Odor reporting system and odor reporting method

Abstract

To provide an odor reporting system capable of performing quickly and easily odor measurement and odor reporting.SOLUTION: An odor reporting system includes a portable gas chromatograph 6, and a storage unit 10 that stores a correspondence table associating retention time, peak signal intensity, and odor intensity perceived by a person for each component contained in a gas in an odor confirmation object area. The system further includes: a calculation unit 16 that identifies a peak in a chromatogram for the component from an analysis result by the portable gas chromatograph arranged in the area and calculates the odor intensity for the component from the identified peak signal intensity and the correspondence table stored in the storage unit; a determination unit 18 that determines that there is an abnormality in the area, when the odor intensity exceeds preset odor intensity; and a reporting unit 14 that reports the abnormality when the determination unit determines that the abnormality is found.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an odor reporting system that reports abnormal odors in an odor confirmation area, and an odor reporting method using the odor reporting system. [Background technology]

[0002] In the process of producing yeast, which is essential for bread making, odors are generated, such as the molasses adjustment odor that occurs when making culture solution from molasses, the yeast culture odor that occurs when cultivating yeast, and the wastewater treatment odor that occurs when treating wastewater from the culture solution produced during the cultivation, centrifugation, and dehydration processes. These odors are deodorized by burning them using, for example, a thermal storage deodorizing device.

[0003] On the other hand, for offensive odors, environmental standards have been set by the government as standards that should be maintained in order to protect human health and preserve the living environment. Companies and the like are required to operate factories and the like so that these environmental standards are not exceeded, and a system for managing odors is disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-008519 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] By the way, yeast cultivation requires the proliferation of microorganisms, which usually takes about 12 to 15 hours, and factories operate 24 hours a day. Naturally, while the factory is operating, even at night, it is necessary to ensure that the aforementioned environmental standards are not exceeded, and securing the necessary personnel is a huge burden.

[0006] There are also odor sensors that use metal oxide semiconductors, but they only measure the presence or absence of odors that have been trained beforehand; when they measure odor components that have not been trained, they judge them to be a mixture of the odors that have been trained beforehand, and report results that make it appear as if a substance that does not exist is present. Furthermore, the measurement results of odor sensors can be affected by the moisture contained in the measured gas (they may show values ​​that are higher than the actual values), so it was necessary to thoroughly dry the measured gas (to keep the moisture content constant) before measurement with the odor sensor.

[0007] Odor measurement using a gas chromatograph, which is not affected by moisture, is also possible, but because the spatial concentration of odors in the atmosphere is low, the gas to be measured must be concentrated before odor measurement can be performed, which takes a long time. In addition, general gas chromatographs are large and not portable, making it difficult to measure odors quickly.

[0008] Furthermore, human olfactory sensitivity (olfactory threshold) differs for each substance, and just because a substance has a high spatial concentration does not necessarily mean that humans perceive it as a strong odor. Conversely, there are substances for which humans perceive a very strong odor even when their spatial concentration is not high. Therefore, it is not possible to determine the odor intensity perceived by humans from the results of odor sensors and gas chromatography.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide an odor reporting system that can quickly and easily measure odors and report odors, and an odor reporting method using the odor reporting system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The odor reporting system of the present invention is characterized by comprising: a portable gas chromatograph; a memory unit that stores a correspondence table that corresponds the retention times in the portable gas chromatograph of components contained in gas within an odor confirmation area with the signal intensities of peaks in a chromatogram of the components and the odor intensities of the components as perceived by humans; an intake unit that directly draws the gas into the portable gas chromatograph located within the area; an analysis unit that analyzes the gas with the portable gas chromatograph; a calculation unit that identifies peaks in the chromatogram of the components from the retention times of the components stored in the memory unit and the analysis results by the analysis unit, and calculates the odor intensity of the components from the signal intensities of the identified peaks and the correspondence table stored in the memory unit; a judgment unit that determines that an abnormality exists in the area if the odor intensity calculated by the calculation unit exceeds a predetermined odor intensity; and a reporting unit that reports the abnormality if the judgment unit determines that an abnormality exists.

[0011] The odor notification system of the present invention is characterized in that the notification unit issues a notification using an information transmission means including at least one of a display, a sound, and a light.

[0012] The odor notification system of the present invention is characterized in that the notification unit issues the notification using information transmission means that utilizes an electric communication line.

[0013] Furthermore, the odor notification system of the present invention is characterized in that, when the gas contains a plurality of components, the calculation unit calculates the odor intensity for the peak of each of the components on the chromatogram.

