Insect pest detection system and associated method

Abstract

To provide an insect pest detection system.SOLUTION: An insect pest detection system includes: a group of underground bait / trap boxes of a tubular box type provided with a housing for at least one mass of edible material for insects and provided with a device for detecting consumption of the edible mass by the insects and provided with measurement electronics located on both sides of the edible mass and including a device where the edible mass forms dielectric material between plates and a processor configured to take first measurements of a first frequency; a concentrator module comprising first radio communication means configured to transmit the first measurements from the boxes to a concentrator; and at least one remote server. The remote server is provided with a monitoring program. The remote server measures a frequency variation characteristic of a variation in density of the edible mass of at least one box at least on the basis of two or more of the first measurements.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of protecting buildings and structures against attack by pests, and more particularly to a trapping device with a bait suitable for subterranean pests, in particular termites. [Background technology]

[0002] There are many examples of traps for subterranean pests such as termites, for example documents EP 2015159 A1, EP 3648594 A1 and US 2010 / 043276 A1 relate to devices that are sunk into the ground and are filled with a material palatable to termites so as to detect their presence as they eat the material, or with a palatable material that contains an insecticide intended to exterminate said termites.

[0003] Document US 2007 / 120690 A1 describes a detection system comprising trap / bait boxes equipped with electronic detection circuits, distributed on the ground surface around the structure to be protected, and a device for polling said boxes. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] There is a need to improve the detection of pest activity by traps / baits, to simplify the management of these traps / baits, and to simplify the procedures for controlling these insects, and the present disclosure proposes a detection system that allows remote monitoring and planning of on-site intervention if the presence of a pest is detected. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In view of this situation, the present disclosure more specifically proposes a pest detection system, comprising: a) a group of tube-box-type underground bait / trap boxes, the lower part of the box being provided with a housing having a first portion for at least one edible mass containing edible material for insects, the box being provided with a device for detecting consumption of the edible mass by insects, the device being provided with measuring electronics, the measuring electronics being: b) a device for measuring a first frequency of a first relaxation oscillator including a first measuring capacitor formed by two first plates located on either side of the edible mass, the edible mass forming a dielectric material between the plates; c) a processor configured to take first measurements at a first frequency according to a first schedule; d. at least one concentrator module, each of the boxes in the group of boxes and the concentrator module including a first wireless communication means configured to transmit first measurements from the box to the concentrator according to a second schedule; e. at least one remote server; Each of the concentrator module and the server includes a second communication means configured to transmit the first measurement values ​​from the concentrator unit to a remote server according to a third schedule, the remote server being equipped with a monitoring program, and the remote server including a calculation means configured to measure, based on at least a plurality of the first measurement values, a frequency change characteristic of density variations of the edible mass in at least one box of the group of boxes, such that consumption of the edible mass by insects can be detected by the density variations.

[0006] Measurements carried out periodically allow a continuous monitoring of the boxes connected to the concentrator and in particular allow the determination of the box that was first infested and which boxes need to be refilled with the edible mass containing the insecticidal composition.

[0007] In embodiments which may be combined or independent, At least some of the boxes in the group may be equipped with a compensation circuit including at least one second relaxation oscillator including a second measurement capacitor created by a second plate disposed on the first plate, and the measurement electronics and processor are configured to perform second measurements at a second frequency according to a fourth schedule and to transmit the second measurements to the concentrator according to a fifth schedule.

[0008] The fourth schedule may be the same as the first schedule and / or the fifth schedule may be the same as the second schedule.

[0009] The boxes are each equipped with a device for managing periodic sleep and wake-up phases of its processor, the processor being advantageously configured, during its wake-up phase, to perform frequency measurements by means of a frequency measuring device, to manage the establishment and continuation of communication with the concentrator module and to transmit the measurements to the concentrator module.

[0010] The concentrator module may be configured to communicate with the boxes to periodically receive a first measurement value from each box, compile the measurements from all boxes in the group of boxes, and transmit the compiled measurements to a remote server having a monitoring program and a computing means located thereon, and the computing means may be configured to calculate one or more changes in the frequency of the first oscillator as a function of time for each box and detect density changes characteristic of the at least one edible mass based on the changes.

[0011] The present disclosure further relates to a method for protecting a ground surface, in particular a ground surface surrounding one or more buildings, by means of a detection system as described above, the method comprising the steps of: a) installing a concentrator module; b) placing a group of bait / trap boxes on a surface, each containing an edible chunk of insect edible material; c) pairing one or more boxes with the concentrator, in a pairing step performed for each of the boxes; d) a pairing step performed on the concentrator, pairing the concentrator with the server; e) setting the concentrator to listen to the configured box and, after a sleep period, periodically transmitting to the concentrator the values ​​of frequency measurements performed by the measuring device of the box; f) transmitting measurements of the plurality of boxes from the concentrator to a remote server according to a third schedule; and g. calculating, by the remote server, a change in the series of frequency data as a function of time for each box in the group of boxes and assessing the density variation of the trap contents for at least one edible mass based on the change by detecting inflection points and / or changes in slope in the series of data.

[0012] The remote server may process the measurement data to detect the presence of insects within the box through detection of fluctuations in the measurements that resemble consumption of matrix or addition of soil, or both.

[0013] The method may include a step of calculating the change in density variation by a remote server, and an algorithm for determining based on the change whether insects are present in the at least one box to trigger an intervention to place a bait in the at least one box comprising a composition lethal to the pests, or for determining a time to schedule an intervention based on the density variation.

[0014] In an advantageous embodiment, the remote server may process the measurement data to determine the consumption rate of edible mass for each box and generate an intervention schedule for multiple boxes.

[0015] In addition to the measurement data of the box, a, a unique identifier for the box; b, box temperature; c, the first relaxation oscillator frequency measurement; d, the frequency measurement of the second relaxation oscillator, and e., may be configured to periodically transmit a data frame including at least one data item of the measurement date.

