Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program with which it is possible to obtain a uniformity ratio in an arbitrary area.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus according to an embodiment is provided with calculation means that calculates a first uniformity ratio in a working area where an operator performs operations under an illumination environment on the basis of first illuminance at each position in a uniformity ratio calculation area determined from the working space.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, with the spread of teleworking, the number of workers working in lighting environments (working environments) equipped with lighting equipment (multiple lights), such as office floors, is on the decline. In this case, individually controlling the dimming rates of multiple lights in the lighting environment has been considered to achieve energy savings.

[0003] Here, when a plurality of lights are individually controlled in a lighting environment, it is expected that the distribution of illuminance (work surface illuminance) in the area where a worker works will become uneven.

[0004] Uniformity is known as an index that indicates the uniformity of illuminance distribution, and in the lighting environment described above, it is desirable to control a plurality of lights so that the uniformity satisfies a reference value.

[0005] However, the above-mentioned uniformity is often calculated for the entire lighting environment, and it is not possible to confirm whether the uniformity in any area satisfies the standard value when multiple lights are controlled individually. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-110718 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6017404 [Patent Document 3] Patent No. 5395717 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program that are capable of obtaining uniformity in any region. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The information processing device according to the embodiment includes a calculation means for calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within the uniformity ratio calculation area determined from the work area in which a worker performs work under a lighting environment. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a detailed functional configuration of a uniformity calculation unit. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing apparatus. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure of an information processing device. [Figure 5] 10 shows an example of a data structure of a lighting control value table. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a work plane illuminance table. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a personal uniformity table. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure for uniformity ratio calculation processing. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a work scene table. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a uniformity calculation area definition table. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of the data structure of the uniformity calculation area definition table. [Figure 12] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a lighting environment definition table. [Figure 13] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of an illuminance coordinate correspondence table. [Figure 14] 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining corner points, side points, and interior points extracted from a uniformity calculation area. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing apparatus according to a second embodiment. [Figure 16] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure of an information processing device. [Figure 17] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a work plane illuminance table. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a personal uniformity screen. [Figure 19] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to a third embodiment. [Figure 20] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure of an information processing device. [Figure 21] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing apparatus according to a fourth embodiment. [Figure 22] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure of an information processing device. [Figure 23] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a condition pattern table. [Figure 24] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a control value table. [Figure 25] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a control value pattern table. [Figure 26] FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to a sixth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, each embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. (First embodiment) First, a first embodiment will be described. The information processing device according to this embodiment corresponds to a uniformity calculation device configured to calculate the uniformity in an area where a worker works under a lighting environment (hereinafter referred to as a work area). The lighting environment refers to the state of a space (illumination space) affected by light irradiated by lighting equipment (plurality of lights), such as an office floor. The uniformity is an index that measures the uniformity of the distribution of brightness (illuminance and luminance) in the lighting environment.

[0011] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing device 10 includes a condition input unit 11, a simulation unit 12, a storage unit 13, a uniformity calculation unit 14, and an output unit 15.

[0012] For example, the current control value of each light in the lighting environment is input as a simulation condition to the condition input unit 11. In this embodiment, the control value is a value for controlling the dimming of each light, and includes, for example, a dimming rate.

[0013] The simulation conditions input by the condition input unit 11 do not have to be the current control values ​​of each lighting, but may be, for example, control values ​​designated by the user.

[0014] The simulation unit 12 virtually controls each light based on the simulation conditions (control values ​​for each light) input by the condition input unit 11 (that is, executes a lighting control simulation).

[0015] The storage unit 13 stores the results of the lighting control simulation executed by the simulation unit 12. The results of the lighting control simulation include the work surface illuminance at each position in the above-mentioned lighting environment. The storage unit 13 may also store various data necessary for the uniformity calculation unit 14 to calculate the uniformity.

[0016] The uniformity calculation unit 14 refers to the storage unit 13 and determines an area defined for calculating the uniformity (hereinafter referred to as the uniformity calculation area) based on, for example, the work area for which the uniformity is to be calculated. The uniformity calculation unit 14 acquires the work plane illuminance at each position within the determined uniformity calculation area from the storage unit 13 (the results of the lighting control simulation). The uniformity calculation unit 14 calculates the uniformity in the work area (hereinafter referred to as the personal uniformity) for each worker based on the acquired work plane illuminance.

[0017] The output unit 15 acquires the above-mentioned personal uniformity ratio from the uniformity ratio calculation unit 14, and outputs the acquired personal uniformity ratio.

[0018] Fig. 2 shows an example of a detailed functional configuration of the uniformity calculation unit 14 shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 2, the uniformity calculation unit 14 includes a setting unit 141, an illuminance input unit 142, a coordinate correspondence assignment unit 143, and a calculation unit 144.

[0019] The setting unit 141 sets, for example, a work scene table, a uniformity calculation area definition table, and a lighting environment definition table. The work scene table holds, for example, coordinate values ​​(hereinafter referred to as work area coordinates) that represent the work area of ​​a worker who performs work under a lighting environment. The uniformity calculation area definition table holds, for example, values ​​for defining the above-mentioned uniformity calculation area (hereinafter referred to as uniformity calculation area definition values). The lighting environment definition table holds, for example, data that defines a lighting environment.

[0020] The illuminance input unit 142 determines the uniformity calculation area (coordinate values ​​representing the uniformity calculation area) based on the work scene table (work area coordinates), uniformity calculation area definition table (uniformity calculation area definition values), and lighting environment definition table set by the setting unit 141. The uniformity calculation area corresponds to an area (an area including the work area) expanded from the work area based on the uniformity calculation area definition values. The illuminance input unit 142 inputs the work plane illuminance at each position within the determined uniformity calculation area from the results of the lighting control simulation stored in the storage unit 13.

[0021] The coordinate correspondence assigning unit 143 assigns (data of) a position within the uniformity calculation area to the work plane illuminance input by the illuminance input unit 142. The details will be described later, but the position assigned to the work plane illuminance includes corner points, side points, and interior points of the uniformity calculation area.

[0022] The calculation unit 144 calculates the personal uniformity (uniformity in the work area) based on the work surface illuminance input by the illuminance input unit 142. In this case, the uniformity is calculated based on the average value (average illuminance) of the work surface illuminance and the minimum value of the work surface illuminance, which are calculated taking into account the positions assigned to the work surface illuminance by the coordinate correspondence assignment unit 143, for example.

[0023] Fig. 3 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing device 10. As shown in Fig. 3, the information processing device 10 includes a CPU 101, a nonvolatile memory 102, a main memory 103, an input device 104, a display device 105, a communication device 106, and the like.

[0024] The CPU 101 is a hardware processor that controls the operation of each component in the information processing device 10. The CPU 101 may be composed of a single processor or multiple processors. The CPU 101 executes various programs loaded from the nonvolatile memory 102, which is a storage device, to the main memory 103. The programs executed by the CPU 101 include an operating system (OS) and various application programs.

[0025] The input device 104 is a device configured to input various data specified by a user, and includes, for example, a mouse and a keyboard. The display device 105 is a device configured to display various data, and includes, for example, a display. The communication device 106 is a device configured to perform, for example, wired or wireless communication with an external device.

[0026] Although only the nonvolatile memory 102 and the main memory 103 are shown in FIG. 3, the information processing device 10 may further include other storage devices such as a hard disk drive (HDD) and a solid state drive (SSD).

[0027] In this embodiment, some or all of the condition input unit 11, simulation unit 12, uniformity calculation unit 14, and output unit 15 shown in Fig. 1 are realized by causing a CPU 101 (i.e., the computer of the information processing device 10) shown in Fig. 2 to execute a predetermined program, that is, by software. This program may be downloaded to the information processing device 10 via a network, or may be stored in a storage medium and distributed.

[0028] Here, it has been described that some or all of the units 11, 12, 14, and 15 are realized by software, but some or all of the units 11, 12, 14, and 15 may also be realized by hardware such as an IC (Integrated Circuit), or may be realized by a configuration that combines software and hardware.

[0029] In this embodiment, the storage unit 13 shown in FIG. 1 is realized by, for example, the nonvolatile memory 102 shown in FIG. 3 or another storage device.

[0030] Next, an example of a processing procedure of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0031] First, the condition input unit 11 inputs simulation conditions (step S1). In step S1, for example, a lighting control value table is input as the simulation conditions.

[0032] Here, an example of the data structure of the lighting control value table is shown in Fig. 5. As shown in Fig. 5, the lighting control value table holds a control ID, a lighting ID, and a control value in association with an instance ID.

