Information Processing Apparatus, Water Balance Information Acquisition Method, and Program

Abstract

[Problem] A technique for acquiring information pertaining to the water balance in a subject area is required. [Solution] Information pertaining to the water balance in a subject area can be acquired by an information processing device 1 comprising: a model acquisition unit 141 for acquiring a water circulation model that is constructed so as to correspond to a subject area, and that pertains to two or more parameters pertaining to water circulation; a known information acquisition unit 143 for acquiring the value of at least one parameter among parameters acquired for the subject area and pertaining to the water circulation; and an estimated value acquisition unit 151 for using the water circulation model and the values acquired by the known information acquisition unit 143 to carry out an inverse problem analysis, thereby acquiring an estimated value pertaining to one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a water balance information acquisition method, and a program capable of acquiring information regarding the water balance in a target area.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, for example, when operating facilities such as factories, it has been required to be aware of the amount of water resources in a spatial unit of an area having a certain range of spatial spread, such as each facility unit or a catchment area unit including the facility. For example, the amount of water resources in a target area is monitored, and after analyzing the monitoring results, the analysis results are utilized for production activities, operation management of water resources, or water resource protection activities, etc. Regarding such activities, it is desirable to formulate an effective future plan and perform appropriate operation management by making a future prediction considering the time scale.

[0003] That is, conventionally, for example, when production activities are carried out in a factory or the like, regardless of the type of product produced, water resources are used in large quantities for purposes such as for boilers, for raw materials, for product processing, for equipment cleaning, for equipment cooling, for temperature control equipment cleaning water, etc. Facilities that use water resources include facilities that own their own wells and draw water, and facilities that use tap water or industrial water purchased from the state, local governments, etc. In any water intake method, the water resources in the catchment area around the facility and the water resources in the vicinity thereof are utilized.

[0004] Whether a facility can continue to operate depends on the sustainability of securing water resources in the watershed around the facility. To enhance the sustainability of securing water resources, it is important not only to improve the efficiency of water resource utilization in the facility but also to formulate an operation plan for the facility so as to reduce the impact on water resources in the watershed around the facility. Specifically, for example, when formulating an operation plan for the facility, it is necessary to pay attention to various parameters related to the water cycle, such as the water level of rivers, the water level of groundwater, and the yield. Also, if the sustainability of securing water resources in the watershed around the facility is estimated to be low, it is necessary to formulate an implementation plan for, for example, paddy field conservation activities and forest conservation activities in order to protect water resources.

[0005] By the way, it is not easy to accurately grasp the behavior of water in a certain range of geosphere environment with a certain spread. Water repeats various behaviors such as evaporation, rainfall, river flow, infiltration, groundwater flow, and spring water between various systems such as the atmosphere, the earth's surface, and even underground, and is stored as groundwater or flows out of that area.

[0006] Therefore, in order to confirm the sustainability of securing water resources in the facility unit and the watershed unit including the facility, it is necessary to monitor the water balance of the water resources in the watershed. And it is necessary to appropriately manage the flow rate, storage volume, and variation volume of water resources (hereinafter referred to as the water balance of the target area) in the facility unit and the watershed unit including the facility.

[0007] Conventionally, a water cycle model has sometimes been used for water resource management (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 1 below). By using the water cycle model, it becomes possible to quantify the water balance in places where it is difficult to directly observe, and it becomes possible to perform water resource management at any place.

[0008] Note that Patent Document 2 below describes that in the case of performing substance movement analysis in groundwater using the advection-dispersion delay model with the flow direction dispersion coefficient as a substance transport parameter, the parameters are determined by trial and error.

[0009] In addition, Patent Document 3 below describes performing inverse analysis to identify unknown parameters included in the analytical solution of the heat transfer equation using the measured values measured by a heat response test when performing analysis of a heat response test for evaluating the heat exchange characteristics of the ground of the investigation target based on the change over time of the amount of temperature rise in the ground measured by the heat response test.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0010]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Non-Patent Documents

[0011]

Non-Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0012] In order to obtain information on the water balance using a water circulation model in a target area, it is necessary to grasp information on the parameters related to the water circulation used in the water circulation model. However, depending on the parameters, it may not be easy to obtain the information due to difficulties in measurement or non-disclosure.

[0013] In the method described in Patent Document 2 above, parameters can be determined through trial and error, but a different method is also required.

[0014] An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus, a water balance information acquisition method, and a program that can acquire information related to the water balance in a target area.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0015] The information processing apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention includes: a model acquisition unit that acquires a water circulation model related to two or more parameters related to water circulation, configured to correspond to a target area; a known information acquisition unit that acquires the value of at least one parameter among the parameters related to water circulation obtained for the target area; and an estimated value acquisition unit that performs inverse problem analysis using the water circulation model and the value acquired by the known information acquisition unit to acquire an estimated value related to one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model.

[0016] With such a configuration, information related to the water balance in the target area can be acquired.

[0017] Further, the information processing apparatus of the second aspect of the present invention, with respect to the first aspect, includes an evaluation unit that determines whether or not a predetermined evaluation condition is satisfied using information related to two or more parameters related to water circulation, including the estimated value related to at least one water balance item acquired by the estimated value acquisition unit; and an evaluation information output unit that outputs evaluation information related to the determination result of the evaluation unit.

[0018] With such a configuration, evaluation information related to water circulation can be known.

