Helmet, operation control method, and program

Abstract

To protect a wearer from impact due to occurrence of abnormality in a battery provided in a helmet.SOLUTION: There is provided a helmet, including: a battery; a shock absorbing device provided to reduce a shock to a wearer due to an explosion of a battery when activated; a sensor provided to detect a predetermined state of the battery; an abnormality determination unit that determines occurrence of an abnormality in the battery based on a detection output of the sensor; and an operation control unit that controls to activate the shock absorbing device in a stored state in response to the occurrence of an abnormality being determined by the abnormality determination unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a helmet, a motion control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Helmets are known that are equipped with built-in devices such as a light, a microphone, a control unit, and a speaker, and that are also equipped with a battery that supplies power to these devices (Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-119241 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] There is a possibility that the battery may explode depending on the temperature and other conditions. For this reason, it is required that the helmet equipped with the battery protect the wearer from impacts caused by abnormalities such as battery explosion.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has an object to protect the wearer from impacts caused by an abnormality in the battery installed in the helmet. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a helmet comprising a battery, an impact mitigation device that is arranged to mitigate an impact on a wearer caused by the explosion of the battery when activated, a sensor arranged to detect a predetermined state of the battery, an abnormality determination unit that determines the occurrence of an abnormality in the battery based on the detection output of the sensor, and an operation control unit that controls the impact mitigation device in a stored state to be activated in response to the occurrence of an abnormality being determined by the abnormality determination unit.

[0007] Another aspect of the present invention is an operation control method for an impact mitigation device in a helmet including a battery, an impact mitigation device that is arranged to mitigate an impact on a wearer in the event of the explosion of the battery when activated, and a sensor arranged to detect a predetermined state of the battery, the operation control method including an abnormality determination step for determining that an abnormality has occurred in the battery based on the detection output of the sensor, and an operation control step for controlling the impact mitigation device in a stored state to be deployed in response to the occurrence of an abnormality being determined by the abnormality determination step.

[0008] Another aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer provided in a helmet which includes a battery, an impact mitigation device which is arranged to mitigate an impact on the wearer in the event of the explosion of the battery when activated, and a sensor which is arranged to detect a predetermined state of the battery, to function as an abnormality determination unit which determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the battery based on the detection output of the sensor, and an operation control unit which controls the impact mitigation device in a stored state to be deployed in response to the occurrence of an abnormality being determined by the abnormality determination unit. Effect of the Invention

[0009] As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain the effect that the wearer is protected from impacts caused by the occurrence of an abnormality in the battery provided in the helmet. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of a helmet according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a helmet according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3] 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure executed by a control unit of the helmet according to the present embodiment in relation to the deployment of an airbag. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] The helmet of the present embodiment will be described below. The helmet of the present embodiment is, for example, worn by a worker at a construction site. An example of the configuration of a helmet 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. Fig. 1 shows an example of the appearance of the helmet 1 of this embodiment. In the figure, the helmet 1 is shown in a state where it is worn by a worker W (an example of a wearer). Fig. 2 shows an example of the functional configuration of the helmet 1.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1, a helmet 1 of this embodiment has an outer shape equipped with a main body portion 11 and a visor 12. As shown in FIG. 2, the helmet 1 of this embodiment includes a headlight 20, explosion-proof goggles 30, a camera 40 (40-L, 40-R), a bone conduction headset 50, a battery 60, a power supply circuit 65, a sensor 70, an airbag 80 (an example of an impact mitigation device), an airbag driving unit 85, a control unit 100, and a communication unit 110.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, the headlight 20 is provided so as to illuminate the area ahead of the worker W when the worker W wears the headlight.

[0014] 1, the explosion-proof goggles 30 are connected at the left and right ends of the temples 31 to holders 13 provided on the helmet 1. The holders 13 are rotatable at the portions that hold the connected temples 31. This allows the worker W to change the state of the explosion-proof goggles 30 between a state in which the eyes of the worker W are covered as shown in the figure, and a state in which the goggles are pulled up from the state shown in the figure and stored inside the helmet 1.

[0015] 2, the explosion-proof goggles 30 include a display unit 35. The display unit 35 displays an image directed toward the worker W in a state in which the worker is wearing the explosion-proof goggles 30 so as to cover his or her eyes.