[0033] The control ID is an identifier for identifying the timing at which a light is controlled. The lighting ID is an identifier for identifying the light to be controlled. The control value is a control value for the light, and includes, for example, the dimming rate. The instance ID is an identifier assigned to data (data including the control ID, lighting ID, and control value) stored in the lighting control value table.

[0034] The lighting control value table in this embodiment may have a data structure different from that of FIG. 5, as long as it has a data structure that stores the control values ​​(dimming rates) given to the lighting in the lighting control simulation, for example.

[0035] 4, the simulation unit 12 executes a lighting control simulation based on the simulation conditions (lighting control value table) input in step S1 (step S2). Note that the lighting control simulation refers to constructing a virtual environment that simulates an actual lighting environment based on, for example, lighting environment characteristics and lighting design characteristics, and executing control in the virtual environment to dim each light identified by a lighting ID associated with the same control ID and held in the lighting control value table by the control value (dimming rate) associated with the lighting ID.

[0036] When the processing of step S2 is executed, a work plane illuminance table including the results of the lighting control simulation executed in step S2 is output from the simulation unit 12, and the work plane illuminance table output from the simulation unit 12 is stored in the storage unit 13.

[0037] Here, an example of the data structure of the work plane illuminance table is shown in Fig. 6. As shown in Fig. 6, the work plane illuminance table holds data points, work plane illuminance, control IDs, and dates and times in association with instance IDs.

[0038] The data point includes a data point name that indicates the position (data point) in the lighting environment where the work plane illuminance was obtained as a result of the lighting control simulation. The work plane illuminance is the work plane illuminance obtained at the data point as a result of the lighting control simulation. The control ID is an identifier for identifying the timing at which the lighting is controlled in the lighting control simulation. The date and time is the date and time when the work plane illuminance was obtained (i.e., when the lighting control simulation was executed). The instance ID is an identifier assigned to data held in the work plane illuminance table (data including the data point, work plane illuminance, control ID, and date and time). The data points and work plane illuminance held in the work plane illuminance table correspond to a data list in the simulation unit 12 (simulator).

[0039] The work plane illuminance table in this embodiment may have a data structure that stores the work plane illuminance at each position in a lighting environment obtained by, for example, executing a lighting control simulation, and may have a data structure different from that shown in Fig. 6. In the example shown in Fig. 6, it is assumed that data points (data point names) are stored in the work plane illuminance table, but the work plane illuminance table may store x and y coordinate values ​​defined in the lighting environment (i.e., coordinate values ​​of the position where the work plane illuminance is obtained) instead of the data points.

[0040] 4 again, the uniformity calculation unit 14 executes a process of calculating a personal uniformity (hereinafter referred to as a uniformity calculation process) by referring to the work plane illuminance table stored in the storage unit 13, etc. (step S3). The details of this uniformity calculation process will be described later, but in the uniformity calculation process, for example, a personal uniformity is calculated for each worker (work area) who performs work under the lighting environment. The uniformity calculation unit 14 passes the personal uniformity table to the output unit 15 as a result of the execution of the uniformity calculation process.

[0041] Here, Fig. 7 shows an example of the data structure of the personal uniformity table. As shown in Fig. 7, the personal uniformity table stores a control ID, a work scene ID, a worker ID, and a uniformity in association with an instance ID.

[0042] The control ID is an identifier similar to the control ID stored in the lighting control value table and the work plane illuminance table described above. The work scene ID is an identifier for identifying the work scene (work situation) of the worker. The worker ID is an identifier for identifying the worker performing the work (the worker who is the starting point of the calculation range of the personal uniformity). The uniformity is the uniformity in the work area of ​​the worker identified by the worker ID (i.e., the personal uniformity). Note that the instance ID is an identifier assigned to data stored in the personal uniformity table (data including the control ID, work scene ID, worker ID, and uniformity).

[0043] 7, it is assumed that the worker ID is an identifier for identifying, for example, one worker, but if, for example, multiple workers located close to each other perform the same work, the work areas of the multiple workers may be integrated and treated as a single work area (coordinate range), and a single new worker ID may be assigned to the multiple workers performing work in that single work area. Also, the work area in this embodiment may be the entire area under the lighting environment.

[0044] The personal uniformity ratio table in this embodiment may have a data structure different from that shown in FIG. 7, as long as it has a data structure that allows the personal uniformity ratio calculated for each worker to be held.

[0045] 4 again, the output unit 15 outputs the personal uniformity table passed from the uniformity calculation unit 14 as described above (step S4). In this case, the output unit 15 may output the personal uniformity table to the display device 105 in order to display the personal uniformity table, or may output the personal uniformity table to the communication device 106 in order to transmit the personal uniformity table to an external server device or the like.

[0046] The output unit 15 may output the entire personal uniformity table as shown in Fig. 7, or may output a part of the personal uniformity table. Furthermore, the output unit 15 may process and output all or a part of the personal uniformity table.

[0047] Next, the procedure of the uniformity ratio calculation process (the process of step S3 shown in FIG. 4) will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0048] 4 is executed, the work plane illuminance table is stored in the storage unit 13. The uniformity calculation process is executed by the uniformity calculation unit 14, and the setting unit 141 included in the uniformity calculation unit 14 is assumed to have set the above-mentioned work scene table, uniformity calculation area definition table, and lighting environment definition table in advance.

[0049] Fig. 9 shows an example of the data structure of a work scene table. As shown in Fig. 9, the work scene table stores a work scene ID, a worker ID, work area coordinates, work content, and date and time in association with an instance ID.

[0050] The work scene ID is an identifier for identifying the work scene of the worker. The worker ID is an identifier for identifying the worker performing the work. The work area coordinates are coordinate values ​​that represent the work area where the worker performs the work. The work area is assumed to be a rectangular area represented by the minimum and maximum x-coordinate values ​​and the minimum and maximum y-coordinate values ​​defined in the lighting environment. The work content is the content of the work performed by the worker. In this embodiment, the worker, work area coordinates, work content, etc. correspond to the work scene. The date and time is the date and time when the data to which the instance ID is assigned was set (i.e., when the work scene was acquired). Note that the instance ID is an identifier assigned to data held in the work scene table (data including the work scene ID, worker ID, work area coordinates, work content, and date and time).

[0051] The work scene table in this embodiment may have a data structure different from that shown in FIG. 9, as long as it has a data structure that stores the work area coordinates for each worker, for example.

[0052] An example of the data structure of the uniformity calculation area definition table is shown in Fig. 10. As shown in Fig. 10, the uniformity calculation area definition table holds uniformity calculation area definition values ​​in association with instance IDs.

[0053] The uniformity calculation area definition value is a value for defining the uniformity calculation area. If the uniformity calculation area is an area obtained by extending the work area as described above, the uniformity calculation area is defined, for example, by the distance (m) between (the end of) the uniformity calculation area and (the end of) the work area. In other words, the uniformity calculation area definition value is a value that indicates how far the uniformity calculation area should be extended from the work area. The instance ID is an identifier assigned to data (uniformity calculation area definition value) held in the uniformity calculation area definition table.

[0054] The uniformity calculation area definition table in this embodiment may have a data structure that holds values ​​that can define the uniformity calculation area, and may have a data structure different from that shown in Fig. 10. Specifically, the uniformity calculation area definition table may have a data structure that holds different uniformity calculation area definition values ​​for each work scene (work content), as shown in Fig. 11. In the example shown in Fig. 11, the assumed work content includes, for example, computer work (PC), face-to-face communication with other workers, clerical work such as reading and paperwork, conferences using a projector for presentations, lunch and breaks, etc.

[0055] Fig. 12 shows an example of the data structure of the lighting environment definition table. As shown in Fig. 12, the lighting environment definition table stores the number of horizontal meshes, the number of vertical meshes, and the length, width, and height of the lighting environment (lighting space) in association with the instance ID.

[0056] In this embodiment, the work plane illuminance at each position in a lighting environment is obtained as a result of the illuminance control simulation. Each position (data point) where the work plane illuminance is obtained corresponds to each point formed by the mesh when the lighting environment is divided into a mesh. In this case, the horizontal mesh count is the number of horizontal meshes when the lighting environment is divided into a mesh, and the vertical mesh count is the number of vertical meshes when the lighting environment is divided into a mesh. For example, if the lighting environment is an office floor, the length, width, and height of the lighting environment are the length (m), width (m), and height (m) of the office floor (or a room located on the office floor). The instance ID is an identifier assigned to data stored in the lighting environment definition table (data including the horizontal mesh count, vertical mesh count, and the length, width, and height of the lighting environment).

