0019] In the example shown in Figure 2, the overall control system 2000 is implemented in a facility on land, but this is not limited to this. All or some of the functions implemented in the overall control system 2000 shown in this embodiment can also be installed on a coastal field base provided in a coastal area on land (not shown) or on a manned mother ship at sea, and the unmanned boat system 1000 can be operated and managed at the coastal field base or manned mother ship.

[0020] As the configuration of the embodiment described in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 above, an example has been described in which a non-terrestrial network using a communication satellite 3000 in a geosynchronous orbit or a low earth orbit is used as a communication network for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat system 1000. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a non-terrestrial network using an unmanned aerial vehicle called a High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) can also be used. In this case, for example, an unmanned aerial vehicle that circles at an altitude of about 8 to 50 km can be used. In addition, as a communication network for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat 1010, it is also possible to use a communication network that directly connects the terrestrial base station 4000 to the unmanned boat 1010 by wireless communication without passing through the communication satellite 3000 or the HAPS. The terrestrial base station 4000 is not limited to a fixed base station that is immobile, and may be a mobile base station that can be moved. As yet another example, the means of communication between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat system 1000 is not limited to the wireless communication described above, but may also be wired communication using optical fiber cables or the like.

[0021] (A-1-3. Overview of Collaborative System 5000 and External System 6000) Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a cooperative system 5000 and an external system 6000. As shown in Fig. 3, a control system 1 having an unmanned boat system 1000 and an overall control system 2000 is connected to the cooperative system 5000 and the external system 6000 via a network.

[0022] The cooperative system 5000 also includes systems of, for example, private security organizations, marine research organizations, infrastructure inspection organizations, private rescue organizations, and other external cooperative organizations. There are monitoring managers at facilities related to private security organizations, and monitors on surveillance ships, and they cooperate with each other to monitor suspicious ships and nuisances in the marine area.

[0023] The external system 6000 is a system that includes an AIS (Automatic Information Signaling System) that acquires identification information and navigation status information of ships navigating in the marine area, and an environmental information providing system that provides meteorological information (such as wind, rain, snow, cloudiness, fog, and wave height) in the area in which the unmanned boat system 1000 is deployed and its surrounding areas. In addition to these systems, the external system 6000 may also include an MDA system that provides oceanographic information such as the speed, direction, and position of ocean currents and tides. The external system 6000 may further include information regarding the altitude and position of the sun and the altitude position of the moon.

[0024] (A-1-4. Searching and tracking 7,000 objects) Fig. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing how unmanned boat system 1000 deployed on the sea searches for an object 7000. As shown in Fig. 4, a group of multiple unmanned boats 1010 is deployed on the sea, and the measurement sensor 1110 mounted on each unmanned boat 1010 can measure an object 7000 that exists within a measurable range on or under the sea.

[0025] The measured measurement data and detection judgment results of the object 7000 are collected in the parent unit 1001 via a communication network between the unmanned boats 1010, transmitted from the parent unit 1001 to the communication satellite 3000, and then transmitted to the overall control system 2000 via a terrestrial base station 4000 and an Internet line. Each unmanned boat 1010 is also provided with a navigation unit 1300 that can navigate the unmanned boat 1010 in any direction, and can perform various missions such as searching for and tracking the object 7000 based on operational commands transmitted by the overall control system 2000.

[0026] (A-2. Configuration of the Unmanned Boat 1000) Next, the system configuration of an unmanned boat system 1000 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0027] (A-2-1. Overview of the Unmanned Boat System 1000) 5 is a configuration diagram showing an unmanned boat system 1000 composed of multiple unmanned boats. As shown in FIG. 5, the unmanned boat system 1000 is composed of one or multiple platoons (1000a, 1000b), and each platoon is composed of multiple unmanned boats 1010 that can communicate with each other. The multiple unmanned boats 1010 that compose each platoon are configured to play the role of a parent unit 1001 that can wirelessly communicate with a communication satellite 3000, or a child unit 1002 that can directly or indirectly communicate with the parent unit 1001. The parent unit 1001 has a function of connecting to the communication satellite 3000 for communication, aggregating information collected from the multiple child units 1002 and transmitting it to the communication satellite 3000, as well as transmitting information related to operation commands obtained from the communication satellite 3000 and information generated by itself to each child unit 1002, directly or indirectly.

[0028] 5 includes a primary connection slave device 10021 that is communicatively connected to a parent device 1001, a secondary connection slave device 10022 that is communicatively connected to the primary connection slave device 10021, and a tertiary connection slave device 10023 that is communicatively connected to the secondary connection slave device 10022. Each slave device (primary connection slave device 10021, secondary connection slave device 10022, tertiary connection slave device 10023) has a function of relaying information received from another parent device 1001 or slave device 1002 to the other parent device 1001 or slave device 1002, thereby forming a communication network between the parent device 1001 and the multiple slave devices 1002.

[0029] FIG. 5 shows a configuration of a platoon having a parent unit 1001 and a child unit 1002, but the configuration is not limited thereto. A platoon 1000 made up of unmanned vessels 1010 can be configured as a single platoon 1000 consisting of a plurality of unmanned vessels 1010 equipped with communication units, each of which is connected to a common wireless communication network that allows direct or indirect wireless communication with each other. The platoon 1000 can be defined not only as a plurality of unmanned vessels 1010 connected to each other via a wireless communication network as described above, but also as a single unmanned vessel 1010 having the function of a parent vessel that does not wirelessly communicate with other unmanned vessels 1010 and is communicatively connected to a communication satellite 3000. The platoon 1000 can also be configured as a plurality of unmanned vessels 1010 that communicate with each other via a communication satellite 3000, not limited to a plurality of unmanned vessels 1010 connected to each other via a direct or indirect wireless communication network as described above. The definition of a platoon is not limited to these, and can be defined according to other criteria.

[0030] 1 to 5, a system configuration is described in which a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 are used to perform activities such as searching and tracking a target object 7000 in a target area such as an ocean area, but in the present invention, a moving body other than the unmanned boat 1010, which is an unmanned ship that navigates on water, can be used. That is, the present invention can be applied to a vehicle that can run on land, an aircraft that can fly in the sky, an underwater moving body that can move underwater, and other moving bodies. In addition, the present invention can be applied to an autonomously moving or remotely controlled unmanned aircraft as a moving body, but is not limited thereto, and it is also possible to use a manned moving body as a part or all of the moving body.

[0031] (A-2-2. Configuration of the unmanned boats 1010 that make up the group) Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a formation of unmanned boat systems 1000 deployed on the sea. The example shown in Fig. 6 shows the formation and communication connection relationship of a group consisting of multiple unmanned boats 1010 when multiple unmanned boats 1010 are deployed on the sea to carry out a specified mission.

[0032] 6 includes one master unit 1001 and multiple slave units 1002. The master unit 1001 and the multiple slave units 1002 are connected by wireless communication as shown by solid lines to form a wireless communication network on the sea. The slave units 1002 include a primary connection slave unit 10021 that is connected by wireless communication with the master unit 1001, and a secondary connection slave unit 10022 that is connected by wireless communication with the primary connection slave unit 10021.

[0033] In this embodiment, the number of relays by the child devices 1002 when forming a platoon is not limited, and a tertiary connected child device, a quaternary connected child device, or more connected child devices may be provided. The primary connected child device 10021 shown in FIG. 6 has a function of relaying transmission and reception of information between the parent device 1001 and the secondary connected child devices 10022, thereby enabling information to be passed between the parent device 1001 and the multiple secondary connected child devices 10022.

[0034] Furthermore, the number of secondary connection slave devices 10022 wirelessly connected to the primary connection slave device 10021 is not limited to one, and multiple secondary connection slave devices 10022 wirelessly connected to the primary connection slave device 10021 can form a tree-structured communication network in which multiple unmanned crafts 1010 branch off within the platoon 1000a. Since there is an upper limit to the communication distance over which wireless communication is possible between each unmanned craft 1010, the position of at least one of the two unmanned crafts 1010 that wirelessly communicate with each other, for example, the parent craft 1001 and the primary connection slave device 10021, and the primary connection slave device 10021 and the secondary connection slave device 10022, is controlled so that the relative distance between the unmanned crafts 1010 is maintained within the range of the communication upper limit relative distance included in the monitoring plan as shown in FIG.

[0035] Furthermore, if the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 becomes large and the communicating unmanned boat 1010 moves out of the range of communication distance, wireless communication will no longer be possible and control commands will no longer be able to be sent from the overall control system 2000. Therefore, it is desirable for two unmanned boats 1010 that are communicatively connected to each other to perform self-position control to maintain the relative distance with the communicating party within the range of communication distance with a higher priority than other controls.

[0036] On the other hand, there is no need to maintain the communication connection described above for the relative distance between other unmanned crafts 1010 that do not wirelessly communicate with each other. On the other hand, in order to efficiently search for the target object 7000, which is the purpose of the unmanned craft system 1000's activity, it is more preferable for the unmanned crafts 1010 to maintain an appropriate distance so that the measurement ranges of the measurement sensors of each unmanned craft 1010 do not overlap or overlap moderately, rather than a state in which the unmanned crafts 1010 are too close and most of the measurement ranges of the measurement sensors overlap. Therefore, for the relative distance between the unmanned crafts 1010 that are not connected to each other by communication, the position of at least one of the unmanned crafts 1010 is controlled with a relatively low priority so as to maintain a preset steady-state relative distance. Control based on the Boids algorithm, for example, can be applied as the control for maintaining this steady-state relative distance.

[0037] Furthermore, if the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 becomes too close and there is a possibility of a collision, position control can be executed to increase the relative distance with a relatively high priority in order to avoid a collision and prevent damage to the unmanned boats 1010.

[0038] As described above, control to maintain the relative distance between unmanned crafts 1010 that wirelessly communicate with each other within the communication distance range, and avoidance control to avoid collision with other unmanned crafts that come within close range, are executed with a relatively high priority, while control to maintain the normal relative distance between unmanned crafts 1010 that do not wirelessly communicate with each other can be executed with a relatively low priority. In this way, the distance relationships between multiple unmanned crafts 1010 can be adjusted by controlling the attractive and repulsive forces between the unmanned crafts 1010.

[0039] 6 illustrates an example of controlling the distance relationship between multiple unmanned vessels 1010 in a single platoon, but when multiple platoons are deployed, the distance relationship between the multiple platoons can be adjusted by controlling the attractive and repulsive forces in a similar manner. Note that since collisions do not occur immediately even if the distance between the platoons becomes closer, it is a good idea to set the repulsive force between the platoons weaker than the repulsive force between the unmanned vessels in the platoon.

[0040] (A-2-3. Configuration of the unmanned boat 1010) Fig. 7 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the unmanned boat 1010. Note that Fig. 7 describes the functional block diagram of the unmanned boat 1010, but the parent unit 1001 and child unit 1002 of the unmanned boat 1010 can both implement functions similar to the configuration shown in Fig. 7. The unmanned boat 1010 includes a measurement unit 1100, a host state determination unit 1200, a navigation unit 1300, a communication unit 1400, a determination unit 1500, and a recording unit 1600.

[0041] The measurement unit 1100 is a functional unit that detects an object 7000 present in a measurable range in the sea using a measurement sensor 1110, and acquires measurement information regarding the object 7000. The measurement unit 1100 includes the measurement sensor 1110 and a measurement control unit 1120.

