Thermal analysis support system for three-dimensional space

Abstract

This improves the accuracy of thermal analysis. [Solution] The three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system includes: a storage unit that stores multiple submodels that define the characteristics of a part of the space included in the three-dimensional space in order to perform thermal analysis of the three-dimensional space; a control device that acquires detection results indicating one or more of airflow and temperature detected by multiple detection units provided in the three-dimensional space to be analyzed, performs simulations to bring each of the multiple three-dimensional space models generated by combining the multiple submodels to a state corresponding to the detection results, compares the results detected by the multiple detection units with the simulation results for each of the multiple three-dimensional space models, identifies the three-dimensional space model that realizes a state close to the results detected by the multiple detection units from among the multiple three-dimensional space models, and performs thermal analysis on the identified three-dimensional space model as the target of analysis.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a thermal analysis support system for a three-dimensional space.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, techniques for performing thermal analysis used in simulations of air conditioning, etc. in a three-dimensional space have been proposed.

[0003] In Patent Document 1, in a facility model that reproduces a facility having a space for accommodating a crowd, a technique is proposed in which an analysis model is generated from a planar abstraction model in which the crowd is abstracted, and the thermal environment of the facility is analyzed using the analysis model.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In Patent Document 1, by abstracting a complex crowd, it is possible to easily perform thermal environment analysis of a facility.

[0006] By the way, in a factory, installation objects such as equipment and piping are distributed complexly, so it is difficult to generate a three-dimensional space model for performing thermal analysis such as simulation of air conditioning in the factory. For example, when a user generates a three-dimensional space model of a factory composed of a space part such as a passage and a dense part, the dense part is often processed as a solid three-dimensional shape. When thermal analysis is performed using the three-dimensional space model generated in this way, the accuracy of the result of the thermal analysis may be lower than expected.

[0007] Therefore, in light of the above challenges, the objective is to provide a technology that enables highly accurate thermal analysis by realizing a three-dimensional space by combining multiple submodels that define the characteristics within the three-dimensional space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] To achieve the above objective, one embodiment of the present disclosure provides a three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system comprising: a storage unit that stores a plurality of partial models that define the characteristics of a portion of the space included in the three-dimensional space in order to perform thermal analysis of the three-dimensional space; a control device that acquires detection results indicating one or more of airflow and temperature detected by a plurality of detection units provided in the three-dimensional space to be analyzed, performs a simulation to bring each of the plurality of three-dimensional space models generated by combining the plurality of partial models to a state corresponding to the detection result, compares the results detected by the plurality of detection units with the simulation results for each of the plurality of three-dimensional space models, identifies a three-dimensional space model from the plurality of three-dimensional space models that realizes a state close to the results detected by the plurality of detection units, and performs thermal analysis on the identified three-dimensional space model as the target of analysis. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the above-described embodiment, a technology is provided that enables highly accurate thermal analysis by realizing a three-dimensional space by combining multiple submodels that define the characteristics within the three-dimensional space. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example of a schematic configuration of a three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system according to the embodiment. [Figure 2] This figure illustrates the generation of a three-dimensional spatial model of a factory in an information processing device according to an embodiment, and the comparison of the thermal analysis results using the generated three-dimensional spatial model with the factory survey results. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The following describes embodiments for carrying out the invention with reference to the drawings.

[0012] Figure 1 shows an example of a schematic configuration of a three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system according to an embodiment. The three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system 1 shown in Figure 1 comprises a factory 10 and an information processing device 20, which are connected to each other in a communication manner. The three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system 1 is a computer system for performing thermal analysis of the factory 10.

[0013] In this embodiment, the factory 10 of the three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system 1 is arranged such that complex installations such as equipment and pipes are distributed intermittently.

[0014] When a factory is vast and its installed structures are extremely complex, acquiring the shapes of these structures, generating three-dimensional shape models, and then performing thermal analysis using those models is computationally intensive and difficult to implement in practice.

[0015] Therefore, conventional users divide the factory into open spaces such as passageways and densely populated areas based on the distribution of installed objects within the factory. They then generate a three-dimensional spatial model in which the densely populated areas are treated as spaces containing solid three-dimensional objects, and the open spaces are treated as empty spaces. Conventional users then use the generated three-dimensional spatial model to perform thermal analysis to derive the air velocity and air temperature inside the factory. In this case, because the densely populated areas are treated as solid three-dimensional objects, the accuracy of the thermal analysis results may be lower than expected.

