Positioning system

Abstract

To grasp a positional relation between an oscillating body and a target.SOLUTION: A positioning system includes: a first module for acquiring information for calculating a positional relation between a first oscillating body and a target; a second module for acquiring information for calculating a positional relation between the first oscillating body and the target more accurately than the first module; and a first calculation device. The first calculation device calculates the positional relation between the first oscillating body and the target by using the information acquired by the first module, in the case where a first communication device which the second module includes and a second communication device which is mounted on the target are not in the directly communicable range. In the case where the first communication device and the second communication device are in the directly communicable range, the first calculation device calculates the positional relation between the first oscillating body and the target by using the information which is the information acquired by the second module and which includes the specific information related to the position of the target which is received by the first communication device from the second communication device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to positioning systems. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a positioning device that measures the position of a vehicle. The positioning device disclosed in Patent Document 1 performs a first control related to reception of first information transmitted from an artificial satellite and used to measure the position of the vehicle. The positioning device also performs a second control related to reception of second information transmitted from a sensor and used to measure the position of the vehicle. The positioning device then determines whether to perform at least one of the first control and the second control depending on the reception status of the first information and the second information.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a positioning method. The positioning method disclosed in Patent Document 2 includes obtaining a first positioning result by positioning a moving object using a first positioning algorithm based on positioning data collected by at least one first sensor. The positioning method also includes obtaining a second positioning result by positioning a moving object using a second positioning algorithm based on positioning data collected by at least one second sensor. The positioning method also includes determining whether or not the current situation of the moving object satisfies a preset switching condition in the process of determining one of the first positioning result and the second positioning result as a confirmed positioning result. The positioning method also includes determining the other of the first positioning result and the second positioning result as the confirmed positioning result when it is determined that the current situation of the moving object satisfies the preset switching condition.

[0004] Patent Document 3 discloses an attitude detection device that detects a change in attitude of a motorcycle based on a GPS signal. The attitude detection device disclosed in Patent Document 3 includes a first GPS receiver provided at a first position on the vehicle and a second GPS receiver provided at a second position lower than the first position. The attitude detection device obtains first position information based on the GPS signal detected by the first GPS receiver, and obtains second position information based on the GPS signal detected by the second GPS receiver. The attitude detection device also detects the traveling direction of the vehicle, and detects a change in attitude of the vehicle based on the first and second position information and the traveling direction of the vehicle.

[0005] Patent Document 4 discloses a multipath detection device that detects whether or not multipath waves are included in each carrier wave transmitted from each GPS satellite and received by each GPS antenna in a moving object where multiple GPS antennas are installed with the relative positions between the GPS antennas fixed. The multipath detection device disclosed in Patent Document 4 inputs carrier phase information indicating the distance between each GPS satellite and each GPS antenna by the number of carrier waves, and calculates the carrier phase difference between the same GPS satellite between the GPS antennas using a CPU based on the input carrier phase information.

[0006] The multipath detection device inputs the calculated carrier phase difference between the GPS antennas and a LOS (Line Of Sight) vector indicating the direction from a specific GPS antenna to a specific GPS satellite specified by an arbitrary method, and calculates a baseline length indicating the distance between the GPS antennas as an observation baseline length using a CPU based on the input carrier phase difference and the input LOS vector. The multipath detection device compares a known baseline length indicating the distance between the GPS antennas calculated in advance with the observation baseline length calculated by the baseline length calculation unit using a CPU, and when the observation baseline length differs from the known baseline length by a predetermined threshold or more, it determines that a multipath wave is included in each carrier wave used to calculate the observation baseline length. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-145143 A [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2022-013929 [Patent Document 3] JP 2005-207831 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2008-298443 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] An object of the present disclosure is to grasp the positional relationship between a moving body and a target. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The positioning system according to the present disclosure includes: a first module for acquiring information for calculating a positional relationship between a first oscillator and a target, a second module for acquiring information for calculating a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target with higher accuracy than the first module, and a first calculation device; the second module comprises a first communication device; The first communication device is configured to be able to directly communicate with a second communication device attached to the target; The first computing device is When the first communication device and the second communication device are not within a direct communication range, the first module calculates a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target using information acquired by the first module; When the first communication device and the second communication device are within a range for direct communication, the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target is calculated using information acquired by the second module, the information including specific information related to the position of the target received by the first communication device from the second communication device. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present disclosure, the positional relationship between the oscillator and the target can be grasped. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a positioning system. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of changes in the positions of each antenna and a specific point when the ship and the power plant are swaying. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between a first predetermined point on the ship and a second predetermined point in the power plant. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a first arithmetic device and a second arithmetic device that configure the positioning system. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of information processing executed by the control unit in the first arithmetic device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Let us assume that the oscillator is moving. At this time, there may be a target around the oscillator. In that case, in order for the oscillator to move safely, it is necessary to know the positional relationship between the moving object and the target.

