Volume measurement method and volume measurement device

Abstract

To enable stable measurement of the volume or weight of fluid being a measurement object even when there is a structure in the periphery.SOLUTION: A volume measurement method includes: a data generation step of: generating data in which a distance to an object or fluid and a speed of the object or fluid are calculated for each direction of a reflected wave on the basis of the reflected wave received by reflecting a microwave irradiated from an array antenna of an array radar on the object or fluid; a speed specification step of specifying a component of the reflected wave that has a speed corresponding to the flow speed of a measurement object fluid being the fluid being the measurement object on the basis of the calculated speed of the object or fluid; a cross-sectional shape calculation step of calculating the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the measurement object fluid by specifying the distance to the measurement object fluid from the specified component of the reflected wave for each direction of the reflected wave; and a volume calculation step of calculating the volume of the measurement object fluid on the basis of the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 23

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a volume measuring method and a volume measuring device, and more particularly to a volume measuring method and a volume measuring device that enable stable measurement of the volume of a fluid to be measured even when there are structures in the vicinity. [Background technology]

[0002] In converter operation, in order to efficiently perform dephosphorization (P) and decarburization (C), a two-stage blowing process called MURC is carried out. The efficiency of the subsequent decarbonization blowing is improved by draining the foamed slag during the series of blows and discharging the removed phosphorus together with the slag. This process is called intermediate draining.

[0003] In intermediate slag dumping, a part of the slag is dumped from the throat of the converter by tilting the converter while leaving the molten iron in the converter. Estimating the amount of phosphorus dumped outside the converter by intermediate slag dumping is extremely important in determining the conditions of the subsequent decarburization blowing (e.g., oxygen supply conditions, auxiliary material feeding conditions). There is a demand for a technology to measure the volume or weight of the dumped slag in order to estimate the amount of phosphorus dumped outside the converter.

[0004] One of the techniques for measuring slag is to measure the weight of the slag ladle that receives the slag that is discharged, but this method cannot reliably measure the amount of slag discharged due to breakdowns caused by splashes during slag discharge.

[0005] On the other hand, it is also possible to measure the discharged slag flow using an optical sensor. However, there is a lot of flame, black smoke, splash, and other dust generated around the slag flow during discharge, making it difficult to measure the discharged slag flow using an optical sensor. On the other hand, microwaves have a long wavelength and are less affected by black smoke and splash, so technology that makes it possible to measure the state of the slag flow using microwaves is expected.

[0006] For example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 propose techniques for identifying moving objects using microwave radar.

[0007] According to Patent Document 1, objects detected by the radar device 2 are classified into stationary objects and moving objects, the distance of each reflection point is calculated based on the detection result information corresponding to the moving objects, and reflection point information indicating the distance and direction of each reflection point is output, thereby detecting moving objects of any shape and their positions. This makes it possible to detect objects of various shapes and improves detection accuracy compared to the case where pattern matching is used.

[0008] According to Patent Document 2, when estimating road shape, the Doppler speed of an object measured by a radar is compared with the speed of the vehicle measured by a vehicle speed sensor to identify whether the object is a stationary object or not, and from among the objects identified as stationary objects, valid stationary objects suitable for estimating road shape are extracted. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0009] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication 2018-100899 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2007-66047 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0010] However, converters and slag ladles are installed surrounded by structures to prevent splashing, so when measuring the state of the slag flow during slag removal using microwaves and calculating the slag volume, the measurement must be performed in an environment surrounded by walls.

[0011] When measuring the slag flow using microwaves, the microwaves have the property of propagating while spreading, so they hit and are reflected not only by the slag flow but also by surrounding structures. As a result, in addition to the reflected signal from the slag flow, many other reflected signals are returned from the surrounding structures, and it is necessary to distinguish the reflected signal from the slag flow in the presence of a lot of measurement noise.

[0012] The methods disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 do not take into consideration the influence of reflected signals from surrounding structures.

[0013] One aspect of the present invention provides a technique that enables the volume and weight of a fluid to be measured stably even when there are structures in the vicinity. [Means for solving the problem]

[0014] In order to solve the above problems, a volume measuring method according to one embodiment of the present invention is a volume measuring method for measuring the volume of a fluid to be measured, which uses a volume measuring device having a transmitting unit that transmits microwaves as transmission waves toward the fluid using an FMCW array antenna, a receiving unit that receives microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects surrounding the fluid as reflected waves using the array antenna, and a calculation processing unit that calculates the volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmission wave and the reflected wave, and has the following steps: a data generating step of generating data using the calculation processing unit that calculates the distance to the fluid and the object and the speed of the fluid and the object based on the reflected wave for each direction of the reflected wave, a velocity identifying step of identifying a component having a velocity based on the speed of the fluid and the object, a cross-sectional shape calculating step of calculating a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by identifying the distance to the fluid from the component having the velocity for each direction of the reflected wave, and a volume calculating step of calculating the volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape.

[0015] In order to solve the above problems, a volume measuring device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a volume measuring device that measures the volume of a fluid to be measured, and includes a transmitting unit that transmits microwaves as transmission waves toward the fluid using an FMCW array antenna, a receiving unit that receives microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects surrounding the fluid as reflected waves using the array antenna, and a calculation processing unit that calculates the volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmission wave and the reflected wave. The calculation processing unit includes a data generating unit that generates data calculated based on the reflected wave, the distance to the fluid and the object, and the speed of the fluid and the object, for each direction of the reflected wave, a speed identifying unit that identifies a component having speed based on the speed of the fluid and the object, a cross-sectional shape calculating unit that calculates a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by identifying the distance to the fluid from the component having speed for each direction of the reflected wave, and a volume calculating unit that calculates the volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape. Effect of the Invention

[0016] According to one aspect of the present invention, the volume and weight of a fluid to be measured can be stably measured even if there are structures in the vicinity. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of intermediate slag. [Diagram 2] 1A to 1C are diagrams for explaining an outline of a volume measuring method in the present embodiment. [Diagram 3] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a volume measuring device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of installation of a volume measuring device. [Diagram 5] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a transmitted wave (or a reference wave) and a reflected wave (or a received wave). [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a beat wave. [Figure 7]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of information obtained by performing FFT on a digital signal of a beat wave. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the results of FFT calculation on a beat wave when a plurality of overlapping reflected waves are received. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of microwaves that are continuously oscillated at predetermined time intervals. [Figure 10] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating continuously transmitted transmission waves and received waves that are reflected waves corresponding to the transmission waves. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing waveforms of beat waves corresponding to successively transmitted chirps. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing waveforms in which the amplitudes of the beat waves at specific times within one chirp in FIG. 11 are arranged on the time axis. [Figure 13] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an example of beat waves generated for each receiving antenna. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining estimation of the direction of arrival of radio waves by the Beamformer method. [Figure 15] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the waveform of one beat wave in a beat wave train corresponding to each receiving antenna. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing waveforms in which the amplitudes of the beat waves at specific times within one chirp in FIG. 15 are arranged on the time axis. [Figure 17] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of three-dimensional data. [Figure 18] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of cube data. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of cube data. [Figure 20] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of extracting a block corresponding to a specific velocity bin from cube data. [Figure 21] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the relationship between the direction and distance of an object, etc., obtained by analyzing a block corresponding to a specific velocity bin. [Figure 22] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration example of a computing unit; [Figure 23]13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a volume calculation process. [Figure 24] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a physical configuration of a computer used as a computing unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0019] When refining using a converter, first, molten iron is charged into the converter, and the first refining material is added to the charged molten iron. Then, intermediate slag removal is performed by tilting the converter to remove the slag.

