Environmental observation system, environmental observation method and program

Abstract

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the efficiency of environmental observation in marine areas. [Solution] The present invention is an environmental observation system that observes the marine environmental state in an ocean area using a first measurement sensor mounted on a plurality of unmanned boats, and is an environmental observation system that includes a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using the plurality of unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data, an observation operation control unit that performs unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the ocean area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan, and an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an environment observation system, an environment observation method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] For some time now, efforts have been made to put into practical use systems that use remote measuring devices mounted on artificial satellites to observe various environmental conditions in the ocean. For example, there is known technology that uses satellite measuring devices to measure light and electromagnetic waves of specific wavelengths emitted from the ocean area to measure various environmental conditions such as chlorophyll concentration (phytoplankton concentration) on the sea surface, salinity concentration, water temperature, ocean wind, sea surface height, ocean currents, and tidal currents.

[0003] As an example, Patent Document 1 discloses a fishing ground prediction system G that includes a seawater temperature distribution receiving means 11 that receives seawater temperature distribution data on the sea surface observed by an artificial satellite 4, a phytoplankton concentration distribution receiving means 12 that receives phytoplankton concentration distribution data on the sea surface observed by the artificial satellite 4, a fishing information collecting means 13 that collects fishing information data including data on actual fishing positions, a predicted fishing position calculating means 14 that calculates a predicted fishing position based on the received seawater temperature distribution data, phytoplankton concentration distribution data, and the collected fishing information data, and an output means 5 that outputs the calculated predicted fishing position to the outside. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-257297 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] When remotely measuring the environmental conditions of marine areas from artificial satellites as described above, it can be difficult to measure areas shaded by clouds. Furthermore, since measurements are taken remotely from a long distance, it is difficult to improve the accuracy of the measurement data. Furthermore, when using low-earth orbit satellites, there are limitations on the timing at which the same position can be observed, making continuous measurement difficult.