[0013] When the moving object is located close to the target, it is necessary to grasp the positional relationship with higher accuracy to ensure safety compared to when the moving object is located far from the target. On the other hand, when the oscillator is located far from the target, it is assumed that it is not necessary to grasp the positional relationship with high accuracy compared to when the oscillator is located close to the target. Also, in order to always grasp the positional relationship with high accuracy, it is necessary to perform advanced calculations, etc., and it is assumed that the load on the calculation device will increase. Therefore, it is assumed that it is not necessary to always calculate the positional relationship between the oscillator and the target with high accuracy.

[0014] The positioning system according to the present disclosure is a system including a first module and a second module. Here, the first module is a module that acquires information for calculating the positional relationship between a wobbler (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a "first wobbler") and a target. Also, the second module is a module that acquires information for calculating the positional relationship between the first wobbler and the target with higher accuracy than the first module. Also, the second module includes a first communication device. The first communication device is configured to be able to directly communicate with a second communication device attached to the target.

[0015] In the positioning system, when the first communication device is not within a range where it can directly communicate with the second communication device, the first calculation device calculates the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target using information acquired by the first module. Also, there are cases where the first communication device is within a range where it can directly communicate with the second communication device. In this case, the first calculation device calculates the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target using information acquired by the second module, which includes specific information related to the position of the target received by the first communication device from the second communication device.

[0016] As described above, the first arithmetic device uses the information acquired by the first module and the information acquired by the second module depending on whether the first communication device is within a range where it can directly communicate with the second communication device. As a result, when the first communication device is not within a range where it can directly communicate with the second communication device, that is, when the first oscillator and the target are at a long distance, the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target is calculated by the information acquired by the first module. On the other hand, when the first communication device is within a range where it can directly communicate with the second communication device, that is, when the first oscillator and the target are at a short distance, the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target is calculated by the information acquired by the second module. Therefore, when the first oscillator and the target are at a short distance, the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target is calculated with higher accuracy than when the first oscillator and the target are at a long distance. In this way, the positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target can be grasped while reducing the load on the first arithmetic device.

[0017] Specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the hardware configuration, module configuration, functional configuration, and the like described in each embodiment are not intended to limit the technical scope of the disclosure to only those.

[0018] First Embodiment (System Overview) A positioning system 1 in this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the positioning system 1. The positioning system 1 includes a first arithmetic device 100, a first antenna 210, a second antenna 220, and a third antenna 230, as well as a second arithmetic device 300, a fourth antenna 410, a fifth antenna 420, and a sixth antenna 430. In the positioning system 1, the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 are connected to the first arithmetic device 100. In addition, in the positioning system 1, the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 are connected to the second arithmetic device 300.

[0019] Also, the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are configured to be capable of short-distance communication. The first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 communicate directly with each other, for example, by Wi-Fi (registered trademark). The first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 may also communicate directly with each other, for example, by Bluetooth (registered trademark). In this way, even if the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are located on the ocean and a telephone communication network such as a mobile phone cannot be used, the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 can communicate with each other by wireless LAN. In this case, the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 start direct communication when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are within a communication range.

[0020] Furthermore, even if the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 cannot directly communicate with each other via Wi-Fi, they can communicate over a wide area by satellite communication via a communication satellite. In addition to satellite communication, the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 may be configured to communicate over a wide area by VHF communication or a telephone communication network such as a mobile phone when they cannot directly communicate with each other via Wi-Fi.

[0021] Here, it is assumed that a communication lag occurs when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 communicate via satellite communication compared to when they communicate directly via Wi-Fi. Also, it is assumed that the communication volume is smaller when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 communicate via satellite communication compared to when they communicate directly via Wi-Fi. Therefore, it is assumed that when the first arithmetic device 100 communicates with the second arithmetic device 300 via satellite communication, data with a smaller volume and a lag is communicated compared to when they communicate directly.

[0022] (antenna) The first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 are positioning antennas attached to the ship 10. The first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 are, for example, GNSS positioning antennas. The first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 can measure the current positions of the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230. The current positions measured by the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 are, for example, the latitude, longitude, and altitude of each antenna.

[0023] The fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 are positioning antennas attached to the power plant 30. The fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 are also, for example, GNSS positioning antennas. The fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 can measure the current positions of the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430. The current positions measured by the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 are also, for example, the latitude, longitude, and altitude of each antenna.

[0024] In this embodiment, the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 are attached to the upper surface of the ship 10. In addition, the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 are attached to the upper surface of the power station 30. This makes it possible to prevent the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230, as well as the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430, from being unable to receive radio waves from GNSS satellites. Note that the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 do not necessarily need to be attached horizontally on the ship 10. In addition, the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna The tenna 430 also does not necessarily have to be mounted horizontally in the power plant 30.