[0014] The odor notification system of the present invention is also characterized in that the portable gas chromatograph is provided with a gas concentrator upstream of the analysis section.

[0015] The odor reporting method of the present invention is an odor reporting method for reporting an abnormality in an odor confirmation area using an odor reporting system, and includes an intake step of directly inhaling gas within the area into a portable gas chromatograph of the odor reporting system disposed within the area; an analysis step of analyzing the gas with the portable gas chromatograph in an analysis unit of the odor reporting system; an identification step of identifying peaks in a chromatogram of the components contained in the gas from the retention times of the components stored in a memory unit of the odor reporting system and the analysis results of the analysis step; The odor notification system is characterized by including a calculation step of calculating the odor intensity of the component at the signal intensity of the identified peak from the signal intensity of the peak identified in the identification step and a correspondence table stored in the memory unit that corresponds the signal intensity of the peak in the chromatogram of the component and the odor intensity of the component as perceived by humans; a judgment step of the judgment unit of the odor notification system of judging that an abnormality exists in the area if the odor intensity calculated in the calculation step exceeds a predetermined odor intensity; and a reporting step of reporting the abnormality in the reporting unit of the odor notification system if it is determined that an abnormality exists in the judgment step.

[0016] The odor notification method of the present invention is characterized in that the notification step uses information transmission means including at least one of a display, a sound, and a light.

[0017] The odor notification method of the present invention is characterized in that the notification step uses information transmission means utilizing an electric communication line.

[0018] Furthermore, the odor notification method of the present invention is characterized in that, when the gas contains a plurality of components, the calculation step calculates the odor intensity for the peak of each of the components on the chromatogram.

[0019] The odor notification method of the present invention is characterized by further comprising a concentrating step of concentrating the gas in a gas concentrator located upstream of the analyzing section. [Effects of the Invention]

[0020] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an odor reporting system that can quickly and easily measure odors and report odors, and an odor reporting method that uses the odor reporting system. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an odor notification system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 10 is a flowchart illustrating the process for reporting an odor when an abnormality in an odor confirmation area is detected using the odor reporting system according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] An odor notification system according to an embodiment will now be described with reference to the drawings. The odor notification system according to this embodiment is a system that issues a notification when an abnormality in an odor confirmation area is detected. In this embodiment, a yeast manufacturing factory is used as an example of an odor confirmation area. In this embodiment, the presence of the following odorous substances in the gas within the factory has been confirmed in advance: (1) isovaleraldehyde (3-methylbutanal), (2) isoamyl alcohol (3-methylbutanol), (3) isovaleric acid (3-methylbutanoic acid), (4) ethyl isovalerate (ethyl 3-methylbutanoate), and (5) caramel furanone (sotolon). The odors of these substances are measured, and an abnormal odor of these substances is reported.

[0023] Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an odor reporting system according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the odor reporting system 2 includes a control unit 4 that performs overall control of each unit of the odor reporting system 2. A portable gas chromatograph 6, an inhalation unit 8, a memory unit 10, and a reporting unit 14 are connected to the control unit 4. The control unit 4 also includes a calculation unit 16 and a determination unit 18.

[0024] In this embodiment, the portable gas chromatograph 6 is a gas analyzer described in Japanese Patent No. 5164116. The portable gas chromatograph 6 is a lightweight, compact, and portable gas chromatograph that is brought into and installed in a yeast manufacturing factory (hereinafter simply referred to as the "factory"), which is the odor detection area. The term "factory" in this application does not refer only to the factory process or building, but also broadly refers to the factory grounds and the surrounding area affected by the factory. The portable gas chromatograph 6 includes a sampling unit 20 that uses a gas concentrator to concentrate gas within the factory taken in through an intake unit 8 and mixes it with a carrier gas, and an analysis unit 21 that analyzes the gas concentrated by the sampling unit 20. The analysis unit 21 includes a separation unit 22 that separates the gas mixed with the carrier gas using a column, and a detection unit 24 that detects the separated gas. The sampling unit 20, which includes the gas concentrator, is located upstream of the analysis unit 21. The detection unit 24 generates surface acoustic waves using a circular surface acoustic wave generating means, and detects the gas components separated by the separation unit 22 by detecting changes in the surface acoustic waves due to the gas components. The portable gas chromatograph 6 is equipped with a gas concentrator, and the surface acoustic wave generating means of the portable gas chromatograph 6 has sensitivity approximately 100 times that of the surface acoustic wave generating means of a general gas chromatograph, so the concentration time by the gas concentrator of the sampling unit 20 can be significantly shorter than the concentration time of a general gas chromatograph. As with the expression "factory" in this application, "gas within the factory" includes not only gas within the process or building, but also gas originating from the factory that has diffused within and around the factory premises.