[0020] (Intermediate slag) Fig. 1 is a diagram for explaining an example of intermediate slag disposal. In Fig. 1, the converter 10 is tilted, and slag with a high concentration of phosphorus (P) is disposed from the throat 10a while leaving the molten iron in the converter 10. The disposed slag flows down as a fluid slag flow 12 into a slag pan (not shown) disposed below the converter 10. The converter 10 and the slag pan are installed in a pit-structured structure that is installed underground and surrounded by walls to prevent splashing.

[0021] (Summary of volume measurement method) 2 is a diagram for explaining an outline of the volume measuring method in this embodiment. In the volume measuring method in this embodiment, the volume of a fluid to be measured is measured. As an example, the fluid to be measured is a slag flow discharged from the furnace throat 10a.

[0022] 2, in this embodiment, a volume measuring device 20 irradiates microwaves toward the slag flow 12, and receives and analyzes the reflected microwaves to measure the volume of the slag flow 12. The volume measuring device 20 is equipped with an array antenna having one or more transmitting antennas and one or more receiving antennas, and microwaves are irradiated by transmitting microwaves from the transmitting antennas that constitute the array antenna.

[0023] The multiple receiving antennas have an array structure in which microwave receiving antenna elements are arranged in a one-dimensional array or a two-dimensional array. Here, the volume measuring device 20 is assumed to have multiple receiving antennas arranged in a one-dimensional array, and for example, in Fig. 2, the multiple receiving antennas are described as being configured by antenna elements arranged in a one-dimensional array in the x-axis direction that constitute an array antenna.

[0024] As shown in Fig. 2, the volume measuring device 20 irradiates microwaves in the direction indicated by the dashed arrow. As a result, the microwaves spread and propagate from the direction of the dashed arrow, and are irradiated toward an irradiation range 21 indicated by a triangle in Fig. 2. That is, the microwaves are irradiated so as to surround the slag flow 12. Meanwhile, the line indicating the center of the irradiation range 21 (the solid arrow in Fig. 2) becomes the y-axis, and is directed toward the center of the slag flow 12 in the horizontal direction. In reality, the irradiated microwaves also have a range in the vertical direction, but for simplicity, only the horizontal range is described here.

[0025] The u, v, and w axes in Fig. 2 are coordinate axes fixed to the Earth, with the w axis representing the vertical direction. The y axis, which is the direction of microwave irradiation from the volume measuring device 20, and the x axis, which is the direction of arrangement of the receiving antennas, are preferably parallel to the v axis and the u axis, respectively, but do not have to be parallel to the v axis and the u axis. This is because it is considered that the slag flow 12 has a flow velocity in the w axis direction but does not have a flow velocity in the u axis direction or the v axis direction.

[0026] The volume measuring device 20 measures the distance L (indicated by a dashed arrow in FIG. 2) to the slag flow 12 in a direction having an angle θa with respect to the microwave irradiation direction. That is, the distance L is the distance from the transmitting antenna of the volume measuring device 20 to the slag flow 12, and the angle θa is the angle between the line indicating the distance L (indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 2) and the y-axis. As will be described later, the volume measuring device 20 determines the cross-sectional shape of the slag flow 12 by measuring the distance L corresponding to a plurality of angles θa.

[0027] (Example of the configuration of a volume measuring device) Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the volume measuring device 20. The volume measuring device 20 shown in Fig. 3 is configured as an array radar of the FMCW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) type.

[0028] In this example, the volume measuring device 20 is a device that measures the volume of a fluid to be measured, and has an array antenna 30, a microwave oscillator 41, a mixer 42, an AD converter 43, and a computing unit 44. The array antenna 30 includes one or more transmitting antennas 31 and one or more receiving antennas 32. 3 shows only one transmitting antenna 31 and one receiving antenna 32, in reality, one or many transmitting antennas 31 and one or many receiving antennas 32 are included in the array antenna 30. Therefore, in the following description, an array antenna 30 consisting of one transmitting antenna 31 and multiple receiving antennas 32 is used as an example, but the array antenna 30 according to the present invention may be composed of multiple transmitting antennas 31 and one receiving antenna 32, or may be composed of multiple transmitting antennas 31 and multiple receiving antennas 32.

[0029] The microwave oscillator 41 oscillates a microwave having a waveform whose frequency changes linearly by a predetermined sweep frequency a predetermined number of times during a predetermined sweep time. The microwave oscillated by the microwave oscillator 41 is supplied to the transmitting antenna 31 of the array antenna 30 and to the mixer 42.

[0030] The transmitting antenna 31 functions as a transmitting section that transmits microwaves as transmission waves toward the fluid using the FMCW array antenna 30. That is, one or more J transmitting antennas 31 transmit microwaves oscillated by the microwave oscillator 41 toward the slug flow, which is the fluid to be measured. The receiving antenna 32 functions as a receiving section that receives microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects surrounding the fluid as reflected waves using the array antenna 30. That is, one or more K receiving antennas 32 receive reflected waves generated when the transmission waves, which are microwaves transmitted from the transmitting antennas, hit objects or fluids (referred to as objects, etc.) and are reflected.

[0031] The K receiving antennas 32 included in the array antenna 30 receive microwaves from different directions in a superimposed state.

[0032] The mixer 42 mixes a reference wave (in FIG. 3, the reference wave is obtained by branching the transmission wave) which is substantially the same as the transmission wave, which is a microwave oscillated by the microwave oscillator 41, with the reflected wave received by the receiving antenna 32. The waveform generated by the synthesis is called a beat wave.

[0033] The AD converter 43 converts the analog signal of the beat wave output from the mixer 42 into a digital signal.

[0034] The calculator 44 calculates the volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmitted wave and a reflected wave. That is, the calculator 44 performs calculations on the digital signal output from the AD converter 43 to calculate the distance to an object and the speed of the object for each direction of the reflected wave. The calculator 44 further specifies the distance to an object having a predetermined speed for each direction of the reflected wave to calculate a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the object, and calculates the volume of the object based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape.

[0035] (Example of installation of volume measuring device) Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of installation of the volume measuring device 20. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the converter 10 as seen from the side. The volume measuring device 20 is placed at a position lower than the converter throat 10a, and the volume measuring device 20 looks up at the converter throat 10a, so the back of the opening of the throat 10a cannot be seen from this angle.