[0025] Here, since the ship 10 is a ship, it sways due to the influence of ocean waves, wind, etc. In the present embodiment, the power plant 30 is a floating offshore wind power plant. Therefore, the power plant 30 sways due to the influence of ocean waves, wind, etc.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of changes in the positions of each antenna and a predetermined point when the ship 10 and the power plant 30 are rocking. FIG. 2 shows how the current position of the first antenna 210, the current position of the second antenna 220, and the current position of the third antenna 230 (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as the "first position", the "second position", and the "third position", respectively) change due to the rocking of the ship 10. In FIG. 2, the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, the third antenna 230, the first vector (described later), the second vector (described later), and the first reference vector (described later) when the ship 10 is not rocking are drawn with solid lines. Also, in FIG. 2, the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, the third antenna 230, the first vector, the second vector, and the first reference vector when the ship 10 is rocking are drawn with dashed lines. As shown in FIG. 2, the first position, the second position, the third position, and the first predetermined point change as the vessel 10 sways.

[0027] Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the current position (fourth position) of the fourth antenna 410, the current position (fifth position) of the fifth antenna 420, the current position (sixth position) of the sixth antenna 430, the third vector (described later), the fourth vector (described later), and the second reference vector (described later) also change as the power plant 30 fluctuates.

[0028] (2nd arithmetic unit) The second arithmetic device 300 is a device that acquires the current positions of the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 in the power plant 30. The second arithmetic device 300 acquires the current position (fourth position) of the fourth antenna 410 measured by the fourth antenna 410 from the fourth antenna 410. The second arithmetic device 300 also acquires the current position (fifth position) of the fifth antenna 420 measured by the fifth antenna 420 from the fifth antenna 420. The second arithmetic device 300 also acquires the current position (sixth position) of the sixth antenna 430 measured by the sixth antenna 430 from the sixth antenna 430. The second arithmetic device 300 then transmits specific information including the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position to the first arithmetic device 100 by communicating with the first arithmetic device 100.

[0029] (1st arithmetic unit) The first calculation device 100 is a device that calculates the position (latitude, longitude, and altitude) of a first predetermined point on the ship 10. Here, the first predetermined point is any point on the ship 10. The first predetermined point is, for example, a point on the surface of the ship 10. The first predetermined point may also be, for example, an internal point such as the center of gravity or center of buoyancy of the ship 10. Furthermore, the ship 10 may move around the power plant 30 by moving on the ocean.

[0030] The first arithmetic device 100 acquires the current position (first position) of the first antenna 210 measured by the first antenna 210 from the first antenna 210. In addition, the first arithmetic device 100 acquires the current position (second position) of the second antenna 220 measured by the second antenna 220 from the second antenna 220. In addition, the first arithmetic device 100 acquires the current position (third position) of the third antenna 230 measured by the third antenna 230 from the third antenna 230.

[0031] The first calculation device 100 calculates a first vector and a second vector. Here, the first vector is a vector from a first position to a second position. Also, the second vector is a vector from the first position to a second position. The first vector is a vector from the first position to the third position. Then, the first calculation device 100 calculates the current attitude of the ship 10 at the first position by using the first vector and the second vector. Specifically, the first calculation device 100 calculates the roll, pitch, and yaw of the first position.

[0032] Here, a first reference vector is predefined for a first predetermined point on the ship 10. The first reference vector is a vector from the first antenna 210 to the first predetermined point in the attitude of the ship 10 at a predetermined time. Here, the attitude at the predetermined time is, for example, the attitude at a point in time when the ship 10 is not rocking. In other words, the attitude at the predetermined time is the attitude when the roll, pitch, and yaw at the first position are 0. The first arithmetic device 100 corrects the first reference vector according to the current attitude of the ship 10 at the first position (the current attitude including the roll, pitch, and yaw at the first position). Then, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the position of the first predetermined point using the corrected first reference vector and the first position.

[0033] Moreover, the first arithmetic device 100 receives the specific information from the second arithmetic device 300 by communicating with the second arithmetic device 300. The first arithmetic device 100 calculates the position of the second predetermined point in the power plant 30 from the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position in the same manner as the calculation of the position of the first predetermined point from the first position, the second position, and the third position. Here, the second predetermined point is any point in the power plant 30. The second predetermined point is, for example, a point on the surface of the power plant 30. Also, the second predetermined point may be, for example, an internal point such as the center of gravity or center of buoyancy of the power plant 30.

[0034] Specifically, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates a third vector and a fourth vector, and calculates the current attitude of the power plant 30 at the fourth position. Here, the third vector is a vector from the fourth position to the fifth position. Also, the fourth vector is a vector from the fourth position to the sixth position. Also, a second reference vector is predefined for a second predetermined point at the power plant 30. The second reference vector is a vector from the fourth antenna 410 to the second predetermined point in the attitude of the power plant 30 at a predetermined time. Here, the attitude at the predetermined time is, for example, the attitude at the time when the power plant 30 is not swinging. The first arithmetic device 100 corrects the second reference vector according to the current attitude of the power plant 30 at the fourth position, and calculates the position of the second predetermined point. Details of the method by which the first arithmetic device 100 corrects the first reference vector (second reference vector) and the method by which the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the position of the first predetermined point (second predetermined point) will be described later.