[0057] The lighting environment definition table in this embodiment may have a data structure that is different from that shown in FIG. 12, as long as it has a data structure that stores data for defining a lighting environment and data used to calculate the uniformity ratio described later.

[0058] Here, the illuminance input unit 142 refers to the work scene table described above and acquires a worker ID for identifying the worker and work area coordinates associated with the worker ID (step S11). Note that in step S11, for example, one or more worker IDs designated by the user and work area coordinates associated with the worker IDs may be acquired. The number of worker IDs and work area coordinates acquired in step S11 corresponds to the number of work areas for which the uniformity ratio is to be calculated.

[0059] Next, the illuminance input unit 142 refers to the uniformity calculation area definition table and acquires the uniformity calculation area definition value (step S12).

[0060] The illuminance input unit 142 refers to the lighting environment definition table and calculates the distance between data points (positions in the lighting environment where the work plane illuminance is obtained by executing the lighting control simulation) (step S13). The distance between these data points is calculated by dividing the length and width of the lighting environment stored in the lighting environment definition table by the number of meshes.

[0061] After the process of step S13 is executed, the following processes of steps S14 to S20 are executed for each worker identified by the worker ID acquired in step S11. A worker who is the target of the processes of steps S14 to S20 is referred to as a target worker.

[0062] First, the illuminance input unit 142 determines a coordinate range (additional coordinate ranges in the x and y directions) to be added to the work area (coordinates) of the target worker to obtain the uniformity calculation area based on the distance between the data points calculated in step S13 and the uniformity calculation area definition value stored in the uniformity calculation area definition table (step S14). Note that the additional coordinate range determined in step S14 corresponds to, for example, the number of meshes to be placed between the end of the uniformity calculation area and the end of the work area.

[0063] Next, the illuminance input unit 142 adds the additional coordinate range determined in step S14 to the range of the target worker's work area (the range from the minimum value to the maximum value of the work area coordinates) and determines the uniformity calculation area (the coordinate range) (step S15).

[0064] The illuminance input unit 142 refers to the work plane illuminance table and inputs (acquires) the work plane illuminance of each data point within the uniformity calculation area determined in step S15 (step S16).

[0065] Although the work plane illuminances stored in the work plane illuminance table shown in FIG. 6 are associated with data points (names), the coordinate values ​​of the data points from which the work plane illuminances are obtained cannot be identified from the work plane illuminance table. For this reason, in this embodiment, an illuminance coordinate correspondence table, such as that shown in FIG. 13, is pre-prepared. According to this table, the illuminance input unit 142 can identify each data point included in the coordinate range of the uniformity calculation area by referring to the illuminance coordinate correspondence table and acquire the work plane illuminances stored in the work plane illuminance table associated with the identified data points. The work plane illuminances acquired in this manner correspond to the work plane illuminances of each data point within the uniformity calculation area. In the example shown in FIG. 13, the illuminance coordinate correspondence table stores data points, mesh x coordinates, and mesh y coordinates associated with instance IDs, but a data structure different from that shown in FIG. 13 may also be used. The mesh x coordinates and mesh y coordinates correspond to the x coordinate and y coordinate values ​​defined in the lighting environment divided into meshes.

[0066] The coordinate correspondence assigning unit 143 extracts corner points, side points, and interior points from (the coordinate range of) the uniformity calculation area determined in step S15 (step S17). The corner points, side points, and interior points (position data indicating them) extracted in step S17 are assigned to the work surface illuminance corresponding to each of the points (i.e., data points).

[0067] Here, the corner points, side points, and interior points extracted from the uniformity calculation area will be described with reference to Fig. 14. Fig. 14 shows a uniformity calculation area having, for example, a rectangular shape, and corner points extracted from the uniformity calculation area are indicated by squares, side points by triangles, and interior points by circles.

[0068] The corner points correspond to the points located at the minimum x-coordinate and minimum y-coordinate of the uniformity calculation area (coordinate range), the points located at the minimum x-coordinate and maximum y-coordinate, the points located at the maximum x-coordinate and minimum y-coordinate, and the points located at the maximum x-coordinate and maximum y-coordinate. In other words, the corner points correspond to the points located at the four corners of the uniformity calculation area.

[0069] The side points are the points located at the minimum x-coordinate, the maximum x-coordinate, the minimum y-coordinate, and the maximum y-coordinate of the uniformity calculation area (coordinate range), and correspond to points that are not extracted as corner points. In other words, the side points correspond to points located on the side (periphery) of the uniformity calculation area other than the corner points.

[0070] The internal points are points within the uniformity calculation area that are not extracted as the corner points or side points described above. In other words, the internal points are points located in an area surrounded by the sides (periphery) of the uniformity calculation area.

[0071] 14, an area surrounded by four adjacent points in the uniformity calculation area is called a unit area. In other words, it is assumed here that the uniformity calculation area is defined as a large number of consecutive unit areas, and uniformity is calculated by using this area.

[0072] 8, the calculation unit 144 extracts an average illuminance calculation parameter from the uniformity calculation region (step S18). Specifically, in the example shown in Fig. 14 above, the horizontal mesh number of the uniformity calculation region is A and the vertical mesh number is B, and in step S18, the horizontal mesh number A and the vertical mesh number B are extracted as the average illuminance calculation parameter. In other words, the average illuminance calculation parameter corresponds to the number of data intervals in the x and y directions of the uniformity calculation region.

[0073] Next, the calculation unit 144 calculates the average illuminance in the uniformity ratio calculation region based on the work plane illuminance acquired in step S16 and the average illuminance calculation parameter extracted in step S18 (step S19).

[0074] Hereinafter, the calculation process of the average illuminance will be specifically described. Here, the number of lights in the lighting environment is set to N, and the control value (dimming rate) for each of the N lights is set to d=[d1, d2, ..., d N ]. Note that the control value d i (i=1,2,...,N) is a value that is 0 when the light is turned off and 1 when the light is turned on at rated output, and can take on an independent value for each light (fixture).

[0075] Furthermore, the illuminance at a position (data point) in the lighting environment represented by the coordinates (x, y) is represented as E(x, y; h; d). Here, h represents the height above the floor. For example, when a worker works on a computer, the height above the floor h may be set as a fixed value equivalent to the height of the top surface of the desk on which the computer is placed.

[0076] Furthermore, if the number of workers working under the lighting environment is M, the coordinate range T of the work area of ​​the jth worker (j=1, 2, ..., M) is j is T j ={(x,y)|x j1 ≦x≦x j2 ,y j1 ≦y≦y j2}

[0077] In this embodiment, the balanced calculation area is determined by expanding the coordinate range of the working area. If the distance from the working area (i.e., the balanced calculation area definition value) is α, the coordinate range T jα is T jα ={(x,y)|x j1 -α≦x≦x j2 +α,y j1 -α≦y≦y j2 +α}.

[0078] As described above, if the illuminance at a position (data point) in the lighting environment represented by the coordinates (x, y) is expressed as E(x, y; h; d), the work surface illuminance at the position represented by the coordinates (x, y) in the uniformity calculation area is ETjα It can be expressed as (x,y;h;d).

[0079] In this case, the work surface illuminance E within the uniformity calculation area Tjα The average illuminance of (x, y; h; d) is calculated by the following formula (1).

number

[0080] Note that E1 in formula (1) is the work plane illuminance assigned with a position indicating a corner point (i.e., the work plane illuminance at a corner point within the uniformity calculation area), as described above. E2 in formula (1) is the work plane illuminance assigned with a position indicating a side point (i.e., the work plane illuminance at a side point within the uniformity calculation area), as described above. E3 in formula (1) is the work plane illuminance assigned with a position indicating an interior point (i.e., the work plane illuminance at an interior point within the uniformity calculation area), as described above. Furthermore, A and B in formula (1) are the average illuminance calculation parameters (the number of horizontal and vertical meshes in the uniformity calculation area) described above.

[0081] Here, as mentioned above, an example of a method for calculating average illuminance has been explained assuming that the uniformity calculation area is defined so that a large number of unit areas are consecutive. However, if, for example, the ratio of the work surface illuminance at corner points and side points to the work surface illuminance at interior points in the uniformity calculation area is 4 or less and the illuminance distribution in the uniformity calculation area is close to uniform, or if the number of data points (illuminance measurement points) in the uniformity calculation area exceeds 100, the average illuminance may be the arithmetic mean of the work surface illuminance at each position (each point) within the uniformity calculation area.