[0016] The box may be equipped with a compensation circuit including at least one second relaxation oscillator including a second measuring capacitor created by a second plate placed over the location of the edible mass, the box's measurement electronics and processor may be configured to perform second measurements at a second frequency according to a fourth schedule and transmit the second measurements to the concentrator according to the fourth schedule, and the remote server is configured to assess consumption of the edible mass by the insects based on a calculation including calculating a differential frequency between the frequency of the first relaxation oscillator and the frequency of the second relaxation oscillator.

[0017] The calculation of the differential frequency between the first and second relaxation oscillators may be an equation of the following type: F=(F A -S A )-[(F B -S B )×k] Where: -F is the compensated differential frequency, -F A , F B is the frequency measured across the measurement capacitors A and B of the compensation circuit, -S A , S B is the compensation offset for capacitors A and B, -k is a compensation constant that depends on the trap construction, material choice, and size of the capacitor plates, This calculation is performed for a series of consecutive measurements performed on each box.

[0018] The offset advantageously corresponds to the unloaded capacitance of the two capacitors A and B and is measured during the initialization step of the device when installing the trap without edible mass, so that F A 0=S A , and similarly F B 0=S B It is.

[0019] The remote server may be configured to record measurements from the box and form a measurement database that forms a deep learning database for the neural network.

[0020] In a complementary or alternative manner, the remote server may be configured to estimate consumption of edible mass using an artificial intelligence algorithm based on a neural network pre-trained with a deep learning database for frequency measurements.

[0021] In addition to the measurement data, the concentrator a, concentrator receiving level (dBm); b. The software version of the concentrator module; c, the version of the software for communicating from the concentrator module to the remote server; d. an indication that the concentrator modules are paired; and e, a table, for each box, f, the unique identifier of the box; g, the reception level of the wireless signal between the box and the concentrator; h, remaining battery level of the box (%), i, the software version on the box, and j, a table including at least one of one or more data items indicating whether the box is in pairing mode; Send a data frame containing at least one data item from

[0022] Preferably, the remote server is arranged to carry out a diagnostic of the operation of the communication means of the concentrator module based on the received data, as well as to carry out a diagnostic of the box battery and the box communication device.

[0023] The server may include a collection device configured to collect messages from the boxes sent by the concentrator module, and the method may include implementing a processing process including generating a map and / or list and / or table representing the distribution of boxes connected to the concentrator modules in which the presence of insects has been detected, and an adapted web service and / or mobile application process allowing a user to consult the map, list or table.

[0024] The server includes an intervention database representing the locations of the boxes and concentrator modules within the area, and the method may include a step of implementing a process for a technician to organize a schedule of interventions for the boxes in the area as a function of the progress of consumption of the edible mass by monitoring the boxes and the concentrator modules.

[0025] The method may include updating, by a technician, an intervention database with the performed intervention.

[0026] If insects are detected, the edible mass may be replaced or replenished with pellets or other edible mass containing the insecticidal composition.Insects of concern in this invention are particularly termites. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0027] Further features, details and advantages of the invention will become apparent on reading the following detailed description of non-limiting embodiments and on referring to the accompanying drawings.

[0028] [Figure 1] 1 shows an exploded view of a box according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of box electronics according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] 4 shows the frequency generator circuit in detail. [Figure 4] 2 shows a diagram of the box of FIG. 1 and consumables that fit into the box. [Diagram 5] 1 shows a schematic diagram of the box operation procedure. [Figure 6] 1 shows a simplified diagram of a concentrator. [Figure 7] 1 shows a schematic diagram of a pest detection system. [Figure 8] 4 shows a curve for detecting pest activity by the insect detection system of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] 1 shows a simplified flow chart of method steps according to the present disclosure. [Figure 10] 1 shows the detection curve of an insect detection system of the present disclosure in an uninvaded box. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0029] The drawings and the following description contain elements which may be used to better understand the invention, as well as to help define it, if necessary.

[0030] The pest detection device, as shown in particular in Figure 1, comprises a perforated tubular box 1 which can be placed on the ground.

[0031] The box includes a longitudinal axis A which is the vertical axis when the box is installed in the ground, and an upper flange 15 which rests on the ground when the box is buried in the ground. The box includes a perforated tubular housing 12 with a vertical slot 16 disposed at its end which forms a housing extending along the longitudinal axis A from the open top of the box including the flange to the bottom of the box, the housing being divided approximately in half between an upper portion and a lower portion.

[0032] In one embodiment, the housing is intended to initially receive an edible mass 40 of said insect's edible material in the form of a block of wood or cellulosic material that is stored in the bottom of the housing, for example as shown in FIG.

[0033] The housing 11 can then receive a refill 42, also shown in the block above and in FIG. 4, which will be described below.

[0034] The edible mass 40 may be a block 41 as described above, but the edible mass may also be a pile of pellets. The wood block may be a mixture of solid wood or cellulose. The solid wood may be, for example, poplar, which is less sensitive to humidity than cellulose. The edible mass in the form of a block may be a cylinder with a circular or hexagonal cross section in one or two parts.

[0035] 1, the tubular housing 12 includes double walls on two opposite sides thereof forming lateral cavities 13, 14. These lateral cavities are open at one lateral end perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the box between the double walls and closed at the other lateral end, and house electronics 20 for detecting said insect activity, an embodiment of which will be described below.

[0036] The tubular housing 12 of the box according to this example has a hexagonal cross section in a plane transverse to the axis A, and the double walls are arranged opposite each other along two diametrically opposed faces of the housing. The housing may also have a generally elliptical cross section with two flat faces in which the lateral cavities 13, 14 are formed.

[0037] With further reference to FIG. 1, the electronics 20 for detecting the insect activity includes at least two capacitive detection electrodes 22, 23 disposed within lateral cavities 13, 14 on either side of the lower portion of the tubular housing 11 which receives a block 41 of edible material for the insects.

[0038] The detection electronics, as shown diagrammatically in Fig. 2, comprises a first frequency generator circuit, for example with a relaxation oscillator 21 as shown in Fig. 3 and with the capacitive detection electrodes 22, 23 as capacitive elements. The first frequency generator circuit is connected to an oscillation frequency detection device 25, the relaxation oscillator 21 being configured to generate a first oscillation frequency f1, the first oscillation frequency f1 of the oscillator depending at least in part on the density of the edible mass 40 and therefore varying with consumption of this edible mass 40 by the insect.

