Determination device, deterioration determination system, work support device, deterioration determination method, and computer program

Abstract

A determination device (1) comprises: an acquisition unit (11) that acquires determination information for determining the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery (3); a determination unit (11) that determines, on the basis of the acquired determination information, the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery (3) by referring to a database (142) that stores the determination information and the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery (3) in association with each other; and an output unit (11) that outputs the results of determination carried out by the determination unit (11).

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a determination device for determining the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, a deterioration determination system, a work support device, a deterioration determination method, and a computer program. [Background technology]

[0002] Lead-acid batteries are used for various purposes, including automotive and industrial use. For example, automotive lead-acid batteries are mounted on moving objects such as automobiles, motorcycles, forklifts, golf cars, etc., and are used as a power supply source for starter motors when starting an engine, and as a power supply source for various electrical equipment such as lights. For example, industrial lead-acid batteries are used as a power supply source for emergency power sources and UPS.

[0003] It is known that lead-acid batteries deteriorate due to various factors. In order to prevent power supply interruptions due to unexpected loss of function of lead-acid batteries, it is necessary to properly determine the degree of deterioration of the lead-acid battery and accurately determine whether replacement is necessary. Patent Document 1 discloses an invention for a degradation determination method in which a secondary battery is discharged by leaving it for a given period of time, allowed to self-discharge, or forced to discharge, and the deterioration of the secondary battery is determined by the magnitude or ratio of the voltage, or by comparing it with a good secondary battery. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-232345 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The warranty period for an in-vehicle lead-acid battery is set to, for example, three years from the time the battery is installed in the vehicle, or until the mileage reaches 50,000 km, whichever comes first. Therefore, at a lead-acid battery dealer, the degree of deterioration of a lead-acid battery brought in by a user is determined, and whether or not it is covered by the warranty, such as replacement. The warranty covers replacement only when there is a problem with the product, and does not cover cases where the product is restored by charging, for example. Also, replacement is not available if the problem is caused by overuse, insufficient care by the user, negligence, or an accident. Lead-acid battery retailers must determine whether a product is eligible for replacement based on the manual, which requires time and effort.

[0006] The degree of guarantee is determined according to the following procedure. (1) Check the usage condition (period of use, mileage, malfunction status, vehicle history, warranty period). (2) Obtain appearance information (bleeding, corrosion of the terminals, or damage to the battery case). (3) Obtain internal inspection information (specific gravity of the electrolyte or terminal voltage). (4) Determine whether the degree of guarantee is as follows: 1: Return the product to the user as a normal product. 2: The battery is in good condition, but will be recharged and returned. 3: Replace as defective product. (5) If the cause is unclear, the information will be sent to the manufacturer, who will analyze it and make a final decision. Although these procedures are documented in a manual, the judgment in (4) requires a certain level of skill and experience. If the judgment is too strict, user dissatisfaction will increase, and if the judgment is too lenient, warranty costs will increase.

[0007] The present invention aims to provide a determination device, a deterioration determination system, a work support device, a deterioration determination method, and a computer program that can quickly, objectively, and accurately determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A determination device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes an acquisition unit that acquires determination information for determining the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, a determination unit that determines the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery based on the acquired determination information by referring to a database that stores the determination information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery, and an output unit that outputs the result determined by the determination unit.

[0009] A deterioration determination system according to one embodiment of the present invention includes the above-mentioned determination device, an imaging unit that captures an image of the lead-acid battery, a voltage measuring unit that measures the terminal voltage of the lead-acid battery, a specific gravity measuring unit that measures the specific gravity of the electrolyte of the lead-acid battery, and a terminal that acquires the image, the terminal voltage, or the specific gravity and outputs it to the determination device.

[0010] A work assistance device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a receiving unit that receives judgment information for judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery obtained by an acquisition operation from an external terminal, a first judgment unit that judges deterioration of the lead-acid battery based on the received judgment information, a second judgment unit that judges whether or not to perform acquisition work for next judgment information based on a result of judgment by the first judgment unit, and a transmitting unit that transmits an instruction for the acquisition work to the terminal when it is determined by the second judgment unit that the acquisition work should be performed.

[0011] A computer program according to one embodiment of the present invention causes a computer to execute a process of acquiring judgment information for judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, and based on the acquired judgment information, referring to a database that stores the judgment information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery, and outputting the judgment result. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a deterioration determination system according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a determination device. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a terminal. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a display screen. [Diagram 5] 13 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a process of deriving a deterioration degree and determining a degree of assurance by a control unit. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a determination device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a learning model. [Figure 8] 13 is a flowchart showing the steps of a learning model generation process performed by a control unit. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure for a process of determining the degree of assurance by a control unit; [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a work assistance device according to a third embodiment. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a determination process performed by a control unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] (Overview of the embodiment) The determination device according to the embodiment includes an acquisition unit that acquires determination information for determining the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, a determination unit that determines the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery based on the acquired determination information by referring to a database that stores the determination information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery, and an output unit that outputs the result determined by the determination unit.

