Environment controller, environment control system, method and computer program

Abstract

To provide an environment controller, an environment control system, a method and a computer program that are operable for efficient application of carbon dioxide to crops based on the color of the marketable parts of the crops.SOLUTION: An environment controller for controlling a supply amount of carbon dioxide applied to crops includes: an input / output interface device that acquires one or more sets of image data, wherein the one or more sets of image data include marketable parts of the crops that have been captured with a camera and show changes in their appearance colors along with growth; a storage device that stores the one or more sets of image data and a predetermined threshold; and an arithmetic circuit that executes an acquisition process to acquire color meta data calculated based on the colors of the marketable parts included in the one or more sets of image data and a control process to control the supply amount of carbon dioxide and output a control signal based on output determination data including the color meta data and the predetermined threshold.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an environmental control device, an environmental control system, a method, and a computer program. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to an environmental control device, an environmental control system, a method, and a computer program for controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to crops. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, carbon dioxide gas has been applied to improve the yield or quality of crops. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a carbon dioxide gas application device that applies carbon dioxide gas intensively to the leaves of cultivated crops. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2014-161337 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Patent Document 1 discloses controlling the application of carbon dioxide gas depending on the time and weather, but does not disclose control taking into account the state of the crop.

[0005] The present disclosure aims to provide an environmental control device, an environmental control system, a method and a computer program operable to efficiently apply carbon dioxide to a crop based on the color of the saleable portion of the crop. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The environmental control device of the present disclosure is an environmental control device that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops, and includes an input / output interface device that acquires one or more image data, the one or more image data including a saleable part of a crop photographed by a camera whose appearance color changes as it grows, a storage device that stores the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold value, and an arithmetic circuit that executes an acquisition process that acquires color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value and outputs a control signal. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an environmental control device, an environmental control system, a method and a computer program operable to efficiently apply carbon dioxide gas to a crop based on the color of the saleable portion of the crop. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram of an example of an environmental control system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of a calculation circuit of the environmental control device according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific process of an acquisition process performed by a calculation circuit of the environmental control device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] This shows an example of object detection in a detection and classification process that is performed by inputting image data into a trained model. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an example of an environmental control system according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of a calculation circuit of the environmental control device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 7] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of a calculation circuit of the environmental control device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 8]13 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific process of an acquisition process performed by a calculation circuit of the environmental control device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 9] 13 shows an example of RGB extraction through RGB conversion processing by an arithmetic circuit of the environmental control device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a block diagram of an example of an environmental control system according to a fourth embodiment. [Figure 11] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of a calculation circuit of the environmental control device according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 12] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of a calculation circuit of the server device according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an example of an environmental control system according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the configuration described below is merely an example of the present disclosure, and the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments. Even if it is not an embodiment, various modifications can be made according to the design as long as it does not deviate from the technical idea of ​​the present disclosure. Furthermore, the configuration or operation of the environmental control system according to the following embodiment can include the configuration or operation of the environmental control system according to another embodiment or the configuration or operation described in the modified example, as long as there is no contradiction.

[0010] The environmental control device included in the environmental control system according to the present disclosure can obtain the state of color change of the crop by image recognition of the image captured by the camera, and adjust the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop based on the state of color change. Specifically, the environmental control device obtains the state of color change of the saleable part of the crop. The saleable part of the crop refers to a part of the crop that can be sold, including, for example, the pseudocarp, fruit, or pericarp of the crop.

[0011] In the embodiment described below, the target crop is strawberry, but is not limited thereto. Crops that can be used with the environmental control device 10 according to the present disclosure may be any crop whose saleable part changes color as it grows. Crops may include, for example, tomatoes, grapes, cherry tomatoes, and the like. Furthermore, the environmental control device according to the present disclosure does not need to be limited to a single type of crop, and may be applied to a plurality of crops. In this specification, the growth of a crop may comprehensively include the growing of the crop, and may include the maturation or aging of the crop.

[0012] In general, the translocation dynamics of many crops change in response to changes in appearance. In such crops, the amount of carbon supplied to the saleable part changes in response to changes in the translocation dynamics. In addition, the color of the appearance of the saleable part of some crops changes as the crop grows. In some crops, the amount of carbon supplied to the saleable part changes when the color of the saleable part changes. Since the carbon supplied within the crop is generated by photosynthesis, the amount of carbon supplied changes depending on the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crop during photosynthesis. The environmental control device according to the present disclosure controls the amount of carbon supplied to the saleable part by changing the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crop based on the color state of the saleable part. Thereby, the environmental control device according to the present disclosure can efficiently promote the growth of the saleable part of the crop, and increase the weight, increase the sugar content, or improve the appearance of the saleable part. The environmental control device according to the present disclosure is applicable to plants whose translocation dynamics change in response to changes in the color of the saleable part.

[0013] (Embodiment 1)

[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of an environmental control system 1A according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, the environmental control system 1A includes an environmental control device 10, a camera 20, and a carbon dioxide gas supply device 30. The environmental control device 10 according to the present disclosure is an environmental control device 10 that controls the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas to be applied to crops, and includes an input / output interface device 13 that acquires one or more image data, the one or more image data including a saleable part of the crop photographed by the camera 20, the color of the appearance of which changes as the crop grows, a storage device 12 that stores one or more image data and a predetermined threshold value, and a calculation circuit 11 that executes an acquisition process that acquires color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process that controls the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value and outputs a control signal.

[0015] With this configuration, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently control the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops. Specifically, the environmental control device 10 can change the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops based on color metadata calculated from the color of the saleable parts of the crops. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can change the concentration by changing the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops based on the color of the saleable parts included in the image data acquired from the camera 20, and can efficiently promote the growth of the crops.

[0016] 1. Configuration 1-1.Environmental control system An environmental control system 1A according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 1. As described above, the environmental control system 1A includes the environmental control device 10, the camera 20, and the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30.

[0017] 1-2.Environmental control equipment The environmental control device 10 is, for example, a computer. The environmental control device 10 includes an arithmetic circuit 11, a storage device 12, and an input / output interface device 13.

[0018] The arithmetic circuit 11 executes various processes in the environmental control device 10. The arithmetic circuit 11 includes a general-purpose processor such as a CPU or MPU that executes a program to realize a predetermined function. The arithmetic circuit 11 is configured to be able to communicate with the storage device 12, and realizes various processes in the environmental control device 10 by calling and executing an arithmetic program stored in the storage device 12. The processes in the environmental control device 10 include various processes such as an acquisition process, a control process, and a detection process executed in the acquisition process. The processes in the environmental control device 10 include acquiring data from various sensors described later and storing them in the storage device 12, executing a predetermined process on the acquired data, and storing the obtained data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 is not limited to a form in which hardware resources and software work together to realize a predetermined function, and may be a hardware circuit designed specifically to realize a predetermined function. That is, the arithmetic circuit 11 can be realized by various processors such as a GPU, FPGA, DSP, ASIC, etc., in addition to a CPU and an MPU. Such an arithmetic circuit 11 can be configured, for example, by a signal processing circuit that is a semiconductor integrated circuit.

[0019] The storage device 12 is a storage medium capable of storing various information. The storage device 12 is realized, for example, by a memory such as a DRAM, an SRAM, or a flash memory, an HDD, an SSD, or other storage devices, or by an appropriate combination thereof. The storage device 12 stores programs for implementing various processes performed by the arithmetic circuit 11 as described above. The storage device 12 may also store data acquired or calculated by the arithmetic circuit 11, such as image data, color metadata, and output judgment data, which will be described later. The storage device 12 may also store thresholds for the arithmetic circuit 11 to execute the above processes, such as a predetermined threshold and a specific threshold, which will be described later.

[0020] The input / output interface device 13 has a function as an input device for inputting information from a user and an output device for outputting information to a user. The input / output interface device 13 includes one or more human-machine interfaces. Examples of the human-machine interface include input devices such as a keyboard, a pointing device (mouse, trackball, etc.), and a touchpad, output devices such as a display and a speaker, and input / output devices such as a touch panel. The input / output interface device 13 includes a communication circuit for connecting to an external device or system via a communication line by wire or wirelessly. The input / output interface device 13 can perform communication in accordance with a wired communication standard such as USB (registered trademark) or Ethernet (registered trademark). The input / output interface device 13 can also perform communication in accordance with a wireless communication standard such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark), Bluetooth (registered trademark), and a mobile phone line. The input / output interface device 13 of the environmental control device 10 can be assumed to include a video input terminal for acquiring image data from a camera 20.

[0021] 1-3.Camera The camera 20 is an imaging device equipped with an imaging element such as a CCD or a CMOS. In the system 1A according to the first embodiment, for example, one or more cameras 20 may be placed at fixed points in a vinyl greenhouse in which crops are grown. The vinyl greenhouse is an example of a greenhouse or house for horticulture, and the crops may be grown in other greenhouses or houses for horticulture, such as a glass greenhouse. The camera 20 may take an image and transmit image data of the taken image to the environmental control device 10. The image may be a still image or a video. The camera 20 may take a still image periodically and transmit the image data to the environmental control device 10. The image data may be stored in the storage device 12. The camera 20 may take an image at predetermined time intervals, or may take an image every day or every few days.

[0022] Furthermore, the camera 20 may capture a moving image and transmit image data of the moving image to the environmental control device 10. When the image data is a moving image, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 may acquire still images from the acquired moving image at regular frame intervals and store them in the storage device 12.

[0023] The camera 20 does not need to be installed at a fixed point, and may be attached to a moving object moving within a vinyl greenhouse, for example. In this case, the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires still images at regular frame intervals from the image data acquired from the camera 20, and determines the similarity by a predetermined method. The arithmetic circuit 11 may execute the operation of the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment, for example, by using a saleable part having a similarity below a certain value. The arithmetic circuit 11 may perform, as the predetermined method, for example, feature point extraction such as AKAZE and combination optimization by brute force matching.

[0024] AKAZE is a method for detecting feature points, and can detect similar feature points even if the size or angle of the object is changed. Brute force matching is a method for calculating the similarity of each feature point by comparing feature points of each image between two images in a brute force manner. In the first embodiment of the present disclosure, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes AKAZE and brute force matching to exclude two vendable parts of a crop detected from two or more image data when the two vendable parts represent the same vendable part. Specifically, when the similarity is greater than a certain value, the arithmetic circuit 11 determines that the two vendable parts represent the same vendable part and excludes one of the vendable parts, and uses vendable parts having feature points with a similarity of a certain value or less as different vendable parts as detection targets in the detection process described later. In this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 can exclude the same vendable parts from the vendable parts included in two or more image data.

[0025] 1-4. Carbon dioxide supply device The carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 includes a carbon dioxide gas source 31, a supply pipe 32, a control valve 33, and a controller .

[0026] The carbon dioxide gas source 31 is not particularly limited as long as it is a source capable of supplying carbon dioxide gas, and a gas cylinder or tank filled with carbon dioxide gas can be used. Hereinafter, in this specification, such a carbon dioxide gas source 31 is also referred to as a raw gas type carbon dioxide gas source 31 as appropriate. The carbon dioxide gas source 31 may be a device that generates carbon dioxide gas by burning biomass or fossil fuel. Hereinafter, in this specification, a type of carbon dioxide gas source 31 that burns fossil fuel or the like is also referred to as a combustion type carbon dioxide gas source 31 as appropriate. For example, the Glowware CG4 series manufactured by Nepon Co., Ltd. can be used as the carbon dioxide gas source 31. The carbon dioxide gas source 31 is connected to a supply pipe 32. Carbon dioxide gas released from the carbon dioxide gas source 31 is supplied to the supply pipe 32.

[0027] The supply piping 32 includes, for example, a tube, hose, or pipe for application, such as a cylinder or tube, that can supply carbon dioxide gas supplied from the carbon dioxide gas source 31 to the vicinity of the crops. The vicinity of the crops is, for example, within the range in which carbon dioxide gas is supplied to the crops. The vicinity of the crops may be the range in which carbon dioxide gas of a predetermined concentration or more to be applied is supplied. The supply piping 32 may be configured to supply carbon dioxide gas not only to the vicinity of the crops, but also to the entirety of the vinyl greenhouse in which the crops are grown.

[0028] The control valve 33 is, for example, a solenoid valve, and is provided in the supply pipe 32. The control valve 33 controls whether or not the carbon dioxide gas supplied from the carbon dioxide gas source 31 is applied to the crops by switching between opening and closing based on a signal from a controller 34. For example, a pilot-operated two-port solenoid valve AD11 series may be used as the control valve 33.