[0036] The discharged slag flow 12 falls vertically downward due to gravity. The dashed line 21a, which indicates the center of the irradiation range of the microwaves irradiated from the volume measuring device 20, indicates the irradiation direction of the microwaves and is inclined at an angle θb with respect to the vertical direction. In FIG. 4, the vertical direction parallel to the W axis is indicated by a dashed line, and an acute angle θb between the dashed line 21a and the vertical direction is indicated. The dashed line 21a hits the slag flow 12 at a position that is a distance h away from the furnace throat 10a in the vertical downward direction.

[0037] As described above, the calculator 44 calculates the velocity of the object, etc. Since the flow velocity direction of the slag flow 12 is almost the same as the vertical downward direction, when the flow velocity of the slag flow 12 is represented by Vs, the flow velocity Vd seen from the direction of microwave irradiation of the volume measuring device 20 when the volume measuring device 20 is installed as shown in FIG. 4 can be represented by Vscosθb. However, even if the direction of microwave irradiation is oriented in the direction in which the slag flow 12 is hit, if it is perpendicular to the direction of the flow velocity of the slag flow 12, the velocity of the slag flow 12 cannot be measured. For this reason, the direction of microwave irradiation must be inclined with respect to the vertical downward direction, and is set to be inclined at a predetermined angle other than around 90 degrees with respect to the vertical downward direction, and is preferably set to be inclined at an angle θb smaller than 90 degrees, for example, larger than 0 degrees and not more than 75 degrees (=90-15 degrees).

[0038] In Fig. 4, the volume measuring device 20 is installed at a position lower than the furnace throat 10a and is arranged to look up at the slag flow 12, but the volume measuring device 20 may be installed above the furnace throat 10a and arranged to look down on the slag flow 12. In that case, the flow velocity Vd as seen from the direction of microwave irradiation of the volume measuring device 20 has a velocity in the direction away from the volume measuring device 20. When the volume measuring device 20 is installed above the furnace throat 10a, θb in Fig. 4 becomes a value larger than 90 degrees, and it is desirable to set θb to an angle larger than 90 degrees, for example, 105 degrees (= 90 + 15 degrees) or more and smaller than 180 degrees.

[0039] Thus, in this embodiment, the direction of the transmission wave irradiated from the array antenna 30 is tilted at an angle excluding 90 degrees ±15 degrees with respect to the downward vertical direction, that is, within the range of greater than 0 degrees and less than 75 degrees, or greater than 105 degrees and less than 180 degrees, and the position of the slag flow in the direction of irradiation of the transmission wave is located below or above the furnace throat 10a.

[0040] (Explanation of distance measurement using microwaves) Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a transmitted wave (or a reference wave) and a reflected wave (or a received wave). The horizontal axis of Fig. 5 indicates time, and the vertical axis indicates frequency. As shown in Fig. 5, microwave oscillator 41 generates a microwave whose frequency changes linearly by frequency F during time T.

[0041] Here, the time T is referred to as the sweep time, and the frequency F is referred to as the sweep frequency. Moreover, a waveform that is linearly modulated by the sweep frequency F during the sweep time T is referred to as a chirp waveform. The microwave oscillator 41 generates a transmission wave by continuously oscillating this chirp waveform a predetermined number of times.

[0042] In this case, when one chirp waveform is taken into consideration, the transmitted wave 121 transmitted from the transmitting antenna 31 has a frequency f(t1) at time t1 and a frequency f(t2) at time t2. The reflected wave 122 received by the receiving antenna 32 has a waveform defined by the same sweep time T and sweep frequency F as the transmitted wave, but is received with a time delay from the time when the transmitted wave 121 was transmitted, corresponding to the time it takes for the microwave to travel to and from the measurement target. In the example of Fig. 5, the microwave transmitted at time t1 becomes a reflected wave and is received at time t2.

[0043] At this time, the distance R from the volume measuring device 20 to the measurement object is expressed by the formula (1) where c is the propagation speed of microwaves in the air.

[0044]

number

[0045] The mixer 42 combines the reference wave (frequency f(t2)) at time t2 with the received wave (i.e., the reflected wave) (frequency f(t1)) to generate a beat wave. The frequency Δf of the beat wave is expressed as |f(t2)-f(t1)|.

[0046] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a beat wave. In Fig. 6, the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents amplitude, and the waveform of a beat wave generated by mixing a reference wave and a received wave (i.e., a reflected wave) by the mixer 42 is shown.

[0047] When there is only one object reflecting the transmitted wave, the beat wave is a sine wave with a constant frequency and constant amplitude. However, in reality, the transmitted wave is reflected by multiple objects and multiple reflected waves are received, resulting in a beat wave with a complex waveform, as shown in Figure 6.

[0048] The frequency of the microwaves oscillated by microwave oscillator 41 changes linearly with time, so that the relationship Δf / Δt=F / T holds. By substituting this into equation (1), equation (2) is obtained.

[0049]

number

[0050] As shown in FIG. 7, a frequency spectrum of the signal intensity is obtained by performing a fast Fourier transform on the beat wave.

[0051] By substituting the peak frequency Δf in this frequency spectrum into equation (2), it is possible to calculate the distance R to the measurement target or objects around the measurement target corresponding to each peak. The distance resolution of the volume measuring device 20 is determined by the sweep frequency F and is expressed as c / 2F. Here, c / 2F is a unit that represents distance in the FFT calculation result, and is called a distance bin. Therefore, the horizontal axis (frequency) in FIG. 7 can also be expressed by distance bins.

[0052] However, if an object such as a structure is present close to the slug flow 12, the reflected wave from that object also generates a beat wave. Therefore, when measuring the distance to the slug flow using microwaves, not only the reflected wave from the slug flow 12 but also the reflected wave from the surrounding structures is received, and the respective reflected waves are received overlapping to generate a beat wave, and the FFT is then performed on this beat wave.

[0053] Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the results of FFT calculation for a beat wave when multiple overlapping reflected waves are received. In Fig. 8, the horizontal axis represents frequency and the vertical axis represents signal strength, and a frequency spectrum showing the results of FFT calculation is shown.

[0054] In Figure 8, the solid line 131 shows the result of an FFT calculation for the beat wave generated by the wave reflected from the slug flow 12, and the dashed line 132 shows the result of an FFT calculation for the beat wave generated by the wave reflected from the structures surrounding the slug flow 12.

[0055] In this case, the reflected waves from the surrounding structures are received together with the reflected waves from the slug flow 12, and the reflected waves overlap to form a received wave, which generates a beat wave. Since an FFT is performed on such a beat wave, the result of the FFT calculation shows a distribution of signal intensity as indicated by the dashed line 133.

[0056] According to the dashed-dotted line 133, in the distribution of signal intensity, there are peaks mainly due to reflection from the structure and peaks mainly due to reflected waves from the slug flow 12. For example, if in the FFT calculation result, the signal intensity of the frequency corresponding to the distance to the structure is higher than the signal intensity of the frequency corresponding to the distance to the slug flow 12, there is a risk that the distance to the structure will be erroneously determined to be the distance to the slug flow 12.