[0039] As further shown in Fig. 3, the first frequency generator includes an operational amplifier i1 whose output is connected to a negative input by a resistor R1, which receives the capacitive detection electrode 22, and the other capacitive detection electrode 23 is connected to a fixed potential such as an edible mass of the detection electronics. The resistor R1 and the operational amplifier i1 are about 30mm to 60mm high and about 20mm to 50mm wide, preferably about 50mm x 35mm, and are arranged such that when a box without a block 41 in the housing 11 is calibrated away from the ground using a detection plate having a spacing of 50 to 70mm, preferably 60mm, the generator generates an initial frequency f1=S of about 10kHz to 400kHz, preferably about 100kHz ± 20kHz. A is selected to generate

[0040] The electronics further includes a temperature sensor 33 .

[0041] In this example, the device includes a second frequency generator circuit with a relaxation oscillator 21' in which at least two capacitive compensation electrodes 31, 32 are provided as capacitive elements, which are arranged in boxes on either side of the upper part of the tubular housing.

[0042] Further in the example of FIG. 3, the first compensator 31 is connected to the negative input of the second operational amplifier i2 and the second compensator 32 is connected to the zero potential of the detection electronics.

[0043] Similarly, resistor R2 and operational amplifier i2 in the second circuit above are used to calibrate the compensation frequency f2 = S when the box is off the ground using a plate with the same height, width and spacing as the sensing plate. B Similarly, the frequency is about 10 kHz to 400 kHz, and preferably about 50 kHz±20 kHz.

[0044] The frequency f1 emitted by the first frequency generator circuit varies as a function of density variations when the edible mass 40 placed between the capacitive detection electrodes 22, 23 is consumed by the insect, while the frequency f2 emitted by the second frequency generator circuit is emitted differently from the frequency emitted by the first frequency generator when no edible mass is present between the compensation electrodes, depending, for example, on the moisture and temperature conditions in the soil surrounding the compensation electrodes 31, 32 or in response to the addition of soil by the insect, thus optionally improving the measurements, as shown below.

[0045] The processor P may in particular consist of a low-power microcontroller associated with a random access memory and a non-volatile memory, for example a programmable or reprogrammable flash memory, EPROM or EEPROM, etc., containing a program for carrying out the measurements, said memory being fully or partly contained in said microcontroller.

[0046] The microcontroller may also include operational amplifiers 21, 21' each connected to an analogue / digital converter circuit M via a multiplexer or to a single converter, the one or more converters being connected to a calculation unit configured to convert the frequencies generated by the first and second frequency generator circuits into digital frequency signal data and to measure the digital frequency signal data.

[0047] In an embodiment not described, the operational amplifiers i1 and i2 may also be replaced by a single operational amplifier preceded by a multiplexer which alternately connects the plates 22 and 31 to said single operational amplifier in order to perform alternate frequency measurements at the output of said operational amplifier.

[0048] To make the measurement independent of ambient electromagnetic noise, the device further comprises an active shield on which are placed two plates 30a, 30b which are brought to the potential of the capacitive electrodes of the first relaxation oscillator 21. The active shield comprises a third operational amplifier i3 wired as a follower to which the two plates 30a, 30b are connected.

[0049] As shown in Fig. 2, the electronic device includes a communication module C that may or may not be integrated in the processor, and the electronic device is equipped with a wireless transceiver configured to transmit the digital data to a remote monitoring system 8. The electronic device further includes a power supply device A equipped with a battery aiming for an autonomy of the device of at least 2 to 5 years, and a device for putting the electronic device into a deep standby state to reduce power consumption and for waking them up.

[0050] Further referring to FIG. 1, in this example the detection electronics further includes two printed circuit boards 26, 27, a first one of the printed circuit boards 26 includes a first electrode of the detection electrode 22, the frequency generator circuits 21, 21' and the oscillation frequency detection device 25, and a second one of the printed circuit boards 27 is connected to the first one of the printed circuit boards 26 by a flexible circuit or a connecting wire and includes a second electrode of the capacitive detection electrode 23.

[0051] In the example shown, a first of the substrates 26, 27 supports a first capacitive compensation electrode and a second of the substrates supports a second capacitive compensation electrode.

[0052] The active shield plates 30a, 30b may be fabricated from a particular layer of a multi-layer printed circuit board, such as a ground plane.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 1, the electronics placed in said cavity are embedded in a protective coating 28 and thus can pass through a light-emitting indicator 29 controlled by this processor P to indicate a pairing sequence that has been initiated, for example, by pressing and holding a button on a box connected to the processor to trigger the pairing sequence.

[0054] Mechanically, box 1 receives an edible mass 40 such as a block 41 at the bottom of housing 11, which is positioned within a drawer frame 7 that is removably inserted into the tubular housing. The drawer frame can receive a refill 42 containing an insecticide composition in pellets 45 that are eaten by insects, with the portion of the box for receiving the refill 42 above the bottom of the box that receives the block, by including two housings 7a and 7b separated by a cross bar 71.

[0055] In this example, the edible block of insects 41 comprises a cylindrical assembly having a uniform hexagonal cross section perpendicular to an axis B1 passing through its centre, the cylindrical assembly being formed from two solid wood parts 411 which are trapezoidal prisms in cross section, the edible block 41 including an external groove 412 parallel to the axis of rotation. This two-part construction simplifies and reduces the cost of manufacture of the block by using thinner wood parts than the entire block.

[0056] The exterior grooves 412 create an area where insects can attack the block.

[0057] The refill, also called a capsule, which is received in the part of the tubular housing above the bottom of the box receiving the blocks, contains perforated packages 43, 44 and pellets 45 which can be consumed by the insects.

[0058] The drawer frame receives the refill 42 in an upper housing 7 b above the block 41 , the refill 42 and the block 41 being separated by a cross bar 71 .

[0059] The box has at the top a removable cover 5 which closes the tubular housing. The cover may be removed to insert a drawer filled with one or two edible loaves or one or two refills or a combination of refills and edible loaves and then removed again.

[0060] In this example, a quarter-turn style cover with tabs that fit into grooves in the box is provided with notches 51 for snap-fitting onto feet 61 of the removable handle 6 .

