Position detection device and position detection method

Abstract

To provide a position detection device or the like that can output more appropriate information.SOLUTION: A position detection device 100 is installed in a room 99 and detects a position where mold grows in the room 99. The position detection device 100 has a UV light source 10 that irradiates the room 99 with ultraviolet rays 11, an imager 20 that captures an image of the room 99 when irradiation with the ultraviolet rays 11 is being performed, and a detector 50 that detects a position where mold grows on the basis of the captured image to output it.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a position detection device and a position detection method. [Background technology]

[0002] Mold proliferation (i.e., growth or reproduction) can become prominent in environments where certain conditions are met, such as high temperature, high humidity, and the presence of organic matter such as dust. Normally, mold proliferation can be suppressed to a certain level through maintenance such as ventilation and frequent cleaning. However, in vacant rooms in rental housing, etc., it is difficult to perform such maintenance regularly, which can lead to mold proliferation.

[0003] Meanwhile, conventionally, there is known a technique for estimating the state of mold growth indoors (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for calculating a mold index from the temperature, humidity, and exposure time of the room to specific conditions, and estimating the state of mold growth. This technique makes it possible to carry out maintenance of the room based on the estimation result of the state of mold growth indoors. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-130767 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the technology for estimating the mold growth state described in Patent Document 1 may not be suitable as information useful for maintenance.

[0006] Therefore, the present disclosure provides a position detection device and the like that can output more appropriate information for maintenance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A position detection device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is installed in a room and detects the location of mold growth within the room, and includes an ultraviolet light source that irradiates ultraviolet rays into the room, an imager that captures an image of the room while the ultraviolet rays are being irradiated, and a detector that detects and outputs the location of mold growth based on the captured image.

[0008] Furthermore, a position detection method according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a position detection method for detecting a mold propagation position within a room, which involves irradiating ultraviolet light into the room, capturing an image of the room while the ultraviolet light is being irradiated, and detecting and outputting the mold propagation position based on the captured image.

[0009] These comprehensive or specific aspects may be realized as a system, a device, an integrated circuit, a computer program, or a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, or may be realized as any combination of a system, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, and a recording medium. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] A position detection device according to an aspect of the present disclosure can output more appropriate information. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of use of a position detection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the position detection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the position detection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image captured by the position detection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 5]FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of information output in the position detection device according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] (Knowledge that served as the basis for disclosure) As mentioned in the Background Art section, vacant rooms in rental properties and other properties are often prone to mold growth. While property management is typically performed by a management company, when there are a large number of properties under management, maintenance can be difficult to complete, and cleaning can become too late, leading to costly repairs such as replacing wallpaper on walls and ceilings and replacing flooring.

[0013] Therefore, this disclosure provides a location detection device that can autonomously detect the location of mold in vacant rooms. This location detection device autonomously detects mold growth and its location in vacant rooms, and when mold growth is confirmed to be at a level that requires maintenance, it sends a notification to that effect to a management terminal device. This allows maintenance of the vacant room to be performed upon receipt of the notification from the terminal device. In other words, the location detection device allows maintenance to be performed at an appropriate time, avoiding costly countermeasures.

[0014] Furthermore, in the present disclosure, since the location of mold growth can be sent together with the notification that maintenance is required, the manager or the like only needs to perform maintenance such as cleaning the mold growth location included in the notification. In this way, by sending a notification including the mold growth location, it becomes possible to appropriately suppress mold growth without having to clean the entire room.

[0015] (Disclosure Summary) The position detection device of the present disclosure is a position detection device that is installed indoors and detects the location of mold growth within the room, and is equipped with an ultraviolet light source that irradiates ultraviolet rays into the room, an imager that captures an image of the room while the ultraviolet rays are being irradiated, and a detector that detects and outputs the location of mold growth based on the captured image.