[0014] According to the above configuration, the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery is determined by referring to a database that stores judgment information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery. Therefore, the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery can be determined quickly, objectively, and accurately without relying on the skill of the assessor. Since the number of steps required for judgment is reduced and judgment can be made quickly, user satisfaction is improved and unnecessary warranty costs are reduced. The lead-acid battery also includes a lead-acid battery module in which a plurality of lead-acid batteries are connected in series.

[0015] The determination device according to the embodiment includes an acquisition unit that acquires determination information for determining the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, and a determination unit that inputs the acquired determination information into a learning model that outputs the degree of deterioration or degree of warranty of the lead-acid battery when determination information is input, and determines the degree of deterioration or degree of warranty of the lead-acid battery.

[0016] According to the above configuration, the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery can be determined easily and effectively.

[0017] In the above-described determination device, the determination information may be appearance information including bleeding, corrosion of terminals, or damage to a battery case, or image information of the lead-acid battery.

[0018] Bending of the terminals can cause sulfuric acid to leak, and the degree of deterioration or warranty can be determined based on appearance information regarding the terminals, seepage, or damage, or image information confirming the terminals, leakage, or damage. It can also be determined whether damage to the battery case, etc., is due to a manufacturing defect, abuse, insufficient care, negligence, or an accident. In other words, even if an abnormality is found based on the appearance information or image information, the degree of warranty for the lead-acid battery, such as whether it is eligible for free replacement, can be determined based on the relationship between the appearance information or image stored in the database and the deterioration or warranty degree of the lead-acid battery.

[0019] In the above-mentioned determination device, the determination information may further include at least one piece of information selected from the group consisting of usage status information including period of use or mileage, internal inspection information including specific gravity of the electrolyte or terminal voltage, vehicle type information, and location information or air temperature.

[0020] According to the above configuration, the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery can be accurately determined by taking into account the usage state information, the internal inspection information, the vehicle model information, or the location information or the temperature. There are many cases where lead-acid batteries are brought to dealerships due to "starting problems," but the cause of the "starting problems" may be something other than a fault in the lead-acid battery, for example, caused by the vehicle's control device controlling the vehicle based on the temperature, etc. In this case, the database can determine that the cause is the vehicle model or temperature, etc., and that the lead-acid battery is in good condition. This improves the accuracy and efficiency of determining the deterioration of lead-acid batteries.

[0021] A deterioration determination system according to an embodiment includes any one of the determination devices described above, an imaging unit that captures an image of the lead-acid battery, a voltage measuring unit that measures the terminal voltage of the lead-acid battery, a specific gravity measuring unit that measures the specific gravity of the electrolyte of the lead-acid battery, and a terminal that acquires the image, the terminal voltage, or the specific gravity and outputs it to the determination device.

[0022] According to the above configuration, it is possible to quickly obtain internal inspection information and images and determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery.

[0023] The work support device according to the embodiment includes a receiving unit that receives judgment information for judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery obtained by an acquisition operation from an external terminal, a first judgment unit that judges deterioration of the lead-acid battery based on the received judgment information, a second judgment unit that judges whether or not to perform the next acquisition operation of judgment information based on the result of the judgment made by the first judgment unit, and a transmitting unit that transmits an instruction for the acquisition operation to the terminal when the second judgment unit judges that the acquisition operation is to be performed.

[0024] According to the above configuration, the work assistance device determines whether or not to perform the next judgment task based on the result of one judgment process, so that unnecessary judgment processes can be omitted and the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery can be efficiently determined.

[0025] The deterioration determination method of the embodiment acquires determination information for determining the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, and based on the acquired determination information, refers to a database that stores the determination information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, determines the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery, and outputs the determination result.

[0026] According to the above configuration, it is possible to quickly, objectively, and accurately determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery without relying on the skill of the assessor.

[0027] A computer program according to an embodiment causes a computer to execute a process of acquiring judgment information for judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, and based on the acquired judgment information, referring to a database that stores the judgment information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery, judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery, and outputting the judgment result.

[0028] According to the above configuration, it is possible to quickly, objectively, and accurately determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery without relying on the skill of the assessor.

[0029] (Embodiment 1) 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a deterioration determination system 10 according to embodiment 1. In the deterioration determination system 10, a determination device 1 of a manufacturer of a lead-acid battery (hereinafter referred to as a battery) 3 and a terminal 2 of a store selling the battery 3 are connected via a network N such as the Internet. The store selling the battery 3 is equipped with a camera 4 for capturing an image of the battery 3, a tester 5 for measuring the terminal voltage of the battery 3, and a hydrometer 6 for measuring the specific gravity of the electrolyte of the battery 3, located close to the terminal 2.

[0030] The determination device 1 acquires determination information for determining the deterioration and warranty level of the battery 3 from the terminal 2, determines the deterioration level of the battery 3, determines the warranty level, and transmits the obtained results to the terminal 2.