[0019] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the third invention, with respect to the second invention, the estimated value acquisition unit is configured to acquire an estimated value of the groundwater inflow amount in the target area and an estimated value of the pumping amount in the target area, and the evaluation unit is an information processing apparatus that determines whether or not the comparison result between the estimated value of the groundwater inflow amount and the estimated value of the pumping amount satisfies a predetermined evaluation condition.

[0020] With such a configuration, it is possible to know the evaluation information regarding the relationship between the groundwater inflow amount and the pumping amount.

[0021] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the fourth invention, with respect to any one of the first to third inventions, the target area is set to include a point where pumping is performed at one or more locations, the water circulation model is configured to be related to the pumping amount in the target area, and the estimated value acquisition unit is an information processing apparatus configured to acquire an estimated value of the pumping amount in the target area.

[0022] With such a configuration, it is possible to acquire information regarding the pumping amount in the target area.

[0023] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the fifth invention, with respect to the fourth invention, the water circulation model is configured to use at least information regarding the pumping amount in the target area and output the groundwater level as an output of the forward problem, and the known information acquisition unit is an information processing apparatus configured to acquire at least the value of the groundwater level observed in the target area.

[0024] With such a configuration, it is possible to acquire information regarding the pumping amount in the target area using the value of the groundwater level.

[0025] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the sixth invention, with respect to the fifth invention, the target area is set to include points where pumping is performed at two or more locations, the known information acquisition unit is configured to acquire at least the value of the known pumping amount in the target area, and the estimated value acquisition unit is an information processing apparatus that acquires an estimated value regarding the unknown pumping amount in the target area.

[0026] With such a configuration, it is possible to obtain information regarding unknown pumping amounts in a target area including locations where pumping is performed at two or more locations.

[0027] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the seventh invention, with respect to the sixth invention, the estimated value acquisition unit performs inverse problem analysis using a value of another parameter different from the water circulation model and the value of the known pumping amount, thereby obtaining an estimated value regarding the pumping amount over the entire target area, and subtracting the value of the known pumping amount from the estimated value regarding the pumping amount over the entire target area to obtain an estimated value regarding the unknown pumping amount.

[0028] With such a configuration, it is possible to easily obtain information regarding unknown pumping amounts in the target area.

[0029] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the eighth invention, with respect to any one of the first to seventh inventions, the estimated value acquisition unit applies the value of the parameter regarding water circulation acquired by the known information acquisition unit and a hypothetical value of a parameter regarding water circulation that is otherwise unknown to the water circulation model to perform inverse problem analysis, thereby obtaining a value of a structural parameter regarding the underground structure used in the water circulation model.

[0030] With such a configuration, it is possible to obtain parameters regarding the underground structure used in the water circulation model of the target area.

[0031] Further, in the information processing apparatus of the ninth invention, with respect to the eighth invention, the estimated value acquisition unit further applies the acquired underground structure parameter and the value of the parameter regarding water circulation acquired by the known information acquisition unit to the water circulation model to perform inverse problem analysis, thereby obtaining an estimated value regarding one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model.

[0032] With such a configuration, it is possible to obtain information regarding the water balance with higher accuracy based on the underground structure parameters in the target area.

[0033] In addition, the information processing apparatus of the tenth invention is an information processing apparatus in which, with respect to any one of the first to ninth inventions, the water circulation model is configured to represent a saturated infiltration flow.

[0034] With such a configuration, by limiting the target area to the target area represented by the saturated infiltration flow and further limiting it to the underground area which is the saturated infiltration flow, the calculation speed can be improved and information regarding the water balance can be obtained.

Advantages of the Invention

[0035] According to the information processing apparatus of the present invention, information regarding the water balance in the target area can be obtained.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0036]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0037] Hereinafter, embodiments of an information processing apparatus and the like will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0038] Note that the terms used below are generally defined as follows. Note that the semantic meanings of these terms should not always be interpreted as shown here. For example, when individually explained below, they should be interpreted taking into account that explanation as well.

[0039] Regarding a certain matter, an identifier is a character, symbol, etc. that uniquely indicates the matter. A symbol is, for example, alphanumeric characters or other symbols, but is not limited to this. An identifier is, for example, a symbol string that does not itself indicate a specific meaning, but any type of information that can identify the corresponding matter. That is, an identifier may be the name of the thing it indicates itself, or it may be a combination of symbols that uniquely corresponds. A combination of two or more pieces of information (for example, the attribute values of records stored in a database, etc.) may be used as an identifier.

[0040] "Acquisition" may include acquiring a matter input by a user or the like, or may include acquiring information stored in the own device or another device (which may be information stored in advance or information generated by performing information processing in the device). Acquiring information stored in another device may include acquiring information stored in another device via an API or the like, or may include acquiring the content of a document file provided by another device (including the content of a web page, etc.).

[0041] In addition, for information acquisition, so-called machine learning techniques may be used. Regarding the use of machine learning techniques, for example, it can be done as follows. That is, learning information with specific types of input information as input and the types of output information to be obtained as output is configured using machine learning techniques. For example, in advance, two or more pairs of input information and output information are prepared, and the two or more pairs of information are given to a module for constructing learning information of machine learning to construct learning information, and the constructed learning information is accumulated in the storage unit. Note that the learning information can also be called a learning device or a classifier. Note that as machine learning techniques, for example, deep learning, random forest, SVR, etc. can be used without limitation. Also, for machine learning, for example, functions in various machine learning frameworks such as fastText, tinySVM, random forest, TensorFlow, etc., and various existing libraries can be used.