[0042] The measurement sensor 1110 may include one (monocular) or multiple electro-optical sensors that acquire image data on the sea, optical sensors such as optical cameras, infrared sensors (IR sensors), and stereo cameras, laser sensors such as LiDAR that acquire point cloud data, optical distance measuring sensors such as ToF sensors (Time of Flight sensors), and radar sensors that detect millimeter waves and microwaves. The measurement sensor 1110 acquires measurement data of an object 7000 that exists within a measurable range on the sea by measuring the periphery of the unmanned boat 1010. In addition, each of the above-mentioned sensors can be used as a distance measuring sensor that measures the distance to an object based on the measurement data.

[0043] In addition to the above-mentioned sensors, the measurement sensor 1110 may have a sonic sensor (also called a sonic measurement unit) including a sonar that uses sound waves such as ultrasonic waves. The sonic sensor can be used not only underwater but also in the air above the water. When the sonic sensor is used in the air, it can be used as a distance measurement sensor that measures the distance to an object by measuring the sound waves that are generated and reflected by the object and return. When the sonic sensor is used underwater, the sonic sensor may be either an active sonar that generates sound waves and measures the sound waves that reverberate from an object in the water, or a passive sonar that measures the sound generated from an object in the water. The active sonar may be, for example, a side scan sonar, a multi-beam sonar, or a single beam sonar. The sonic sensor may be a USBL transceiver, a modem for acoustic communication, or the like.

[0044] Furthermore, the measurement control unit 1120 operates a sensor attitude changing device capable of changing the attitude of the measurement sensor 1110 to control at least one of the attitude angles around the three axes of the measurement sensor 1110 relative to the unmanned boat 1010. Furthermore, for example, when the measurement sensor is an optical sensor, the measurement control unit 1120 can adjust the frame rate, the shutter speed, and the like. Furthermore, when the measurement sensor is a laser sensor, the measurement control unit 1120 can adjust the output of the irradiated laser. Furthermore, when the measurement sensor is a radar sensor, the measurement control unit 1120 can adjust the output of the millimeter wave or microwave. Furthermore, the measurement control unit 1120 can adjust the measurement sensitivity of the measurement sensor to an arbitrary control amount. Furthermore, when the measurement sensor is an optical sensor, the measurement control unit 1120 can change the zoom amount or resolution of the optical sensor to an arbitrary control amount.

[0045] Next, the own-craft state determination unit 1200 includes a navigation state determination unit 1210, an internal state determination unit 1220, and an external state determination unit 1230, and is a functional unit that determines the navigation state and internal and external states of the unmanned craft 1010. The navigation state determination unit 1210 determines the own-craft's position (two-dimensional or three-dimensional), moving speed, heading, moving direction, moving acceleration / deceleration, turning speed, and other state quantities related to the navigation state. The internal state determination unit 1220 determines the remaining energy and fuel in the battery mounted on the own craft, the movable distance that can be calculated from the remaining energy and fuel, temporary abnormal states of equipment mounted on the own craft (temperature abnormality, communication abnormality, etc.), and the failure state of the equipment.

[0046] In addition, the external condition determination unit 1230 can determine communication quality conditions such as communication strength (dB value, etc.), communication speed, and communication delay of wireless communications with other unmanned boats 1010 in the unmanned boat system 1000, or wireless communications with the overall control system 2000 via a communication satellite 3000 or a terrestrial base station 4000, or the oceanographic condition around the unmanned boat (wave height, wave speed, ocean current speed, ocean current direction, tidal current speed, tidal current direction), meteorological conditions (wind speed, wind direction, air pressure, temperature, humidity), weather conditions (fog, thunder, rainfall, snowfall, hail, sleet, cloudy, etc.), seawater conditions (seawater temperature, seawater density, salinity, pH value, presence or absence of seaweed beds, etc.), sun-related information (sun position (altitude, direction, trajectory), backlight, frontlight, amount of solar radiation), and other conditions (lunar position (altitude, direction, trajectory, lunar age), ionospheric disturbances (solar flares, etc.)).

[0047] The method used by the navigation state determination unit 1210 to determine the position, moving speed, moving direction, and acceleration / deceleration of the aircraft is not particularly limited, but for example, the position, moving speed, and moving direction of the aircraft at the current time can be determined using GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System), GPS (Global Positioning System), RTK-GNSS (Real Time Kinematic - Global Navigation Satellite System), etc.

[0048] As another example of a method for determining the position, movement speed, movement direction, and acceleration / deceleration of the aircraft by the navigation state determination unit 1210, for example, when the seabed shape can be detected by the measurement sensor 1110, the position, movement speed, and movement direction of the aircraft at the current time can be determined using SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) technology based on the pre-recorded seabed shape and the seabed shape detected by the measurement sensor 1110.

[0049] Here, the position information of the vehicle includes at least two-dimensional coordinate information (e.g., latitude and longitude) in a planar view, and preferably includes three-dimensional coordinate information including altitude information. The acceleration / deceleration can be calculated based on the amount of change over time in the determined moving speed.

[0050] The method of measuring the heading of the aircraft at the current time is to determine the heading of the aircraft using, for example, a geomagnetic sensor, a GNSS compass, SLAM technology using the shape of the seabed, etc. The heading includes an attitude angle (orientation) in a planar view around at least the Z axis, and may be attitude information around three axes, preferably the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis. The turning speed can be calculated based on the amount of change over time in the determined heading information.

[0051] Next, the navigation unit 1300 includes a thrust generating unit 1310, an attitude control mechanism 1320, and a navigation control unit 1330, and is a functional unit that navigates the aircraft in any direction according to an operation command received via the communication unit 1400. The thrust generating unit 1310 can be any means capable of generating thrust, and as an example, can be configured with a propeller driven by the power of an engine or an electric motor. The thrust generating unit 1310 can also be configured with a sail that receives wind to generate thrust, or can be configured with a wave glider that receives wave power to generate thrust.

[0052] The attitude control mechanism 1320 is composed of a rudder plate provided on the aircraft, a propeller attitude change mechanism capable of changing the attitude angle of the propeller (mainly the yaw angle around the Z axis), etc., and can control the nose direction (yaw angle) of the aircraft by changing these angles. In addition, the attitude angles of the roll angle around the X axis and the pitch angle around the Y axis of the aircraft can also be controlled by a center of gravity position change mechanism that changes the position of a heavy object inside the aircraft with an actuator.

[0053] Furthermore, the navigation control unit 1330 is a functional unit that controls the thrust generation unit 1310 and the attitude control mechanism 1320 to control the navigation operation of the aircraft. The navigation control unit 1330 includes a processing unit having one or more processors, such as a programmable processor (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), MPU, or DSP), and that can access a memory (storage unit). The memory stores logic, code, and / or program instructions that the processing unit can execute to perform one or more processing steps.

[0054] The processing unit includes a control module configured to control the navigation state of the aircraft. For example, the control module adjusts the aircraft's position on the sea surface, moving speed, moving acceleration / deceleration, heading, turning speed, and attitude angle around three axes. That is, the navigation control unit 1330 controls the navigation operation of the aircraft by making the aircraft perform various operations such as forward movement, reverse movement, acceleration, deceleration, and turning.

[0055] Next, the communication unit 1400 includes an inter-unmanned boat communication unit 1410 and an overall control communication unit 1420, and is a functional unit that communicates with other unmanned boats 1010 in the unmanned boat system 1000 and the overall control system 2000. The inter-unmanned boat communication unit 1410 includes a communication antenna used for an on-shore wireless communication network, and communicates with other unmanned boats 1010 in the unmanned boat system 1000. The overall control communication unit 1420 includes a satellite communication antenna capable of communicating with a communication satellite 3000, or a communication antenna capable of communicating with a terrestrial base station 4000, and communicates with the overall control system 2000 via the communication satellite 3000 or the terrestrial base station 4000. Note that the communication unit may include an AIS antenna or a VHF antenna in addition to the above-mentioned communication units, and may include a communication unit that communicates with an external surveillance vessel or an AIS base station.

[0056] Next, the determination unit 1500 is a functional unit that performs data processing such as primary processing and data compression of the measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor 1110. For example, the determination unit 1500 can perform data processing of raw data (measurement data) after measurement acquired by the measurement sensor 1110, and perform primary processing to generate transmission data to be wirelessly transmitted from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000. Furthermore, in order to reduce the transmission load when wirelessly transmitting transmission data from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000, the determination unit 1500 can perform data compression processing to compress the raw data (measurement data) after measurement to generate transmission data.

[0057] Furthermore, by performing primary processing of the measurement data, the determination unit 1500 can interpret the state of the target object 7000 and determine the presence or absence of a detected object, the size of the detected object, etc. Furthermore, the determination unit 1500 may have a function for determining whether or not measurement data or transmission data needs to be transmitted from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000, or for selecting the data to be transmitted, depending on the result of the interpretation.

[0058] Next, the recording unit 1600 includes a measurement data recording unit 1610, a device's state recording unit 1620, and a determination information recording unit 1630. The measurement data recording unit 1610 records measurement data measured by the measurement unit 1100. The device's state recording unit 1620 records various types of state information related to the device determined by the device's state determination unit 1200. Furthermore, the determination information recording unit 1630 records various types of determination information determined by the determination unit 1500.

[0059] (A-3. Description of the Integrated Control System 2000) Next, the functions and contents of the overall control system 2000 will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the overall control system 2000. As shown in Fig. 8, the overall control system 2000 includes an information import unit 2100, a pre-discovery operation decision unit 2200, an unmanned boat state determination unit 2300, an object detection determination unit 2400, a future state prediction unit 2500, a squadron control command decision unit 2600, a platoon control command decision unit 2700, and an information input / output unit 2800.

[0060] (A-3-1. Information import unit 2100) The information import unit 2100 is a functional unit that imports information to be processed or used in each functional unit in the overall control system 2000 from the unmanned boat 1010, the cooperative system 5000, the external system 6000, the user terminal device 8000, etc. The information import unit 2100 includes an activity condition acquisition unit 2110, an object determination condition 2120, a status definition acquisition unit 2130, and an unmanned boat information acquisition unit 2140. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of advance information acquired by the information import unit 2100.

[0061] The activity condition acquisition unit 2110 is a functional unit that receives various information related to activity conditions for performing a search operation before discovering the target object 7000 and a post-discovery operation such as tracking after discovery. As shown in FIG. 9, the search conditions acquired by the activity condition acquisition unit 2110 include, for example, a target area to be searched (position and range of the sea or underwater area), an activity time (date and time, period, time, time of day, etc. of performing the activity), and a search target (search rate indicating the ratio of the searched area to the target area, etc.). The search conditions may include other desired information such as a required alert level and a desired search rate (ratio of the area of ​​the searched area to the area to be searched). For example, the activity condition acquisition unit 2110 can acquire desired conditions for performing a search from the collaboration system 5000, the user terminal device 8000, or a user input acceptance unit 2820 described later.

[0062] The object determination conditions 2120 are a functional unit that acquires in advance determination criteria for object detection and state determination executed by the object detection and determination unit 2400. As shown in Fig. 9, the object determination conditions acquired by the object determination conditions 2120 include, for example, reference information such as the type of object (ship, diver, marine life, etc.), size (e.g., total length 2 m or more), and shape as determination criteria for detection and determination of the object 7000 by the object detection unit 2410 of the object detection and determination unit 2400. Note that information on the object detection and determination conditions can also be acquired from the AIS system of the external system 6000.