[0035] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between a first predetermined point on the ship 10 and a second predetermined point on the power plant 30. Fig. 3 shows the position of the first predetermined point calculated from the first position, the second position, and the third position acquired by the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230, and the position of the second predetermined point calculated from the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position acquired by the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430. The first calculation device 100 calculates the positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the second predetermined point from the calculated positions of the first and second predetermined points.

[0036] Here, the positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points includes, for example, the distance between the first and second predetermined points and the direction with the first predetermined point as the base point. The positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points may be a relative distance to the second predetermined point with the first predetermined point as the base point. The positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points may include a relative speed with the second predetermined point with the first predetermined point as the base point. In this case, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the relative speed between the first and second predetermined points by calculating the time transition of the relative distance between the first and second predetermined points. The positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points may include a relative distance, a direction, and a relative speed with the second predetermined point as the base point.

[0037] Meanwhile, in order for the first arithmetic device 100 to receive the specific information from the second arithmetic device 300, It is necessary to communicate with the second arithmetic device 300. Therefore, the first arithmetic device 100 receives the specific information when directly communicating with the second arithmetic device 300. However, when the ship 10 is located in a position where the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are outside the direct communication range, the first arithmetic device 100 cannot directly communicate with the second arithmetic device 300. Therefore, when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are not able to directly communicate with each other, it is not possible to calculate the positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points by referring to the specific information.

[0038] Meanwhile, the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 can communicate with each other via satellite communication. Thus, the first arithmetic device 100 receives the position of the power plant 30 from the second arithmetic device 300 via satellite communication. Here, the position of the power plant 30 is acquired from the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 provided in the power plant 30, or from an antenna other than the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430, which are provided in the power plant 30. Then, the second arithmetic device 300 transmits the position of the power plant 30 to the first arithmetic device 100 via satellite communication.

[0039] When the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are not able to communicate with each other, the first arithmetic device 100 refers to the power plant 30 received by satellite communication and calculates the positional relationship between them. Specifically, the first arithmetic device 100 acquires a position (first position, second position, or third position) measured by at least one of the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 as the current position of the ship 10. Note that the first arithmetic device 100 may acquire the current position of the ship 10 from an antenna other than the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230. The first arithmetic device 100 also refers to the current position of the ship 10 and the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication and calculates the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30.

[0040] At this time, if precise positioning by a PPP (Precise Point Positioning) method is possible, the first arithmetic device 100 may correct the current position of the ship 10 measured by GNSS positioning by using this method. Also, if precise positioning by an RTK (Real-Time Kinematic) method is possible, the first arithmetic device 100 may correct the current position of the ship 10 measured by GNSS positioning by using this method.

[0041] Here, as described above, it is assumed that the information received from the second arithmetic device 300 has a lag and a small capacity compared to when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 communicate directly. However, the ship 10 and the power plant 30 are located farther apart than when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 communicate directly. Therefore, even if the positional relationship cannot be calculated with high accuracy because the information on the position of the power plant 30 has a lag and a small capacity, it is assumed that the impact on safety is smaller than when the ship 10 and the power plant 30 are located close to each other.

[0042] In this way, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 using satellite communication until the first arithmetic device 100 is able to communicate with the second arithmetic device 300. Then, when the ship 10 approaches the power plant 30 and the first arithmetic device 100 is able to communicate with the second arithmetic device 300, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points that change due to the swinging, with reference to the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth positions. In this way, the first arithmetic device 100 switches between a method of calculating the positional relationship with low accuracy and a method of calculating the positional relationship with high accuracy depending on the position of the ship 10 with respect to the power plant 30.

[0043] As a result, the ship 10 first refers to the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication. By doing so, the ship 10 can approach the power plant 30. Furthermore, when the ship 10 gets sufficiently close to the power plant 30, the ship 10 can move even closer to the power plant 30 while referring to the positions of predetermined points (first and second predetermined points) that change due to rocking. Here, if the first predetermined point is a point on the surface of the ship 10 and the second predetermined point is a point on the surface of the power plant 30, it is possible to calculate the distance between the surface of the ship 10 and the surface of the power plant 30. This makes it possible to ensure safety when the ship 10 is moving around the power plant 30.

[0044] The first arithmetic device 100 includes a computer having a processor 110, a main memory unit 120, an auxiliary memory unit 130, and a communication interface (communication I / F) 140. The processor 110 is, for example, a central processing unit (CPU) or a digital signal processor (DSP). The main memory unit 120 is, for example, a random access memory (RAM). The auxiliary memory unit 130 is, for example, a read only memory (ROM). The auxiliary memory unit 130 is, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), or a disk recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, or a Blu-ray disk. The auxiliary memory unit 130 may be a removable medium (portable storage medium). Here, examples of the removable medium include a USB memory or an SD card.