[0042] Note that the learning information is not limited to that obtained by machine learning. The learning information may be, for example, a table showing the correspondence between an input vector based on input information, etc. and output information. In this case, the output information corresponding to the feature vector based on the input information may be obtained from the table, or a vector approximating the feature vector based on the input information may be generated using two or more input vectors in the table and parameters such as weighting of each input vector, and the final output information may be obtained using the output information corresponding to each input vector used in the generation and the parameters. Also, the learning information may be, for example, a function or the like representing the relationship between an input vector based on input information, etc. and information for generating output information. In this case, for example, the information corresponding to the feature vector based on the input information may be obtained by the function, and the output information may be obtained using the obtained information.

[0043] Outputting information is a concept that includes display on a display, projection using a projector, printing by a printer, sound output, transmission to an external device, storage on a recording medium, delivery of processing results to other processing devices, other programs, etc. Specifically, for example, it includes enabling display of information on a web page, transmitting it as an e-mail or the like, and outputting information for printing.

[0044] Receiving information is a concept that includes receiving information input from input devices such as a keyboard, mouse, touch panel, etc., receiving information transmitted from other devices via a wired or wireless communication line, and receiving information read from a recording medium such as an optical disk, magnetic disk, semiconductor memory, etc.

[0045] (Embodiment)

[0046] In the present embodiment, the information processing apparatus is configured to perform inverse problem analysis (inverse analysis) using a water circulation model related to two or more parameters related to water circulation configured to correspond to a target area and information related to the groundwater level obtained in the target area, so as to obtain estimated values related to one or more water balance items. More specifically, the information processing apparatus is configured to perform inverse problem analysis using a water circulation model related to two or more parameters related to water circulation configured to correspond to a target area and including the groundwater level, and information related to the groundwater level obtained in the target area, so as to obtain estimated values related to one or more water balance items.

[0047] Also, in the present embodiment, the information processing apparatus uses information related to two or more parameters related to water circulation including estimated values related to at least one water balance item to determine whether a predetermined evaluation condition is satisfied, and outputs information related to the determination result according to the determination result. Hereinafter, an example of the information processing apparatus configured as described above will be described.

[0048] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the use of the information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

[0049] In FIG. 1, a general water cycle is shown by taking one river basin as an example. That is, in nature, water circulates as precipitation (S1) from the air, infiltration (S2) into the ground, outflow (S3) from groundwater to rivers and the ocean, evaporation (S4) from the ground surface, the ocean, etc., and precipitation (S1) from the air. For each aspect, for example, the infiltration amount (the amount of water supplied from the ground surface to the groundwater level), the groundwater level, the river flow rate, the amount of water used due to human activities, and the evapotranspiration amount, etc. can be the values of water balance items and other parameters related to the water cycle.

[0050] In the present embodiment, the information processing apparatus is configured to be able to output information related to the water cycle by, for example, a water cycle model. The water cycle model is one in which the circulation state of water resources is modeled in a target area including forests, rivers, and other types of land. The target area can be set, for example, in units of factories or river basins including factories. That is, the target area can be set as a spatial unit having a certain range of spatial extent. The water cycle model is, for example, a distributed water cycle model in which the target area is divided into unit areas.

[0051] Here, the unit area may be an area called a mesh that constitutes the model, or may be an area partitioned by other methods. The unit area may be said to be a pre-partitioned area. For example, an area of a predetermined size specified by longitude and latitude may be set as the unit area. Note that the parameters of each unit area included in one river basin may be set to the same value as each other.

[0052] In the present embodiment, the water circulation model is configured using a parameter group including two or more parameters. The distributed water circulation model is composed of a number of meshes obtained by dividing a unit area into a grid and a parameter group including a number of meshes each associated with position information for specifying a position and two or more parameters related to water circulation (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as parameters) applied to each mesh. For each mesh of the distributed water circulation model, by setting the values of the parameters, it is possible to simulate the circulation state of water resources in the model. Note that the position information of each mesh may be information indicating a relative positional relationship with an adjacent mesh, or information indicating an absolute position such as information indicating a position in a predetermined coordinate system.

[0053] As the distributed water circulation model, for example, known models such as "GETFLOWS (registered trademark)" and "FEFLOW" can be adopted. Note that the water circulation model is not limited to the distributed model, and may be, for example, a lumped model.

[0054] Here, in this embodiment, it is preferable to use a water circulation model that analyzes saturated seepage flow with respect to the flow of groundwater and does not analyze unsaturated seepage flow. In other words, it is preferable to limit the area to be modeled to the area where saturated seepage flow occurs. In this way, when limiting the main flow to be calculated to saturated seepage flow, a water circulation model such as "FEFLOW" can be used. By limiting the analysis target of the flow to only saturated seepage flow, the analysis can be simplified and the analysis can be performed quickly. More specifically, when performing saturated-unsaturated seepage flow analysis in the evaluation of recharge, it is necessary to separately model the physical properties of the soil (such as the relationship between the permeability coefficient and the water potential, and the relationship between the volumetric water content and the water potential), so the model and analysis method become complicated. On the other hand, when performing an analysis limited to saturated seepage flow, since the parameters related to the physical properties of the soil can be analyzed as constants, the analysis can be performed more simply. Also, as will be described later, especially when obtaining estimated values for water balance items such as the pumping volume, it can be said that the area where saturated seepage flow occurs is an important area for understanding the relationship with the surrounding area. Even when performing the analysis considering only such an area, a highly accurate estimated value can be obtained.

[0055] Here, the parameters related to the water cycle include not only the parameters corresponding to the water balance items but also those that do not correspond to the water balance items.