[0016] Such a position detection device can detect and output, based on an image, the positions where fluorescence is generated by organic matter when irradiated with ultraviolet light. Since the device provides information indicating specific mold growth locations, rather than simply information based on conditions that are conducive to mold growth (high humidity, high temperature, etc.), simply cleaning or otherwise performing cleaning or similar tasks on such locations can be used to maintain the room from the perspective of mold growth. Thus, the position detection device disclosed herein can output more appropriate information from the perspective of maintenance against mold growth.

[0017] Furthermore, for example, the ultraviolet light source may irradiate ultraviolet light at a first timing outside the sunlight-available time excluding the time when sunlight can reach the room, ignoring the effects of clouds, mountains, etc., the imager may capture an image at the first timing, and at a second timing within the sunlight-available time, further capture a superimposed image of the room, and the detector may superimpose the detected position of the mold on the superimposed image and output it.

[0018] This allows the mold growth location to be detected while reducing the influence of sunlight, which causes noise in position detection. Furthermore, by superimposing the image captured for position detection on the superimposed image captured during the time when sunlight reaches the area, the mold growth location is superimposed on a scene that can actually be seen by the manager, etc., which has the advantage of making it easier to grasp the location where cleaning, etc. should be performed. It is also possible to irradiate ultraviolet light from the ultraviolet light source for a fixed period of time, and expose the imager for a period corresponding to this period. In this way, the first timing can also be a period having a predetermined time width. The same applies to the second timing within the irradiated time.

[0019] Furthermore, for example, a driving unit may be further provided that changes the posture of the ultraviolet light source and the image capture device, and the ultraviolet light source and the image capture device may irradiate ultraviolet light and capture images when in a first posture and when in a second posture after the change.

[0020] This allows a single position detection device to detect the mold growth position in the image when the object is in the first position and the mold growth position in the image when the object is in the second position. Therefore, the mold growth position can be detected over a wider range. Furthermore, it is possible to configure the position detection device using a camera with a narrow angle of view or an ultraviolet light source with a narrow ultraviolet irradiation range, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost of the position detection device.

[0021] Also, for example, the detector may acquire information on cleaned locations in the room that correspond to the detected mold growth locations, and exclude the locations in the information that correspond to the cleaned locations from the mold growth locations that it outputs.

[0022] This makes it possible to output only those mold growth locations that have not been cleaned (i.e., locations that require attention), allowing room maintenance to be performed simply by cleaning the displayed locations.

[0023] Furthermore, for example, the detector may use at least one algorithm from among R-CNN (Region Convolutional Neural Network), SSD (Single Shot MultiBox Detector), and YOLO (You Only Look Once) v3 to detect the location of mold based on the image.

[0024] This allows mold growth locations to be detected using at least one algorithm from among R-CNN (Region Convolutional Neural Network), SSD (Single Shot MultiBox Detector), and YOLO (You Only Look Once) v3.

[0025] In addition, the control method disclosed herein is a position detection method for detecting mold propagation locations within a room, which involves irradiating ultraviolet rays into the room, capturing an image of the room while the ultraviolet rays are being irradiated, and detecting and outputting the mold propagation locations based on the captured image.

[0026] Such a control method can achieve the same effects as the position detection device described above.

[0027] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

[0028] The embodiments described below are all comprehensive or specific examples. The numerical values, shapes, materials, components, component placement and connection configurations, steps, and step order shown in the following embodiments are merely examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims. Furthermore, each drawing is not necessarily an exact illustration. In each drawing, substantially identical components are assigned the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions may be omitted or simplified.

[0029] In the following, terms indicating the relationship between elements, such as parallel and perpendicular, terms indicating the shape of elements, such as rectangular, and numerical ranges do not only represent the strict meaning, but also include a substantially equivalent range, for example, a difference of about a few percent.

[0030] [Configuration of position detection device] First, the configuration of the position detection device will be described with reference to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of use of the position detection device according to an embodiment. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the position detection device according to the embodiment.

