Unmanned boat control system, unmanned boat control method, and program

Abstract

According to the present invention, an object existing in an underwater area can be continuously detected or re-detected more effectively. 【Solution means】The present invention is a search system for detecting an object existing in the sea using a measurement sensor mounted on an unmanned boat capable of navigating on the sea, and based on the measurement data measured by the measurement sensor, an object state detection unit for detecting the presence or state of the object, a future motion prediction unit for predicting the future motion state of the detected object, an operation command determination unit for determining an operation command of the unmanned boat based on the prediction result of the future motion state of the object, and a command information output unit for displaying and outputting the determined operation command to a display unit, or transmitting and outputting it to the unmanned boat or the outside. It is a search system comprising.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an unmanned boat control system, an unmanned boat control method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, the practical application of a system for deploying an unmanned aircraft on the sea to detect the presence and position information of underwater objects has been studied. Patent Document 1 discloses a technology related to a mobile sonobuoy that can supply its own power, minimize the influence of the thermocline (LD) and the shadow zone, and reliably transmit the presence and position information of underwater objects to the command post. In particular, an underwater monitoring method is disclosed in which a cable is lowered into the sea to enable acoustic measurement in a deep area of the sea.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] When searching for an object in the sea using a measurement sensor capable of detecting underwater objects such as a sonar, there is a measurable upper limit distance that can be measured by the measurement sensor. Therefore, if an object exists in a sea area outside the measurable range that is farther than the measurable upper limit distance, the object cannot be detected.

[0005] Therefore, even if an object is once discovered, if the object escapes or moves and moves outside the measurable range of the measurement sensor, the position of the object cannot be continuously detected. Or the object cannot be redetected.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of at least one of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a system, a control method, or the like that can continuously detect or re-detect an object existing in a sea area more effectively.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] According to the present invention, there is provided a search system for detecting an object existing in the sea using a measurement sensor mounted on an unmanned boat capable of navigating on the sea, the search system including: an object state detection unit that detects the presence or state of an object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit that predicts a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned boat based on a prediction result of the future motion state of the object; and a command information output unit that displays and outputs the determined operation command to a display unit, or transmits and outputs the command to the unmanned boat or the outside.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a system, a control method, or the like that can continuously detect or re-detect an object existing in a sea area more effectively.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] The contents of the embodiments of the present invention will be listed and described below. The present invention has the following configuration. [Item 1] An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object existing in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor, a future motion prediction unit that predicts the future motion state of the detected object, and an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned boat based on a prediction result of the future motion state of the object. An unmanned boat control system comprising the above components. [Item 2] In the unmanned boat control system according to Item 1, the future motion prediction unit calculates at least one of a future predicted state of a future movement path, a movement destination, or a position, presence or absence of movement, movement speed, movement direction, turning radius, turning speed, acceleration, deceleration, relative distance or relative azimuth between the object and the unmanned boat of the object at a future time. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 3] In the unmanned boat control system according to Item 1 or 2, the future motion prediction unit generates loss prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional loss prediction position, loss prediction direction, loss prediction speed, and loss prediction time in which a detection loss state in which the presence of the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor is predicted to occur in the future based on information regarding a sea measurement area measurable by the measurement sensor. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 4] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 3, the future motion prediction unit generates a loss prediction probability indicating the probability of occurrence of the detection loss of the object at the loss prediction position or the loss prediction time included in the loss prediction information. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 5] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 4, The future motion prediction unit generates re-detection prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional re-detection prediction position, a re-detection prediction direction, a re-detection prediction speed, and a re-detection prediction time at which a re-detection state in which the target object is re-detected by the measurement sensor will occur in the future after a detection loss state in which the measurement sensor cannot detect the presence of the target object has occurred. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 6] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 5, The future motion prediction unit generates a re-detection prediction probability indicating the probability that the target object will be re-detected at the re-detection prediction position or the re-detection prediction time included in the re-detection prediction information. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 7] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 6, An unmanned boat control system including a command information output unit that displays and outputs a detection result regarding the presence or state of the target object detected by the target object state detection unit, a prediction result of a future motion state of the target object predicted by the future motion prediction unit, or an operation command determined by the operation command determination unit to a display unit. [Item 8] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 7, An unmanned boat control system including a user input reception unit that receives a correction command regarding the detection result regarding the presence or state of the target object detected by the target object state detection unit, a prediction result of a future motion state of the target object predicted by the future motion prediction unit, or the content of the operation command determined by the operation command determination unit. [Item 9] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 8, The target object state detection unit detects or estimates at least one of the position, formation, type, shape, size, orientation, material, presence or absence of movement, movement direction, movement speed, turning radius, turning speed, acceleration, deceleration, movement history path, relative distance or relative azimuth between the target object and the unmanned boat of the target object. The future motion prediction unit predicts the future motion state of the object based on the detection results regarding the state of the object detected or estimated by the object state detection unit. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 10] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 9, When the object state detection unit can no longer detect the object by the measurement sensor, it determines that the object is in a detection loss state, An unmanned boat control system that records detection loss information including at least any one of the position, moving direction, speed of the object when it enters the detection loss state, and the time when it enters the detection loss state. [Item 11] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 10, After the object state detection unit can no longer detect the object that has been detected at least once by the measurement sensor, when it detects the object again, it determines that the object is in a re-detection state, An unmanned boat control system that records re-detection information including at least any one of the position, moving direction, speed of the object when it enters the re-detection state, and the time when it enters the re-detection state. [Item 12] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 11, When the future motion prediction unit predicts and calculates at least any one of the future movement route, movement destination, or future position at a future time of the object, The motion command determination unit generates an unmanned boat position control command to move the unmanned boat to at least any one of the positions on the sea surface around the position along the movement route, the positions on the sea surface around the route to the movement destination, and the positions on the sea surface around the future position. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 13] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 12, When the future motion prediction unit predicts and calculates at least any one of the future movement route, movement destination, or future position at a future time of the object, The operation command determination unit generates a sonar position control command for moving a towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat by a cable to a three-dimensional position in the sea around a three-dimensional position in the sea along the movement path, a three-dimensional position in the sea around a path to the movement destination, and a three-dimensional position in the sea around the future position. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 14] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 13, When the object state detection unit detects a detection loss state in which the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection loss state will occur in the future, The operation command determination unit generates an unmanned boat position control command for moving the unmanned boat to a position on the sea surface around the position where the loss of the object in which the detection loss state is detected or predicted occurs. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 15] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 14, When the object state detection unit detects a detection loss state in which the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection loss state will occur in the future, The operation command determination unit generates a sonar position control command for moving a towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat by a cable to a three-dimensional position in the sea around the position where the loss of the object in which the detection loss state is detected or predicted occurs. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 16] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 15, When the object state detection unit detects a detection loss state in which the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection loss state will occur in the future, The operation command determination unit moves the unmanned boat to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface of the lost occurrence position of the object for which the detection lost state has been detected or predicted, and measures acoustic information using a sonar, which is the measurement sensor, with the output of the thrust generation unit of the unmanned boat stopped or decreased, and generates an operation control command to resume or increase the output of the thrust generation unit after the measurement by the sonar is completed. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 17] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 16, When the object state detection unit detects a detection lost state in which the presence of the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection lost state will occur in the future, The operation command determination unit generates a movement request command to move to a position on the sea surface or a three-dimensional position in the sea near the lost occurrence position of the object for which the detection lost state has been detected or predicted, The command information output unit transmits and outputs the movement request command to the outside. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 18] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 17, When the future operation prediction unit predicts that a re-detection state in which the object that has been detected at least once and then cannot be detected will occur again in the future, The operation command determination unit generates an unmanned boat position control command to move the unmanned boat to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface of the re-detection prediction position of the object for which the occurrence of the re-detection state has been predicted. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 19] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 18, When the future operation prediction unit predicts that a re-detection state in which the object that has been detected at least once and then cannot be detected will occur again in the future, The operation command determination unit generates a sonar position control command for moving a towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat by a cable to the vicinity of the three-dimensional position in the sea of the re-detection predicted position of the object for which the occurrence of the re-detection state has been predicted, in an unmanned boat control system. [Item 20] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 19, when the future operation prediction unit predicts that a re-detection state in which the object detected at least once becomes undetectable and then the object is detected again will occur in the future, the operation command determination unit moves the unmanned boat to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface of the re-detection predicted position of the object for which the occurrence of the re-detection state has been predicted, and measures acoustic information with a sonar as the measurement sensor in a state where the output of the thrust generation unit of the unmanned boat is stopped or decreased, and generates an operation control command for restarting or increasing the output of the thrust generation unit after the measurement by the sonar is completed, in an unmanned boat control system. [Item 21] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 20, when the future operation prediction unit predicts that a re-detection state in which the object detected at least once becomes undetectable and then the object is detected again will occur in the future, the command information output unit transmits and outputs a movement request command to move to a position on the sea surface or a three-dimensional position in the sea in the vicinity of the re-detection predicted position where the occurrence of the re-detection state is predicted, or the result of predicting the occurrence of the re-detection state by the future operation prediction unit, to the outside, in an unmanned boat control system. [Item 22] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 21, when the object state detection unit performs a primary detection process of the presence or state of the object based on the acoustic measurement data measured by the first sonar as the measurement sensor, simultaneously or in parallel with the primary detection or after the primary detection process, a secondary detection process of the presence or state of the object is performed by a second sonar of a type different from the first sonar, An unmanned boat control system that determines the state of the object according to the results of the primary detection process and the secondary detection process. [Item 23] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 22, The primary detection process is executed based on first acoustic measurement data measured by the first sonar mounted on a single or a plurality of the first unmanned boats, The secondary detection process is executed based on second acoustic measurement data measured by the second sonar mounted on a single or a plurality of the second unmanned boats. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 24] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 23, The primary detection process is executed based on first acoustic measurement data measured by the first sonar mounted on the first unmanned boat, The secondary detection process is executed based on second acoustic measurement data measured by the second sonar mounted on the first unmanned boat. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 25] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 24, The first sonar and the second sonar are each composed of at least one of a passive sonar, an active sonar, a multi-beam sonar, a single-beam sonar, an acoustic modem, an acoustic transponder, a side scan sonar, a sub-bottom profiler, and a towed sonar. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 26] In the unmanned boat control system according to any one of Items 1 to 25, When the secondary detection process is performed after the primary detection process by the object state detection unit, The position of the object is detected by the primary detection process, The secondary detection process detects at least one of the type, material, shape, orientation, size, moving speed of the object, or position information more detailed than the position detected by the primary detection process. An unmanned boat control system. [Item 27] An unmanned boat control method for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object existing in the sea, comprising: a computer an object state detection step of detecting the presence or state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction step of predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination step of determining an operation command for the unmanned boat based on a prediction result of the future motion state of the object; a command information output step of displaying and outputting the determined operation command to a display unit, or transmitting and outputting it to the unmanned boat or the outside. An unmanned boat control method that executes the above steps. [Item 28] A program applicable to an unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object existing in the sea, comprising: causing a computer an object state detection command for detecting the presence or state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction command for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination command for determining an operation command for the unmanned boat based on a prediction result of the future motion state of the object; a command information output command for displaying and outputting the determined operation command to a display unit, or transmitting and outputting it to the unmanned boat or the outside. A program that causes the above commands to be executed.

[0011] <A. First Embodiment> Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. Also, the embodiments shown below are merely examples, and other known elements and alternative means can be adopted according to the use, purpose, scale, etc.

[0012] [A. Configuration] (A-1. Overall System Configuration) First, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, the overall system configuration of the control system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0013] (A-1-1. Overview of the overall system configuration) FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a control system 1 (hereinafter also referred to as "system 1") according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the control system 1 includes an unmanned boat system 1000 and a general control system 2000. Further, the general control system 2000 is configured to be communicable with an external cooperation system 5000 and an external system 6000 via an Internet line or the like, and can perform input / output of information. The general control system 2000 can transmit a control command to the unmanned boat system 1000 deployed at sea via a communication satellite 3000 and a ground base station 4000, and can receive the operation status and measurement data of the unmanned boat system 1000. Therefore, the general control system 2000 can navigate and move at sea, and remotely control or autonomously navigate or automatically navigate the operation of the unmanned boat system 1000 having a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 (also referred to as "unmanned ships") equipped with measurement sensors capable of detecting an object 7000, and search for the object 7000 using the measurement sensors in a predetermined area (first area) at sea or in the sea. Here, the predetermined area is an arbitrary area that can be set by the user or set in advance.