[0082] When the process of step S19 is executed, the calculation unit 144 calculates the uniformity in the work area of ​​the target worker (that is, the personal uniformity) based on the average illuminance calculated in step S19 (step S20).

[0083] As mentioned above, if the number of workers is M, the personal uniformity U of the jth worker is jis calculated by the following formula (2) using the average illuminance and the minimum value of the work surface illuminance within the uniformity calculation area.

number

[0084] In this embodiment, the personal uniformity ratio of the target worker is calculated by equation (2), but the personal uniformity ratio may be calculated by another equation.

[0085] When the process of step S20 is executed, it is determined whether or not the processes of steps S14 to S20 have been executed for all workers (work areas) identified by the worker IDs acquired in step S11 (step S21).

[0086] If it is determined that the process has not been performed for all workers (NO in step S21), the process returns to step S14 and is repeated. In this case, the process is repeated for workers for whom the process of steps S14 to S20 has not been performed, with the workers being the target workers.

[0087] On the other hand, if it is determined that the process has been executed for all workers (YES in step S21), the process shown in FIG. 8 ends.

[0088] When the process shown in Fig. 8 is completed, a personal uniformity table is generated that holds the personal uniformity calculated for each worker (work area) in step S20, and the personal uniformity table is passed from the uniformity calculation unit 14 to the output unit 15. As shown in Fig. 7, the personal uniformity table holds a control ID, a work scene ID, a worker ID, and uniformity (personal uniformity). The same value is held for the control ID for each worker ID. The work scene ID is obtained from the work scene table based on the worker ID.

[0089] As described above, in this embodiment, the uniformity in a work area (first uniformity) is calculated based on the work surface illuminance (first illuminance) at each position within the uniformity calculation area determined from the work area where a worker performs work under an illuminating environment, making it possible to obtain the uniformity in any area (coordinate area) under an illuminating environment (i.e., personal uniformity).

[0090] Furthermore, in this embodiment, it is possible to calculate the personal uniformity by executing a lighting control simulation based on the simulation conditions, so that the personal uniformity can be easily calculated and evaluated at any time, even after installing lighting equipment, for example.

[0091] Specifically, the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment can measure the uniformity of the work surface illuminance in each work area in a lighting environment and utilize the results to improve the lighting environment. In this case, the personal uniformity index can be used, for example, to check the uniformity of the lighting before introducing lighting into the lighting environment, and the check results can be reflected in the lighting design. Furthermore, the personal uniformity index can be used to operate the lighting system to improve the uniformity of the illuminance by adjusting the brightness of the lighting according to the work scene. Furthermore, by monitoring the progress of the lighting uniformity based on the personal uniformity index, the lighting performance in the lighting environment can be expected to improve.

[0092] In this embodiment, the uniformity calculation area is determined based on coordinate values ​​(working area coordinates) that represent the work area and values ​​for defining the uniformity calculation area, and each position within the uniformity calculation area includes a corner point, a side point, and an inner point of the uniformity calculation area. With this configuration, in this embodiment, it is possible to obtain a personal uniformity using the average illuminance defined by the JIS standard.

[0093] In addition, the personal uniformity in this embodiment can be calculated, for example, based on the average value of the work surface illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area and the minimum value of the work surface illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area, but it may also be calculated using other methods.

[0094] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the uniformity is calculated for a work area as an arbitrary area under the lighting environment, but the arbitrary area does not have to be the work area. Specifically, the arbitrary area for which the uniformity is calculated in the present embodiment may be, for example, an area within a certain range from an object illuminated by light.

[0095] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, detailed descriptions of the same parts as in the first embodiment will be omitted, and differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described.

[0096] Fig. 15 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 15, the information processing device 10 includes an illuminance measurement unit 16 instead of the condition input unit 11 and the simulation unit 12 described in the first embodiment.

[0097] The illuminance measurement unit 16 measures the work plane illuminance at each position in the lighting environment under the actual lighting environment (real environment). That is, while the first embodiment uses the work plane illuminance obtained by executing a lighting control simulation, this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that it uses the work plane illuminance actually measured under the lighting environment.

[0098] Here, the functional configuration of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment has been described, but the hardware configuration of the information processing device 10 is the same as that of the first embodiment described above, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted. Note that part or all of the illuminance measurement unit 16 shown in Fig. 15 may be realized by causing the CPU 101 shown in Fig. 3 to execute a predetermined program (i.e., software), or may be realized by hardware, or may be realized by a configuration that combines software and hardware.

[0099] Next, an example of a processing procedure of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0100] First, the illuminance measurement unit 16 acquires the actual work surface illuminance (work surface illuminance measured in the real environment) at each position in the lighting environment (step S31). In this embodiment, the lighting environment is assumed to be, for example, an office floor. A camera (image sensor) may be installed at a position capable of capturing an image of the work area, such as the ceiling of the office floor. In this case, an image of the office floor (lighting environment) captured by the camera can be acquired, and the luminance data assigned to each of the multiple pixels constituting the image can be converted into illuminance data (i.e., work surface illuminance). In other words, the work surface illuminance at each position in the lighting environment can be measured from the image captured by the camera. In step S31, the work surface illuminance measured in the real environment is acquired. It is assumed that, when the work surface illuminance is measured, each lighting fixture is actually controlled based on a control value similar to the control value input as a simulation condition in the first embodiment.

[0101] When the work surface illuminance at each position in the lighting environment is acquired as described above, a work surface illuminance table holding the acquired work surface illuminance is output from the illuminance measurement unit 16, and the work surface illuminance table output from the illuminance measurement unit 16 is stored in the storage unit 13.

[0102] 17 shows an example of the data structure of the work plane illuminance table in this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 7, the work plane illuminance table stores data points, work plane illuminance, control IDs, acquisition device IDs, and dates and times in association with instance IDs.

[0103] The data point includes a data point name that indicates the position (data point) in the lighting environment where the work plane illuminance was measured. The work plane illuminance is the work plane illuminance measured at the data point. The control ID is an identifier for identifying the timing when the lighting was actually controlled to measure the work plane illuminance. As described above, if a camera (image captured by a camera) is used to measure the work plane illuminance, the acquisition device ID is an identifier for identifying the camera (the device that acquired the work plane illuminance). The date and time is the date and time when the work plane illuminance was measured. The instance ID is an identifier assigned to data stored in the work plane illuminance table (data including the data point, work plane illuminance, control ID, acquisition device ID, and date and time).

[0104] The work plane illuminance table in this embodiment may have a data structure that stores, for example, the work plane illuminance at each position in a lighting environment that has actually been measured, and may have a data structure different from that shown in Fig. 17. In the example shown in Fig. 17, it is assumed that, for example, data point names are stored in the work plane illuminance table, but the work plane illuminance table may store, instead of the data points, x and y coordinate values ​​defined in the lighting environment (i.e., the coordinate values ​​of the position where the work plane illuminance was obtained).

[0105] Furthermore, the number of data points (that is, the number of data acquisition points) and data point names held in the working plane illuminance table in this embodiment may be different from those in the working plane illuminance table described in the first embodiment.

[0106] When the process of step S31 is executed, the processes of steps S32 and S33 are executed, which correspond to the processes of steps S3 and S4 shown in Fig. 4. That is, in this embodiment, the process of calculating the personal uniformity ratio is executed using the work plane illuminance measured in the above-mentioned actual environment, instead of the work plane illuminance acquired as a result of the lighting control simulation, for example.

[0107] As described above, in this embodiment, the personal uniformity is calculated using the work surface illuminance measured using a camera or the like when control of each of multiple lights is actually performed in a lighting environment, making it possible to obtain a personal uniformity that reflects the influence on the work surface illuminance of lights other than those to be controlled, such as sunlight, which cannot be reproduced by the lighting control simulation described in the first embodiment above (i.e., the change in work surface illuminance due to this influence).

[0108] In this embodiment, it is sufficient if a personal uniformity table is output in the same way as in the first embodiment, but unlike the first embodiment, this embodiment measures the work plane illuminance under an actual lighting environment. In this case, in order to grasp the work plane illuminance under an actual lighting environment, a configuration may be adopted in which a screen (hereinafter referred to as a personal uniformity screen) for visualizing the personal uniformity together with the work plane illuminance is displayed on the display device 105 (display).