[0031] 1 shows a position detection device 100, a room 99 in which the position detection device 100 is installed, and ultraviolet light 11 emitted from the position detection device 100.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 1, the position detection device 100 is, for example, a floor lamp-type device that is elongated in the vertical direction. The position detection device 100 irradiates ultraviolet light 11 from an ultraviolet light source 10 provided along the longitudinal direction toward a floor, a wall, a ceiling, and fittings (hereinafter also referred to as a detection target), etc. As will be described in detail later, the position detection device 100 in this embodiment is configured to be capable of self-propelled on the floor surface or of rotating in a horizontal plane parallel to the floor surface. Therefore, it can cover a wide range of detection targets, such as walls, in the horizontal direction. On the other hand, in order to cover a wide range in the vertical direction, the device has a vertically elongated configuration as described above.

[0033] The ultraviolet light 11 emitted from the position detection device 100 is simply reflected by a wall surface or the like, but if mold has grown, the ultraviolet light is absorbed as excitation light by the various organic substances that make up the mold, generating fluorescent light 11a. In other words, the position detection device 100 identifies the location of mold growth by checking for the presence or absence of this fluorescent light 11a. In particular, since even a trace amount of mold will emit fluorescent light 11a with high sensitivity if present, the configuration that detects fluorescent light 11a is effective because it allows the location of mold growth to be detected at a stage before mold growth progresses and it becomes possible to directly confirm the growth visually.

[0034] Each functional configuration will be described in detail below with reference to Fig. 2. As shown in Fig. 2, the position detection device 100 includes an ultraviolet light source 10, an imager 20, a drive unit 30, a control unit 40, a detector 50, a power supply 60, and a communication unit 70.

[0035] The ultraviolet light source 10 is realized by, for example, a deuterium lamp capable of emitting ultraviolet light. The ultraviolet light source 10 is configured to irradiate all ultraviolet light 11 emitted from the deuterium lamp, but it may also be configured to irradiate only a portion of the wavelengths. For example, if there is an organic substance with a fluorescent wavelength specific to mold, it may be configured to irradiate ultraviolet light of a specific wavelength to excite the organic substance.

[0036] The image capture device 20 is a camera for capturing an image. The image capture device 20 is provided with optical elements such as lenses so that it can capture an image of the entire area irradiated with ultraviolet light 11, which is indicated by dot hatching in FIG. 1.

[0037] The drive unit 30 is a mechanism for changing the attitude of the ultraviolet light source 10 and the image capture device 20. The drive unit 30 changes the attitude of the ultraviolet light source 10 and the image capture device 20 using a power source such as a motor. In this embodiment, the drive unit 30 can self-propel the position detection device 100 or rotate the position detection device 100 in a horizontal plane parallel to the floor surface. As a result, detection objects that cannot be irradiated with ultraviolet light 11 and imaged by the ultraviolet light source 10 and the image capture device 20 in the first attitude can be irradiated with ultraviolet light 11 and imaged in the changed second attitude, so that mold position detection can be performed for more detection objects in the room 99.

[0038] The control unit 40 is a functional unit that controls the ultraviolet light source 10, the image capturer 20, and the drive unit 30. The control unit 40 is realized by a processor, a memory, and a program executed by these. The control unit 40 functions to appropriately capture the fluorescent light 11a by synchronizing the ultraviolet light irradiation timing of the ultraviolet light source 10 with the exposure timing of the image capturer 20. In particular, the control unit 40 controls the ultraviolet light source 10 to irradiate at a first timing outside the illuminable time and controls the image capturer 20 to perform exposure at the first timing. This reduces the influence of sunlight and enables the weak fluorescent light 11a to be captured with good sensitivity. Meanwhile, the control unit 40 controls the same posture to capture a superimposed image 12 (see FIG. 5, described later) of the room 99 at a second timing within the illuminable time. At this time, it is not necessary to irradiate ultraviolet light 11 from the ultraviolet light source 10. This superimposed image 12 is used to output the mold growth location to make the mold growth location more easily visible. Details of this will be described later with reference to FIG. 5.