[0061] The refill comprises a package 43, 44 and pellets 45 that can be consumed by the insects, the package being a perforated package comprising two perforated half-shells comprising matching snap-fitting means 431, 441 or connected by a hinge, in this way the operator does not directly handle the insecticide pellets, which in this case are cylindrical pellets of edible material deposited within the package.

[0062] In particular, the pellets consist of compressed cellulose chips or granules that may or may not contain a pesticide composition.

[0063] To fit into the box housing, packages 43, 44 have a hexagonal cross section perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis B2 of the refill.

[0064] The operation of the box is illustrated in Figure 5. The processor of the detection electronics has a standby stage 100, which it leaves in order to carry out (110) measurements of the oscillator frequencies f1 and f2. Once the measurements have been carried out, the box transmits these measurements in step 120 to the concentrator 8, after which it receives (140) an acknowledgement of receipt and a command to return to standby mode. The box returns to standby and remains in standby for a period preset in the box's processor.

[0065] The concentrator 8 is shown diagrammatically in figure 6 and comprises a processor 80, a power supply 81 and a memory 84 including a programmable memory portion for receiving the concentrator operating software and a random access memory portion notably used to store measurements and data from the boxes before transmitting them to a server 9 shown in figure 7. The concentrator comprises a first wireless communication module 82, for example using a sub-GHz protocol of the Wi-Fi type, for communicating with the boxes, and a second communication module 83, for communicating with the server 9, adapted to communicate with the server on which communication means 84 are installed, for example using a 2G, LTE-M, NB-IOT, 4G or 5G protocol.

[0066] The detection of insect activity is primarily based on the consumption of the edible mass placed between the detection electrodes, this detection being based on a series of measurements taken for each box, in particular by looking for significant changes in the frequency of the first oscillator of the box, which are likely to form an image of a decrease in the density of the edible mass.

[0067] Examples of frequency curves as a function of time during testing over approximately 20 days (D) at a termite mound farm using edible wood block type masses are provided in Figures 8A-8C.

[0068] FIG. 8A shows the frequency f1-S versus the number of days D. A The curve 200 corresponds to the change in S A is the frequency of the first relaxation oscillator in the initial state, and f1 is the frequency of the first oscillator at a given instant.

[0069] FIG. 8B shows the frequency f2-S versus the number of days D. B 210, which corresponds to the change in S B is the frequency of the second relaxation oscillator in the initial state, and f2 is the frequency of the second oscillator at a given instant.

[0070] FIG. 8C shows a curve 220 corresponding to the temperature change (in degrees Celsius) surrounding the electronics of the box during the measurement.

[0071] In this example, it can be seen that in the curve 200 of Figure 8A, a first inflection point 200a beginning a positive slope of the increase in the oscillator frequency indicates the beginning of consumption of the edible mass by the insect, a second inflection point 200b beginning a negative slope corresponds to the addition of soil around the edible mass, which ends with a third inflection point 200c beginning a second positive slope corresponding to continued consumption of the edible mass by the insect. The detection program is designed to detect these changes and infer therefrom the presence of an insect consuming the edible mass.

[0072] And FIG. 8B shows a decrease in frequency from inflection point 210a in frequency change curve 210 of the second relaxation oscillator, which corresponds to the filling of the space between plates 31, 32 of the electrodes of the capacitor of the compensation circuit.

[0073] FIG. 8C shows that the temperature is stable at ±1° C. during the measurement period, which does not affect detection in this case.

[0074] Thus, possible adverse changes in the frequency emission of the second oscillator over time may indicate colonization of the box by insects and addition of soil, which may result in the construction or aggregation of tunnels formed by insects, particularly termites.

[0075] On the other hand, Figures 10A and 10C correspond to the curves of an unpenetrated box, which includes an edible mass in the form of a block of wood around the electrodes of the first oscillator, and no edible mass around the electrodes of the second oscillator. This box is placed in a region where only the temperature varies, and it can be seen that the curves are relatively stable for both the first and second oscillator.

[0076] Curve 230 in FIG. 10A corresponds to the frequency f1-f1m of a first oscillator with the plates of the capacitor placed on either side of the edible mass averaged over a 48 hour window with the median value f1m subtracted with temperature compensation, curve 240 in FIG. 10B corresponds to the frequency f2 averaged over a 48 hour window with the median value f2m subtracted before temperature compensation, curve 245 corresponds to the frequency f2-f2m after temperature compensation, and curve 250 in FIG. 10C corresponds to the temperature θ recorded during the measurement averaged over 6 hours with the median temperature θ m is subtracted.

[0077] For a group of boxes 1 connected to a concentrator 8, based on frequency data measured by a first oscillator and optionally a second oscillator of each box according to a first schedule, for example several times a day, these data can be consolidated in the concentrator and transmitted to a remote server 9 according to a second schedule, for example daily.

[0078] On the remote server, calculations are performed to detect inflection points and slopes of frequency change in the series of data collected from each box.

[0079] This corresponds, for example, to the curve 200 of the invaded boxes, but also involves a comparison of the values ​​and variances of the data between one or more boxes in order to calculate the probability of the presence of an insect in these boxes.

[0080] In fact, if an area is installed with, for example, about 10 boxes arranged in a circle around a structure, typically only a portion of the boxes will be invaded if the insects to be exterminated are present. As a result, if the boxes surround the building to be protected, since the intrusion occurs in a predetermined direction, comparing the data between the boxes will show that for certain boxes, frequency changes can be detected, but for the majority of the boxes, the data is stable or changes similarly depending on the humidity and temperature conditions of the ground. This allows the presence of insects to be detected by setting a change threshold, for example a 20% or 30% frequency deviation for one box and comparing it with the average value of the other boxes over a predetermined period of time, for example a day or a week.

[0081] The calculation of insect presence may optionally correct for frequency changes due to other parameters such as box temperature and / or humidity and take these parameters into account to improve detection of insect presence.

[0082] FIG. 9 shows a simplified flow chart of the operation of a system generated according to the present method.