[0109] Fig. 18 shows an example of a personal uniformity screen. In the example shown in Fig. 18, a map 151 showing the arrangement of tables and chairs in a room arranged on an office floor is displayed on the right side of personal uniformity screen 150. For example, a first work area 152 and a second work area 153 are superimposed on this map 151, and it is shown that the uniformity in first work area 152 is 0.90 and the uniformity in second work area 153 is 0.91. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 18, the personal uniformity screen 150 and map 151 may further display the uniformity for the entire room (here, 0.74).

[0110] On the map 151, the work surface illuminance measured at each position in the room is represented by shading.

[0111] By referring to such a map 151, a user of the information processing device 10 can easily visually understand the work surface illuminance measured in the actual environment and the personal uniformity calculated based on the work surface illuminance.

[0112] In addition, a map 154 ​​showing the layout of rooms on the entire office floor is displayed on the left side of the personal uniformity screen 150, and by referring to this map 154, the user can understand the rooms indicated by the above-mentioned map 151.

[0113] Furthermore, the personal uniformity screen 150 has a user interface function, and for example, when a room other than the room shown on map 151 is specified by the user on map 154, map 151 is updated to show the arrangement of tables and chairs in the specified room, and the personal uniformity and work surface illuminance for the specified room are displayed.

[0114] In addition, the pull-down menu 155 provided on the personal uniformity screen 150 can be used to switch the office floor on which the personal uniformity and the like are displayed.

[0115] Here, we have described the personal uniformity screen 150, which simply displays the personal uniformity and work surface illuminance, but the personal uniformity screen 150 may also display whether or not the personal uniformity meets the standard values ​​specified by JIS or the like.

[0116] In this embodiment, the personal uniformity is visualized together with the work surface illuminance measured in a real environment. However, in the first embodiment described above, the personal uniformity may also be visualized together with the results of a lighting control simulation (the work surface illuminance obtained by executing a lighting control simulation).

[0117] In this embodiment, the work surface illuminance is measured by using a camera (image sensor) that is already installed on the ceiling of an office floor, for example, so there is no need to install a separate sensor to measure the work surface illuminance in the lighting environment, and the effort required to obtain personal illuminance can be reduced. However, in this embodiment, it is sufficient that the work surface illuminance is measured under an actual lighting environment, and at least a portion of the work surface illuminance may be measured using a sensor other than a camera (for example, an illuminance sensor, etc.).

[0118] (Third embodiment) Next, a third embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, detailed descriptions of the same parts as those in the first and second embodiments will be omitted, and the description will focus mainly on the parts that are different from the first and second embodiments.

[0119] Fig. 19 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 19, the information processing device 10 further includes a correction unit 17 in addition to the condition input unit 11, simulation unit 12, storage unit 13, uniformity ratio calculation unit 14, and output unit 15 described in the first embodiment, and the illuminance measurement unit 16 described in the second embodiment.

[0120] The simulation unit 12 executes a lighting control simulation using various pre-set parameters, while the correction unit 17 corrects parameters that affect the results of the lighting control simulation based on the personal uniformity calculated by the uniformity calculation unit 14.

[0121] That is, this embodiment differs from the first and second embodiments described above in that the personal uniformity ratio calculated based on the working plane illuminance is fed back to the simulation unit 12 (the lighting control simulation executed by the simulation unit 12).

[0122] Here, the functional configuration of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment has been described, but the hardware configuration of the information processing device 10 is the same as that of the first and second embodiments described above, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted. Note that part or all of the correction unit 17 shown in Fig. 19 may be realized by causing the CPU 101 shown in Fig. 3 to execute a predetermined program (i.e., software), or may be realized by hardware, or may be realized by a configuration that combines software and hardware.

[0123] Next, an example of a processing procedure of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 20. Here, the processing for correcting parameters (parameters held by the simulation unit 12) used in the above-described lighting control simulation will be described, and the processing shown in Fig. 20 is executed at a different timing from the processing shown in Fig. 4 described in the first embodiment.

[0124] First, steps S41 and S42 are executed, which correspond to steps S1 and S2 shown in Fig. 4. When step S42 is executed, the work plane illuminance table described in the first embodiment is stored in the storage unit 13. In this embodiment, this work plane illuminance table is referred to as the first work plane illuminance table.

[0125] The uniformity ratio calculation unit 14 executes a process of calculating a personal uniformity ratio (hereinafter referred to as a first uniformity ratio calculation process) by referring to the first work plane illuminance table stored in the storage unit 13, etc. (step S43). Note that the first uniformity ratio calculation process is the same as the process of step S3 shown in Fig. 4 described above, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted here. Also, for convenience, the personal uniformity ratio calculated by executing the first uniformity ratio calculation process will be referred to as the first personal uniformity ratio.

[0126] When the process of step S43 is executed, the process of step S44 is executed, which corresponds to the process of step S31 shown in Fig. 16. When the process of step S44 is executed, the work plane illuminance table described in the second embodiment is stored in the storage unit 13, and in this embodiment, this work plane illuminance table is referred to as the second work plane illuminance table.

[0127] The uniformity calculation unit 14 executes a process for calculating a personal uniformity ratio (hereinafter referred to as a second uniformity ratio calculation process) by referring to the second work plane illuminance table stored in the storage unit 13, etc. (step S45). The second uniformity ratio calculation process corresponds to the uniformity ratio calculation process executed in the second embodiment described above, and is the same as the first uniformity ratio calculation process except that a work plane illuminance measured in an actual environment is used instead of the work plane illuminance obtained as a result of the lighting control simulation. For convenience, the personal uniformity ratio calculated by executing the second uniformity ratio calculation process will be referred to as a second personal uniformity ratio.

[0128] Next, the correction unit 17 acquires the above-mentioned first and second personal uniformity ratios from the uniformity ratio calculation unit 14. The correction unit 17 calculates a correction value based on a result of comparing the acquired first and second personal uniformity ratios (for example, a difference between the first and second personal uniformity ratios) (step S46).

[0129] The correction unit 17 provides the correction value calculated in step S46 to the simulation unit 12, and corrects the parameters used in the lighting control simulation executed by the simulation unit 12 (step S47). Note that the second personal uniformity is calculated based on the work plane illuminance measured under an actual lighting environment, and is therefore considered to be more accurate than the first personal uniformity. For this reason, in step S47, a process is executed to update (correct) the parameters so that the simulation result is a work plane illuminance for calculating the first personal uniformity that compensates for the correction value calculated in step S46 (the difference from the second personal uniformity). Note that in step S47, the parameters may be updated, for example, so that the result of the lighting control simulation executed in step S42 becomes closer to the work plane illuminance acquired in step S44.

[0130] In this embodiment, the processing is described as being executed in the order of steps S41 to S47 shown in Fig. 20, but the order of the processing may be changed. Specifically, for example, the processing of steps S41 to S43 may be executed after the processing of steps S44 and S45. Furthermore, the processing of steps S43 and S45 may be executed after the processing of steps S41, S42, and S44. Furthermore, the processing of steps S41 to S43 and the processing of steps S44 and S45 may be executed in parallel.

[0131] As described above, in this embodiment, the parameters used in the lighting control simulation are corrected by comparing the first personal uniformity (first illuminance obtained from the simulation results) with the second personal uniformity (second illuminance measured in a real environment), thereby improving the accuracy of the lighting control simulation using the corrected parameters, and thereby improving the accuracy of the personal uniformity calculated using the results of the lighting control simulation.

[0132] Furthermore, in this embodiment, there is no need to measure the work surface illuminance in the actual environment except when correcting the parameters, so the effort required to calculate the personal illuminance can be reduced.

[0133] In this embodiment, the process shown in Fig. 20 has been described as being executed at a different timing from the process shown in Fig. 4, but the process for correcting parameters used in the lighting control simulation described in this embodiment (hereinafter referred to as parameter correction process) may be incorporated into the process shown in Fig. 4. In other words, this parameter correction process may be executed as part of the process shown in Fig. 4.

[0134] (Fourth embodiment) Next, a fourth embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, detailed descriptions of the same parts as those in the first embodiment will be omitted, and differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described.

[0135] This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the personal uniformity ratio described in the first embodiment is utilized to optimize the control of multiple lights in a lighting environment. In other words, the information processing device according to this embodiment operates as a lighting control value generating device that generates control values ​​(dimming rates) for controlling each of multiple lights in a lighting environment.

[0136] 21 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 21, the information processing device 10 includes a condition pattern storage unit 21, a condition pattern acquisition unit 22, a control optimization unit 23, a simulation unit 24, a uniformity ratio calculation unit 25, a control value pattern output unit 26, and a control value pattern storage unit 27.