[0056] The water balance items refer to the parameters indicating the amounts of elements related to the water cycle. The water balance items may include, for example, precipitation, river flow, evapotranspiration, pumping volume, storage volume, and the variation amounts thereof. That is, roughly speaking, in a certain area, it can be said that the precipitation is equal to the sum of the river flow, the evapotranspiration, the pumping volume, and the change in the storage volume. The parameters related to the amounts representing such a water balance can be called water balance items. Note that the water balance items are not limited to this, and can be appropriately defined for the amounts related to water resources according to the purpose of grasping the water balance and the like.

[0057] On the other hand, parameters that do not fall under the water balance items can be said to be parameters that represent potential rather than the amount of water. For example, the hydraulic conductivity, the groundwater level, etc. may correspond to parameters that do not fall under the water balance items. Parameters that do not fall under the water balance items may be referred to as parameters indicating the properties and states related to the water cycle.

[0058] Note that the parameters are not limited to these and are variously selected depending on the type of the water cycle model, etc. For example, those related to elements such as meteorology, the ground surface, the shallow layer, and the deep layer (e.g., precipitation, temperature, topsoil, sediment, aquifer, etc.), those related to human activities (e.g., pumping and water intake, drainage, etc.), and those related to the properties specific to the location, etc. can be set. More specifically, for example, parameters such as precipitation amount, river flow rate, evapotranspiration amount, pumping amount, change in storage amount, temperature, wind speed, sunshine duration, relative humidity, canopy cover rate, canopy storage amount, litter cover rate, litter storage amount, snow accumulation and melting temperature, albedo, bulk transport coefficient, soil evaporation efficiency, groundwater flow, equivalent roughness coefficient, groundwater flow, hydraulic conductivity, effective porosity, solid-phase compressibility, relative permeability, capillary pressure, fluid physical properties, fluid density, air density, viscosity coefficient of the fluid, viscosity coefficient of the air, etc. can be set.

[0059] Here, as described below, in the present embodiment, the value of a parameter related to an unknown water cycle, which is used in a water cycle model configured to estimate one or more water balance items in a target area using the information processing apparatus 1, can be estimated by inverse problem analysis. By estimating the value of a parameter related to an unknown water cycle (hereinafter sometimes referred to as unknown information) using the information processing apparatus 1, information related to the water cycle in the target area can be grasped. Therefore, the management and evaluation of water resources in the target area can be effectively performed.

[0060] In the present embodiment, the unknown information can relate to the flow rate, storage amount, or the amount of change thereof of water resources in the target area. More specifically, the unknown information can be the flow rate of groundwater in the target area. Further, when the target area includes one or more locations where pumping is performed, the unknown information can relate to the pumping amount in the target area. The pumping amount in the target area refers to the pumping amount across the entire target area, but is not limited thereto. For example, the pumping amount may be estimated for each predetermined location or each mesh in the target area. When the target area includes two or more locations where pumping is performed, the pumping amount for each location may be estimated.

[0061] For example, for the purpose of managing groundwater resources, attention may be paid to the pumping amount as the flow rate of water resources. In this case, it is usually difficult to measure the pumping amount related to activities performed by other entities, and it can be said to be unknown information. When attention is thus paid to the pumping amount in the target area, it can be performed to estimate and grasp the unknown information using the information processing apparatus 1.

[0062] Further, the unknown information can be a parameter indicating a property or state related to the water cycle, for which it is difficult to directly obtain information in the target area. For example, various underground structure parameters related to the underground structure of the target area may be grasped as the unknown information. In this case, the underground structure parameters grasped using the water cycle model at a location may be applied to the same or different water cycle models to obtain other information. Note that the underground structure parameters are, for example, parameters related to geology and structure such as a permeability coefficient and an effective porosity, but are not limited thereto.

[0063] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the information processing apparatus 1 in the present embodiment.

[0064] As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing apparatus 1 includes a storage unit 110, a reception unit 130, a processing unit 140, and an output unit 160. The information processing apparatus 1 is, for example, a personal computer, but is not limited thereto, and may be a server apparatus, a portable information terminal, or the like. The information processing apparatus 1 may be configured by a single server, may be configured by a plurality of servers that operate in cooperation with each other, or may be an electronic computer or the like incorporated in other devices. Note that the server may be a so-called cloud server or an ASP server, and the type thereof is not limited. A user of the information processing apparatus 1 can use the information processing apparatus 1 by directly operating the information processing apparatus 1 or by using a terminal device (not shown) that can communicate with the information processing apparatus 1.

[0065] The storage unit 110 includes a model information storage unit 111 and a region data storage unit 113. The storage unit 110 is preferably a non-volatile recording medium, but can also be realized by a volatile recording medium. Information such as information received by the reception unit 130 or information acquired by the processing unit 140 is stored in each part of the storage unit 110. However, the information stored in each part of the storage unit 110 and the process of storing such information are not limited thereto. For example, information may be stored in the storage unit 110 via a recording medium, information transmitted via a communication line or the like may be stored in the storage unit 110, or information input via an input device may be stored in the storage unit 110.

[0066] Information related to the water circulation model is stored in the model information storage unit 111. The information related to the water circulation model includes, for example, information about each mesh constituting the model. The values of each parameter applied to each mesh are stored in the model information storage unit 111.

[0067] Note that the method for acquiring the water circulation model is not limited. A water circulation model configured for the target area by a known method may be stored in the model information storage unit 111.