[0014] The unmanned boat system 1000 includes a single or a plurality of unmanned boats 1010. When the unmanned boat system 1000 is composed of a plurality of unmanned boats 1010, the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 are connected to each other by wireless communication and can form a communication network. Further, the unmanned boat 1010 has a function of detecting a moving object in the sea, such as a diver navigating in the sea or a marine creature (such as a whale), which is the object 7000, by a measurement sensor (such as a sound wave sensor such as a sonar, an optical camera, an IR camera, a laser sensor such as a bathymetric LiDAR, a submarine optical communication sensor, etc.) mounted on the own ship.

[0015] The detection determination results and measurement data of the object 7000 detected by the unmanned boat system 1000, and furthermore, various information on the operation status of each unmanned boat 1010 of the unmanned boat system 1000 are transmitted to the overall control system 2000 via the communication satellite 3000 and the ground base station 4000. Based on the acquired information from the unmanned boat system 1000 and the desired information acquired in advance, the overall control system 2000 determines an operation command for the unmanned boat system 1000. Information such as the generated operation command is transmitted to the user terminal device 8000 and displayed and output to the user. Also, an intervention command regarding an operation command or the like from the user can be acquired via the user terminal device 8000.

[0016] (A-1-2. Example of Implementation of Control System 1 in Real Space) FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an implementation image of the control system 1 in real space. In the example shown in FIG. 2, on the ground side shown in the upper right of the drawing, a ground base station 4000 and an overall control system 2000 are provided. Also, on the ground side, a cooperation system 5000, an external system 6000, and a user terminal device 8000 connected to the overall control system 2000 via a network are provided.

[0017] On the other hand, on the ocean side shown on the left of the drawing, the unmanned boat system 1000 is deployed to search for the object 7000 existing in the ocean. Also, the unmanned boat system 1000 has a plurality of groups (1000a, 1000b, 1000c) composed of a parent machine and a plurality of child machines, and can communicate directly or via the communication satellite 3000 between each group.

[0018] In the example shown in FIG. 2, the overall control system 2000 shows an example of being installed in a ground facility, but it is not limited to this. All or part of the functions implemented in the overall control system 2000 shown in this embodiment can be installed on a coastal field base provided in a ground coastal area (not shown) or a manned mother ship on the sea side, and it is also possible to operate and manage the unmanned boat system 1000 at the coastal field base or the manned mother ship.

[0019] As the configuration of the embodiments described in FIGS. 1 and 2 above, an example was described in which a non-terrestrial network using a communication satellite 3000 in a geosynchronous orbit or a low earth orbit was used as a communication network for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat system 1000. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a non-terrestrial network using an unmanned aerial vehicle called a HAPS (High Altitude Platform Station) can also be used. In this case, for example, an unmanned aerial vehicle that orbits at an altitude of about 8 to 50 km can be used. Also, as a communication network for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat 1010, it is also possible to use a communication network that directly connects the ground base station 4000 and the unmanned boat 1010 by wireless communication without going through the communication satellite 3000 or the HAPS. Note that the ground base station 4000 is not limited to a stationary fixed base station and may be composed of a movable mobile base station.

[0020] (A-1-3. Overview of the Cooperative System 500dc0 and the External System 6000) FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the cooperative system 5000 and the external system 6000. As shown in FIG. 3, a control system 1 having an unmanned boat system 1000 and an overall control system 2000 is connected to the cooperative system 5000 and the external system 6000 via a network, respectively.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 3, the cooperative system 5000 includes a plurality of heterogeneous systems capable of acquiring information about the object 7000 to be explored. For example, a maritime surveillance system 5100 that can acquire optical images, laser measurement data, radar measurement data, and other measurement data that can be measured from other ships, including the object 7000 existing at sea, using measurement devices mounted on ships moving at sea or floating buoys, can be included as the cooperative system 5000.

[0022] In addition, the cooperation system 5000 can include a subsea monitoring system 5200 that can acquire measurement information (such as acoustic measurement information) regarding an object 7000 existing in the sea using a measurement device mounted on a submarine capable of moving in the sea, a subsea floating buoy installed in the sea, a dropped buoy dropped from an aircraft or a ship onto the sea or into the sea, or a subsea buoy installed on the seabed. Further, the cooperation system 5000 can include a ship operation monitoring system 5300 (such as an AIS system, etc.) that acquires identification information of a ship navigating in a marine area and information on the operation status thereof.

[0023] The external system 6000 is a system including an environmental information providing system that provides weather information (such as information on wind, rain, snow, cloudiness, fog, wave height, etc.) in the area where the unmanned boat system 1000 is deployed and its surrounding areas. In addition to weather information, the external system 6000 may be an MDA system or the like that provides oceanographic information such as the flow velocity, direction, and position of ocean currents and tides. The external system 6000 may further include information regarding the altitude and position of the sun and the altitude and position of the moon.

[0024] The external system 6000 may include an information providing system such as nautical route information (route position, passage permission information for each time zone, traffic jam prediction information, etc.) in the area including the exploration target area and communication infrastructure information regarding areas connectable to a communication network.

[0025] (A-1-4. State of exploring object 7000) FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing a state in which the unmanned boat system 1000 deployed on the sea explores the object 7000. As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 forming a group are deployed on the sea, and the measurement sensor 1110 mounted on each unmanned boat 1010 can detect the object 7000 existing within the measurable range in the sea.

[0026] The measurement data of the detected object 7000, the detection determination results, etc. are aggregated to the master unit 1001 via the communication network among the unmanned boats 1010, transmitted from the master unit 1001 to the communication satellite 3000, and then transmitted to the overall control system 2000 via the ground base station 4000 and the Internet line. In addition, each unmanned boat 1010 is provided with a navigation unit 1300 capable of navigating the unmanned boat 1010 in an arbitrary direction, and can execute the task of searching for the object 7000 based on the operation command transmitted by the overall control system 2000.

[0027] (A-2. Unmanned Boat System 1000) Next, with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8, the system configuration of the unmanned boat system 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0028] (A-2-1. Outline of Unmanned Boat System 1000) FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing an unmanned boat system 1000 composed of a plurality of unmanned boats. As shown in FIG. 5, the unmanned boat system 1000 is composed of one or a plurality of groups (1000a, 1000b), and each group is composed of a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 that can communicate with each other. In addition, the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 constituting each group are configured to serve as a master unit 1001 capable of wireless communication with the communication satellite 3000, or a slave unit 1002 capable of directly or indirectly communicating with the master unit 1001. The master unit 1001 is communicatively connected to the communication satellite 3000, aggregates the information collected from the plurality of slave units 1002 and transmits it to the communication satellite 3000, and has a function of directly or indirectly transmitting the information regarding the operation command acquired from the communication satellite 3000 and the information generated by itself to each slave unit 1002.

[0029] Group 1000a shown in FIG. 5 includes a primary slave device 10021 that communicates with the master device 1001, a secondary slave device 10022 that communicates with the primary slave device 10021, and a tertiary slave device 10023 that communicates with the secondary slave device 10022. Each slave device (primary slave device 10021, secondary slave device 10022, tertiary slave device 10023) has a function of relaying information received from other master devices 1001 or slave devices 1002 to other master devices 1001 and slave devices 1002, thereby forming a communication network among the master device 1001 and a plurality of slave devices 1002.

[0030] In FIG. 5, the configuration of a group having the master device 1001 and the slave devices 1002 is shown. However, it is not limited thereto. The group 1000 of the unmanned boats 1010 can be composed of a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 connected by a network capable of wireless communication directly or indirectly with each other.

[0031] (A-2-2. Configuration of the Unmanned Boat 1010 Constituting the Group) FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the formation of the unmanned boat system 1000 deployed at sea. In the example shown in FIG. 6, when causing a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 to execute exploration according to an exploration plan, the formation and communication connection relationship of the group composed of the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 are shown.

[0032] Group 1000a shown in FIG. 6 includes one master device 1001 and a plurality of slave devices 1002. In addition, between the master device 1001 and the plurality of slave devices 1002, a wireless communication network at sea is formed by connecting them by wireless communication indicated by a solid line. The slave device 1002 has a primary slave device 10021 that communicates with the master device 1001 wirelessly and a secondary slave device 10022 that communicates with the primary slave device 10021 wirelessly.

[0033] In addition, in the present embodiment, the number of relays by the slave device 1002 when forming a group is not limited, and a tertiary-connected slave device, a quaternary-connected slave device, or even more connected slave devices may be provided. The primary-connected slave device 10021 shown in FIG. 6 has a function of relaying the transmission and reception of information between the master device 1001 and the secondary-connected slave device 10022, enabling the transfer of information between the master device 1001 and a plurality of secondary-connected slave devices 10022.

[0034] Also, the number of secondary-connected slave devices 10022 wirelessly communication-connected to the primary-connected slave device 10021 is not limited to one. By having a plurality of secondary-connected slave devices 10022 wirelessly communication-connected to the primary-connected slave device 10021, a tree-structured communication network in which a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 branch within the group 1000a can be configured. Also, since there is an upper limit to the communication range within which wireless communication is possible between each unmanned boat 1010, for two unmanned boats 1010 capable of wireless communication with each other, for example, the master device 1001 and the primary-connected slave device 10021, and the primary-connected slave device 10021 and the secondary-connected slave device 10022, the position of at least one of the unmanned boats 1010 is controlled so that the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 is maintained within the range of the communication upper limit relative distance included in the monitoring plan as shown in FIG. 11.

[0035] If the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 becomes large and the communication partner unmanned boat 1010 moves outside the communication range, wireless communication between them will become impossible and control commands from the overall control system 2000 cannot be transmitted. Therefore, it is desirable for two unmanned boats 1010 connected in communication with each other to perform self-position control to maintain the relative distance from the communication partner within the communication range with a higher priority than other controls.

[0036] On the one hand, there is no need to maintain the above-mentioned communication connection for the relative distance between other unmanned boats 1010 that do not communicate wirelessly with each other. On the other hand, in order to efficiently search for the target object 7000, which is the purpose of the activity of the unmanned boat system 1000, it is more desirable that the measurement ranges of the measurement sensors of each unmanned boat 1010 do not overlap or moderately overlap, rather than the situation where each unmanned boat 1010 gets too close and most of the measurement ranges of the measurement sensors overlap. Therefore, regarding the relative distance between each unmanned boat 1010 that does not communicate with each other, the position of at least one of the unmanned boats 1010 is controlled with a relatively low priority so as to maintain a preset steady-state relative distance. The control for maintaining this steady-state relative distance can apply, for example, control based on the Boids algorithm.

[0037] Furthermore, when there is a possibility that the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 is too close and they may collide, in order to avoid the collision and prevent damage to the unmanned boats 1010, position control can be executed to increase the relative distance with a relatively high priority.

[0038] As described above, the control for maintaining the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 that communicate wirelessly with each other within the range of the communication possible distance, and the avoidance control for avoiding collisions with other unmanned boats approaching at a short distance are executed with a relatively high priority. On the other hand, the control for maintaining the relative distance between the unmanned boats 1010 that do not communicate wirelessly with each other can be executed with a relatively low priority for the control of maintaining the normal-time relative distance.

[0039] (A-2-3. Configuration of Unmanned Boat 1010) FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the unmanned boat 1010. In FIG. 7, the functional block diagram of the unmanned boat 1010 is described, but the master unit 1001 and the slave unit 1002 of the unmanned boat 1010 can both implement functions similar to the configuration shown in FIG. 7. The unmanned boat 1010 includes a measurement unit 1100, a self-state determination unit 1200, a navigation unit 1300, a communication unit 1400, a determination unit 1500, a recording unit 1600, and a separation state control unit 1700.

[0040] The measurement unit 1100 is a functional unit that detects an object 7000 existing within the measurable range in the sea using a measurement sensor 1110 and acquires measurement information regarding the object 7000. The measurement unit 1100 includes a measurement sensor 1110 and a measurement control unit 1120.

[0041] The measurement sensor 1110 may include one (monocular) or a plurality of electro-optical sensors (Electro-Optical sensors), optical cameras, infrared sensors (IR sensors), laser sensors such as bathymetric LiDAR for acquiring point cloud data (e.g., green laser sensors, blue laser sensors, etc.), underwater optical communication sensors, and acoustic sensors (also referred to as acoustic measurement units) such as sonars that utilize acoustic waves such as ultrasonic waves. The measurement sensor 1110 can acquire measurement data of the object 7000 existing within the measurable range of the three-dimensional space in water. It may also have a function of acquiring measurement data of the object 7000 not only in water but also in the air above water.

[0042] When the acoustic sensor is used underwater, the acoustic sensor may be either an active sonar that generates acoustic waves and measures the acoustic waves echoed by underwater objects or a passive sonar that measures the sounds generated from underwater objects. The active sonar can be composed of, for example, a side scan sonar, a multi-beam sonar, or a single-beam sonar. Also, the acoustic sensor may be composed of a USBL transceiver, an acoustic communication modem, or the like.