[0031] 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the determination device 1. The determination device 1 includes a control unit 11 that controls the entire device, a main memory unit 12, a communication unit 13, an auxiliary memory unit 14, and a clock unit 15. The determination device 1 can be configured with one or more servers. The determination device 1 may perform distributed processing using multiple devices, or may use a virtual machine. The control unit 11 can be configured with a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The control unit 11 may be configured to include a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). A quantum computer may also be used.

[0032] The main memory unit 12 is a temporary storage area such as a static random access memory (SRAM), a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), or a flash memory, and temporarily stores data necessary for the control unit 11 to execute arithmetic processing.

[0033] The communication unit 13 has a function of communicating with the terminal 2 via the network N, and can transmit and receive required information. Specifically, the communication unit 13 receives the determination information transmitted by the terminal 2. The communication unit 13 transmits the determination results of the deterioration degree and warranty degree of the battery 3 to the terminal 2.

[0034] The auxiliary storage unit 14 is a large-capacity memory, a hard disk, or the like, and stores a program required for the control unit 11 to execute processing, a program 141 for performing a process of determining the degree of deterioration and warranty, which will be described later, a determination history DB 142, and a usage history DB 143. The determination history DB 142 may be stored in another DB server.

[0035] The program 141 stored in the auxiliary storage unit 14 may be provided by a recording medium 144 on which the program 141 is recorded in a readable manner. The recording medium 144 is, for example, a portable memory such as a USB memory, an SD card, a micro SD card, or a Compact Flash (registered trademark). The program 141 recorded in the recording medium 144 is read from the recording medium 144 using a reading device (not shown) and installed in the auxiliary storage unit 14. The program 141 may also be provided by communication via the communication unit 13. The timing unit 15 measures time.

[0036] 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the terminal 2. The terminal 2 includes a control unit 21 that controls the entire device, a main memory unit 22, a communication unit 23, an operation unit 24, a display panel 25, an auxiliary memory unit 26, a GPS receiving unit 27, and a speaker 28. The terminal 2 may be configured, for example, as a personal computer, a smartphone, a tablet, or the like. The control unit 21 can be configured with a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc. The control unit 21 may be configured to include a GPU.

[0037] The main memory unit 22 is a temporary storage area such as an SRAM, a DRAM, or a flash memory, and temporarily stores data necessary for the control unit 21 to execute arithmetic processing. The communication unit 23 has a function of communicating with the determination device 1 via the network N, and can transmit and receive required information.

[0038] The operation unit 24 is composed of, for example, a hardware keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, etc., and can operate icons and the like displayed on the display panel 25, input characters and the like, and the like.

[0039] The display panel 25 can be configured with a liquid crystal panel, an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display panel, etc. The control unit 21 performs control to display required information on the display panel 25. The control unit 21 displays information such as the degree of deterioration and the degree of warranty of the battery 3 acquired from the determination device 1 on the display panel 25.

[0040] The auxiliary storage unit 26 is a large-capacity memory or the like, and stores a program required for the control unit 21 to execute processing, and a Web browser program (hereinafter referred to as the program) 261. The program 261 is provided from the determination device 1 by communication via the communication unit 13. The program 261 may be provided by a recording medium 262 on which the program 261 is readably recorded.

[0041] The GPS receiver 27 receives radio waves from a plurality of GPS satellites and detects the position of the terminal 2 . The speaker 28 outputs sound according to instructions from the control unit 21 .

[0042] Table 1 shows an example of a table stored in the determination history DB 142.

[0043] [Table 1]

[0044] The judgment history DB142 stores a No. column, a usage period column, a usage state column of a mileage column, a liquid bleeding column, a terminal corrosion column, an appearance information column of a broken battery case column, an image column, an electrolyte specific gravity column, an internal inspection information column of a terminal voltage column, a vehicle type column, a location information / temperature column, a charge / discharge test result column, a dismantling investigation result column, a deterioration degree column, and a judgment column. The No. column stores row numbers when judgments are made on a number of different batteries 3 and on the same battery 3 at different times. The usage period column stores the usage period after the battery 3 is installed or replaced. The mileage column stores the mileage of the vehicle equipped with the battery 3. The liquid bleeding column stores the degree of electrolyte bleeding in five stages, for example, from 1 to 5. 1 is a state in which there is no bleeding at all, and the degree of bleeding increases as the number increases. The terminal corrosion column stores the degree of terminal corrosion in five stages, from 1 to 5. The number 1 indicates no corrosion at all, and the higher the number, the greater the amount of corrosion. The battery case damage column includes the lid, and is recorded on a five-level scale from 1 to 5 to indicate the degree of damage. The usage status column may further include information on the vehicle history and the warranty period of the battery 3. The appearance information sequence may further include information on deformation, discoloration, and liquid amount (liquid level) of the battery container.

