Video recording device

Abstract

To realize a video recording device that automatically acquires and stores video of scenes related to a construction machine according to a purpose.SOLUTION: A video recording device 300 is a device that records video related to a construction machine, and comprises a vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 that acquires vehicle body information 350 related to the operating status of the construction machine, a recording determination unit 313 that determines whether predetermined recording conditions are met based on the vehicle body information 350 acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, a recording instruction unit 314 that instructs recording of video captured by a camera attached to the construction machine when the recording determination unit 313 determines that the recording conditions are met, and a memory unit 320 that stores recording information 330 including video recorded in accordance with the instructions of the recording instruction unit 314.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for recording video relating to construction machinery. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a widely known technology for construction machinery such as hydraulic excavators is to use a camera attached to the vehicle to capture images of the surroundings and present the captured images to the operator, allowing the operator to check the situation in blind spots.Furthermore, technologies have been proposed for transmitting the captured images to a management center to remotely check the progress of work, or for use as an anti-theft measure by detecting vibrations on the vehicle body or the presence of people when the construction machinery is not in operation and automatically starting to capture images with a camera.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a camera system for a work machine that can switch the camera orientation depending on whether the engine start lock is released or not, and when the start lock is released, it captures images of the work situation around the vehicle, and when the start lock is released, it can capture images of the inside of the cab in response to the output of an abnormality occurrence signal. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-248657 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Conventional cameras attached to construction machinery, including those described in Patent Document 1, continuously capture images while the machinery is in operation. Therefore, when the captured footage is recorded, the entire duration of the construction machinery's operation, from start to finish, is recorded, making it difficult to determine which parts of the footage are important. Furthermore, by allowing the operator or manager to instruct the start and end of recording at any time, it is possible to manually record only scenes that meet the purpose. However, this method requires the operator or manager to give instructions every time recording is started or stopped, which can be inconvenient and increases the risk of operational errors, and it is also unable to record unintended, sudden events.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and its object is to realize a video recording device that automatically acquires and saves video of scenes related to construction machinery according to the purpose. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The video recording device of the present invention is a device for recording video related to construction machinery, and comprises a vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle information related to the operating status of the construction machinery, a recording judgment unit that determines whether or not predetermined recording conditions are met based on the vehicle information acquired by the vehicle information acquisition unit, a recording instruction unit that instructs the recording of video captured by a camera attached to the construction machinery when the recording judgment unit determines that the recording conditions are met, and a memory unit that stores recording information including the video recorded in accordance with the instructions of the recording instruction unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a video recording device that automatically acquires and stores video of scenes related to construction machinery according to a purpose.

[0009] Further features related to the present invention will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings. In addition, problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] Schematic diagram of a hydraulic excavator, an example of construction machinery [Figure 2] 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a video recording system according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 3] Construction machinery recording control overview [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a video recording device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a management screen displayed on a video recording device. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a recording setting screen displayed on a video recording device. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a recorded video list screen displayed on a video recording device. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a recorded video playback screen displayed on a video recording device. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a video recording system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a video recording device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] (First embodiment) FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a hydraulic excavator, which is an example of construction machinery.

[0013] The hydraulic excavator 100 shown in Fig. 1 is equipped with an engine 1 as a power source and a main pump 2 driven by the engine 1. The hydraulic oil discharged from the main pump 2 causes a lower traveling body 3, an upper rotating body 4, and a front device 5 to operate independently.

[0014] The lower traveling body 3 has a pair of left and right crawlers 6 and a traveling hydraulic motor 7. The traveling hydraulic motor 7 is rotationally driven by hydraulic oil sent from the main pump 2, driving the crawlers 6 and causing the lower traveling body 3 to travel. Note that Fig. 1 shows only one of the pair of left and right crawlers 6 and traveling hydraulic motor 7.

[0015] The upper rotating body 4 is connected to the lower traveling body 3 in the vertical direction via a rotating device (not shown) that has a hydraulic swing motor 8. The hydraulic swing motor 8 is rotationally driven by hydraulic oil sent from the main pump 2, and rotates the upper rotating body 4 relative to the lower traveling body 3.

[0016] The front device 5 is mounted on the upper rotating structure 4 and has a boom 9, a boom cylinder 10 for driving the boom 9, an arm 11, an arm cylinder 12 for driving the arm 11, a bucket 13, and a bucket cylinder 14 for driving the bucket 13. The boom cylinder 10, the arm cylinder 12, and the bucket cylinder 14 extend and retract with hydraulic oil sent from the main pump 2, thereby driving the boom 9, the arm 11, and the bucket 13, respectively. The boom 9 drives relative to the upper rotating structure 4 about a rotation axis 15, the arm 11 drives relative to the boom 9 about a rotation axis 16, and the bucket 13 drives relative to the arm 11 about a rotation axis 17.

