Carrying type deep sea off-line high-definition image system

Abstract

The invention provides a carrying type deep sea off-line high-definition image system which is installed on a deep sea sampler and mainly comprises an illumination unit, a camera shooting unit and a control unit. Wherein the illumination unit, the camera shooting unit and the control unit are all connected with the deep sea sampler through quick-release assemblies. The control unit is connected with the illumination unit and the camera shooting unit and used for controlling and recording shot videos. The camera unit is provided with a camera and a cleaning assembly, and the cleaning assembly is used for cleaning lens dirt of the camera. The system is simple in structure and low in cost, the sampler is improved through a convenient installation structure and mode, the system can be conveniently carried on ocean scientific investigation equipment such as different forms of samplers, the complete process of seabed sampling of the box type sampler can be simply and efficiently recorded, and the defect that existing equipment lacks sampling process video data is overcome; furthermore, in-situ cleaning can be carried out on the lens in combination with a dirt cleaning assembly, and the image quality is prevented from being affected by attached sediments.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of marine resource development, and in particular relates to a mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system. Background Art

[0002] With the rapid development of economy and manufacturing, land-based mineral resources are being consumed rapidly. As a result, people have turned their attention to the oceans, which have rich mineral deposits.

[0003] In recent years, countries with coastal territories have intensified their exploration of deep-sea mineral resources and have developed extensive mineral resource technology reserves. Currently, with the growing market share of new energy vehicles, demand for their energy storage units has also surged. Currently, the energy storage units used in mainstream new energy vehicles are lithium batteries, and lithium battery production requires vast quantities of minerals. Years of offshore surveys have revealed vast deposits of polymetallic manganese nodules and polymetallic manganese-cobalt crusts on the deep seabed, which contain crucial raw materials for lithium battery production.

[0004] Before mining lithium battery-related marine minerals, it's necessary to accurately determine the mineral resource volume in the mining area, necessitating seafloor surveys and sampling. Geological chamber samplers are a common survey device used in recent marine scientific expeditions. To maintain environmental responsibility, current deep-sea mining must adhere to sustainable development and green environmental goals. Therefore, mineral resource surveys must also include an investigation of the mining area's ecological environment. Environmental chamber samplers are a frequently used survey device in marine ecological and environmental surveys.

[0005] Most of the international seafloor polymetallic nodule and crust mining areas are located in the Pacific Ocean, at an average depth of over 5,000 meters. During mining area surveys, extensive chamber sampling is performed. Both geological chamber samplers and environmental chamber samplers are lowered to the seafloor using a 10,000-meter winch aboard a research vessel to collect surface sediments. Each chamber sampling run can take anywhere from six hours to eight hours. During this time, chamber samplers are often affected by multiple factors, including sea conditions, seafloor geology, and lowering speed, leading to frequent sampling failures. While some phenomena can be analyzed to understand the causes of sampling failure, the lack of image data makes direct and rapid analysis impossible. Furthermore, image data analysis is required to understand the extent of the sample disturbance caused by the chamber samplers during seafloor sampling.

[0006] In the existing technology, there is a visual box-type device used in marine scientific research surveys that can obtain image data of the entire sampling process of the box sampler. However, the visual system is expensive and complicated to use and maintain. Moreover, replacing the equipment will cause the existing mature equipment to lose its value, resulting in waste, and additional personnel training is required.

[0007] In summary, a low-cost, simple and efficient improvement solution is still needed to enable the existing box sampler to obtain high-definition image data during the seabed sampling process, thereby providing reliable image data support for marine scientific investigations. Summary of the Invention

[0008] In view of the problems existing in the prior art, the present invention provides a mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system to solve the above problems.

[0009] To achieve the above object, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: The present invention provides a mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system, which is installed on a deep-sea sampler; the system comprises an illumination unit, a camera unit and a control unit; The illumination unit is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a first quick-release assembly; the camera unit is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a second quick-release assembly; and the control unit is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a third quick-release assembly. The control unit is connected to the illumination unit and the camera unit respectively; the control unit is internally integrated with at least an energy storage unit and a storage medium; the storage medium is used to record the video captured by the camera unit; The camera unit is provided with a camera and a cleaning component, and the cleaning component is used for cleaning dirt on the camera lens.