[0016] There is no particular limitation on the display device that the display unit 35 supports. The display device that the display unit 35 supports may be, for example, one that displays an image on a lens, or one that uses retinal projection or the like. The displayed image may be planar, or may be one that is projected three-dimensionally in the field of view of the worker W.

[0017] By providing the display unit 35 in this manner, the worker W can observe the surroundings through the lenses of the explosion-proof goggles 30 while wearing the explosion-proof goggles 30 to cover his or her eyes, and can also observe the displayed image.

[0018] 1, the cameras 40 (40-L, 40-R) are provided in a mutually left-right positional relationship and are provided so as to capture an image of the front according to the line of sight of the worker W wearing the helmet 1. The camera 40-L is provided on the front left side of the frame of the explosion-proof goggles 30, and the camera 40-R is provided on the front right side of the frame of the explosion-proof goggles 30. The two cameras 40 thus provided can function as a stereo camera capable of calculating the distance to an object in a captured image by utilizing the parallax between the left and right cameras.

[0019] Although FIG. 1 shows an example in which the camera 40 is attached to the explosion-proof goggles 30, the camera may be installed, for example, on the left or right side of the main body 11 of the helmet 1 so as to capture an image of the front according to the line of sight of the worker W wearing the helmet 1.

[0020] 1, the bone conduction headset 50 is a headset in which a bone conduction earphone 52 and a bone conduction microphone 53 are provided on a main body 51. The bone conduction headset 50 is attached to the helmet 1 by a connector 55. When the bone conduction headset 50 in the figure is hung on the ear of the worker W, the bone conduction earphone 52 comes into contact with the temple of the worker W, and the bone conduction microphone 53 comes into contact with the cheek of the worker W. This allows the worker W to hear sounds from the bone conduction earphone 52 via bone conduction, and also allows the bone conduction microphone 53 to pick up sounds that the worker W makes. By hearing voices and collecting spoken voices through bone conduction in this way, the worker W can clearly hear the other person's voice and can clearly hear his own voice even in a loud environment such as a construction site. In other words, by using the bone conduction headset 50, the worker W can smoothly converse with others regardless of the surrounding noise.

[0021] The battery 60 stores power to be supplied to devices that operate on power supplied in the helmet 1. The battery 60 may be, for example, a primary battery, or a secondary battery such as a lithium ion battery. The type, shape, etc. of the battery 60 are not particularly limited. The battery 60 is provided so as to be attached to a predetermined position in the helmet 1. The battery 60 may be detachably attached to the helmet 1. Furthermore, if the battery 60 is a secondary battery, the battery 60 may be adapted to be capable of being charged while being attached to the helmet 1.

[0022] The power supply circuit 65 inputs the power stored in the battery 60, and outputs a power supply voltage generated from the input power to various devices provided in the helmet 1. In this embodiment, the devices to which the power supply voltage is supplied by the power supply circuit 65 include the headlight 20, the display unit 35, the camera 40, the bone conduction headset 50, and the airbag driving unit 85. The devices to which the power supply voltage is supplied by the power supply circuit 65 also include a computer that realizes the functions of the control unit 100, the communication unit 110, etc. The computer corresponding to the control unit 100, the communication unit 110, etc. is also provided so as to be housed inside the helmet 1. Also, for example, the power supply circuit 65 may be capable of charging the battery 60 by inputting DC or AC power from an external source.

[0023] The sensor 70 is provided to detect vibration of the battery 60 .

[0024] The airbag 80 is normally folded and attached to a predetermined position in the helmet 1. When the airbag 80 is activated and deployed to inflate, it is adapted to cushion the impact on the worker W caused by the rupture of the battery 60 in the helmet 1. This makes it possible to protect the worker W from the impact caused by the rupture of the battery 60. The airbag driving unit 85 deploys the folded airbag 80 under the control of the control unit 100 .

[0025] The control unit 100 executes various controls in the helmet 1. The control unit 100 controls various devices in the helmet 1 (the headlight 20, the display unit 35, the camera 40, the bone conduction headset 50, the airbag driving unit 85, etc.). The control unit 100 also executes control related to communication by the communication unit 110. The abnormality determination section 101 and the operation control section 102 in the control section 100 will be described later.

[0026] The communication unit 110 communicates with the outside wirelessly. The wireless communication supported by the communication unit 110 is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a wireless LAN. The communication unit 110 may also be capable of short-distance wireless communication using, for example, Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0027] The helmet 1 configured as described above can transmit and receive voice by wireless communication via the communication unit 110. This enables the worker W to use the bone conduction headset 50 to talk with other workers, managers at headquarters, and other people.