[0025] The suction unit 8 directly draws gases within the factory into the sampling unit 20 of a portable gas chromatograph 6 installed within the factory. When separating gases using a typical gas chromatograph, typical gas chromatographs are heavy, large, and unportable, and are therefore installed in a laboratory or the like rather than in the odor confirmation area (factory). Therefore, the gases within the factory must be stored in a gas storage container such as a sample bag, and the gas storage container must be brought into the laboratory or the like to be drawn into the gas chromatograph. However, because the portable gas chromatograph 6 according to this embodiment is installed within the odor confirmation area (factory), the suction unit 8 can draw gases within the factory directly into the portable gas chromatograph 6 without using a sample bag or the like.

[0026] The memory unit 10 stores the components contained in the gas within the factory, namely, (1) retention time T1 of isovaleraldehyde in the portable gas chromatograph 6, (2) retention time T2 of isoamyl alcohol in the portable gas chromatograph 6, (3) retention time T3 of isovaleric acid in the portable gas chromatograph 6, (4) retention time T4 of ethyl isovalerate in the portable gas chromatograph 6, and (5) retention time T5 of caramel furanone in the portable gas chromatograph 6.

[0027] The memory unit 10 also stores a correspondence table that associates the signal intensity of peaks in the chromatograms of each component with the odor intensity perceived by humans for each component. The odor intensity perceived by humans is a numerical value obtained by sensory evaluation based on the smell of an expert, such as an odor judge. The memory unit 10 stores, for example, (1) the odor intensity S1 perceived by humans corresponding to the signal intensity A1 of a peak in the chromatogram of isovaleraldehyde, (2) the odor intensity S2 perceived by humans corresponding to the signal intensity A2 of a peak in the chromatogram of isoamyl alcohol, (3) the odor intensity S3 perceived by humans corresponding to the signal intensity A3 of a peak in the chromatogram of isovaleric acid, (4) the odor intensity S4 perceived by humans corresponding to the signal intensity A4 of a peak in the chromatogram of ethyl isovalerate, and (5) the odor intensity S5 perceived by humans corresponding to the signal intensity A5 of a peak in the chromatogram of caramel furanone.

[0028] The calculation unit 16 of the control unit 4 identifies peaks in the chromatogram of each component contained in the gas from the retention times of each component contained in the gas stored in the memory unit 10 and the analysis results by the analysis unit 21 of the portable gas chromatograph 6. For example, if the retention time T of a peak in the chromatogram based on the analysis results of the analysis unit 21 is T1 or an approximate value thereof, the calculation unit 16 confirms that the retention time T matches or is approximate to the retention time T1 in the portable gas chromatograph 6 of (1) isovaleraldehyde stored in the memory unit 10, and identifies that the gas in the factory contains (1) isovaleraldehyde.

[0029] The calculation unit 16 further calculates the odor intensity of each component contained in the gas inside the factory based on the signal intensity of the identified peak and the correspondence table stored in the memory unit 10. For example, if the analysis result of the analysis unit 21 identifies (1) isovaleraldehyde, the calculation unit 16 reads the correspondence table (odor intensity S1 perceived by humans corresponding to peak signal intensity A1) for (1) isovaleraldehyde stored in the memory unit 10 and calculates the odor intensity S (= S1 × A / A1) of (1) isovaleraldehyde based on the comparison result between the signal intensity A of the peak identified on the chromatogram and the signal intensity A1 of the peak stored in the memory unit 10. If the gas inside the factory contains multiple components, the calculation unit 16 calculates the odor intensity for the peak of each component on the chromatogram.

[0030] The judgment unit 18 of the control unit 4 judges that there is something wrong in the factory if the odor intensity (for example, the odor intensity S of (1) isovaleraldehyde) calculated by the calculation unit 16 exceeds a preset odor intensity. The preset odor intensity is a value that does not exceed the environmental standard value set by the government or the value that humans perceive as a foul odor, and an appropriate value is set for each of the above substances (1) to (5).

[0031] When the judgment unit 18 of the control unit 4 judges that there is an abnormality, the notification unit 14 reports the abnormality by an information transmission means including at least one of a display on a display device (not shown), a sound from an audio device (not shown), and a light using an indicator light (not shown).

[0032] Next, we will explain an odor reporting method for reporting an abnormality in an odor in a factory using the odor reporting system 2 according to this embodiment. Figure 2 is a flowchart for explaining the process of measuring gas in a factory and reporting an abnormality in an odor in the factory.