[0063] The status definition acquisition unit 2130 is a functional unit that acquires in advance definition information for each of the multiple statuses of the unmanned boat 1010 that are determined by the unmanned boat state determination unit 2300. As shown in Fig. 9, the status information of the unmanned boat 1010 acquired by the status definition acquisition unit 2130 includes, for example, a search time status during a search before an object is discovered, a post-discovery status after the object is discovered, and a common status that is common before and after the object is discovered.

[0064] The search status includes statuses related to searches such as anchoring search and patrol search. The post-discovery status includes statuses of response actions to the detected object 7000 such as surrounding, stalling, getting ahead, tracking, taking over tracking, and ambushing (surveillance capture). The common status includes statuses common to before and after the discovery of an object such as communication compensation that compensates for the wireless communication capabilities of other unmanned vessels 1010, data accumulation / transmission / reception, primary analysis processing, recovery charging when energy is insufficient, patrol in an energy insufficient state, anchoring, movement, deployment, recovery, and detection of a malfunction or abnormality in the unmanned vessel 1010.

[0065] The unmanned boat information acquisition unit 2140 is a functional unit that acquires various information from the unmanned boat 1010 via the communication satellite 3000, the HAPS, the terrestrial base station 4000, etc. For example, the unmanned boat information acquisition unit 2140 acquires from the unmanned boat 1010 measurement data measured by the measurement unit 1100, the determination results determined by the determination unit 1500, and various status information determined by the host boat status determination unit 1200.

[0066] (A-3-2. Pre-discovery action determination unit 2200) The pre-discovery operation decision unit 2200 is a functional unit that decides operation commands for the unmanned watercraft 1010 in a state before the unmanned watercraft 1010 discovers the target object 7000. The pre-discovery operation decision unit 2200 includes a pre-discovery company operation decision unit 2210 and a pre-discovery platoon operation decision unit 2220.

[0067] The pre-discovery company operation decision unit 2210 is a functional unit that decides operation commands at the company level consisting of multiple platoons before the unmanned boat 1010 discovers the target 7000. Fig. 10 is a state transition diagram showing state transitions of the company operation commands decided by the pre-discovery company operation decision unit.

[0068] As shown in Fig. 10, the operation command for the company includes a pre-mission preparation state, a mission operation state, and a mission end / cancellation state. The pre-mission preparation state includes a movement state in which the unmanned boat system 1000 is moved to the activity area, and a deployment state in which the unmanned boat system 1000 is deployed in a predetermined formation in the activity area. The mission operation state includes a platoon change state in which the composition of the platoon is changed by replacing the unmanned boats 1010 belonging to the platoon, a search state in which a search for an object is performed, a recovery charge state in which a power storage device mounted on the unmanned boat is charged, a standby state in which the unmanned boats are on standby, and a post-discovery action state in which a response action is performed after the object is discovered (detected). The mission end / cancellation state includes a return state in which the unmanned boat 1010 is moved to a recovery location for the unmanned boat 1010, and a recovery state in which the unmanned boat 1010 is recovered.

[0069] The pre-discovery squadron operation determination unit 2210 can determine the organization of a plurality of squadrons constituting the squadron and the planned patrol route for the squadron to patrol, in addition to the operation command shown in FIG. 10. Here, the organization of the squadron and the operation command may be determined by determining the action area allocation for each squadron according to the alert level and search rate for each area. In addition, when generating the planned patrol route, the pre-discovery squadron operation determination unit 2210 can generate the planned patrol route so that the relative distance is equal to or greater than a certain value so as not to interfere with the surrounding objects, based on information regarding the presence, type, position, size, etc. of immobile objects and moving objects in the surrounding sea area acquired in advance. At this time, information on immobile objects and moving objects in the surrounding sea area can be acquired from the AIS system of the external system 6000, etc.

[0070] The pre-discovery company operation decision unit 2210 may also have a function for deciding the formation of the platoon. In this case, the pre-discovery operation decision unit 2200 monitors the relative distance and communication strength between the unmanned vessels in real time, and decides on a formation change within a range that maintains a communicable relative distance and communication, so that the distance between the unmanned vessels does not increase and communication is not interrupted as a result of the formation change. The pre-discovery company operation decision unit 2200 may also have a function for determining whether the formation change has been completed.

[0071] The pre-discovery squadron operation decision unit 2210 can determine in real time the current squadron operation execution state from among the various states shown in Figure 10, and can also determine the current state of the unmanned boat 1010 from the unmanned boat information acquired by the unmanned boat information acquisition unit 2140, and can determine the next operational command state to which the squadron should transition.

[0072] The pre-discovery platoon operation decision unit 2220 is a functional unit that decides operation commands for each of a plurality of platoons before the unmanned boat 1010 discovers the target 7000. Fig. 11 is a diagram showing a list of platoon operation commands decided by the pre-discovery platoon operation decision unit. In particular, Fig. 11 shows a list of platoon-level operation commands when the company-level operation commands are in a searching state.

[0073] The operation commands for the platoon shown in FIG. 11 include search, communication relay, data analysis, data transmission, data storage, standby, and recovery charging. The search operation is selected from a patrol search in which a search is performed while patrolling, and an anchored search in which a search is performed while anchored. The communication relay operation is an operation of relaying communication to other unmanned boats 1010 in the platoon. The data analysis operation is an operation of performing a primary analysis of measurement data by the determination unit 1500 of the unmanned boat 1010. The data transmission operation is an operation of transmitting measurement data and the like to the overall control system 2000. Data storage is an operation of storing measurement data and the like. Furthermore, recovery charging is an operation of charging a power storage device mounted on the unmanned boat, and the charging method includes charging using a power generation device such as a solar panel, wave power generation, or wind power generation, power supply from an external source, or replacement of the power storage device from an external source.

[0074] (A-3-3. Unmanned boat state determination unit 2300) The unmanned boat state determination unit 2300 is a functional unit that detects or estimates the state of the unmanned boat 1010 based on information detected by the unmanned boat 1010's own boat state determination unit 1200. The unmanned boat state determination unit 2300 includes a state detection unit 2310 and a performance estimation unit 2320.

[0075] Based on various status information regarding the unmanned boat 1010 detected by the unmanned boat 1010's own aircraft status determination unit 1200, the status detection unit 2310 can detect, for example, the position (two-dimensional or three-dimensional) of the unmanned boat 1010, moving speed, heading direction, moving direction, moving acceleration / deceleration, turning speed, and other status quantities related to the navigation state, the remaining energy and fuel in the battery installed in the unmanned boat 1010, the movable distance that can be calculated from the remaining energy and fuel, temporary abnormal states of equipment installed in the unmanned boat 1010 (temperature abnormality, communication abnormality, etc.), and equipment failure states.

[0076] In addition, the status detection unit 2310 can determine communication quality status such as communication strength (dB value, etc.), communication speed, and communication delay of wireless communication within the unmanned boat system 1000 or wireless communication with the overall control system 2000 via the communication satellite 3000 or terrestrial base station 4000, or the oceanographic condition around the unmanned boat 1010 (wave height, wave speed, ocean current speed, ocean current direction, tidal current speed, tidal current direction), meteorological condition (wind speed, wind direction, air pressure, temperature, humidity), weather condition (fog, thunder, rainfall, snowfall, hail, sleet, cloudy, etc.), seawater condition (seawater temperature, seawater density, salinity, pH value, presence or absence of seaweed beds, etc.), sun-related information (sun position (altitude, direction, trajectory), backlight, frontlight, amount of solar radiation), and other conditions (lunar position (altitude, direction, trajectory, lunar age), ionospheric disturbance (solar flare, etc.)).

[0077] The performance estimation unit 2320 is a functional unit that estimates various performances such as measurement performance, power performance, and communication performance that the unmanned watercraft 1010 can exhibit, depending on the navigation state, internal state, and external state of the unmanned watercraft detected by the state detection unit 2310. For example, when the remaining energy of the battery is low, it is considered that this will affect the measurement performance, power performance, and communication performance. Furthermore, when the sea conditions of the unmanned watercraft 1010 are poor, it is also considered that this will affect the measurement performance, power performance, and communication performance. Therefore, the performance estimation unit 2320 estimates various performances that the unmanned watercraft 1010 can exhibit, taking into account these various states.

[0078] (A-3-4. Object detection determination unit 2400) The object detection / determination unit 2400 is a functional unit that detects the object 7000 based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor 1110 mounted on the unmanned boat 1010, and determines the state of the object 7000. The object detection / determination unit 2400 includes an object detection unit 2410 and an object state determination unit 2420.

[0079] The object detection unit 2410 analyzes the measurement data acquired from the unmanned boat 1010 based on the object determination conditions acquired by the object determination conditions 2120, and performs an object detection determination if the object determination conditions are satisfied.

[0080] The object state determination unit 2420 has a function of analyzing the measurement data acquired from the unmanned boat 1010 and determining the state of the object 7000 detected by the object detection unit 2410. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a determination result regarding the state of the object determined by the object state determination unit 2420. As shown in Fig. 12, the object state determination result determined by the object state determination unit 2420 includes the object type, static state, dynamic state, history information, and the like.

[0081] 12, the object type includes the type (ship, diver, marine life, etc.), size, and shape of the object 7000. The static state includes the orientation and position (two-dimensional or three-dimensional position coordinates, etc.) of the object 7000. The dynamic state includes whether the object 7000 is moving (moving / stationary), the moving speed, moving direction, acceleration, deceleration, turning radius, turning speed, etc. The history information includes the movement trajectory and other static or dynamic history information.

[0082] If the object state determination section 2420 cannot definitively determine some of the various determination items shown in FIG. 12 based on the measurement data, it can calculate an estimation result using past history information or the like.

[0083] In addition to the above-mentioned functions, the object detection determination unit 2400 may also have a function of determining the measurement state of the object 7000 by the unmanned boat 1010. In this case, the measurement states of the object detection determination unit 2400 include a captured state (a state in which the measurement unit 1100 can continue to measure the object 7000), a state with signs of measurement being overtaken (a state in which the measurement unit 1100 can continue to measure the object 7000 but the distance to the object 7000 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value), a confirmed measurement being overtaken state (a state in which the measurement unit 1100 can continue to measure the object 7000 but the distance to the object 7000 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value and is further increasing), and a measurement lost state (a state in which the measurement unit 1100 cannot measure the object 7000 and the position of the object 7000 cannot be confirmed).

[0084] (A-3-5. Future state prediction unit 2500) The future state prediction unit 2500 is a functional unit that predicts the future operation state and monitoring state of the object 7000 based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor 1110 mounted on the unmanned boat 1010, or the judgment or estimation result by the object detection judgment unit 2400. The future state prediction unit 2500 includes a future object operation prediction unit 2510 and a future monitoring state prediction unit 2520.

[0085] The future object behavior prediction unit 2510 is a functional unit that predicts and calculates a future behavior state of the object 7000 based on, for example, a determination or estimation result regarding the state of the object 7000 as shown in Fig. 12. The future object behavior prediction unit 2510 can also predict and calculate a future behavior state of the object 7000 according to a determination result of a behavior type of the object 7000 (escape, disturbance, stop, silence, shaking off, intimidation, attack, etc.) in addition to the various state information shown in Fig. 12.

[0086] Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of determination items of the future state prediction determination by the future state prediction unit 2500. In the example shown in Fig. 13, the future state prediction determination includes determination items of a future operation prediction of the target object 7000, a static state at a future time, and a dynamic state at a future time.