[0045] The image sequence stores images taken of the battery 3. The images preferably include images from the front, side, back and top views, and more preferably also from the bottom. The electrolyte specific gravity column is expressed, for example, in five levels from 1 to 5, where 3 corresponds to the specific gravity at the time of battery 3's initial manufacture, and as the value increases, the specific gravity decreases, with 1 indicating a state in which the specific gravity has increased by 4 to 6% compared to when the battery was initially manufactured. Also, 5 indicates a state in which the specific gravity has decreased by 4 to 6%. The terminal voltage column stores the amount of terminal voltage drop in five levels from 1 to 5. "1" is the voltage at the start of use, and as the value increases, the amount of voltage drop increases.

[0046] The vehicle type column stores vehicle types. The location information / temperature column stores location information or temperature of the determination location. Instead of temperature, the temperature of the battery 3 may be stored. The charge / discharge test column stores test results such as capacity retention rate when a charge / discharge cycle test is performed. The capacity retention rate is expressed as a ratio of the capacity at the time of judgment to the initial capacity of 100%. The dismantling investigation column is expressed as a four-level evaluation value, for example from 1 to 4, based on information obtained during dismantling, such as corrosion of the positive electrode current collector, loss of electrolyte, softening of the positive electrode, and the presence or absence of sulfation, as well as the connection state between the electrode plate group and the terminals. "1" is a problem-free state at the start of use, and as the number increases, the degree of deterioration, such as corrosion, loss of electrolyte, softening of the positive electrode, and the presence or absence of sulfation, increases. "3" is the highest degree of deterioration, and "4" indicates that the degree of deterioration is "3", but the deterioration occurred due to usage conditions such as user negligence.

[0047] The deterioration level column is expressed in four stages based on the results of charge / discharge tests and dismantling inspections. "1" indicates no deterioration, and the higher the number, the more advanced the deterioration. "3" indicates the highest degree of deterioration, and "4" indicates that the degree of deterioration is "3", but the deterioration occurred due to user negligence or other usage conditions.

[0048] The determination column stores the determination result of the degree of guarantee. As an example of the degree of guarantee, there are four stages as follows. 1: Return the product to the user as a normal product. 2: The battery is in good condition, but will be recharged and returned. 3: Replace as defective product. 4: The product is defective, but the defect was caused by the user's actions and will be replaced for a fee. The degree of guarantee "1" corresponds to the degree of deterioration "1", the degree of guarantee "2" corresponds to the degree of deterioration "2", the degree of guarantee "3" corresponds to the degree of deterioration "3", and the degree of guarantee "4" corresponds to the degree of deterioration "4".

[0049] The judgment history DB142 is not limited to storing all of the above items as judgment information. The judgment information includes at least appearance information or images. In addition, the judgment of the deterioration degree is not limited to using both the charge / discharge test result and the dismantling investigation result. The evaluation method (stage) of each item is also not limited to the above.

[0050] The judgment history DB142 may store information for each battery 3 model or vehicle model. There are many cases where batteries 3 are brought to a dealer due to "starting problems", but the cause of the "starting problems" may be something other than a malfunction of the battery 3, for example, it may be due to the vehicle's control device controlling the vehicle based on the temperature, etc. In this case, the battery 3 is judged to be normal. This will show that there are such trends depending on the vehicle model, improving the accuracy and efficiency of the judgment. Recent failure statistics can also be set for each model.

[0051] Table 2 shows an example of a table stored in the usage history DB 143.

[0052] [Table 2]

[0053] The usage history DB 143 stores, for each battery 3, a No. column, a usage period column, a usage status column of a mileage column, an appearance information column of a seepage column, a terminal corrosion column, a battery case damage column, an image column, a specific gravity column of an electrolyte, a terminal voltage column, an internal inspection information column, a vehicle type column, a position information / temperature column, a deterioration degree column, and a judgment column. Table 2 shows the usage history of a battery 3 with ID No. 1. The usage period column, the mileage column, the seepage column, the terminal corrosion column, the battery case damage column, the image column, the specific gravity column of an electrolyte, the terminal voltage column, the vehicle type column, the position information / temperature column, the deterioration degree column, and the judgment column store the same contents as the usage period column, the mileage column, the seepage column, the terminal corrosion column, the battery case damage column, the image column, the specific gravity column of an electrolyte, the terminal voltage column, the vehicle type column, the position information / temperature column, the deterioration degree column, and the judgment column of the judgment history DB 142. The deterioration degree column stores the deterioration degree derived as described below, and the determination column stores the assurance level of the battery 3 based on the derived deterioration degree.

[0054] The following describes a method in which the determination device 1 estimates the deterioration level of the battery 3 and determines the warranty level of the battery 3 in four stages. The description is for a case in which the control unit 11 obtains and determines the determination information of the usage state, appearance information, images, internal inspection information, vehicle type, location information, or temperature. The determination information includes at least appearance information or image information.