[0010] Furthermore, the cleaning component is an ultrasonic generator, and the execution end is connected to the lens of the camera.

[0011] Furthermore, the camera lens is a multi-layer lens structure, and at least one layer of protective lens is provided on the outside; The protective lens is fixedly connected to the execution end of the cleaning component.

[0012] Furthermore, the protective lens is in a sleeve structure, with an upper opening sleeved on the inner lens and a light-transmitting lens arranged at the lower end.

[0013] Furthermore, a labyrinth sealing structure is provided between the protective lens and the inner lens, and the space between the two lenses is water-permeable, and the gap of the labyrinth sealing structure is kept larger than the amplitude of the cleaning component.

[0014] Furthermore, the pollution cleaning component is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a first connecting piece; and the camera is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a second connecting piece.

[0015] Furthermore, the illumination unit is an LED lighting lamp; a pressure-resistant shell is provided on the outside of the illumination unit, and a plane lens is installed on the pressure-resistant shell.

[0016] Furthermore, the material of the pressure-resistant housing is 316 stainless steel, and the material of the plane lens is sapphire glass; The light wick of the illumination unit is a COB packaged white light LED; the power of the light wick is 80w-150w, the color temperature range is 4500K-6500K, and the maximum brightness is greater than or equal to 10000 lumens; The light emitting lamp core adopts a PWM dimming mode, and the shutter speed of the camera unit is set to adapt to the PWM dimming mode.

[0017] Furthermore, the outer side of the camera is provided with a pressure-resistant shell, and the shell material is 316 stainless steel; The camera internally adopts a low-light lens consisting of a 2.8mm fixed-focus lens and a dispersion-corrected lens group, and uses a 1 / 1.8-inch target surface CMOS image sensor.

[0018] Furthermore, a pressure-resistant shell is provided on the outside of the control unit, and the shell material is 316 stainless steel; The control unit is equipped with an ARM control board and a power supply board; The energy storage unit is a lithium battery pack with a capacity of at least greater than 7Ah.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: The present invention has a simple structure and low cost. The system improves the sampler through a convenient installation structure and method, and can be easily mounted on marine scientific research equipment with different purposes, such as geological box samplers and environmental box samplers. It can simply and efficiently record the complete process of seabed sampling by the box sampler, making up for the shortcoming of the existing equipment that lacks video data of the sampling process; further, combined with the cleaning component, the lens can be cleaned in situ to prevent attached sediments from affecting the image quality. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0021] Figure 1 A three-dimensional diagram of a geological box sampler installation system in a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 A stereoscopic diagram of a camera unit in a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a split view of the camera unit in a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4A cross-sectional view of a labyrinth seal structure in a specific embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 It is a three-dimensional diagram of the installation system of the environmental chamber sampler in a specific embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] In the figure: 1. control unit, 2. camera unit, 3. illumination unit, 201. double-layer connector, 202. protective lens, 203. camera pressure-resistant housing, 204. ultrasonic generator, 205. fan-shaped flange, 206. U-shaped tooth sealing ring, 207. straight tooth sealing ring. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] To make the purpose, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention more clear, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts shall fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0024] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters denote similar items in the following drawings, and therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it does not need to be further defined or explained in subsequent drawings.

[0025] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the relative relationships indicated by the terms "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", etc. are based on the order of contact with the material in the rotation direction in actual application. They are for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the equipment or components referred to must have a specific position. Therefore, they should not be understood as limitations on the present invention.

[0026] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of the technical features being referred to. Thus, a feature identified as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, "plurality" means two or more, unless otherwise specifically defined.

[0027] In the present invention, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, terms such as "mounted" and "connected" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they may refer to fixed connection, detachable connection, or integration; they may refer to direct connection or indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they may refer to internal communication between two components or interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on specific circumstances.

[0028] It should also be noted that the methods used in the present invention are all conventional methods unless otherwise specified; the raw materials and devices used are all conventional commercially available products unless otherwise specified.

[0029] This application provides a mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system, which is mounted on a deep-sea sampler. Figure 1 The geological box sampler shown is used as an example for explanation.

[0030] The system mainly includes an illumination unit 3 , a camera unit 2 and a control unit 1 .