[0057] Furthermore, the beat wave of the reflected wave from the slug flow 12 is mixed with the beat wave of the reflected wave from the structure, distorting the shape of the peak in the FFT calculation result. In the example of Fig. 6, the position of the peak on the dashed line 133 due to the reflected wave mainly from the slug flow 12 is slightly shifted to the right from the position of the peak on the solid line 131. For this reason, even if the peak corresponding to the distance to the slug flow 12 can be identified without erroneous judgment, it still becomes impossible to measure the distance accurately.

[0058] Therefore, in this embodiment, the difference in the speed of an object or the like calculated by an FMCW array radar is utilized to measure the distance to the slug flow 12, which is the fluid to be measured, in each direction.

[0059] (Explanation of measuring speed and direction using microwaves) Next, measurement of velocity using microwaves will be described. When measuring velocity in the volume measuring device 20, the transmission waves described above with reference to Fig. 5 are transmitted continuously at a predetermined time interval. Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an example of microwaves oscillated continuously at a predetermined time interval by the microwave oscillator 41 of the volume measuring device 20.

[0060] 9, the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents frequency, and successively transmitted microwave transmission waves are shown. In this example, N transmission waves (chirp waveforms), namely transmission wave S1, transmission wave S2, transmission wave S3, ... transmission wave SN, are irradiated from transmission antenna 31 toward the measurement target. Here, each chirp waveform is transmitted successively at a time interval Tc, and N consecutive chirps are referred to as one frame.

[0061] Fig. 10 is a diagram for explaining continuously transmitted transmission waves and received waves that are reflected waves corresponding to the transmitted waves. In Fig. 10, the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents frequency, and the change over time in the frequency of the transmitted transmission wave and the frequency of the received reflected wave (received wave) is shown. As shown in Fig. 10, the transmitted wave is a chirp waveform with a sweep frequency F and a sweep time T, and the reflected wave has a waveform similar to that of the transmitted wave. The transmitted wave (chirp waveform) is transmitted at a time interval Tc.

[0062] As described above, the distance resolution is determined by the sweep frequency of the microwaves oscillated by the microwave oscillator 41. Since the approximate flow speed of the slug flow 12 is known, the sweep frequency F and the sweep time T are set in the microwave oscillator 41 based on the estimated distance traveled by the slug flow 12 during the time it takes for one frame of the chirp waveform to be transmitted. In other words, the sweep frequency and the sweep time are set so that the distance traveled by the slug flow 12 during the time corresponding to one frame does not exceed the distance corresponding to the distance resolution of the volume measuring device 20.

[0063] 10, a reflected wave R1 is received with a delay of time Δt according to the distance of an object or the like related to the reflected wave from the transmission time of the transmitted wave S1. Similarly, reflected waves R2 to RN are received corresponding to N transmitted waves S2 to SN. Then, a beat wave B1 is generated by combining the transmitted wave S1 and the reflected wave R1, a beat wave B2 is generated by combining the transmitted wave S2 and the reflected wave R2,...a beat wave BN is generated by combining the transmitted wave SN and the reflected wave RN.

[0064] For example, if an object is moving at a speed v, it is assumed that the object has moved a distance ΔR from the time when the volume measuring device 20 transmits the transmission wave S1 to the time when the volume measuring device 20 receives the reflected wave R1. In this case, the object has moved away from the volume measuring device 20 by the distance ΔR during the time Tc, and equation (3) is established.

[0065]

number

[0066] The phase difference Δφ occurring between adjacent beat waves can be expressed by equation (4).

[0067]

number

[0068]

number

[0069] Fig. 11 is a diagram showing the waveforms of beat waves corresponding to each of the successively transmitted chirps. In Fig. 11, the horizontal axis represents the beat wave number, the vertical axis represents the amplitude, and the depth axis in Fig. 11 represents time, and the waveforms of beat wave B1, beat wave B2, ... beat wave BN are shown. The depth axis in Fig. 11 is also called the Fast-time axis, and the horizontal axis is also called the Slow-time axis, as will be described in detail later.

[0070] When an object, etc., moves at the same speed v during the time corresponding to one frame, each beat wave has a phase difference corresponding to time Δt, as shown in Fig. 11. For example, if the amplitudes corresponding to time Tm within one chirp are extracted from beat wave B1, beat wave B2, ..., beat wave BN and arranged, the waveform shown in Fig. 12 will be obtained.

[0071] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing a waveform obtained by arranging the amplitude of each beat wave at time Tm within one chirp on the time axis. In Fig. 12, the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents the amplitude of the beat waves, and the change in the amplitude of beat wave B1, beat wave B2, ... beat wave BN at time Tm within one chirp is shown.

[0072] The unit time on the horizontal axis is the time interval Tc when the chirp waveform is transmitted. For example, time 0 corresponds to beat wave B1, time Tc corresponds to beat wave B2, and time (N-1)×Tc corresponds to beat wave BN.

[0073] By performing FFT on the waveform shown in Fig. 12, it is possible to obtain a distribution of signal strength according to the frequency indicating the phase difference between the beat waves. In other words, it is possible to obtain a frequency spectrum in which the frequency fc indicating the phase difference between the beat waves is the peak of the signal strength. By substituting the phase difference between the beat waves thus obtained into equation (5), it is possible to calculate the velocity of an object, etc.

[0074] In this case, the frequency resolution of the FFT calculation result is the inverse of the measurement time, 1 / NTc, so the resolution of the phase difference Δφ (=fc×2πTc) of the beat wave is 2π / N. Therefore, the velocity resolution δv is expressed by equation (6).

[0075]

number

[0076] Next, measurement of direction using microwaves will be described. Figure 13 is a diagram for explaining an example of beat waves generated for each receiving antenna.

[0077] 13, reflected waves R1 to RN are received by K receiving antennas (elements) 32-1 to 32-K, respectively. Then, the mixer 42 combines the reflected waves R1 to RN with reference waves corresponding to the transmitted waves S1 to SN, respectively, to generate beat waves B1 to BN. That is, a beat wave train consisting of N beat waves is generated corresponding to the K receiving antennas 32-1 to 32-K, respectively.

[0078] Using the multiple beat waves obtained corresponding to each of the multiple receiving antennas, the direction of arrival of the reflected wave can be estimated in the same way as the direction of arrival of the radio wave is estimated using the Beamformer method.

[0079] Fig. 14 is a diagram for explaining estimation of the arrival direction of radio waves by the Beamformer method. The example of Fig. 14 shows a case where microwaves transmitted from transmitting antenna 31 hit and are reflected by object O, and the reflected waves are received by receiving antennas 32-1 to 32-K. In this example, object O is located at a position shifted by angle θa from the irradiation direction of the microwaves, and the path of the reflected waves from object O to receiving antenna 32-1 has a distance L.