[0029] The controller 34 outputs a further control signal to the control valve 33 based on the control signal received from the environmental control device 10, and controls the opening and closing of the control valve 33. The controller 34 may be connected to the carbon dioxide gas source 31 and be capable of adjusting the amount of carbon dioxide gas generated by the carbon dioxide gas source 31. The controller 34 includes, for example, a memory that stores a program, an arithmetic circuit corresponding to the processor, and an input / output interface device that can transmit and receive predetermined signals or data. In the controller 34, the processor executes the program stored in the memory. The processor may be configured similarly to the arithmetic circuit 11. The memory may be configured similarly to the storage device 12. The input / output interface device may be configured similarly to the input / output interface device 13.

[0030] Specifically, when the controller 34 receives an ON signal as a control signal from the environmental control device 10, it controls the control valve 33 to open. Furthermore, when the controller 34 receives an OFF signal as a control signal from the environmental control device 10, it controls the control valve 33 to close. The ON signal may be, for example, a voltage equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold. The OFF signal may be, for example, a voltage equal to or lower than the threshold or another predetermined threshold.

[0031] In the environmental control system 1 according to the first embodiment, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 supplies carbon dioxide gas to the vicinity of the crops through the supply pipe 32, but is not limited thereto. For example, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may be configured such that the carbon dioxide gas source 31 is installed in a part of the vinyl house, and the carbon dioxide gas supplied by the carbon dioxide gas source 31 is diffused throughout the vinyl house using a fan or the like. In this case, the control valve 33 may control the amount of carbon dioxide gas released from the carbon dioxide gas source 31 into the air. Alternatively, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may not include the control valve 33, and the drive of the carbon dioxide gas source 31 may be controlled based on a received signal. Alternatively, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may further include a relay capable of opening and closing a contact based on an input on signal and an off signal, and the relay may be configured to open and close the contact based on a signal output from the controller 34, thereby controlling the opening and closing of the control valve 33.

[0032] In the environmental control system 1 according to the first embodiment, the controller 34 is provided in the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30, but is not limited thereto. For example, the controller 34 may be provided in the environmental control device 10. In this case, the controller 34 may be connected to the control valve 33 or the carbon dioxide gas source 31 by wire, for example, via the input / output interface device 13, and may output a control signal for driving the device to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30. The controller 34 may also output driving power for the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30. The arithmetic circuit 11 may also include the function of the controller 34. That is, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a control signal to the control valve 33, etc.

[0033] 2.Operation In this system 1A, the environmental control device 10 judges the state of the crops based on data acquired from the camera 20. The environmental control device 10 controls the operation of the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 based on the judged state of the crops to adjust the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops.

[0034] An example of the operation of the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a flow chart showing an example of the operation of the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment.

[0035] First, when the camera 20 photographs a crop, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 acquires the photographed image as image data via the input / output interface device 13 (S11). When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it stores the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may store the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12 in association with the time of photographing.

[0036] When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it executes an acquisition process to acquire color metadata based on the one or more pieces of image data (S12). In the acquisition process, the arithmetic circuit 11 performs image processing on the one or more pieces of image data to acquire color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part of the crop.

[0037] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific process of the acquisition process by the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, when the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more image data, in the acquisition process, it executes image processing on each image data to execute a detection process to detect a saleable part of the crop (S21). In this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 can detect the saleable part of the crop included in each image data, and also detect the boundary between the saleable part and the rest in each image data. When the image data includes multiple saleable parts, the arithmetic circuit 11 can detect the multiple saleable parts and detect the boundary between the multiple saleable parts. The details of the detection of the saleable parts by the arithmetic circuit 11 will be described later. When the arithmetic circuit 11 detects the saleable parts included in each image data, it stores data indicating the area identified as the saleable part in the storage device 12.

[0038] When the boundary of the saleable part is detected, the calculation circuit 11 executes a classification process into one of the predetermined classification classes based on the color of each of the detected saleable parts (S22). In the present embodiment 1, the predetermined classification classes include a pre-color change class, a color change class, and a post-color change class. When the calculation circuit 11 determines that the color of the saleable part is before the color change, it classifies it as a pre-color change class. When the calculation circuit 11 determines that the color of the saleable part is changing, it classifies it as a color change class. When the calculation circuit 11 determines that the color of the saleable part is after the color change, it classifies it as a post-color change class. The predetermined classification classes are not limited to this, and may include four or more classification classes. For example, the predetermined classification classes may include a plurality of "color change subclasses" that further classify the "color change class" of the classification class based on the degree of color change. The plurality of "color change subclasses" may include a "first color change subclass" and a "second color change subclass". Naturally, the predetermined classification class may include even more classification classes, such as a third color changing subclass, as multiple color changing subclasses. In the present embodiment 1, when the detected color of the vendable part is green, the arithmetic circuit 11 classifies the vendable part as a pre-color change class. When the detected color of the vendable part is changing from green to red (e.g., white), the arithmetic circuit 11 classifies the vendable part as a color changing class. When the detected color of the vendable part is red, the arithmetic circuit 11 classifies the vendable part as a post-color change class. When the arithmetic circuit 11 classifies the vendable part into one of the classification classes, it stores the classification data in the storage device 12.

[0039] An example of the above-mentioned detection process will be described. In the detection process, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment performs image recognition and object boundary detection using a machine learning algorithm. For example, the machine learning algorithm used in the first embodiment may be a mask region-based convolutional neural network (Mask RCNN). Specifically, the machine learning algorithm used in the first embodiment includes, for example, an ROI pooling layer, a class identification layer, and a bounding box regression layer. The machine learning algorithm may be configured similarly for the second and third embodiments described later.

[0040] When image data of an arbitrary size is input, the ROI pooling layer pools feature portions of the image data of an arbitrary size to a predetermined size. The class identification layer calculates which of the predetermined classification classes is most likely to be the feature based on the features obtained by the ROI pooling layer, and classifies the feature into the classification class with the highest possibility. The bounding regression layer readjusts the position and size of the bounding box based on the features obtained by the ROI pooling layer. By performing such processing using a machine learning algorithm, the arithmetic circuit 11 can perform image recognition and object boundary detection.

[0041] The trained model used in the machine learning algorithm is trained using a set of a masked image in which an area corresponding to a saleable part of a crop is masked and a classification class into which the saleable part is classified as training data. That is, in the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment, the training data has three sets. One of the three sets is an image of a saleable part classified into a class before color change and a masked image in which an area corresponding to the saleable part is masked. The other of the three sets is an image of a saleable part classified into a class during color change and a masked image in which an area corresponding to the saleable part is masked. The remaining one of the three sets is an image of a saleable part classified into a class after color change and a masked image in which an area corresponding to the saleable part is masked.

[0042] When the arithmetic circuit 11 inputs image data of an image including a saleable part as input data to the trained model trained as described above, the arithmetic circuit 11 detects the saleable part included in the input image data by a detection process. The arithmetic circuit 11 also associates the input image data with one or more saleable parts detected from the image data, creates masked image data in which an area corresponding to the saleable part in the image data is masked, and stores the masked image data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 then classifies the detected saleable parts into classification classes by a classification process. The arithmetic circuit 11 also determines the number of saleable parts classified into each classification class included in the input image data by a quantity determination process described later.

[0043] In this way, when the arithmetic circuit 11 inputs image data into the trained model, it outputs masked image data in which each vendable part is masked, the number of masked vendable parts, and class data in which the vendable parts are classified. Bounding box data in which a bounding box (rectangular frame) is attached to each vendable part may be output. The output data is stored in the storage device 12. The masked image data is, for example, binary image data in which each vendable part is masked.

[0044] FIG. 4 shows an example of object detection in detection processing and classification processing, which is executed by inputting image data to the trained model. The image shown in FIG. 4 includes four strawberries, and masking M1 to M4 is applied to the areas corresponding to each strawberry. Each strawberry is classified as a class after color change, and "red" is also displayed on the image. "red_st" means the classification class of "strawberry after color change". In addition, the image shown in FIG. 4 has bounding boxes B1 to B4 applied to the areas corresponding to each strawberry. In this way, when image data is input to the trained model, the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs at least mask image data and class data. The arithmetic circuit 11 may further output bounding box data. Each output data may be stored in the storage device 12.

[0045] Referring again to FIG. 3, an example of a specific process of the acquisition process by the calculation circuit 11 will be further described. When the saleable parts are classified into one of the classification classes, the calculation circuit 11 executes a quantity determination process to determine the number of saleable parts classified into each classification class (S23). In the first embodiment, the calculation circuit 11 can obtain the number of saleable parts classified into the pre-color change class, the number of saleable parts classified into the color change class, and the number of saleable parts classified into the color change class for saleable parts detected in one or more image data. The calculation circuit 11 can also obtain the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data. Furthermore, the calculation circuit 11 can obtain the ratio of saleable parts classified into the color change class (hereinafter, appropriately referred to as the "color change ratio") based on the above numbers. The color change ratio indicates the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified into the color change class to the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data. In other words, the color change rate indicates the number of saleable parts classified as the color change class divided by the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data. The calculation circuit 11 stores the color change rate in the storage device 12 as color metadata.

[0046] In addition, when the color changing class is classified into a plurality of color changing subclasses as described above, the calculation circuit 11 may execute a quantity determination process for each of the plurality of color changing subclasses. In addition, the calculation circuit 11 may obtain the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified as the color changing subclass to the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data for at least one of the plurality of color changing subclasses.

[0047] For example, when the multiple color-changing subclasses include a first color-changing subclass and a second color-changing subclass, the calculation circuit 11 may be able to obtain the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified as the first color-changing subclass to the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data. That is, the calculation circuit 11 may obtain the first color-changing ratio. The calculation circuit 11 may also be able to obtain the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified as the second color-changing subclass to the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data. That is, the calculation circuit 11 may obtain the second color-changing ratio. The calculation circuit 11 may be able to obtain both the first color-changing ratio and the second color-changing ratio. The calculation circuit 11 may be able to obtain the color-changing ratio even when the color-changing class is classified into multiple color-changing subclasses.

[0048] In this manner, the computing circuitry 11 may obtain a ratio of the number of saleable parts classified into each of a plurality of color-changing subclasses to the total number of saleable parts. The computing circuitry 11 may store each of the color-changing ratios for one or more color-changing subclasses as color metadata in the storage device.

[0049] In the first embodiment, the color metadata is stored in the storage device 12 as time-series data. The color metadata includes, for example, the date on which the camera 20 captured an image. The arithmetic circuit 11 may smooth the color metadata by a moving average. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may calculate an average of the color metadata captured this time and the color metadata captured on the previous day, and perform a control process described later based on the calculated average value. The point-in-time information contained in the color metadata is not limited to the date, and may include the time in addition to or instead of the date. The color metadata in the second embodiment and the color metadata in the third embodiment described later may be stored in the storage device 12 as time-series data in the same manner.

[0050] After storing the color metadata in the storage device 12, the arithmetic circuit 11 ends the acquisition process.

[0051] When the color metadata is acquired, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes a control process to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the output judgment data and output a control signal (S13). For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 determines how to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the output judgment data, and outputs a control signal. The output judgment data includes the color metadata and a predetermined threshold value related to the color metadata (i.e., a predetermined threshold value related to the color change rate).

[0052] The arithmetic circuit 11 can, for example, compare the color metadata with a predetermined threshold value and control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the comparison result. For example, when the color change rate is equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold value, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a control signal to increase the amount of gas supplied or to start the supply, and when the rate is less than the predetermined threshold value, may output a control signal to decrease the amount of gas supplied or to stop the supply.

[0053] When controlling to stop the supply or not to increase the concentration (S13: NO), the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an OFF signal as a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 via the input / output interface device 13 in the control process (S14). When the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 receives the OFF signal, it transitions to an output OFF state. The output OFF state is a state in which the control valve 33 is closed. Furthermore, if the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 was already in the output OFF state when it received the OFF signal, it maintains that state.

[0054] When controlling to change the supply amount or increase the concentration (S13: YES), the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an ON signal as a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 in the control process (S15). When the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 receives the ON signal, it transitions to an output ON state. The ON state is a state in which the control valve 33 is open. Also, if the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 is already in an output ON state when it receives the ON signal, it maintains that state. The carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 can switch between an output ON state and an output OFF state, for example, by opening and closing the control valve 33. Hereinafter, steps S13 to S15 will be collectively referred to as the control process as appropriate.

[0055] The carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may have three or more states, such as a first supply state in which no carbon dioxide gas is supplied, a second supply state in which carbon dioxide gas is supplied, and a third supply state in which the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied is greater than that in the second supply state, in addition to the output on state and output off state. The carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 can provide such states by controlling the opening and closing degree of the control valve 33. In this case, the arithmetic circuit 11 can perform control by outputting three types of signals (for example, a first supply signal to a third supply signal) instead of an on signal or an off signal as the control signal.