[0016] In contrast, the three-dimensional space thermal analysis support system 1 according to this embodiment improves the accuracy of thermal analysis by using a three-dimensional space model that more appropriately represents the interior of the factory. Although this embodiment describes the case where the analysis target is a factory 10, the analysis target is not limited to a factory 10, and other spaces may also be used.

[0017] In factory 10, a plurality of various sensors (an example of a plurality of detection units) 11 are provided to detect the air flow and temperature. The various sensors 11 may be any sensors for measuring the situation of factory 10. For example, a flow velocity sensor for measuring the air flow and a temperature sensor for detecting the air temperature are provided at each position within factory 10.

[0018] The information processing device 20 includes a storage device 21 and an information processing unit 22. The information processing device 20 is a control device such as a PC, a server, or a mobile communication terminal. In this embodiment, an example of processing using one information processing device 20 will be described, but the following configuration may also be realized using a plurality of control devices.

[0019] The storage device 21 is, for example, a non-volatile storage medium such as a semiconductor memory. The storage device 21 has a model storage unit 211.

[0020] The model storage unit 211 stores a plurality of normalized models that normalize configurations that may be part of a complex structure in order to realize the complex structure of factory 10.

[0021] The normalized model is a partial model that defines some of the characteristics included in the three-dimensional space for thermal analysis of the three-dimensional space of factory 10. For example, for each of the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction, it is a model that represents the three-dimensional space by normalizing whether an air passage is provided and the combination of the sizes of the passages. Also, the normalized model is not limited to such a model, and may be a model showing the air passages in the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction for a predetermined space. Note that in this embodiment, the normalized model is not limited to a model related to air passages, and may include various parameters related to air flow and temperature changes.

[0022] The information processing unit 22 is mainly composed of a computer including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory device such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a non-volatile auxiliary storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), and various input / output interface devices. The information processing unit 22 realizes various functions by, for example, loading a program installed in the auxiliary storage device into the memory device and executing it on the CPU.

[0023] By executing a program installed in the auxiliary storage device, the information processing unit 22 realizes, as functional blocks, a specific part 221 and a thermal analysis part 222, and performs processing for thermal analysis of the factory, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0024] The specific part 221 performs processing for specifying a three-dimensional space model representing the shape of the factory 10.

[0025] The thermal analysis part 222 performs thermal analysis processing on the input three-dimensional space model. The thermal analysis part 222 according to the present embodiment performs, for example, thermal fluid analysis as the thermal analysis processing, but any analysis processing may be performed as long as it is for analyzing the situation of the factory 10.

[0026] Next, the procedure of each processing of the specific part 221 and the thermal analysis part 222 will be described.

[0027] [[ID=二十]]The specific part 221 acquires the detection results of the characteristics of the factory 10 (for example, air flow velocity, air temperature, etc.) from various sensors 11 provided in the factory 10 (S1001). In the present embodiment, an example of acquiring the air temperature and the air flow velocity as the detection results will be described, but the information to be acquired is not limited to the air temperature and the air flow velocity. The information to be acquired may be information that can simulate the situation of the factory 10, and for example, either the air temperature or the air flow velocity may be sufficient.

[0028] The detection results for the characteristics of factory 10 include the temperature of the air at the corresponding location before air enters the structure of factory 10, the airflow velocity at that location, and the amount of heat generated by heat sources present in factory 10, which are input conditions for thermal analysis.

[0029] Furthermore, the detection results include the temperature of the air at a predetermined location and the air velocity at that predetermined location, which are the output results of the thermal analysis and are used to understand the state of the air that has passed through the structure of the factory 10.

[0030] The identification unit 221 combines the standardized models stored in the model storage unit 211 to generate multiple patterns of three-dimensional spatial models representing the shape of the factory 10, and requests a thermal analysis for each of the generated patterns of three-dimensional spatial models, along with the acquired detection results (input conditions for thermal analysis) (S1002).