[0043] In addition, the measurement and control unit 1120 operates a sensor attitude change device capable of changing the attitude of the measurement sensor 1110 to control at least one of the attitude angles around the three axes of the measurement sensor 1110 with respect to the unmanned boat 1010. Also, for example, when the measurement sensor is an optical sensor, the measurement and control unit 1120 can adjust the frame rate, shutter speed, etc. When the measurement sensor is a laser sensor, the measurement and control unit 1120 can adjust the output of the irradiated laser. When the measurement sensor is a radar sensor, the measurement and control unit 1120 can adjust the output of millimeter waves or microwaves. Further, the measurement and control unit 1120 can adjust the measurement sensitivity of the measurement sensor to an arbitrary control amount. When the measurement sensor is an optical sensor, the measurement and control unit 1120 can change the zoom amount and resolution of the optical sensor to an arbitrary control amount.

[0044] Next, the own-ship state determination unit 1200 includes a navigation state determination unit 1210, an internal state determination unit 1220, and an external state determination unit 1230, and is a functional unit that determines the navigation state, internal and external states of the unmanned boat 1010. The navigation state determination unit 1210 determines state quantities related to the position (two-dimensional or three-dimensional), moving speed, bow azimuth, moving direction, moving acceleration / deceleration, turning speed, and other navigation states of the own-ship. The internal state determination unit 1220 determines the remaining energy amount and fuel remaining amount of the battery mounted on the own-ship, the movable distance that can be calculated based on the remaining energy amount and fuel remaining amount, temporary abnormal states (such as temperature abnormalities and communication abnormalities) of the devices mounted on the own-ship, and the failure states of the devices.

[0045] In addition, the external state determination unit 1230 can determine the communication quality status such as the communication strength (dB value, etc.), communication speed, and communication delay of wireless communication with other unmanned boats 1010 within the unmanned boat system 1000, or wireless communication with the overall control system 2000 via a communication satellite 3000 or a ground base station 4000, or the sea state (wave height, wave speed, sea current speed, sea current direction, tidal current speed, tidal current direction), weather state (wind speed, wind direction, atmospheric pressure, temperature, humidity), weather condition (fog, thunder, rainfall, snowfall, hail, sleet, cloudiness, etc.), seawater state (seawater temperature, seawater density, salinity concentration, pH value, presence or absence of seaweed beds, etc.), sun-related information (sun position (altitude, azimuth, trajectory), backlight, front light, solar radiation amount), and other states (moon position (altitude, azimuth, trajectory, moon age), ionospheric disturbance (solar flare, etc.)) around the own vessel.

[0046] The method for determining the position, moving speed, moving direction, and acceleration / deceleration of the own vessel by the navigation state determination unit 1210 is not particularly limited. For example, the position, moving speed, and moving direction of the own vessel at the current time can be determined using GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System), GPS (Global Positioning System), RTK-GNSS (Real Time Kinematic - Global Navigation Satellite System), etc.

[0047] As another example of the method for determining the position, moving speed, moving direction, and acceleration / deceleration of the own vessel by the navigation state determination unit 1210, for example, when the seabed shape can be detected by the measurement sensor 1110, based on the pre-recorded seabed shape and the seabed shape detected by the measurement sensor 1110, the position, moving speed, and moving direction of the own vessel at the current time can be determined using the SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) technology.

[0048] Here, the own position information includes at least two-dimensional coordinate information (e.g., latitude, longitude) in a plan view, and preferably includes three-dimensional coordinate information including altitude information. In addition, the acceleration / deceleration can be calculated based on the amount of change in the determined moving speed over time.

[0049] In addition, the method for measuring the heading direction of the own aircraft determines the heading direction of the own aircraft at the current time using, for example, a geomagnetic sensor, a GNSS compass, SLAM technology using the seabed shape, etc. The heading direction includes at least the attitude angle (azimuth) in a plan view around the Z axis, and preferably may be attitude information around the three axes of the X axis, Y axis, and Z axis. Also, the turning speed can be calculated based on the amount of change over time of the determined heading direction information.

[0050] Next, the navigation unit 1300 includes a thrust generation unit 1310, an attitude control mechanism 1320, and a navigation control unit 1330, and is a functional unit that navigates the own aircraft in an arbitrary direction according to an operation command received via the communication unit 1400. The thrust generation unit 1310 can apply any means capable of generating thrust, and as an example, can be configured by a propeller driven using the power of an engine or an electric motor. Also, the thrust generation unit 1310 can be configured by a sail that generates thrust by receiving wind, or can be configured by a wave glider that generates thrust by receiving wave power.

[0051] The attitude control mechanism 1320 is composed of a rudder plate provided on the airframe, a propeller attitude change mechanism capable of changing the attitude angle of the propeller (mainly the yaw angle around the Z axis), etc., and can control the heading direction (yaw angle) of the own aircraft by changing these angles. Also, the attitude angles of the roll angle around the X axis and the pitch angle around the Y axis of the airframe can also be controlled by a center of gravity position change mechanism that changes the position of a weight object in the airframe by an actuator.

[0052] In addition, the navigation control unit 1330 is a functional unit that controls the navigation operation of the own aircraft by controlling the thrust generation unit 1310 and the attitude control mechanism 1320. The navigation control unit 1330 has one or more processors such as a programmable processor (for example, a central processing unit (CPU), MPU, or DSP), and includes a processing unit capable of accessing a memory (storage unit). The memory stores logic, code, and / or program instructions executable by the processing unit to perform one or more processing steps.

[0053] The processing unit includes a control module configured to control the navigation state of the own vessel. For example, the control module adjusts the position of the own vessel on the sea surface, the moving speed, the acceleration and deceleration of movement, the heading direction of the bow, the turning speed, and the attitude angles around three axes. That is, the navigation control unit 1330 controls the navigation operation of the own vessel by causing the own vessel to perform operations such as forward movement, backward movement, acceleration, deceleration, and turning.

[0054] Next, the communication unit 1400 includes an inter-unmanned boat communication unit 1410 and an overall control communication unit 1420, and is a functional unit that communicates with other unmanned boats 1010 and the overall control system 2000 within the unmanned boat system 1000. The inter-unmanned boat communication unit 1410 is provided with a communication antenna used for a wireless communication network on the sea, and communicates with other unmanned boats 1010 within the unmanned boat system 1000. The overall control communication unit 1420 is provided with a satellite communication antenna capable of communicating with the communication satellite 3000 or a communication antenna capable of communicating with the ground base station 4000, and communicates with the overall control system 2000 via the communication satellite 3000 or the ground base station 4000. Note that, in addition to the above-described communication units, the communication unit may be provided with an antenna for AIS and an antenna for VHF, and a communication unit that communicates with an external monitoring ship or an AIS base station.

[0055] Next, the determination unit 1500 is a functional unit that performs data processing such as primary processing and data compression of the measurement data acquired by the measurement sensor 1110. The determination unit 1500 can perform, for example, primary processing of data processing of the raw data (measurement data) after measurement acquired by the measurement sensor 1110 and generate transmission data to be wirelessly transmitted from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000. Further, the determination unit 1500 can perform data compression processing of compressing the raw data (measurement data) after measurement to generate transmission data so that the transmission load when wirelessly transmitting the transmission data from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000 is reduced.

[0056] Furthermore, the determination unit 1500 can interpret the state of the object 7000 by performing primary processing on the measurement data, and can interpret the presence or absence of the detected object, the size of the detected object, and the like. Further, according to the interpretation result, it may have a function of determining whether to transmit the measurement data and the transmission data from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000, or selecting the data to be transmitted.

[0057] Next, the recording unit 1600 includes a measurement data recording unit 1610, a own-ship state recording unit 1620, and a determination information recording unit 1630. The measurement data recording unit 1610 records the measurement data measured by the measurement unit 1100. The own-ship state recording unit 1620 records various state information regarding the own ship determined by the own-ship state determination unit 1200. Further, the determination information recording unit 1630 records various determination information determined by the determination unit 1500.

[0058] Next, the separation state control unit 1700 is a functional unit that switches between a state in which the towing sonar is separated from the hull while maintaining the state in which the hull of the towing sonar and the unmanned boat 1010 are connected by a cable, and a state in which the towing sonar is stored in the unmanned boat 1010. The separation state control unit 1700 includes a cable winding unit 1710 and a winding control unit 1720.

[0059] The cable winding unit 1710 is composed of a cable reel or the like, and has a function of changing the length of the cable extended from the hull of the unmanned boat 1010 by rotating the reel by a motor or the like. The winding control unit 1720 can control the amount of reel rotation by the motor of the cable winding unit 1710 to adjust the distance between the towing sonar and the hull.

[0060] (A-2-4. Object Detection by Sound Wave Sensor) FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram showing a state of detecting an object in water using a sound wave sensor. In the example shown in FIG. 8, it shows a state of detecting marine organisms such as whales and underwater divers using a side scan sonar, and a state of detecting the positions of underwater divers capable of mutual communication using a USBL transceiver and an acoustic communication modem, respectively.

[0061] When using a side scan sonar, based on the acoustic intensity and shadow information that can be grasped from the sound waves reflected from underwater objects, it is possible to determine the surface material, size, and object position of the underwater objects.

[0062] When detecting the position of an underwater diver or the like capable of mutual communication using a USBL transceiver or an acoustic communication modem, an acoustic signal (call) is transmitted from the USBL transceiver, and the acoustic signal (response) transmitted in response from the acoustic positioning transponder mounted on the diver side is received by the USBL transceiver, thereby detecting the relative position of the diver with respect to the unmanned boat 1010. Further, based on the self-position coordinates calculated by the navigation state determination unit 1210 in the unmanned boat 1010, the absolute position coordinates of the diver can be calculated, and data including the absolute position coordinates of the diver can be transmitted from the acoustic communication modem to the diver.

[0063] (A-3. Description of the overall control system 2000) Next, with reference to FIG. 9, the functions and contents of the overall control system 2000 will be described. FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the overall control system 2000. As shown in FIG. 9, the overall control system 2000 includes an information import unit 2100, a pre-detection operation command unit 2200, an object state detection unit 2300, a future operation prediction unit 2400, a post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500, a user input reception unit 2600, and a command information output unit 2700.

[0064] (A-3-1. Information import unit 2100) The information import unit 2100 is a functional unit that imports information processed or used in each functional unit within the overall control system 2000 from the unmanned boat system 1000, the cooperation system 5000, the external system 6000, or the user terminal device 8000. The information import unit 2100 includes an object determination information acquisition unit 2110, an environment information acquisition unit 2120, an unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2130, a search request condition acquisition unit 2140, a measurement data acquisition unit 2150, and an intervention information acquisition unit 2160. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the prior information acquired by the information import unit 2100.

[0065] The object determination information acquisition unit 2110 is a functional unit that acquires in advance the criteria for detecting and determining the state of an object executed in the object state detection unit 2300. As shown in FIG. 10, the object determination information acquisition unit 2110 can acquire, for example, as the criteria for the determination of the primary detection of the object 7000 by the primary detection determination unit 2310 of the object state detection unit 2300, reference values such as the sound wave intensity of the sound wave measurement data by the sonar, the type and size of the detected object.

[0066] The environment information acquisition unit 2120 is a functional unit that acquires environment information in the ocean area where the unmanned boat 1010 is deployed or its surrounding area from the weather information providing system of the external system 6000 or the like. As shown in FIG. 10, the environment information acquisition unit 2120 can acquire, for example, as environment information, weather information, sea state information, climate information, seawater state, solar-related state, and other state information related to the environment.

[0067] Although not shown in FIG. 10, the environment information acquisition unit 2120 may have a function of acquiring the navigation information of ships in the ocean area where the unmanned boat 1010 is deployed or its surrounding area from the AIS control center included in the ship operation monitoring system 5300 of the cooperation system 5000. Also, the navigation information of ships may be acquired from other VHF data exchange systems (VHF Data Exchange System) included in the external system 6000.

[0068] The unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2130 is a functional unit that pre-acquires information regarding various performances of the unmanned boat 1010. As shown in FIG. 10, the unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2130 can acquire, for example, the power performance, measurement performance, communication performance, self-position estimation performance, other performances, and the device state such as abnormalities and failures of the unmanned boat 1010 from the unmanned boat 1010.

[0069] The search requirement condition acquisition unit 2140 is a functional unit that receives various information regarding the requirement conditions for searching for the target object 7000. As shown in FIG. 10, the search requirement condition acquisition unit 2140 includes, for example, the search target object (such as marine organisms, divers, etc.), the search target area, the prohibited entry area, the communicable area, the search time, the search target value, and the like. Note that, for example, the search requirement condition acquisition unit 2140 can acquire the requirement conditions for searching from the cooperation system 5000 or the user input reception unit 2600 described later.