[0056] For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a first supply signal corresponding to the first supply state when the color change rate is less than a first rate threshold. Furthermore, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a second supply signal when the rate is equal to or greater than the first rate threshold and less than a second rate threshold. Furthermore, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a third supply signal when the rate is equal to or greater than the second rate threshold. The carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 can adjust the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied by, for example, closing the control valve 33 when receiving the first supply signal, partially opening the control valve 33 when receiving the second supply signal, and fully opening the control valve 33 when receiving the third supply signal. The predetermined threshold may include the first rate threshold to the third rate threshold.

[0057] When the ON signal or OFF signal is output, the arithmetic circuit 11 ends the operation of the environmental control device 10.

[0058] By operating in this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the color change rate. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can increase the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops, for example, at a time when there are many crops whose saleable parts are changing color, and can increase the weight of the saleable parts of the crops, increase the sugar content, and improve the appearance.

[0059] In this way, the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure can calculate the color change rate based on the acquired image data. The environmental control device 10 can output a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop by comparing the calculated color change rate with a predetermined threshold value. For example, when the color change rate is large, the environmental control device 10 can increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied by the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30. Thereby, the environmental control device 10 can increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop at a timing when there are many crops whose saleable parts are changing color, and can increase the weight, sugar content, and appearance of the saleable parts of the crop. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently promote the growth of the crop.

[0060] [effect] The environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment can provide the following advantages.

[0061] The environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure is an environmental control device 10 that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops, and includes an input / output interface device 13 that acquires one or more image data, the one or more image data including a saleable part of a crop photographed by a camera 20, the appearance of which changes color as the crop grows, a storage device 12 that stores the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold value, and an arithmetic circuit 11 that executes an acquisition process that acquires color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value, and outputs a control signal.

[0062] With this configuration, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently control the supply amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops. Specifically, the environmental control device 10 can change the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops based on color metadata calculated from the color of the saleable parts of the crops. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can change the concentration by changing the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops based on the color of the saleable parts included in the image data acquired from the camera 20, and can efficiently promote the growth of the crops.

[0063] In the environmental control device 10, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes, in the acquisition process, a detection process for detecting vendable parts based on one or more image data, a classification process for classifying each of the detected vendable parts into one of classes including a class before color change, a class during color change, and a class after color change based on the color of the vendable parts, and a quantity determination process for determining the number of vendable parts included in the one or more image data classified into each class, and in the control process, a control signal is output to change the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied according to the comparison result by comparing the color metadata with a predetermined threshold, and the color metadata includes the ratio of the number of vendable parts classified as the class during color change to the total number of vendable parts included in the one or more image data. By operating in this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can acquire the ratio of vendable parts whose color is changing from one or more image data, and can control to change the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied when the number of vendable parts whose color is changing is large. For example, when the color metadata is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the arithmetic circuit 11 can output a control signal to increase the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently promote crop growth based on the acquired images.

[0064] (Embodiment 2) Next, an example of the operation of the environmental control system 1B according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figs. 5 and 6. Fig. 5 is a block diagram of an example of the environmental control system 1B according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The environmental control system 1B further includes a CO2 (carbon dioxide) sensor (carbon dioxide concentration meter) 40 in addition to the environmental control system 1A.

[0065] The CO2 sensor 40 is a sensor that can measure the concentration of ambient carbon dioxide (i.e., carbon dioxide). For example, the IMG-CA0011-00 manufactured by Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. can be used as the CO2 sensor 40. The CO2 sensor 40 can be disposed near the camera 20 and can measure the concentration of carbon dioxide near the crops that the camera 20 is photographing.

[0066] In the environmental control system 1B, the environmental control device 10 judges the state of the crops based on data acquired from the camera 20 and the CO2 sensor 40. The environmental control device 10 controls the operation of the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 based on the judged state of the crops, and can adjust the concentration by varying the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops.

[0067] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment. As can be seen from FIG. 6, in the environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 11 further acquires the concentration of carbon dioxide gas, in comparison with the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, the environmental control device 10 compares the color change rate of the saleable part contained in the image data captured by the camera 20 with a predetermined threshold value, and outputs a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas according to the comparison result. The environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas is further controlled using the concentration of carbon dioxide gas. In the following description, the description of the same processing as that of the first embodiment will be omitted as appropriate.

[0068] First, when the camera 20 photographs a crop, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 acquires the photographed image as image data via the input / output interface device 13 (S11). When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it stores the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may store the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12 in association with the time of photographing.

[0069] When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it executes an acquisition process to acquire color metadata based on the one or more pieces of image data (S12).

[0070] Next, the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires the concentration of carbon dioxide measured by the CO2 sensor 40 as concentration data via the input / output interface device 13 (S12B). Upon acquiring the carbon dioxide concentration data, the arithmetic circuit 11 stores the concentration data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may store the concentration data in the storage device 12 as output determination data in association with the acquisition time.

[0071] Next, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes a control process to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied and output a control signal (S13). When controlling to stop the supply or not increase the concentration (S13: NO), the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an OFF signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 via the input / output interface device 13 in the control process (S14). When controlling to increase the amount of supply or increase the concentration (S13: YES), the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an ON signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 in the control process (S15).

[0072] In the second embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 11 performs control processing using the acquired color metadata, the acquired carbon dioxide concentration data, and a predetermined threshold. The arithmetic circuit 11 can, for example, compare the color change rate with a predetermined threshold and also compare the carbon dioxide concentration with a predetermined threshold, and control the amount of carbon dioxide supply depending on the comparison results. The predetermined threshold includes a rate threshold for the color change rate and a concentration threshold for the carbon dioxide concentration.

[0073] For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a control signal to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration when the color change rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined rate threshold and the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or less than a predetermined concentration threshold. The arithmetic circuit 11 may also output a control signal to stop the supply or stop the increase in concentration when the color change rate is less than a predetermined rate threshold or the concentration is equal to or greater than a predetermined concentration threshold.

[0074] The threshold value when controlling to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration may be different from the threshold value when controlling to stop the supply or stop the increase in the concentration. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide when the carbon dioxide concentration is 390 ppm or less. Also, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to stop the supply of carbon dioxide or stop the increase in the concentration when the carbon dioxide concentration is 410 ppm or more. Naturally, the arithmetic circuit 11 may control the supply amount of carbon dioxide based on conditions other than those described above. By setting the threshold value in this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can prevent the arithmetic circuit 11 from repeatedly outputting an on signal and an off signal to the carbon dioxide supply device 30 in a short period of time. Hereinafter, in this specification, the carbon dioxide concentration threshold value at which the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an on signal is also referred to as a first threshold value, and the carbon dioxide concentration threshold value at which the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an off signal is also referred to as a second threshold value.

[0075] When the color change rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined rate threshold, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or less than a first threshold, and may output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or greater than a second threshold. In the case of strawberry, which is an example of a crop described in this embodiment, the predetermined rate threshold may be any value included in the range of 0.3 to 1. That is, as an example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when the color change rate is equal to or greater than 0.3 and the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or less than 390 ppm. In addition, even if the color change rate is equal to or greater than 0.3, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or greater than 410 ppm. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an OFF signal when the color change rate is less than the predetermined rate threshold. The predetermined rate threshold may vary depending on the crop. In addition, the arithmetic circuit 11 may be configured to output an ON signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or less than a first threshold, and to output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is equal to or greater than a second threshold, depending on the crop, when the color change rate is less than a predetermined rate threshold. In this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 may be configured to perform various processes depending on the crop or its variety.

[0076] Various combinations of the first threshold and the second threshold may be assumed. The photosynthetic rate may be saturated at a carbon dioxide concentration of 2000 ppm. Therefore, for example, in the case of strawberry, which is a crop described in this embodiment, the first threshold and the second threshold may be set in the range of 200 ppm to 2000 ppm. For example, the first threshold and the second threshold may be set in any combination with a difference of about 20 ppm, such as 300 ppm and 320 ppm, 390 ppm and 410 ppm, 490 ppm and 510 ppm, 590 ppm and 610 ppm, ..., 1480 ppm and 1500 ppm, etc. Also, the first threshold and the second threshold may be set in any combination with a difference of about 50 ppm, such as 300 ppm and 350 ppm, 390 ppm and 440 ppm, 490 ppm and 540 ppm, 590 ppm and 640 ppm, ..., 1450 ppm and 1500 ppm, etc. Of course, the difference between the first threshold and the second threshold is not limited to about 20 ppm or about 50 ppm, and may be set arbitrarily, for example, between about 5 ppm and about 200 ppm, when a raw gas type carbon dioxide gas source 31 is used. Also, when a combustion type carbon dioxide gas source 31 is used, the difference between the first threshold and the second threshold may be set arbitrarily, for example, between about 5 ppm and about 500 ppm. In other embodiments, the first threshold and the second threshold may be set in the same manner even when the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an on signal or an off signal.

[0077] When the control signal is output, the arithmetic circuit 11 judges whether or not to execute the judgment of the adjustment of the supply amount again (S16). When the arithmetic circuit 11 judges that the adjustment of the supply amount is to be executed again (S16: YES), the arithmetic circuit 11 returns to step S12B and executes steps S12B to S15 again. For example, when the arithmetic circuit 11 judges that the adjustment of the supply amount is to be executed again, the arithmetic circuit 11 may execute steps S12B to S15 after a predetermined period has elapsed since the output of the control signal (S14 or S15). When the arithmetic circuit 11 judges that the adjustment of the supply amount is not to be executed (S16: NO), the arithmetic circuit 11 ends the operation. By operating in this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can adjust the concentration of carbon dioxide gas more appropriately. Note that the arithmetic circuit 11 may end the operation without executing step S17. Also, the arithmetic circuit 11 does not necessarily need to acquire the concentration of carbon dioxide gas (S12B) after the acquisition process (S12). For example, if step S17 has not been executed, the arithmetic circuit 11 may acquire the concentration of carbon dioxide gas (S12B) before the acquisition process (S12).

[0078] By controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied using the carbon dioxide gas concentration in this way, the calculation circuit 11 can output a control signal to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the proportion of saleable parts that are changing color and the concentration of carbon dioxide gas currently being applied to the crops. As a result, the environmental control device 10 can increase the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops, for example, at a time when there are many crops whose saleable parts are changing color, thereby increasing the weight of the saleable parts of the crops, increasing the sugar content, and improving the appearance. Furthermore, even if there are many crops whose saleable parts are changing color, the environmental control device 10 can stop the supply of carbon dioxide gas or stop the increase in the concentration as long as the carbon dioxide gas concentration is sufficiently high, thereby reducing the possibility of carbon dioxide gas being wasted and reducing costs.

[0079] [effect] According to the environmental control device 10 of the second embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.

[0080] In the environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure, the input / output interface device 13 acquires concentration data of carbon dioxide detected by the CO2 sensor 40, the storage device 12 further stores the concentration data, and the output determination data further includes the concentration data. With this configuration, the environmental control device 10 can output a control signal to change the supply amount of carbon dioxide applied to the crops based on the color metadata and the concentration data. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can change the concentration by changing the supply amount of carbon dioxide applied to the crops based on the color of the saleable part and the concentration of carbon dioxide included in the image data acquired from the camera 20, thereby efficiently promoting the growth of the crops.

[0081] Furthermore, in the environmental control device 10, when the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs a control signal to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas, it outputs an ON signal to the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30 configured to supply carbon dioxide gas based on the control signal. By operating in this manner, when the arithmetic circuit 11 controls to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas, it is possible to output an ON signal to the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30 and increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas.

[0082] Furthermore, in the environmental control device 10, the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an off signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 when the concentration data acquired by the CO2 sensor 40 reaches a predetermined value, even if the color metadata satisfies a predetermined condition. By operating in this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can control the carbon dioxide gas concentration to stop increasing when the carbon dioxide gas concentration reaches a preset concentration. This allows the environmental control device 10 to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide gas consumed when the carbon dioxide gas concentration is high, making it possible to efficiently promote crop growth while reducing costs.

[0083] (Embodiment 3) An example of the operation of the environmental control system 1B according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure. In the following explanation, the explanation of the same processes as those in the first and second embodiments will be omitted as appropriate.

[0084] First, when the camera 20 photographs a crop, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 acquires the photographed image as image data via the input / output interface device 13 (S31). When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it stores the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may store the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12 in association with the time of photographing.

[0085] When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it executes an acquisition process to acquire color metadata based on the one or more pieces of image data (S32). In the acquisition process, the arithmetic circuit 11 performs image processing on the one or more pieces of image data to acquire color metadata based on the color of the saleable part of the crop.