[0006] On the other hand, the method of measuring various environmental conditions in marine areas such as those described above from close range or through direct contact using buoys floating on the sea surface or measuring devices mounted on ships has the problem that it is difficult to measure large areas and only localized observations are possible.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of at least one of the above problems, and one of its objects is to improve the efficiency of environmental observation in a wide ocean area. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] According to the present invention, an environmental observation system is provided that observes the marine environmental state in an ocean area using a first measurement sensor mounted on a plurality of unmanned boats, and is equipped with a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using the plurality of unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data, an observation operation control unit that performs unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the ocean area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan, and an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the efficiency of environmental observation in marine areas. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1]1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an environment observing system 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an unmanned boat system 1000. [Figure 3] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between the observation areas of the unmanned boat system 1000 and the satellite observation system 3000. FIG. [Figure 4] 10 is a diagram showing another example of the relationship between the observation areas of the unmanned boat system 1000 and the satellite observation system 3000. FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of a satellite observation system 3000. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of an unmanned watercraft 1010. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of an integrated control system 2000. [Figure 8] 2 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of advance information acquired by advance information acquisition unit 2110. FIG. [Figure 9] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of measurement request information acquired by a measurement request information acquisition unit 2120. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the control flow of upper-level processing in the environment observing system 1. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of observation data management by observation data management unit 2200. FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of ocean state determination processing by the ocean state determination unit 2300. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the control flow of the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400 for determining whether or not unmanned boat observation is necessary. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the plan generation processing flow when the plan generation unit 2500 generates an unmanned boat observation plan. [Figure 15] 10 is a flowchart showing the control process flow of the measurement operation of the unmanned watercraft by the observation operation control unit 2600. FIG. [Figure 16]FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a control processing flow of update determination processing of ocean states by the ocean state determination unit 2300. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a specific example of a determination process when the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400 determines whether or not unmanned boat observation is necessary. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a determination result of the distribution of seawater temperature based on unmanned boat observation data. [Figure 19] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the determination result of seawater temperature distribution obtained by interpolating and estimating unmeasured positions. [Figure 20] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a determination result of a three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature. [Figure 21] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a result of determining seawater temperature distribution based on satellite observation data and unmanned boat observation data. [Figure 22] FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of an integrated control system 2000. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention will be described below with reference to the following embodiments. [Item 1] An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using the second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; Environmental observation system equipped with. [Item 2] In the environmental monitoring system according to item 1, An environmental observation system comprising an ocean state determination unit that analyzes integrated data obtained by integrating the satellite observation data or the second analysis data with the unmanned boat observation data or the first analysis data to determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of the ocean environmental state in the ocean area. [Item 3] In the environmental monitoring system according to item 1 or 2, The ocean condition determination unit is an environmental observation system that determines the distribution state of at least one of the following as the marine environmental state in the marine area: the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current. [Item 4] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 3, the second measurement sensor is a second spectroscopic camera or a second optical camera; the first measurement sensor is a first spectroscopic camera or a first optical camera; the satellite observation data is observation data of a plurality of wavelength components of light emitted from the sea surface by the second spectroscopic camera, or observation data of light emitted from the sea surface by a second optical camera; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the sea surface obtained by the first spectroscopic camera, or observation data of light emitted from the sea surface obtained by the first optical camera, An environmental observation system, wherein the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of chlorophyll or phytoplankton concentrations in the ocean based on at least one of the satellite observation data and the unmanned boat observation data. [Item 5] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 4, the second measurement sensor is a microwave measurement sensor; the first measurement sensor is a CTD measurement device that measures electrical conductivity, water temperature, and water pressure; the satellite observation data is observation data of a radiance temperature of microwaves radiated from the sea surface by the microwave measurement sensor; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of electrical conductivity, water temperature, and water pressure measured by the CTD measurement device; An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of salinity in the ocean from at least one of information on the salinity in the ocean determined based on the satellite observation data and information on the salinity in the ocean determined based on the unmanned boat observation data. [Item 6] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 5, the second measurement sensor is a microwave measurement sensor or an infrared sensor; the first measurement sensor is a temperature sensor, the satellite observation data is observation data of a radiance temperature of microwaves radiated from the sea surface by the microwave measurement sensor, or observation data of infrared rays radiated from the sea surface by the infrared sensor; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of seawater temperature measured by the temperature sensor, An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of seawater temperature based on at least one of information on seawater temperature calculated using the satellite observation data and information on seawater temperature determined based on the unmanned boat observation data. [Item 7] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 6, the second metrology sensor is a scatterometer or a synthetic aperture radar; the first measurement sensor is a wind condition sensor, the satellite observation data is observation data of reflected waves of electromagnetic waves irradiated onto the sea surface by the scatterometer or synthetic aperture radar; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of wind speed or wind direction at sea measured by the wind condition sensor, The ocean condition determination unit determines the distribution of wind conditions in the marine area from at least one of information on wind conditions in the marine area calculated based on the satellite observation data and information on wind conditions determined based on the unmanned boat observation data. [Item 8] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 