[0083] Box 1 has a sleep cycle 300 and a wake-up cycle 310 separated in time according to a first schedule P1 for measuring the frequency of the first oscillator 21 (320) or according to a fourth schedule P4 for measuring the frequency of the second oscillator 21'. It should be noted that the first schedule may be equal to the fourth schedule, provided that the measurements are performed during the same wake-up phase. It then transmits (330) the measurements to the concentrator 8 according to the second schedule or the fifth schedule 325.

[0084] Similarly, the second and fifth schedules may be the same or, for simplicity, a common schedule may be selected such that P1=P2=P4=P5 for the measurement and transmission operations. The measurement and transmission schedule may be fixed or variable upon command from the concentrator as instructed by the server, e.g., the measurement schedule may be increased if a significant frequency change is detected.

[0085] In step 350, the concentrator 8 receives and stores all data from the boxes, compiles the measurement data from the boxes in step 355, and then transmits (365) these measurement data to the server 9 according to a third schedule P3 (360). The transmission (365) may be performed as soon as all boxes of the group of boxes have transmitted their measurements, or after receiving several sets of compiled measurements; in order to limit the number of transmissions, for example if the boxes transmit measurements hourly or several times a day, and to limit the transmission costs when transmitting via a mobile phone network, the concentrator may be equipped with a large enough memory to transmit data stored over several days of measurements. Data transmission is therefore determined by memory capacity and schedule.

[0086] At the server level, after receiving (370) the measurements, a calculation program 380 calculates the frequency change over the range of frequencies measured by the first oscillator 21, the program: According to step 390, - calculating compensation data from a second oscillator; or - calculating the change in frequency of the second oscillator 21' in the same way as the first oscillator, in order to detect the presence of edible mass in the upper part as well, Or it may also include a calculation module for compensating the oscillator measurements according to the measured temperature.

[0087] For example, an analysis program (400) based on a neural network trained on a set of data consisting of measurements from several installation locations and entered into a database (410) can detect whether insects are present (420). If insects are detected in at least one box, then in step 430 a participant monitoring the system is notified that an intervention needs to be carried out.

[0088] To this end, participants may use, for example, an application that includes the generation of a map and / or list and / or table representing the distribution of boxes connected to concentrator modules in which the presence of insects has been detected, and adapted web service processes and / or mobile applications that allow a user to consult said map, said list or said table.

[0089] Therefore, this pest detection system: a) a group of tubular box-type underground bait / trap boxes 1, the lower part of which is provided with a housing 11 for receiving at least one edible mass 40 containing edible material for said insects, the box being provided with a device for detecting consumption of said edible mass by said insects; i. a device 21, 22, 23 for measuring a first frequency of a first relaxation oscillator 21 including a first measuring capacitor formed by two first plates 22, 23 located on either side of the edible mass, the edible mass forming a dielectric material between the plates; ii. the measurement electronics 20 is provided, the measurement electronics 20 including a processor 25 configured to perform a first measurement (320) at a first frequency f1 according to a first schedule P1.

[0090] A group of boxes is connected to a concentrator module 8, and box 1 of the group of boxes and each of the concentrator module includes a first wireless communication means C82 configured to transmit (330) a first measurement value from the box to the concentrator according to a second schedule P2.

[0091] The concentrator module 8 is connected to at least one remote server 9, and each of the concentrator module and the server includes second communication means 83, 84, such as a mobile phone communication module of 4G or 5G type, configured to transmit the first measurement values ​​from the concentrator unit 8 to the remote server 9 in accordance with a third schedule P3.

[0092] The remote server is provided with a monitoring program and includes a calculation means 380, 390 configured to measure a frequency change characteristic of density variations of the edible mass of at least one box of the group of boxes based on at least a plurality of said first measurement values.

[0093] The measurement principle described above allows the direct detection of the presence of pests under certain conditions, however in the example shown the box is equipped with a second relaxation oscillator 21' comprising a second measuring capacitor formed by second plates 31, 32.

[0094] As shown in FIG. 2, the measurement electronics 20 and the processor 25 are then configured to perform a second measurement at a second frequency according to a fourth schedule P4 and to transmit the second measurement to the concentrator according to a fifth schedule P5.

[0095] As shown in FIG. 5, each box 1 is equipped with a device (100) for managing periodic sleep and wake-up phases of its processor, said processor being advantageously configured, during its wake-up phase, to perform frequency measurements (110) by means of a device for measuring said frequency, to manage the establishment and continuation of communication with a concentrator module and to transmit the measurements to said concentrator module 8 (120).

[0096] The concentrator module is configured to communicate with the boxes, periodically receive the first measurement value from each box, transmit data such as schedules P1, P2, P4, P5, program updates or other data to the boxes, and transmit the measurements to a remote server 9 on which a monitoring program is installed.

[0097] The server's computing means is configured to calculate the change in frequency of the first oscillator as a function of time for each box and perform a statistical comparison on the collected frequency data to detect a decrease in density of at least one of said edible masses based on said change. Another possibility or additional detection could include the addition of a large amount of soil, possibly moist, around the compensation electrode, which could be an indication of an infestation of insects to be controlled.

[0098] A concentrator module 8 may be configured to communicate with the boxes 1 and periodically receive the first measurement value from each box, compile the measurements from all boxes in a group of boxes and transmit the compiled measurements to a remote server where the monitoring program is located (365), the calculation means being configured to calculate the change in frequency data as a function of time for each box and perform a statistical comparison of the changes to detect, based on the changes, a decrease in density of at least one of the edible masses, an increase in density anomalies around it if a compensation electrode is used, or a combination of both phenomena.

[0099] The present disclosure further provides a method for protecting a ground surface, in particular a ground surface surrounding one or more buildings, with a detection system according to the present disclosure, the method comprising the steps of: a) installing a concentrator module; b) placing a group of bait / trap boxes on said surface, each containing a chunk of edible material for said insects (called edible chunks); c) pairing said one or more boxes with said concentrator in a pairing step performed for each of said boxes; d) setting said concentrator to listen to said configured box and, after a sleep period, periodically transmitting to said concentrator module the values ​​of frequency measurements performed by a measuring device; e) transmitting measurements of a plurality of boxes to a concentrator according to a second schedule, and thereafter transmitting measurements from the concentrator to the remote server according to a third schedule; f. calculating, by a remote server, a change in frequency as a function of time for each box in the group of boxes based on a plurality of measurements, and assessing trap content density variation for at least one of said edible masses based on said change by detecting inflection points and / or changes in slope based on the frequency data as a function of time.