[0087] The future operation prediction includes the predicted movement path and predicted destination of the object 7000. The static state at a future time includes position coordinates and orientation. The dynamic state at a future time includes whether or not there is movement (moving state / stationary state), movement speed, movement direction, turning radius, turning speed, acceleration, deceleration, etc. The future state prediction unit 2500 can calculate multiple predicted paths instead of one predicted path. Instead of a predicted path, information on multiple highly likely passing points (including the final destination) can also be calculated.

[0088] In addition to the various prediction items shown in Figure 20, the future state prediction unit 2500 may have a function to calculate, for example, an encounter rate indicating the probability that the unmanned boat 1010 will encounter the target object 7000 in the future, and a target detection probability indicating the probability that the unmanned boat 1010 will detect the target object 7000 in the future using the measurement unit 1100.

[0089] The future state prediction unit 2500 may also have a function of determining the validity of the predicted movement predicted route. For example, the future state prediction unit 2500 can determine whether or not the already predicted movement predicted route is valid based on the latest state information of the object 7000 determined by the object detection determination unit 2400. As the determination result, for example, predicted route normal, predicted route uncertain (indications of invalidity present), predicted route abnormal (determined invalid. Re-prediction is necessary) can be calculated.

[0090] There may also be cases where multiple objects 7000 are detected by the object detection / determination unit 2400. In such cases, if the multiple objects 7000 are operating as one group with similar positions or movement paths, the future movement state of the multiple objects 7000 is predicted and calculated as one group. Also, if the multiple objects 7000 are operating separately with different positions or movement paths, the future movement state of each object 7000 can be predicted separately.

[0091] The future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 is a functional unit that predicts the future monitoring state of the object 7000 by the unmanned watercraft 1010 based on the prediction result by the future object operation prediction unit 2510 and the judgment result by the unmanned watercraft state judgment unit 2300.

[0092] For example, the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 can predict in advance whether a detection lost state in which the measurement unit 1100 of the unmanned watercraft 1010 is unable to continue detecting the object 7000, or a tracking impossible state in which the relative distance to the object 7000 becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined value and the relative distance cannot be reduced, will occur in the future. If a detection lost state is predicted to occur in the future, loss prediction information can be generated that includes the range and time that the unmanned watercraft 1010 can continue to detect, the predicted lost position and predicted lost time, or the predicted direction and speed of movement of the object 7000 when the detection lost state occurs. If a tracking impossible state is predicted to occur in the future, tracking lost prediction information can be generated that includes the range and time that the unmanned watercraft 1010 can track, the predicted position and predicted time that the unmanned watercraft 1010 has been left behind, or the predicted direction and speed of movement of the object 7000 when the tracking impossible state occurs.

[0093] (A-3-6. Company Control Command Decision Unit 2600) The company control command determination unit 2600 is a functional unit that determines control commands for controlling the operation of multiple platoons that make up the company after the unmanned boat 1010 detects the target object 7000. In particular, the company control command determination unit 2600 has a function of determining organization commands and the like related to the organization contents of a platoon for organizing a single or multiple platoons using multiple unmanned boats 1010. The company control command determination unit 2600 includes an intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610, an intra-company organization determination unit 2620, and an intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630.

[0094] The intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 is a functional unit that determines a platoon operation command that specifies a role for each of one or more platoons, depending on information such as the current state or predicted future state of the detected object 7000. For example, the platoon operation command determined by the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 includes information that specifies for each platoon at least one of the roles of tracking, surrounding, holding back, getting ahead of, taking over tracking, continuing to measure, or lying in wait for the object 7000, or storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing measurement data, or relaying communications with other unmanned crafts 1010, or charging a power storage device mounted on the unmanned craft 1010.

[0095] Here, the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 can determine roles required at the company level and roles that should be executed with priority according to the prediction result of the future state by the future state prediction unit 2500. For example, the priority order of various roles can be set in advance for each prediction result of the future state, and based on this preset information, the roles that should be executed with priority at the company level and their priority order can be determined from various roles (encirclement, delay, advance, pursuit, tracking handover, ambush, etc.). Furthermore, according to the roles that should be executed with priority determined at the company level, roles to be assigned to multiple platoons in the company in order of highest priority can be determined.

[0096] For example, if the role of "tracking" is given priority at the company level, the first priority can be tracking, the second priority can be taking over tracking and lying in wait, and the third priority can be communications coverage, data accumulation / transmission / reception, and primary analysis processing.

[0097] As another example, if the "encirclement" role is prioritized at the company level, the first priority may be encirclement, the second priority may be pursuit, pursuit takeover, and ambush, and the third priority may be communications coverage, data storage / transmission / reception, and primary analysis processing.

[0098] As another example, if the role of "holding back" is prioritized at the company level, the first priority could be holding back, the second priority could be tracking, taking over tracking, and lying in wait, and the third priority could be communications coverage, data accumulation / transmission / reception, and primary analysis processing.

[0099] As another example, if the role of "ambush (surveillance and capture)" is prioritized at the company level, the first priority can be ambush (surveillance and capture), the second priority can be encirclement, delay, pursuit, and pursuit takeover, and the third priority can be communications coverage, data accumulation / transmission / reception, and primary analysis processing.

[0100] As another example, if the role of "recuperating" is prioritized at the company level, the first priority could be recuperating, the second priority being surrounding, stalling, getting ahead, and lying in wait, and the third priority being communications coverage, data accumulation / transmission / reception, and primary analysis processing.

[0101] The various roles included in the platoon action command can include a response action (including pursuit, encirclement, delay, advance, taking over pursuit, continued capture or ambush, etc.) for the discovered object 7000, an auxiliary support action (including communication supplement, data accumulation / transmission / reception, primary analysis processing, etc.) that supports the pursuit of the discovered object 7000, and other common actions (recovery charging, etc.). In addition, any one of the roles of the response action, auxiliary support action, and common action (i.e., a single role) can be specified for each platoon.

[0102] In addition, although an example has been described in which the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 designates a single role of either the response action, the auxiliary support action, or the common action for each platoon, this embodiment is not limited to this, and multiple roles can also be designated for each platoon. In this case, both the roles of the response action and the auxiliary support action (i.e., multiple roles) can be designated for each platoon.

[0103] In addition, for some platoons within multiple platoons within a company, a role of either response actions or support actions (i.e., a single role) can be specified, and for other platoons within multiple platoons within a company, a role of both response actions and support actions (i.e., multiple roles) can be specified.

[0104] The intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 may also have a function of determining an alert level for the role assigned to each platoon. The intra-company organization determination unit 2620, which will be described later, may determine the number of unmanned crafts 1010 belonging to the platoon according to the alert level assigned to the role. In other words, a platoon assigned a role with a high alert level can be set to have a large number of unmanned crafts 1010.

[0105] In addition, the intra-company role allocation decision unit 2610 can, along with a timer, decide to change the roles assigned to each platoon, change from a single role to multiple roles, hand over roles between multiple platoons, or swap roles between multiple platoons, depending on information such as the current state or predicted future state of the detected object 7000, which changes over time.

[0106] The intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 can automatically determine the roles for each platoon as described above, but may also have a function of determining the roles for each platoon in accordance with the user input information when input information is received from a user. For example, the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 can receive user input information regarding the roles for each platoon input from the user terminal device 8000 or the like by the user input reception unit 2820 described later, and determine the roles for each platoon in accordance with the user input information.

[0107] Next, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 is a functional unit that determines organization commands related to the organization contents of a platoon for organizing a single or multiple platoons by multiple moving objects. For example, when the object detection determination unit 2400 detects an object 7000, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 can determine an organization command for the platoon according to the current state or the future predicted state of the detected object 7000. In addition, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 can determine an organization command for the platoon according to the suspiciousness level or threat level of the detected object 7000.

[0108] The intra-company organization determination unit 2620 can determine the organization contents including the number of platoons that make up the company and the number of unmanned boats 1010 belonging to each platoon, and the platoon organization command determined by the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 includes information regarding the number of platoons that make up the company and the number of unmanned boats 1010 belonging to each platoon.

[0109] In addition, the company internal organization determination unit 2620 can determine roles for one or more platoons depending on the current state of the object 7000 determined by the object detection determination unit 2400 or the future predicted state predicted by the future state prediction unit 2500, and can determine organization commands including information specifying the number of platoons that make up the company and the number of unmanned boats 1010 belonging to each platoon depending on the role of each platoon.

[0110] Note that the method of determining the organization command is not limited to the above-mentioned method, and for example, the organization command can be determined according to the current state of the object 7000 determined by the object detection determination unit 2400 or the future predicted state predicted by the future state prediction unit 2500. As another example, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 can determine roles for one or more platoons regardless of the detection state of the object 7000, and determine an organization command including designation information for the number of platoons constituting the company and the number of unmanned boats 1010 belonging to each platoon according to the role of each platoon.

[0111] Furthermore, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 is not limited to the number of platoons and the number of unmanned crafts 1010 per platoon, and can also determine to swap unmanned crafts 1010 belonging to multiple platoons between platoons. Therefore, in this case, the platoon organization command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes command information to swap unmanned crafts 1010 belonging to multiple platoons between multiple platoons.

[0112] The intra-company organization determination unit 2620 may also have a function of determining an organization command including information regarding the connection configuration of the multiple unmanned crafts 1010 via a wireless communication network, according to the determined organization of the platoon. Here, the connection configuration of the multiple unmanned crafts 1010 via a wireless communication network refers to the connection relationship of the wireless communication network established between the multiple unmanned crafts 1010 in the platoon 1000a shown by the solid lines in Fig. 6. Here, the master unit 1001 and the primary connection slave unit 10021 are assigned the role of complementing communications between the other unmanned crafts 1010 and the overall control system 2000.

[0113] Furthermore, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 may have a function of determining a method for changing the connection relationships when determining to change the connection relationships of the wireless communication network established between the multiple unmanned craft 1010 in the platoon 1000a. For example, when switching the connection relationship between unmanned craft A and unmanned craft B to unmanned craft A and unmanned craft C, it can determine to switch the connection when unmanned craft A is located within a range in which it can communicate wirelessly with both unmanned craft B and unmanned craft C (i.e., when unmanned craft A is located within an overlapping range of the communication ranges of unmanned craft B and unmanned craft C).

[0114] The unmanned vessels 1010 may also have a function for determining the configuration of a wireless communication network including an ocean communication buoy, an aircraft (such as a UAV), an underwater submersible (such as a UUV), a ground communication station, etc., in addition to the connection configuration of a wireless communication network established between a plurality of unmanned vessels 1010. Furthermore, the unmanned vessels 1010 may have a function for determining a connection path for connecting an ocean wireless communication network and a ground-side network as described above.

[0115] The intra-company organization determination unit 2620 can automatically determine the above-mentioned organization command and the connection configuration of the wireless communication network, but may also have a function of determining the organization command and the connection configuration of the wireless communication network in accordance with the user input information when input information is received from a user. For example, the user input receiving unit 2820 described later can receive user input information related to the organization command of the platoon and the connection configuration of the wireless communication network input from the user terminal device 8000 or the like, and the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 can determine the organization command of the platoon in accordance with the user input information.

[0116] Next, the intra-company deployment target determiner 2630 is a functional unit that determines a platoon deployment command related to the formation or deployment of a platoon, including at least one of the formation position, formation time, or formation shape of each platoon when forming a platoon with the formation contents determined by the intra-company formation determiner 2620, or the movement target position and movement target time of each platoon after the platoon with the formation contents is formed. In other words, the intra-company deployment target determiner 2630 can determine the operation target of the platoon when forming the platoon and the operation target of the platoon after the platoon is formed.