7, the second measurement sensor is a microwave measurement sensor; the first measurement sensor is a GNSS positioning signal receiving device, the satellite observation data is observation data of a time when microwaves emitted onto the sea surface by the microwave measurement sensor are received; the unmanned watercraft observation data is observation data of a GNSS positioning signal measured by the GNSS positioning signal receiving device, An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of sea surface height from at least one of information on sea surface height calculated based on the satellite observation data and information on sea surface height calculated based on the unmanned boat observation data. [Item 9] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 8, the second measurement sensor is an infrared sensor or an optical camera; the first measurement sensor is a GNSS positioning signal receiving device, the satellite observation data is observation data of infrared rays emitted from the sea surface by the infrared sensor or an optical image of the sea surface acquired by the optical camera; the unmanned watercraft observation data is GNSS positioning data measured by the GNSS positioning signal receiving device, An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of ocean currents or tidal currents from information on at least one of the positions of ocean currents or tidal currents estimated based on the satellite observation data and the positions of ocean currents or tidal currents estimated based on the unmanned boat observation data. [Item 10] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 9, an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; An environmental observation system comprising an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit that, when the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the marine environment cannot be observed based on the satellite observation data, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not meet predetermined conditions, or an area where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a predetermined frequency, determines that unmanned boat observation of the area is necessary. [Item 11] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 10, The observation data management unit An environmental observation system that determines an area where the marine environment cannot be observed due to at least one of clouds, smoke, or other obstacles between the observation satellite and the marine area, the amount of solar radiation in the marine area, or an eruption, fire, or other heat source in the marine area or its surrounding areas, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not meet specified conditions, as an observation abnormality area. [Item 12] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 11, an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; An environmental observation system comprising an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit that determines that unmanned boat observation of an area is necessary when the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period. [Item 13] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 12, a marine state determination unit that determines a marine environmental state in a marine area based on the satellite observation data; An environmental observation system comprising an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit that determines that unmanned boat observation of an area is necessary when there is an area where the value of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit is an abnormal value outside a predetermined normal range, or when there is an area where the absolute value of the difference in change in the value of the marine environmental state before and after a predetermined time, the change width in a predetermined time, the change amount per unit time, or the change rate per unit time is greater than a predetermined value. [Item 14] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 13, an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; When the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the marine environment cannot be observed based on the satellite observation data, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not satisfy a predetermined condition, or an area where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a predetermined frequency, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, which includes at least one of the target area for the unmanned boat observation, which includes the area, the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned boats in the area, and the travel route to the area. [Item 15] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 14, an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; When the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, based on information about a future planned observation schedule for observing the area by the observation satellite, including an observation implementation schedule for carrying out the unmanned boat observation at a timing that complements the intervals between future planned observation times by the observation satellite. [Item 16] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 15, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, based on information about a future planned observation schedule for observing the marine area by the observation satellite, including an observation implementation schedule for carrying out the unmanned boat observation at a timing approximately synchronized with the planned future observation timing by the observation satellite. [Item 17] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 16, a marine state determination unit that determines a marine environmental state in the marine area based on the satellite observation data, When there is an area where the value of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit is an abnormal value outside a predetermined normal range, or when there is an area where the absolute value of the difference in change in the value of the marine environmental state before and after a predetermined time, the change width within a predetermined time, the change amount per unit time, or the change rate per predetermined time is greater than a predetermined value, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, which includes at least one of the target area for the unmanned boat observation, which includes the area, the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned boats in the area, and the travel route to the area. [Item 18] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 17, The observation operation control unit: a wide-area deployment measurement mode in which the first measurement sensors of the plurality of unmanned crafts are synchronized to perform measurements in a wide-area deployment state in which the plurality of unmanned crafts are arranged so that the relative distances between the plurality of unmanned crafts are longer than a predetermined distance; and a narrow-area deployment measurement mode in which the first measurement sensors of the plurality of unmanned vessels are synchronized to perform measurements in a narrow-area deployment state in which the relative distance between the plurality of unmanned vessels is narrower than the specified distance. [Item 19] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 18, a marine state determination unit that determines a marine environmental state in the marine area based on the satellite observation data, When there is an area where the value of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit is an abnormal value outside a predetermined normal range, or when there is an area where the absolute value of the difference in change in the value of the marine environmental state before and after a predetermined time, the change width within a predetermined time, the change amount per unit time, or the change rate per predetermined time is greater than a predetermined value, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned vessel observation plan, which includes at least one of a patrol schedule for the unmanned vessel, a replacement schedule, a standby location for the replacement vessel, and the number of standby vessels for the replacement vessel, so that a single or multiple unmanned vessels can measure the area more frequently than a predetermined frequency. [Item 20] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 19, a marine state determination unit that determines the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of marine environmental states in a marine area based on the unmanned boat observation data; The observation operation control unit controls the placement of the unmanned vessels in a second area, where the absolute value of the current or future spatial change difference, change rate, or fluctuation range of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit is greater than that of the first area, so that the placement density of the unmanned vessels in the second area is higher than the placement density of the unmanned vessels