[0068] The area data storage unit 113 stores the values of parameters related to the water circulation in the target area. In the area data storage unit 113, in addition to known information obtained from information such as observation results and documents, unknown information obtained as described below can also be stored.

[0069] The known information is, for example, data obtained by on-site surveys, data obtained from observation institutions, etc., but is not limited thereto. The known information is stored, for example, in association with an identifier that identifies the corresponding parameter. For example, the known information regarding precipitation is stored in association with an identifier of the parameter indicating precipitation. Note that the known information is associated with, for example, position information corresponding to a location, but is not limited thereto. The position information may be information indicating a position or information capable of specifying the corresponding mesh. Also, the known information is associated with, for example, time information indicating the acquisition timing, but is not limited thereto.

[0070] The reception unit 130 receives information input, for example, using input means connected to the information processing device 1 or input operations performed using a reading device (such as a barcode reader, etc.) connected to the information processing device 1 (including information read by the device). The received information is stored, for example, in the storage unit 110. The input means that can be used for inputting information receivable by the reception unit 130 can be anything, such as a numeric keypad, a keyboard, a mouse, or a menu screen. The reception unit 130 can be realized by a device driver of input means such as a numeric keypad or a keyboard, or control software of a menu screen. Note that the reception unit 130 may be configured to receive information such as voice input by a microphone.

[0071] The processing unit 140 can generally be realized from an MPU, a memory, etc. The processing procedure of the processing unit 140 is generally realized by software, and the software is recorded on a recording medium such as a ROM. However, it may be realized by hardware (a dedicated circuit). The processing unit 140 performs various processes. The various processes are, for example, the processes performed by each part of the processing unit 140 as follows.

[0072] In this embodiment, the processing unit 140 includes a model acquisition unit 141, a known information acquisition unit 143, an estimated value acquisition unit 151, and an evaluation unit 155.

[0073] The model acquisition unit 141 acquires a water circulation model configured to correspond to a target area to be processed. The model acquisition unit 141 acquires, for example, a water circulation model that is pre-configured and stored in the model information storage unit 111.

[0074] The known information acquisition unit 143 acquires the value of at least one parameter among the parameters obtained for the target area. The known information acquisition unit 143 acquires, for example, the known information stored in the area data storage unit 113 for the target area. In the case where the estimated value of any unknown information has already been acquired by the processing unit 140 and stored in the area data storage unit 113, when the estimated value is used in subsequent processing, the estimated value may be referred to as known information.

[0075] In one usage example of the information processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment, the known information acquisition unit 143 is configured to acquire at least the value of the known water pumping volume in the target area. For example, the amount of water resources pumped as the user who uses the information processing apparatus 1 engages in activities in the target area can be set as the known water pumping volume.

[0076] The estimated value acquisition unit 151 acquires estimated values regarding one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model for the target area. In the present embodiment, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 performs inverse problem analysis using the water circulation model acquired by the model acquisition unit 141 and the value acquired by the known information acquisition unit 143 to acquire the estimated values. That is, it can be said that the estimated values regarding the water balance items acquired by the estimated value acquisition unit 151 are estimated values for parameters different from the parameters that are the forward problem outputs (responses) in the water circulation model used by the estimated value acquisition unit 151. The estimated value acquisition unit 151 acquires the estimated values of the unknown information by performing inverse problem analysis using the water circulation model and the known information including the values of the parameters that are the responses in the water circulation model.

[0077] As the method for inverse problem analysis, known methods can be used. For example, the inverse formulation method, the output error method, the minimum variance estimation method, etc. can be cited as specific examples. For example, inverse problem analysis may be performed by performing convergence calculations using so-called black box methods.

[0078] In one usage example of the information processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 is configured to acquire, for example, the estimated value of the pumping volume in the target area by performing inverse problem analysis. Also, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 is configured to acquire, for example, the estimated value of the groundwater inflow volume of the target area by performing inverse problem analysis. In this case, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 may use a water circulation model configured to output the groundwater level as the forward problem and known information including the value of the groundwater level observed in the target area.

[0079] Here, in this usage example, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 is configured to acquire an estimated value regarding the unknown water pumping volume in the target area by using the value of the known water pumping volume in the target area acquired by the known information acquisition unit 143. In this case, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 first performs inverse problem analysis by using the values of other parameters different from the water circulation model and the value of the known water pumping volume, thereby acquiring an estimated value regarding the water pumping volume across the entire target area. That is, inverse problem analysis is performed by applying values of other parameters different from the value of the known water pumping volume to the water circulation model. Then, by subtracting the value of the known water pumping volume from the water pumping volume across the entire target area by using the acquired estimated value, an estimated value regarding the unknown water pumping volume is acquired. By such a method, information regarding the unknown water pumping volume in the target area can be easily acquired.

[0080] Here, in the present embodiment, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 includes a structural parameter acquisition unit 153. The structural parameter acquisition unit 153 acquires the value of the structural parameter regarding the underground structure used in the water circulation model by performing inverse problem analysis as follows. That is, it can be said that the estimated value acquisition unit 151 acquires the value of the structural parameter by inverse problem analysis. When the value of the structural parameter is acquired by inverse problem analysis, at least one of the structural parameters used in the water circulation model may be acquired, and the values of the other structural parameters may be acquired as known information.

[0081] The acquisition of the value of the structural parameter can be performed, for example, as follows. That is, the structural parameter acquisition unit 153 acquires an assumed value for other unknown parameters regarding water circulation, which are different from the values of the parameters regarding water circulation acquired by the known information acquisition unit 143, that is, the known information. Then, the structural parameter acquisition unit 153 acquires the value of the structural parameter by applying the known information and the assumed value to the water circulation model and performing inverse problem analysis.