[0017] The upper rotating body 4 is provided with a cabin for an operator to ride in. The operator of the hydraulic excavator 100 sits in a driver's seat installed inside the cabin and controls the operations of the lower traveling body 3, the upper rotating body 4, and the front device 5 by operating an operation lever 19 (see FIG. 2) installed near the driver's seat. This allows the hydraulic excavator 100 to perform work such as excavation and ground leveling.

[0018] The upper revolving body 4 is also equipped with an on-vehicle device 200 for acquiring images relating to the hydraulic excavator 100. The following describes in detail the system including this on-vehicle device 200.

[0019] 2 is a configuration diagram of a video recording system 500 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The video recording system 500 is configured to include an on-board device 200 mounted on each construction machine, and a video recording device 300.

[0020] The in-vehicle device 200 includes a camera 201, a recording device 202, a communication terminal 205, and a position detection unit 206. The recording device 202 is connected to the vehicle body network 20.

[0021] The camera 201 is installed on the hydraulic excavator 100, for example, facing forward from the driver's seat, and captures an image of the hydraulic excavator 100 by capturing an image of a predetermined range around the hydraulic excavator 100. The image captured by the camera 201 is output to the recording device 202.

[0022] The recording device 202 records the video captured by the camera 201 and the vehicle body information of the hydraulic excavator 100 transmitted over the vehicle body network 20, linking them to each other. The recording device 202 has a continuous recording area 203 in which video data and vehicle body information are constantly recorded and temporarily saved, and a recording area 204 in which video data recorded according to predetermined recording conditions and the vehicle body information at that time are saved. The video data and vehicle body information temporarily saved in the continuous recording area 203 are overwritten and updated at predetermined time intervals.

[0023] A communication terminal 205 and a position detection device 206 are connected to the recording device 202. The communication terminal 205 has a function for connecting to the Internet via wireless communication, and uploads the video data and vehicle information of the hydraulic excavator 100 stored in the video recording area 204 of the recording device 202 to the video recording device 300 connected via the Internet.

[0024] The video recording device 300 is configured using an information processing device such as a server, and is installed at a predetermined location away from the hydraulic excavator 100. The video recording device 300 is a device that records videos obtained by various construction machines including the hydraulic excavator 100, and uses vehicle body information uploaded from the on-vehicle device 200 mounted on each construction machine to determine whether the situation of each construction machine satisfies predetermined recording conditions, and if it determines that the recording conditions are met, it issues a recording instruction to the on-vehicle device 200 of that construction machine. Once recording by the on-vehicle device 200 has ended, the recorded video data and vehicle body information obtained during the recording period are obtained from the on-vehicle device 200 and saved as recorded information. Details of the video recording device 300 will be described later.

[0025] The position detection device 206 receives positioning signals transmitted from GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) satellites and, based on these, detects the position of the hydraulic excavator 100. The position information of the hydraulic excavator 100 detected by the position detection device 206 is stored in the recording device 202 as part of the vehicle body information of the hydraulic excavator 100, together with the above-mentioned video data.

[0026] A vehicle body controller 18 is connected to the vehicle body network 20, which performs hydraulic control of each hydraulic actuator (travel hydraulic motor 7, swing hydraulic motor 8, boom cylinder 10, arm cylinder 12, and bucket cylinder 14) of the hydraulic excavator 100. Operation levers 19 consisting of a travel lever 19-1, a swing lever 19-2, a boom lever 19-3, an arm lever 19-4, and a bucket lever 19-5 are connected to the vehicle body controller 18, and the vehicle body controller 18 performs hydraulic control of each hydraulic actuator according to the amount of operation of these operation levers 19.

[0027] Furthermore, the vehicle body controller 18 outputs information on the operation amount of each operation lever 19 and information on the load factor of the engine 1 to the vehicle body network 20. The information output from the vehicle body controller 18 to the vehicle body network 20 is stored in the recording device 202 as part of the vehicle body information of the hydraulic excavator 100.

[0028] Next, the recording control of the construction machine by the video recording device 300 of this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0029] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of video recording control of construction machinery using a video recording device 300. Fig. 3 shows an example in which construction machinery 100a, 100b, and 100c, such as hydraulic excavators, are operating at a construction site 21, and video recording control of these construction machinery 100a-100c is performed by the video recording device 300. Note that Fig. 3 shows the construction machinery 100a-100c subject to video recording control by the video recording device 300 as being the hydraulic excavators 100a and 100c and the dump truck 100b, but the number and types of construction machinery subject to video recording control by the video recording device 300 are not limited to this.