[0031] The control unit 1 is a cylindrical, sealed chamber that connects to the sampler via a third quick-release assembly. Specifically, the third quick-release assembly includes a metal clamp and a connecting flange. The control unit 1 is fixedly connected to the connecting flange via the metal clamp and then secured to the lateral cavity of the sampler via bolts.

[0032] The exterior of the control unit 1 utilizes an independent, pressure-resistant, watertight structure, with a housing constructed of 316 stainless steel. The interior of the control unit 1 houses an ARM control board, power supply board, energy storage unit, and storage media. The ARM control board integrates an underwater control system, precisely controlling the power on and off times for the camera and lighting, enabling the system to automatically turn on or off at a pre-set time. The energy storage unit is a lithium battery pack with a capacity of at least 7Ah, preferably 7.8Ah in this embodiment. The power supply board is a 12-36VDC power supply that converts a 12-36VDC power input into a 24VDC output. This power conversion board converts the 12-36VDC power input into a stable 24VDC output, converting the lithium battery voltage into a stable 24VDC to power other devices. Its effective power is 120W. In the above structure, to facilitate installation and adaptability to different structural dimensions, the lithium battery and board are both mounted and fixed within the pressure-resistant cabin using 3D-printed mounting brackets.

[0033] Furthermore, the pressure-resistant control compartment end cap of the control unit 1 is equipped with four watertight connectors: three subconn small 16-pin female connectors (MCBH16F) and one MCBH16F small 3-pin female connector (MCBH3F). One of the small 16-pin female connectors and the small 3-pin female connector is left empty, plugged with corresponding watertight plugs for backup. The small 16-pin female connector A1 is used to power the camera and LED lighting in the pressure-resistant control compartment and connect the camera to the network. The pins are defined as follows: Pin 1 (Camera 24V+), Pin 2 (Camera 24V-), Pin 3 (Camera Network 6), Pin 4 (Camera Network 3), Pin 5 (Camera Network 2), Pin 6 (Camera Network 1), Pin 7 (LED 24V+), Pin 8 (LED Control), Pin 9 (LED GND), Pin 10 (Battery Negative Input), Pin 11 (Battery Negative Input), Pin 12 (Battery Negative Output), Pin 13 (Battery Negative Output), Pin 14 (Unconnected), Pin 15 (Unconnected), and Pin 16 (Unconnected). The small 16-pin female socket A2 is used to charge the lithium battery in the control compartment, set the ARM control board, and preview the camera's video and download video data. The wiring definition is: pin 1 empty, pin 2 empty, pin 3 camera network 6, pin 4 camera network 3, pin 5 camera network 2, pin 6 camera network 1, pin 7 serial port TX, pin 8 serial port RX, pin 9 serial port GND, pin 10 charge +, pin 11 charge +, pin 12 charge -, pin 13 charge -, pin 14 empty, pin 15 empty, pin 16 empty.

[0034] The control unit 1 connects to the illumination unit 3 and the camera unit 2, respectively, via a 1-to-2 watertight cable. This system connection cable consists of a Subconn 16-core male half-cable, a Subconn 8-core network female half-cable, and a Subconn standard 3-core female half-cable welded together. The welds are cured with 3M vulcanized rubber to ensure watertightness. The 16-core male connector connects to the pressure-resistant control compartment watertight socket A1, the 8-core network female connector connects to the camera unit 2, and the standard 3-core female connector connects to the illumination unit 3. The pinouts correspond to the pinouts on the connected devices' watertight sockets. The data cable is a Subconn 16-core male half-cable, welded with a 29.4V / 2A rechargeable lithium battery charger, a network port, and a serial port. To configure the ARM control board or copy camera image data, connect the 16-core male connector to the pressure-resistant control compartment watertight socket A2.