[0055] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a display screen. The display screen of FIG. 4 shows the result of the judgment made by the control unit 11 based on the program 261, which is input by the staff using the operation unit 24 on the web browser screen displayed on the display panel 25. The control unit 21 displays, on the left side of the display screen, an input field for the vehicle model, an input field for the usage status, the start date of use, and the mileage, and an input field for the appearance information, such as liquid bleeding, terminal corrosion, and battery case damage. The control unit 21 displays an image display button and a send button in the upper center of the display screen, and displays an input field for the specific gravity of the electrolyte and the terminal voltage in the lower part. The control unit 21 displays a button for sending location information and a display field for temperature in the upper right part, and displays the judgment results of the deterioration degree and the warranty degree.

[0056] The staff inputs the manufacturer name and the model of the vehicle into the model input field. The date of start of use is input into the input field for the start date of use. When the start date of use is input, the control unit 21 displays the calculated period of use in the field for the period of use adjacent to the input field for the start date of use. The number of kilometers of the mileage is input into the input field for the distance traveled. The staff inputs the results of the above-mentioned five-level evaluation into the input fields for the liquid bleeding, the corrosion of the terminals, and the damage of the battery case. When the staff clicks the display button for the image, the control unit 21 displays a plurality of images taken using the camera 4, and the staff clicks on the selection part at the bottom right of the captured image and clicks on the send button, and the selected captured image is transmitted to the determination device 1. The staff inputs the results of the above-mentioned five-level evaluation into the input fields for the specific gravity of the electrolyte and the terminal voltage. When the staff clicks on the send button for the location information, the location information is transmitted to the determination device 1. The control unit 21 may display the temperature based on the location information in the temperature display field, or may accept the input of the temperature by the staff and transmit it to the determination device 1. Instead of the temperature, the control unit 21 may accept the input of the temperature of the battery 3. The procedure shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5 will be described below with reference to this diagram.

[0057] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the process of deriving the deterioration degree and determining the degree of guarantee by the control unit 11. The control unit 21 acquires the vehicle model input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S201). The control unit 21 transmits the vehicle type to the determination device 1 (S202). The control unit 11 receives the vehicle model and stores it in the usage history DB 143 (S101).

[0058] The control unit 21 transmits the position information detected by the GPS receiving unit 27 to the determination device 1 (S203). The control unit 11 receives the location information and stores the temperature corresponding to the location information in the usage history DB 143 (S102).

[0059] The control unit 21 acquires the usage status such as the usage period and mileage input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S204). The control unit 21 transmits the usage state to the determination device 1 (S205). The control unit 11 receives the usage state and stores it in the usage history DB 143 (S103).

[0060] The control unit 21 acquires appearance information such as liquid bleeding, corrosion of the terminals, and damage to the battery case that is input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S206). The control unit 21 transmits the appearance information to the determination device 1 (S207). The control unit 11 receives the appearance information and stores it in the usage history DB 143 (S104).

[0061] The control unit 21 acquires an image of the battery 3 taken by the staff member using the camera 4 (S208). The control unit 21 transmits the image to the determination device 1 (S209). The control unit 11 receives the image and stores it in the usage history DB 143 (S105).

[0062] The control unit 21 acquires internal inspection information such as the specific gravity of the electrolyte measured by the staff using the specific gravity meter 6, the terminal voltage measured by the tester 5, etc. (S210). The control unit 21 transmits the internal inspection information to the determination device 1 (S211). The control unit 11 receives the internal inspection information and stores it in the usage history DB 143 (S106).

[0063] The control unit 11 derives the degree of deterioration (S107). The control unit 11 derives the degree of deterioration corresponding to the acquired judgment information based on a rule base of the relationship between the usage state, appearance information, images, internal inspection information, vehicle type, location information, and temperature stored in the judgment history DB 142 and the degree of deterioration based on the charge / discharge test results and dismantling investigation results. That is, the degree of deterioration is determined by a combination of information on each item. When the relationship can be expressed as a function, the control unit 11 may set multiple thresholds in stages for the value of the function, and derive the degree of deterioration based on the obtained value of the function and the thresholds.

[0064] The control unit 11 determines the degree of guarantee based on the degree of deterioration (S108). The control unit 11 judges the degree of warranty as "1" when the degree of deterioration is "1", judges the degree of warranty as "2" when the degree of deterioration is "2", judges the degree of warranty as "3" when the degree of deterioration is "3", and judges the degree of warranty as "4" when the degree of deterioration is "4". The control unit 11 transmits the result (S109) and ends the process. The control unit 21 receives the result (S212), displays it on the display panel 25 (S213), and ends the process.

[0065] According to this embodiment, the degree of deterioration or warranty of the battery 3 is determined by referring to the judgment history DB142 which stores judgment information in correspondence with the degree of deterioration or warranty of the battery 3, so that the degree of deterioration or warranty of the battery 3 can be determined quickly, objectively, and accurately without relying on the skills of the staff. Since the number of steps required for judgment is reduced and judgment can be made quickly, user satisfaction is improved and unnecessary warranty costs are reduced.