[0030] Each of the construction machines 100a to 100c is equipped with the on-vehicle device 200 shown in Fig. 2, and periodically transmits its own vehicle body information, which is temporarily stored in the continuous recording area 203 of the recording device 202, to the video recording device 300 via the communication terminal 205. Based on the vehicle body information transmitted from the construction machines 100a to 100c, the video recording device 300 determines whether the recording conditions set for each of the construction machines 100a to 100c are met, and if any of the construction machines 100a to 100c meets the recording conditions, it issues a recording instruction to the on-vehicle device 200 of that construction machine. Upon receiving this recording instruction, the on-vehicle device 200 starts saving the video data and vehicle body information in the recording area 204, and when recording is finished, it uploads the video data and vehicle body information saved in the recording area 204 to the video recording device 300.

[0031] The video recording device 300 is connected to the terminal 22 via the Internet. By connecting to the video recording device 300 using a web browser or the like on the terminal 22, an administrator who controls the recording of the construction machines 100a to 100c can set the recording conditions of the construction machines 100a to 100c, change the set recording conditions, and play back videos uploaded from the construction machines 100a to 100c to the video recording device 300 and display them on the screen of the terminal 22.

[0032] 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a video recording device 300 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The video recording device 300 of this embodiment is a computer including a control unit 310, a storage unit 320, a memory 361, an operation input device 362, a display device 363, and a network device 364, and is configured by connecting these devices to each other via a bus 365.

[0033] The control unit 310 is configured using, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and performs various processes and calculations to operate the video recording device 300. The control unit 310 executes programs stored in the storage unit 320 to realize the following functional blocks: a vehicle information acquisition unit 311, a recording condition registration unit 312, a recording determination unit 313, a recording instruction unit 314, a recording information acquisition unit 315, and a video editing unit 316. Details of these functional blocks will be described later.

[0034] The storage unit 320 is configured using a large-capacity non-volatile storage device, for example, a magnetic storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive), and stores programs executed by the control unit 310 and various information used in the processing of the control unit 310. The information stored in the storage unit 320 includes video recording information 330 that combines video data 340 and vehicle body information 350 acquired from each construction machine with model information 360 of each construction machine. This video recording information 330 is stored for each recorded video.

[0035] Each piece of recording information 330 includes video data 340 recorded when one of the construction machines 100a to 100c satisfies the recording conditions, vehicle body information 350 of the construction machine at the time the video data 340 was recorded, and model information 360 of the construction machine. The vehicle body information 350 includes operation information 351 that indicates the details of the operator's operation of the construction machine, i.e., information on the amount of operation of each control lever 19, driving information 352 that indicates the operating state (load factor) of the engine 1 mounted on the construction machine, and position information 353 of the construction machine 100. Note that Fig. 4 illustrates the operation information 351, driving information 352, and position information 353 included in the vehicle body information 350 for only one piece of recording information 330, and does not illustrate the operation information 351, driving information 352, and position information 353 for the other pieces of recording information 330.

[0036] 4 shows an example in which three pieces of video recording information 330 are stored in the storage unit 320, but fewer than two or more than three pieces of video recording information 330 may be stored in the storage unit 320. Regardless of the type or number of construction machines, the video recording information 330 transmitted from each construction machine after recording is stored in the storage unit 320.

[0037] The memory 361 is configured using a high-speed, volatile storage device such as a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory), and is used as a work area when the control unit 310 executes a program.

[0038] The operation input device 362 is a device for detecting operation inputs made by the administrator to the video recording device 300, and is configured using, for example, a keyboard and a mouse. The display device 363 is a device for displaying the processing results of the video recording device 300 on a screen for presentation to the administrator, and is configured using, for example, a liquid crystal display or an organic electroluminescence (EL) display. The network device 364 is a device for communicating with other computers via a network (not shown). By using the network device 364, the video recording device 300 can transmit various data stored in the storage unit 320 to other computers and receive various data transmitted from other computers and store the data in the storage unit 320. Note that another computer capable of communicating with the video recording device 300, such as the terminal 22 in FIG. 3, may be used as the operation input device 362 or the display device 363.

[0039] 1 may be physically constructed on one computer, or may be distributed across multiple computers. Also, the video recording device 300 may be realized by a cloud computer installed on a cloud, a virtual machine running on a virtual environment, or the like.

[0040] Next, the functional blocks of the control unit 310, namely, the vehicle information acquisition unit 311, the recording condition registration unit 312, the recording determination unit 313, the recording instruction unit 314, the recording information acquisition unit 315, and the video editing unit 316, will be described.

[0041] The vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 acquires vehicle body information 350 transmitted from each construction machine.