[0086] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a specific process of the acquisition process by the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment. As shown in FIG. 8, the acquisition process includes a detection process, a quantity determination process, a mask extraction process, an RGB extraction process, a representative value determination process, a matching process, and a color change calculation process. When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more image data, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes image processing on each image data in the acquisition process to execute a detection process to detect a saleable part of the crop (S41). This allows the arithmetic circuit 11 to detect the saleable part of the crop included in each image data, and also to detect the boundary between the saleable part and the rest in each image data. When the image data includes multiple saleable parts, the arithmetic circuit 11 can detect multiple saleable parts and detect the boundary between the multiple saleable parts. The details of the detection of the saleable parts by the arithmetic circuit 11 will be described later. When the arithmetic circuit 11 detects the saleable parts included in each image data, it stores mask image data indicating the area identified as the saleable part in the storage device 12.

[0087] An example of the above-mentioned detection process will be described. In the detection process, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment performs image recognition and object boundary detection using a machine learning algorithm. The machine learning algorithm used in the third embodiment includes, for example, an ROI pooling layer and a bounding box regression layer.

[0088] The trained model used in the machine learning algorithm is trained using, as training data, a pair of a masked image in which the area corresponding to the saleable part of a crop is masked, and the type of crop that represents the saleable part.

[0089] When image data of a still image including a vendable part is input as input data to the trained model trained as described above, the arithmetic circuit 11 detects the vendable part included in the input image data by a detection process. The arithmetic circuit 11 also associates the input image data with one or more vendable parts detected from the image data, creates masked image data in which an area corresponding to the vendable part in the image data is masked, and stores the masked image data in the storage device 12. For example, the vendable part may be classified into a crop classification class (strawberries in this embodiment). The arithmetic circuit 11 then determines the number of vendable parts included in the input image data by a quantity determination process described later.

[0090] In this way, when the calculation circuit 11 inputs image data into the trained model, it outputs masked image data in which each vendable part is masked and the number of masked vendable parts. The calculation circuit 11 may output class data in which the vendable parts are classified. It may also output bounding box data in which a bounding box is attached to each vendable part. The output data may be stored in the storage device 12 in association with the time when the corresponding image was captured. The masked image data is, for example, binary image data in which each vendable part is masked.

[0091] Upon detecting the boundaries of the saleable portions, the computation circuit 11 executes a quantity determination process to determine the number of saleable portions detected from the one or more image data (S42). The computation circuit 11 stores the number in the storage device 12 in association with the time at which an image corresponding to the one or more image data of the saleable portions was captured.

[0092] After storing the number of saleable parts, the calculation circuit 11 executes a mask extraction process to extract individual mask data in which each saleable part is masked from the mask image data created in the detection process (S43). The individual mask data can be stored in the storage device 12. The extracted individual mask data is data having the same size as the image data including the target saleable part. The individual mask data is also binary data in which pixels corresponding to the target saleable part have a value of 1 and other pixels have a value of 0.

[0093] When the individual mask data is extracted, an RGB extraction process is executed to extract RGB of the saleable part in the image data corresponding to the area masked by the individual mask data, using the individual mask data and the image data corresponding to the individual mask data (S44). The image data corresponding to the individual mask data indicates the image data on which the individual mask data is based. The arithmetic circuit 11, for example, performs a morphological transformation on the extracted individual mask data, and extracts the RGB data of the saleable part by superimposing the individual mask data after the morphological transformation on the image data.

[0094] Specifically, the arithmetic circuit 11 performs a contraction process on the individual mask data to contract the masked area. That is, the arithmetic circuit 11 removes the portion of the masked area that corresponds to the boundary of the saleable part. Therefore, in the individual mask data after the contraction process, the pixels corresponding to the central part of the saleable part are the masked area. The individual mask data is binary data as described above, and the pixels of the masked area have a value of 1, and the pixels of the other areas have a value of 0. Therefore, the arithmetic circuit 11 can obtain the RGB data of the saleable part by calculating the product of each pixel of the individual mask data after the morphological transformation and each pixel at the corresponding position in the corresponding image data. In the RGB data of the saleable part, the pixels of the area corresponding to the central part of the saleable part have a predetermined value for RGB, and the other pixels all have a value of 0 for RGB.

[0095] FIG. 9 shows an example of RGB extraction by RGB conversion processing by the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environment control device 10 according to the third embodiment. FIG. 9(a) is individual mask data acquired for a predetermined vendible part included in predetermined image data. FIG. 9(b) is individual mask data after contraction processing, which is created by executing contraction processing on the individual mask data. In FIG. 9(a), the region R1 is a masked region. In FIG. 9(b), the region R2 is a masked region. As can be seen by comparing FIG. 9(a) and FIG. 9(b), the region corresponding to the vendible part of the individual mask data after contraction processing has a region corresponding to the boundary of the vendible part removed, compared to the region corresponding to the vendible part of the individual mask data before contraction processing. FIG. 9(c) is RGB data created from the individual mask data after contraction processing. In FIG. 9(c), the region R3 is a region to which RGB information is added. As shown in FIG. 9(c), RGB information is added to the region corresponding to the vendible part in the individual mask data after contraction processing.

[0096] Referring again to FIG. 8, an example of a specific process of the acquisition process by the arithmetic circuit 11 will be further described. When the RGB data of the saleable part is extracted, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes a representative value calculation process to calculate a representative value indicating the saleable part (S45). The representative value is a color indicating each saleable part, calculated by any method. In this operation example, the arithmetic circuit 11 converts the color of the saleable part from the RGB space to the HSV space, and uses the hue value as the representative value. The hue can be calculated by the following formula (1). In formula (1), H indicates the hue. R indicates the R component in the RGB space. G indicates the G component in the RGB space. B indicates the B component in the RGB space.

[0097]

number

[0098] In this example, the arithmetic circuit 11 calculates the median value of the hue of each pixel as a representative value. The calculated representative value is stored in the memory device 12 as a representative value of the saleable part at a first time point (e.g., the time of photographing). The arithmetic circuit 11 calculates a representative value for each saleable part and obtains a list of the representative values ​​at the first time point. The list can be stored in the memory device 12. When the arithmetic circuit 11 calculates the representative value based on image data photographed at a second time point before the first time point, it can be obtained as a list of the representative values ​​at the second time point.

[0099] In this example, the list of representative values ​​at the first time point is the sequence [θ ti1 ,θ ti2 ,...,θ tim ]. Each representative value is a hue, and therefore is expressed as an angle, with values ​​in the range 0≦θ<359. The subscript ti denotes the representative value for the first time point. The subscripts 1, 2, ..., m denote the identification numbers of the saleable parts detected at the first time point. Thus, the image data captured at the first time point contains m saleable parts. The list of representative values ​​at the second time point can be expressed as the sequence [θ tj1 ,θ tj2 ,...,θ tjn]. The subscript tj denotes a representative value for the second time point. The subscripts 1, 2, ..., n denote the identification numbers of the saleable parts detected at the first time point. Thus, the image data captured at the second time point contains n saleable parts. m, n are integers equal to or greater than 1.

[0100] The arithmetic circuit 11 executes a matching process for making an appropriate combination between the lists of representative values ​​acquired at two time points (S46). The arithmetic circuit 11, for example, makes an appropriate combination between the lists of representative values ​​acquired at two time points. In this example, the two time points indicate the above-mentioned first time point and second time point. In the third embodiment, the second time point indicates one day after the first time point. The first time point and the second time point may be separated by several hours, several days, or one week or more. The lists of representative values ​​acquired at the two time points may be, for example, a list of representative values ​​acquired based on an image taken on a specific day, and a list of representative values ​​acquired based on an image taken on the day before the specific day. The two time points may be a combination of the time point at which the image was taken and the time point at which the image was taken next, or another time point at which the image was taken may be included between the two time points.

[0101] In the matching process, the arithmetic circuit 11 first calculates the distance between each representative value at the first time point and each representative value at the second time point. tim ,θ tjn ) is expressed by the following equation (2). tim ,θ tjn ) denotes a color change value, which is a quantitative value of the color change between the representative value of saleable part m at a first time point and the representative value of saleable part n at a second time point. The calculated distance can be stored in the storage device 12.

[0102]

number

[0103] In this example, the arithmetic circuit 11 calculates and uses the Euclidean distance between each representative value (hue value), but is not limited thereto. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may calculate the color difference in the Lab color space or may calculate it in the RGB color space.

[0104] Next, the arithmetic circuit 11 calculates a matrix using the value calculated by Expression (2). The calculated matrix can be stored in the storage device 12. Hereinafter, the matrix will be appropriately referred to as the "distance matrix".

[0105]

Equation

[0106] Each component of the distance matrix represents the distance between the representative value of each salable section at the first time point and the representative value of each salable section at the second time point as described above. The arithmetic circuit 11 determines an optimal combination in the distance matrix using mathematical optimization. In mathematical optimization, the variable is set as X = {0, 1}. In the distance matrix of X, if the component having "1" is the component in the a-th row and b-th column, it indicates that the representative value of the salable section a at the first time point and the representative value of the salable section b at the second time point are selected as a combination.

[0107] When n ≥ m, the constraint condition is set as "the sum of each row in X is 1, and the sum of each column is 1 or less". When n < m, the constraint condition is set as "the sum of each row in X is 1 or less, and the sum of each column is 1". The objective function is set as the following Expressions (4) and (5). The subscript x is an integer from 1 to m, and y is an integer from 1 to n.

[0108]

Equation

[0109]

Equation

[0110] In the matching process, the arithmetic circuit 11 determines an appropriate combination by mathematical optimization of the above variables, constraint conditions, and objective function.

[0111] The arithmetic circuit 11 executes a color change rate calculation process to calculate the color change rate between the representative values ​​acquired at the two points in time (S47). The arithmetic circuit 11 calculates the color change rate between the representative values ​​combined in the matching process. The optimal combination of the representative value at the first point in time and the representative value at the second point in time is defined as (θ tix ,θ tjy ), the calculation circuit 11 can calculate the color change speed by the following formula (6) or formula (7). x is any one of 1 to m, and y is any one of 1 to n. V diff_tixtjy represents the rate of color change between a given saleable portion x at a first time and a given saleable portion y at a second time, and a is an arbitrary constant.

[0112]

number

[0113]

number

[0114] In this example, the crop to be detected is strawberries, so the saleable part changes from green to red as it grows. tix -cosθ tjy If <0, then equation (6) is applied. Also, cosθ tix -cosθ tjy If ≧0, then equation (7) applies.

[0115] For example, when the target of detection is a crop whose saleable part changes from green to blue as it grows, cosθ tix -cosθ tjy If 0, then equation (6) is applied. Also, cosθ tix -cosθ tjy If ≦0, then equation (7) applies.

[0116] The arithmetic circuit 11 calculates the color change speed for each pair of saleable parts determined in the matching process (S46), and stores it in the storage device 12 as color metadata.

[0117] After calculating the color change rate, the arithmetic circuit 11 ends the acquisition process and acquires the carbon dioxide concentration measured by the CO2 sensor 40 via the input / output interface device 13 (S33). Upon acquiring the carbon dioxide concentration, the arithmetic circuit 11 stores the concentration in the storage device 12 as output determination data.

[0118] Next, the arithmetic circuit 11 executes a control process to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied and output a control signal (S34). When controlling to stop the supply or stop the increase in concentration (S34: NO), the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an OFF signal as a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 via the input / output interface device 13 (S35). When controlling to increase the amount of supply or increase the concentration (S34: YES), the arithmetic circuit 11 outputs an ON signal as a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 (S36).

[0119] The arithmetic circuit 11 can compare each data included in the output judgment data with a specific threshold value and a predetermined threshold value corresponding to each data, and control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the comparison result. The arithmetic circuit 11 may compare the number of calculated color change speeds equal to or greater than the specific threshold value with a predetermined threshold value to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied. For example, when the following conditions (i) and (ii) are satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to increase the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied or raise the concentration, and output an ON signal. (i) at least a predetermined number of the plurality of color change rates is equal to or greater than a particular threshold value. (ii) The concentration of carbon dioxide is below a predetermined concentration threshold.

[0120] The predetermined number indicates a predetermined threshold value. The predetermined concentration threshold value may be stored in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on only condition (i). For example, when ti and tj are defined in UNIX (registered trademark) time and a=8640000 is assumed, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to increase the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied or raise the concentration when there are five or more pairs with a color change rate of 5 or more and the carbon dioxide gas concentration is 390 ppm or less. The predetermined concentration threshold value is an example of a first threshold value.