[0045] In the first arithmetic device 100, the auxiliary storage unit 130 stores an operating system (OS), various programs, various information tables, and the like. In the first arithmetic device 100, the processor 110 loads the programs stored in the auxiliary storage unit 130 into the main storage unit 120 and executes them, thereby realizing various functions as described below. However, some or all of the functions in the first arithmetic device 100 may be realized by a hardware circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA. The first arithmetic device 100 does not necessarily have to be realized by a single physical configuration, and may be configured by a plurality of computers that cooperate with each other. Similarly to the first arithmetic device 100, the second arithmetic device 300 is also configured to include a computer.

[0046] (Functional configuration) Next, the functional configuration of the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 constituting the positioning system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 constituting the positioning system 1.

[0047] (Second computing unit) The second arithmetic device 300 includes a control unit 301, an acquisition unit 302, and a communication unit 303. The control unit 301 has a function of performing arithmetic processing for controlling the second arithmetic device 300. The control unit 301 can be realized by a processor in the second arithmetic device 300. The acquisition unit 302 has a function of acquiring the current positions of the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430. The acquisition unit 302 can be realized by an interface for connecting the second arithmetic device 300 and each antenna. The communication unit 303 has a function of communicating with the first arithmetic device 100. The communication unit 303 can be realized by a communication I / F in the second arithmetic device 300.

[0048] The control unit 301 acquires the current positions (fourth position, fifth position, and sixth position) of the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430, respectively, through the acquisition unit 302. Then, the control unit 301 transmits, through the communication unit 303, specific information including the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position to the first arithmetic device 100.

[0049] In addition, the control unit 301 acquires the fourth antenna 410 and the fifth antenna 4 The control unit 301 acquires the current position of at least one of the first antenna 20, the sixth antenna 430, and the sixth antenna 430 as the current position of the power plant 30. Then, the control unit 301 transmits the current position of the power plant 30 to the first arithmetic device 100 by satellite communication using the communication unit 303.

[0050] (1st arithmetic unit) The first arithmetic device 100 includes a control unit 101, an acquisition unit 102, and a communication unit 103. The control unit 101 has a function of performing arithmetic processing for controlling the first arithmetic device 100, and the control unit 101 can be realized by a processor 110 in the first arithmetic device 100. The acquisition unit 102 has a function of acquiring the current positions of the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230. The acquisition unit 102 can be realized by an interface for connecting the first arithmetic device 100 and each antenna.

[0051] The communication unit 103 has a function of communicating with the second arithmetic unit 300. The communication unit 103 can be realized by the communication I / F 140 in the first arithmetic unit 100. Here, the first arithmetic unit 100 communicates directly with the second arithmetic unit 300 through the communication unit 103. Also, the second arithmetic unit 300 communicates with the second arithmetic unit 300 via satellite through the communication unit 103.

[0052] The control unit 101 acquires the current positions (first position, second position, and third position) of the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230, respectively, by the acquisition unit 102. The control unit 101 calculates a first vector using the first position and the second position. The control unit 101 also calculates a second vector using the first position and the third position. In this embodiment, each component of the first vector and the second vector is set using latitude, longitude, and altitude as a coordinate system.

[0053] The control unit 101 starts direct communication with the second arithmetic device 300 when direct communication with the second arithmetic device 300 is possible through the communication unit 103. The control unit 101, for example, determines whether or not a Wi-Fi radio wave is being received from the second arithmetic device 300 via the communication unit 103. Then, when the control unit 101 receives a Wi-Fi radio wave from the second arithmetic device 300, it starts communication with the second arithmetic device 300. When the control unit 101 starts direct communication with the second arithmetic device 300, it receives specific information from the second arithmetic device 300 in real time.

[0054] The control unit 101 calculates the current attitude of the ship 10 at the first position by calculating the roll, pitch, and yaw of the first position using the first vector and the second vector. Here, in this embodiment, the roll, pitch, and yaw of the first position are determined by angles around the latitudinal axis, the longitudinal axis, and the vertical axis with the first position as the reference (origin) using latitude, longitude, and altitude as a coordinate system. Then, the control unit 101 corrects the first reference vector according to the calculated current attitude of the ship 10 at the first position.

[0055] Here, it is assumed that the current attitude of the ship 10 at the first position is represented by a roll with a roll angle r, a pitch with a pitch angle p, and a yaw with a yaw angle h. The corrected first reference vector (x', y', z') is represented by the following equation using a rotation matrix for the roll angle r, pitch angle p, and yaw angle h, and the first reference vector before correction (x, y, z): Here, the first reference vector is defined in a coordinate system determined by latitude, longitude, and altitude.

number

[0056] The corrected first reference vector (x', y', z') is a vector from the first position to the current first predetermined point in a coordinate system of latitude, longitude, and altitude. Therefore, the control unit 101 calculates the current position of the first predetermined point by adding each component of the coordinates of the first position to each component of the corrected first reference vector (x', y', z').