[0042] The recording condition registration unit 312 registers, for each construction machine, the recording conditions under which recording should be started in the on-vehicle device 200 mounted on each construction machine that is the subject of recording control, in response to instructions from the manager using the operation input device 362. The recording conditions for each construction machine registered by the recording condition registration unit 312 are stored in the memory unit 320. Details of the recording conditions registered by the recording condition registration unit 312 will be described later.

[0043] The recording determination unit 313 determines whether the situation of each construction machine satisfies predetermined recording conditions based on the vehicle body information 350 acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311. Specifically, it determines for each construction machine whether the recording conditions registered by the recording condition registration unit 312 for each construction machine are satisfied, using the operation information 351, driving information 352, position information 353, current date and time, etc. included in the vehicle body information 350 of each construction machine.

[0044] The recording instruction unit 314 instructs the in-vehicle device 200 to record based on the result of the determination by the recording determination unit 313. Specifically, if there is a construction machine that the recording determination unit 313 has determined to satisfy the recording conditions, the recording instruction unit 314 transmits a signal to the in-vehicle device 200 mounted on that construction machine to instruct it to start recording. Thereafter, if the recording conditions are no longer satisfied, the recording instruction unit 314 transmits a signal to instruct it to stop recording. The in-vehicle device 200 starts and stops recording the video captured by the camera 201 in response to these signals.

[0045] The recording information acquisition unit 315 acquires, from the on-board device 200 of each construction machine, video data 340 recorded in response to an instruction from the recording instruction unit 314, and vehicle body information 350 at the time the video data 340 was recorded. As described above, the video recorded in the on-board device 200 and the vehicle body information during the recording period are saved in the recording area 204 of the recording device 202 and uploaded to the video recording device 300. The recording information acquisition unit 315 acquires this information uploaded from each on-board device 200 that has recorded, thereby acquiring the video data 340 and vehicle body information 350, and stores in the storage unit 320 recording information 330 that combines this information with model information 360 that indicates the model of the construction machine on which each on-board device 200 is mounted.

[0046] The video editing unit 316 edits the recorded video based on the recording information 330 stored in the storage unit 320. For example, a time lapse video with a shortened playback time is generated by cutting out part or all of the video and doubling the speed at a predetermined rate. Details of video editing by the video editing unit 316 will be described later.

[0047] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a management screen 30 displayed on the video recording device 300. In the video recording device 300, the management screen 30 shown in Fig. 5 is displayed on the terminal 22 or display device 363 connected via a web browser. The administrator can use this management screen 30 to check each construction machine that is subject to video recording control.

[0048] The management screen 30 has an operating machine list window 31, a map window 33, a video display window 37, and a vehicle information window 38. Note that Fig. 5 shows an example of the management screen 30 that is displayed when the construction machines 100a to 100c shown in Fig. 3 are in operation.

[0049] The operating machine list window 31 displays the names of all the construction machines 100a to 100c operating at the construction site 21, as well as the recording switches 32a and recording setting buttons 32b assigned to the construction machines 100a to 100c, respectively.

[0050] The recording switch 32a is automatically switched to either recording (ON) or recording stopped (OFF) depending on the recording status of each on-board device 200 of the construction machines 100a to 100c. It is also possible to manually switch the recording status of each on-board device 200 by switching the recording switch 32a in response to an administrator's operation using the operation input device 362. In the example of FIG. 5, the recording switch 32a for the construction machine 100a out of the construction machines 100a to 100c is switched to recording. This shows that the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a is recording video from the camera 201, while the on-board devices 200 of the other construction machines 100b and 100c are in a recording stopped state.

[0051] The recording setting button 32b is an operation button for setting the recording conditions. By selecting any of the recording setting buttons 32b using the operation input device 362, the manager can select the construction machine for which the recording conditions are to be set, and cause the recording setting screen 40 (described later) to be displayed on the video recording device 300. On this recording setting screen 40, the manager can set the recording conditions for that construction machine.

[0052] The map window 33 displays a map of the construction site 21, and vehicle icons 34a to 34c indicating the latest positions of the construction machines 100a to 100c are displayed on the map. In addition, a recording icon 36 indicating that recording is in progress is displayed next to the vehicle icon 34a corresponding to the construction machine 100a that is currently recording video from the camera 201 on the on-vehicle device 200.

[0053] The video display window 37 and the vehicle information window 38 respectively display work video and operating status of the construction machine selected by the administrator. The administrator can select a construction machine to be displayed in the video display window 37 and the vehicle information window 38 by using the operation input device 362 to select any vehicle icon 34 on the map window 33. FIG. 5 shows an example in which a vehicle icon 34a is selected in the map window 33. In this case, a balloon-shaped recording information window 35 showing details of the recording control status of the construction machine 100a corresponding to the vehicle icon 34a is displayed near the vehicle icon 34a in the map window 33. This recording information window 35 displays a recording switch 32a and a recording setting button 32b similar to those in the operating machine list window 31, as well as an all-day recording button 35a. By selecting the all-day recording button 35a in the recording information window 35 using the operation input device 362, the administrator can instruct the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a to record video for any day.