[0080] 14, the distance between each of receiving antennas 32-1 to 32-K is represented by d. In this case, the path distance of the reflected wave from object O to receiving antenna 32-2 is longer by dsinθa than the path distance of the reflected wave from object O to receiving antenna 32-1. Similarly, the path distance of the reflected wave from object O to receiving antenna 32-3,..., the path distance of the reflected wave from object O to receiving antenna 32-K is also longer by dsinθa.

[0081] Therefore, if the propagation speed of microwaves in the air is c, the reflected wave received by receiving antenna 32-K will arrive a time Δtk (=(K-1)d·sinθa / c) later than the radio wave received by receiving antenna 32-1. Therefore, the phase of the received wave at each antenna will differ by (2π / λ)×(d·sinθa), where λ represents the microwave wavelength.

[0082] In this way, the Beamformer method estimates the direction of arrival of radio waves by considering that the phase of the waves received by each antenna is shifted according to the product of the distance between the antennas and the direction of arrival of the radio waves. Therefore, the direction of the reflected wave can be measured by calculating the phase difference between multiple beat waves obtained corresponding to each of the multiple receiving antennas.

[0083] As described above, a beat wave train consisting of N beat waves is generated corresponding to each of the K receiving antennas. Here, for example, attention is paid to the i-th beat wave Bi included in the beat wave train.

[0084] Fig. 15 is a diagram showing the waveform of one beat wave Bi in the beat wave train corresponding to each receiving antenna. In Fig. 15, the horizontal axis represents the receiving antenna number, the vertical axis represents the amplitude, and the axis in the depth direction in Fig. 15 represents time (fast-time axis), and the waveforms of the beat wave Bi corresponding to receiving antenna 32-1, the beat wave Bi corresponding to receiving antenna 32-2, ..., the beat wave Bi corresponding to receiving antenna 32-K are shown.

[0085] As shown in Fig. 15, each beat wave has a phase difference corresponding to time Δt (=d sinθa / c). For example, if the amplitudes of the beat waves corresponding to time Tm within one chirp are extracted from the beat wave Bi of the receiving antenna 32-1, the beat wave Bi of the receiving antenna 32-2, ..., the beat wave Bi of the receiving antenna 32-K and arranged, the waveform shown in Fig. 16 is obtained.

[0086] Fig. 16 is a diagram showing a waveform obtained by arranging the amplitude of each beat wave at time Tm within one chirp so that it corresponds to the antenna number. In Fig. 16, the horizontal axis represents the receiving antenna number and the vertical axis represents the beat wave amplitude, and the change in amplitude of the beat wave Bi of receiving antenna 32-1, beat wave Bi of receiving antenna 32-2, ..., beat wave Bi of receiving antenna 32-K at time Tm within one chirp is shown.

[0087] By performing FFT on the waveform shown in Figure 16, we can obtain the distribution of signal strength according to frequency, which indicates the phase difference between the beat waves. This makes it possible to measure the direction of the reflected wave.

[0088] (3D data generation) The calculator 44 samples each beat wave included in the beat wave train at a sampling period τ that allows the waveform shape of the transmission wave to be identified. The calculator 44 also samples each beat wave included in the beat wave train at a period Tc that allows each beat wave to be identified, thereby generating two-dimensional data having two axes corresponding to each sampling period. Here, the axis corresponding to the sampling period τ is called the fast-time axis, and the axis corresponding to the sampling period Tc is called the slow-time axis.

[0089] Furthermore, the calculator 44 generates three-dimensional data by arranging the two-dimensional data composed of the fast-time axis and the slow-time axis for each receiving antenna 32. The axis corresponding to each receiving antenna 32 is called an element axis.

[0090] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of three-dimensional data 170 generated in this manner.

[0091] The calculator 44 extracts data of the three-dimensional data 170 along the fast-time axis and performs a first FFT to convert the data into a frequency spectrum indicating the distance to an object, etc. As a result of the first FFT, the signal strength at the frequency corresponding to each distance is calculated.

[0092] The calculator 44 also extracts the data converted into the result of the first FFT along the slow-time axis of the three-dimensional data 170 and performs a second FFT to convert the data into a frequency spectrum indicating the speed of an object or the like located at each distance. As a result of the second FFT, the signal strength at the frequency corresponding to each speed is calculated.

[0093] Furthermore, the calculator 44 extracts the data converted into the second FFT operation result along the element axis of the three-dimensional data 170 and performs a third FFT to convert it into a frequency spectrum indicating the direction of an object having each speed at each distance. As the operation result of the third FFT, the signal strength at the frequency corresponding to each direction is calculated.

[0094] (Calculation of distance to the object using the difference in speed) The calculation result of the third FFT described above represents the speed of an object, etc. located in each direction for each distance to the object, etc. Therefore, the calculation result of the third FFT can be represented as cube data of a three-dimensional shape with axes representing the direction, distance, and speed of the object, etc. related to the reflected wave.

[0095] Fig. 18 and Fig. 19 are diagrams showing examples of cube data, Fig. 18 being a diagram for explaining distance in the cube data, and Fig. 19 being a diagram for explaining speed in the cube data.

[0096] The vertical axis of the cube data 200 shown in Fig. 18 and Fig. 19 is a fast-time axis, which indicates the distance to an object, etc., with a distance bin being the smallest unit. The depth direction axis of the cube data 200 is a slow-time axis, which indicates the speed of an object, etc., with a speed bin being the smallest unit. The horizontal axis of the cube data 200 is an element axis, which indicates the direction of an object, etc., with the resolution of the direction of the reflected wave (referred to as a direction bin) being the smallest unit.

[0097] In Figures 18 and 19, for simplicity of explanation, the Fast-Time axis is represented by six distance bins, the Slow-Time axis by four speed bins, and the Element axis by six direction bins, but in reality there are many more bins.

[0098] Here, the six distance bins on the Fast-Time axis correspond to distances L1 to L6, the four speed bins on the Slow-Time axis correspond to speeds V1 to V4, and the six direction bins on the Element axis correspond to directions D1 to D6. The cube data 200 is composed of unit cubes with each of the distance bins, speed bins, and direction bins as one side, and each unit cube has a signal intensity obtained as a result of the third FFT calculation.

[0099] FIG. 18 shows a hatched block 201 extending vertically in the cube data 200. This block 201 is composed of six unit cubes corresponding to specific speed bins and direction bins arranged vertically. That is, the block 201 acquires a signal strength indicating a distance to an object or the like located in a direction D1 corresponding to the first direction bin and having a speed V1 corresponding to the first speed bin. For example, when an object or the like having a speed V1 is located a distance L3 away in the direction D1, the signal strength of the third unit cube from the bottom of the block 201 becomes high.