[0057] The control unit 101 receives the specific information including the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position from the second arithmetic device 300 through direct communication by the communication unit 103. The control unit 101 calculates a third vector using the fourth position and the fifth position. The control unit 101 also calculates a fourth vector using the fourth position and the sixth position.

[0058] Then, the control unit 101 calculates the current attitude of the power plant 30 at the fourth position using the third vector and the fourth vector. Then, the control unit 101 corrects the second reference vector according to the calculated current attitude of the power plant 30 at the fourth position. Then, the control unit 101 calculates the current position of the second predetermined point by adding each component of the coordinate of the fourth position to each component of the corrected second reference vector. Here, the second reference vector, which is a vector from the fourth antenna 410 to the second predetermined point in the attitude of the power plant 30 at a predetermined time, is grasped by the control unit 101 as a given vector. In addition, the control unit 101 may receive the second reference vector from the second calculation device 300 when receiving the specific information. Note that the method of calculating the current position of the second predetermined point using the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position is similar to the method of calculating the current position of the first predetermined point using the first position, the second position, and the third position (described above), so a description thereof will be omitted.

[0059] In this embodiment, the control unit 101 calculates the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 by calculating the positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the second predetermined point. However, the control unit 101 may calculate the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 by calculating the positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the power plant 30 received by satellite communication.

[0060] Furthermore, when the first calculation device 100 cannot directly communicate with the second calculation device 300, the control unit 101 refers to the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication via the communication unit 103, and calculates the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30. Note that in this embodiment, the control unit 101 calculates the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 by referring to the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication, but the control unit 101 may also calculate the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 by referring to a position of the power plant 30 that has been stored in advance.

[0061] (flowchart) Next, information processing executed by the control unit 101 in the first arithmetic device 100 in the positioning system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a flowchart of information processing executed by the control unit 101 in the first arithmetic device 100. The information processing shown in Fig. 5 is processing for calculating the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30. The information processing shown in Fig. 5 is repeatedly executed at predetermined intervals.

[0062] In the information processing shown in FIG. 5, first, in S101, it is determined whether or not the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 are capable of direct communication. When the control unit 101 can directly communicate with the second arithmetic device 300, the control unit 101 can receive the specific information from the second arithmetic device 300. Therefore, the control unit 101 can calculate the positional relationship between the first and second specific points by referring to the first position, the second position, the third position, the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position. Therefore, when a positive determination is made in S101, the specific information received from the second arithmetic device 300 is acquired in S102. Next, in S103, the first position, the second position, and the third position are acquired from the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230. Also, in S103, the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position are acquired from the specific information. Next, in S104, the first and second vectors are calculated using the first position, the second position, and the third position. Also, in S104, the third and fourth vectors are calculated using the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position.

[0063] Next, in S105, the attitude of the ship 10 at the first position is calculated using the first vector and the second vector. Also, in S105, the attitude of the power plant 30 at the fourth position is calculated using the third vector and the fourth vector. Next, in S106, the first reference vector is corrected using the attitude of the ship 10 at the first position. Also, in S106, the second reference vector is corrected using the attitude of the power plant 30 at the fourth position.

[0064] Next, in S107, the position of the first predetermined point is calculated using the corrected first vector and the first position. Also, in S107, the position of the second predetermined point is calculated using the corrected second vector and the fourth position. Next, in S108, the positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points is calculated using the positions of the first and second predetermined points calculated in S107. Then, the process shown in FIG. 5 is temporarily terminated.

[0065] Moreover, if a negative determination is made in S101, it is not possible to acquire specific information. Therefore, in S109, the first position is acquired from the first antenna 210. Next, in S110, the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 is calculated by referring to the first position and the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication. Then, the process shown in FIG. 5 is temporarily terminated.

[0066] As described above, when the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 cannot communicate with each other, the first arithmetic device 100 refers to the first position and the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication to calculate the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30. When the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 can directly communicate with each other, the first arithmetic device 100 refers to the first position, the second position, the third position, the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position to calculate the positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the second predetermined point.

[0067] In this way, when the ship 10 approaches the power plant 30, the first arithmetic device 100 first calculates the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 based on the position acquired by the antenna installed on the ship 10 and the position of the power plant 30 received by satellite communication. Then, when the ship 10 is within the direct communication range between the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the second predetermined point by referring to the first position, the second position, the third position, the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position. In this way, it is possible to grasp the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 regardless of the position of the ship 10.