in the first area. [Item 21] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 20, a marine state determination unit that determines a current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of marine environmental states in the marine area based on the unmanned boat observation data; The observation operation control unit controls the placement of the multiple unmanned vessels so that, when the ocean state determination unit detects an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range of ocean environmental conditions, the multiple unmanned vessels are deployed to positions surrounding the abnormality detection location where the abnormal value was detected, in an environmental observation system. [Item 22] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 21, a sea state determination unit that analyzes the satellite observation data, the unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data obtained by integrating the satellite observation data and the unmanned boat observation data, and determines the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature in the ocean area; The observation operation control unit controls the placement or movement paths of the multiple unmanned craft based on information relating to the determined current or future distribution of seawater temperature. [Item 23] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 22, When the observation operation control unit detects that the temperature of the equipment mounted on the unmanned aircraft is equal to or higher than a predetermined high temperature judgment temperature or is in a high temperature state that is relatively higher than other unmanned aircraft, An environmental observation system that, based on the current or future distribution information of seawater temperature, places the unmanned vessel in a high-temperature state in a low-temperature seawater area where the seawater temperature is below a first predetermined seawater temperature or where the seawater temperature is lower than the equipment temperature inside the unmanned vessel by more than a first predetermined difference temperature, or causes the unmanned vessel in a high-temperature state to pass through the low-temperature seawater area, or controls the movement of multiple unmanned vessels to avoid high-temperature seawater areas where the seawater temperature is higher than a second predetermined seawater temperature or where the seawater temperature is higher than the equipment temperature inside the unmanned vessel by more than a second predetermined difference temperature. [Item 24] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 23, When the observation operation control unit detects that the temperature of the equipment mounted on the unmanned aircraft is equal to or lower than a predetermined low temperature determination temperature, or that the unmanned aircraft is in a low temperature state that is relatively lower than the other unmanned aircraft, An environmental observation system that, based on the current or future distribution information of seawater temperature, places the unmanned vessel in the low temperature state in a high temperature seawater area where the seawater temperature is higher than a predetermined seawater temperature or where the seawater temperature is higher than the equipment temperature inside the unmanned vessel by a predetermined temperature difference or more, or controls the movement of multiple unmanned vessels so that the unmanned vessel in the low temperature state passes through the high temperature seawater area. [Item 25] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 24, a sea state determination unit that analyzes the satellite observation data, the unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data obtained by integrating the satellite observation data and the unmanned boat observation data, and determines the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature in the ocean area; The observation operation control unit is an environmental observation system that controls the locations at which the storage devices of the multiple unmanned boats are charged based on information on the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature, or the differential temperature between the seawater temperature and the storage devices of the unmanned boats. [Item 26] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 25, the observation operation control unit determines the season, including at least one of summer and winter; when the current season is determined to be summer, determining, based on information about the current or future distribution of seawater temperature, areas where the seawater temperature is relatively low compared to surrounding areas, areas where the seawater temperature is lower than a first predetermined temperature, or areas where the seawater temperature is lower than the temperature of the power storage device, as charging locations for the plurality of unmanned watercraft. Alternatively, when the current season is determined to be winter, an environmental observation system determines, based on information on the current or future distribution of sea water temperature, areas where the sea water temperature is relatively high compared to surrounding areas, areas where the sea water temperature is higher than a second predetermined temperature, or areas where the sea water temperature is higher than the temperature of the power storage device, as charging locations for multiple unmanned boats. [Item 27] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 26, a sea state determination unit that analyzes the satellite observation data, the unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data obtained by integrating the satellite observation data and the unmanned boat observation data, and determines the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature in the ocean area; The observation operation control unit estimates or predicts in advance low-seawater areas where the seawater temperature is below a predetermined temperature or where the seawater temperature is lower than the temperature of the equipment inside the unmanned boat by a predetermined temperature difference or more, based on information on the current or future distribution of seawater temperature, and limits the output of the unmanned boat's power storage device in the low-seawater areas. [Item 28] In the environmental monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 27, the observation operation control unit predicts and calculates an internal resistance value of the power storage device or an output voltage drop of the power storage device based on information about the seawater temperature in the low-seawater area; An environmental observation system that limits the output of the power storage device in the low seawater temperature area based on the predicted internal resistance value or the output voltage drop. [Item 29] In the environment monitoring system according to any one of items 1 to 28, An environmental observation system comprising a display unit that displays and outputs two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution information of the current or future marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit, or information about the marine environmental state that has been determined to be an abnormal value that deviates from a specified normal range. [Item 30] An environmental observation method for observing a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: The computer a satellite observation data acquisition step of acquiring satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using the second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation step of generating an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control step of performing unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats according to the unmanned boat observation plan; An unmanned boat observation data acquisition step of acquiring the unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or the first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data, An environmental observation method for executing the above. [Item 31] A program for observing the marine environmental conditions in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned boats, To a computer, A satellite observation data acquisition command for acquiring satellite observation data obtained by observing the marine area by the second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data, An observation plan generation command for generating an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data, An observation operation control command for executing an unmanned boat observation of measuring the environmental conditions of the marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of the unmanned boats according to the unmanned boat observation plan, An unmanned boat observation data acquisition command for acquiring the unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or the first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data, A program for causing the above to be executed.