[0035] The illumination unit 3 is connected to the deep-sea sampler through a first quick-release assembly; wherein, the first quick-release assembly includes an X-shaped mounting seat and fasteners, the mounting seat is welded and fixed to the sampler, and is connected to the illumination unit 3 through fasteners. The illumination unit 3 of this embodiment is an LED lighting lamp, the outer side of which is provided with a cylindrical pressure-resistant shell, and a flat lens is installed on the pressure-resistant shell for light transmission. Furthermore, the pressure-resistant shell is made of 316 stainless steel, and the flat lens is made of sapphire glass. The light-emitting wick of the illumination unit is a COB packaged white light LED, and its parameters include: the power of the light-emitting wick is 80w-150w, preferably 100w in this embodiment; the color temperature range is 4500K-6500K, preferably 5300K; the maximum brightness of the light-emitting wick reaches 10,000 lumens. The driver board for the light wick utilizes a miniaturized, dedicated integrated circuit (ASIC) design. It supports 0-5V analog voltage and PWM dimming modes, and can control the light on and off via 5V TTL high and low level control. The rear cover features a standard 3-pin male BH3M subconn connector for receiving a 24VDC power supply and on / off control signals. The pinouts are defined as follows: pin 1 for 24VDC, pin 2 for GND, and pin 3 for 5V TTL on / off control signals. Furthermore, the camera unit's shutter speed is configured to match the PWM dimming mode to avoid dimming streaks in the image during capture.

[0036] The camera unit 2 is connected to the deep-sea sampler through a second quick-release assembly; the second quick-release assembly includes an X-shaped mounting seat and fasteners, the mounting seat is welded to the sampler and connected to the camera unit 2 through the fasteners. The camera unit is provided with a camera and a cleaning assembly, and the cleaning assembly is used to clean the dirt on the camera lens. In this embodiment, a separate protective shell is provided on the outside of the camera, which serves as a first connecting member and is fixedly connected to the X-shaped mounting seat. The first connecting member is fixedly connected to the camera pressure-resistant housing 203 of the camera, and the shell material is 316 stainless steel, which is used to protect the internal components of the camera. The camera uses a low-light lens composed of a 2.8mm fixed-focus lens and a dispersion-corrected lens group, and uses a 1 / 1.8-inch target surface CMOS image sensor. The camera's DSP board, video storage 512G and network control interface board adopt an integrated design, and the video recording reaches 2k (2560×1440) @25fps. The rear cover of the camera is equipped with a subconn small 8-pin male socket MCBH8M. This watertight socket is connected to the pressure-resistant control compartment through the system watertight connection cable, and receives the 24V power supply and the network signal for video preview copy. The pins of the small 8-pin male socket MCBH8M are defined as: Pin 1 VCC, Pin 2 GND, Pin 3 Network TX+, Pin 4 Network TX-, Pin 5 Network RX-, Pin 6 Network RX+, Pin 7 Unconnected, Pin 8 Unconnected. Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown, in this embodiment, a second connecting member is also provided for separately connecting the pollution cleaning component so that the pollution cleaning component is not directly connected to the camera. Accordingly, the second connecting member is a double-layer connecting member 201, and an I-shaped connecting seat is welded on the long strip bottom plate. The bottom plate is fixedly connected to the deep-sea sampler by screws, and the connecting seat is fixedly connected to the pollution cleaning component. Further, the pollution cleaning component of this embodiment is an ultrasonic generator 204, and its vibrating end is connected to the lens of the camera through a fan-shaped flange 205. Correspondingly, the lens of the camera of this embodiment is a multi-layer lens structure, and at least one layer of protective lens 202 is provided on the outside. The protective lens 202 is a sleeve structure, and the upper end opening is sleeved on the inner lens, and a light-transmitting lens is provided at the lower end. Correspondingly, a connecting flange is provided on the opening side of the protective lens 202, and is fixedly connected to the fan-shaped flange by bolts. Furthermore, in this embodiment, in order to balance the internal and external pressure difference and reduce impurities or sediments falling between the protective lens and the inner lens, a labyrinth sealing structure is installed between the two lenses, as shown in FIG. Figure 3 As shown, a U-shaped tooth seal ring 206 is installed on the inner ring of the protective lens 202, and a straight tooth seal ring 207 is installed on the inner lens. The two can be combined to form Figure 4 The simplified labyrinth sealing structure shown in the figure maintains its gap to meet the water permeability requirements, so that it can automatically balance the internal and external pressure differences during the dive and play a certain role in blocking solid particles. At the same time, the gap of the labyrinth sealing structure is kept larger than the amplitude of the cleaning component. The advantage of this design is that it can effectively reduce the impact of the vibration of the ultrasonic generator on the inner lens and the camera body in conjunction with the first and second connecting parts that are fixed separately.