[0117] For example, based on information about the predicted loss location where the tracking platoon will lose detection of the target object as predicted by the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine a location just before the location where detection loss will occur as the movement target location (tracking handover location) of the platoon assigned the role of tracking handover.

[0118] In addition, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine a movement target including at least one of a movement target position and a movement target time for each platoon in response to a platoon operation command for a role designated for each platoon. As an example of this case, when the role of encirclement is designated for a platoon, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine the current position of the object 7000 determined by the object state determination unit 2420 or the position on the predicted movement path of the object 7000 predicted by the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 as the encirclement position of the platoon to which the role of encirclement is assigned, and determine the target position to which the unmanned boat 1010 is moved so as to encircle the object 7000 at the encirclement position. In addition, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine the encirclement target time.

[0119] Furthermore, for example, when a role of advance is assigned to a platoon, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine the position on the predicted movement path of the object 7000 predicted by the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 as the re-turn position of the platoon assigned the role of advance, and can determine the target time of movement to the advance position. Note that the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 moves the platoon with priority given to arriving at the determined advance position before the target time of movement, and determines a deployment target for changing the formation to a predetermined formation after arriving at the advance position.

[0120] Furthermore, for example, when the role of continuous acquisition is assigned to a platoon, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine the movement target position of the platoon assigned the role of continuous acquisition from the area range in which the target object 7000 can be measured. Furthermore, for example, when the role of communication acquisition is assigned to a platoon, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine the movement target position of the platoon assigned the role of communication compensation within the range of communication distance from the unmanned craft 1010 that is the target of communication compensation, based on information on the communication distance between the unmanned craft 1010. Furthermore, for example, when the role of data accumulation / transmission / reception or primary analysis processing is assigned to a platoon, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can determine the movement target position of the platoon assigned the role of data accumulation / transmission / reception or primary analysis processing within the range in which direct communication is possible with the unmanned craft 1010 that acquires measurement data.

[0121] The intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can automatically determine the above-mentioned platoon deployment command, but may also have a function of determining a platoon deployment command in response to user input information when input information is received from a user. For example, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 can receive user input information related to a platoon deployment command input from a user terminal device 8000 or the like by a user input reception unit 2820 described later, and determine a platoon deployment command in response to the user input information.

[0122] If the object detection determination unit 2400 determines that a measurement lost state has occurred (a state in which the measurement unit 1100 is unable to measure the object 7000 and the position of the object 7000 cannot be confirmed), the company control command decision unit 2600 may decide to end tracking of the object 7000, and may decide to return the number, size, and position of each platoon belonging to the company to the state before the object 7000 was discovered.

[0123] (A-3-7. Platoon Control Command Decision Unit 2700) The platoon control command determination unit 2700 is a functional unit that determines an unmanned boat operation command that controls the operation of the unmanned boats 1010 in each platoon after the unmanned boats 1010 detect the target object 7000. The company control command determination unit 2600 includes an intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 and an intra-platoon movement target determination unit 2720.

[0124] The intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 can determine roles for at least some (all or some) of the unmanned crafts 1010 belonging to the platoon, according to the roles for each platoon determined by the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610. For example, if the role of the platoon is to monitor and capture (ambush) the object 7000, some of the unmanned crafts 1010 in the platoon may acquire (monitor and capture) measurement data of the object 7000, other unmanned crafts 1010 may accumulate, transmit and receive, and perform primary analysis processing of the measurement data, and other unmanned crafts 1010 may perform communication compensation. In other words, detailed roles necessary to accomplish the mission of the platoon can be allocated to the multiple unmanned crafts 1010 in the platoon.

[0125] The intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 determines whether each role can be performed based on the information on the status and performance of each unmanned craft 1010 determined by the unmanned craft status determination unit 2300, and determines to assign each unmanned craft 1010 a role that can be performed. For example, the intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 determines to assign a recovery charge role to an unmanned craft 1010 that is determined to have a low remaining battery energy, regardless of the content of the role assigned to the platoon. As another example, an unmanned craft 1010 that is relatively close to the object 7000 is assigned a role of pursuit, delay, or encirclement that requires immediate approach to the object 7000. On the other hand, an unmanned craft 1010 that is relatively far from the object 7000 can be assigned a role other than pursuit, delay, or encirclement that requires immediate approach to the object 7000 (such as anticipation, ambush (surveillance and capture), tracking takeover, communication compensation, data accumulation / transmission / reception, and primary analysis processing). Additionally, the unmanned vessel 1010 closest to the lead position can be assigned the lead role.

[0126] When assigning the role of taking over tracking to multiple unmanned boats 1010 in the same platoon, the intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 can compare the predicted movement path of the target object 7000 with the power performance of the unmanned boats 1010 in the platoon, estimate whether each unmanned boat 1010 can be tracked, the distance it can be tracked, the time it can be tracked, etc., and decide to assign the role of taking over tracking to an unmanned boat 1010 that is suitable for taking over tracking. For the unmanned boat 1010 to which the role of taking over tracking is assigned, a movement target to a tracking handover position is determined by the intra-platoon movement target determination unit 2720, which will be described later.

[0127] Furthermore, when the intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 assigns the role of pursuit to a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 in the same platoon, it can determine, from among the plurality of unmanned boats 1010, a pursuit leader that leads the pursuit operation and an unmanned boat 1010 that follows the pursuit leader. Furthermore, when the intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 assigns the role of pursuit to a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 in the same platoon, it can determine a pursuit formation of the plurality of unmanned boats 1010. As the pursuit formation, it is possible to select a following formation in which the target object 7000 is pursued from behind, an encirclement formation in which the target object 7000 is deployed in three locations, the left and right and the rear, an encirclement formation in which the target object 7000 is deployed in two locations, the left and right, and a encirclement formation in which the target object 7000 is deployed in four locations, the left and right, front and rear, and the like.

[0128] The intra-platoon role determination unit 2710 can determine an additional action state during tracking related to the content of an additional action during tracking. For example, the additional action state during tracking can be determined to be a tracking action only, an action of tracking while preventing collisions between the unmanned boats 1010, an action of tracking while preventing collisions between the unmanned boat 1010 and the object 7000, an action of tracking the unmanned boat 1010 in a state where it is approaching the object 7000 during tracking, or an action of tracking the unmanned boat 1010 at a position away from the object 7000.

[0129] The intra-platoon movement target determination unit 2720 can determine movement targets of individual unmanned boats 1010 belonging to a platoon, such as the movement target positions and movement target times of the multiple unmanned boats 1010. Here, the intra-platoon movement target determination unit 2720 can determine movement targets of the multiple unmanned boats 1010 belonging to the platoon in accordance with the role of each platoon determined by the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610, but the method of determining the movement targets is not limited to this, and the intra-platoon movement target determination unit 2720 can also determine movement targets of the multiple unmanned boats 1010 belonging to the platoon based on other information, not on information related to the role of the platoon.

[0130] In addition to the functions described above, the platoon control command decision unit 2700 may have a function to execute an action of attaching a transmitter, paint, or the like to the target object 7000 when the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 predicts that a detection lost state will occur in the future and there is no other unmanned boat 1010 to go ahead or take over. In such a case, information regarding the detection lost state may be transmitted to an external collaboration system 5000 or the like.

[0131] (A-3-8. Information input / output unit 2800) The information input / output unit 2800 is a functional unit that acquires information input to the overall control system 2000 from a user or an external system, and outputs commands or displays information generated by each functional unit in the overall control system 2000. The information input / output unit 2800 includes a display unit 2810, a user input receiving unit 2820, a command transmission output unit 2830, and an information transmission unit 2840.

[0132] The display unit 2810 is a functional unit that displays and outputs acquired information, judgment information, decision information, and the like by each functional unit in the overall control system 2000. For example, the display unit 2810 has a function of displaying and outputting command information decided by the company control command decision unit 2600 or the platoon control command decision unit 2700.

[0133] The user input accepting unit 2820 is a functional unit that accepts user input information related to various information input from an external user terminal device 8000 or a user interface device of the overall control system 2000. For example, the user input accepting unit 2820 can accept user input information related to a platoon organization command, a connection configuration of a wireless communication network, the role of each platoon, a platoon deployment command, and the like.

[0134] The command transmission output unit 2830 is a functional unit that transmits and outputs command information determined by the company control command determination unit 2600 or the platoon control command determination unit 2700 to the unmanned boat system 1000.

[0135] The information transmission unit 2840 is a functional unit that transmits and outputs information related to the command information determined by the company control command determination unit 2600 and the platoon control command determination unit 2700 to an external collaboration system 5000 or a user terminal device 8000.

[0136] (A-4. Control flow of control system 1) Next, a description will be given of the overall control flow of the control system 1. FIG 14 is a flow chart showing the process flow of the control system 1.

[0137] First, the information import unit 2100 acquires advance information and the like (step 101). In this step, for example, activity conditions, object detection determination conditions, and unmanned boat status advance definition information and the like as shown in FIG.

[0138] Next, the pre-discovery operation determination section 2200 determines an operation command (such as a search command) for the unmanned watercraft 1010 in the state before the unmanned watercraft 1010 discovers the target object 7000 (step 102). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0139] Next, the search operation command is updated in accordance with the unmanned boat state determined by the unmanned boat state determination unit 2300, and search control is executed (step 103). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0140] Next, the next processing step to transition to is determined depending on whether or not the object 7000 is detected by the object detection unit 2410 (step 104). In this step, if the object 7000 is detected, the processing transitions to step 105, whereas if the object 7000 is not detected, the processing transitions to step 103.

[0141] Next, when the object 7000 is detected in step 104, the object state determining unit 2420 determines the state of the object 7000 (step 105). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0142] Next, the future operation state and monitoring state of the target object 7000 are predicted by the future state prediction unit 2500 (step 106). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0143] Next, the company control command decision unit 2600 decides a control command for controlling the operation of the multiple platoons that make up the company after the unmanned boat 1010 detects the object 7000 (step 107). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0144] Next, the platoon control command decision unit 2700 decides an unmanned boat operation command for controlling the operation of the unmanned boats 1010 in each platoon after the unmanned boats 1010 detect the object 7000 (step 108). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0145] Next, the operation command for the platoon after the object is found is updated according to the unmanned boat state determined by the unmanned boat state determination unit 2300, and search control is executed (step 103). The detailed processing in this step will be described later.

[0146] (A-5. Control sequence in control system 1) Next, a description will be given of a control sequence between the systems in the control system 1. FIG 15 is a sequence diagram showing the exchange of signals between the systems in the control system 1.

[0147] First, request information including activity conditions and the like is transmitted from the user terminal device 8000 or the like to the overall control system 2000. The overall control system 2000 determines a search command for the unmanned boat 1010 by the pre-discovery operation decision unit 2200, and transmits the search command to the parent device 1001a of platoon A. The parent device 1001a also transmits a search command to the child device 10021a in platoon A. Having received the search command, the parent device 1001a and the child device 10021a execute a search for the target object 7000 in accordance with the search command.

[0148] Next, when the slave unit 10021a detects the object 7000 by searching, the slave unit 10021a transmits detection information including measurement data obtained by measuring the object 7000 to the master unit 1001a. In addition, the master unit 1001a transmits the received detection information to the overall control system 2000.

[0149] Next, based on the received detection information, the overall control system 2000 determines the status of the object 7000 and predicts the future operation of the object 7000, generates a post-discovery operation for the unmanned boat 1010, and transmits proposed information for the generated post-discovery operation, etc. to the user terminal device 8000.