[0033] First, the odor notification system 2 is carried and placed inside the factory. The control unit 4 of the odor notification system 2 causes the portable gas chromatograph 6 of the odor notification system 2 placed inside the factory to directly draw in the gas inside the factory from the intake unit 8 without using a gas storage container such as a sample bag (step S10). The gas drawn into the portable gas chromatograph 6 is concentrated by the gas concentrator in the sampling unit 20, mixed with the carrier gas, and then sent to the analysis unit 21 for analysis. The gas is separated into its components in a column in the separation unit 22 provided in the analysis unit 21, and the gas separated in the separation unit 22 is detected by the detection unit 24 of the analysis unit 21.

[0034] Next, the control unit 4 acquires the analysis results from the analysis unit 21 (step S11), and identifies peaks in the chromatogram of the components contained in the gas from the retention times of each component contained in the gas stored in the memory unit 10 and the analysis results acquired in step S11 (step S12). Specifically, the calculation unit 16 of the control unit 4 checks to see which retention times T1 to T5 stored in the memory unit 10 the retention time of the peak from the analysis results of the analysis unit 21 matches or is closest to, and identifies the peak of the component. Furthermore, the calculation unit 16 calculates the odor intensity of the component from the signal intensity of the peak identified in step S12 and the correspondence table stored in the memory unit 10 (step S13). Specifically, the calculation unit 16 reads from the memory unit 10 a correspondence table corresponding to the signal intensities of peaks identified on the chromatogram, and calculates the odor intensity of the analyzed component (= odor intensity stored in the correspondence table × signal intensity of peak identified on the chromatogram / signal intensity stored in the correspondence table) from the signal intensity of the peak identified on the chromatogram, the signal intensity stored in the correspondence table, and the odor intensity stored in the correspondence table.

[0035] Next, if the odor intensity calculated in step S13 exceeds the preset odor intensity (step S14: Yes), the determination unit 18 of the control unit 4 determines that there is an abnormality in the factory (step S15). If it is determined that there is an abnormality in step S15, the control unit 4 notifies the notification unit 14 that there is an abnormality in the odor in the factory (step S16).

[0036] If the gas in the factory contains multiple components, the control unit 4 calculates the odor intensity for each peak of the component on the chromatogram, determines whether there is an abnormality based on each odor intensity, and reports the determination result. That is, the control unit 4 executes the processes of steps S11 to S16 for each component contained in the gas in the factory.

[0037] The odor reporting system 2 and odor reporting method according to this embodiment are equipped with a lightweight, small, and portable gas chromatograph 6, allowing for quick and easy odor measurement and odor reporting. Furthermore, the odor reporting system 2 according to this embodiment also allows for continuous monitoring, making it possible to quickly and easily check for gas odors within a factory, even in factories operating at night.

[0038] Furthermore, according to the odor notification system 2 and odor notification method of this embodiment, an alarm is issued based on the correspondence table stored in the memory unit 10, i.e., the odor intensity perceived by humans for peaks on a chromatogram. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the odor intensity setting for the peak, the boundary for whether or not a notification is required can be easily adjusted.

[0039] In addition, in the odor reporting system 2 according to this embodiment, once the gas concentration process by the sampling unit 20 of the portable gas chromatograph 6 is completed (before the gas separation process by the separation unit 22 is started), the portable gas chromatograph 6 can be moved to the next odor confirmation target area, and the gas in the next odor confirmation target area can be drawn into the sampling unit 20 and concentration can begin. In other words, if there are multiple odor confirmation target areas, the sampling unit 20 can concentrate the gas in the next odor confirmation target area while the separation unit 22 is separating the gas in the previous odor confirmation target area. Therefore, when odor confirmation is performed on gas in multiple odor confirmation target areas, the time from gas concentration to analysis can be shortened.

[0040] Furthermore, when the gas in the odor confirmation area contains multiple components and an odor report needs to be issued quickly, it is possible to set the system to analyze only components with short retention times. That is, when the gas in the area is concentrated in the sampling unit 20 and separated in the separation unit 22, the components are detected in order of shortest retention time in the analysis unit 21. Therefore, by determining whether or not an odor report is required for at least one component in order of shortest retention time and omitting the determination of whether or not an odor report is required for components with long retention times, the time required for odor confirmation can be shortened.

[0041] Furthermore, when odor confirmation is performed for gases in multiple odor confirmation target areas, the odor reporting system of this embodiment uses a lightweight and small portable gas chromatograph 6, so it is possible to place a portable gas chromatograph 6 in each area.