[0054] In addition, in the video display window 37, images captured by the camera 201 of the on-board device 200 mounted on the construction machine 100a are displayed as images related to the construction machine 100a, and in the vehicle body information window 38, the operation amount of each operating lever 19 and the time series changes in the load factor of the engine 1 based on the vehicle body information 350 transmitted from the construction machine 100a are displayed as graphs showing the operating status of the construction machine 100a.

[0055] 6 is a diagram showing an example of a recording setting screen 40 displayed on the video recording device 300. As described above, when the administrator selects any of the recording setting buttons 32b on the operating machine list window 31 or the recording information window 35 on the management screen 30 in FIG. 5 using the operation input device 362, the management screen 30 is switched to display a recording setting screen 40 for setting the recording conditions for the construction machine corresponding to that recording setting button 32b. This recording setting screen 40 includes, for example, a time trigger field 41 for setting recording conditions based on date and time, an area trigger field 42 for setting recording conditions based on location, a machine trigger field 43 for setting recording conditions based on the positional relationship with other construction machines, and a machine signal trigger field 44 for setting recording conditions based on the machine's control signals.

[0056] The time trigger field 41 includes a trigger enable box 411 and a video name box 412. The trigger enable box 411 is a checkbox for selecting whether to enable the recording conditions set in the time trigger field 41. By checking the trigger enable box 411, the recording conditions in the time trigger field 41 are enabled, and when these recording conditions are met, video from the camera 201 is recorded in the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a. The administrator can switch between checking and unchecking the trigger enable box 411 by selecting the trigger enable box 411 using the operation input device 362. The video name box 412 is an input field for setting a title for the recorded video. The title set in the video name box 412 is assigned to the data file of the video recorded when the recording conditions set in the time trigger field 41 are met. The administrator can set a title for the video to be recorded in advance by inputting any character string into the video name box 412 using the operation input device 362.

[0057] As with the time trigger field 41, the area trigger field 42, the aircraft trigger field 43, and the vehicle signal trigger field 44 also have trigger activation boxes 421, 431, and 441 and animation name boxes 422, 432, and 442. These boxes have the same functions as the trigger activation box 411 and animation name box 412 in the time trigger field 41, respectively.

[0058] The time trigger field 41 has fields for setting the start date and time and the end date and time of recording, in addition to a trigger activation box 411 and a video name box 412. It also has selection buttons for setting the start date and time and the end date and time of recording from the schedule of the construction site 21. If the schedule of the construction site 21 is stored in the memory unit 320 or can be obtained from an external cloud service or the like, the administrator can also set the start date and time and the end date and time of recording by specifying the work of the construction machine 100a to be recorded from this schedule.

[0059] In addition to a trigger activation box 421 and a video name box 422, the area trigger field 42 has a field for specifying the area within the construction site 21 where recording will be performed. In this field, the administrator can select one of the area names that have been set in advance for each area within the construction site 21, or can directly specify an arbitrary range from a map of the construction site 21.

[0060] In addition to the trigger activation box 431 and video name box 432, the machine trigger field 43 has a field for specifying the construction machine that will record when the distance to the construction machine 100a comes within a predetermined value. In this field, the administrator can select any construction machine other than the construction machine 100a, for example, the construction machine 100b, which is a dump truck. This sets the video recording device 300 to issue a recording command to the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a when the distance between the construction machine 100a and the construction machine 100b falls below the predetermined value.

[0061] In addition to a trigger enable box 441 and a video name box 442, the vehicle signal trigger field 44 has a field for specifying the control signal of the construction machine 100a to be subject to recording judgment. In this field, the administrator can select one of the control signals used by the vehicle body of the construction machine 100a, for example, the output signal of an obstacle distance sensor, and set a threshold value and judgment criteria for that control signal. This sets the video recording device 300 to issue a recording command to the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a when the distance to an obstacle detected by the obstacle distance sensor falls below the set threshold. Note that when this setting is made, it is preferable to include detection information from the obstacle distance sensor in the vehicle information 350 transmitted from the construction machine 100a to enable judgment processing by the recording judgment unit 313.

[0062] In the video recording device 300, the recording conditions set in any of the time trigger field 41, area trigger field 42, machine trigger field 43, and machine signal trigger field 44 are registered by the recording condition registration unit 312. The determination process performed by the recording determination unit 313 determines whether or not these registered recording conditions are met based on the current date and time and machine body information 350 of the construction machine 100a acquired by the machine body information acquisition unit 311. Specifically, the recording conditions in the time trigger field 41 are determined by the current date and time, while the recording conditions in the area trigger field 42 and machine body trigger field 43 are determined by the position information 353 included in the machine body information 350. Furthermore, the recording conditions in the machine signal trigger field 44 can be determined by operation information 351, driving information 352, etc. included in the machine body information 350.