[0068] (Variation 1) In this embodiment, the coordinate system used for the (first and second) reference vectors is a coordinate system defined by latitude, longitude, and altitude. The coordinate system used for the attitude, etc. of the ship 10 (power plant 30) may be a coordinate system other than the coordinate system determined by latitude, longitude, and altitude. For example, it may be a coordinate system in the direction of travel of the ship 10, the lateral direction of the ship 10, and the upward direction of the ship 10. It may also be a coordinate system in the forward direction of the power plant 30, the lateral direction of the power plant 30, and the upward direction of the power plant 30. The coordinate system used for the attitude, etc. of the ship 10 (power plant 30) may also be a coordinate system different from the coordinate system determined by latitude, longitude, and altitude. In this case, the first calculation device 100 calculates the positions of the (first and second) predetermined points by appropriately performing coordinate conversion.

[0069] (Variation 2) The floating body (moving body) may be an object floating in the air, such as an airplane or a drone. Furthermore, a vehicle sways due to vibrations while traveling or acceleration (front-back or lateral acceleration) that occurs while traveling. Furthermore, the current position of these objects changes as they move. Furthermore, buildings also sway due to the effects of earthquakes or wind. Therefore, for example, the above-described embodiment can also be applied when calculating the positional relationship between an airplane (drone) or vehicle and a building.

[0070] (Variation 3) In this embodiment, the first arithmetic device 100 is directly connected to the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230. The second arithmetic device 300 is directly connected to the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430. However, the connection form with the antennas is not limited to this example. In another example, the first arithmetic device 100 (the second arithmetic device 300) may be indirectly connected to at least one of the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 (the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430) via one or more external computers such as a relay device.

[0071] (Variation 4) Furthermore, the first arithmetic device 100 may acquire the attitude of the ship 10 by the inertial measurement unit when the current position of at least one of the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230 cannot be acquired. Here, the inertial measurement unit is attached to the ship 10. Then, the first arithmetic device 100 acquires the current position of an antenna whose current position can be acquired among the first antenna 210, the second antenna 220, and the third antenna 230, and corrects a first reference vector from the antenna to the first predetermined point according to the current attitude of the ship 10 at the current position of the antenna. Note that the first arithmetic device 100 may acquire the current position of the inertial measurement unit and correct the reference vector from the inertial measurement unit to the predetermined point. In this way, even in a situation where the current positions of all three antennas on the ship 10 cannot be acquired, the accurate position of the first predetermined point can be grasped.

[0072] In addition, the second arithmetic device 300 may also acquire the attitude of the power plant 30 by the inertial measurement unit when the current position of at least one of the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430 cannot be acquired. Then, the second arithmetic device 300 transmits to the first arithmetic device 100 specific information including the current position of the antenna of which the current position has been acquired among the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430, and the attitude of the power plant 30. In this way, even in a situation where the current positions of all three antennas in the power plant 30 cannot be acquired, the accurate position of the second predetermined point can be grasped.

[0073] (Variation 5) In this embodiment, the first arithmetic device 100 calculates the position of the second predetermined point using the fourth position, the fifth position, and the sixth position. As a result, even if the second arithmetic device 300 does not have a function for calculating the position of the second predetermined point, the first arithmetic device 100 can calculate the position of the second predetermined point. The second arithmetic device 300 calculates the position of the second predetermined point by using the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions, and calculates the positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points. On the other hand, in this modification, the second arithmetic device 300 calculates the position of the second predetermined point by using the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions. In this case, the second arithmetic device 300 calculates the position of the second predetermined point by using the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions, and then transmits specific information including the position to the first arithmetic device 100. The first arithmetic device 100 that receives the position of the second predetermined point calculates the positional relationship between the first and second predetermined points by using the calculated position of the first predetermined point and the received position of the second predetermined point. In this way, the first arithmetic device 100 and the second arithmetic device 300 each calculate the position of the predetermined point, thereby reducing the load on the first arithmetic device 100 for calculating the position of the predetermined point. Therefore, it is possible to accurately grasp the positional relationship between the ship 10 and the power plant 30 while shortening the calculation time of the position of the predetermined point.

[0074] (Variation 6) In this embodiment, the second arithmetic device 300 transmits the current position of the power plant 30 to the first arithmetic device 100 by satellite communication. However, the information transmitted by the second arithmetic device 300 to the first arithmetic device 100 by satellite communication may include information indicating other than the current position of the power plant 30. The information transmitted by the second arithmetic device 300 to the first arithmetic device 100 by satellite communication may include, for example, the positions of the fourth antenna 410, the fifth antenna 420, and the sixth antenna 430. In this case, the first arithmetic device 100 may calculate the position of the second predetermined point in the power plant 30 by the above-mentioned method. Even in this way, even if the first arithmetic device 100 cannot directly communicate with the second arithmetic device 300, the position of the second predetermined point can be calculated using information on the positions of the antennas of the power plant 30.

[0075] There may be a lag in the information on the position of each antenna of the power plant 30 that the first arithmetic device 100 receives via satellite communication. However, in this case, since there is a considerable distance between the ship 10 and the power plant 30, it is expected that the impact on safety will be small.