[0039] Detector 50 has a detection algorithm 51, and by inputting a captured image into detection algorithm 51, the position of mold in the image is obtained and output. As the detection algorithm, an object detection algorithm that applies machine learning, such as R-CNN (Region Convolutional Neural Network), SSD (Single Shot Multibox Detector), and YOLO (You Only Look Once) v3, is used. Detector 50 outputs the obtained mold position to communication unit 70.

[0040] The power supply 60 is a functional unit that supplies operating power to each component of the position detection device 100. The power supply 60 has a storage battery and a module that raises and lowers the voltage to operating power. In addition to the above, the power supply 60 may also have a solar or other power generator. By providing the position detection device 100 with a power supply in this way, it becomes possible to operate without receiving power from the grid. It is assumed that the room 99 is an empty room. In such empty rooms, the power supply from the grid is often cut off, and a configuration that includes the power supply 60 is effective in enabling operation even in this situation.

[0041] The communication unit 70 is a communication module for communicating with the terminal device 200 owned by the administrator or the like. The communication unit 70 communicates wirelessly with the terminal device 200, for example, via a mobile communication network. The communication unit 70 transmits the mold growth location output by the detector 50 to the terminal device 200 that is connected via communication. In other words, the detector 50 outputs the detected mold growth location to the terminal device 200 via the communication unit 70.

[0042] As described above, the position detection device 100 is communicatively connected to the terminal device 200 via the communication unit 70. The terminal device 200 is, for example, an information terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a PC. The terminal device 200 includes a display unit 15, a reception unit 25, and a communication unit 35.

[0043] The display unit 15 is a display module such as a display, etc. The display unit 15 is a device for displaying the mold propagation position output from the position detection device 100 as image information.

[0044] The reception unit 25 is a device that receives input of cleaned positions in the room 99 by a manager or the like. The reception unit is a user interface for inputting to the terminal device 200. For example, after the manager cleans the room 99 based on the output mold growth positions, the manager inputs the cleaned positions into the reception unit 25. Information on the cleaned positions is sent to the position detection device 100, which excludes the growth positions corresponding to the cleaned positions from the mold growth positions that are output. As a result, the growth positions corresponding to the cleaned positions are excluded from the mold growth positions displayed on the display unit 15, and only the mold growth positions that still need to be cleaned before cleaning are displayed.

[0045] The communication unit 35 is a communication module for communicating with the position detection device 100. The communication unit 35 communicates with the position detection device 100, for example, via a wide area communication network such as the Internet. The communication unit 35 transmits the information on the cleaned position received by the reception unit 25 to the communicatively connected position detection device 100. In other words, the reception unit 25 outputs the information on the cleaned position to the position detection device 100 via the communication unit 35.

[0046] [Operation of the position detection device] Next, the operation of the position detection device according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3 to Fig. 5. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the position detection device according to the embodiment. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an image captured by the position detection device according to the embodiment. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of information output by the position detection device according to the embodiment.

[0047] First, the position detection device 100 irradiates ultraviolet light 11 (S101). Next, while the ultraviolet light 11 is being irradiated, the image capturer 20 captures an image (S102). The processes of steps S101 and S102 are repeatedly performed in multiple positions by changing the position. Next, the detector 50 detects the mold growth position based on the captured image (S103). In this embodiment, the detector 50 detects the mold growth position by inputting the captured image to a detection algorithm 51. Figure 4 shows an area irradiated with ultraviolet light 11 and fluorescence 11a corresponding to organic substances contained in mold within that area. By inputting the image to the detection algorithm 51, multiple clusters corresponding to the mold growth position are detected as shown in Figure 4.

[0048] Mold gradually expands its propagation range, forming clusters within a certain distance from a single seed. For example, in Figure 4, four clusters have been formed: a first cluster C1, a second cluster C2, a third cluster C3, and a fourth cluster C4. The rectangular area (also called a bounding box) surrounding each cluster is output as the mold propagation location.