[0028] Furthermore, the helmet 1 having the above configuration can display images as follows on the explosion-proof goggles 30 equipped with the display unit 35 as smart glasses, under the control of the control unit 100. For example, the control unit 100 can display information reflecting the results of a predetermined analysis of the captured image captured by the camera 40. Furthermore, the control unit 100 can display information acquired from an external server or a terminal information processing device through communication by the communication unit 110.

[0029] In addition, the camera 40 (40-L, 40-R) of this embodiment can be used as an imaging device of a stereo camera. Therefore, for example, a system may be constructed that measures the position of a specific object at a construction site by using an image obtained by imaging a specific object with the camera 40 as a stereo camera. Such a system may be configured to be completed in the helmet 1, for example, by having the control unit 100 input the captured image and perform measurement. Alternatively, the helmet 1 may transmit the captured image to an external device, and the external device may measure the position of the object. In this case, the external device may be, for example, an external mobile terminal (for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, etc.) held by the worker W, a terminal such as a computer installed in an office, or a server. In each of the above systems, an image reflecting the measurement results of the object may be displayed to the worker W on the display unit 35 of the explosion-proof goggles 30.

[0030] The battery may have an abnormality such as bursting due to, for example, an increase in load causing the temperature to rise beyond an allowable range. If the battery 60 provided in the helmet 1 bursts, the worker W wearing the helmet 1 will be subjected to an impact due to the bursting. For this reason, it is preferable that the helmet 1 be designed to mitigate the impact on the worker W even if the battery 60 bursts. To achieve this, for example, it is conceivable to cover the periphery of the battery 60 with an object such as a cushioning material. However, if the periphery of the battery 60 is covered with a cushioning material, the volume of the helmet 1 that is occupied by the cushioning material will become large. Since the internal volume of the helmet 1 is limited, it is difficult to ensure a volume for the cushioning material. Furthermore, if the battery 60 is covered with a cushioning material, the cushioning material makes it difficult for the heat generated by the battery 60 to diffuse, which may promote a rise in temperature of the battery 60.

[0031] Therefore, the helmet 1 of this embodiment is provided with an airbag 80. Since the airbag 80 is normally in a folded state, it does not compress the internal volume of the helmet 1. In addition, since it is not necessary to provide the airbag so as to cover the battery 60, it does not impede the diffusion of the temperature of the battery 60. Moreover, in the helmet 1 of this embodiment, when the battery 60 bursts, the airbag 80 is deployed, so that the impact on the worker W caused by the bursting of the battery 60 is mitigated.

[0032] In order to deploy the airbag 80 in this manner, the control unit 100 includes an abnormality determination unit 101 and an operation control unit 102. The abnormality determination unit 101 determines the occurrence of an abnormality in the battery 60 based on the detection output of the sensor 70. In response to the abnormality determination unit 101 determining the occurrence of an abnormality, the operation control unit 102 controls the airbag 80 in a stored state to be deployed (activated). Specifically, the abnormality determination unit 101 inputs the detection output (detection signal) of the sensor 70 that detects the vibration of the battery 60, and monitors the vibration occurring in the battery 60. When the battery 60 explodes, a large vibration corresponding to the explosion occurs in the battery 60, and the level of the detection signal output by the sensor 70 also becomes equal to or higher than a certain level. That is, the abnormality determination unit 101 determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the battery 60 by determining whether the detection signal of the sensor 70 has reached a certain level or higher. Then, when the abnormality determination unit 101 determines that the detection signal of the sensor 70 has reached a certain level or higher, the operation control unit 102 controls the airbag driving unit 85 to inflate and deploy the airbag 80. This reduces the impact on the worker W caused by the explosion of the battery 60.

[0033] The flowchart in FIG. 3 shows an example of a process procedure executed by the control unit 100 in this embodiment in relation to control of deployment of the airbag 80. Step S101: In the control unit 100, the abnormality determination unit 101 receives the detection signal of the sensor . Step S102: The abnormality determination unit 101 determines whether or not the level of the detection signal of the sensor input in step S101 is equal to or higher than a certain level. If it is determined in step S102 that the level of the detection signal from the sensor is less than a certain level, it means that the battery 60 has not exploded, and in this case, the process returns to step S101. Step S103: If it is determined in step S102 that the level of the detection signal from the sensor is equal to or higher than a certain level, it means that the battery 60 has exploded. In this case, the operation control unit 102 controls the airbag driving unit 85 to deploy the airbag 80.