[0121] Furthermore, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas when there are five or more pairs whose color change rate is five or more. The arithmetic circuit 11 may estimate that condition (i) is satisfied when the number of pairs whose color change rate is equal to or greater than a specific threshold is equal to or greater than a predetermined percentage (e.g., 50%) of the total number of pairs whose color change rates have been calculated. In other words, condition (i) may be that the number of pairs whose calculated color change rates are equal to or greater than a specific threshold accounts for a predetermined percentage or more of the total number of pairs whose color change rates have been calculated. Naturally, the specific threshold for the color change rate is not limited to five and may be set arbitrarily depending on the crop or its variety.

[0122] The arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device when the color change rate meets a predetermined condition and the concentration data acquired by the CO2 sensor 40 reaches a predetermined value. The predetermined value is an example of a second threshold value. For example, in the above assumption, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to stop the supply or stop the increase in concentration when the carbon dioxide gas concentration is 410 ppm or more, even if there are five or more pairs with a color change rate of 5 or more. Also, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an OFF signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device when the concentration data acquired by the CO2 sensor 40 reaches a predetermined value, even if the color change rate meets the predetermined condition.

[0123] For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to stop the supply or stop the increase in concentration when, under the above assumption, there are less than five pairs whose color change rate is 5 or more. Also, under the above assumption, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when there are less than five pairs whose color change rate is 5 or more and the carbon dioxide concentration is 370 ppm or less, and may output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is 390 ppm or more.

[0124] When a condition related to the color change speed, such as condition (1), is satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes equal to or lower than the first threshold, as described above. Furthermore, even if a condition related to the color change speed, such as condition (1), is satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes equal to or higher than the second threshold. The combination of the first and second thresholds may be set in the same manner as in the case of the environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment. In this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can operate to control the amount of carbon dioxide supplied by the carbon dioxide supply device 30, based on the color change speed and the carbon dioxide concentration.

[0125] The arithmetic circuit 11 may also store the color change value calculated by formula (2) as color metadata in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may compare the number of calculated color change values ​​equal to or greater than a specific threshold with a predetermined threshold to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when at least a predetermined number of the multiple color change values ​​are equal to or greater than the specific threshold and the concentration of carbon dioxide gas is equal to or less than a predetermined concentration threshold.

[0126] For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to increase the supply amount of carbon dioxide or increase the concentration when there are five or more pairs with a color change value of 5 or more and the carbon dioxide concentration is 390 ppm or less. When there are five or more pairs with a color change value of 5 or more but the carbon dioxide concentration is 410 ppm or more, the arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to stop the supply or stop the increase in the concentration. That is, when the condition regarding the color change value is satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes equal to or less than the first threshold value, as described above. Also, even if the condition regarding the color change value is satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an OFF signal when the concentration becomes equal to or more than the second threshold value. Of course, the specific threshold value of the color change value is not limited to 5 and may be arbitrarily set depending on the crop or its variety. The arithmetic circuit 11 may calculate the average value of the calculated color change speed or color change value, and set the condition that the average value is equal to or more than the specific threshold value.

[0127] When the control signal is output, the arithmetic circuit 11 judges whether or not to re-execute the judgment of the supply amount adjustment (S37). This process is similar to the operation example described above, so the explanation is omitted. If the arithmetic circuit 11 judges to re-execute the supply amount adjustment (S37: YES), it returns to step S33 and executes steps S33 to S36 again. If the arithmetic circuit 11 judges not to adjust the supply amount (S37: NO), it ends the operation.

[0128] In this way, the environmental control device 10 of the third embodiment according to the present disclosure can calculate the color change rate or color change value of the saleable part of the crop based on image data captured at two points in time. The environmental control device 10 can output a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop by comparing the calculated color change rate or color change value with a predetermined threshold value and a specific threshold value. Thereby, the environmental control device 10 can increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop at a timing when the color change of the saleable part is large, for example, and can increase the weight, sugar content, and appearance of the saleable part of the crop. In addition, the environmental control device 10 according to the present disclosure can reduce the amount of calculations because it matches the saleable parts between image data captured at different points in time using color, rather than using the shape, etc., of the saleable parts of the crop.

[0129] [effect] According to the environmental control device 10 of the third embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.

[0130] In an environmental control device 10 according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure, the one or more image data relate to images taken at a first time point and a second time point prior to the first time point, and the output judgment data further includes a specific threshold value. In an acquisition process, the calculation circuit 11 executes a detection process for detecting saleable parts based on the one or more image data, a quantity determination process for determining the number of saleable parts contained in the one or more detected image data, a representative value determination process for determining a color representative value for each of the detected saleable parts, a matching process for combining each representative value based on the one or more image data at the first time point with each representative value based on the one or more image data at the second time point in a predetermined set, and a color change calculation process for calculating color metadata based on the difference between the combined representative values ​​at the first time point and the second time point, and in a control process, the number of color metadata that is equal to or greater than the specific threshold value is compared with a predetermined threshold value, and a control signal is output to change the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied depending on the comparison result.

[0131] By operating in this manner, the arithmetic circuit 11 can determine whether or not the color metadata calculated based on the color difference of the saleable parts contained in one or more image data captured at two points in time is equal to or greater than a specific threshold. The arithmetic circuit 11 can then compare the number of saleable parts whose color metadata is equal to or greater than the specific threshold with a predetermined threshold, and output a control signal to change the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied according to the comparison result. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently promote crop growth based on the acquired images.

[0132] In addition, in the environmental control device 10, the color metadata may include a color change value, which is a value of a color change calculated based on the difference between each representative value at the first time point and each representative value at the second time point combined. By configuring in this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 can acquire a color change value, which is a difference in color of the saleable parts acquired from image data captured at two times, as color metadata, and can determine whether the color change value is equal to or greater than a specific threshold. Then, the arithmetic circuit 11 can compare the number of saleable parts whose color change value is equal to or greater than the specific threshold with a predetermined threshold, and control the supply amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas to be changed according to the comparison result. For example, when the number is equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold, the arithmetic circuit 11 can output a control signal to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently promote the growth of crops based on the acquired image.

[0133] In addition, in the environmental control device 10, the color metadata may include a color change rate, which is a rate of color change calculated based on the difference between each representative value at the first time point and each representative value at the second time point combined. By configuring in this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 can acquire the color change rate, which is a rate of color change of the saleable parts acquired from image data captured at two time points, as color metadata, and can determine whether the color change rate is equal to or higher than a specific threshold. Then, the arithmetic circuit 11 can compare the number of saleable parts whose color change rate is equal to or higher than the specific threshold with a predetermined threshold, and control so as to change the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied according to the comparison result. For example, when the number is equal to or higher than the predetermined threshold, the arithmetic circuit 11 can output a control signal so as to increase the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently promote the growth of crops based on the acquired image.

[0134] In addition, in the environmental control device 10, when the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more image data, it executes an acquisition process by inputting each of the one or more image data as input data into a trained model generated in advance by machine learning, and creates data generated by the acquisition process as output data. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit 11 can create data related to the saleable part as output by inputting the acquired image data into the trained model. This allows the environmental control device 10 to more efficiently acquire data related to the saleable part based on the image data.

[0135] (Embodiment 4) An example of the operation of the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10 is a block diagram of an example of the environmental control system 1C according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. The environmental control system 1C further includes a server device 50 in addition to the environmental control system 1B.

[0136] The server device 50 is, for example, a computer configured to be able to communicate with the environmental control device 10 via a network. The server device 50 includes an arithmetic circuit 51, a storage device 52, and an input / output interface device 53. In the environmental control system 1C, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 transmits acquired data to the server device 50 via the network. The data includes image data. The data may further include data acquired from various sensors. The arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 executes a predetermined process on the data received from the environmental control device 10, and transmits the processed data to the environmental control device 10 via the network. Then, the environmental control device 10 can output a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 based on the processed data received from the server device 50.

[0137] The arithmetic circuit 51 may be configured similarly to the arithmetic circuit 11. The arithmetic circuit 51 includes a general-purpose processor such as a CPU or MPU that executes a program to achieve a predetermined function. The arithmetic circuit 51 is configured to be able to communicate with the storage device 52, and realizes various processes in the server device 50 by calling and executing a calculation program or the like stored in the storage device 52. The processes in the server device 50 include various processes such as a server reception process, a server transmission process, and a detection process executed in an acquisition process. The processes in the server device 50 include acquiring data acquired by the environmental control device 10 from the environmental control device 10 via the input / output interface devices 13 and 53, and storing the data in the storage device 52. The data includes image data and data from various sensors. The arithmetic circuit 51 may be configured, for example, as a signal circuit that is a semiconductor integrated circuit.

[0138] The storage device 52 is a storage medium capable of storing various information, and may be configured in the same manner as the storage device 12. The storage device 52 stores programs for implementing various processes performed by the arithmetic circuit 51. The storage device 52 may also store data acquired or calculated by the arithmetic circuit 51, such as image data, color metadata, and output judgment data. The storage device 52 may also store threshold values ​​for the arithmetic circuit 51 to execute the above processes, such as a predetermined threshold value or a specific threshold value, which will be described later.

[0139] The input / output interface device 53 may be configured similarly to the input / output interface device 13. The input / output interface device 53 includes a communication circuit for connecting to an external device or system via a communication line by wire or wirelessly. The server device 50 can communicate with the environmental control device 10 through the input / output interface device 53 and the input / output interface device 13. The input / output interface device 53 may communicate with the input / output interface device 13 in accordance with a wired communication standard or in accordance with a wireless communication standard. The input / output interface device 53 may have a function as an input device for inputting information from a user and an output device for outputting information to a user, similar to the input / output interface device 13. The input / output interface device 13 of the environmental control device 10 may be assumed to include a video input terminal for acquiring image data from the camera 20. In addition, the input / output interface device 13 of the environmental control device 10 and the input / output interface device 53 of the server device 50 may be assumed to include a communication terminal such as an Ethernet (registered trademark) terminal, or a communication circuit.

[0140] Thus, the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment includes one or more arithmetic circuits 11, 51, one or more storage devices 12, 52, and one or more input / output interface devices 13, 53. The one or more storage devices 12, 52 can store one or more image data and predetermined thresholds as described above. The one or more arithmetic circuits 11, 51 can communicate with each other via the one or more input / output interface devices 13, 53. The one or more arithmetic circuits 11, 51 can execute the acquisition process and the control process as described in the first to third embodiments. Thereby, the environmental control system 1C can control the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to crops by the one or more arithmetic circuits 11, 51.

[0141] Next, an example of the operation of the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 11 and 12. Fig. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. In the following description, the description of the same processes as those in the first, second, and third embodiments may be omitted as appropriate.

[0142] As described above, in the environmental control system 1C, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 transmits acquired data to the server device 50. The data includes image data. The data may further include data acquired from various sensors. The arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 executes a predetermined process on the data received from the environmental control device 10 and transmits the processed data to the environmental control device 10. Then, the environmental control device 10 outputs a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 based on the processed data received from the server device 50. Thereby, the environmental control system 1C can efficiently promote the growth of the saleable part of the crop by adjusting the supply amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas according to the state of the crop, and can increase the weight, increase the sugar content, or improve the appearance of the saleable part.

[0143] The process executed by the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 11. First, when the camera 20 photographs a crop, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 acquires the photographed image as image data via the input / output interface device 13 (S51). When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more pieces of image data, it stores the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12. The arithmetic circuit 11 may store the one or more pieces of image data in the storage device 12 in association with the time of photographing.

[0144] When the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires one or more image data, it executes a transmission process to transmit the image data to the server device 50 via the input / output interface device 13 (S52). The image data may be associated with a shooting time. When the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 receives the image data, it executes a process similar to the acquisition process (S32) in the third embodiment. The details of the process will be described later. When the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 executes the process, it transmits the processed data to the environment control device 10. The processed data includes, for example, color metadata equivalent to the color metadata created in the acquisition process (S32) executed in the third embodiment. When the arithmetic circuit 11 executes a reception process to receive the processed data (S53), it stores the acquired color metadata in the storage device 12.

[0145] The arithmetic circuit 11 then executes a process of acquiring the carbon dioxide concentration (S54), a control process of outputting an ON or OFF signal to control the supply amount (S55 to S57), and a decision as to whether or not to adjust the concentration again (S58). These processes are executed in the same manner as the carbon dioxide concentration acquisition process (S33) to the decision as to whether or not to adjust the concentration (S37) in the third embodiment.