[0137] The condition pattern storage unit 21 stores condition patterns related to lighting environments. The condition patterns stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21 include, for example, control values ​​(e.g., dimming ratios) when control is executed on multiple lights in a lighting environment, and work scenes of workers performing work in the lighting environment. Note that a work scene includes a worker, a work area (work area coordinates) where the worker performs work, and the details of the work, and the condition pattern storage unit 21 stores multiple condition patterns in which at least one of these is different.

[0138] The condition pattern acquisition unit 22 sequentially acquires the condition patterns stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21. The condition patterns acquired by the condition pattern acquisition unit 22 are passed to the control optimization unit .

[0139] The control optimization unit 23 generates a plurality of control value patterns for controlling each of a plurality of lights in the lighting environment.

[0140] Similar to the simulation unit 12 described in the first embodiment, the simulation unit 24 (lighting control simulator) virtually performs control for each lighting based on each of the multiple control value patterns generated by the control optimization unit 23 (i.e., performs a lighting control simulation).

[0141] In the first embodiment described above, the results of the lighting control simulation were explained as including the work surface illuminance at each position in the lighting environment, but in this embodiment, the results of the lighting control simulation include, in addition to the work surface illuminance, the amount of power consumed when multiple lights are controlled based on the control value pattern described above.

[0142] Furthermore, the lighting control simulator may be any device that executes a control value pattern and outputs the work surface illuminance and power consumption on the same plane, and may be realized using existing lighting simulation software, illuminance calculation software, illuminance distribution simulation software, etc.

[0143] The uniformity calculation unit 25 is a functional unit equivalent to the uniformity calculation unit 14 described in the first embodiment, and calculates personal uniformity based on the work surface illuminance at each position in the lighting environment included in the results of the lighting control simulation executed by the simulation unit 24.

[0144] The control optimization unit 23 calculates the energy saving rate when the plurality of lights are controlled based on each of the plurality of control value patterns, based on the amount of power consumption included in the result of the lighting control simulation executed by the simulation unit 24. The control optimization unit 23 selects a control value pattern appropriate for the condition pattern from the plurality of control value patterns, based on the personal uniformity ratio calculated by the uniformity ratio calculation unit 25 and the energy saving rate calculated by the control optimization unit 23.

[0145] The control value pattern output unit 26 acquires the control value pattern selected by the control optimization unit 23 and accumulates (stores) the control value pattern in the control value pattern accumulation unit 27.

[0146] Here, the functional configuration of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment has been described, but the hardware configuration of the information processing device 10 is the same as that of the first embodiment described above, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted. The condition pattern storage unit 21 and the control value pattern storage unit 27 shown in Fig. 21 are realized by the non-volatile memory 102 shown in Fig. 3 or other storage devices. Also, some or all of the condition pattern acquisition unit 22, control optimization unit 23, simulation unit 24, uniformity ratio calculation unit 25, and control value pattern output unit 26 shown in Fig. 21 may be realized by causing the CPU 101 shown in Fig. 3 to execute a predetermined program (i.e., software), or may be realized by hardware, or may be realized by a configuration combining software and hardware.

[0147] Next, an example of a processing procedure of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0148] In this embodiment, a plurality of condition patterns are stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21, and the condition patterns are stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21 in the form of a table (hereinafter referred to as a condition pattern table).

[0149] Fig. 23 shows an example of the data structure of a condition pattern table. As shown in Fig. 23, the condition pattern table includes a control value ID, a work scene ID, and a data acquisition date and time in association with a condition instance ID.

[0150] The control value ID is an identifier for identifying the control values ​​(dimming rates) for the multiple lights described above, and the control values ​​for each of the multiple lights can be obtained, for example, by referring to the control value table shown in Figure 24 based on the control value ID.

[0151] The work scene ID is an identifier for identifying the work scene of a worker in a lighting environment, and the worker scene (worker ID, work area coordinates, and work content) can be obtained, for example, by referring to the work scene table shown in Figure 9 based on the work scene ID.

[0152] It is assumed that the control value table and the work scene table are stored in a storage unit (not shown) included in the information processing device 10.

[0153] The data acquisition date and time is the date and time when (the data of) the condition pattern was acquired (that is, when the entry in the condition pattern table corresponding to the condition pattern was registered in the condition pattern table).

[0154] The condition pattern table (data structure) shown in FIG. 23 is an example, and the condition pattern table may have a data structure that combines at least a part of FIG. 23, FIG. 24, and FIG. 9, for example.

[0155] First, the condition pattern acquiring unit 22 refers to the condition pattern storage unit 21 and acquires the number of condition patterns stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21 (that is, the number of entries in the condition pattern table) (step S51).

[0156] Hereinafter, the processing of steps S52 to S60 is executed for each of the plurality of condition patterns stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21. Here, the condition pattern that is the target of the processing of steps S52 to S60 is referred to as a target condition pattern.

[0157] In this case, the condition pattern acquisition unit 22 acquires the target condition pattern from the condition pattern storage unit 21 (step S52). The condition pattern acquisition unit 22 refers to the control value table and the work scene table described above to acquire the control value and work scene corresponding to the target condition pattern.

[0158] Next, the control optimization unit 23 sets conditions for optimizing lighting control (hereinafter referred to as optimization conditions) (step S53). The optimization conditions include the control values ​​and work scenes acquired by the condition pattern acquisition unit 22. Furthermore, the optimization conditions include, for example, the number of lights in the lighting environment designated by the user, upper and lower limits of the control values, the number of significant digits, and a set value for the number of trials.

[0159] After the process of step S53 is executed, control optimization unit 23 generates a plurality of control value patterns (dimming ratio patterns) based on the optimization conditions set in step S53 (step S54). Note that in step S54, the plurality of control value patterns are generated taking into consideration the control values, upper and lower limits of the control values, and the number of significant digits included in the optimization conditions.

[0160] Here, if the number of lights in the lighting environment (i.e., the number of lights to be controlled) is N, one control value pattern d is expressed as d=[d1,d2,...,d N In this case, the plurality of control value patterns (i.e., the set of control value patterns) D generated in step S54 is expressed as D=[d11 ,d 12 ,…,d 1N ],[d 21 ,d 22 ,…,d 2N ],…,[d k1 ,d k2 ,…,d kN ]. It is assumed here that the number of initial populations for optimization is k (that is, k control value patterns are generated).

[0161] Next, simulation unit 24 executes a lighting control simulation for each control value pattern generated in step S54 (step S55). The results of the lighting control simulation executed for each control value pattern in step S55 include the work surface illuminance and power consumption at each position in the lighting environment when multiple lights are controlled based on the control value pattern.

[0162] The uniformity ratio calculation unit 25 calculates a personal uniformity ratio based on the work scene (work area coordinates) included in the optimization conditions and the work surface illuminance included in the result of the lighting control simulation (step S56). The process of step S56 is the same as the process described as the uniformity ratio calculation process in the first embodiment, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted here. In step S56, a personal uniformity ratio is calculated for each result of the lighting control simulation (i.e., for each control value pattern).

[0163] Control optimization unit 23 also calculates an energy saving rate based on the power consumption included in the results of the lighting control simulation (step S57). If a preset power consumption standard value is J0 and the power consumption included in the results of the lighting control simulation is J, then energy saving rate R is calculated by R=(J0-J) / J0. Note that in step S57, the energy saving rate is calculated for each result of the lighting control simulation (i.e., each control value pattern).

[0164] Next, the control optimization unit 23 selects an optimal control value pattern from the plurality of control value patterns generated in step S54 based on the personal uniformity ratio calculated for each control value pattern in step S56 and the energy saving rate calculated for each control value pattern in step S57 (step S58).

[0165] In this embodiment, a multi-objective optimization method is used as the control optimization method. If the personal uniformity ratio calculated for a predetermined control value pattern is U and the energy-saving rate calculated for the control value pattern is R, the control optimization unit 23 sets an objective function f1=min(U)×(−1) for the uniformity ratio U and an objective function f2=R×(−1) for the energy-saving rate R.

[0166] In step S58, the control optimization unit 23 selects a control value pattern that minimizes the values ​​of the above-mentioned objective functions f1 and f2 (that is, that increases both the personal uniformity ratio U and the energy saving rate).

[0167] When the process of step S58 is executed, it is determined whether or not to end the trial based on the trial count setting value included in the optimization condition (step S59). Specifically, in step S59, if the number of trials for selecting a control value pattern (i.e., the number of repetitions of steps S54 to S58) has not reached the trial count setting value, it is determined not to end the trial. On the other hand, if the number of trials for selecting a control value pattern has reached the trial count setting value, it is determined to end the trial.