[0034] Note that a plurality of sensors 70 may be provided corresponding to one battery 60. In this case, the abnormality determination unit 101 may perform the determination in step S102 by using, for example, a detection signal having the highest level among the detection signals of the plurality of sensors 70. Note that a plurality of airbags 80 may be provided corresponding to one battery 60. In other words, there is no particular limit to the number of airbags 80 provided corresponding to one battery 60. In addition, the number of batteries 60 provided in the helmet 1 may be appropriately changed as necessary.

[0035] The sensor 70 is not limited to a sensor that detects vibrations, but may be any sensor that outputs a detection signal that can determine whether an explosion has occurred as an abnormality in the battery 60, for example. Alternatively, the sensor 70 may output a detection signal capable of determining a symptom of rupture as an abnormality occurring in the battery 60. Such a sensor 70 may, for example, detect the temperature of the battery 60. In this case, when the control unit 100 determines that the temperature indicated by the detection signal output by the sensor 70 has reached a certain level or higher, it may determine that there is a symptom of rupture in the battery 60 and control the airbag driving unit 85 to deploy the airbag 80. The helmet 1 of this embodiment is not limited to being used by a worker W at a construction site. For example, the helmet 1 of this embodiment may be used by a worker who performs inspection, maintenance, etc. at high places, or may be used for disaster prevention, etc.

[0036] In addition, a program for realizing the functions of the above-mentioned control unit 100, etc. may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on the recording medium may be read into a computer system and executed to perform the processing of the above-mentioned control unit 100, etc. Here, "reading a program recorded on a recording medium into a computer system and executing it" includes installing the program into a computer system. The "computer system" here includes hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. In addition, the "computer system" may include multiple computer devices connected via a network including a communication line. The recording medium also includes a recording medium provided inside or outside and accessible from a distribution server in order to distribute the program. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 1 helmet, 20 headlight, 30 explosion-proof goggles, 35 display unit, 40 (40-L, 40-R) camera, 50 bone conduction headset, 52 bone conduction earphone, 53 bone conduction microphone, 60 battery, 65 power supply circuit, 70 sensor, 80 airbag, 85 airbag drive unit, 100 control unit, 101 abnormality determination unit, 102 operation control unit

Claims

1. A battery; a shock mitigation device that is activated to mitigate a shock to a wearer caused by the explosion of the battery; a sensor for detecting vibrations corresponding to the occurrence of an explosion as a predetermined state of the battery; an abnormality determination unit that determines whether or not an explosion has occurred as an abnormality of the battery based on a detection output level of the sensor; an operation control unit that controls the shock absorbing device in a stored state to be activated in response to the abnormality determination unit determining that an explosion has occurred in the battery; A helmet equipped with

2. Explosion-proof goggles, A display unit provided on the explosion-proof glasses to display an image toward a user when the user wears the explosion-proof glasses; A plurality of imaging devices are provided on the helmet at a predetermined distance from each other, and each imaging device is provided so as to capture an image of a predetermined direction outside the helmet when the user wears the helmet; A headset that listens to audio and picks up speech via bone conduction The helmet of claim 1 further comprising:

3. A battery; a shock mitigation device that is activated to mitigate a shock to a wearer caused by the explosion of the battery; a sensor provided to detect vibrations corresponding to an occurrence of an explosion as a predetermined state of the battery, an abnormality determination step of determining whether or not an explosion has occurred as an abnormality of the battery based on a detection output level of the sensor; an operation control step of controlling the shock absorbing device in a stored state to be deployed in response to the occurrence of the explosion of the battery being determined in the abnormality determination step; The motion control method includes:

4. A battery; a shock mitigation device that is activated to mitigate a shock to a wearer caused by the explosion of the battery; a sensor provided to detect vibrations corresponding to the occurrence of an explosion as a predetermined state of the battery; an abnormality determination unit that determines whether or not an explosion has occurred as an abnormality of the battery based on the level of the detection output of the sensor; an operation control unit that controls the shock absorbing device in a stored state to be deployed in response to the abnormality determination unit determining that an explosion has occurred in the battery; A program to function as a

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