[0070] The measurement data acquisition unit 2150 is a functional unit that acquires the determination result determined by the determination unit 1500 of the unmanned boat 1010 via the communication satellite 3000, HAPS, the ground base station 4000, etc., and the measurement data measured by the unmanned boat 1010.

[0071] The intervention information acquisition unit 2160 is a functional unit that receives intervention command information from the cooperation system 5000, the user terminal device 8000, or the user input reception unit 2600 described later.

[0072] (A-3-2. Pre-detection operation command unit 2200) The pre-detection operation command unit 2200 is a functional unit that determines operation commands such as search operations before detecting the target object 7000. The pre-detection operation command unit 2200 includes an unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210 and a pre-detection operation determination unit 2220.

[0073] The unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210 is a functional unit that estimates the performance that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit 2120 and various performance information of the unmanned boat 1010 acquired by the unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2130. For example, the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210 determines the degree of influence of the acquired environmental information on the performance of the unmanned boat 1010, corrects various performance information of the unmanned boat 1010 as shown in FIG. 10, and can estimate the performance that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit.

[0074] For example, sea conditions, weather, seawater, solar-related conditions, etc. affect performance such as the measurable distance by an optical sensor. Also, weather such as air temperature and sea conditions such as seawater temperature change the temperature of the unmanned boat's equipment, and the equipment temperature affects the power performance, measurement performance, communication performance, etc. of the unmanned boat. Also, sea conditions such as wave height and sea current and weather such as wind speed affect the power performance of the unmanned boat. Also, ionospheric disturbances (such as solar flares) and weather conditions affect the self-position estimation performance and communication performance using GNSS carrier waves. Also, when the energy state of the battery decreases, it affects the power performance, measurement performance, communication performance, etc. of the unmanned boat.

[0075] It is possible to estimate in real time the presence or absence and degree of deterioration or improvement of the performance of the unmanned boat according to the various environmental information described above.

[0076] The pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 is a functional unit that determines an operation plan such as a search operation before detecting the target object 7000 based on the corrected performance information of the unmanned boat 1010 estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210, and determines an operation command for executing the operation plan. The pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 determines the type and measurement method of the measurement sensor to be used for the search, and determines the search operation plan of the unmanned boat 1010. The determination result determined by the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12.

[0077] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of candidates for measurement sensors determined by the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220. As shown in FIG. 11, for the candidates for measurement sensors determined by the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220, it is possible to determine the type of measurement sensor and the measurement method using the measurement sensor. The measurement sensors include acoustic sensors such as sonars, optical sensors, laser sensors, etc.

[0078] In addition, the acoustic sensors include a passive sonar for measuring underwater sound, an active sonar for emitting sound waves into the water and measuring the sound waves reflected by an object, an acoustic modem and an acoustic transponder capable of transmitting and receiving acoustic signals, etc. In addition, the active sonars include a multi-beam sonar capable of measuring the measurement area as a plane by measuring the reflected waves of multiple points at once, and a single-beam sonar capable of measuring the line of the measurement area by measuring the reflected wave of a single sound wave beam.

[0079] In addition, the optical sensors include electro-optical sensors (Electro-Optical sensors), optical cameras, infrared sensors (IR sensors), underwater optical communication sensors, etc. In addition, the laser sensors include laser sensors such as bathymetric LiDAR for acquiring point cloud data (for example, green laser sensors, blue laser sensors, etc.).

[0080] Next, as the measurement methods using the measurement sensors, it includes the usage method of acoustic sensors, the usage method of optical sensors, and the usage method of laser sensors. As the usage method of acoustic sensors, it includes the side scan sonar method, the sub-bottom profiler method, and the towed sonar method. The side scan sonar method is a method of simultaneously oscillating sound wave pulses on the starboard and port sides downward diagonally to the side of the unmanned boat. Also, it is a method of transmitting a sound wave pulse directly downward from the unmanned boat. Also, the towed sonar method is a method of measuring sound waves with a sonar provided on a cable extended outside the unmanned boat.

[0081] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of candidates for the search method of the unmanned boat determined by the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220. As shown in FIG. 12, the candidates for the search method of the unmanned boat determined by the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 include a circular search method, a mooring search method, a semi-mooring method, a circular-mooring combined search method, and the like.

[0082] The circular search method includes a predetermined formation circular search in which a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 maintain a predetermined formation in groups and perform search while making a circuit, an individual circular search in which each unmanned boat 1010 performs search while making an individual circuit, and a column-shaped circular search in which a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 form a column and perform search while making a circuit.

[0083] The mooring search method includes a predetermined formation arrangement in which a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 perform mooring search in a predetermined formation arrangement in groups, an individual arrangement in which each unmanned boat 1010 performs mooring search at a position where it is individually arranged, and a column-shaped arrangement in which a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 form a column and perform mooring search.

[0084] The semi-mooring method is a method of performing search while moving within a substantially same position or its surrounding area without completely mooring. The circular-mooring combined search method is a search method that combines the above-described circular search method and mooring search method.

[0085] In addition, the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 can determine not only the search method of the unmanned boat 1010 shown in FIG. 12, but also the number of boat bodies, arrangement positions, formations, speeds, accelerations, or circular paths of the unmanned boats used for search. In this case, based on the corrected performance information of the unmanned boat 1010 estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210, the number of boat bodies, arrangement positions, formations, speeds, accelerations, or circular paths of the above-described unmanned boats are determined.

[0086] In addition, when the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 determines a target search rate as a target value for the search by the unmanned boat 1010, the number of boat bodies can be increased or the arrangement position can be adjusted so as to achieve the target search rate.

[0087] (A-3-3. Object State Detection Unit 2300) The object state detection unit 2300 is a functional unit that detects the presence or state of the object 7000 based on the measurement data measured by the measurement sensor 1110 of the unmanned boat 1010. Note that when the object state detection unit 2300 continuously acquires the measurement data of the object 7000, it can continuously determine or estimate the state of the object based on the acquired measurement data. The object state detection unit 2300 includes a primary detection determination unit 2310, a secondary detection determination unit 2320, a current state determination unit 2330, and a lost state determination unit 2340. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the state information of the object detected or estimated by the object state detection unit 2300.

[0088] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the state information of the object detected or estimated by the object state detection unit 2300. As shown in FIG. 13, the object state detection unit 2300 can detect or estimate information regarding the static state, object characteristics, dynamic state, past history, and movement performance of the object 7000.

[0089] The static state can include the position coordinates of the object 7000, the formation, the relative distance between the object 7000 and the unmanned boat 1010, and the relative azimuth. Also, the object characteristics can include the type, shape, size, orientation, material, etc. of the object 7000. Also, the dynamic state can include the presence or absence of movement (movement or stillness), movement direction, movement speed, turning radius, turning speed, acceleration, and deceleration of the object 7000. Also, the past history can include history information such as the past movement path history of the object 7000.

[0090] Also, the movement performance can include information regarding the maximum movement speed, maximum turning speed, minimum turning radius, maximum acceleration, maximum deceleration, movable distance, and other movement performance. Also, in addition to the object state information shown in FIG. 13, the object state detection unit 2300 may have a function of determining a spatial movement state including movement, standby, surfacing, diving, sea surface standby, sea surface movement, etc., and a creation execution state including normal movement, standby, surveillance, escape, tracking, concealment, recovery, attack, abnormality, etc.

[0091] The primary detection determination unit 2310 is a functional unit that performs primary detection of the object 7000 based on the type of measurement sensor determined by the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 and the measurement data obtained by the measurement method. The primary detection determination unit 2310 can detect at least some of the various state information of the object 7000 shown in FIG. 13. For example, it can at least detect the position coordinates of the object 7000.

[0092] The secondary detection determination unit 2320 is a functional unit that performs secondary detection of the object 7000 based on the measurement data obtained by a measurement sensor of a type different from the measurement sensor used for the primary detection determination by the primary detection determination unit 2310. When obtaining acoustic measurement data using a sonar as the measurement sensor, the sonar used for primary detection determination and the sonar used for secondary detection determination can be of different types.

[0093] Also, when performing primary detection determination based on the first acoustic measurement data measured by the first measurement sensor (for example, the first sonar) mounted on the single or multiple first unmanned boats, secondary detection determination can be performed based on the second acoustic measurement data measured by the second measurement sensor (for example, the second sonar) mounted on the single or multiple second unmanned boats different from the first unmanned boat. That is, the measurement data used for primary detection determination and secondary detection determination can be obtained by different unmanned boats.

[0094] Conversely, contrary to the above method, the measurement data used for primary detection determination and secondary detection determination can also be obtained from the first sonar and the second sonar mounted on the same unmanned boat, respectively.

[0095] As described above, when different types of sonars are used for primary detection determination and secondary detection determination, sonars with different sensor types and sensor measurement methods shown in FIG. 11 can be selected. For example, the first sonar and the second sonar can be composed of at least any one of a passive sonar, an active sonar, a multi-beam sonar, a single-beam sonar, an acoustic modem, an acoustic transponder, a side-scan sonar, a sub-bottom profiler, and a towed sonar.

[0096] Also, the primary detection determination by the primary detection determination unit 2310 and the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320 can be executed simultaneously in parallel, but it is also possible to execute the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320 after the primary detection determination. In this way, when the secondary detection determination is performed after the primary detection determination, for example, the position of the object 7000 is detected by the primary detection determination, and the type, material, shape, orientation, size, moving speed of the object 7000, or more detailed position information than the position detected by the primary detection determination can be determined by the secondary detection determination.

[0097] Here, when the secondary detection determination is performed after the primary detection determination, the secondary detection determination unit 2320 may have a function of selecting the type and measurement method of the measurement sensor used for the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320. In this case, the type and measurement method of the measurement sensor suitable for detecting the detection determination items not detected by the primary detection determination can be selected as the type and measurement method of the measurement sensor used for the secondary detection determination.

[0098] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship such as the type of acoustic sensor suitable for the detection determination items. In the example shown in FIG. 14, the determination items include the material of the object, type determination by voiceprint matching, shape / orientation determination, speed determination, and position determination, and the relationship between the type of acoustic sensor, the usage method, and the operation of the unmanned boat during measurement, which are considered suitable for these determination items, is shown.

[0099] When the secondary detection determination unit 2320 determines the type of measurement sensor, measurement method, or unmanned boat operation during measurement that is suitable for detecting detection determination items not detected by the primary detection determination, it can make a determination based on the pre-recorded information as shown in FIG. 14.

[0100] As described above, as an example of determining the state of an object using primary detection determination and secondary detection determination, for example, in a plurality of unmanned boats, one unmanned boat uses a side scan sonar method and the other unmanned boat uses a sub-bottom profiler method to perform measurements simultaneously in parallel, and the surface shape and material can be determined.

[0101] As another example, in a plurality of unmanned boats, one unmanned boat uses a single beam sonar and the other unmanned boat uses a multi-beam sonar to perform measurements simultaneously in parallel, and distance measurement and determination of the surface shape can be performed.

[0102] As another example, in a plurality of unmanned boats, one unmanned boat uses a single beam sonar and the other unmanned boat uses a multi-beam sonar to perform measurements simultaneously in parallel, and determination of wide-range distance measurement and high-precision distance measurement in a narrow range can be performed.

[0103] The current state determination unit 2330 is a functional unit that determines the current state of the object 7000 including at least any one of the various states shown in FIG. 13 based on the result of the primary detection determination by the primary detection determination unit 2310 and the result of the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320. The current state determination unit 2330 can, for example, compare the result of the primary detection determination by the primary detection determination unit 2310 and the result of the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320 to make a definite determination of the current state of the object 7000. On the other hand, instead of comparing the result of the primary detection determination with the result of the secondary detection determination, the state information obtained by each detection determination may be combined to make a definite determination of the current state of the object 7000.

[0104] When there are state items that could not be detected in both the primary detection determination by the primary detection determination unit 2310 and the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320, the current state determination unit 2330 may have a function of estimating the content of the state items that could not be detected according to the content of the primary detection determination by the primary detection determination unit 2310 and the secondary detection determination by the secondary detection determination unit 2320.

[0105] For example, when estimating the current position, the current state determination unit 2330 can estimate the current position of the object 7000 based on the position coordinates of the object 7000, the past detected position, and the movement vector obtained by integrating the detected speed. Also, when estimating the movement trajectory up to the present, it can be estimated by a curve approximating a plurality of straight lines connecting the past measured positions. Further, the movement trajectory can be estimated by integrating the past detected speeds.

[0106] The current state determination unit 2330 can newly detect the object 7000. However, when the object 7000 that has been detected at least once in the past cannot be detected and then the object 7000 is detected again, it is determined as a re-detection state. In such a case, re-detection information including at least any one of the position, movement direction, speed of the object at the time of the re-detection state, and the time when the re-detection state occurred can be determined, and the determination result can be recorded.