[0063] As a result, if any of the recording conditions are met, the recording instructing unit 314 instructs the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a to start recording, and if the recording conditions are subsequently no longer met, the recording instructing unit 314 instructs the on-board device 200 of the construction machine 100a to stop recording. Then, the video data 340 and vehicle body information 350 uploaded from the on-board device 200 are acquired by the video data acquiring unit 315, the file name of the video data 340 is set to the specified title, and the combined video data 330 is saved in the storage unit 320. In this way, the video data 330 including video according to the set recording conditions can be saved in the storage unit 320.

[0064] It should be noted that the items that can be set as recording conditions and the settings thereof are not limited to those exemplified in Figure 6. With the video recording device 300, it is possible to set arbitrary recording conditions for each construction machine, and obtain from each construction machine recording information 330 containing video recorded when the recording conditions are met, and store this information in the memory unit 320.

[0065] 7 is a diagram showing an example of a recorded video list screen 50 displayed on the video recording device 300. When the administrator performs a predetermined operation on the video recording device 300, the recorded video list screen 50 is displayed, which lists the contents of the recording information 330 stored in the memory unit 320. This recorded video list screen 50 displays information such as a thumbnail 51, a recording period 52, a video name 53, and a model 54 for each piece of recording information 330 stored in the memory unit 320.

[0066] The thumbnail 51 displays, for example, the first frame image as a thumbnail image of the video data 340 included in each recording information 330. The recording period 52 displays the recording period (the day on which all-day recording was performed, or the start and end dates and times of recording) of the video data 340 included in each recording information 330. The video name 53 displays the name of the video data 340 included in each recording information 330. For example, for video data 340 recorded according to the recording conditions set on the recording setting screen 40 of FIG. 6, the file name set in the video name box 412, 422, 432, or 442 corresponding to the recording conditions is displayed. For other video data 340, a file name corresponding to the recording instruction issued by the administrator is displayed. For example, for video recorded by selecting the all-day recording button 35a on the management screen 30, "all-day recording" is displayed, and for video recorded by manually switching the recording switch 32a during recording, "temporary recording" is displayed. The model 54 displays the model name of the construction machine from which the video data 340 included in each recording information 330 was acquired. The model name displayed in the model 54 is determined based on the model information 360 included in each piece of recording information 330 .

[0067] Figure 8 is a diagram showing an example of a recorded video playback screen 60 displayed on the video recording device 300. When the administrator selects any row on the recorded video list screen 50 of Figure 7, the recorded video list screen 50 is switched to display a recorded video playback screen 60 for playing back and displaying the video data 340 of that row. This recorded video playback screen 60 displays the same recording period 52, video name 53, and model 54 as the recorded video list screen 50, as well as a map window 61, a video playback window 62, a vehicle information window 63, a play button 64, a stop button 65, a seek bar 66, a download button 67, a clip download button 68, and a time lapse acquisition box 69.

[0068] The map window 61 displays a map of the construction site 21, and also displays on the map a vehicle icon 34 indicating the position of the construction machine (construction machine 100c in the example of FIG. 8) when the selected video data 340 was captured. This vehicle icon 34 moves on the map window 61 in synchronization with the video displayed in the video playback window 62.

[0069] The video playback window 62 plays and displays a video based on the selected video data 340. The administrator can operate the playback / stop of the video displayed in the video playback window 62 by selecting a play button 64 or a stop button 65 using the operation input device 362. In addition, the playback position of the video can be adjusted by operating the seek bar 66.

[0070] The vehicle body information window 63 displays the selected video data 340 together with the operation amount of each control lever 19 and the time series change in the load factor of the engine 1, which are represented by vehicle body information 350 included in the video recording information 330, as graphs showing the operating status of the construction machine 100c from which the selected video data 340 was captured. Each graph in the vehicle body information window 63 changes in synchronization with the video displayed in the video playback window 62. For example, when the seek bar 66 is operated, each graph in the vehicle body information window 63 slides and is displayed in accordance with the position of the seek bar 66.

[0071] The download button 67 is an operation button for downloading the video data 340. By selecting the download button 67 using the operation input device 362, the administrator can download the video data 340 of the moving image displayed in the video playback window 62 from the video recording device 300 to another device, for example, the terminal 22.