[0150] Next, the overall control system 2000 receives user input information for the post-discovery operation and the like from the user terminal device 8000. The overall control system 2000 determines the post-discovery operation based on the received user input information, and transmits a post-discovery operation command to the master unit 1001a of platoon A. The master unit 1001a also transmits the post-discovery operation command to the slave unit 10021a in platoon A. Having received the post-discovery operation command, the master unit 1001a and the slave unit 10021a control the organization of platoon A, the connection configuration of the wireless communication network, the role of platoon A, the deployment operation, and the individual operations of the unmanned craft 1010 in accordance with the post-discovery operation command.

[0151] (A-6. Executing a search operation) A method for performing a search operation will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0152] (A-6-1. Search operation decision processing flow) 16 is a flow chart showing an example of a search command determination process flow by the pre-discovery operation determination section 2200. In particular, in FIG. 16, a detailed process flow of step 102 in the control flow shown in FIG.

[0153] First, the pre-discovery company operation determination unit 2210 determines the operation of the company (a collection of multiple platoons) during search (step 201). In this step, for example, the organization of the multiple platoons that make up the company and company-level operation commands as shown in FIG. 10 are determined. Here, the organization of the platoon and the operation commands may be determined by determining the operation area allocation for each platoon according to the alert level and search rate for each area. Furthermore, when changing the organization by swapping unmanned crafts 1010 between multiple platoons, it is possible to determine whether to swap unmanned crafts 1010 between multiple platoons according to the alert level set for each area, the search rate, the internal state of each platoon, the operation status of each platoon shown in FIG. 11, and the like.

[0154] Next, the pre-discovery platoon action determination unit 2220 determines the actions of the platoon during the search (step 202). In this step, for example, roles such as those shown in Fig. 11 are determined for each platoon.

[0155] Next, the pre-discovery platoon operation determination unit 2220 determines the role of each unmanned craft 1010 belonging to the platoon in accordance with the role determined for each platoon (step 203).

[0156] Next, the information determined in each of the above steps is displayed (step 204). In this step, the determined information is displayed on the display unit 2810 or the user terminal device 8000.

[0157] Next, user input information is received by the user input receiving unit 2820 (step 205). In this step, the contents determined in each of the above steps can be modified in accordance with the received user input information.

[0158] (A-6-2. Example of display of search operation decision result) Fig. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a display in which a search command determined by the pre-discovery operation determination unit 2200 is proposed to a user. In the example shown in Fig. 17, the search target area and the locations of multiple platoons (platoons A, B, C, and D) are displayed on a map. Also, information on the role (patrol monitoring, anchorage monitoring, etc.) determined for each platoon is displayed. Furthermore, the planned patrol route of platoon A, which will perform patrol monitoring, is displayed on the map.

[0159] 17, the planned patrol route for platoon A generated by the pre-discovery operation determination unit 2200 is a patrol route that passes through positions that are at least a certain distance away from the other platoons B, C, and D, and the planned patrol route is generated so as to avoid collisions between the platoons. In addition to the planned patrol route, the pre-discovery operation determination unit 2200 may also allocate an activity area for each platoon. When allocating an activity area for each platoon, the activity area allocation for each platoon may be determined according to the alert level and search rate for each area.

[0160] In addition to the planned patrol route, the pre-discovery operation determination unit 2200 can also determine changes in the formation of each platoon during search (formation expansion / contraction, formation division, etc.). In this case, to prevent the distance between the unmanned vessels from increasing and communication being interrupted due to the formation change, the pre-discovery operation determination unit 2200 monitors the relative distance and communication strength between the unmanned vessels in real time, and determines the formation change within a range that maintains the relative distance at which communication is possible and communication. It can also determine the method of changing the formation when the platoons pass each other, and which platoons should be given priority when passing each other.

[0161] Furthermore, at the bottom of the screen, operation buttons are displayed for approving or modifying the proposed and displayed platoon operations, such as the placement, role, and planned patrol route for each platoon. The supervisory control system 2000 can accept user input information via these operation buttons.

[0162] Although not shown in Figure 17, when a surveillance vessel of the cooperative system 5000 or the like is monitoring an area outside the search target area of ​​the unmanned boat system 1000, it is possible to predict the areas and times that will be unmonitored near the border with the surveillance area of ​​the cooperative system 5000, and to generate a planned patrol route that temporarily extends beyond the search target area into the external area so that the area near the border is not unmonitored for a certain period of time.

[0163] (A-6-3. Search operation execution process flow) 18 is a flow chart showing an example of a search operation execution process flow, in particular, a detailed process flow of step 103 in the control flow shown in FIG.

[0164] First, the unmanned boat information acquisition unit 2140 acquires information from the unmanned boat 1010 (step 301).

[0165] Next, the unmanned boat status determination unit 2300 determines the status of each unmanned boat 1010 that constitutes the company and the platoon (step 302).

[0166] Next, the performance estimation unit 2320 estimates various performance characteristics that the unmanned watercraft 1010 can exhibit, such as measurement performance, power performance, and communication performance (step 303).

[0167] Next, the pre-discovery operation determination unit 2200 updates the search command based on the state of the unmanned watercraft 1010 and various performance information (step 304).

[0168] Next, the update information of the search command determined in step 304 is output and displayed (step 305). In this step, the update information is output and displayed on the display unit 2810 or the user terminal device 8000.

[0169] Next, user input information is received by the user input receiving unit 2820 (step 205). In this step, the above-mentioned search command can be modified according to the received user input information.

[0170] (A-7. Determining the state of an object and predicting its future state) The state determination of the object 7000 and the platoon state prediction will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0171] (A-7-1. Object Status Determination Processing Flow) 19 is a flow chart showing an example of the object state determination process flow by the object detection and determination unit 2400. In particular, FIG. 19 describes the detailed process flow of step 105 in the control flow shown in FIG.

[0172] First, the unmanned boat information acquisition unit 2140 acquires measurement data measured by the unmanned boat 1010 (step 401).

[0173] Next, the object detection unit 2410 determines whether the object 7000 has been detected or not (step 402).

[0174] Next, the object state determining unit 2420 determines various states of the object 7000 (step 403). In this step, for example, various states as shown in FIG.

[0175] Next, information relating to the detection result and state determination result of the object 7000 determined in step 402 or step 403 is output and displayed (step 404). In this step, the state information is output and displayed on the display unit 2810 or the user terminal device 8000.

[0176] Next, user input information is received by the user input receiving unit 2820 (step 405). In this step, the detection determination result and state information of the target object 7000 can be corrected according to the received user input information.

[0177] (A-7-2. Processing flow for predicting future state of object) 20 is a flow chart showing an example of a processing flow for predicting a future state of an object by the future state prediction unit 2500. In particular, in FIG. 20, a detailed processing flow of step 106 in the control flow shown in FIG. 14 will be explained.

[0178] First, the future object motion prediction unit 2510 predicts and calculates the future motion state of the object 7000 (step 501).

[0179] Next, the performance estimation unit 2320 predicts various future performances of the unmanned watercraft (step 502).

[0180] Next, the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 predicts the future monitoring state of the object 7000 by the unmanned watercraft 1010 (step 503).

[0181] Next, the future monitoring state prediction unit 2520 predicts the conditions for the unmanned watercraft 1010 to continue monitoring the object 7000 (step 504).

[0182] Next, the prediction results calculated in each step described above are displayed (step 505). In this step, the prediction results are displayed on the display unit 2810 or the user terminal device 8000.

[0183] Next, user input information is received by the user input receiving unit 2820 (step 506). In this step, the above-mentioned prediction information can be corrected in accordance with the received user input information.

[0184] (A-7-3. Example of displaying the future state prediction results of the object) Fig. 21 is a diagram showing an example of a display that suggests to a user the result of the future state prediction by the future state prediction unit 2500. In the example shown in Fig. 21, the initial discovery position of the object 7000, its movement history, its current position and orientation, and a predicted movement route predicted by the future state prediction unit 2500 are displayed on a map.

[0185] Furthermore, at the bottom of the screen, operation buttons for approving or correcting the proposed and displayed forecast information, etc. The overall control system 2000 can accept information input by the user via these operation buttons.

[0186] Furthermore, when the activity area of ​​the unmanned boat 1010 is defined in advance, the future state prediction unit 2500 may have a function to predict, based on the activity area and the future state prediction of the object 7000, the position and time at which the object 7000 will exit the activity area in the future, or the position and time at which the object 7000, having once exited, will re-enter the activity area. In this case, information relating to the prediction result is displayed on the display screen shown in FIG.

[0187] (A-8. How to determine the company's post-discovery action order) A method for determining an action command for a squadron after an object 7000 is discovered will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0188] (A-8-1. Decision process flow for operational commands after discovery of the company) 22 is a flow chart showing an example of a process flow for determining a post-discovery operation of a company by the company control command decision unit 2600. In particular, FIG. 22 describes the detailed process flow of step 107 in the control flow shown in FIG.

[0189] First, the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 determines roles required at the company level (step 601). In this step, for example, roles required for a company, which is a collection of multiple platoons, are determined. Here, the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 can determine roles that should be preferentially performed at the company level according to the future state prediction result by the future state prediction unit 2500. In other words, it determines the role that should be preferentially performed from various roles (encirclement, delay, advance, pursuit, taking over pursuit, ambush, etc.). Note that priority information and priority order information for the various roles described above may be set in advance.

[0190] Here, the various roles assigned to the unmanned boat 1010 can be defined, for example, as follows: tracking is an action of moving in the vicinity of the object 7000 while following the movement of the object 7000, tracking takeover is an action of the unmanned boat taking on the main role of following the movement of the object 7000 while also joining in the tracking, anticipation is an action of the unmanned boat moving ahead of the predicted movement path of the object 7000 without joining in the tracking, and surrounding is an action of the unmanned boat not joining in the tracking and surrounding the object 7000 without moving even when the object 7000 approaches.

[0191] Next, the intra-company role allocation determining unit 2610 determines the role allocation for each platoon within the company (step 602).

[0192] Next, the intra-company organization determination unit 2620 determines the organization of the multiple platoons within the company (step 603).

[0193] Next, the intra-company deployment target determination unit 2630 determines deployment targets for multiple platoons within the company (step 604).

[0194] Next, the determination results calculated in each step described above are displayed (step 605). In this step, the determination results are displayed on the display unit 2810 or the user terminal device 8000.

[0195] Next, user input information is received by the user input receiving unit 2820 (step 606). In this step, the above-mentioned determination result can be corrected according to the received user input information.

[0196] (A-8-2. Example of Company-level Operation Command Proposal Information Display) Fig. 23 is a diagram showing an example of a display in which a user is suggested a result of a decision on a company's post-discovery action by the company control command decision unit 2600. In the example shown in Fig. 23, the current position and orientation of the object 7000, a predicted future movement route, and the positions and formations of multiple platoons (platoons A, B, C, and D) belonging to the company, a tracking start position, and a tracking takeover position are displayed on a map.

[0197] Also, the roles assigned to each platoon are displayed at the bottom of the screen. In the example shown in this figure, the roles of pursuit are assigned to platoon A, pursuit handover to platoon B, and ambush (surveillance and capture) to platoons C and D. Furthermore, operation buttons for approving or correcting the proposed post-discovery actions are displayed at the bottom of the screen. The overall control system 2000 can accept user input information via these operation buttons.