[0100] FIG. 19 shows a hatched block 202 extending in the depth direction in the cube data 200. This block 202 is configured by arranging four unit cubes corresponding to specific distance bins and direction bins in the depth direction. That is, the block 202 acquires a signal strength indicating the speed of an object, etc., located in a direction D1 corresponding to the first direction bin and located a distance L1 away corresponding to the first distance bin. For example, when an object, etc., located at a distance L1 in the direction D1 is moving at a speed V3, the signal strength of the third unit cube from the front of the block 202 becomes high.

[0101] 18 and 19 have been described with reference to examples in which linear (one-dimensional) blocks are extracted from the cube data 200. If planar (two-dimensional) blocks are extracted from the cube data 200, it is possible to obtain information indicating, for example, in which direction and how far away an object having a specific speed is located.

[0102] For example, consider the case of extracting a planar block 210 corresponding to a specific velocity bin from cube data 200 as shown in Fig. 20. The block 210 is composed of 36 (=6 x 6) unit cubes, and indicates signal strength corresponding to the distance in each direction of an object having a velocity V3. That is, from the signal strength of the unit cubes included in the block 210, it is possible to obtain information indicating at which position, in each of the directions D1 to D6, an object having a velocity V3 is located at distances L1 to L6.

[0103] In this embodiment, the three FFT calculations are performed in the order of distance, speed, and direction, but the same results can be obtained by changing the order of the FFT calculations. For example, if the FFT calculation for speed is performed first, and the data of the speed bin corresponding to the flow speed Vd of the tailings flow as seen from the direction of microwave irradiation is extracted, and the FFT calculation for distance and direction is performed on the extracted data, it becomes unnecessary to perform FFT calculations on unnecessary speed components, and the calculation time for determining the shape of the tailings flow can be shortened. In this way, the volume of the tailings flow can be integrated in finer time steps, which is preferable.

[0104] (Calculation of cross-sectional shape and volume) Fig. 21 is a diagram showing the relationship between the direction and distance of an object, etc., obtained by analyzing the signal strength of a block corresponding to a specific speed bin in the cube data 200. In Fig. 21, the horizontal axis represents the direction and the vertical axis represents the distance, and a curve 281 is shown that indicates the distance to the object, etc., according to the direction of the reflected wave. Therefore, the curve 281 can be considered to indicate the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the object, etc., having the relevant speed.

[0105] Using the angle θa corresponding to each direction, each point constituting the curve 281 can be replaced with the xy coordinate system of FIG. 2, with y=Lsinθa and x=Lcosθa.

[0106] The slag flow 12 discharged from the converter 10 falls freely, so the flow velocity Vs at a distance h meters below the throat 10a is √(2gh). Note that g is the acceleration of gravity (≒9.806m 2 4, the cross-sectional shape of the slag flow 12 can be obtained by analyzing the signal intensity of a block in the cube data 200 that corresponds to a velocity bin that is closest to the flow velocity Vd (=Vscosθ) seen from the direction of microwave irradiation.

[0107] However, the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape obtained here is the cross-sectional shape when the slug flow 12 is viewed from the volume measuring device 20 side, and the cross-sectional shape when viewed from the opposite side cannot be obtained. In other words, only half of the cross-sectional shape of the slug flow 12 can be obtained.

[0108] Therefore, in this embodiment, it is assumed that the cross-sectional shape of one half of the slug flow 12 is the same as the cross-sectional shape of the other half. That is, it is assumed that the cross-sectional shape of the slug flow 12 is a shape in which the cross-sectional shapes obtained from the blocks corresponding to the velocity Vd in the cube data 200 are arranged in line symmetry as described above. In this way, the cross-sectional area of ​​the slug flow 12 can be calculated. That is, the cross-sectional area of ​​the slug flow 12 is calculated to be twice the area corresponding to the cross-sectional shape obtained by the curve 281.

[0109] Then, the calculated cross-sectional area is integrated by the time corresponding to the measurement period, so that the partial volume of the slag flow 12 can be calculated. The measurement period corresponds, for example, to the time required to transmit one frame of chirps. In this way, the partial volumes of the slag flow 12 are continuously calculated from the start to the end of the slag discharge and are summed up to calculate the volume of the discharged slag. In addition, the total weight of the discharged slag can be calculated by multiplying the volume of the slag by the slag density calculated in advance. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the volume or weight of the discharged slag can be measured to estimate the amount of phosphorus discharged outside the furnace.

[0110] In the above description, it is assumed that the slag flow 12 falls almost freely, but the flow velocity and the maximum flow velocity direction of the slag flow may be determined in detail by fluid analysis that takes into account the viscosity of the slag. For example, the flow velocity of the slag flow determined by fluid analysis may be applied as the flow velocity Vs. Alternatively, the direction of the maximum flow velocity of the slag flow 12 may be determined in advance by fluid analysis, and the flow velocity Vd as viewed from the microwave irradiation direction may be determined using the angle of inclination of the microwave irradiation direction with respect to the direction of the maximum flow velocity.

[0111] In the above description, the signal intensity of the block corresponding to the velocity bin closest to the flow velocity Vd seen from the microwave irradiation direction is analyzed. However, for example, multiple velocity bins close to the flow velocity Vd seen from the microwave irradiation direction may be identified, and the cross-sectional shape of the slag flow 12 may be obtained by analyzing the signal intensity of the blocks corresponding to the identified multiple velocity bins.

[0112] (Configuration of the computing unit) Fig. 22 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration example of the calculator 44 in Fig. 1. In this example, the calculator 44 has a cube data generator 61, a speed identifier 62, a cross-sectional shape calculator 63, and a volume calculator 64.

[0113] The cube data generator 61 generates data that calculates the distances to the objects and the fluid and the velocities of the objects and the fluid for each direction of the reflected waves based on the reflected waves.

[0114] That is, the cube data generating unit 61 samples beat waves B1 to BN, which are N beat waves obtained by combining a transmitted wave and a received wave, and generates two-dimensional data consisting of a fast-time axis and a slow-time axis. The cube data generating unit 61 generates two-dimensional data for each of the K receiving antennas, receiving antennas 32-1 to 32-K, and arranges them on the element axis to generate the three-dimensional data 170 shown in FIG.

[0115] Then, the cube data generator 61 extracts the data of the three-dimensional data 170 along the fast-time axis and performs a first FFT to convert the data into signal intensity indicating the distance to an object or the like.

[0116] In addition, the cube data generation unit 61 extracts the data converted into the result of the first FFT calculation along the slow-time axis of the three-dimensional data 170 and performs a second FFT to convert it into signal intensity indicating the speed of objects, etc. located at each distance.

[0117] Furthermore, the cube data generation unit 61 extracts the data converted into the result of the second FFT along the element axis of the three-dimensional data 170 and performs a third FFT to convert it into a signal intensity indicating the direction of the reflected wave.

[0118] In this manner, the cube data 200 described above with reference to FIGS. 18, 19 and 20 is generated.