[0100] The one or more boxes are paired with the concentrator using an application on a mobile phone or tablet.

[0101] In a first embodiment, the detection program of the remote server is designed to monitor changes in the density fluctuations of the edible mass, and an algorithm determines based on this change whether said insects are present in at least one box to trigger an intervention to place a bait containing a composition lethal to said pests in at least one box, or determines the time to schedule said intervention based on this change.

[0102] A remote server may process the measurement data to determine a consumption rate of the edible mass for each box and generate the intervention schedule for the plurality of boxes.

[0103] The data transmitted periodically from the box to the concentrator, together with the measurement data, a, a unique identifier for the box; b, box temperature; c, the first relaxation oscillator frequency measurement; d, the frequency measurement of the second relaxation oscillator, and e., and measurement date.

[0104] The calculation of insect presence may take into account other parameters such as the temperature and / or humidity of the box.

[0105] If desired, a differential frequency between the frequency of the first oscillator and the frequency of the second oscillator may be calculated, and the calculation of the differential frequency between the first relaxation oscillator and the second relaxation oscillator may be an equation of the following type: F=(F A -S A )-[(F B -S B )×k] Where: -F is the compensated differential frequency, -F A , F B is the frequency measured across the measurement capacitors A and B of the compensation circuit, -S A , S B is the compensation offset for capacitors A and B, -k is a compensation constant that depends on the trap construction, material choice, and size of the capacitor plates.

[0106] This calculation may be performed for a series of consecutive measurements taken on each box, particularly when the second oscillator is used to make compensation measurements when no edible mass is placed between the electrodes of the second oscillator.

[0107] The offset may correspond to the no-load capacitance of the two capacitors A and B, which is measured during the initialization step of the device when installing the trap without edible mass, so that F A 0=S A , and similarly F B 0=S B It is.

[0108] The remote server may be configured to record measurements from the box and form a measurement database based on these data forming a deep learning database of the neural network.

[0109] The remote server may be configured to detect or estimate consumption of edible mass using an artificial intelligence algorithm based on said neural network pre-trained on said deep learning database for frequency measurements.

[0110] To manage the operation of the system, the data frame a, concentrator receiving level (dBm); b. The software version of the concentrator module; c, the version of the software for communicating from the concentrator module to the remote server; d. An indication that the concentrator module is paired; e, a table for each box, f, the unique identifier of the box; g, box receiving level (dBm), h, remaining battery level of the box (%), i, the software version on the box, and j, further including at least one of the data items indicating whether the box is in pairing mode or not.

[0111] When configured in this way, the remote server can, based on these data, in particular perform diagnostics of the operation of the communication means of the concentrator module, as well as diagnostics of the box battery and the box communication device, and general diagnostics of the system.

[0112] A processing process may be implemented that includes generating a map of the area receiving the boxes or a table representing the consumption of edible mass in the boxes connected to the concentrator module to determine whether some boxes are penetrated more than others. The method may also include an adapted web service process to allow a user to consult said map or said table.

[0113] The server includes an intervention database representing the locations of the boxes and the concentrator modules in the area, and the method may include a step of implementing a process for a technician to organize a schedule of interventions for said boxes in said area as a function of the progress of consumption of the edible mass of the boxes by monitoring said boxes and the concentrator modules. Once an intervention has been performed, an operator can update the intervention database to monitor the area in which a group of boxes is located.

[0114] Regarding the use of the device, several embodiments are possible.

[0115] In one embodiment, a second generator is used to compensate the measurements from the first frequency generator, including a configuration in which edible mass is placed in a lower portion of the basket and an upper portion of the basket remains free of blocks or edible mass. In this case, the second oscillator can be used to generate a second oscillation frequency f2 in response to changes in humidity levels in the box, or to detect the addition of soil in the box by insects.

[0116] In another embodiment, such a configuration is useful, for example, when only slight changes in temperature and humidity are expected in the area where the device is installed, but for example, a second edible mass is placed in the upper part of the housing to increase the detection capabilities of the device. The two generators can then help detect a decrease in the density of the edible mass and detect the presence of insects. This configuration increases the amount of available edible material and increases the height that can be detected.

[0117] In a particular embodiment, the user has the option to place lethal edible matrix or lethal edible capsules at the top and bottom of the box when the device is installed. Two pairs of electrodes then measure what is happening in the upper and lower parts of the housing. In this configuration, intoxication of the colony begins as soon as an insect invades one or more of the housings. Detection is performed in the upper and lower parts of the box, and once an insect is detected, the operator knows which of the installed boxes has been invaded, and therefore can determine when it is necessary to intervene to replace the consumed matrix or capsules.

[0118] The box and the associated detection system are therefore flexible in use and can be adapted to the situation, whatever the temperature or humidity conditions, or whether the insect colony to be controlled is more or less active.

[0119] In summary, from a mechanical and electronic point of view, the device for detecting pests comprises a perforated tubular box 1 that can be installed underground, has a longitudinal axis A and in which electronic equipment 20 for detecting the activity of said insects is installed.

[0120] In this case, the electronic device is a, at least two first capacitive detection electrodes 22, 23 arranged on either side of a lower portion of a tubular housing 11 extending along a longitudinal axis A from the open top to the bottom of the box, said lower portion receiving at least one edible chunk or block 41 of edible material of said insect in a portion of the housing located at the bottom of said box.

[0121] The block may be formed by a possibly two-part solid block or by pellets encased in capsules.

[0122] The electronic device includes a first frequency generator circuit with a relaxation oscillator 21, the first frequency generator circuit including the capacitive detection electrodes 22, 23 as capacitive elements and connected to an oscillation frequency detection device 25, the relaxation oscillator 21 configured to generate a first oscillation frequency f1, the first oscillation frequency f1 of the oscillator depending at least in part on the density of the block 41 and therefore varying with consumption of the edible mass 40 by the insect.