[0072] The cut-out download button 68 is an operation button for cutting out and downloading a portion of the video data 340. When the cut-out download button 68 is selected, markers 70 and 71 for specifying the cut-out start position and cut-out end position are displayed near the seek bar 66. The administrator can use the markers 70 and 71, which can be moved arbitrarily by operating the operation input device 362, to specify the cut-out start position and cut-out end position of the video on the seek bar 66, thereby cutting out the portion corresponding to the period between these positions from the video data 340 and downloading it from the video recording device 300 to another device, for example, the terminal 22.

[0073] The time lapse acquisition box 69 is a checkbox for downloading time lapse video, which is video at double the speed. With the time lapse acquisition box 69 checked, the administrator can select the download button 67 or the clip download button 68 using the operation input device 362 to generate time lapse video at double the speed of part or all of the video displayed in the video playback window 62, and download this time lapse video data from the video recording device 300 to another device, such as the terminal 22. The time axis of the time lapse video is compressed more than that of the original video, and it can be played back and displayed in a shorter time than the original video, making it easier to review later.

[0074] The video recording device 300 of this embodiment performs the processing described above. This makes it possible to automatically save footage of scenes appropriate for a particular purpose from footage captured by a camera mounted on a construction machine. As a result, the saved footage can be used to more efficiently check the progress of work being carried out at a construction site, provide training on work procedures, report after work is completed, investigate accidents, and so on.

[0075] According to the first embodiment of the present invention described above, the following advantageous effects are achieved.

[0076] (1) The video recording device 300 is a device for recording video related to construction machinery, and includes a recording condition registration unit 312 that registers predetermined recording conditions set by an operation input device 362, a vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 that acquires vehicle body information 350 related to the operating status of the construction machinery, a recording determination unit 313 that determines whether the registered recording conditions are met based on the vehicle body information 350 acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311, a recording instruction unit 314 that instructs the recording of video captured by the camera 201 attached to the construction machinery when the recording determination unit 313 determines that the recording conditions are met, and a memory unit 320 that saves recording information 330 including video recorded in accordance with the instructions of the recording instruction unit 314. This makes it possible to realize a video recording device 300 that automatically acquires and saves video of scenes related to construction machinery according to a purpose.

[0077] (2) The vehicle information 350 includes at least one of the following: operation information 351 of the operator operating the construction machine, operation information 352 of the engine 1, which is the power source mounted on the construction machine, and location information 353 of the construction machine. The recording determination unit 313 determines whether the recording conditions are met based on at least one of the operation information 351, the operation information 352, and the location information 353. This allows the recording determination unit 313 to make determinations based on various recording conditions depending on the situation of the construction machine.

[0078] (3) The video recording device 300 includes a video editing unit 316 that generates time-lapse video by doubling the speed of part or all of the video based on the recording information 330 stored in the memory unit 320. This allows for the creation of time-lapse video that can be played back and displayed in a shorter time than the original video.

[0079] (4) The vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 acquires the vehicle body information 350 by receiving the vehicle body information 350 transmitted from the on-board device 200 mounted on the construction machine. The recording instruction unit 314 instructs the on-board device 200 to record video when the recording determination unit 313 determines that the recording conditions are met. The storage unit 320 stores the recording information 330 transmitted from the on-board device 200 after the instruction from the recording instruction unit 314. In this way, it is possible to automatically acquire and store video of scenes related to the construction machine that suit the purpose, in the video recording device 300 installed at a location away from the construction machine.

[0080] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, an example in which a video recording device is mounted on each construction machine will be described.

[0081] 9 is a configuration diagram of a video recording system 500A according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The video recording system 500A of this embodiment has an in-vehicle device 200A instead of the in-vehicle device 200 and the video recording device 300 described in the first embodiment. This in-vehicle device 200A has the same camera 201, communication terminal 205, and position detection unit 206 as described in the first embodiment, and a video recording device 300A instead of the recording device 202. As in the first embodiment, the in-vehicle device 200A is mounted on a construction machine such as the hydraulic excavator 100 of FIG. 1. That is, the video recording device 300A of this embodiment is mounted on the construction machine as a part of the in-vehicle device 200A.

[0082] 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a video recording device 300A according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Similar to the video recording device 300 of FIG. 4 described in the first embodiment, the video recording device 300A of this embodiment is a computer equipped with a control unit 310, a storage unit 320A, a memory 361, an operation input device 362, a display device 363, and a network device 364, and is configured by interconnecting these devices via a bus 365. The difference from the first embodiment is that the video recording device 300A has a video recording information saving unit 315A and a storage unit 320A instead of the video recording information acquiring unit 315 and the storage unit 320 described in the first embodiment.

[0083] The storage unit 320A has a constant recording area 203 and a video recording area 204, similar to the recording device 202 in the in-vehicle device 200 of FIG. 2 described in the first embodiment.