[0066] (Embodiment 2) 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the determination device 1 according to embodiment 2. The determination device 1 according to embodiment 2 has the same configuration as the determination device 1 according to embodiment 1, except that a program 145 and a learning model 146 are stored in the auxiliary storage unit 14, the program 145 is installed in the auxiliary storage unit 14 by a recording medium 147, and the contents of the table of the usage history DB 143 are different.

[0067] Table 3 shows an example of a table stored in the usage history DB 143.

[0068] [Table 3]

[0069] The table of the usage history DB 143 of the second embodiment has the same configuration as the table of the first embodiment, except that in addition to the contents of the table of the usage history DB 143 of the first embodiment, a column of judgments of actual measurements is stored. The column of judgments of actual measurements stores judgment results of the degree of assurance of actual measurements based on the results of charge / discharge tests and dismantling investigations. The judgment of actual measurements is performed for re-learning, which will be described later, and does not need to be performed at every judgment.

[0070] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the learning model 146. The learning model 146 is a learning model that is expected to be used as a program module that is a part of artificial intelligence software, and can use a multi-layered neural network (deep learning). For example, a convolutional neural network (CNN) can be used, but a recurrent neural network (RNN) may also be used. When an RNN is used, judgment information is input over time, and the degree of assurance is output over time. Other machine learning may also be used. The control unit 11 operates to perform calculations on the judgment information input to the input layer of the learning model 146 according to instructions from the learning model 146, and output the degree of assurance and its probability as a judgment result. In the case of a CNN, the intermediate layer includes a convolution layer, a pooling layer, and a fully connected layer. The number of nodes (neurons) is not limited to the case of FIG. 7.

[0071] The input layer, output layer, and intermediate layer each have one or more nodes, and the nodes in each layer are connected in one direction with a desired weight to the nodes in the previous and next layers. A vector having the same number of components as the number of nodes in the input layer is provided as input data (input data for learning and input data for judgment) for the learning model 146.

[0072] The trained input data includes at least appearance information or image information. As described above, the appearance information is a 5-level evaluation by staff of at least one of liquid bleeding, corrosion of the terminal, and damage to the battery case. The images preferably include images from the front, side, back, and plan, and more preferably also include a bottom view. It is preferable to input an image that includes at least the terminal, and is captured so that the presence or absence of leakage can be determined and the degree of damage to the battery case can be determined. For example, sulfuric acid may leak due to bending of the terminal, and appearance information or image information about the terminal, leakage, and damage can be input into the learning model 146 to obtain the degree of warranty based on the degree of deterioration. If appearance information or image information including an abnormality such as damage to the battery case caused by a problem in use is input, a warranty degree of "4" is output, indicating that the battery case will be replaced for a fee. The determination information may further include at least one of usage status information, internal inspection information, vehicle type information, and location information or temperature.

[0073] The input layer of the trained learning model 146 receives judgment information. When data provided to each node of the input layer is input and provided to the first intermediate layer, the output of the intermediate layer is calculated using weights and activation functions, and the calculated value is provided to the next intermediate layer, and so on until the output of the output layer is obtained. All weights connecting the nodes are calculated by the learning algorithm.

[0074] The output layer of the learning model 146 generates the degree of assurance and its probability as output data. The output layer is For example, the probability that the degree of guarantee is 1 is 0.03. Probability that the degree of guarantee is 2…0.90 Probability that the guarantee level is 3…0.06 Probability that the guarantee level is 4…0.01 The output will be as follows.

[0075] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the process of generating the learning model 146 by the control unit 11. The control unit 11 reads out the judgment history DB 142, and acquires training data in which judgment information for each row is associated with the degree of guarantee (S301).

[0076] The control unit 11 uses the training data to generate a learning model 146 (trained model) that outputs the probability of the degree of assurance when judgment information is input (S302). Specifically, the control unit 11 inputs the training data to the input layer, and acquires the probability of the degree of assurance from the output layer through calculation processing in the intermediate layer. The control unit 11 compares the result of the determination of the degree of assurance output from the output layer with information labeled with the determination information in the training data, i.e., the correct answer value, and optimizes parameters used in the calculation process in the intermediate layer so that the output value from the output layer approaches the correct answer value. The parameters are, for example, the above-mentioned weights (combination coefficients) and activation function coefficients. There are no particular limitations on the method of optimizing the parameters, but for example, the control unit 11 optimizes various parameters using an error backpropagation method. The control unit 11 stores the generated learning model 146 in the auxiliary storage unit 14, and ends the series of processes.

[0077] FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the process of determining the degree of assurance by the control unit 11. The control unit 21 acquires the vehicle model input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S221). The control unit 21 transmits the vehicle type to the determination device 1 (S222). The control unit 11 receives the vehicle model (S111).

[0078] The control unit 21 transmits the position information detected by the GPS receiving unit 27 to the determination device 1 (S223). The control unit 11 receives the location information (S112).

[0079] The control unit 21 acquires the usage status such as the usage period and mileage input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S224). The control unit 21 transmits the usage state to the determination device 1 (S225). The control unit 11 receives the usage state (S113).