[0107] The lost state determination unit 2340 is a functional unit that determines that the object 7000 is in a detection lost state when the object 7000 cannot be detected by the measurement sensor mounted on the unmanned boat 1010. The lost state determination unit 2340 can determine and record detection lost information including at least any one of the position, movement direction, speed of the object 7000 at the time of the detection lost state, and the time when the detection lost state occurred.

[0108] (A-3-4. Future Operation Prediction Unit 2400) The future motion prediction unit 2400 is a functional unit that predicts the future motion state of the object 7000 based on the detection results regarding the state of the object 7000 detected or estimated by the object state detection unit 2300. When a plurality of objects 7000 are detected, future motion prediction is performed for the group of the plurality of objects 7000. In addition, the future motion prediction unit 2400 has a function of predicting the future exploration state by the unmanned boat 1010. The future motion prediction unit 2400 includes an object motion prediction unit 2410, an unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420, a lost pre-prediction unit 2430, and a re-detection prediction unit 2440.

[0109] The object motion prediction unit 2410 predicts and calculates the future motion state of the object 7000. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the future motion prediction result of the object generated by the object motion prediction unit 2410. As shown in FIG. 15, the object motion prediction unit 2410 can predict and calculate future motion prediction, static state at a future time, and dynamic state at a future time. The future motion prediction includes, for example, a predicted path and a predicted destination. The static state at a future time includes the position coordinates of the object 7000 at a future time, the formation, the relative distance and relative azimuth between the object 7000 and the unmanned boat 1010. The dynamic state at a future time includes the presence or absence of movement (moving state / stationary state), moving speed, moving direction, turning radius, turning speed, acceleration, deceleration, etc. When a plurality of objects 7000 are detected, each prediction item shown in FIG. 15 can be predicted and calculated for the group composed of the plurality of objects 7000.

[0110] The unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420 is a functional unit that estimates the performance that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit 2120 and various performance information of the unmanned boat 1010 acquired by the unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2130. For example, the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420 determines the degree of influence of the acquired environmental information on the performance of the unmanned boat 1010, corrects various performance information of the unmanned boat 1010 as shown in FIG. 10, and can estimate the performance that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit.

[0111] For example, walrus, weather, seawater, solar-related conditions, etc. affect performance such as the measurable distance by an optical sensor. Also, meteorology such as air temperature and walrus such as seawater temperature change the temperature of the equipment of the unmanned boat, and the equipment temperature affects the power performance, measurement performance, communication performance, etc. of the unmanned boat. Also, walrus such as wave height and sea current and meteorology such as wind speed affect the power performance of the unmanned boat. Also, ionospheric disturbances (such as solar flares) and weather conditions affect the self-position estimation performance and communication performance using GNSS carrier waves. Also, when the energy state of the battery decreases, it affects the power performance, measurement performance, communication performance, etc. of the unmanned boat.

[0112] According to the various environmental information described above, it is possible to estimate in real time the presence or absence and degree of performance degradation or improvement of the unmanned boat.

[0113] The lost pre-prediction unit 2430 is a functional unit that pre-predicts that a detection lost state in which the presence of the object 7000 cannot be detected will occur in the future after the object 7000 is detected by the measurement sensor 1110. When a plurality of objects 7000 are detected, it is possible to perform a prediction regarding the detection lost state for a group composed of the plurality of objects 7000. For example, the lost pre-prediction unit 2430 estimates the underwater measurement area measurable by the measurement sensor 1110 (such as a sonar) based on the estimation result of the measurement performance of the measurement sensor 1110 estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420, and based on the information regarding the underwater measurement area, generates lost prediction information including at least any one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional lost prediction position, lost prediction direction, lost prediction speed, and lost prediction time in which a detection lost state of the object 7000 is predicted to occur in the future.

[0114] Also, the lost pre-prediction unit 2430 may have a function of generating a lost prediction probability indicating the probability of occurrence of a detection lost state of the object 7000 at the lost prediction position or lost prediction time included in the generated lost prediction information.

[0115] The re-detection prediction unit 2440 is a functional unit that predicts in advance that a re-detection state of re-detecting the object 7000 by the measurement sensor 1110 will occur in the future after the above-described detection loss state occurs. When a plurality of objects 7000 are detected, it is possible to perform a prediction regarding the re-detection state for a group composed of the plurality of objects 7000.

[0116] For example, the re-detection prediction unit 2440 estimates the underwater measurement area measurable by the measurement sensor 1110 (such as a sonar) based on the estimation results such as the measurement performance of the measurement sensor 1110 estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420, and based on the information regarding the underwater measurement area, generates re-detection prediction information including at least any one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional re-detection prediction position, re-detection prediction direction, re-detection prediction speed, and re-detection prediction time in which the re-detection state will occur in the future.

[0117] In addition, the re-detection prediction unit 2440 can also generate re-detection prediction information including at least any one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional re-detection prediction position, re-detection prediction direction, re-detection prediction speed, and re-detection prediction time in which the re-detection state will occur in the future according to the information regarding the seabed topography and surrounding objects. In this case, for example, when the seabed in front of the traveling direction of the object 7000 is a terrain where the seabed becomes shallower, it is predicted that the movement path of the object 7000 along the seabed will also rise obliquely upward, and it is expected that the unmanned boat 1010 and its measurement range will approach again.

[0118] In addition, the re-detection prediction unit 2440 may have a function of generating a re-detection prediction probability indicating the probability that the object 7000 will be re-detected at the re-detection prediction position or re-detection prediction time included in the generated re-detection prediction information. Further, the information to be generated is not limited to the re-detection prediction probability, and may have a function of calculating a re-entry probability into the underwater measurement area, an encounter probability between the unmanned boat 1010 and the object 7000, and the like.

[0119] (A-3-5. Discovery Post-operation Command Decision Unit 2500) The post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500 is a functional unit that determines the operation command of the unmanned boat 1010 based on the prediction result of the future operation state of the object 7000 by the future operation prediction unit 2400. Note that the post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500 may have a function of determining the operation command of the unmanned boat 1010 based not only on the prediction result by the future operation prediction unit 2400 but also on the detection result by the object state detection unit 2300. The post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500 includes a detection continuation operation determination unit 2510 and a re-detection operation determination unit 2520.

[0120] When the object state detection unit 2300 detects the object 7000, the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510 is a functional unit that determines an operation command for continuously detecting the object 7000 by the measurement sensor 1110 of the unmanned boat 1010 according to the prediction result by the future operation prediction unit 2400.

[0121] For example, when the future operation prediction unit 2400 predicts and calculates at least one of the future movement route, movement destination, or future position at a future time of the object 7000, the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510 can generate an unmanned boat position control command for moving the unmanned boat 1010 to at least one of the positions on the sea surface around the position along the predicted future movement route of the object 7000, the positions on the sea surface around the route to the predicted future movement destination of the object 7000, and the positions on the sea surface around the future position of the object 7000 at a future time. By generating such an unmanned boat position control command, the unmanned boat 1010 can be deployed near the position of the object 7000 predicted in the future, so that the object 7000 can be continuously detected.

[0122] In the above example, the control of the position of the unmanned boat 1010 was described. However, when a towed sonar is used as the measurement sensor, the object 7000 can be continuously detected by controlling the position of the towed sonar. In this case, for example, when the future movement path, movement destination, or at least one of the future positions at a future time of the object 7000 is predicted and calculated by the future movement prediction unit 2400, the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510 can generate a sonar position control command to move the towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat 1010 by a cable to a three-dimensional position in the sea around the future movement path of the predicted object 7000, to a three-dimensional position in the sea around the path to the predicted future movement destination of the object 7000, or to a three-dimensional position in the sea around the future position of the object 7000 at a future time. By generating such a sonar position control command, the towed sonar can be deployed near the future sea position of the object 7000 predicted in the future, so that the object 7000 can be continuously detected.

[0123] Next, the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 is a functional unit that determines an operation command for re-detecting the object 7000 after the occurrence of a detection loss state by the measurement sensor 1110 of the unmanned boat 1010 according to the detection result by the object state detection unit 2300 and the prediction result by the future movement prediction unit 2400 when the occurrence of a detection loss state is detected by the loss state determination unit 2340 or when the occurrence of a detection loss state is predicted in advance by the loss pre-prediction unit 2430.

[0124] When the occurrence of a detection loss state is detected by the loss state determination unit 2340 or when the occurrence of a detection loss state is predicted in advance by the loss pre-prediction unit 2430, the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 can generate an unmanned boat position control command to move the unmanned boat 1010 to a position near the sea surface at the loss occurrence position of the object 7000 where the detection loss state is detected or predicted. By generating such an unmanned boat position control command, the unmanned boat 1010 can be deployed near the position where the detection loss occurred, so that the probability of re-detecting the object 7000 can be increased.

[0125] When the re-detection operation decision unit 2520 detects the occurrence of a detection loss state by the loss state determination unit 2340 or predicts in advance the occurrence of a detection loss state by the loss prediction unit 2430, the unmanned boat is moved to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface of the loss occurrence position of the object 7000 for which the detection loss state has been detected or predicted. Further, while the output of the thrust generation unit 1310 of the unmanned boat 1010 is stopped or decreased, acoustic information is measured by the sonar which is the measurement sensor 1110, and an operation control command for restarting or increasing the output of the thrust generation unit 1310 after the measurement by the sonar is completed can be generated. By generating such an operation control command, acoustic measurement data can be collected in a state where the acoustic noise generated from the thrust generation unit 1310 is reduced, so that the search performance by acoustic measurement can be improved and the probability of re-detecting the object 7000 can be increased.

[0126] When detecting the object 7000 based on the acoustic data measured as described above, normal underwater noise data in the same area is collected in advance, and by comparing the measured acoustic data with the pre-collected noise data, the object 7000 can be detected more accurately. Note that the normal noise data may be measured in advance by the unmanned boat 1010, or noise data may be acquired from an external system.

[0127] In the above example, an example of controlling the position of the unmanned boat 1010 was described. However, when using a towed sonar as a measurement sensor, by controlling the position of the towed sonar, the probability of redetecting the target object 7000 can be increased. In this case, when the redetection operation determination unit 2520 detects the occurrence of a detection loss state by the loss state determination unit 2340, or when the loss pre-prediction unit 2430 pre-predicts the occurrence of a detection loss state, the redetection operation determination unit 2520 can generate a sonar position control command to move the towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat 1010 by a cable to the vicinity of the three-dimensional position in the sea of the loss occurrence position of the target object 7000 for which the detection loss state has been detected or predicted. By generating such a sonar position control command, the towed sonar can be deployed near the occurrence position of the detection loss in the sea, so that the probability of redetecting the target object 7000 can be increased.

[0128] In the above example, an example of controlling the position of the unmanned boat 1010 or the towed sonar was described. However, it is also possible to request search cooperation from an external cooperation system 5000 other than the unmanned boat system 1000. In this case, when the redetection operation determination unit 2520 detects the occurrence of a detection loss state by the loss state determination unit 2340, or when the loss pre-prediction unit 2430 pre-predicts the occurrence of a detection loss state, the redetection operation determination unit 2520 generates a movement request command to move to a position on the sea surface or a three-dimensional position in the sea around the loss occurrence position of the target object 7000 for which the detection loss state has been detected or predicted, and the command information output unit 2700 described later can transmit and output the movement request command to an external cooperation system 5000 or the like.

[0129] Next, the operation command when the re-detection prediction unit 2440 predicts in advance the occurrence of the re-detection state of the object 7000 will be described. In this case, when the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 predicts, based on the re-detection prediction unit 2440, that a re-detection state in which the object 7000 that has been detected at least once cannot be detected and then the object 7000 is detected again will occur in the future, the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 can generate an unmanned boat position control command to move the unmanned boat 1010 to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface of the re-detection prediction position of the object 7000 for which the re-detection state has been predicted. By generating such an unmanned boat position control command, the unmanned boat 1010 can be deployed near the position where re-detection is expected, so that the probability of re-detecting the object 7000 can be increased.

[0130] When the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 predicts, based on the re-detection prediction unit 2440, that a re-detection state in which the object 7000 that has been detected at least once cannot be detected and then the object 7000 is detected again will occur in the future, the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 moves the unmanned boat 1010 to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface of the re-detection prediction position of the object 7000 for which the re-detection state has been predicted. Further, while the output of the thrust generation unit 1310 of the unmanned boat 1010 is stopped or decreased, acoustic information is measured by the sonar, which is the measurement sensor 1110, and after the measurement by the sonar is completed, an operation control command to resume or increase the output of the thrust generation unit 1310 can be generated. By generating such an operation control command, acoustic measurement data is collected in a state where the acoustic noise generated from the thrust generation unit 1310 is reduced, so that the search performance by acoustic measurement can be improved and the probability of re-detecting the object 7000 can be increased.