[0082] When the values of the structural parameters are obtained by the inverse problem analysis in this way, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 further applies the obtained underground structure parameters and the values of the parameters related to the water cycle obtained by the known information acquisition unit 143 to the water cycle model and performs inverse problem analysis, thereby obtaining estimated values related to the water balance items related to the water cycle model. That is, when there are two or more pieces of unknown information, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 is configured to obtain the estimated values of other unknown information by using assumed values for some of the unknown information, and use the estimated values to obtain the estimated values of the some of the unknown information. Thereby, based on the estimated values of the underground structure parameters in the target area, it is possible to obtain information on the water balance with higher accuracy.

[0083] The evaluation unit 155 determines whether or not a predetermined evaluation condition is satisfied by using information on two or more parameters related to the water cycle, including the estimated value related to at least one water balance item obtained by the estimated value acquisition unit 151. As the predetermined evaluation condition, various conditions can be set. For example, it can be set that the relationship between the values of two or more parameters is a predetermined relationship, or that the information obtained by using the values of two or more parameters satisfies a predetermined condition. More specifically, for example, it can be set that the difference between the values of two parameters is greater than or less than a predetermined value, or that the sum of the values of two or more parameters is greater than or less than a predetermined value as the evaluation condition. Note that the evaluation unit 155 may be configured to determine whether or not the estimated value related to at least one water balance item obtained by the estimated value acquisition unit 151 satisfies a predetermined evaluation condition.

[0084] In one usage example of the information processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the evaluation unit 155 determines whether or not the comparison result between the estimated value of the groundwater inflow and the estimated value of the pumping volume satisfies a predetermined evaluation condition. For example, the estimated value of the groundwater inflow and the estimated value of the pumping volume are compared to determine whether the groundwater inflow is greater than the estimated value of the pumping volume by a predetermined degree. That is, when the groundwater inflow is greater than the estimated value of the pumping volume by a predetermined degree, it can be said that the influence of the variation in the pumping volume on the water cycle is relatively small. On the other hand, when the groundwater inflow is not greater than the estimated value of the pumping volume by a predetermined degree, it can be said that the influence of the variation in the pumping volume on the water cycle is relatively large.

[0085] In the present embodiment, the output unit 160 outputs information, for example, by displaying the information on a display device provided in the information processing apparatus 1. In the present embodiment, the output unit 160 includes, for example, an evaluation information output unit 161 that outputs evaluation information regarding the determination result of the evaluation unit 155. That is, when the determination by the evaluation unit 155 is made, the output unit 160 can output the evaluation information. Thereby, the user can know the evaluation information regarding the water cycle.

[0086] Note that the output unit 160 may be configured to output information by transmitting the information to another device via a network or the like using, for example, a transmission unit (not shown). The output unit 160 may be considered to include output devices such as a display and a speaker, or may not be considered to include them. The output unit 160 can be realized by driver software for the output device or by the driver software for the output device and the output device or the like.

[0087] Note that the output unit 160 may be configured to be able to output the estimated value of the unknown information acquired by the estimated value acquisition unit 151, the structural parameters, etc., so that the user can use them. Thereby, the user can utilize the information regarding the water cycle of the target area obtained by using the information processing apparatus 1.

[0088] FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the use of the information processing apparatus 1.

[0089] The user can use such an information processing apparatus 1, for example, in the following process. Note that the following is an example, and various modifications are possible depending on the configuration and application of the information processing apparatus 1.

[0090] (Step S11) First, the user collects data for performing inverse problem analysis and organizes the data. That is, for the target area, the user acquires known information or acquires information for constructing a water circulation model. For example, the user acquires groundwater level data of the target area, obtains data related to underground structure classification, and organizes these data.

[0091] (Step S12) Next, the user creates a geological structure classification of the target area and constructs a water circulation model. Such a water circulation model can be said to be a "vessel" in which parameters are set. The user inputs information related to the constructed water circulation model and other known information into the information processing apparatus 1. The input information is stored in the storage unit 110.

[0092] In this case, it is preferable that the user uses only the area where the saturated seepage flow occurs as the water circulation model as described above. It is possible to more easily obtain the estimated values of the water balance items and output the evaluation information. Note that being able to perform more easily means, for example, being able to perform with a relatively small amount of calculation or being able to perform in a short time.

[0093] (Step S13) In the information processing apparatus 1, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 first obtains the value of the structural parameter by performing inverse problem analysis using the input information and sets it in the water circulation model. For example, the permeability coefficient or the like corresponding to the geological classification can be analytically set based on the known information.

[0094] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of obtaining the structural parameter by the information processing apparatus 1. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a verification example of the structural parameter obtained from the information processing apparatus 1.

[0095] In the examples shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the results of attempts to obtain the value of the permeability coefficient by inverse problem analysis for one target area are shown. As shown in FIG. 4, estimated values of the permeability coefficient ( "this trial") different according to the geological classification are obtained. The estimated values corresponding to the low terrace deposits and the middle terrace deposits are values that conform to the set values set by experts. This trial was conducted by using a water circulation model to calculate the ground parameters 60 times in total after setting an evaluation function for the error (RMSE) between the observed water level and the calculated water level in the target area. An example of comparing and verifying the calculated values output by the water circulation model with the measured values is as shown in FIG. 5.

[0096] (Step S14) Returning to FIG. 3, in the information processing apparatus 1, the estimated value acquisition unit 151 acquires the estimated value of the water balance item to be acquired by inverse problem analysis.