[0168] If it is determined that the trial should not be ended (NO in step S59), the process returns to step S54 and is repeated.

[0169] In the above-mentioned step S54, if the number of trials is the first, k control value patterns are generated based on the control values ​​included in the optimization conditions, but if the number of trials is, for example, the second or later, k' control value patterns are generated based on the control value patterns selected in step S58. In this case, the processes of steps S55 to S58 (i.e., the process of selecting the optimal control value pattern from the k' control value patterns) are executed based on the k' control value patterns generated in this way.

[0170] On the other hand, if it is determined that the trial is to be ended (YES in step S59), the control value pattern output unit 26 outputs the finally selected control value pattern (i.e., the control value pattern selected in the last executed process of step S58) to the control value pattern storage unit 27 (step S60). The control value pattern output by the control value pattern output unit 26 in step S60 is stored in the control value pattern storage unit 27 in the form of a control value pattern table.

[0171] Here, Fig. 25 shows an example of the data structure of the control value pattern table. As shown in Fig. 25, the control value pattern table holds a condition instance ID, a control value ID, a uniformity ratio, and an energy saving rate in association with an instance ID.

[0172] The condition instance ID is an identifier for identifying the above-mentioned condition pattern. Note that the condition pattern can be acquired by referring to the condition pattern table shown in Figure 23 based on the condition instance ID.

[0173] The control value ID is an identifier for identifying a control value pattern. Note that the control value pattern (i.e., the pattern of control values ​​for each of the multiple lights) can be acquired by referring to the table shown in Fig. 24 based on the control value ID.

[0174] That is, the control value pattern table stores condition patterns and control value patterns appropriate for the condition patterns in association with each other.

[0175] The uniformity and energy saving rate are calculated based on the results (work surface illuminance and power consumption) of a lighting control simulation based on a control value pattern identified by a control value ID.

[0176] The instance ID is an identifier assigned to data (including the condition instance ID, the control value ID, the uniformity ratio, and the energy saving rate) held in the control value pattern table.

[0177] 22, it is determined (step S61) whether the processes of steps S52 to S60 have been executed for all condition patterns stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21. In other words, in step S61, it is determined whether the processes of steps S52 to S60 have been executed the same number of times as the number of condition patterns acquired in step S51.

[0178] If it is determined that the processes have not been executed for all the condition patterns (NO in step S61), the process returns to step S52 and is repeated. In this case, the process is executed for the condition patterns for which the processes in steps S52 to S60 have not been executed as the target condition patterns.

[0179] On the other hand, if it is determined that the process has been executed for all the condition patterns (YES in step S61), the process shown in FIG. 22 is ended.

[0180] As described above, in this embodiment, for each control value pattern for controlling each of a plurality of lights in a lighting environment, the personal uniformity and energy saving rate when the plurality of lights are controlled based on that control value pattern are calculated, and an appropriate control value pattern is selected based on the uniformity and energy saving rate calculated for that control value pattern.

[0181] Furthermore, in this embodiment, condition patterns that differ in at least one of the work area coordinates (work area where workers perform work), the number of workers, and the content of work performed by the workers are stored in the condition pattern storage unit 21, and the selection of the appropriate control value pattern described above is performed for each condition pattern, and the selected control value pattern is stored in the control value pattern storage unit 27 in association with the condition pattern.

[0182] Here, the situations in which multiple lights are controlled exist only in combinations of patterns, such as the number of workers performing work under the lighting environment, the positions of the workers (i.e., the work areas), and the content of the work, and it is difficult to adjust multiple lights in a real environment so as to appropriately control them for all of the patterns. In contrast, in this embodiment, with the above-mentioned configuration, the personal uniformity ratio described in the first embodiment (the personal uniformity ratio calculated using a simulator) is used to optimize lighting control, making it possible to select an appropriate control value pattern for various condition patterns.

[0183] In this embodiment, a multi-objective optimization method is used as the control optimization method, and the indices considered as the objective function are the uniformity and the energy-saving rate, which is in a trade-off relationship with the uniformity. However, the indices may be other than the uniformity and the energy-saving rate. Specifically, from the viewpoint of improving the comfort of workers (users of the lighting environment) who work in the lighting environment, discomfort glare or a brightness index (an index measuring the light intensity perceived by the worker) may be used as the objective function.

[0184] In addition, in this embodiment, the dimming rate is assumed as the control value (pattern), but this embodiment may also be applied when optimizing control values ​​related to, for example, color temperature (tone), light direction, focus, etc.

[0185] The information processing device 10 according to this embodiment may be realized as an information processing system including, for example, a plurality of devices. Specifically, in this embodiment, the information processing device 10 has been described as including the units 21 to 27, but the information processing device 10 may also be realized as an information processing system including, for example, a lighting control value generation device including a condition pattern storage unit 21, a condition pattern acquisition unit 22, a control optimization unit 23, a control value pattern output unit 26, and a control value pattern storage unit 27, and a uniformity ratio calculation device including a simulation unit 24 and a uniformity ratio calculation unit 25.

[0186] (Fifth embodiment) Next, a fifth embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, detailed description of the same parts as those in the fourth embodiment will be omitted, and the description will focus mainly on the parts that are different from the fourth embodiment. Note that the functional configuration of the information processing device according to this embodiment is the same as that of the fourth embodiment, and will be described appropriately with reference to FIG. 21.

[0187] In the fourth embodiment described above, the control optimization unit 23 included in the information processing device 10 selects the optimal control value pattern. However, this embodiment differs from the fourth embodiment in that the target work surface illuminance set for the work scene is taken into consideration when selecting the control value pattern.

[0188] In this embodiment, the control optimization unit 23 included in the information processing device 10 selects an optimal control value pattern after setting a constraint that the work surface illuminance in the work area when each of the multiple lights is controlled based on the control value pattern must be equal to or greater than the target work surface illuminance.

[0189] Next, an example of a processing procedure of the information processing device 10 according to this embodiment will be described. For convenience, the description will be made with reference to FIG.

[0190] First, the processes of steps S51 to S57 shown in Fig. 22 are executed. Note that the processes of steps S51 to S57 are the same as those explained in the fourth embodiment, and therefore detailed explanations thereof will be omitted here.

[0191] In the fourth embodiment, the objective function f1 related to the uniformity ratio U and the objective function f2 related to the energy saving rate R are set. In the present embodiment, however, further constraints are added.

[0192] In this case, the control optimization unit 23 calculates, for each control value pattern, the average illuminance in the work area (the average value of the work surface illuminance at each position in the work area) when multiple lights are controlled based on that control value pattern, and sets a constraint condition of average illuminance ≥ target work surface illuminance. Note that the target work surface illuminance is set in advance for each work scene. The target work surface illuminance may be included in, for example, a condition pattern.

[0193] In this embodiment, under these constraints, a control value pattern is selected in step S58 such that the average illuminance is equal to or greater than the target working surface illuminance.

[0194] As described above, in this embodiment, it is possible to guarantee that the work surface illuminance in the work area will be equal to or greater than the target work surface illuminance when multiple lights are controlled based on the control value pattern selected by control optimization.

[0195] (Sixth embodiment) Next, a sixth embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, detailed descriptions of the same parts as those in the fourth embodiment will be omitted, and the following mainly describes the parts that are different from the fourth embodiment.

[0196] This embodiment differs from the fourth embodiment in that the control value patterns described in the fourth embodiment are used to control a plurality of lights in an actual lighting environment.

[0197] Fig. 26 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of an information processing device according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 26, the information processing device 10 includes an illumination control value generator 10a and an illumination control execution unit 10b.

[0198] 21, includes a condition pattern storage unit 21, a condition pattern acquisition unit 22, a control optimization unit 23, a simulation unit 24, a uniformity ratio calculation unit 25, a control value pattern output unit 26, and a control value pattern storage unit 27. Each of these units 21 to 27 is as described in the fourth embodiment, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

[0199] The lighting control execution unit 10b includes an input / output unit 31 and a search unit 32. The input / output unit 31 inputs the current control value of each light in the lighting environment and the current work scene of the worker in the lighting environment (work area, work content, etc.). The current control value of each light can be acquired from the light, for example. The current work scene (data on the current work scene) can be specified, for example, by a user of the information processing device 10, or can be input by other methods.