[0131] As another example, when the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 predicts, based on the re-detection prediction unit 2440, that a re-detection state in which the object 7000 that has been detected at least once will be detected again will occur in the future after the object 7000 can no longer be detected, the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 can generate a sonar position control command to move the towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat 1010 by cable to the vicinity of the three-dimensional position in the sea at the re-detection predicted position of the object 7000 for which the re-detection state has been predicted. By generating such a sonar position control command, the towed sonar can be deployed near the predicted occurrence position of the re-detection state in the sea, so that the probability of re-detecting the object 7000 can be increased.

[0132] In the above example, the example of controlling the positions of the unmanned boat 1010 and the towed sonar has been described. However, it is also possible to request cooperation in exploration from an external cooperative system 5000 other than the unmanned boat system 1000. In this case, when the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 predicts, based on the re-detection prediction unit 2440, that a re-detection state in which the object 7000 that has been detected at least once will be detected again will occur in the future after the object 7000 can no longer be detected, the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 can generate a movement request command to move to a position on the sea surface or a three-dimensional position in the sea near the re-detection occurrence position of the object 7000 for which the re-detection state has been predicted, or can transmit and output the prediction result of the occurrence of the re-detection state by the re-detection prediction unit 2440 to an external cooperative system 5000 or the like by a command information output unit 2700 described later.

[0133] Note that in this case, when it is determined that the re-detection predicted position is immovable or unmeasurable by the unmanned boat 1010, it may be configured to transmit and output a movement request command or a prediction result of the occurrence of the re-detection state to an external cooperative system 5000 or the like.

[0134] The re-detection operation determination unit 2520 may determine movement commands for the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 according to the predicted movement path of the object by the object movement prediction unit 2410 not only for each of the above-described operation commands, but also when the lost state determination unit 2340 determines that the object 7000 has been detected as lost. In this case, for example, a movement command for moving the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 to an area on the right-turn side or the left-turn side from the lost position can be determined as an operation command.

[0135] In addition, taking into account the movement direction and movement speed of the object 7000 at the time of loss, the object movement prediction unit 2410 predicts the future movement state of the object 7000, and according to the prediction result, an operation command including the movement target position of the unmanned boat and the necessity of continuing the movement can be determined.

[0136] (A-3-6. User input reception unit 2600) The user input reception unit 2600 can receive various information from the user. For example, the user input reception unit 2600 can receive a detection result regarding the presence or state of the object 7000 detected by the object state detection unit 2300, or a prediction result of the future operation state of the object 7000 predicted by the future operation prediction unit 2400, or a correction command regarding the content of the operation command determined by the pre-detection operation command unit 2200 or the post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500.

[0137] The user input reception unit 2600 can receive not only correction commands for the above-described various information, but also approval input or rejection input for the determination information and operation commands generated by each functional unit of the overall control system 2000. Note that the user input reception unit 2600 may be a portable mobile terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a notebook PC. In addition, reception of user input information can also be performed via operation buttons provided on the display screen of the display output unit 2710 described later.

[0138] (A-3-7. Command information output unit 2700) The instruction information output unit 2700 is a functional unit that notifies or displays and outputs the information acquired or generated by each of the above-described functional units within the overall control system 2000 to the user, or outputs instructions to the unmanned boat 1010, or transmits and outputs to an external cooperation system. The instruction information output unit 2700 includes a display output unit 2710, an instruction transmission unit 2720, and an information transmission unit 2730.

[0139] The display output unit 2710 is a functional unit that displays and outputs various information such as the information acquired or generated by each of the above-described functional units within the overall control system 2000, that is, various information acquired by the information import unit 2100, operation instruction information generated by the pre-detection operation instruction unit 2200, detection results detected by the object state detection unit 2300, prediction results predicted and calculated by the future operation prediction unit 2400, and operation instruction information generated by the post-discovery operation instruction determination unit 2500. When notifying the user, the display output unit 2710 can notify the user not only by display output but also by voice, light emission, or vibration.

[0140] Also, when transmitting various information to the cooperation system 5000, the user terminal device 8000, or other external systems by the information transmission unit 2730 described later, information such as the contact information, contact means, and location of the information transmission destination may be displayed on the display output unit 2710.

[0141] The instruction transmission unit 2720 is a functional unit that transmits the operation instruction information generated by the pre-detection operation instruction unit 2200 or the operation instruction information generated by the post-discovery operation instruction determination unit 2500 to the unmanned boat 1010. The information transmission unit 2730 is a functional unit that transmits and outputs the information acquired or generated by each of the above-described functional units within the overall control system 2000 to an external cooperation system 5000 or the like.

[0142] The various functions implemented in the unmanned boat 1010 and the overall control system 2000 described so far with reference to FIGS. 7 and 9 are merely one of the embodiments, and the present invention is not limited to this implementation example. That is, a part of the functions implemented in the unmanned boat 1010 shown in FIG. 7 (mainly the functions of the determination unit 1500) can be implemented in the overall control system 2000. On the other hand, a part of the functions implemented in the overall control system 2000 shown in FIG. 9 (mainly at least one of the information import unit 2100 and the object state detection unit 2300) can also be implemented in the unmanned boat 1010.

[0143] (A-4. Control Processing Flow of Overall Control System 2000) Next, the control processing flow of the overall control system 2000 will be described with reference to FIG. 16. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an example of the control processing flow of the overall control system 2000.

[0144] First, the information import unit 2100 acquires prior information (step 101). In this step, for example, various information as shown in FIG. 10 is acquired.

[0145] Next, the pre-detection operation command unit 2200 determines the pre-detection operation (i.e., the search operation) of the unmanned boat system 1000 (step 102). The details of this step will be described later.

[0146] Next, the operation command determined by the pre-detection operation command unit 2200 is transmitted to the unmanned boat system by the command transmission unit 2720, and the unmanned boat system executes the search for the object 7000 (step 103).

[0147] Next, after performing the search in step 103, the primary detection determination unit 2310 determines the next transition processing step according to whether the object 7000 is primarily detected (step 104). In this step, if the object 7000 is detected, the process is transferred to step 105, and on the other hand, if the object 7000 is not detected, the process is transferred to step 103.

[0148] Next, when the object 7000 is detected in step 104, state determination of the object, such as current state determination and lost state determination, is performed by the object state detection unit 2300 (step 105). Details of this step will be described later.

[0149] Next, the object motion prediction unit 2410 predicts the future motion of the detected object 7000 (step 106).

[0150] Next, the lost state prediction unit 2430 predicts the occurrence of a future detection lost state (step 107). Details of this step will be described later.

[0151] Next, the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510 determines an operation command for continuously detecting the object 7000 by the measurement sensor 1110 of the unmanned boat 1010 (step 108). Details of this step will be described later.

[0152] Next, depending on whether or not the occurrence of a detection lost state in which the object 7000 cannot be detected by the measurement sensor mounted on the unmanned boat 1010 is detected as a result of performing the monitoring operation according to the monitoring operation command in step 108, the next transition processing step is determined (step 109). In this step, if the occurrence of a detection lost state is detected, the process is transitioned to step 110, and on the other hand, if the occurrence of a detection lost state is not detected, the process is transitioned to step 108.

[0153] Next, when the occurrence of a detection lost state is detected in step 109, the re-detection prediction unit 2440 predicts the occurrence of a future re-detection state (step 110). Details of this step will be described later.

[0154] Next, the post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500 determines an operation command for re-detecting the object 7000 by the measurement sensor 1110 of the unmanned boat 1010 (step 111).

[0155] (A-5. Determination processing flow of search operation) Next, with reference to FIG. 17, the determination process of the pre-detection operation of the object 7000 determined by the pre-detection operation command unit 2200 will be described. FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an example of the determination process flow of the pre-detection operation command by the pre-detection operation command unit 2200. In particular, FIG. 17 shows the detailed process of step 102 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 16.

[0156] First, the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210 performs unmanned boat performance estimation according to environmental disturbances (step 201). In this step, the degree of influence on various performances of the unmanned boat is determined based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit 2120 (for example, the environmental information shown in FIG. 10), and the unmanned boat performance information acquired by the unmanned boat ability information acquisition unit 2130 (for example, the unmanned boat performance information shown in FIG. 10) is corrected to perform performance estimation that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit.

[0157] Next, the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 determines the type and measurement method of the measurement sensor to be used for searching for the object (step 202). In this step, for example, according to the search requirement conditions acquired by the search requirement condition acquisition unit 2140 and the performance of the unmanned boat estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210, the type and measurement method of the measurement sensor that can satisfy the search requirement conditions are determined. As an example, any type and measurement method can be determined from the sensor types and measurement methods shown in FIG. 11.

[0158] Next, the pre-detection operation determination unit 2220 determines the pre-detection operation of the unmanned boat 1010 (step 203). In this step, for example, according to the search requirement conditions acquired by the search requirement condition acquisition unit 2140 and the performance of the unmanned boat estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2210, the operation of the unmanned boat that can satisfy the search requirement conditions is determined. As an example, any search method can be determined from the search methods shown in FIG. 12.

[0159] (A-6. Determination of the Detection State of the Object 7000) Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 18 and 19, the state detection method of the object 7000 detected by the object state detection unit 2300 will be described.

[0160] (A-6-1. Detection Status Determination Process Flow of Object 7000) FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing an example of the state detection process flow of the object 7000 by the object state detection unit 2300. In particular, FIG. 18 shows the detailed process of step 105 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 16.

[0161] First, the primary detection determination unit 2310 determines the state of the object 7000 based on the primary detection data obtained from the unmanned boat 1010 via the measurement data acquisition unit 2150 (step 301). The state information determined in this step includes, for example, at least any one of the state information shown in FIG. 13.

[0162] Next, the current state determination unit 2330 estimates the state that is an undetected item in the primary detection determination based on the primary detection data (step 302).

[0163] Next, the secondary detection determination unit 2320 determines the measurement sensor and measurement method to be used for the secondary detection determination (step 303).

[0164] Next, the state of the object 7000 is determined based on the secondary detection data obtained from the unmanned boat 1010 via the measurement data acquisition unit 2150 (step 304). The state information determined in this step includes, for example, at least any one of the state information shown in FIG. 13.

[0165] Next, the current state determination unit 2330 estimates the state that is an undetected item in the secondary detection determination based on the secondary detection data (step 305).

[0166] Next, the determination results in each of the above steps are displayed and output from the display output unit 2710 (step 306). Also, in this step, the determination results in each of the above steps are transmitted and output to the user terminal device 8000 and the cooperation system 5000 via the information transmission unit 2730.

[0167] (A-6-2. Detection Status Judgment Result of Object 7000) FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of display information of the state detection result of object 7000 by object state detection unit 2300.

[0168] In the example shown in FIG. 19, as the state detection result of object 7000, a message indicating that an object has been detected in the sea is displayed. Also, the measurement data measured by measurement sensor 1110 is displayed at the lower left of the screen. Further, at the lower right of the screen, state information regarding the object, such as position coordinates, type, material, shape, orientation, size, and moving speed, is displayed as the state information of the detected object 7000.

[0169] Furthermore, on the right side of the screen, buttons that can approve or correct the judgment result by object state detection unit 2300 can be displayed. The user can approve or correct the judgment result by operating these buttons on the screen.

[0170] (A-7. Future Movement Prediction of Object 7000) Next, with reference to FIG. 20, a method for predicting the future movement of object 7000 by object movement prediction unit 2410 will be described. FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of display information of the future movement prediction result of object 7000 by object movement prediction unit 2410.

[0171] In the example shown in FIG. 20, a message indicating that the future movement prediction result of object 7000 is displayed is shown. Also, at the lower left of the screen, detection results such as the type, current position, and moving direction of the marine creature that is object 7000, the predicted path of object 7000 (described by a dotted arrow), and the current arrangement of the unmanned boat are displayed in a three-dimensional space. Note that the display in the three-dimensional space may be in a map format or in a display format integrated with the actual measurement image. Also, for each future time, prediction information regarding the state of the object, such as the relative distance, relative azimuth, position coordinates, formation (when there are multiple objects 7000), presence or absence of movement (moving state / stationary state), moving speed, and moving direction between unmanned boat 1010 and object 7000, is displayed.

[0172] Furthermore, on the left side of the screen, buttons that can approve or modify the determination result by the object motion prediction unit 2410 can be displayed. The user can approve or modify the determination result by operating these buttons on the screen.

[0173] (A-8. Future Prediction of Detection Loss State of Object 7000) Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 21 and 22, a method for predicting a future detection loss state by the loss pre-prediction unit 2430 will be described.