[0049] The mold growth location output from detector 50 is shown superimposed on superimposed image 12. That is, as shown in Fig. 5, a rectangle surrounding a cluster indicating the mold growth location is output superimposed on superimposed image 12 captured separately. As a result, display unit 15 of terminal device 200 displays the mold growth location superimposed on an image captured within the illuminated time period of room 99.

[0050] The manager or the like can see where to clean just by looking at the displayed image, and can perform maintenance such as cleaning based on this image. In this way, the position detection device 100 can output more appropriate information from the perspective of maintenance of the room 99.

[0051] (Other embodiments) While the air conditioning apparatus and control method according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure have been described above based on the embodiments, the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments. As long as they do not deviate from the spirit of the present disclosure, various modifications conceivable by those skilled in the art to the present embodiments may also be included within the scope of one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

[0052] For example, in the above embodiment, the mold growth location is superimposed on the superimposed image and output, but simply coordinate information may be used. In this case, however, a configuration may be used in which the coordinate information is superimposed on real space using an augmented reality device instead of a terminal device, or the coordinate information is superimposed on an image of real space using a virtual reality device. Furthermore, instead of using coordinate information, the target object may be divided into several regions and specific names registered, and the mold growth location may be indicated by these specific names. For example, an output such as "Mold is growing below the east end of the south wall" may be output.

[0053] Furthermore, if the room 99 is divided into multiple rooms, a position detection device may be installed in each room, or a position detection device may be installed only in the room with the highest risk of mold growth. [Industrial Applicability]

[0054] The present invention is widely useful for purposes such as appropriately suppressing the growth of mold indoors and maintaining the room in an appropriate condition. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 10 UV light source 11. Ultraviolet rays 11a Fluorescence 12 Superimposed image 15 Display section 20 Imaging device 25 Reception 30 Drive unit 35 Communications Department 40 Control Unit 50 detectors 51 Detection Algorithm 60 power supply 70 Communications Department 99 Indoor C1 Cluster 1 C2 Cluster 2 C3 Third Cluster C4 Fourth Cluster 100 Position detection device 200 Terminal Device

Claims

1. A position detection device for detecting mold propagation positions in a room, an ultraviolet light source that irradiates ultraviolet light into the room; an imager that captures an image of the interior of the room when the ultraviolet light is irradiated; a detector that detects and outputs the mold propagation position based on the captured image, The detector comprises: Acquire information about cleaned locations in the room that correspond to the detected mold growth locations; The positions corresponding to the cleaned positions in the information are excluded from the mold propagation positions to be output. Position detection device.

2. the ultraviolet light source irradiates the ultraviolet light at a first timing outside of an illuminable time; The imager includes: capturing the image at the first timing; At a second timing within the illumination time, the superimposed image of the room is further captured; The detector outputs the detected position of the mold by superimposing it on the superimposed image. The position detection device according to claim 1 .

3. further comprising a drive unit that changes the attitude of the ultraviolet light source and the image capture device, The ultraviolet light source and the imager are The ultraviolet light is irradiated and the image is captured in the first posture and the second posture after the change.

3. The position detection device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The detector detects the location of the mold based on the image using at least one algorithm of R-CNN (Region Convolutional Neural Network), SSD (Single Shot Multibox Detector), and YOLO (You Only Look Once) v3. The position detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. A position detection device for detecting mold propagation positions in a room, a detector that detects the mold propagation position based on an image captured while ultraviolet light is being irradiated; The detector comprises: Acquire information about cleaned locations in the room that correspond to the detected mold growth locations; Excluding the locations corresponding to the cleaned locations in the information from the detected mold growth locations. Position detection device.

6. A method for detecting a location of mold growth in a room, comprising: capturing an image of the interior of the room while the ultraviolet light is irradiated; Detecting the mold propagation location based on the captured image; Acquire information about cleaned locations in the room that correspond to the detected mold growth locations; Excluding the locations corresponding to the cleaned locations in the information from the detected mold growth locations. Location detection methods.

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