[0200] As explained in the fourth embodiment, condition patterns and control value patterns are associated and stored in the control value pattern storage unit 27. In this case, the search unit 32 searches for a condition pattern that is close to the current actual lighting environment (i.e., a condition pattern that corresponds to the actual environment) based on the current control values ​​of each lighting (i.e., control value pattern) and the current work scene of the worker input by the input / output unit 31, and obtains the control value pattern associated with the searched condition pattern from the control value pattern storage unit 27.

[0201] The input / output unit 31 outputs the control value pattern (that is, the control value of each lighting fixture) acquired by the search unit 32 as described above to the lighting fixture.

[0202] This allows the lighting control execution unit 10b to execute control of each lighting based on the control value pattern output by the input / output unit 31.

[0203] As described above, in this embodiment, by controlling a plurality of lights in a lighting environment based on the control value patterns stored in the control value pattern storage unit 27 in association with the condition patterns corresponding to the actual (current) lighting environment, it is possible to realize optimization of the control of the plurality of lights.

[0204] Although not described in this embodiment, if the target work surface illuminance set for a work scene is included in the condition pattern, the input / output unit 31 may further input the target work surface illuminance, and the search unit 32 may search for the condition pattern by further taking into consideration the input target work surface illuminance. Note that, for example, a target work surface illuminance table that holds target work surface illuminances for each work content may be prepared in advance, and the target work surface illuminance may be obtained from the target work surface illuminance table based on the work content included in the work scene input by the input / output unit 31.

[0205] Furthermore, for example, when a plurality of condition patterns are searched for by the search unit 32, a control value pattern that can achieve the target work surface illuminance may be selected from a plurality of control value patterns associated with the plurality of condition patterns, and control based on that control value pattern may be executed.

[0206] Note that information processing device 10 according to this embodiment may be realized, for example, as an information processing system including a plurality of devices. Specifically, in this embodiment, information processing device 10 has been described as including lighting control value generator 10a and lighting control execution unit 10b, but information processing device 10 may also be realized as an information processing system including, for example, a lighting control value generation device having the same function as lighting control value generator 10a and a lighting control execution device having the same function as lighting control execution unit 10b. Furthermore, as described in the fourth embodiment, the lighting control value generation device may be a device separate from, for example, the uniformity ratio calculation device.

[0207] According to at least one of the embodiments described above, it is possible to provide an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program that are capable of obtaining uniformity in any region.

[0208] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents.

[0209] The following additional notes are provided regarding the above-described embodiment. [1] An information processing device comprising: a calculation means for calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within a uniformity ratio calculation area determined from the work area in which a worker performs work under an illuminating environment. [2] The information processing device according to [1], wherein the uniformity calculation area is determined based on coordinate values ​​representing the work area and values ​​for defining the uniformity calculation area. [3] The information processing device according to [1] or [2], wherein each position within the uniformity calculation area includes a corner point, a side point, and an interior point of the uniformity calculation area. [4] The information processing device according to any one of [1] to [3], wherein the first uniformity in the working area is calculated based on the average value of the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area and the minimum value of the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area. [5] The information processing device according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area is obtained by executing control over each of a plurality of lights in a virtual environment that simulates the lighting environment. [6] The information processing device according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area is measured by a sensor when control of each of a plurality of lights is actually executed under the lighting environment. [7] The information processing device according to [6], wherein the sensor includes an image sensor installed in a position capable of capturing an image of the work area. [8] Further comprising a correction means, the calculation means further calculates a second illuminance in the work area based on a second illuminance at each position in the uniformity calculation area measured by a sensor when control of each of the plurality of lights is actually executed under the lighting environment; and The correction means corrects a parameter used when executing control for each of the plurality of lights in the virtual environment by comparing the first uniformity ratio with the second uniformity ratio. [5] The information processing device described above. [9] Further comprising a selection means, the calculation means calculates, for each control value pattern for controlling each of a plurality of lights in the lighting environment, a first uniformity ratio and an energy saving rate in the work area when the plurality of lights are controlled based on the control value pattern; The selection means selects an appropriate control value pattern based on the first uniformity ratio and the energy saving rate calculated for each control value pattern. The information processing device according to any one of [1] to [8].

[10] The information processing device according to [9], wherein the selection means selects the control value pattern so as to satisfy constraints including a target illuminance set for a work scene of the worker.

[11] The information processing device according to [9], wherein the selection means selects the control value pattern based on at least one of discomfort glare and a brightness index.

[12] a first storage means for storing a plurality of condition patterns that differ in at least one of the work area where the workers perform work, the number of the workers, and the content of the work performed by the workers; a second storage means for storing a control value pattern selected for each of the plurality of condition patterns by executing the processes of the calculation means and the selection means for each of the plurality of condition patterns, in association with the corresponding condition pattern; The information processing device according to any one of [9] to

[11] , further comprising:

[13] The information processing device according to

[12] , further comprising a control means for controlling the plurality of lighting devices based on a control value pattern stored in the second storage means in association with a condition pattern corresponding to an actual lighting environment.

[14] An information processing method comprising: calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within a uniformity ratio calculation area determined from the work area in which a worker performs work under a lighting environment.

[15] A program for causing a computer to function as a calculation means for calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within the uniformity ratio calculation area, which is determined from the work area where a worker performs work under a lighting environment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0210] 10...information processing device, 10a...lighting control value generation unit, 10b...lighting control execution unit, 11...condition input unit, 12...simulation unit, 13...storage unit, 14...uniformity calculation unit, 15...output unit, 16...illuminance measurement unit, 17...correction unit, 21...condition pattern accumulation unit, 22...condition pattern acquisition unit, 23...control optimization unit, 24...simulation unit, 25...uniformity calculation unit, 26...control value pattern output unit, 27...control value pattern accumulation unit, 31...input / output unit, 32...search unit, 101...CPU, 102...non-volatile memory, 103...main memory, 104...input device, 105...display device, 106...communication device, 141...setting unit, 142...illuminance input unit, 143...coordinate correspondence assignment unit, 144...calculation unit.

Claims

1. an information processing device comprising: a calculation means for calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within a uniformity ratio calculation area determined from the work area in which a worker performs work under an illuminating environment;

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the uniformity calculation area is determined based on coordinate values ​​representing the work area and values ​​for defining the uniformity calculation area.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein each position within the uniformity calculation area includes a corner point, a side point, and an interior point of the uniformity calculation area.

4. The information processing device according to claim 3 , wherein the first uniformity in the work area is calculated based on an average value of the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area and a minimum value of the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area.

5. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area is obtained by executing control over each of a plurality of lights in a virtual environment that simulates the lighting environment.

6. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area is measured by a sensor when control of each of a plurality of lights in the lighting environment is actually performed.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the sensor includes an image sensor installed at a position capable of capturing an image of the work area.

8. Further comprising a correction means, the calculation means further calculates a second illuminance in the work area based on a second illuminance at each position within the uniformity calculation area measured by a sensor when control of each of the plurality of lights is actually executed under the lighting environment; The correction means corrects a parameter used when controlling each of the plurality of lights in the virtual environment by comparing the first uniformity ratio with the second uniformity ratio.

6. The information processing device according to claim 5.

9. Further comprising a selection means, the calculation means calculates, for each control value pattern for controlling each of a plurality of lights in the lighting environment, a first uniformity ratio and an energy saving rate in the work area when the plurality of lights are controlled based on the control value pattern; The selection means selects an appropriate control value pattern based on the first uniformity ratio and the energy saving rate calculated for each control value pattern.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1.

10. 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the selection means selects the control value pattern so as to satisfy constraints including a target illuminance set for a work scene of the worker.

11. 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the selection means selects the control value pattern based on at least one of discomfort glare and a brightness index.

12. a first storage means for storing a plurality of condition patterns that differ in at least one of the work area where the workers perform work, the number of the workers, and the content of the work performed by the workers; a second storage means for storing a control value pattern selected for each of the plurality of condition patterns by executing the processes of the calculation means and the selection means for each of the plurality of condition patterns, in association with the corresponding condition pattern; 12. The information processing device according to claim 9, further comprising:

13. 13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising control means for controlling the plurality of lighting devices based on a control value pattern stored in the second storage means in association with a condition pattern corresponding to an actual lighting environment.

14. An information processing method comprising: calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within a uniformity ratio calculation area determined from the work area in which a worker performs work under a lighting environment.

15. A program for causing a computer to function as a calculation means for calculating a first uniformity ratio in a work area based on a first illuminance at each position within the uniformity ratio calculation area, which is determined from the work area in which a worker performs work under a lighting environment.

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