[0123] The oscillation frequency detection device 25 comprises a processor P, such as a microcontroller, equipped with analog / digital conversion means, configured and programmed to carry out the measurement of said frequency on said first frequency generator.

[0124] In a particular version, the detection electronics includes a second frequency generator circuit with a second relaxation oscillator 21' and as capacitive elements at least two second capacitive compensation electrodes 31, 32 arranged in the box on either side of the upper part of the tubular housing, said second circuit being connected to said oscillation frequency detection device 25 and configured to generate a second oscillation frequency f2 depending on the environment of the trap and the possible addition of soil to the trap by the insect or representative of the consumption by the insect of a second edible mass or of a refill arranged in the upper part of the housing.

[0125] As seen above, the device is flexible in that detection may also include using a second frequency generator as a detector by adding an edible mass, block, or capsule having cellulose pellets with or without pesticide to the upper portion of the housing as desired.

[0126] The electronic circuitry may be assembled as two printed circuit boards 26, 27, a first of the printed circuit boards 26 including a first of the first capacitive sensing electrodes 22, the one or more frequency generator circuits 21, 21' and the oscillation frequency detection device 25, and a second of the printed circuit boards 27 including the second capacitive sensing electrode 23.

[0127] When the electrodes are present, a first of the substrates 26, 27 supports a first electrode 31 of the second capacitive compensation electrode, and a second of the substrates supports a second electrode 32 of the second capacitive compensation electrode.

[0128] The first relaxation oscillator 21 and the second relaxation oscillator 21' are each composed of at least one operational amplifier i1, i2.

[0129] In this example, the processor P is a microcontroller including the operational amplifiers i1, i2 and an analog / digital converter circuit M connected to a calculation unit configured to convert the frequencies generated by the first and second frequency generator circuits into digital frequency signal data and to measure the digital frequency signal data, and the electronics includes a communication module C that may or may not be integrated into the processor, and the electronics is equipped with a wireless transceiver configured to transmit the digital data to a remote monitoring system 8.

[0130] An active shield provided with two plates 30a, 30b which are brought to the potential of the capacitive electrode of the first relaxation oscillator 21 is advantageously integrated into the trap.

[0131] A perforated tubular box forms the peripheral wall of the tubular housing 11 and includes a perforated tubular enclosure 12 formed around the longitudinal axis A of the box and receiving the block or edible mass, and a double wall forming lateral cavities 13, 14 and receiving the electronic device 20 for detecting the insect activity, located diametrically opposite the enclosure with respect to the longitudinal axis A and covering the sides of the enclosure 12.

[0132] The tubular housing 12 has a hexagonal cross section in a plane transverse to said axis A, and the double walls are arranged opposite each other along two diametrically opposed faces of said housing.

[0133] Preferably, the electronic devices disposed within the cavity are potted in a protective coating 28 that protects them from insects and moisture.

[0134] The device may also include a drawer frame 7 intended to initially receive a block 41 in the lower part and a refill in the upper part in the most common use case, the drawer frame being removably inserted into the tubular housing. Other configurations for filling the drawer frame are also conceivable, for example the drawer frame being fitted with two refills 42 containing an insecticidal composition or the drawer frame being fitted, particularly when infestations are characteristic.

[0135] The edible block 41 of the insect comprises a cylindrical assembly having a uniform hexagonal cross-section perpendicular to an axis B1 passing through its centre, the cylindrical assembly being formed from two solid wood parts 411 which are trapezoidal prisms in cross-section, the edible block 41 comprising an external groove 412 parallel to the axis of rotation.

[0136] Above the bottom of the box which receives the blocks, the tubular housing includes a portion which receives a refill 42 which includes perforated packages 43, 44 and pellets 45 which can be consumed by the insects.

[0137] The drawer frame 7 may include a housing for receiving the block 41 and a housing for receiving the refill 42 separated by a cross bar 71 .

[0138] The box may include a cover 5 at the top provided with notches 51 for snap-fitting onto feet 61 of a removable handle 6 for closing the tubular housing.

[0139] The refill may include a perforated package 43, 44 that receives pellets that can be consumed by the insects. The package may include matching snap-fit ​​means 431, 441 or may include two perforated half-shells connected by a hinge.

[0140] The pellets 45 may be cylindrical pellets of edible material stacked within the package.

[0141] In this example, the packages 43, 44 have a hexagonal cross section perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis B2 of the refill. Pellets 45 contain the insecticide composition.

[0142] The invention is not limited to the examples given above merely by way of example, but encompasses all alternative embodiments that may be conceived by a person skilled in the art within the scope of the intended protection, for example the openings 16 in the single opposing walls around the periphery of the box housing may be elongated openings as shown, but may also be round holes covering a significant portion of these walls, and the covers may be screw-on covers rather than fixed quarter-turn type covers.

Claims

1. a) a group of tube-box-type underground bait / trap boxes, the lower part of which is provided with a housing (11) for at least one edible mass (40) containing edible material for insects, the lower part of which is provided with a device for detecting consumption of the edible mass by the insects; i) a device for measuring a first frequency (f1) of a first relaxation oscillator (21) including a first measuring capacitor formed by two first plates (22, 23) located on either side of the edible mass (40), the edible mass forming a dielectric material between the plates (22, 23); ii. an underground bait / trap into which measurement electronics (20) are installed, the measurement electronics including a processor (25) configured to take first measurements at said first frequency according to a first schedule; b) at least one concentrator module, each of the boxes in the group of boxes and the concentrator module including first wireless communication means (C) configured to transmit first measurements from the box to the concentrator according to a second schedule; c) at least one remote server (9); A pest detection system, wherein each of the concentrator module (8) and the server (9) includes a second communication means (83, 84) configured to transmit the first measurement values ​​from the concentrator unit to the remote server according to a third schedule, the remote server being equipped with a monitoring program, and the remote server including a calculation means configured to measure a frequency change characteristic of density variations of the edible mass of at least one box of the group of boxes based on at least a plurality of the first measurement values, and the density variations enable the detection of consumption of the edible mass by the insects.