[0119] The velocity identification unit 62 identifies a component having a velocity based on the velocities of the fluid and the object. That is, the velocity identification unit 62 extracts a block 210 corresponding to a specific velocity bin from the cube data 200, for example, as shown in Fig. 20. That is, the velocity identification unit 62 extracts a block 210 corresponding to a velocity bin corresponding to the flow velocity of the slug flow 12 to be measured from the cube data 200. As a result, a component of the reflected wave having a velocity corresponding to the flow velocity of the slug flow 12 is identified from the reflected waves received by the receiving antennas 32-1 to 32-K.

[0120] The cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 calculates the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by specifying the distance to the fluid for each direction of the reflected wave from the component having velocity. That is, the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 analyzes the block 210 corresponding to a specific velocity bin in the cube data 200 extracted by the velocity specification unit 62. Then, the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 calculates the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the slug flow 12 by specifying the distance to the slug flow 12 for each direction of the reflected wave. That is, the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 calculates a curve 281 indicating the distance to an object or the like according to the direction of the reflected wave as shown in FIG. 21, and obtains the cross-sectional shape indicated by the curve 281.

[0121] It is assumed that the cross-sectional shape of the slug flow 12 is obtained by arranging the cross-sectional shapes obtained here in line symmetry.

[0122] The volume calculation unit 64 calculates the volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape. That is, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the volume of the measurement target fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape calculated by the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63. That is, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the partial volume of the slag flow 12 by integrating an area twice the area corresponding to the cross-sectional shape calculated by the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 by the time corresponding to the measurement period. Then, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the entire volume of the discharged slag by continuously calculating and summing the partial volumes of the slag flow 12 from the start to the end of the slag discharge. Furthermore, the volume calculation unit 64 may calculate the total weight of the discharged slag by multiplying the volume of the slag from the start to the end of the slag discharge by the slag density calculated in advance.

[0123] (Volume calculation process flow) Next, a description will be given of the flow of volume calculation processing by the volume measuring device 20. Fig. 23 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the volume calculation processing.

[0124] In step S101, the volume measuring device 20 transmits microwaves. At this time, the microwave oscillator 41 generates, for example, N chirps (for one frame) by continuously generating a plurality of chirps whose frequency is linearly modulated by the sweep frequency F during the sweep time T, as described above with reference to FIG. 9. Then, the microwaves oscillated by the microwave oscillator 41 are transmitted from the transmitting antenna 31. The transmission wave, which is the microwave transmitted from the transmitting antenna 31, generates a reflected wave by hitting an object and being reflected, and the reflected wave is received by the receiving antennas 32-1 to 32-2.

[0125] In step S102, the mixer 42 generates a beat wave by mixing the reference wave, which is the microwave oscillated by the microwave oscillator 41 in step S21, and the received wave, which is the reflected wave received by the receiving antenna 32. The beat wave generated by the mixer 42 is AD converted by the AD converter 43.

[0126] In step S103, the cube data generating unit 61 of the calculator 44 generates data that calculates the distance to the object and the speed of the object for each direction of the reflected wave. At this time, the cube data generating unit 61 generates the cube data 200 described above with reference to Figs. 18, 19, and 20, for example, by performing a calculation process on the digital signal of the beat wave generated in step S102.

[0127] That is, the cube data generator 61 generates the three-dimensional data 170 shown in FIG. 17, extracts it along the fast-time axis, the slow-time axis, and the element axis, and performs FFT three times.

[0128] In this manner, by the process of step S103, cube data of the FMCW array radar with the axes of distance, speed, and direction is generated.

[0129] In step S104, the velocity identifying unit 62 identifies a component of the reflected wave having a velocity corresponding to the flow velocity of the slug flow 12 based on the velocity of the object or the like calculated by the process of step S104. At this time, for example, the velocity identifying unit 62 extracts a block 210 corresponding to a specific velocity bin from the cube data 200 as shown in FIG.

[0130] In this manner, by the process of step S104, a velocity bin close to the flow velocity of the slug flow 12 to be measured is identified from among the velocity bins of the cube data 200.

[0131] In step S105, the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 calculates the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the slag flow 12 by specifying the distance from the specified reflected wave component to the slag flow 12 for each direction of the reflected wave. At this time, the cross-sectional shape calculation unit 63 analyzes, for example, the block 210 of the cube data 200 extracted by the processing of step S104. That is, a curve 281 indicating the distance to an object or the like according to the direction of the reflected wave is calculated, as shown in FIG.

[0132] In this manner, by the process of step S105, the distance corresponding to the identified velocity bin in the cube data 200 is identified for each direction of the reflected wave.

[0133] In step S106, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the volume of the slag flow 12 based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape. At this time, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the cross-sectional area of ​​the slag flow 12 as the cross-sectional shape of the slag flow 12, for example, by arranging the cross-sectional shape indicated by the curve 281 calculated by the processing of step S105 in line symmetry. Then, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the partial volume of the slag flow 12 by integrating the cross-sectional area by the time corresponding to the measurement period. Then, the volume calculation unit 64 calculates the volume of the discharged slag by continuously calculating and summing the partial volumes of the slag flow 12 from the start to the end of the discharge of slag. Furthermore, the volume calculation unit 64 may calculate the total weight of the discharged slag by multiplying the volume of the slag from the start to the end of the discharge of slag by the slag density calculated in advance.

[0134] In this manner, the volume of the slug flow 12 is calculated by integrating with respect to time the area twice the area corresponding to the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape calculated in the process of step S105.

[0135] In this manner, the volume calculation process is performed.

[0136] (Effects of the embodiment) As described above, according to this embodiment, the volume of the discharged slag can be obtained by measurement using microwaves. Therefore, even in an environment where a lot of flames, black smoke, splash, and other dust are generated, the amount of discharged slag can be obtained safely. Furthermore, compared to a method of measuring the weight of a discharge pan that receives the discharged slag, the possibility of failure due to splash during discharge is low, and the amount of discharged slag can be stably measured.

[0137] Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to calculate the distance to an object by focusing on an object having a specific speed among objects that reflect microwaves. Therefore, for example, even if there are structures in the vicinity, the distance to the slug flow can be stably measured.

[0138] As described above, according to this embodiment, even if there are structures in the vicinity, it is possible to stably measure the volume and weight of the fluid to be measured.

[0139] <Other embodiments> Although the above describes an example in which the slag flow discharged in an environment surrounded by structures is the measurement target, the environment does not necessarily have to be surrounded by structures. For example, the present invention can be applied to a slag flow discharged in an environment without surrounding structures as the measurement target.

[0140] Although the above description is directed to an example in which a slug flow is the object of measurement, the object of measurement is not limited to a slug flow. For example, the present invention can be applied to a fluid other than a slug flow as the object of measurement.

[0141] <Example of software implementation> The function of the calculator 44 is a program for causing a computer to function as the device, and can be realized by a program for causing a computer to function as each block of the device.

[0142] Fig. 24 is a block diagram illustrating a physical configuration of a computer 500 used as the arithmetic unit 44. As shown in Fig. 24, the arithmetic unit 44 can be configured by a computer 500 including a bus 510, a processor 501, a main memory 502, an auxiliary memory 503, a communication interface 504, and an input / output interface 505. The processor 501, the main memory 502, the auxiliary memory 503, the communication interface 504, and the input / output interface 505 are connected to each other via the bus 510. An input device 506 and an output device 507 are connected to the input / output interface 505.