[0146] Next, the process executed by the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 will be described with reference to FIG. 12. When the arithmetic circuit 11 executes the transmission process (S52), the arithmetic circuit 51 executes a server reception process (S61) for receiving the transmitted image data. The arithmetic circuit 51 receives the image data via the input / output interface device 53. When the arithmetic circuit 51 acquires the image data, it stores the image data in the storage device 52. The arithmetic circuit 51 executes a process corresponding to the acquisition process (S32) in the third embodiment on the acquired one or more image data. In this process, the arithmetic circuit 51 performs image processing on the one or more image data, thereby enabling it to acquire color metadata based on the color of the saleable part of the crop.

[0147] Specifically, the arithmetic circuit 51 executes a detection process (S62), a quantity determination process (S63), a mask extraction process (S64), an RGB extraction process (S65), a representative value determination process (S66), a matching process (S67), and a color change speed acquisition process (S68). These processes are executed in the same manner as the detection process (S41) to the color change speed acquisition process (S47) in the third embodiment. In the fourth embodiment, the detection process (S62) to the color change speed acquisition process (S68) executed by the arithmetic circuit 11 are also referred to as an acquisition process as appropriate. After executing the acquisition process (S62 to S68) and storing the color metadata in the storage device 52, the arithmetic circuit 51 executes a server transmission process (S69) to transmit the color metadata to the environment control device 10. After executing the server transmission process, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 ends a series of processes in the server device 50.

[0148] In this way, the environmental control system 1C of the fourth embodiment can calculate the color change rate or color change value of the saleable part of the crop based on image data taken at two points in time, similarly to the environmental control device 10 of the third embodiment, by the server device 50. The environmental control system 1C can compare the color change rate or color change value calculated by the server device 50 with a predetermined threshold value by the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10, and output a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop according to the comparison result. Thereby, the environmental control system 1C can change the supply amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop at the timing when the color change of the saleable part is large, and can increase the weight of the saleable part of the crop, increase the sugar content, and improve the appearance. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a control signal to increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas at the timing when the color change of the saleable part is large. The environmental control system 1C according to the present disclosure can reduce the amount of calculations because it uses the color, rather than the shape, etc., of the saleable part of the crop to match the saleable parts between image data taken at different points in time. Furthermore, the environmental control device 10 according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure outputs a control signal using data calculated by the server device 50, and therefore can perform processing with a lower load compared to the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment.

[0149] Although the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment performs an operation equivalent to the operation by the environmental control system 1B according to the third embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this. The environmental control system 1C may perform an operation equivalent to the operation by the environmental control system 1A according to the first embodiment or the operation by the environmental control system 1B according to the second embodiment. In this case, the environmental control system 1C may execute a process equivalent to the acquisition process (S12) shown in FIG. 3 in the server device 50. When executing an operation equivalent to the operation by the environmental control system 1A according to the first embodiment, the environmental control system 1C may not need to include a CO2 sensor 40.

[0150] In addition, in the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 performs the acquisition process. In the environmental control system 1C according to the present embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 performs a control process in which the arithmetic circuit 11 compares the metadata created in the acquisition process with the acquired carbon dioxide concentration, controls the amount of carbon dioxide supply according to the comparison result, and outputs a control signal. However, the operation of the environmental control system 1C is not limited to this.

[0151] In the environmental control system 1C, for example, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 may execute a control process of comparing the color metadata and the carbon dioxide concentration with their respective thresholds, controlling the amount of carbon dioxide supply depending on the comparison result, and outputting a control signal. In this case, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 executes the acquisition of the carbon dioxide concentration (S54) before the transmission process (S52) in the operation shown in Fig. 11, and transmits the image data and the carbon dioxide concentration data to the server device 50 in the transmission process (S52). This allows the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 to execute the control process after the color change speed acquisition process (S68) and before the server transmission process (S69).

[0152] Naturally, the arithmetic circuit 11 may transmit the image data and the density data to the server device 50 at different times. In addition, when the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires either the image data or the density data, it may transmit the acquired data to the server device 50, and thereafter acquire the remaining data and transmit it to the server device 50.

[0153] The arithmetic circuit 51 transmits a control signal (on signal or off signal) corresponding to the operation determined by the control process to the environmental control device 10 in the server transmission process (S69), whereby the arithmetic circuit 11 can output the control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30. The signal output from the arithmetic circuit 51 to the environmental control device 10 does not have to be a control signal. For example, the arithmetic circuit 51 may transmit to the environmental control device 10 a signal including information that can identify the control signal that the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 outputs to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30. Furthermore, the environmental control system 1C may be configured such that the arithmetic circuit 51 outputs a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 via the environmental control device 10.

[0154] In this way, the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment includes one or more arithmetic circuits, and can execute a predetermined process by the one or more arithmetic circuits. Specifically, the environmental control system 1C can execute a predetermined process by the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10, or the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 connected to the environmental control device 10 so as to be able to communicate with it.

[0155] As an example, the predetermined process may include calculating a color change rate or a color change value of the saleable part of the crop based on image data captured at two points in time. Furthermore, the predetermined process may include comparing the calculated color change rate or color change value with a predetermined value and outputting a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop. As another example, the predetermined process may include outputting a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas based on the proportion of the saleable part undergoing color change and the concentration of carbon dioxide gas currently applied to the crop. As yet another example, the predetermined process may include calculating a color change rate based on the acquired image data, comparing the color change rate with a predetermined threshold value, and outputting a control signal for controlling the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop. Thereby, the environmental control system 1C can increase the supply amount or increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop at a timing when the color change of the saleable part is large, for example, and can increase the weight, sugar content, and appearance of the saleable part of the crop. In addition, since the environmental control system 1C can execute predetermined processing using devices other than the environmental control device 10, the environmental control system 1C as a whole can adjust the amount of carbon gas supplied to the crops regardless of the processing capacity of the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10.

[0156] [effect] According to the environmental control system 1C of the fourth embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.

[0157] An environmental control system 1C according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure is an environmental control system that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops, and includes an input / output interface device that acquires one or more image data, the one or more image data including a saleable part of a crop photographed by a camera, the appearance of which changes color as the crop grows; one or more storage devices that store the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold value; and one or more arithmetic circuits that execute an acquisition process that acquires color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data; and a control process that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value, and outputs a control signal.

[0158] According to such a configuration, the environmental control system 1C can efficiently adjust the supply amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop. Specifically, the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop can be changed based on color metadata calculated from the color of the saleable part of the crop. Therefore, the environmental control system 1C can change the concentration by changing the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop based on the color of the saleable part included in the image data acquired from the camera 20, and efficiently promote the growth of the crop. In addition, the environmental control system 1C can execute processing by one or more arithmetic circuits 11, 51 provided in one or more devices. Therefore, the environmental control system 1C can adjust the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crop without executing acquisition processing or the like in the environmental control device 10 that outputs a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30. Therefore, the environmental control system 1C can adjust the supply amount of carbon dioxide gas even if the performance of the environmental control device 10 is low. In addition, the environmental control system 1C can be configured by acquiring the environmental control device 10 that can access the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30 and the server device 50, so that the user can easily use the environmental control system 1C.

[0159] [Variations] In the environmental control system 1B according to the third embodiment, the environmental control device 10 acquires image data captured by the camera 20 and carbon dioxide concentration data detected by the CO2 sensor 40, but is not limited to this. Fig. 13 is a block diagram of an example of an environmental control system 1D according to a modified example. As shown in Fig. 13, the environmental control system 1D further includes one or more other sensors 60 and one or more other environmental control devices 70 in addition to the environmental control system 1B.

[0160] When the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 of the environmental control system 1D acquires one or more pieces of data from one or more other sensors 60, it stores the acquired data in the storage device 12 as output judgment data. The arithmetic circuit 11 may output a control signal for adjusting the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the output judgment data including the one or more pieces of data described above. The arithmetic circuit 11 may also output a control signal for controlling the other environmental control device 70 based on the output judgment data. The one or more pieces of data acquired by the arithmetic circuit 11 from the one or more other sensors 60 may include one or more calculation data calculated by the arithmetic circuit 11 based on the data.

[0161] The output judgment data may include a value acquired by the CO2 sensor 40. The value acquired by the CO2 sensor 40 may include a value calculated by the arithmetic circuit 11 based on the value. Specifically, the value acquired by the CO2 sensor 40 may include a carbon dioxide exchange rate calculated using a so-called chamber method based on the concentration of carbon dioxide. In this case, the environmental control system 1D includes, for example, a transparent chamber having an air inlet and an outlet, and at least a part of the crop is placed in the chamber. The chamber is sealed except for the inlet and the outlet. The arithmetic circuit 11 is configured to acquire the carbon dioxide concentration of the air flowing into the chamber from the inlet and the carbon dioxide concentration of the air flowing out from the outlet using at least two CO2 sensors 40. The arithmetic circuit 11 can calculate the carbon dioxide exchange rate using the difference in carbon dioxide concentration between the air flowing in and the air flowing out through the chamber. If the carbon dioxide exchange rate is high, the crop may show a high photosynthetic rate compared to a case where the carbon dioxide exchange rate is low. Therefore, the arithmetic circuit 11 can efficiently promote crop growth by controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the carbon dioxide gas exchange rate.

[0162] The other sensor 60 is, for example, a sensor that measures the environment in a vinyl house where crops are grown. The other sensor 60 may include, for example, at least one of a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, an actinometer, a thermography, a photosynthetic photon density sensor, a soil moisture sensor, an electrical conductivity sensor, and a wind speed sensor.

[0163] The other environmental control device 70 is, for example, a predetermined device capable of controlling an environment that affects the photosynthetic rate in a vinyl greenhouse in which crops are grown. The other environmental control device 70 includes at least one device configured to control any one of a nutrient solution EC (Electric Conductivity) control device, a nutrient solution control device, an irrigation control device, a light-shielding curtain, a fine mist, a window opening and closing device, a ventilation fan, a circulation fan, a heater, a hot water pump, a supplementary light lamp, or a heat pump.

[0164] The arithmetic circuit 11 may control the control signal to be output to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 based on, for example, the temperature acquired from the temperature sensor. For example, in the above-mentioned control process, the arithmetic circuit 11 may use a temperature of 25°C or higher as a condition for outputting an ON signal. Furthermore, when the temperature is less than 25°C, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output a control signal to the heater to perform heating. In this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 can control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on data acquired from the other sensor 60. Furthermore, the arithmetic circuit 11 can control the other environmental control device 70 related to the environment that affects the photosynthetic rate based on data acquired from the other sensor 60. Therefore, the environmental control device 10 can efficiently promote the growth of crops.

[0165] In the above-described third embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 11 acquires the median value of the hue of each pixel as the representative value, but this is not limited thereto. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 may calculate the average value of the hue of each pixel as the representative value. The arithmetic circuit 11 may also calculate the representative value using the k-means method. The k-means method is a method of classifying any data into k predetermined clusters. In this operation example, the arithmetic circuit 11 can extract k representative colors indicating the saleable part by using the k-means method on the obtained hues. The hues corresponding to each pixel of the saleable part are classified into one of the k colors (i.e., the k clusters). The arithmetic circuit 11 may calculate the color that is classified the most among the k colors as the representative value. The arithmetic circuit 11 may use all the k colors as the representative value.

[0166] The above-described environmental control systems 1B to 1D include one CO2 sensor 40, but are not limited thereto, and the environmental control systems 1B to 1D may include multiple CO2 sensors 40. The environmental control systems 1B to 1D may also be provided with carbon dioxide gas supply ports at locations corresponding to the installation positions of the multiple CO2 sensors 40. The carbon dioxide gas supply ports are, for example, outlets of tubes attached to the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30. The environmental control systems 1B to 1D may also be configured to include multiple control valves 33 and adjust the amount of carbon dioxide gas released from each supply port based on a control signal from the arithmetic circuit 11. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit 11 can control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied for each installation position of the multiple CO2 sensors. The arithmetic circuit 11 can also output a control signal to the carbon dioxide gas supply device 30 so as to control the control valve 33 corresponding to the installation position. This allows the environmental control systems 1B to 1D to more efficiently control the concentration of carbon dioxide gas.

[0167] In the above description, the operation example of the environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment and the operation example of the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment are described as being independently performed, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 may be configured to execute the operation example described in the second embodiment when performing simple control, and execute the operation example described in the third embodiment when performing advanced control. For example, in the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 11 determines the representative value of all the saleable parts in the representative value determination process (S45), but the present invention is not limited thereto. The arithmetic circuit 11 may operate to classify the saleable parts into classification classes in the classification process (S22) as in the operation example of the environmental control device 10 according to the first embodiment, and to determine the representative value of only the saleable parts classified as the color change class in the representative value determination process. By controlling in this manner, the environmental control device 10 can more effectively acquire color metadata calculated based on the color change of the saleable parts. Naturally, in the environmental control system 1C according to the fourth embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 may be configured to further execute processing equivalent to the example operation executed by the environmental control device 10 described in the second embodiment.