2. 2. The pest detection system of claim 1, wherein at least some of the boxes in the group are equipped with a compensation circuit including at least one second relaxation oscillator (21') including a second measurement capacitor created by a second plate (31, 32) arranged on the first plate, and wherein the measurement electronics and the processor are configured to perform second measurements at a second frequency according to a fourth schedule and to transmit the second measurements to the concentrator according to a fifth schedule.

3. The pest detection system of claim 2 , wherein the fourth schedule is the same as the first schedule and / or the fifth schedule is the same as the second schedule.

4. 4. The pest detection system of claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein each of the boxes is equipped with a device for managing periodic sleep and wake-up phases of its processor, the processor being configured, during its wake-up phase, to perform frequency measurements by means of a device for measuring the frequency, to manage the establishment and continuation of communication with the concentrator module and to transmit the measurements to the concentrator module, the concentrator module being configured in communication with the boxes to periodically receive the first measurements from each box, to compile the measurements from all boxes in the group of boxes and to transmit the compiled measurements to the remote server equipped with the monitoring program and the calculation means, the calculation means being configured to calculate for each of the boxes one or more changes in the frequency of the first oscillator as a function of time and to detect density changes characteristic of at least one of the edible masses based on the changes.

5. 3. A method for protecting a ground surface, in particular a ground surface surrounding one or more buildings, by means of a detection system according to claim 1 or 2, comprising: a) installing a concentrator module (8); b) placing a group of bait / trap boxes (1) on a surface, each containing an edible chunk of edible material (40) for said insects; c) a pairing step performed on the concentrator, pairing the concentrator (8) with the server; d) pairing said one or more boxes (1) with said concentrator (8) in a pairing step carried out for each of said boxes; e) setting said concentrator to listen to configured boxes and, after a sleep period, periodically transmitting to said concentrator (8) the values ​​of said frequency measurements performed by a measuring device of said box (1); f. transmitting measurements of a plurality of boxes from said concentrator (8) to said remote server (9) according to said third schedule; and g. calculating, by said remote server (9), changes in a series of frequency data as a function of time for each box in said batch of boxes and assessing trap content density variation for at least one of said edible masses based on said changes by detecting inflection points and / or changes in slope in said series of data.

6. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the remote server processes the measurement data to detect the presence of the insects in the box through detection of a variation in the measurement similar to consumption of matrix or addition of soil or both.

7. 6. The method of claim 5, comprising the steps of: calculating, by the remote server, a change in the density variation; and determining by an algorithm whether the insects are present in at least one box based on the change to trigger an intervention to place a bait in the at least one box comprising a composition lethal to pests, or determining a time to schedule the intervention based on the density variation.

8. 8. The method of claim 5, 6 or 7, wherein the remote server processes measurement data to determine a consumption rate of the edible mass for each box and generate an intervention schedule for the plurality of boxes.

9. The box includes, in addition to the measurement data of the box, i, a unique identifier for said box; ii. the temperature of the box; iii. the first relaxation oscillator frequency measurement; iv. the second relaxation oscillator frequency measurement; and 9. The method of claim 5, configured to periodically transmit a data frame including at least one data item of: v. a measurement date.

10. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 9, wherein the box is equipped with a compensation circuit including at least one second relaxation oscillator including a second measuring capacitor created by a second plate (31, 32) placed above the location of the edible mass (40), the measurement electronics and processor of the box are configured to perform second measurements at a second frequency according to a fourth schedule and to transmit the second measurements to the concentrator according to the fourth schedule, and the remote server is configured to assess the consumption of the edible mass by the insects based on a calculation including calculation of a differential frequency between the frequency of the first relaxation oscillator and the frequency of the second relaxation oscillator.

11. The calculation of the differential frequency between the first and second relaxation oscillators is an equation of the following type: F=(F Ａ -S Ａ )-[(F Ｂ -S Ｂ )×k] Where: −F is the compensated differential frequency, -F Ａ , F Ｂ is the frequency measured across the measurement capacitors A and B of the compensation circuit, -S Ａ , S Ｂ is the compensation offset of the capacitors A and B, -k is a compensation constant that depends on the trap structure, material choice and capacitor plate size; The method of claim 10, wherein the calculation is performed for a series of consecutive measurements performed on each of the boxes.

12. The offset corresponds to the unloaded capacitance of the two capacitors A and B and is measured during the initialization step of the device when setting up a trap without edible mass, so that F Ａ 0=S Ａ Similarly, F Ｂ 0=S Ｂ The method of claim 11, wherein

13. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 12, wherein the remote server is configured to form a measurement database that records measurements from the box and forms a deep learning database of a neural network.

14. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the remote server is configured to estimate consumption of the edible mass using an artificial intelligence algorithm based on the neural network pre-trained on the deep learning database for the frequency measurements.

15. In addition to the measurement data, the concentrator a, the receiving level of the concentrator (dBm); b. the software version of the concentrator module; c) a version of the software for communicating from the concentrator module to the remote server; d. an indication that the concentrator modules are paired; and e. a table, for each box: i, a unique identifier for said box; ii. the reception level of the wireless signal between the box and the concentrator; iii. The battery level (%) of the box; iv. the software version of the box; and v, a table including at least one of one or more data items indicating whether the box is in pairing mode; transmitting to said server a data frame including at least one data item from 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the remote server is adapted to perform a diagnostic of the operation of the communication means of the concentrator module based on the received data, as well as to perform a diagnostic of the battery of the box and of the communication device of the box.

16. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 14, wherein the server comprises a collection device configured to collect messages from the boxes sent by the concentrator module, the method comprising the steps of implementing a processing process comprising generating a map and / or a list and / or a table representing the distribution of boxes connected to concentrator modules in which the presence of the insects has been detected, and a web service and / or mobile application process adapted to enable a user to consult said map, said list or said table.

17. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 15, wherein the server comprises an intervention database representing the locations of boxes and concentrator modules in an area, the method comprising a step of implementing a process for a technician to organize a schedule of interventions for the boxes in the area as a function of the progress of consumption of the edible mass by monitoring the boxes and concentrator modules.

18. 20. The method of claim 16, including the step of a technician updating an intervention database with the performed intervention.

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