[0042] In the odor reporting system 2 and odor reporting method according to the above-described embodiment, the reporting means and reporting method have been described as examples of using information transmission means including at least one of display, sound, and light, but reporting may also be done using information transmission means that utilize telecommunications lines such as the Internet, intranet, or dedicated lines, including email using general-purpose devices such as smartphones and personal computers, display on a website, and posting on SNS.

[0043] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, a yeast manufacturing factory was used as an example of an area to be checked for odors, but the present invention can also be applied to areas other than yeast manufacturing factories, such as factories that cultivate yeast other than yeast, food factories, fertilizer factories, feed factories, factories that handle chemicals that emit odors such as organic solvents, and waste disposal plants, where odors with specific compositions are generated, as well as places where odors with specific compositions are generated, such as yakitori restaurants, ramen shops, and other stores that emit odors with specific compositions.

[0044] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the odor reporting system 2 is installed in the odor confirmation area, but a communication means for communicating between the control unit 4 and the portable gas chromatograph 6 and the suction unit 8 may be provided, and only the portable gas chromatograph 6 and the suction unit 8 may be installed in the odor confirmation area. In this case, the control unit 4 instructs the suction unit 8 to suction gas via the communication means, and obtains the analysis results from the gas chromatograph 6 via the communication means. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 2...odor reporting system, 4...control unit, 6...portable gas chromatograph, 8...suction unit, 10...memory unit, 14...reporting unit, 16...calculation unit, 18...judgment unit, 20...sampling unit, 21...analysis unit, 22...separation unit, 24...detection unit.

Claims

1. a portable gas chromatograph; a storage unit that stores a correspondence table that associates the retention times of components contained in the gas within the odor confirmation area in the portable gas chromatograph with the signal intensities of peaks in the chromatogram of the components and the odor intensities of the components as perceived by humans; an intake unit that directly intakes the gas into the portable gas chromatograph disposed within the area; an analysis unit that analyzes the gas using the portable gas chromatograph; a calculation unit that identifies a peak in a chromatogram of the component based on the retention time of the component stored in the storage unit and the analysis result by the analysis unit, and calculates the odor intensity of the component based on the signal intensity of the identified peak and the correspondence table stored in the storage unit; a determination unit that determines that an abnormality exists in the area when the odor intensity calculated by the calculation unit exceeds a predetermined odor intensity; a reporting unit that reports an abnormality when the determining unit determines that an abnormality exists; An odor notification system comprising:

2. 2. The odor notification system according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit issues a notification using information transmission means including at least one of a display, a sound, and a light.

3. 2. The odor notification system according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit issues a notification using information transmission means that utilizes an electric communication line.

4. 3. The odor notification system according to claim 1, wherein when the gas contains a plurality of components, the calculation unit calculates the odor intensity for the peak of each of the components on the chromatogram.

5. 3. The odor notification system according to claim 1, wherein the portable gas chromatograph includes a gas concentrator upstream of the analysis unit.

6. An odor reporting method for reporting an abnormality in an odor confirmation area using an odor reporting system, comprising: an intake step of directly inhaling gas within the area into a portable gas chromatograph of the odor reporting system disposed within the area; an analyzing step of analyzing the gas by the portable gas chromatograph in an analyzing section of the odor reporting system; an identifying step of identifying peaks in a chromatogram of the components contained in the gas based on the retention times of the components stored in a memory unit of the odor notification system and the analysis results of the analyzing step; a calculation step in which a calculation unit of the odor reporting system calculates the odor intensity of the component at the signal intensity of the identified peak from the signal intensity of the peak identified in the identification step and a correspondence table stored in the memory unit that corresponds the signal intensity of the peak in the chromatogram of the component to the odor intensity perceived by humans of the component; a determination step in which, in a determination unit of the odor reporting system, if the odor intensity calculated in the calculation step exceeds a predetermined odor intensity, the determination step determines that an abnormality exists in the area; a reporting step of reporting the abnormality in a reporting unit of the odor reporting system when it is determined that an abnormality exists in the determining step; An odor notification method comprising:

7. 7. The odor notification method according to claim 6, wherein the notification step uses information transmission means including at least one of a display, sound, and light.

8. 7. The odor notification method according to claim 6, wherein the notification step uses information transmission means utilizing an electric communication line.

9. 9. The odor notification method according to claim 7, wherein, when the gas contains a plurality of components, the calculation step calculates the odor intensity for the peak of each of the components on the chromatogram.

10. 7. The odor notification method according to claim 6, further comprising a concentrating step of concentrating the gas in a gas concentrator located upstream of the analyzing section.

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