[0097] (Step S15) In the information processing apparatus 1, the evaluation unit 155 makes a determination regarding the evaluation conditions by using the acquired estimated value of the water balance item. Then, the evaluation information output unit 161 outputs evaluation information regarding the determination result of the evaluation unit 155. As a result, the user can obtain the evaluation information.

[0098] As described above, in the present embodiment, the information processing apparatus 1 can acquire the estimated value of the unknown information by inverse problem analysis using the water circulation model and the known information. Therefore, information regarding the water balance in the target area can be acquired relatively easily. Further, the information processing apparatus 1 can output evaluation information using the acquired estimated value. Therefore, the user can know the evaluation information regarding the water circulation. In this case, a water circulation model that extracts only the important areas where saturated seepage flow occurs can be configured and used for inverse problem analysis. As a result, the time required for the analysis can be shortened, and the estimated value and the evaluation information can be obtained easily.

[0099] For example, in the present embodiment, by performing inverse problem analysis using groundwater level observation data, an estimated value of the pumping volume in the target area can be obtained. By this method, the estimated values of the pumping volume were obtained for each of two target areas set in separate regions and compared with the measured values. In the first target area, the measured value was 51,000 cubic meters per day, while the estimated value of the pumping volume was 34,000 to 85,000 cubic meters per day. Also, in the second target area, the measured value was 5,016 cubic meters per day, while the estimated value of the pumping volume was 4,956 to 4,957 cubic meters per day.

[0100] Also, for example, in the present embodiment, as an example, as evaluation information using the estimated value of the pumping volume obtained using groundwater level observation data, the ratio of the pumping volume to the groundwater inflow volume can be output. For example, the results for each of the above two target areas were as follows. That is, in the first target area, the groundwater inflow volume was 1.37 million cubic meters per day, and the estimated value of the pumping volume was 34,000 to 85,000 cubic meters per day. Therefore, it was estimated that the pumping volume in the first target area was about 2% to 6% of the groundwater inflow volume. Also, in the second target area, the groundwater inflow volume was 15,000 cubic meters per day, and the estimated value of the pumping volume was 3,000 cubic meters per day. Therefore, it was estimated that the pumping volume in the second target area was about 20% of the groundwater inflow volume. By obtaining such evaluation information, it can be confirmed that in the first target area, the degree of influence of the pumping volume is lower than that in the second target area.

[0101] Note that the estimated value acquisition unit 151 may obtain estimated values of two or more water balance items by inverse problem analysis. In this case, evaluation information may be output using the obtained estimated values of the two or more water balance items. For example, estimated values of both the groundwater inflow volume and the pumping volume may be obtained by inverse problem analysis.

[0102] Note that the processing in this embodiment may be implemented by software. Then, this software may be distributed by software download or the like. Further, this software may be recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM and distributed. Note that the software for realizing the information processing apparatus 1 in this embodiment is the following program. That is, this program is a program executed by a computer of the information processing apparatus 1, and causes the computer of the information processing apparatus 1 to function as a model acquisition unit that acquires a water circulation model related to two or more parameters related to water circulation, which is configured to correspond to a target area, a known information acquisition unit that acquires a value of at least one parameter among the parameters related to water circulation obtained for the target area, and an estimated value acquisition unit that acquires an estimated value related to one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model by performing inverse problem analysis using the water circulation model and the value acquired by the known information acquisition unit. It is a program for making it function as.

[0103] Note that in this embodiment, the information processing apparatus 1 was configured to be able to acquire an estimated value related to the water balance item in the target area using a distributed water circulation model, but it may be configured to be able to acquire an estimated value related to the water balance item without using a distributed water circulation model. For example, a water circulation model that is a so-called centralized model may be used.

[0104] (Others)

[0105] FIG. 6 is an overview diagram of the computer system 800 in the above embodiment. FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the computer system 800.

[0106] In these figures, the configuration of a computer that executes the program described in this specification and realizes the information processing apparatus 1 and the like of the above-described embodiment is shown. The above-described embodiment can be realized by computer hardware and a computer program executed thereon.

[0107] The computer system 800 includes a computer 801 that includes a CD-ROM drive, a keyboard 802, a mouse 803, and a monitor 804.

[0108] In addition to the CD-ROM drive 8012, the computer 801 includes an MPU 8013, a bus 8014 connected to the CD-ROM drive 8012 and the like, a ROM 8015 for storing programs such as a boot-up program, a RAM 8016 connected to the MPU 8013 for temporarily storing instructions of application programs and providing a temporary storage space, and a hard disk 8017 for storing application programs, system programs, and data. Here, although not shown, the computer 801 may further include a network card that provides a connection to a LAN.

[0109] A program for causing the computer system 800 to execute functions such as the information processing apparatus in the above-described embodiment may be stored in a CD-ROM 8101, inserted into the CD-ROM drive 8012, and further transferred to the hard disk 8017. Alternatively, the program may be transmitted to the computer 801 via a network (not shown) and stored in the hard disk 8017. The program is loaded into the RAM 8016 during execution. The program may be loaded directly from the CD-ROM 8101 or the network.

[0110] The program does not necessarily have to include an operating system (OS) or a third-party program that causes the computer 801 to execute functions such as the information processing apparatus in the above-described embodiment. The program only needs to include only the part of the instructions that calls appropriate functions (modules) in a controlled manner so as to obtain a desired result. How the computer system 800 operates is well known, and a detailed description thereof is omitted.