[0198] (A-9. Variations of post-discovery behavior) There are a number of variations in the post-discovery action determined by the squadron control command determination unit 2600. Each variation of the post-discovery action will be described with reference to Figs. 24 to 28.

[0199] (A-9-1. First pattern of post-discovery behavior) Fig. 24 is a diagram showing the execution of the first post-discovery operation determined by the company control command determination unit 2600. The example shown in Fig. 24 particularly shows a pattern in which there is no change in the number of multiple platoons constituting the company, or no replacement or movement of the unmanned vessels 1010 between the platoons. The upper diagram in Fig. 24 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A, B, C, D) in the company at time t1 before the reorganization of the multiple platoons and the determination of the role of each platoon are performed.

[0200] The diagram in the center of Figure 24 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A, B, C, D) in the company at time t2 after the reorganization of the multiple platoons and the determination of the roles for each platoon. In the pattern shown in this figure, the number of multiple platoons and the replacement or movement of unmanned vessels 1010 between platoons do not occur, so the organization of each platoon remains unchanged from time t1 and roles are assigned to each platoon. Platoon A is assigned the role of surveillance and acquisition, platoon B is assigned to take over tracking, and platoons C and D are assigned to tracking.

[0201] The lower diagram in Fig. 24 shows the planned movement route of each platoon at time t3 when the deployment command for each platoon is executed. In the example shown in this diagram, platoons C and D, which are assigned the role of tracking, move to the vicinity of the tracking start position of the target 7000 in response to the deployment command. Platoon B, which is assigned the role of taking over tracking, moves to the vicinity of the tracking handover position. Platoon A, which is assigned the role of surveillance and capture (ambush), moves to a position ahead of the predicted movement route (dotted arrow) of the target 7000.

[0202] Here, platoon B, which is assigned the role of taking over tracking, moves to the vicinity of the predicted movement path of the object 7000 and takes over the role of tracking from platoon A or platoon D, which are currently tracking. Also, platoon A, which is assigned the role of surveillance and capture (ambush), moves to the vicinity of the predicted loss position and waits, depending on the predicted lost position and predicted lost time, which are determined to be the future impossible position for tracking. In this way, the movement destination position of the object 7000 is predicted according to the predicted movement path, movement speed, past movement history, etc. of the object 7000, and multiple platoons are positioned near the predicted movement path so that tracking can be performed for a long time. At this time, the platoon that takes over tracking or surveillance and capture (ambush) performs the movement to the target position as a top priority, and the operation of adjusting the platoon's formation can be performed after arriving at the target position.

[0203] (A-9-2. Second pattern of post-discovery behavior) Next, Fig. 25 is a diagram showing the execution of the second post-discovery operation determined by the company control command determination unit 2600. The example shown in Fig. 25 particularly shows a pattern in which the number and size of the multiple platoons constituting the company do not change, but the unmanned vessels 1010 are replaced between the platoons. The upper diagram in Fig. 25 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A, B, C, D) in the company at time t1 before the reorganization of the multiple platoons. At time t1, the allocation of roles to the unmanned vessels 1010 constituting each platoon is determined.

[0204] The central diagram in Figure 25 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A, B, C, D) in the company at time t2 after the reorganization of multiple platoons. In the pattern shown in this figure, unmanned vessels 1010 are swapped between platoons according to the roles determined for the unmanned vessels 1010, and each platoon is organized according to the role. Note that the number and size of each platoon after organization remains unchanged from time t1. Platoon A is assigned the role of surveillance and acquisition, platoon B is assigned to take over tracking, and platoons C and D are assigned to tracking.

[0205] The lower diagram in Fig. 25 shows the planned movement route of each platoon at time t3 when the deployment command for each platoon is executed. In the example shown in this diagram, platoons C and D, which are assigned the role of tracking, move to the vicinity of the tracking start position of the target object 7000 in response to the deployment command. Platoon B, which is assigned the role of taking over tracking, moves to the vicinity of the tracking handover position. Platoon A, which is assigned the role of surveillance and capture, moves to a position ahead of the predicted movement route of the target object 7000 (dotted arrow).

[0206] (A-9-3. Third pattern of post-discovery behavior) FIG. 26 is a diagram showing a state in which the third post-discovery operation determined by the company control command determination unit 2600 is executed. The example shown in FIG. 26 particularly shows a pattern in which the unmanned craft 1010 is replaced among a plurality of platoons constituting a company, and the number of platoons and the size of each platoon are changed. The upper diagram in FIG. 26 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A, B, C, and D) in the company at time t1 before the reorganization of the plurality of platoons. At time t1, the allocation of roles to the unmanned craft 1010 constituting each platoon is determined. In the example shown in this figure, all the unmanned crafts 1010 of platoons A and B, and some of the unmanned crafts 1010 of platoons C and D are assigned the role of encirclement, and the other part of the unmanned crafts 1010 of platoons C and D are assigned the role of surveillance and capture.

[0207] The diagram in the center of Figure 26 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A and C) in the company at time t2 after the reorganization of multiple platoons. In the pattern shown in this figure, unmanned vessels 1010 are swapped between platoons according to the roles determined for the unmanned vessels 1010, and two platoons, A and C, are organized for each role. Platoon A is composed of multiple unmanned vessels assigned the role of encirclement, and Platoon C is composed of multiple unmanned vessels assigned the role of surveillance and capture.

[0208] The lower diagram of Fig. 26 shows the planned movement route of each platoon at time t3 when the deployment command for each platoon is executed. In the example shown in this diagram, platoon A, which is assigned the role of encirclement, deploys in response to the deployment command so as to block the progress of the object 7000 on the predicted movement route of the object 7000. In addition, platoon C, which is assigned the role of surveillance and capture, moves, for example, to a position where the object 7000 can be detected.

[0209] (A-9-4. Fourth pattern of post-discovery behavior) FIG. 27 is a diagram showing a state in which the fourth post-discovery operation determined by the company control command determination unit 2600 is executed. The example shown in FIG. 27 particularly shows a pattern in which the unmanned craft 1010 is replaced between multiple platoons constituting a company, the number of platoons and the size of each platoon are changed, and multiple roles are assigned to the platoon after the reorganization. The upper diagram of FIG. 27 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A, B, C, and D) in the company at time t1 before the reorganization of the multiple platoons. At time t1, the assignment of roles to the unmanned crafts 1010 constituting each platoon is determined. Here, multiple roles of encirclement and recovery charging are assigned to some of the unmanned crafts 1010 in platoon B. Also, multiple roles of encirclement and primary analysis processing are assigned to some of the unmanned crafts 1010 in platoon C.

[0210] The central diagram in Fig. 27 shows the formation and communication network configuration of each platoon (platoons A and C) in the company at time t2 after the reorganization of multiple platoons. In the pattern shown in this figure, unmanned vessels 1010 are swapped between platoons according to the roles determined for the unmanned vessels 1010, and two platoons, A and C, are organized for each role. Platoon A is composed of multiple unmanned vessels assigned the roles of encirclement, primary analysis processing, and recovery charging, while Platoon C is composed of multiple unmanned vessels assigned the roles of surveillance and capture.

[0211] The lower diagram of Fig. 27 shows the planned movement route of each platoon at time t3 when the deployment command for each platoon is executed. In the example shown in this diagram, platoon A, which is assigned the role of encirclement, deploys in response to the deployment command so as to block the progress of the object 7000 on the predicted movement route of the object 7000. Note that the unmanned boats 1010 in platoon A, which are assigned roles other than encirclement (recovery charging, primary analysis processing), perform the roles of recovery charging and primary analysis processing in parallel with the encirclement mission. Also, platoon C, which is assigned the role of surveillance and capture, moves, for example, to a position where the object 7000 can be detected.

[0212] (A-9-5. The fifth pattern of post-discovery behavior) Fig. 28 is a diagram showing the execution of the fifth post-discovery operation determined by the company control command determination unit 2600. The example shown in Fig. 28 particularly shows the state at time t4 when the composition of the company is reconstructed after time t3 in a pattern in which the number of platoons and the size of each platoon are changed by replacing the unmanned crafts 1010 between the multiple platoons that make up the company as shown in Fig. 26 and Fig. 27. The upper diagram in Fig. 28 shows the deployment of each platoon (platoons A and C) in the company at time t3 when the deployment command for each platoon is executed, and shows the same situation as time t3 shown in Fig. 26 and Fig. 27.

[0213] The lower diagram of Fig. 28 shows an example in which the encirclement of Platoon A is broken by object 7000, and the organization of Platoon A is restructured. In the example shown in this diagram, Platoon A is divided into three new platoons, and the roles of pursuit, pursuit handover, and surveillance and acquisition are assigned to the three new platoons. In addition, the role of Platoon C, which was assigned the role of surveillance and acquisition at time t3, is updated to pursuit.

[0214] Therefore, at time t4, the two platoons newly assigned to the tracking role will track the object 7000, the platoon assigned to take over the tracking role will move ahead of the predicted path of movement of the object 7000, and the platoon assigned to the surveillance and capture role will move to a position where the object 7000 can be detected.

[0215] (A-10. Method for determining operation commands after detecting an unmanned vessel) A method for determining an operation command for the unmanned watercraft 1010 after the object 7000 is discovered will be described below with reference to FIGS. 29 and 30. FIG.

[0216] (A-10-1. Processing flow for deciding on operation commands after detecting an unmanned vessel) 29 is a flowchart showing an example of a process flow for determining an action to be taken after the unmanned boat 1010 is discovered, performed by the platoon control command decision unit 2700. In particular, FIG. 29 explains the detailed process flow of step 108 in the control flow shown in FIG.

[0217] First, the role within the platoon determining unit 2710 determines the role of each unmanned boat (step 701).

[0218] Next, the intra-platoon movement target determining unit 2720 determines movement targets such as movement target positions and movement target times for each unmanned boat (step 702).

[0219] Next, the determination results calculated in each step described above are displayed (step 703). In this step, the determination results are displayed on the display unit 2810 or the user terminal device 8000.

[0220] Next, user input information is received by the user input receiving unit 2820 (step 704). In this step, the above-mentioned determination result can be corrected according to the received user input information.

[0221] (A-10-2. Example of display of suggested information for action commands after discovery of unmanned vessel) Fig. 30 is a diagram showing an example of a display in which the result of the decision made by the platoon control command decision unit 2700 on the post-discovery operation of the unmanned boat 1010 is proposed to the user. In the example shown in Fig. 30, the current position and orientation of the target object 7000, a predicted future movement path, and the positions and formations of multiple platoons (platoons A, B, C, and D) belonging to the company, the tracking start position, and the tracking handover position are displayed on a map.

[0222] Also, detailed information on the multiple unmanned boats 1010 belonging to any platoon (e.g., platoon 1000a) selected by the user on the map is displayed, such as the identification information of each unmanned boat 1010 constituting platoon 1000a, the assigned role (role 1, role 2), the location of the unmanned boats, and the identification information of the aircraft that is the communication destination connected via the wireless communication network.

[0223] Furthermore, at the bottom of the screen, operation buttons are displayed that allow the user to approve or modify the proposed post-discovery action. The supervisory control system 2000 can receive user input information via these operation buttons.

[0224] (A-11. Execution process of action after discovery) The execution process of the post-discovery operation will be described below with reference to Fig. 31 to Fig. 33. Fig. 31 is a state transition diagram showing the execution state of the role of each platoon when executing the post-discovery operation. Fig. 31 is a state transition diagram showing the role execution state of each platoon in particular when the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 commands a single role for each platoon. The intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 judges the role execution state of each platoon shown in Fig. 31 and determines the role to be commanded next.