[0084] In this embodiment, the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311 acquires vehicle body information transmitted from a construction machine (e.g., hydraulic excavator 100) on which the video recording device 300A is mounted, and temporarily stores the acquired information in the continuous recording area 203 of the storage unit 320A. The recording determination unit 313 determines whether the situation of the construction machine satisfies predetermined recording conditions based on the vehicle body information acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit 311. If the recording determination unit 313 determines that the recording conditions are met, the recording instruction unit 314 instructs the recording information storage unit 315A to store the recording information 330 in the recording area 204 using the video data from the camera 201 and the vehicle body information temporarily stored in the continuous recording area 203 of the storage unit 320A. In response to the recording instruction from the recording instruction unit 314, the recording information storage unit 315A stores the recording information 330 in the recording area 204 of the storage unit 320A. As a result, recording information 330 is saved for each recording condition in recording area 204 in storage unit 320A.

[0085] According to the second embodiment of the present invention described above, the video recording device 300A is mounted on a construction machine. The storage unit 320A has a continuous recording area 203 in which video captured by the camera 201 is constantly recorded and temporarily stored, and a recording area 204 in which video recording information 330 is stored. When the recording determination unit 313 determines that the recording conditions are met, the recording instruction unit 314 uses the video temporarily stored in the continuous recording area 203 to store the video recording information 330 in the recording area 204. As a result, a video recording device 300A can be mounted on each construction machine, and this video recording device 300A can be used to automatically acquire and store video of scenes according to the purpose.

[0086] Although each embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various design modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention as defined in the claims. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the described configurations. Furthermore, it is possible to replace part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, or to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. Furthermore, it is possible to add, delete, or replace part of the configuration of each embodiment with other configurations. [Explanation of symbols]

[0087] 1...engine, 2...main pump, 3...lower traveling body, 4...upper rotating body, 5...front device, 6...crawler, 7...travel hydraulic motor, 8...swing hydraulic motor, 9...boom, 10...boom cylinder, 11...arm, 12...arm cylinder, 13...bucket, 14...bucket cylinder, 15...boom rotation axis, 16...arm rotation axis, 17...bucket rotation axis, 18...vehicle control controller, 19...operation lever, 20...vehicle network, 100...hydraulic excavator (construction machinery), 200, 200A...on-board device, 201...camera, 202...recording device, 203...constant recording area, 204...recording area, 20 5...communication terminal, 206...position detection unit, 300, 300A...video recording device, 310...control unit, 311...vehicle body information acquisition unit, 312...recording condition registration unit, 313...recording determination unit, 314...recording instruction unit, 315...recording information acquisition unit, 315A...recording information storage unit, 316...video editing unit, 320, 320A...storage unit, 330...recording information, 340...video data, 350...vehicle body information, 351...operation information, 352...driving information, 353...location information, 360...model information, 361...memory, 362...operation input device, 363...display device, 364...network device, 365...bus, 500, 500A...video recording system

Claims

1. A device for recording video related to construction machinery, a recording condition registration unit for registering predetermined recording conditions set by an input device; a vehicle body information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle body information relating to the operating status of the construction machine; a recording determination unit that determines whether the recording condition is satisfied based on the vehicle body information acquired by the vehicle body information acquisition unit; a recording instruction unit that instructs recording of the video captured by the camera attached to the construction machine when the recording determination unit determines that the recording conditions are met; a storage unit for storing recording information including the video recorded in response to an instruction from the recording instruction unit; A video recording device characterized by:

2. 2. The video recording device according to claim 1, the vehicle body information includes at least one of operation information of the operator with respect to the construction machine, operation information of a power source mounted on the construction machine, and position information of the construction machine; The recording determination unit determines whether the recording condition is satisfied based on at least one of the operation information, the driving information, and the position information. A video recording device characterized by:

3. 2. The video recording device according to claim 1, a video editing unit that generates time-lapse video by doubling the speed of part or all of the video based on the recording information stored in the storage unit; A video recording device characterized by:

4. 4. The video recording device according to claim 1, the vehicle body information acquisition unit acquires the vehicle body information by receiving the vehicle body information transmitted from an on-board device mounted on the construction machine; the recording instruction unit instructs the in-vehicle device to record the video when the recording determination unit determines that the video recording condition is satisfied; The storage unit stores the recording information transmitted from the in-vehicle device after the instruction from the recording instruction unit. A video recording device characterized by:

5. 4. The video recording device according to claim 1, The video recording device is mounted on the construction machine. A video recording device characterized by:

6. 6. The video recording device according to claim 5, the storage unit has a continuous recording area in which the video captured by the camera is constantly recorded and temporarily saved, and a recording area in which the video recording information is saved, When the recording determination unit determines that the recording condition is satisfied, the recording instruction unit uses the video temporarily stored in the continuous recording area to store the recording information in the recording area. A video recording device characterized by:

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