[0111] In the above program, in the transmission step of transmitting information, the reception step of receiving information, etc., processing performed by hardware, for example, processing performed by a modem, an interface card, etc. in the transmission step (processing that can only be performed by hardware) is not included.

[0112] Also, the computer that executes the above program may be singular or plural. That is, centralized processing may be performed, or distributed processing may be performed.

[0113] Also, in the above embodiment, two or more components existing in one device may be physically realized by one medium.

[0114] Also, in the above embodiment, each process (each function) may be realized by centralized processing by a single device (system), or may be realized by distributed processing by a plurality of devices (in this case, the entire system composed of a plurality of devices performing distributed processing can be grasped as one "device").

[0115] Also, in the above embodiment, the transfer of information performed between each component may be performed, for example, by the output of information by one component and the reception of information by the other component when the two components performing the transfer of the information are physically different, or when the two components performing the transfer of the information are physically the same, it may be performed by moving from the processing phase corresponding to one component to the processing phase corresponding to the other component.

[0116] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, information related to the processing executed by each component, for example, information received, acquired, selected, generated, transmitted, or received by each component, and information such as thresholds, mathematical formulas, addresses, etc. used by each component in the processing may be temporarily or permanently stored in a recording medium not shown even if not specified in the above description. Also, the accumulation of information on the recording medium not shown may be performed by each component or an accumulation unit not shown. Further, the reading of information from the recording medium not shown may be performed by each component or a reading unit not shown.

[0117] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, when information used by each component or the like, for example, information such as thresholds, addresses, and various setting values used by each component in the processing may be changed by the user, even if not specified in the above description, the user may appropriately be able to change such information, or not. When the user can change such information, the change may be realized, for example, by a reception unit not shown that receives a change instruction from the user and a change unit not shown that changes the information in response to the change instruction. The reception of the change instruction by the reception unit not shown may be, for example, reception from an input device, reception of information transmitted via a communication line, or reception of information read from a predetermined recording medium.

[0118] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible, and these are also included within the scope of the present invention. Also, some components and functions in the above-described embodiments may be omitted. Further, in the processing and procedures shown in the flowchart above, various modifications such as addition, deletion, modification, and order change of steps may be made.

Industrial Applicability

[0119] As described above, the information processing apparatus according to the present invention has an effect of being able to acquire information related to the water balance in the target area and is useful as an information processing apparatus or the like.

Description of Symbols

[0120] 1 Information processing apparatus 110 Storage unit 111 Model information storage unit 113 Observation data storage unit 130 Reception unit 140 Processing unit 141 Model acquisition unit 143 Known information acquisition unit 151 Estimated value acquisition unit 153 Structural parameter acquisition unit 155 Evaluation unit 160 Output unit 161 Evaluation information output unit

Claims

1. A model acquisition unit that acquires a water circulation model related to two or more parameters related to water circulation, configured to correspond to a target area; A known information acquisition unit that acquires a value of at least one parameter among the parameters related to the water circulation obtained for the target area; An estimated value acquisition unit that acquires an estimated value related to one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model by performing inverse problem analysis using the water circulation model and the value acquired by the known information acquisition unit, The target area is set to include a location where pumping is performed at one or more locations, The water circulation model is configured to be related to the pumping volume in the target area, The estimated value acquisition unit is configured to acquire an estimated value of the pumping volume in the target area, an information processing apparatus.

2. An evaluation unit that determines whether a predetermined evaluation condition is satisfied using information related to two or more parameters related to water circulation, including the estimated value related to at least one water balance item acquired by the estimated value acquisition unit; An evaluation information output unit that outputs evaluation information related to the determination result of the evaluation unit, the information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The estimated value acquisition unit is configured to acquire an estimated value of the groundwater inflow volume in the target area and an estimated value of the pumping volume in the target area, The evaluation unit determines whether the comparison result between the estimated value of the groundwater inflow volume and the estimated value of the pumping volume satisfies the predetermined evaluation condition, the information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

4. The water circulation model uses at least information related to the pumping volume in the target area and is configured to output the groundwater level as the output of the forward problem, The known information acquisition unit is configured to acquire at least the value of the groundwater level observed in the target area, the information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

5. The target area is set to include points where pumping is performed at two or more locations, The known information acquisition unit is configured to acquire at least the value of the known pumping volume in the target area, The estimated value acquisition unit acquires an estimated value regarding the unknown pumping volume in the target area. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4.

6. The estimated value acquisition unit, By performing inverse problem analysis using the value of another parameter different from the water circulation model and the value of the known pumping volume, an estimated value regarding the pumping volume of the entire target area is acquired, By subtracting the value of the known pumping volume from the estimated value regarding the pumping volume of the entire target area, an estimated value regarding the unknown pumping volume is acquired. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5.

7. The estimated value acquisition unit performs inverse problem analysis by applying the value of the parameter related to water circulation acquired by the known information acquisition unit and the assumed value of the parameter related to water circulation that is otherwise unknown to the water circulation model, thereby obtaining the value of the structural parameter related to the underground structure used in the water circulation model. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

8. The estimated value acquisition unit further performs inverse problem analysis by applying the acquired underground structure parameter and the value of the parameter related to water circulation acquired by the known information acquisition unit to the water circulation model, thereby obtaining an estimated value regarding one or more water balance items related to the water circulation model. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7.

9. The water circulation model is configured to represent saturated seepage flow. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1.

10. A water balance information acquisition method comprising all steps performed by the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. A computer, A program for causing an information processing apparatus to function as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

Images