[0174] (A-8-1. Prediction Processing Flow of Detection Loss State of Object 7000) FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing an example of a prediction processing flow of the detection loss state of the object 7000 by the loss pre-prediction unit 2430. In particular, FIG. 21 shows the detailed processing of step 107 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 16.

[0175] First, the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420 performs unmanned boat performance estimation according to environmental disturbances (step 401). In this step, the degree of influence on various performances of the unmanned boat is determined based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit 2120 (for example, the environmental information shown in FIG. 10), and the unmanned boat performance information acquired by the unmanned boat ability information acquisition unit 2130 (for example, the unmanned boat performance information shown in FIG. 10) is corrected to perform performance estimation that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit.

[0176] Next, the loss pre-prediction unit 2430 predicts whether a detection loss state of the object 7000 will occur in the future (step 402). In this step, the probability of the occurrence of the detection loss state may also be calculated together.

[0177] Next, the determination results in the above steps are displayed and output from the display output unit 2710 (step 403). Also, in this step, the determination results in the above steps are transmitted and output to the user terminal device 8000 and the cooperation system 5000 via the information transmission unit 2730.

[0178] (A-8-2. Prediction Result of Detection Loss State of Object 7000) FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an example of display information of the prediction result of the detection loss state of object 7000 by the loss prediction unit 2430.

[0179] In the example shown in FIG. 22, a message indicating that the future prediction result of the detection state of object 7000 is displayed is shown. Also, at the lower left of the screen, the current position, moving direction, predicted path (described by a dotted arrow) of the marine organism which is object 7000, the arrangement of the unmanned boat 1010, the information of the measurable area set according to the detectable limit depth of the sonar mounted on the unmanned boat, and the position where the marine organism exits from the measurable area (lost prediction position) are displayed in a three-dimensional space. Note that the display in the three-dimensional space may be in a map format or in a display format integrated with the actual measurement image.

[0180] Also, at the lower right of the screen, the detailed content of the prediction result of the occurrence of the detection loss state is described, and the lost position, lost time, moving direction, moving speed, etc. of object 7000 where the detection loss state occurs are displayed. Note that the lost position can be predicted and determined as the position where the object is expected to exit from the measurable area by comparing the measurable area with the predicted path of the object.

[0181] Furthermore, at the upper part of the screen, buttons that can approve or correct the determination result by the object motion prediction unit 2410 can be displayed. The user can approve or correct the determination result by operating these buttons on the screen.

[0182] (A-9. Generation of Operation Commands for Continuous Detection) Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 23 to 25, the content of the operation commands for continuous detection of object 7000 by the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510 will be described.

[0183] (A-9-1. Example of Content of Operation Commands for Continuous Detection) FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an example of a plurality of patterns of operation commands for the unmanned boat 1010 for continuous object detection by the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510.

[0184] In the example shown in FIG. 23, the operation commands for continuous object detection include operation commands related to the position control of the unmanned boat 1010, operation commands related to the position control of the towed sonar, a tracking request command to the cooperative system 5000, and the like.

[0185] The operation commands related to the position control of the unmanned boat 1010 include, for example, a movement command to the vicinity of a sea position along the predicted path of the object 7000, a movement command to the vicinity of a sea position along the path to the movement destination of the object 7000, a movement command to a sea position near the predicted position of the object 7000 at a future time, and the like.

[0186] The operation commands related to the position control of the towed sonar include, for example, a movement command for the towed sonar to the vicinity of a three-dimensional position in the sea along the predicted movement path of the object 7000, a movement command for the towed sonar to the vicinity of a three-dimensional position in the sea along the path to the predicted movement destination, a movement command for the towed sonar to a three-dimensional position in the sea near the predicted position at a future time, and the like.

[0187] The tracking request to the cooperative system 5000 includes a request command to dispatch the search aircraft of the cooperative system 5000 to the vicinity of the predicted position where the detection lost state occurs, and the like.

[0188] (A-9-2. An Example of the Position Control Command of the Unmanned Boat 1010 for Continuous Detection) FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an example of the position control command of the unmanned boat 1010 for continuous object detection by the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510. In particular, in the example shown in FIG. 24, an example of a movement command (solid line arrow) to the vicinity of a sea position along the predicted path (dotted line arrow) of the object 7000 in the sea is shown.

[0189] That is, a movement command for the unmanned boat 1010 indicated by the solid line arrow is generated at the position on the sea surface along the predicted movement path of the marine organism (object 7000) in the sea indicated by the dotted line. By generating such a movement command for the unmanned boat 1010, the unmanned boat 1010 can be moved to the position on the sea surface closest to the object 7000, so that the object 7000 can be continuously detected by a measurement sensor such as a sonar mounted on the unmanned boat 1010.

[0190] (A-9-3. Example of Position Control Command for Towed Sonar for Continuous Detection) FIG. 25 is a diagram showing an example of a position control command for a towed sonar for continuous detection of an object by the detection continuation operation determination unit 2510. In particular, in the example shown in FIG. 25, an example of a movement command (solid line arrow) to a three-dimensional position in the sea along the predicted path (dotted line arrow) of the object 7000 in the sea is shown.

[0191] That is, a movement command for the towed sonar indicated by the solid line arrow is generated at the three-dimensional position in the sea along the predicted movement path of the marine organism (object 7000) in the sea indicated by the dotted line. By generating such a movement command that is the target movement position of the towed sonar, the towed sonar can be moved to a three-dimensional position in the sea close to the object 7000, and the state where the object 7000 is located within the measurable area of the illustrated towed sonar can be maintained. Therefore, the object 7000 can be continuously detected by a measurement sensor such as a towed sonar.

[0192] (A-10. Prediction of Occurrence of Redetection State) Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 26 and 27, a method for predicting the occurrence of redetection of the object 7000 by the redetection prediction unit 2440 will be described.

[0193] (A-9-1. Prediction Processing Flow of Redetection State Occurrence) FIG. 26 is a flowchart diagram showing an example of a prediction processing flow of the redetection state of the object 7000 by the redetection prediction unit 2440. In particular, FIG. 26 shows the detailed processing of step 110 of the flowchart diagram shown in FIG. 16.

[0194] First, the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420 performs unmanned boat performance estimation according to environmental disturbances (step 501). In this step, the degree of influence on various performances of the unmanned boat is determined based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit 2120 (for example, the environmental information shown in FIG. 10), and the unmanned boat performance information acquired by the unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2130 (for example, the unmanned boat performance information shown in FIG. 10) is corrected to perform performance estimation that the unmanned boat 1010 can actually exhibit.

[0195] Next, the redetection prediction unit 2440 predicts whether a redetection state of the object 7000 will occur in the future (step 502). In this step, the probability of the occurrence of the redetection state may be calculated together. Also, in this step, based on terrain information such as the surrounding seabed, the future movement route of the object 7000 is predicted, and when it is predicted that the object will re-enter the measurable area again, it can be determined that the redetection state will occur.

[0196] Next, the determination results in the above steps are displayed and output from the display output unit 2710 (step 503). Also, in this step, the determination results in the above steps are transmitted and output to the user terminal device 8000 and the cooperation system 5000 via the information transmission unit 2730.

[0197] (A-9-2. Specific example of prediction of occurrence of redetection state) FIG. 27 is a diagram showing an example of the prediction result of the redetection state of the object 7000 by the redetection prediction unit 2440. In particular, FIG. 27 shows an example of the prediction result of predicting the redetection state in a situation where detection loss has occurred due to the movement of the marine organism (such as a whale), which is the object 7000, to a position where the water depth is deeper than the sonar detection limit depth.

[0198] In the example shown in FIG. 27, the predicted movement path of the marine organism predicted by the target object movement prediction unit 2410 is indicated by a dotted line. Here, information on surrounding objects such as the seabed topography is considered and used to generate the predicted movement path of the marine organism. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 27, when the seabed in front of the advancing direction of the marine organism is a terrain where the seabed becomes shallower, a path is predicted in which the marine organism also moves obliquely upward along the seabed. Therefore, based on the predicted path of the marine organism generated in this way and the information on the sonar detection limit depth (measurable range) taking into account the environmental disturbances estimated by the unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2420, it is possible to calculate the presence or absence of a re-detection state and the predicted re-detection position.

[0199] (A-11. Prediction of the occurrence of the re-detection state) Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 28 and 29, the operation command for re-detecting the target object 7000 by the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 will be described.

[0200] (A-11-1. An example of the position control command of the unmanned boat 1010 for re-detection) FIG. 28 is a diagram showing an example of the position control command of the unmanned boat 1010 for re-detecting the target object by the re-detection operation determination unit 2520. In particular, in the example shown in FIG. 28, an example of the movement command to the vicinity of the sea position of the re-detection position of the target object 7000 is shown.

[0201] That is, a movement command for the unmanned boat 1010 is generated with the vicinity of the sea position above the predicted re-detection position indicated by a star mark in the drawing as the movement target position. By generating such a movement command for the unmanned boat 1010, the unmanned boat 1010 is made to wait at the position on the sea surface closest to the predicted re-detection position, and when the target object enters within the measurable range of the sonar, the target object 7000 can be immediately re-detected.

[0202] (A-11-2. An example of the position control command of the towed sonar for re-detection) FIG. 29 is a diagram showing an example of a position control command for a towed sonar for object re-detection by the re-detection operation determination unit 2520. In particular, in the example shown in FIG. 29, an example of a movement command for moving the towed sonar to the vicinity of a three-dimensional position in the sea where re-detection of the object 7000 is predicted is shown.

[0203] That is, a movement command for the towed sonar with the sea position vicinity around the re-detection prediction position indicated by a star mark in the drawing as the movement target position is generated. By generating such a movement command for the unmanned boat 1010, the towed sonar is arranged at a position in the sea close to the re-detection prediction position, and when the object enters within the measurable range of the towed sonar, the object 7000 can be immediately re-detected.

[0204] (A-12. Method for Determining Arrangement Commands for Multiple Unmanned Boats) Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 30 and 31, the operation command for re-detection of the object 7000 by the re-detection operation determination unit 2520 will be described. FIG. 30 shows an example of the detectable range of each sonar when searching for an object in the sea by a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 equipped with a sonar as a measurement sensor. FIG. 31 shows another example of the detectable range of each sonar when searching for an object in the sea by a plurality of unmanned boats 1010 equipped with a sonar as a measurement sensor.

[0205] As shown in FIG. 30, when the detectable distance of the sonar is, for example, X meters, the detectable range of the sonar in the sea is a hemispherical range with a radius of X meters centered on the unmanned boat 1010. Therefore, when the relative distance between the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 increases, particularly in the vicinity of the water depth of X meters at the intermediate position of the plurality of unmanned boats 1010, the measurable depth of the sonar becomes shallower, and the area where the object 7000 cannot be detected expands.

[0206] Here, in the example of the arrangement of the unmanned boats shown in FIG. 31, since the arrangement interval between the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 is shorter than the example shown in FIG. 30, it is possible to suppress the expansion of the area where the object 7000 cannot be detected even in the vicinity of the water depth of X meters where the water depth is deep.

[0207] Thus, when exploring a target area using a plurality of unmanned boats 1010, it is desirable to determine the arrangement interval of the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 in consideration of the water depth of the target area. Also, for the same reason, when determining the operation command of the unmanned boat 1010 by the post-discovery operation command determination unit 2500, if the position, predicted movement path, and depth-direction position of the object 7000 to be monitored are deep, it is also possible to determine to densely arrange the plurality of unmanned boats 1010 at a narrow arrangement interval.

[0208] (A-13. Hardware Configuration) FIG. 32 is a hardware configuration diagram of the overall control system 2000. Here, the overall control system 2000 in the present invention is an information processing device such as a server device or a PC. As shown in the figure, the overall control system 2000 includes an input device 100, an output device 200, a processing device 300, a main storage device 400, an auxiliary storage device 500, a communication device 600, and a bus 700 that electrically connects these devices.

[0209] The input device 100 can constitute a user input reception unit 2600 and is a device for the user to input information and instructions to the overall control system 2000. Specifically, the input device 100 is, for example, a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, or a voice input device such as a microphone.

[0210] The output device 200 is a device that outputs various information generated by the overall control system 2000 and can constitute a display output unit 2710. Specifically, the output device 200 can constitute the display output unit 2710 with a display device for eye-wear, AR, VR, etc., and can also be a printer or a speaker.

[0211] The processing device 300 is, for example, a device that performs arithmetic processing. Specifically, the processing device 300 is, for example, a CPU, a microprocessor, a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or other semiconductor devices capable of performing arithmetic operations, etc.