[0168] In the above-described first to fourth embodiments, the arithmetic circuit 11 or the arithmetic circuit 51 applies a mask to the area of ​​the saleable part in the detection process, but this is not limited to this. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11 or the arithmetic circuit 51 may apply a bounding box that encompasses the area of ​​the saleable part to each saleable part. In such a case, the arithmetic circuit 11 creates individual mask data in which pixels within the bounding box have "1" and pixels outside the bounding box have "0" in, for example, the mask extraction process (S43). By controlling in this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 can reduce the amount of calculation, and the environment control device 10 can more effectively acquire color metadata calculated based on the color change of the saleable part.

[0169] In the above-described fourth embodiment, the environmental control system 1C includes one server device 50, but is not limited to this. The environmental control system 1C may include a plurality of server devices 50, and the arithmetic circuits 51 of the respective server devices 50 may execute the acquisition process (S62 to 68) in a distributed manner.

[0170] In the above-described embodiment, for example, in embodiment 1, the calculation circuit 11 acquires the ratio of saleable parts classified as the color change class as the color change ratio in the quantity determination process, but this is not limited to this. The calculation circuit 11 may acquire the ratio of saleable parts classified as the color change pre-class (hereinafter, appropriately referred to as the "color change pre-proportion") in the quantity determination process. The color change pre-proportion indicates "the number of saleable parts classified as the color change pre-class" / "the total number of saleable parts included in one or more image data".

[0171] Some crops have a relatively large amount of carbon translocation before the color change. For example, tomatoes and cherry tomatoes may be such crops. In the case of such crops, it is preferable that the arithmetic circuit 11 increases the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied when at least one of the pre-color change ratio and the color change ratio is large. Also, in such crops, the amount of carbon translocation decreases due to the color change. Therefore, it is preferable that the arithmetic circuit 11 decreases the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied when at least one of the post-color change ratio and the color change ratio is large. Therefore, the arithmetic circuit 11 may control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the value of the pre-color change ratio instead of or in addition to the color change ratio. That is, the arithmetic circuit 11 may use a predetermined threshold value related to the pre-color change ratio as a predetermined threshold value in the control process. Therefore, in the environmental control system 1B according to the second embodiment, the arithmetic circuit 11 can control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the value of the pre-color change ratio and the concentration of carbon dioxide gas and output a control signal.

[0172] For example, the arithmetic circuit 11, 51 may output an ON signal when the pre-color change ratio is 0.3 or more and the carbon dioxide concentration is 390 ppm or less. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11, 51 may output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration is 410 ppm or more even if the pre-color change ratio is 0.3 or more. For example, the arithmetic circuit 11, 51 may output an OFF signal when the pre-color change ratio is less than 0.3. The threshold value of the pre-color change ratio is, for example, any value included in the range of 0.3 to 1, as in the case of the color change ratio. The threshold value may vary depending on the crop. Also, depending on the crop, the arithmetic circuit 11 may be configured to output an ON signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes a first threshold value or less when the pre-color change ratio is less than the threshold value, and to output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes a second threshold value or more when the pre-color change ratio is less than the threshold value. In this way, the arithmetic circuit 11 may be configured to perform various processes depending on the crop or its variety. The arithmetic circuit 11, 51 may control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on conditions other than those mentioned above and output a control signal. For example, when the condition related to the pre-color change ratio or the color change ratio is satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an ON signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes equal to or lower than the first threshold value as described above. Even if the condition related to at least one of the pre-color change ratio and the color change ratio is satisfied, the arithmetic circuit 11 may output an OFF signal when the carbon dioxide concentration becomes equal to or higher than the second threshold value. The combination of the first and second threshold values ​​may be set in the same manner as in the case of the environmental control device 10 according to the second embodiment.

[0173] Furthermore, in the case of a crop such as a tomato in which the amount of carbon translocation before the color change is relatively large, the arithmetic circuit 11 of the environmental control device 10 according to the third embodiment may decrease the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crop when the color change value or color change rate of the saleable part is large. The arithmetic circuit 51 of the server device 50 according to the fourth embodiment may operate in a similar manner. In this way, the arithmetic circuits 11 and 51 according to the present disclosure can change the amount or concentration of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crop when the color change value or color change rate of the saleable part is large depending on the crop.

[0174] In the above-described embodiment, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied by the control valve 33, but is not limited thereto. For example, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may not include the control valve 33 as described above. For example, when the carbon dioxide gas source 31 is a type that burns fossil fuels or the like, the controller 34 of the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may control the amount of carbon dioxide gas generated by the carbon dioxide gas source 31 based on a signal from the arithmetic circuit 11. The carbon dioxide gas source 31 is installed in a vinyl house or in a part of the periphery of the vinyl house, and may be driven based on a signal from the controller 34 or the arithmetic circuit 11. The carbon dioxide gas source 31 has, for example, an input terminal to which a contact signal can be input, and when an on signal or an off signal is received from the controller 34, the driving of the carbon dioxide gas source 31 may be switched on and off. The driving of the carbon dioxide gas source 31 may be switched on and off by switching on and off a relay based on a signal from the controller 34.

[0175] As described above, the carbon dioxide gas supplying device 30 may have a blower such as a fan instead of a supply pipe. The controller 34 may turn on the combustion type carbon dioxide gas source 31 and drive the fan to diffuse the generated carbon dioxide gas into the vinyl house. The carbon dioxide gas diffused by the fan may be carbon dioxide gas supplied from a source other than the combustion type carbon dioxide gas source 31. The controller 34 may turn on the fan a predetermined time earlier or later than the timing of turning on the carbon dioxide gas source 31. The fan may be switched on and off by the relay as described above, or may be controlled to be on and off in conjunction with the drive relay of the carbon dioxide gas source 31.

[0176] Carbon dioxide gas (e.g., generated by a combustion-type carbon dioxide gas source 31) may also be applied locally through a duct hose. In this case, the carbon dioxide gas may be moved through the duct hose by wind force generated using a fan.

[0177] (Summary of aspects) As is apparent from the above description, the present disclosure includes the following aspects. In the following, reference symbols are given in parentheses only to clearly indicate the correspondence with the embodiments.

[0178] (Mode 1) An environmental control device (10) that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops comprises an input / output interface device (13) that acquires one or more image data, the one or more image data including a saleable part of a crop photographed by a camera (20) whose appearance changes color as it grows; a storage device (12) that stores the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold value; and an arithmetic circuit (11) that executes an acquisition process that acquires color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data; and a control process that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value and outputs a control signal.

[0179] According to this configuration, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently control the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops. Specifically, the environmental control device (10) can output a control signal to change the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops based on color metadata calculated from the color of the saleable parts of the crops. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can change the concentration by changing the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops based on the color of the saleable parts included in the image data acquired from the camera (20), thereby efficiently promoting the growth of the crops.

[0180] (Aspect 2) In the environmental control device (10) of aspect 1, the calculation circuit (11) performs, in the acquisition process, a detection process to detect vendable parts based on one or more image data, a classification process to classify each of the detected vendable parts into one of classes including a pre-color change class, a color changing class, and a color change class based on the color of the vendable parts, and a quantity determination process to determine the number of vendable parts included in the one or more image data classified into each of the classes, and in the control process, compares the color metadata with a predetermined threshold and outputs a control signal to change the amount of carbon dioxide supply depending on the comparison result, and the color metadata may include at least one of the ratio of the number of vendable parts classified as the pre-color change class to the total number of vendable parts included in the one or more image data, or the ratio of the number of vendable parts classified as the color change class to the total number. By controlling in this manner, the arithmetic circuit (11) can obtain the ratio of vendable parts whose color has not yet changed or the ratio of vendable parts whose color is changing from one or more image data, and when the number of vendable parts whose color has not yet changed or the number of vendable parts whose color is changing is large, the arithmetic circuit (11) can output a control signal to increase or decrease the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to increase or decrease the concentration. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth based on the obtained images.

[0181] (Aspect 3) In the environmental control device (10) of aspect 2, the color changing class includes a plurality of color changing subclasses obtained by dividing the color changing class into a plurality of stages, and the ratio of the number of vendable parts classified as the color changing class to the total number of vendable parts included in one or more image data may include at least one of the ratios of the number of vendable parts classified as each of the plurality of color changing subclasses to the total number of vendable parts included in one or more image data. By controlling in this manner, the arithmetic circuit (11) can further classify the vendable parts classified as the color changing class into a plurality of stages. As a result, the arithmetic circuit (11) can further classify the state of color change into finer classifications, and can output a control signal to change the amount of carbon dioxide gas supply at a more appropriate timing. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can promote crop growth more efficiently.

[0182] (Aspect 4) In the environmental control device (10) of aspect 1, the one or more image data relate to images taken at a first time point and a second time point prior to the first time point, and the output judgment data further includes a specific threshold value, and the calculation circuit (11) executes, in the acquisition process, a detection process for detecting saleable parts based on the one or more image data, a quantity determination process for determining the number of saleable parts contained in the one or more detected image data, a representative value determination process for determining a color representative value for each of the detected saleable parts, a matching process for combining each representative value based on the one or more image data at the first time point with each representative value based on the one or more image data at the second time point in a predetermined set, and a color change calculation process for calculating color metadata based on the difference between the combined representative values ​​at the first time point and the second time point, and in the control process, the number of color metadata that is equal to or greater than the specific threshold value may be compared with a predetermined threshold value, and a control signal may be output to change the amount of carbon dioxide gas supply depending on the comparison result. By controlling in this manner, the arithmetic circuit (11) can determine whether color metadata calculated based on the color difference of the saleable parts contained in one or more image data captured at two points in time is equal to or greater than a specific threshold. If the number of saleable parts whose color metadata is equal to or greater than the specific threshold is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the arithmetic circuit (11) can control the supply of carbon dioxide gas to increase or decrease the concentration. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth based on the acquired images.

[0183] (Aspect 5) In the environmental control device (10) of aspect 4, the color metadata may include a color change value, which is a value of a color change calculated based on the difference between each representative value at the first time point and each representative value at the second time point combined. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit (11) can acquire a color change value, which is a difference in color of the saleable parts acquired from image data captured at two times, as color metadata, and determine whether the color change value is equal to or greater than a specific threshold value. Then, when the number of saleable parts whose color change value is equal to or greater than the specific threshold value is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, the arithmetic circuit (11) can output a control signal to increase or decrease the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to increase or decrease the concentration. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth based on the acquired image.

[0184] (Aspect 6) In the environmental control device (10) of aspect 4 or aspect 5, the color metadata may include a color change rate, which is a rate of color change calculated based on the difference between the combined representative values ​​at the first time point and the combined representative values ​​at the second time point. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit 11 can acquire the color change rate, which is a rate of color change of the saleable parts acquired from image data captured at two time points, as color metadata, and determine whether the color change rate is equal to or greater than a specific threshold. Then, when the number or ratio of saleable parts whose color change rate is equal to or greater than the specific threshold is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the arithmetic circuit (11) can control the supply of carbon dioxide gas to increase or decrease the concentration. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth based on the acquired image.

[0185] (Aspect 7) In the environmental control device (10) of any of aspects 1 to 6, the arithmetic circuit (11) may acquire one or more image data, and execute an acquisition process by inputting each of the one or more image data as input data into a trained model generated in advance by machine learning, and generate data generated by the acquisition process as output data. By configuring in this manner, the arithmetic circuit (11) can input the acquired image data into the trained model, thereby generating data related to the saleable part as output. This allows the environmental control device (10) to more efficiently acquire data related to the saleable part based on the image data.

[0186] (Embodiment 8) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of embodiments 1 to 7, the arithmetic circuit (11) may generate, as output data, data in which a bounding box is added to an area corresponding to the saleable part. This allows the arithmetic circuit 11 to efficiently detect the saleable part.

[0187] (Aspect 9) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of aspects 1 to 8, the trained model may include a mask region-based convolutional neural network. This allows the arithmetic circuit 11 to efficiently detect a detection target object and classify it into a predetermined class.

[0188] (Aspect 10) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of aspects 1 to 9, the crop may be a plant whose translocation dynamics change in response to a change in color of the saleable part. In this way, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote the growth of the crop by adjusting the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the color of the saleable part.

[0189] (Embodiment 11) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of embodiments 1 to 10, the saleable part may include a pseudofruit, fruit, or pericarp of a crop. This allows the environmental control device (10) to efficiently promote the growth of the crop by adjusting the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on the color of the pseudofruit, fruit, or pericarp of the crop.