[0080] The control unit 21 acquires appearance information such as liquid bleeding, corrosion of the terminals, and damage to the battery case that is input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S226). The control unit 21 transmits the appearance information to the determination device 1 (S227). The control unit 11 receives the appearance information (S114).

[0081] The control unit 21 acquires an image of the battery 3 taken by the staff member using the camera 4 (S228). The control unit 21 transmits the image to the determination device 1 (S229). The control unit 11 receives the image (S115).

[0082] The control unit 21 acquires internal inspection information such as the specific gravity of the electrolyte measured by the staff using the specific gravity meter 6, the terminal voltage measured by the tester 5, etc. (S230). The control unit 21 transmits the internal inspection information to the determination device 1 (S231). The control unit 11 receives the internal inspection information (S116).

[0083] The control unit 11 inputs the determination information to the learning model 146 (S117). The control unit 11 acquires the degree of assurance (S118) based on the degree of assurance and the probability output by the learning model 146. For example, the control unit 11 acquires the degree of assurance when the probability is 80% or more. The control unit 11 transmits the result of the degree of assurance to the terminal 2 (S119), and ends the process. The control unit 21 receives the result of the determination (S232). The control unit 21 displays the result of the determination on the display panel 25 (S233), and ends the process.

[0084] The control unit 11 can retrain the learning model 146 so as to improve the reliability of the judgment based on the degree of assurance judged using the learning model 146 and the degree of assurance obtained by actual measurement. For example, in No. 2 of Table 3, the judgment result by the learning model 146 and the judgment result by actual measurement match, so that the probability of the judgment result can be increased by inputting a large amount of training data in which the judgment result is associated with the judgment information in the row of No. 2 and re-learning it. If the judgment result by the learning model 146 and the judgment result by actual measurement do not match, training data in which the judgment result by actual measurement is associated is input and re-learned.

[0085] According to this embodiment, the degree of deterioration or warranty of a lead-acid battery can be determined easily and effectively. In the learning model 146, an image may be input to multiple convolution layers and pooling layers for compression, and the image data in the pooling layers may be combined with other judgment information, and then the image data may be further input to multiple convolution layers and pooling layers for compression, and the degree of assurance may be output. The above-mentioned learning model 146 is described as outputting the degree of assurance based on the judgment information, but is not limited to this. It may be outputting the degree of deterioration based on the judgment information. The control unit 11 obtains the degree of deterioration from the learning model 146 and judges the degree of assurance based on the degree of deterioration.

[0086] (Embodiment 3) 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a work support device 17 according to embodiment 3. The work support device 17 according to embodiment 3 has a similar configuration to the determination device 1 according to embodiment 1, except that a program 148 is stored in an auxiliary storage unit 14, and the program 148 is installed in the auxiliary storage unit 14 by a recording medium 149. A terminal 2 of a store selling batteries 3 is connected to the work support device 17 via a network N such as the Internet.

[0087] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the determination process by the control unit 11. The control unit 21 acquires the vehicle model input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S241). The control unit 21 transmits the vehicle type to the work support device 17 (S242). The control unit 11 receives the vehicle model (S121).

[0088] The control unit 21 transmits the position information detected by the GPS receiving unit 27 to the work support device 17 (S243). The control unit 11 receives the location information (S122).

[0089] The control unit 21 acquires the usage status such as the usage period and mileage input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S244). The control unit 21 transmits the usage state to the work support device 17 (S245). The control unit 11 receives the usage state (S123).

[0090] The control unit 21 acquires appearance information such as liquid bleeding, corrosion of the terminals, and damage to the battery case that is input by the staff member using the operation unit 24 (S246). The control unit 21 transmits the appearance information to the work support device 17 (S247). The control unit 11 receives the appearance information (S124).

[0091] The control unit 11 judges whether or not it is necessary to obtain an image for the next job (S125). The control unit 11 reads out the judgment history DB 142, and derives the degree of deterioration based on a rule base of the relationship between the vehicle model, location information, usage state, and appearance information, and the degree of deterioration. The control unit 11 may derive the degree of deterioration based on a threshold value and a value of a function based on the relationship. When the control unit 11 judges that the degree of deterioration is 1 and it is not necessary to obtain an image (S125: NO), the process proceeds to S132, and the control unit 11 judges that the degree of assurance is 1. If it is necessary to obtain an image (S125: YES), the control unit 11 transmits an instruction to obtain an image to the terminal 2 (S126). The control unit 21 receives the instruction, displays it on the display panel 25 or outputs audio from the speaker to prompt the staff member to capture an image, and captures an image of the battery 3 captured by the staff member using the camera 4 (S248). The control unit 21 transmits the image to the work support device 17 (S249).