[0031] The thermal analysis unit 222 reads multiple patterns of three-dimensional spatial models input from the identification unit 221, as well as the detection results from various sensors 11 (input conditions for thermal analysis) (S1011).

[0032] The thermal analysis unit 222 performs a simulation (calculation) of the airflow for each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models based on the input conditions for thermal analysis included in the detection results (S1012).

[0033] Then, the thermal analysis unit 222 performs thermal simulations (thermal calculations) that show the temperature and other properties at each predetermined location in the factory, based on airflow calculations for each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models (S1013).

[0034] The thermal analysis unit 222 outputs the calculation results for each of the multiple patterns of three-dimensional spatial models to the identification unit 221 (S1014).

[0035] The specific unit 221 compares the calculation results for each of the multiple patterns of three-dimensional spatial models with the detection results that show the characteristics of the factory 10 (S1003).

[0036] Then, the identification unit 221 identifies the three-dimensional spatial model that is closest to the detection result showing the characteristics of the factory 10 from among the calculation results for each of the multiple patterns of three-dimensional spatial models, and outputs the identified three-dimensional spatial model to the thermal analysis unit 222 (S1004).

[0037] From this point onward, the thermal analysis unit 222 performs a thermal analysis of the factory 10 using the input three-dimensional spatial model. The analysis method is the same as before, so its explanation will be omitted.

[0038] Figure 2 illustrates the generation of a three-dimensional spatial model of a factory in the information processing device 20 according to this embodiment, and a comparison between the thermal analysis results using the generated three-dimensional spatial model and the factory survey results.

[0039] In the example shown in Figure 2, in factory 10, the temperature and velocity of the air at the first position 1211, the second position 1212, the third position 1213, the fourth position 1214, and the fifth position 1215 are detected as input conditions for thermal analysis.

[0040] Furthermore, in factory 10, the temperature and velocity of the air at the sixth position 1216, the seventh position 1217, the eighth position 1218, and the ninth position 1219 are detected in order to understand the condition of the air after it has passed through the structure of factory 10. These values ​​are denoted as measured values ​​A1, A2, A3, etc., which indicate the condition of the air (temperature and velocity) after it has passed through the structure of factory 10.

[0041] Furthermore, the specific unit 221 generates a three-dimensional spatial model 1250 representing the shape of the factory. The three-dimensional spatial model 1250 is formed by combining a first normalization model 1252, a second normalization model 1253, and a third normalization model 1254 in space 1251 corresponding to the dense space 1201 of the factory 10. The three-dimensional spatial model 1250 shown in Figure 2 does not limit the space formed by combining the normalization models to the dense space 1201, but may be formed by combining the normalization models in other spaces excluding the spaces 1261 to 1265 such as passages.

[0042] The thermal analysis unit 222 then performs simulations (calculations) of the airflow within the three-dimensional spatial model 1250, which represents the shape of the factory 10 and was generated by the identification unit 221, and thermal simulations (calculations) showing the temperature and other thermal properties at each location within the three-dimensional spatial model 1250, based on the input conditions for thermal analysis.

[0043] The input conditions for the thermal analysis are information indicating the temperature and velocity of the air before it passes through the factory in the three-dimensional spatial model 1250. In this embodiment, the temperature and velocity of the air detected at the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth positions in the factory are set at the 11th position 1271, the 12th position 1272, the 13th position 1273, the 14th position 1274, and the 15th position 1275 in the three-dimensional spatial model 1250.

[0044] The thermal analysis unit 222 performs simulations of airflow within the factory and thermal simulations showing the temperature and other properties at various locations within the factory. For example, as a result of the simulation, the thermal analysis unit 222 obtains the air conditions (air temperature and air velocity) at the 16th position 1276, the 17th position 1277, the 18th position 1278, and the 19th position 1279 of the three-dimensional spatial model 1250. These values ​​are designated as calculated values ​​B1, B2, B3, etc., representing the air conditions (air temperature and air velocity) as the air passes through the three-dimensional spatial model 1250.

[0045] The thermal analysis unit 222 outputs calculated values ​​B1, B2, B3… indicating the state of the air (air temperature and air velocity) calculated for each three-dimensional spatial model 1250 to the identification unit 221.