[0190] (Aspect 12) In the environmental control device (10) of any of aspects 1 to 11, the input / output interface device (13) may acquire concentration data of carbon dioxide detected by the carbon dioxide concentration meter (40), the storage device (12) may further store the concentration data, and the output determination data may further include the concentration data. With this configuration, the environmental control device (10) can change the amount of carbon dioxide supplied to the crops based on the color metadata and the concentration data. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can change the concentration by changing the amount of carbon dioxide supplied to the crops based on the color of the saleable part and the concentration of carbon dioxide contained in the image data acquired from the camera (20), thereby efficiently promoting the growth of the crops.

[0191] (Aspect 13) In the environmental control device (10) of Aspect 12, when the arithmetic circuit (11) outputs a control signal to increase the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied, the arithmetic circuit (11) may output an ON signal to a carbon dioxide gas supplying device configured to supply carbon dioxide gas based on the control signal. By controlling in this manner, when the arithmetic circuit (11) controls to increase the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied, the arithmetic circuit (11) can output an ON signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device (30) and increase the concentration of carbon dioxide gas. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth.

[0192] (Aspect 14) In the environmental control device (10) of aspect 13, the arithmetic circuit (11) may output an off signal to the carbon dioxide gas supplying device (30) when the concentration data acquired by the carbon dioxide concentration meter (40) reaches a predetermined value. By controlling in this manner, the arithmetic circuit (11) can control the carbon dioxide gas concentration to stop increasing when the carbon dioxide gas concentration reaches a preset concentration. This allows the environmental control device (10) to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide gas consumed when the carbon dioxide gas concentration is high, thereby efficiently promoting crop growth and reducing costs.

[0193] (Aspect 15) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of aspects 1 to 14, the output determination data may further include a value acquired from at least one of a carbon dioxide concentration meter, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, an actinometer, a thermograph, a photosynthetic photon density sensor, a soil moisture sensor, an electrical conductivity sensor, a wind direction sensor, or a wind speed sensor, and the value acquired by the carbon dioxide concentration meter may include a carbon dioxide exchange rate calculated based on the concentration of carbon dioxide. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit (11) can control the amount of carbon dioxide supply based on data acquired from at least one of such sensors. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth.

[0194] (Aspect 16) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of aspects 1 to 15, the arithmetic circuit (11) may further output a control signal for controlling a predetermined device that affects the photosynthetic rate based on the output determination data. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit (11) can control a predetermined device that affects the photosynthetic rate based on data acquired from at least one of the above-mentioned sensors. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote crop growth.

[0195] (Aspect 17) In the environmental control device (10) of any one of aspects 1 to 16, the predetermined device may include at least one device configured to control any one of a nutrient solution electrical conductivity control device, a nutrient solution volume control device, an irrigation volume control device, a light-shielding curtain, a fine mist, a window opening / closing device, a ventilation fan, a circulation fan, a heater, a hot water pump, a supplementary light lamp, or a heat pump. With this configuration, the arithmetic circuit (11) can control a device that can switch the environment that affects the photosynthetic rate based on data acquired from at least one of the above-mentioned sensors. Therefore, the environmental control device (10) can efficiently promote the growth of crops.

[0196] (Aspect 18) An environmental control system (1A) includes an environmental control device (10) according to any one of aspects 1 to 17, a camera (20), and a carbon dioxide concentration meter (40) that measures the concentration of carbon dioxide. With this configuration, the environmental control system (1A) can efficiently control the concentration of carbon dioxide applied to the crops by using the environmental control device (10). Specifically, the environmental control device (10) can change the amount of carbon dioxide supplied to the crops based on color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part of the crop acquired from the saleable part included in the image data acquired from the camera (20). Thus, the environmental control system (1A) can change the concentration by changing the amount of carbon dioxide supplied to the crops, thereby efficiently promoting the growth of the crops.

[0197] (Aspect 19) The environmental control system (1A) of aspect 18 may further include a carbon dioxide gas supplying device (30) configured to supply carbon dioxide gas based on a control signal output from the environmental control device (10). With this configuration, the environmental control system (1A) can change the concentration by changing the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops, thereby efficiently promoting the growth of the crops.

[0198] (Mode 20) An environmental control system (1C) for controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops comprises one or more input / output interface devices (13, 53) for acquiring one or more image data, the one or more image data including a saleable part of a crop whose appearance changes color as it grows, photographed by a camera (20); one or more storage devices (12, 52) for storing the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold value; and one or more arithmetic circuits (11, 51) for executing an acquisition process for acquiring color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data; and a control process for controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value, and outputting a control signal.

[0199] According to such a configuration, the environmental control system (1C) can efficiently control the concentration of carbon dioxide gas applied to the crops. Specifically, the environmental control system (1C) can output a control signal to change the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops based on color metadata calculated from the color of the saleable part of the crop. Therefore, the environmental control system (1C) can change the concentration by changing the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops based on the color of the saleable part included in the image data acquired from the camera (20), and can efficiently promote the growth of the crops. Furthermore, the environmental control system (1C) can execute processing using one or more arithmetic circuits (11, 51), and therefore the environmental control system (1C) can execute processing of a load according to the performance of the arithmetic circuit.

[0200] (Aspect 21) A method for controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas applied to crops, executed by a calculation circuit (11) that can access one or more storage devices (12), the storage device (12) stores one or more image data including a saleable part of the crop whose appearance color changes with growth, photographed by a camera (20), and a predetermined threshold value, and the method includes an acquisition process for acquiring color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process for controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output judgment data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value, and outputting a control signal. According to this method, the concentration can be changed by changing the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to the crops based on the color of the saleable part included in the image data acquired from the camera (20), thereby efficiently promoting crop growth.

[0201] (Aspect 22) The computer program can cause the arithmetic circuit (11) to execute the method of aspect 21.

[0202] The environmental control device and the environmental control system described in the present disclosure are realized by cooperation between hardware resources, such as a processor and memory, and software resources (computer programs). [Industrial Applicability]

[0203] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an environmental control device, an environmental control system, a method, and a computer program that are operable to efficiently apply carbon dioxide to crops based on the color of the saleable parts of the crop, and thus can be suitably used in this type of industrial field. [Explanation of symbols]

[0204] 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D Environmental Control System 10. Environmental Control Device 11 Arithmetic circuit 12 Storage device 13 Input / Output Interface Device 20 Camera 30 Carbon dioxide supply device 40 CO2 Sensor 50 Server equipment 51 Arithmetic circuit 52 Storage device 53 Input / Output Interface Device 60 Other Sensors 70 Other environmental control devices

Claims

1. An environmental control device that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops, an input / output interface device for acquiring one or more pieces of image data, the one or more pieces of image data including images of a saleable part of the crop, the appearance of which changes color as it grows, captured by a camera; a storage device for storing the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold; an arithmetic circuit that executes an acquisition process that acquires color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied and outputs a control signal based on the color metadata and output determination data including the predetermined threshold value; An environmental control device comprising:

2. In the acquisition process, the arithmetic circuit a detection process for detecting the saleable part based on the one or more image data; a classification process for classifying each of the detected saleable parts into one of classes including a pre-color change class, a color change class, and a color change class based on the color of the saleable part; a quantity determination process for determining the number of the saleable copies included in the one or more image data classified into each of the classes; and in the control process, comparing the color metadata with the predetermined threshold value and outputting the control signal so as to change the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied in accordance with the comparison result. The environmental control device of claim 1, wherein the color metadata includes at least one of the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified as the color before change class to the total number of saleable parts included in the one or more image data, or the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified as the color change class to the total number.

3. the color-changing class includes a plurality of color-changing subclasses obtained by dividing the color-changing class into a plurality of stages, The environmental control device of claim 2, wherein the ratio of the number of saleable parts classified as the color-changing class to the total number includes at least one of the ratios of the number of saleable parts classified as each of the plurality of color-changing subclasses to the total number.

4. the one or more image data relate to images taken at a first time point and a second time point prior to the first time point; The output determination data further includes a specific threshold value; In the acquisition process, the arithmetic circuit a detection process for detecting the saleable part based on the one or more image data; a quantity determination process for determining the number of the salable copies contained in the one or more image data items detected; a representative value determination process for determining a representative value of the color of each of the detected saleable parts; a matching process of combining representative values ​​based on the one or more image data at the first time point and representative values ​​based on the one or more image data at the second time point in predetermined pairs; a color change calculation process for calculating the color metadata based on the difference between each of the combined representative values ​​at the first time point and each of the combined representative values ​​at the second time point; and in the control process, comparing the number of the color metadata that is equal to or greater than the specific threshold value with the predetermined threshold value, and outputting the control signal so as to change the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied in accordance with the comparison result. The environmental control device according to claim 1 .

5. The environmental control device of claim 4 , wherein the color metadata includes a color change value calculated based on a difference between each representative value at the first time point and each representative value at the second time point combined.

6. The environmental control device of claim 4 , wherein the color metadata includes a color change rate calculated based on the difference between the combined representative values ​​at the first time point and the combined representative values ​​at the second time point.

7. The environmental control device described in claim 1, wherein when the arithmetic circuit acquires the one or more image data, it executes the acquisition process by inputting each of the one or more image data as input data into a trained model generated in advance by machine learning, and creates data related to the saleable part generated by the acquisition process as output data.

8. The environmental control device according to claim 7 , wherein the arithmetic circuit generates, as output data, data in which a bounding box is added to an area corresponding to the saleable part.

9. The environmental control device of claim 7 , wherein the trained model includes a mask region-based convolutional neural network.

10. The environmental control device according to claim 1 , wherein the crop is a plant whose translocation dynamics change in response to a change in color of the saleable part.

11. The environmental control device of claim 1 , wherein the saleable part comprises a false fruit, fruit, or pericarp of the crop.

12. the input / output interface device acquires concentration data of carbon dioxide gas detected by a carbon dioxide concentration meter; the storage device further stores the concentration data; the output determination data further includes the concentration data; The environmental control device according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

13. The environmental control device according to claim 12, wherein the arithmetic circuit outputs an ON signal to a carbon dioxide gas supply device configured to supply carbon dioxide gas based on the control signal when the arithmetic circuit outputs the control signal to increase the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied.

14. The environmental control device according to claim 13, wherein the arithmetic circuit outputs an OFF signal to the carbon dioxide gas supply device when the concentration data acquired by the carbon dioxide concentration meter reaches a predetermined value.

15. 13. The environmental control device according to claim 12, wherein the output determination data further includes a value acquired from at least one of the carbon dioxide concentration meter, temperature sensor, humidity sensor, actinometer, thermography, photosynthetic photon density sensor, soil moisture sensor, electrical conductivity sensor, wind direction sensor, or wind speed sensor, and the value acquired by the carbon dioxide concentration meter includes a carbon dioxide exchange rate calculated based on a concentration of carbon dioxide.

16. The environmental control device according to claim 14 , wherein the arithmetic circuit further outputs a control signal for controlling a predetermined device that affects the photosynthetic rate based on the output determination data.

17. 17. The environmental control device of claim 16, wherein the predetermined device includes at least one device configured to control any of a nutrient solution electrical conductivity control device, a nutrient solution volume control device, an irrigation volume control device, a light-blocking curtain, a fine mist, a window opening / closing device, a ventilation fan, a circulation fan, a heater, a hot water pump, a supplemental lamp, or a heat pump.

18. The environmental control device according to claim 1 ; The camera; a carbon dioxide concentration meter for measuring the concentration of the carbon dioxide gas; An environmental control system comprising:

19. The environmental control system of claim 18 , further comprising a carbon dioxide gas supply device configured to supply carbon dioxide gas based on a control signal output from the environmental control device.

20. An environmental control system that controls the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied to crops, one or more input / output interface devices for acquiring one or more image data, the one or more image data including a salable portion of the crop, the salable portion being photographed by a camera and whose appearance changes color as it grows; one or more storage devices for storing the one or more image data and a predetermined threshold; one or more arithmetic circuits that execute an acquisition process to acquire color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process to control the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied and output a control signal based on the color metadata and output determination data including the predetermined threshold value; An environmental control system comprising:

21. 1. A method for controlling a supply of carbon dioxide gas applied to crops, the method being performed by a computing circuit that can access one or more memory devices, the method comprising: The storage device stores one or more image data of the saleable part of the crop, the image data being captured by a camera and the saleable part changing in appearance color as the crop grows, and a predetermined threshold value; The method includes an acquisition process for acquiring color metadata calculated based on the color of the saleable part included in the one or more image data, and a control process for controlling the amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied based on output determination data including the color metadata and the predetermined threshold value, and outputting a control signal. method.

22. A computer program product for causing a computing circuit to perform the method of claim 21.

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