[0012] <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. Further, the embodiments shown below are merely examples, and other known elements and alternative means can be adopted according to the use, purpose, scale, etc.

[0013] [A. Configuration] (A-1. Overall System Configuration) First, the system configuration of an environmental observation system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

[0014] (A-1-1. Outline of System Configuration) FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an environment observing system 1 (hereinafter also referred to as "system 1") according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the environment observing system 1 includes an unmanned watercraft system 1000, a supervisory control system 2000, and a user terminal 4000. The supervisory control system 2000 is configured to be able to communicate with a satellite observation system 3000, the user terminal 4000, and an external system 5000, and can transmit and receive information. The supervisory control system 2000 can also transmit control commands to the unmanned watercraft system 1000 deployed on the sea via an internet line, a communication satellite 6100, a terrestrial base station 6200, or the like, and can also receive operational status and observation data from the unmanned watercraft system 1000.

[0015] The unmanned boat system 1000 includes a single or multiple unmanned boats 1010. When the unmanned boat system 1000 is configured with multiple unmanned boats 1010, the multiple unmanned boats 1010 are connected to each other by wireless communication and can form a communication network.

[0016] The unmanned boat 1010 can measure various environmental conditions on the sea surface using measurement sensors installed on board (optical cameras, acoustic sensors such as sonar, spectroscopic cameras (multispectral cameras, hyperspectral cameras, etc.), salinity concentration measurement sensors, water temperature measurement sensors, anemometers, GNSS signal receivers, hygrometers, etc.).

[0017] The satellite observation system 3000 includes an observation satellite 3100 and can transmit satellite observation data relating to the marine environmental state of the marine area observed by the observation satellite 3100 or the analysis results of the satellite observation data to the integrated control system 2000.

[0018] Based on satellite observation data acquired from satellite observation system 3000 and the analysis results of that data, overall control system 2000 can determine a measurement plan and measurement control commands for unmanned watercraft 1010, which constitutes unmanned watercraft system 1000, and control the operation of unmanned watercraft 1010. Information such as the generated control commands is displayed on display unit 2620 (described later) and can also acquire command input from the user via user input acceptance unit 2630. Various information, including the observation data of measurement target 7000 acquired by unmanned watercraft system 1000 and the operating status of unmanned watercraft system 1000, is transmitted to overall control system 2000 via communication satellite 6100, terrestrial base station 6200, or the Internet.

[0019] The integrated control system 2000 also acquires satellite observation data and its analysis data obtained from the satellite observation system 3000, and unmanned boat observation data and its analysis data of the measurement target 7000 obtained by the unmanned boat system 1000, and generates integrated data that integrates the satellite observation data or its analysis data with the unmanned boat observation data or its analysis data.The integrated data thus generated can also be processed and interpreted to determine ocean conditions and their two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution, and information such as the determination results can be provided to the user terminal 4000 or the external system 5000.

[0020] Here, the environment observing system 1 uses a communication satellite 6100 as an example of a non-terrestrial network for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned watercraft system 1000. The communication satellite 6100 may be a communication satellite 6100 placed in a geosynchronous orbit, a medium earth orbit (MEO), a low earth orbit, or another orbit, or another communication satellite. The communication network applicable to the present invention is not limited to this, and a non-terrestrial network using an unmanned air vehicle called a High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) may also be used. In this case, an unmanned air vehicle that circles at an altitude of approximately 8 to 50 km may be used.

[0021] Furthermore, the path for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned watercraft system 1000 is not limited to paths using the communication satellite 6100, terrestrial base station 6200, or the above-mentioned HAPS, but can also include a method of directly communicating with the unmanned watercraft system 1000 using a dedicated communication antenna installed on the overall control system 2000, a method of connecting the unmanned watercraft system 1000 to the terrestrial base station 6200 or the overall control system 2000 via an ad hoc network that relays wireless communications using multiple unmanned watercraft 1010, or a communication method of connecting the unmanned watercraft system 1000 to an offshore base that can communicate with the overall control system 2000 wirelessly or via a wired connection.

[0022] Furthermore, the terrestrial base station 6200 is not limited to a stationary base station, but may be configured as a mobile base station. Furthermore, any of the above-mentioned multiple communication networks (non-terrestrial network using a communication satellite 6100, non-terrestrial network using an unmanned aerial vehicle, and communication network directly connecting the terrestrial base station 6200 and the unmanned boat system 1000 via wireless communication) can be applied as the communication network for transmitting and receiving information between the overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat system 1000, but is not limited to this, and it is also possible to combine the above-mentioned multiple communication networks to provide redundant communication paths using multiple communication networks.