[0046] The identification unit 221 compares calculated values ​​B1, B2, B3… indicating the state of the air (air temperature and air velocity) calculated for each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models 1250 with measured values ​​A1, A2, A3… indicating the state of the air (air temperature and air velocity) that has passed through the structure of the factory 10, and identifies the three-dimensional spatial model 1250 that is closest to the structure of the factory 10.

[0047] For example, the identification unit 221 calculates a value "D=|A1-B1|+|A2-B2|+|A3-B3|+…" for each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models 1250, indicating the difference in conditions compared to the factory 10. Then, the identification unit 221 identifies the smallest value among the values ​​"D" calculated for each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models 1250. Furthermore, the identification unit 221 identifies the three-dimensional spatial model corresponding to the smallest value as the model representing the factory 10.

[0048] In this embodiment, the identification unit 221 may identify the three-dimensional spatial model representing the factory 10 using a predetermined search method, rather than trying all combinations of normalized models to identify the three-dimensional spatial model representing the factory 10. For example, a GA (genetic algorithm) may be used as the search method.

[0049] In this embodiment, the identification unit 221 can identify a three-dimensional model corresponding to the complex shape of the factory 10 by searching for a combination of predetermined standardized models. In this embodiment, by using the identification method described above, a three-dimensional spatial model can be obtained in which the flow paths are statistically close to the actual factory 10.

[0050] Subsequently, the thermal analysis unit 222 performs a thermal analysis of the factory 10 using the three-dimensional spatial model identified by the identification unit 221.

[0051] Thus, the thermal analysis support system 1 according to this embodiment realizes a three-dimensional spatial model of the factory 10 by combining standardized models, thereby enabling the realization of complex airflow within the factory 10, which is composed of multiple installed objects (equipment, pipes, etc.).

[0052] In this embodiment, the thermal analysis unit 222 uses the three-dimensional spatial model identified by the identification unit 221, and compared to the three-dimensional spatial model when the complex shape is solid, it can take into account the flow due to internal flow channels, thereby improving the prediction accuracy of the thermal analysis inside the factory 10.

[0053] Traditionally, when a factory layout consisted of passageways and densely packed areas of installed objects (such as equipment and pipes), the densely packed areas were often treated as solid. In recent years, more advanced methods have been proposed to determine the shape of three-dimensional spatial models, such as using digitizers.

[0054] In contrast, the thermal analysis support system 1 according to this embodiment uses the statistical method described above to identify a simple three-dimensional spatial model representing the factory 10, thereby enabling high-speed and high-precision thermal analysis of the factory 10.

[0055] Furthermore, the information processing unit 22 of the information processing device 20 may have a processor other than a CPU, such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). In other words, the functions of the information processing unit 22 of the information processing device 20 may be implemented by hardware. In addition, the FPGA, ASIC, or GPU may include functions for a communication interface or an input / output interface.

[0056] Furthermore, in the embodiments described above, the programs executed by each CPU may be stored on a computer-readable recording medium. In this case, the programs are downloaded from the recording medium to memory such as a storage device. Examples of recording media include CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disc Read Only Memory), or USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory. Alternatively, the programs may be downloaded to the information processing device 20 via a network.

[0057] Although embodiments for carrying out the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various modifications and improvements are possible as long as they do not impair the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 10 factories 11 Various Sensors 20 Information Processing Devices 21 Storage device 211 Model Memory Unit 22 Information Processing Unit 221 Specific section 222 Thermal Analysis Department

Claims

[Claim 1] A memory unit that stores multiple submodels that define the characteristics of a portion of the space included in a three-dimensional space in order to perform thermal analysis of that three-dimensional space, In the three-dimensional space being analyzed, detection results indicating one or more of the following, airflow and temperature, are obtained by multiple detection units installed in the analysis target. For each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models generated by combining the aforementioned multiple submodels, a simulation is performed to bring it into a state corresponding to the detection result. The results detected by the multiple detection units are compared with the simulation results for each of the multiple three-dimensional spatial models, and the three-dimensional spatial model that realizes a situation close to the results detected by the multiple detection units is identified from among the multiple three-dimensional spatial models. A control device that performs thermal analysis on the identified three-dimensional spatial model as the object of analysis, A three-dimensional spatial thermal analysis support system equipped with [specific features / features].

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