[0037] In the above design, although ultrasonic vibration will cause the generation of cavitation effect, thereby damaging the surface of the inner camera lens, especially the microbubbles generated by ultrasound will burst at the moment of contact with the lens, causing damage to the lens surface. However, the scenario dealt with by this embodiment is mainly a deep-sea environment. The cleaning component will not be activated during the dive. When reaching the specified depth, the sampling operation will cause the seabed sediments to float, and some of the sediments will adhere to the outer surface of the protective lens, thereby affecting the image quality of the inner camera. At this time, considering that the static pressure of the deep sea is much higher than the normal pressure, the cavitation threshold will be greatly increased. The cavitation effect can be avoided by controlling the frequency and waveform, and the ultrasonic generator can be used to drive the protective lens to vibrate, so that the attachments fall off, thereby achieving the effect of cleaning. During the cleaning period, due to the buffering effect of the double-layer connector, the conduction of vibration is reduced. In addition, the box-type sampler is large in size and mass, which can quickly attenuate the vibration, and cooperate with the first connector to avoid direct impact on the camera.

[0038] In another embodiment, Figure 5As shown, taking the environmental box sampler as an example, the corresponding first, second and third quick-release components can be replaced on the basis of the above embodiment. Through separately welded cantilever and other connecting structures, combined with bolt fixation, it can be installed in a variety of ways, with low cost and high modification efficiency. The angles of the lighting unit 3 and the camera unit 2 can be adjusted according to the shooting needs, and the versatility is also good.

[0039] Finally, it should be noted that the above content is only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, rather than to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Simple modifications or equivalent substitutions of the technical solution of the present invention by ordinary technicians in this field do not deviate from the essence and scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system, characterized in that: The system is installed on a deep-sea sampler; the system includes a lighting unit, a camera unit and a control unit; The illumination unit is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a first quick-release assembly; the camera unit is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a second quick-release assembly; and the control unit is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a third quick-release assembly. The control unit is connected to the illumination unit and the camera unit respectively; the control unit is internally integrated with at least an energy storage unit and a storage medium; the storage medium is used to record the video captured by the camera unit; The camera unit is provided with a camera and a cleaning component, and the cleaning component is used for cleaning dirt on the camera lens.

2. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cleaning component is an ultrasonic generator, and the execution end is connected to the lens of the camera.

3. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The camera lens has a multi-layer lens structure, and at least one layer of protective lens is provided on the outside; The protective lens is fixedly connected to the execution end of the cleaning component.

4. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The protective lens is in a sleeve structure, with an upper opening sleeved on the inner lens and a light-transmitting lens arranged at the lower end.

5. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 4, characterized in that: A labyrinth sealing structure is provided between the protective lens and the inner lens, and water is permeable between the two lenses, and the gap of the labyrinth sealing structure is kept larger than the amplitude of the cleaning component.

6. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The pollution cleaning component is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a first connecting piece; the camera is connected to the deep-sea sampler via a second connecting piece.

7. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The illumination unit is an LED lighting lamp; a pressure-resistant shell is provided on the outer side of the illumination unit, and a plane lens is installed on the pressure-resistant shell.

8. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The material of the pressure-resistant housing is 316 stainless steel, and the material of the plane lens is sapphire glass; The light wick of the illumination unit is a COB packaged white light LED; the power of the light wick is 80w-150w, the color temperature range is 4500K-6500K, and the maximum brightness is greater than or equal to 10000 lumens; The light emitting lamp core adopts a PWM dimming mode, and the shutter speed of the camera unit is set to adapt to the PWM dimming mode.

9. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The camera is provided with a pressure-resistant shell on the outside, and the shell material is 316 stainless steel; The camera internally adopts a low-light lens consisting of a 2.8mm fixed-focus lens and a dispersion-corrected lens group, and uses a 1 / 1.8-inch target surface CMOS image sensor.

10. The mounted deep-sea offline high-definition imaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The control unit is provided with a pressure-resistant shell on the outside, and the shell material is 316 stainless steel; The control unit is equipped with an ARM control board and a power supply board; The energy storage unit is a lithium battery pack with a capacity of at least greater than 7Ah.

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