[0212] The main memory device 400 is a memory device including a RAM and a ROM that perform reading and temporary writing without requiring a waiting time dependent on an access pattern or the like for a storage element at any address during processing. For example, the RAM performs temporary writing and reading during programs and application programs executed by the processing device 300 and other various processes. Also, the ROM is a non-volatile memory in which recorded information is not lost even when the power of the device is lost. The auxiliary storage device 500 is a non-volatile storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a flash memory that can store digital information.

[0213] The communication device 600 is a device that performs information communication, either wirelessly or by wire, between the overall control system 2000 and the outside.

[0214] The above-described embodiments are merely examples for facilitating the understanding of the present invention and are not for limiting the interpretation of the present invention. It goes without saying that the present invention can be changed and improved without departing from its gist, and equivalents of the present invention are included therein.

[0215] [A-2. Effects of this Embodiment] According to the above-described embodiment, a system, a control method, or the like that can continuously detect or re-detect an object existing in a sea area more effectively is provided. As an example, by predicting the future operation of the object and determining an operation command for the unmanned boat based on the prediction result, an object existing in the sea area can be continuously detected or re-detected more effectively. [Explanation of Reference Numerals]

[0216] 1…Control system (system) 100…Input device 200…Output device 300…Processing device 400…Main memory device 500…Auxiliary storage device 600…Communication device 700…Bus 1000…Unmanned boat system 1001…Master unit 1002…Slave unit 10021…Primary connected slave unit 10022…Secondary connected slave unit 10023…Tertiary connected slave unit 1010…Unmanned boat 1100…Measurement unit 1110…Measurement sensor 1120…Measurement control unit 1200…Self - state determination unit 1210…Navigation state determination unit 1220…Internal state determination unit 1230…External state determination unit 1300…Navigation unit 1310…Thrust generation unit 1320…Attitude control mechanism 1330…Navigation control unit 1400…Communication unit 1410…Inter - unmanned boat communication unit 1420…Overall control communication unit 1500…Determination unit 1600…Recording unit 1610…Measurement data recording unit 1620…Self - state recording unit 1630…Determination information recording unit 1700…Separation state control unit 1710…Cable winding unit 1720…Winding control unit 2000…Overall control system 2100…Information import unit 2110…Target object determination information acquisition unit 2120…Environmental information acquisition unit 2130…Unmanned boat capability information acquisition unit 2140…Search requirement condition acquisition unit 2150…Measurement data acquisition unit 2160…Intervention information acquisition unit 2200…Pre - detection operation instruction unit 2210…Unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2220…Pre - detection operation decision unit 2300…Object state detection unit 2310…Primary detection determination unit 2320…Secondary detection determination unit 2330…Current state determination unit 2340…Lost state determination unit 2400…Future operation prediction unit 2410…Object operation prediction unit 2420…Unmanned boat performance estimation unit 2430…Pre-loss prediction unit 2440…Redetection prediction unit 2500…Post-discovery operation command decision unit 2510…Detection continuation operation decision unit 2520…Redetection operation decision unit 2600…User input reception unit 2700…Command information output unit 2710…Display output unit 2720…Command transmission unit 2730…Information transmission unit 3000…Communication satellite 4000…Ground base station 5000…Cooperative system 5100…Maritime surveillance system 5200…Underwater surveillance system 5300…Ship operation monitoring system 6000…External system 7000…Object 8000…User terminal device

Claims

1. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting objects in the sea, comprising: an object state detection unit that detects the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit that predicts a motion state including at least a future predicted movement path, a predicted movement position, or a predicted movement direction of the detected object based on the state of the object detected by the object state detection unit; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, the future operation prediction unit generates loss prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional lost prediction position, a lost prediction direction, a lost prediction speed, and a lost prediction time that are predicted to occur in the future when a detection lost state in which the measurement sensor will no longer be able to detect the presence of the target object will occur, based on information regarding an underwater measurement area that can be measured by the measurement sensor; An unmanned boat control system that transmits and outputs the loss prediction information to an external monitoring system that monitors the object.

2. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, The future operation prediction unit generates loss prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional lost predicted position, lost predicted direction, lost predicted speed, and lost predicted time that is predicted to occur in the future when a detection lost state in which the measurement sensor will no longer be able to detect the presence of the object will occur, based on information regarding the underwater measurement area that can be measured by the measurement sensor, and generates a lost prediction probability that indicates the likelihood that the detection loss of the object will occur at the lost predicted position or lost predicted time included in the lost prediction information.

3. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, The future operation prediction unit generates redetection prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional redetection predicted position, a redetection predicted direction, a redetection predicted speed, and a redetection predicted time at which a redetection state will occur in the future in which the object will be redetected by the measurement sensor after a detection lost state occurs in which the measurement sensor can no longer detect the presence of the object.

4. 4. The unmanned boat control system according to claim 3, The future operation prediction unit generates a redetection prediction probability indicating the likelihood that the object will be redetected at the redetection predicted position or the redetection predicted time included in the redetection prediction information.

5. 2. The unmanned boat control system according to claim 1, an unmanned boat control system comprising: a command information output unit that outputs, to a display unit, the detection result regarding the presence or absence or state of the object detected by the object state detection unit, or the prediction result of the future action state of the object predicted by the future action prediction unit, or the action command determined by the action command determination unit.

6. 2. The unmanned boat control system according to claim 1, an unmanned boat control system comprising: a user input receiving unit that receives a detection result regarding the presence or absence or a state of the object detected by the object state detection unit, or a prediction result of the future operation state of the object predicted by the future operation prediction unit, or a correction command regarding the content of the operation command determined by the operation command determination unit.

7. 2. The unmanned boat control system according to claim 1, the object state detection unit determines that the object is in a detection lost state when the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, An unmanned boat control system that records detection lost information including at least one of the position, moving direction, and speed of the object when the detection lost state occurred, and the time when the detection lost state occurred.

8. 2. The unmanned boat control system according to claim 1, the object state detection unit determines a re-detection state of the object when the object state detection unit detects the object again after the object state detection unit becomes unable to detect the object that was detected at least once by the measurement sensor, an unmanned boat control system that records redetection information including at least one of the position, moving direction, and speed of the object when the redetection state occurs, and the time when the redetection state occurs.

9. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the future operation prediction unit predicts and calculates at least one of a future movement path, a movement destination, or a future position at a future time of the object, The unmanned boat control system, wherein the operation command determination unit generates a sonar position control command to move a towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat by a cable around a three-dimensional underwater position along the movement path, around a three-dimensional underwater position along the path to the movement destination, and around a three-dimensional underwater position of the future position.

10. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the object state detection unit detects a detection lost state in which the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection lost state will occur in the future, The unmanned boat control system, wherein the operation command determination unit generates a sonar position control command to move a towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat by a cable to the vicinity of the three-dimensional underwater position of the location where the detected lost state of the object has been detected or predicted.

11. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, comprising: an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the object state detection unit detects a detection lost state in which the object cannot be detected by the measurement sensor, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection lost state will occur in the future, The operation command determination unit of this unmanned boat control system moves the unmanned boat to the vicinity of the position on the sea surface where the loss of the object occurred where the detected lost state was detected or predicted, measures acoustic information using a sonar, which is the measurement sensor, with the output of the thrust generating unit of the unmanned boat stopped or reduced, and generates an operation control command to resume or increase the output of the thrust generating unit after the measurement by the sonar is completed.

12. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the object state detection unit detects a detection lost state in which the measurement sensor is no longer able to detect the presence of the object, or when the future operation prediction unit predicts that the detection lost state will occur in the future, The operation command determination unit generates a movement request command to move the object to a position on the sea surface or a three-dimensional position underwater around a position where the object has been lost, the position having been detected or predicted, and An unmanned boat control system that transmits and outputs the movement request command to an external monitoring system that monitors the object.

13. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the future operation prediction unit predicts that a redetection state will occur in the future in which the object detected at least once becomes undetectable and then the object is detected again, An unmanned boat control system, wherein the operation command determination unit generates an unmanned boat position control command to move the unmanned boat to the vicinity of a position on the sea surface of the predicted redetection position of the object where the occurrence of the redetection state is predicted.

14. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the future operation prediction unit predicts that a redetection state will occur in the future in which the object detected at least once becomes undetectable and then the object is detected again, The unmanned boat control system, wherein the operation command determination unit generates a sonar position control command to move a towed sonar connected to the unmanned boat by a cable to the vicinity of the underwater three-dimensional position of the predicted redetection position of the object where the occurrence of the redetection state is predicted.

15. 14. The unmanned watercraft control system according to claim 13, When the future operation prediction unit predicts that a redetection state will occur in the future in which the object detected at least once becomes undetectable and then the object is detected again, The operation command determination unit of the unmanned boat control system moves the unmanned boat to the vicinity of a position on the sea surface of the predicted re-detection position of the object where the occurrence of the re-detection state is predicted, measures acoustic information using a sonar, which is the measurement sensor, with the output of the thrust generating unit of the unmanned boat stopped or reduced, and generates an operation control command to resume or increase the output of the thrust generating unit after the measurement by the sonar is completed.

16. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, An unmanned boat control system comprising a command information output unit that, when the future operation prediction unit predicts that a redetection state will occur in the future in which the object detected at least once will be detected again after it has become unable to be detected, transmits and outputs to the outside a movement request command generated by the operation command determination unit to move to a position on the sea surface or a three-dimensional position underwater around the redetection predicted position where the redetection state is predicted to occur, or a prediction result of the redetection state to occur by the future operation prediction unit.

17. An unmanned boat control system for controlling the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, an object state detection unit that detects the presence or absence or a state of the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future motion prediction unit for predicting a future motion state of the detected object; an operation command determination unit that determines an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object, When the object state detection unit performs a primary detection process for the presence or absence or state of the object based on acoustic measurement data measured by the first sonar which is the measurement sensor, the object state detection unit performs a secondary detection process for the presence or absence or state of the object based on a second sonar of a type different from the first sonar, either simultaneously with the primary detection or after the primary detection process; an unmanned boat control system that determines a state of the object depending on results of the primary detection process and the secondary detection process.

18. 18. The unmanned watercraft control system according to claim 17, the primary detection process is performed based on first acoustic measurement data measured by the first sonar mounted on one or more first unmanned crafts, An unmanned craft control system, wherein the secondary detection process is performed based on second acoustic measurement data measured by the second sonar mounted on a single or multiple second unmanned craft.

19. 18. The unmanned watercraft control system according to claim 17, the primary detection process is executed based on first acoustic measurement data measured by the first sonar mounted on the first unmanned craft, An unmanned boat control system, wherein the secondary detection process is executed based on second acoustic measurement data measured by the second sonar mounted on the first unmanned boat.

20. 18. The unmanned watercraft control system according to claim 17, An unmanned boat control system, wherein the first sonar and the second sonar are composed of at least one of a passive sonar, an active sonar, a multi-beam sonar, a single beam sonar, an acoustic modem, an acoustic transponder, a side scan sonar, a sub-bottom profiler, and a towed sonar.

21. 18. The unmanned watercraft control system according to claim 17, When the secondary detection process is performed by the object state detection unit after the primary detection process, Detecting the position of the object by the primary detection process; an unmanned boat control system, wherein the secondary detection process detects at least one of the type, material, shape, orientation, size, and moving speed of the object, or position information that is more detailed than the position detected by the primary detection process.

22. An unmanned boat control method for controlling an operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, comprising: The computer an object state detection step of detecting the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future operation prediction step of predicting an operation state including at least a future predicted movement path or predicted movement position or predicted movement direction of the detected object based on the state of the object detected in the object state detection step, and generating loss prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional lost prediction position, lost prediction direction, lost prediction speed, and lost prediction time that is predicted to occur in the future when a detection lost state in which the measurement sensor will no longer be able to detect the presence of the object will occur based on information about the underwater measurement area that can be measured by the measurement sensor; an operation command determination step of determining an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a result of the prediction of the future operation state of the object; a command information output step of transmitting and outputting the loss prediction information to an external monitoring system that monitors the object.

23. A program that can be used in an unmanned boat control system to control the operation of an unmanned boat equipped with a measurement sensor capable of detecting an object present in the sea, On the computer, an object state detection command for detecting the object based on measurement data measured by the measurement sensor; a future operation prediction command for predicting an operation state including at least a future predicted movement path or predicted movement position or predicted movement direction of the detected object based on the state of the object detected by the object state detection command, and generating loss prediction information including at least one of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional lost prediction position, lost prediction direction, lost prediction speed, and lost prediction time in which a detection lost state in which the measurement sensor will no longer be able to detect the presence of the object is predicted to occur in the future based on information about the underwater measurement area that can be measured by the measurement sensor; and an operation command determination command for determining an operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on a prediction result of the future operation state of the object; A program for executing a command information output command for transmitting and outputting the loss prediction information to an external monitoring system that monitors the object.

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