[0092] The control unit 11 receives the image (S127). The control unit 11 judges whether the next job of internal inspection is necessary (S128). The control unit 11 reads the judgment history DB 142 and derives the degree of deterioration based on a rule base of the relationship between the vehicle model, location information, usage state, appearance information, and image, and the degree of deterioration. The control unit 11 may derive the degree of deterioration based on a threshold value and a value of a function based on the relationship. If the control unit 11 judges that the degree of deterioration is 2 and an internal inspection is not necessary (S128: NO), the process proceeds to S132 and the degree of warranty is judged to be 2. If an internal inspection is required (S128: YES), the control unit 11 transmits an instruction to the terminal 2 to inspect the inside (S129). The control unit 21 displays on the display panel 25 or outputs a sound from the speaker to urge the staff to perform an internal inspection, and acquires internal inspection information (S250). The control unit 21 transmits the internal inspection information to the work support device 17 (S251). The control unit 11 receives the internal inspection information (S130).

[0093] The control unit 11 derives the degree of deterioration based on a rule base of the relationship between the vehicle model, location information, usage state, appearance information, images, internal inspection information, and the degree of deterioration (S131). The control unit 11 may derive the degree of deterioration based on a function value based on the relationship and a threshold value.

[0094] The control unit 11 determines the degree of guarantee based on the degree of deterioration (S132). The control unit 11 transmits the result of the determination to the terminal 2 (S133), and ends the process. The control unit 21 receives the result of the determination (S252). The control unit 21 displays the result of the determination on the display panel 25 (S253), and ends the process.

[0095] According to this embodiment, the work support device 17 determines whether or not to perform the next determination work based on the result of one determination process, so that unnecessary determination processes can be omitted and the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery can be determined efficiently. Note that the contents of the determination process are not limited to the above case.

[0096] The present invention is not limited to the contents of the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. In other words, embodiments obtained by combining technical means appropriately modified within the scope of the claims are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0097] 1 Judgment device 2. Terminal 3 batteries 4 Camera (imaging unit) 5 Tester (voltage measurement section) 6 Hydrometer (specific gravity measuring section) 10. Deterioration Judgment System 11 Control unit (acquisition unit, judgment unit, output unit) 12 Main memory 13, 23 Communications Department 14, 26 Auxiliary storage 141, 145, 148 Programs 144, 147, 149, 262 Recording media 261 Web Browser Programs 142 Judgment history DB 143 Usage History DB 146 Learning Model 21 Control section 24 Control section 25 Display Panel 27 GPS receiver 28 Speaker

Claims

1. An acquisition unit that acquires judgment information including appearance information or image information including electrolyte bleeding, terminal corrosion, or battery case damage of the lead-acid battery in order to judge the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery; a determination unit that determines a degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery based on the acquired determination information by referring to a database that stores the determination information and a degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery in association with each other; an output unit that outputs the result determined by the determination unit; A determination device comprising:

2. An acquisition unit that acquires judgment information including appearance information or image information including electrolyte bleeding, terminal corrosion, or battery case damage of the lead-acid battery in order to judge the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery; a determination unit that, when determination information is input, inputs the acquired determination information into a learning model that outputs a deterioration degree or a warranty degree of the lead-acid battery, and determines a deterioration degree or a warranty degree of the lead-acid battery; A determination device comprising:

3. The determination device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the determination information further includes at least one piece of information selected from the group consisting of usage status information including a period of use or a mileage, internal inspection information including a specific gravity of the electrolyte or a terminal voltage, vehicle type information, and location information or air temperature.

4. A determination device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, An imaging unit that captures an image of the lead-acid battery; A voltage measuring unit for measuring a terminal voltage of the lead-acid battery; A specific gravity measuring unit for measuring a specific gravity of an electrolyte of the lead-acid battery; a terminal that acquires the image, the terminal voltage, or the specific gravity and outputs the image, the terminal voltage, or the specific gravity to the determination device; A deterioration determination system comprising:

5. A receiving unit that receives, from an external terminal, determination information including appearance information or image information including electrolyte leakage, terminal corrosion, or battery case damage of the lead-acid battery, in order to determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery obtained by the obtaining operation; A first determination unit that determines deterioration of the lead-acid battery based on the received determination information; A second determination unit that determines whether or not to perform a next operation of acquiring determination information based on a result determined by the first determination unit; a transmission unit that transmits an instruction for the acquisition work to the terminal when the second determination unit determines that the acquisition work is to be performed; A work support device comprising:

6. Obtaining judgment information including appearance information or image information including electrolyte bleeding, terminal corrosion, or battery case damage of the lead-acid battery for judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery; Based on the acquired determination information, a database is referenced that stores the determination information and the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery in association with each other to determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery; Output the judged result Deterioration judgment method.

7. Obtaining judgment information including appearance information or image information including electrolyte bleeding, terminal corrosion, or battery case damage of the lead-acid battery for judging the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery; Based on the acquired determination information, a database is referenced that stores the determination information and the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery in association with each other to determine the degree of deterioration or warranty of the lead-acid battery; Output the judged result A computer program that causes a computer to carry out processing.

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