[0143] The processor 501 may be, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, a microcontroller, or a combination of these.

[0144] The main memory 502 may be, for example, a semiconductor RAM (random access memory).

[0145] For example, a flash memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or a combination of these may be used as the auxiliary memory 503. A program for causing the processor 501 to execute the operation of the computing unit 44 described above is stored in the auxiliary memory 503. The processor 501 loads the program stored in the auxiliary memory 503 onto the main memory 502, and executes each instruction included in the loaded program.

[0146] The communication interface 504 is an interface for connecting to a network. As the input / output interface 505, for example, a USB interface, a short-range communication interface such as infrared or Bluetooth (registered trademark), or a combination of these is used.

[0147] The input device 506 may be, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch pad, a microphone, or a combination of these. The output device 507 may be, for example, a display, a printer, a speaker, or a combination of these.

[0148] When the functions of the calculator 44 are realized by a program for causing a computer to function as the device, the functions described in each of the above embodiments are realized by executing the program by the processor 501 and main memory 502.

[0149] The program may be non-transitory and may be recorded in one or more computer-readable recording media. The recording media may or may not be included in the device. In the latter case, the program may be provided to the device via any wired or wireless transmission medium.

[0150] In addition, some or all of the functions of the above-mentioned blocks may be realized by logic circuits. For example, an integrated circuit in which a logic circuit that functions as each of the above-mentioned control blocks is formed is also included in the scope of the present invention.

[0151] Furthermore, some or all of the functions of each of the above blocks may operate on the above device, or may operate on another device (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server, etc.).

[0152] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0153] 〔summary〕 A volume measuring method according to a first aspect of the present invention is a volume measuring method for measuring the volume of a fluid to be measured, which uses a volume measuring device having a transmitting unit that transmits microwaves as transmission waves toward the fluid using an FMCW array antenna, a receiving unit that receives microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects surrounding the fluid as reflected waves using the array antenna, and a calculation processing unit that calculates the volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmission wave and the reflected wave, and has the following steps: a data generating step of generating data using the calculation processing unit that calculates the distance to the fluid and the object and the velocities of the fluid and the object based on the reflected wave, a velocity identifying step of identifying a component having velocity based on the velocities of the fluid and the object, a cross-sectional shape calculating step of calculating a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by identifying the distance to the fluid from the component having velocity for each direction of the reflected wave, and a volume calculating step of calculating the volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape.

[0154] A volume measurement method according to a second aspect of the present invention is similar to the above-mentioned first aspect, in that the volume of the fluid is calculated by integrating over time an area twice the area corresponding to the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid.

[0155] A volume measuring method according to a third aspect of the present invention is the above-mentioned first or second aspect, wherein the fluid is a slag flow discharged from a converter throat in an intermediate slag discharge step.

[0156] A volume measuring method according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned third aspect, the irradiation direction of the transmission wave is inclined with respect to the downward vertical direction within a range of more than 0 degrees and less than 75 degrees, or more than 105 degrees and less than 180 degrees, and the position of the slag flow in the irradiation direction of the transmission wave is located below or above the converter mouth.

[0157] A volume measuring device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is a volume measuring device that measures the volume of a fluid to be measured, and includes a transmitting unit that uses an FMCW array antenna to transmit microwaves toward the fluid as a transmitted wave, a receiving unit that uses the array antenna to receive microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects surrounding the fluid as reflected waves, and a calculation processing unit that calculates the volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmitted wave and the reflected wave, and a calculation processing unit.The calculation processing unit includes a data generating unit that generates data calculated based on the reflected wave, the distance to the fluid and the object, and the speed of the fluid and the object, for each direction of the reflected wave, a speed identifying unit that identifies a component having speed based on the speed of the fluid and the object, a cross-sectional shape calculating unit that calculates a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by identifying the distance to the fluid from the component having speed for each direction of the reflected wave, and a volume calculating unit that calculates the volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape. [Explanation of symbols]

[0158] 10 Converter 10a Hearth 12 Slug flow 20 Volume measuring device 30 Array Antenna 31 Transmitting Antenna 32 Receiving antenna 41 Microwave Oscillator 42 Mixer 43 AD converter 44 Arithmetic unit 61 Cube Data Generation Unit 62 Speed ​​identification part 63 Cross-sectional shape calculation section 64 Volume Calculation Unit

Claims

1. A volume measurement method for measuring a volume of a fluid to be measured, comprising the steps of: a transmitting unit that transmits microwaves as transmission waves toward the fluid using an FMCW array antenna; a receiving unit that receives microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects around the fluid as reflected waves using the array antenna; a processor that calculates a volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmitted wave and the reflected wave; Using a volume measuring device having Using the arithmetic processing unit, a data generating step of generating data that calculates distances to the fluid and the object and velocities of the fluid and the object for each direction of the reflected wave based on the reflected wave; A velocity identification step of identifying a component having a velocity based on the velocities of the fluid and the object; a cross-sectional shape calculation step of calculating a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by specifying a distance to the fluid from the component having the velocity for each direction of the reflected wave; a volume calculation step of calculating a volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape; A volume measurement method comprising the steps of:

2. The volume measuring method according to claim 1 , further comprising the step of: calculating the volume of the fluid by integrating with time an area twice the area corresponding to the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid.

3. 2. The volume measuring method according to claim 1, wherein the fluid is a slag stream discharged from a converter throat in an intermediate slag discharge step.

4. 4. The volume measuring method according to claim 3, wherein the irradiation direction of the transmission wave is tilted within a range of greater than 0 degrees and less than 75 degrees, or greater than 105 degrees and less than 180 degrees, with respect to a downward vertical direction, and the position of the slag flow in the irradiation direction of the transmission wave is located below or above the converter throat.

5. A volume measuring device for measuring a volume of a fluid to be measured, comprising: a transmitting unit that transmits microwaves as transmission waves toward the fluid using an FMCW array antenna; a receiving unit that receives microwaves reflected by the fluid and objects around the fluid as reflected waves using the array antenna; a calculation processing unit that calculates a volume of the fluid based on a beat wave generated from a reference wave corresponding to the transmission wave and the reflected wave; having The arithmetic processing unit is a data generating unit that generates data that calculates distances to the fluid and the object and velocities of the fluid and the object for each direction of the reflected wave based on the reflected wave; A velocity identification unit that identifies a component having a velocity based on the velocities of the fluid and the object; a cross-sectional shape calculation unit that calculates a two-dimensional cross-sectional shape of the fluid by specifying a distance to the fluid from the component having the velocity for each direction of the reflected wave; a volume calculation unit that calculates a volume of the fluid based on the two-dimensional cross-sectional shape; A volume measuring device having a volume.

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