[0076] <Other embodiments> The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the present disclosure may be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the processes and means described in the present disclosure may be freely combined and implemented as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

[0077] Furthermore, a process described as being performed by one device may be shared and executed by multiple devices. Alternatively, a process described as being performed by different devices may be executed by one device. In a computer system, the hardware configuration (server configuration) by which each function is realized can be flexibly changed.

[0078] The present disclosure can also be realized by supplying a computer program implementing the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer, and having one or more processors of the computer read and execute the program. Such a computer program may be provided to the computer by a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium connectable to the system bus of the computer, or may be provided to the computer via a network. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium includes any type of medium suitable for storing electronic instructions, such as, for example, a magnetic disk (such as a floppy disk or a hard disk drive (HDD)), an optical disk (such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, or a Blu-ray disk), a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), an EPROM, an EEPROM, a magnetic card, a flash memory, or an optical card. [Explanation of symbols]

[0079] 1. Positioning system 10...ship 100...1st calculation unit 101 Control section 102...Acquisition part 103 Communications Department 210··First antenna 220··Second antenna 230··Third Antenna 30. Power Plant 300...Second arithmetic unit 301 Control section 302··Acquisition Department 303 Communications Department 410··4th antenna 420··5th Antenna 430··6th Antenna

Claims

1. a first module for acquiring information for calculating a positional relationship between a first oscillator and a target, a second module for acquiring information for calculating a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target with higher accuracy than the first module, and a first calculation device; the second module comprises a first communication device; The first communication device is configured to be able to directly communicate with a second communication device attached to the target; The first computing device is When the first communication device and the second communication device are not within a direct communication range, the first module calculates a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target using information acquired by the first module; When the first communication device and the second communication device are present within a range where they can directly communicate with each other, the second module calculates a positional relationship between the first swinging body and the target using information acquired by the second module, the information including specific information related to the position of the target that is received by the first communication device from the second communication device. Positioning system.

2. the second module includes a first positioning antenna, a second positioning antenna, and a third positioning antenna; Calculating a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target when the first communication device and the second communication device are present within a range capable of direct communication with each other, obtaining a first position measured by the first positioning antenna, a second position measured by the second positioning antenna, and a third position measured by the third positioning antenna; calculating a current attitude of the first oscillator at the first position from an acquired first vector from the first position to the second position and a second vector from the first position to the third position; correcting a first reference vector from the first positioning antenna to a first predetermined point in the attitude of the first swinging body at a predetermined time according to the calculated current attitude of the first swinging body at the first position; calculating a position of the first predetermined point in a current attitude of the first oscillator by adding the corrected first reference vector to the first position; calculating a current positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the target by referring to the specific information; Including, The positioning system according to claim 1 .

3. The target is a moving body, the target includes a fourth positioning antenna, a fifth positioning antenna, and a sixth positioning antenna; the specific information is information including a fourth position measured by the fourth positioning antenna, a fifth position measured by the fifth positioning antenna, and a sixth position measured by the sixth positioning antenna, Calculating a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target when the first communication device and the second communication device are present within a range capable of direct communication with each other, calculating a current attitude of the target at the fourth position from a third vector from the fourth position to the fifth position and a fourth vector from the fourth position to the sixth position by referring to the specific information; According to the calculated current attitude of the target at the fourth position, correcting a second reference vector from the fourth positioning antenna to a second predetermined point in a predetermined attitude of the satellite; calculating a position of the second predetermined point at the current attitude of the target by adding the modified second reference vector to the fourth position; calculating a current positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the second predetermined point by referring to a position of the first predetermined point and a position of the second predetermined point; Further comprising: The positioning system according to claim 2 .

4. The target is a moving body, the target includes a fourth positioning antenna, a fifth positioning antenna, and a sixth positioning antenna, and a second computing device; The second calculation device is obtaining a fourth position measured by the fourth positioning antenna, a fifth position measured by the fifth positioning antenna, and a sixth position measured by the sixth positioning antenna; calculating a current attitude of the target at the fourth position from an acquired third vector from the fourth position to the fifth position and a fourth vector from the fourth position to the sixth position; modifying a second reference vector from the fourth positioning antenna to a second predetermined point in the attitude of the target at a predetermined time according to the calculated current attitude of the target at the fourth position; calculating a position of the second predetermined point at the current attitude of the target by adding the modified second reference vector to the fourth position; configured to run the specific information includes a position of the second predetermined point calculated by the second arithmetic device, Calculating a positional relationship between the first oscillator and the target when the first communication device and the second communication device are present within a range capable of direct communication with each other, calculating a current positional relationship between the first predetermined point and the second predetermined point by referring to a position of the first predetermined point and a position of the second predetermined point included in the identification information; Including, The positioning system according to claim 2 .

5. The first communication device and the second communication device perform direct communication via a wireless LAN. A positioning system according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

Images