[0225] 31, the role of each platoon determined by the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 can include response actions (including pursuit, encirclement, delay, advance, taking over pursuit, continuous capture or ambush, etc.), auxiliary support actions (including communication supplement, data accumulation / transmission / reception, primary analysis processing, etc.) that provide auxiliary support for the pursuit of the discovered object 7000, and other common actions (recovery charging, etc.). Also, in the example shown in this figure, any one of the response actions, auxiliary support actions, and common actions such as recovery charging, etc., shown in the figure can be determined as the role of the platoon.

[0226] In the above-mentioned Fig. 31, a state transition diagram of the role execution state of each platoon is shown when the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 designates a single role for each platoon, but this embodiment is not limited to this, and the intra-company role allocation determination unit 2610 can also designate multiple roles for each platoon. Figs. 32 and 33 show the role execution state of each platoon when multiple roles are designated for each platoon in this way.

[0227] Fig. 32 is a state transition diagram showing the execution state of roles related to response actions for each platoon when performing post-discovery operations. Fig. 33 is a state transition diagram showing the execution state of roles related to auxiliary support actions for each platoon when performing post-discovery operations. The state transitions shown in Fig. 32 and the state transitions shown in Fig. 33 can operate simultaneously in parallel. Therefore, while one of the roles of the response actions shown in Fig. 32 is being executed, one of the roles of the auxiliary support actions shown in Fig. 33 can be executed in parallel.

[0228] (A-12. Hardware configuration) 34 is a hardware configuration diagram of a supervisory control system 2000. Here, the supervisory control system 2000 in the present invention is an information processing device such as a server device or a PC. As shown in the figure, the supervisory control system 2000 has an input device 100, an output device 200, a processing device 300, a main memory device 400, an auxiliary memory device 500, a communication device 600, and a bus 700 that electrically connects these devices.

[0229] The input device 100 can constitute the user input receiving unit 2820, and is a device for a user to input information and instructions to the integrated control system 2000. Specifically, the input device 100 is, for example, a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, or a voice input device such as a microphone.

[0230] The output device 200 is a device that outputs various information generated by the overall control system 2000, and can constitute the display unit 2810. Specifically, the output device 200 can constitute the display unit 2810 using a display device for eyewear, AR, or VR, or can be a printer or a speaker.

[0231] The processing device 300 is, for example, a device that performs arithmetic processing. Specifically, the processing device 300 is, for example, a CPU, a microprocessor, a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or other semiconductor devices capable of performing calculations.

[0232] The main storage device 400 is a memory device such as a RAM that temporarily stores various read information and a ROM that stores programs and application programs executed by the processing device 300 and various other information. The auxiliary storage device 500 is a non-volatile storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a flash memory that can store digital information. The communication device 600 is a device that performs information communication with the outside wirelessly or via a wire.

[0233] In the above embodiment, a control system 1 is described that utilizes a group 1000 consisting of multiple unmanned boats 1010 that perform activities on the sea or on water, but the present invention is not limited to ships such as the unmanned boat 1010, and can be applied to any moving body or unmanned aircraft, such as an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of moving in the air, an unmanned submarine capable of moving underwater, or an unmanned vehicle capable of moving on land.

[0234] The above-described embodiment is merely an example for facilitating understanding of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention can be modified or improved without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and it goes without saying that the present invention includes equivalents thereof.

[0235] [A-2. Effects of this embodiment] The above-described embodiment provides a system or a control method that can more efficiently carry out activities such as surveillance and investigation using multiple mobile objects. As an example, by determining the organization of multiple platoons, including the number and size of the multiple platoons, depending on the situation, it is possible to more efficiently carry out activities such as surveillance and investigation using multiple mobile objects. [Explanation of symbols]

[0236] 1...Control system (system) 100...input device 200...output device 300... Processing device 400... Main storage device 500... Auxiliary storage device 600... Communication device 700…Bus 1000…Unmanned Boat System 1001... Parent unit 1002... Child unit 10021: Primary connection slave unit 10022: Secondary connection slave unit 10023…Tertiary connection slave unit 1010...Unmanned boat 1100...Measuring unit 1110...Measuring sensor 1120: Measurement control unit 1200: Aircraft state determination unit 1210: Navigation state determination unit 1220: Internal state determination unit 1230: External state determination unit 1300: Navigation section 1310: Thrust generation section 1320: Attitude control mechanism 1330: Navigation control unit 1400…Communication section 1410…Unmanned vessel communication section 1420…General Control and Communications Department 1500…Judgment section 1600: Recording section 1610: Measurement data recording section 1620: Own aircraft status recording section 1630: Judgment information recording section 2000…Comprehensive control system 2100: Information import unit 2110: Activity condition acquisition unit 2120: Object determination condition 2130: Status definition acquisition unit 2140…Unmanned boat information acquisition department 2200... Pre-discovery action decision unit 2210... Pre-discovery squadron action decision unit 2220… Pre-discovery Platoon Action Decision Unit 2300: Unmanned boat state determination unit 2310: State detection unit 2320...Performance estimation section 2400... object detection determination unit 2410... object detection unit 2420…Object state determination unit 2500... Future state prediction unit 2510... Future object operation prediction unit 2520…Future monitoring state prediction section 2600: Company Control Command Decision Section 2610: Company Role Allocation Decision Section 2620…Company formation determination unit 2630…Company deployment target determination unit 2700: Platoon control command decision section 2710: Platoon role decision section 2720…Platoon Mobile Target Determination Division 2800...Information input / output section 2810...Display section 2820: User input reception unit 2830: Command transmission output unit 2840…Information transmission unit 3000...Communication satellite 4000...Ground base station 5000... Collaborative system 6000... External system 7000: Object 8000: User terminal device

Claims

1. A control system for detecting an object by controlling the operation of a plurality of moving objects equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting the object, comprising: an object detection unit that detects the object based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor; a unit organization command decision unit that decides an organization command regarding the organization of a platoon for organizing a single platoon or a plurality of platoons by a plurality of the moving objects; A control system in which, when the object detection unit detects the object, the unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command for the platoon depending on the current state or future predicted state of the detected object.

2. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system, wherein the organization command for the platoon determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes information regarding the number of the platoon.

3. 2. The control system of claim 1, The unit organization command determination unit determines a role for one or more of the platoons depending on the current state or future predicted state of the object, and determines the organization command including designation information for the number of the platoons depending on the role.

4. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system, wherein the platoon organization command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes information regarding the number of mobile objects belonging to each platoon of a single or multiple platoons.

5. 2. The control system of claim 1, The unit organization command determination unit determines a role for one or more of the platoons depending on the current state or future predicted state of the object, and determines the organization command including designation information for the number of moving objects belonging to each platoon depending on the role.

6. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system, wherein the organization command for the platoon determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes command information for switching the mobile bodies belonging to multiple platoons between multiple platoons.

7. 2. The control system of claim 1, a user input receiving unit that receives user input information related to the organization of the platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command for the platoon in response to the user input information, the control system.

8. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system, wherein the organization command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes information specifying the organization contents of the platoon, which is composed of a plurality of the mobile bodies that are directly connected to each other via a wireless communication network or indirectly connected via other the mobile bodies.

9. 9. The control system of claim 8, The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command, which includes information regarding the connection configuration of the multiple mobile bodies via the wireless communication network, in accordance with the determined organization content of the platoon, in a control system.

10. 10. The control system of claim 9, a user input receiving unit that receives user input information related to the organization of the platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the organization command, which includes information regarding the connection configuration of the wireless communication network of the platoon, in response to the user input information, in a control system.

11. 2. The control system of claim 1, The unit organization command determination unit determines a platoon operation command that specifies a role for each of the single or multiple platoons, a control system.

12. 12. The control system of claim 11, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: Pursuing, surrounding, arresting, taking over the pursuit, continuing to measure and capture, or lying in wait for said object; Or storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data; or relaying communication with other mobile units; Or charging a power storage device mounted on the moving object, The control system includes information that designates at least one of the roles for each platoon.

13. 12. The control system of claim 11, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: A first role includes pursuing, encircling, stalling, taking over the pursuit, capturing, or lying in wait for said target; A second role including at least one of storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data, and relaying communication between other mobile bodies; A control system including information that designates either one of the roles for each platoon.

14. 12. The control system of claim 11, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: A first role includes pursuing, encircling, stalling, taking over the pursuit, capturing, or lying in wait for said target; A second role including at least one of storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data, and relaying communication between other mobile bodies; The control system includes information specifying the roles of both the above for each platoon.

15. 12. The control system of claim 11, The platoon operation command determined by the unit organization command determination unit includes: A first role includes pursuing, encircling, stalling, taking over the pursuit, capturing, or lying in wait for said target; A second role including at least one of storing, transmitting, receiving, or analyzing the measurement data, and relaying communication between other mobile bodies; information that designates one of the roles for a portion of the plurality of platoons; A control system including information assigning both the first role and the second role to other portions of a plurality of the platoons.

16. 16. A control system according to claim 13, 14 or 15, a user input receiving unit configured to receive user input information regarding a role of each platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the platoon operation command regarding the role of each platoon in response to the user input information, the control system.

17. 12. The control system of claim 11, The unit organization command determination unit determines a mobile object operation command including at least one of a role and a moving target for at least a portion of the mobile objects belonging to the platoon in accordance with the platoon operation command for a role specified for each platoon, in accordance with the platoon operation command for each platoon.

18. 12. The control system of claim 11, The unit organization command determination unit determines a movement target including at least one of a movement target position and a movement target time for each platoon in accordance with the platoon operation command for a role designated for each platoon, in a control system.

19. 2. The control system of claim 1, The unit organization command determination unit includes: A control system that determines a platoon deployment command regarding the formation or deployment of a platoon, which includes at least one of the formation position, formation time, or formation shape of each platoon when forming the platoon with the determined formation content, or the target movement position, target movement time, or the target movement position and target movement time of each platoon after the platoon with the determined formation content is formed.

20. 20. The control system of claim 19, a user input receiving unit configured to receive user input information related to the content of a platoon deployment command for each platoon; The unit organization command determination unit determines the platoon deployment command for the platoon in response to the user input information, a control system.

21. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system comprising a display unit that displays and outputs information regarding the commands generated by the unit organization command determination unit.

22. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system comprising a control command transmission unit that transmits commands generated by the unit organization command determination unit to the mobile body.

23. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system comprising an information transmitting unit that transmits information regarding the command generated by the unit organization command determining unit to an outside.

24. 2. The control system of claim 1, A control system, wherein the mobile body is an unmanned vessel capable of moving on the sea by remote control or autonomous navigation or automatic navigation, and detects the target object using the measurement sensor.

25. A control method for detecting an object by controlling the operation of a plurality of moving objects equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting the object, comprising: an object detection step of detecting the object based on measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor; A control method which executes a unit organization command determination step, which, when an object is detected by the object detection step, determines an organization command which specifies the organization contents of the platoon for forming a single or multiple platoons using multiple moving objects, depending on the current state or future predicted state of the detected object.

26. A program for controlling the operation of a plurality of moving objects equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting an object, and detecting the object, comprising: On the computer, an object detection command for detecting the object based on the measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor; A program that executes a unit organization command determination command that determines, when an object is detected based on the measurement data, an organization command that specifies the organization contents of the platoon to organize a single or multiple platoons using multiple moving bodies, depending on the current state or future predicted state of the detected object.

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