[0023] (A-1-2. Configuration of the unmanned boat system 1000) Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the unmanned watercraft system 1000. As shown in Figure 2, the multiple unmanned watercraft 1010 that make up the unmanned watercraft system 1000 are configured to serve as parent units 1001 that can communicate wirelessly with a communication satellite 6100 or a terrestrial base station 6200, or as child units 1002 that can communicate directly or indirectly with the parent unit 1001. A wireless communication network is established between the multiple child units 1002 and the multiple unmanned watercrafts 1010 that serve as parent units 1001, allowing them to communicate wirelessly with each other. Each unmanned watercraft group (1000a, 1000b) has at least one parent unit 1001 and multiple child units 1002. The master unit 1001 is connected via wireless communication to the communication satellite 6100 or the terrestrial base station 6200, and has the function of aggregating various information collected from multiple slave units 1002 and transmitting it to the communication satellite 6100 or the terrestrial base station 6200, as well as transmitting information related to control commands obtained from the communication satellite 6100 or the terrestrial base station 6200 directly or indirectly to each slave unit 1002. Note that the wireless communication path between the terrestrial-side overall control system 2000 and the unmanned boat system 1000 can be either the communication path via the communication satellite 6100 or the communication path via the terrestrial base station 6200, but is not limited to this and other communication paths can also be used, and these communication paths can also be made redundant to send and receive information.

[0024] 2 includes a primary-connected slave device 1002 that is communicatively connected to a master device 1001, a secondary-connected slave device 1002 that is communicatively connected to the primary-connected slave device 1002, and a tertiary-connected slave device 1002 that is communicatively connected to the secondary-connected slave device 1002. Each slave device (primary-connected slave device 1002, secondary-connected slave device 1002, tertiary-connected slave device 1002) has the function of relaying information received from other master devices 1001 or slave devices 1002 to the other master devices 1001 or slave devices 1002, thereby forming a communication network that can connect to all unmanned crafts 1010 belonging to unmanned craft group a (1000a).

[0025] (A-1-3. An example of an observation area by the unmanned boat system 1000) Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between the observation areas of the unmanned watercraft system 1000 and the satellite observation system 3000. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing another example of the relationship between the observation areas of the unmanned watercraft system 1000 and the satellite observation system 3000. In the example shown in Fig. 3, the environmental conditions of a wide area on the ocean (satellite observation area) are remotely measured from a historical position in the sky by an observation satellite 3100 of the satellite observation system 3000, and the acquired satellite observation data is transmitted from the observation satellite 3100 to a satellite observation data management system 3200.

[0026] Furthermore, the multiple unmanned watercraft (parent watercraft 1001, child watercraft 1002) that make up the unmanned watercraft system 1000 are deployed on the sea, and the environmental conditions at each deployed position of the unmanned watercraft are measured directly or from a short distance. Therefore, the unmanned watercraft system 1000 can measure the environmental conditions in a narrower area than the satellite observation system 3000, and from a shorter distance than the satellite observation system 3000, in more detail. Furthermore, while the observation satellite 3100 acquires observation data spot-wise at predetermined timings, the unmanned watercraft system 1000 can perform measurements continuously or at any short intervals, and therefore can acquire observation data continuously or at high frequency. The unmanned watercraft system 1000 can measure the environmental conditions in a portion of an area inside the satellite observation area or in an area outside the satellite observation area.

[0027] Here, the observation satellite can be a geosynchronous orbit satellite, a low earth orbit satellite, or a medium earth orbit satellite (MEO), etc. In this case, as shown in Fig. 4, the size of the observation area and the resolution of the observation data differ greatly between a high-orbit observation satellite using a geosynchronous satellite in a high orbit, a low-orbit observation satellite using a low earth orbit satellite, and the unmanned watercraft system 1000.

[0028] First, the observation area of ​​a high-orbit observation satellite is larger than that of an unmanned vehicle system or a low-orbit satellite, and is a wide area that includes the entire observation area of ​​a high-orbit observation satellite or part of the observation area of ​​a low-orbit satellite. However, because high-orbit observation satellites measure from a higher altitude than unmanned vehicle systems or low-orbit satellites, the resolution of the observation data is relatively low.

[0029] Furthermore, the observation area of ​​a low-orbit observation satellite is an area that moves in a band shape over time along the orbit of the low-orbit observation satellite, and the size of the observation area is wider than that of an unmanned vehicle system but narrower than that of a high-orbit observation satellite. Also, because low-orbit observation satellites take measurements from a farther distance than unmanned vehicle systems, the resolution of the observation data is relatively lower than that of unmanned vehicle systems. On the other hand, because low-orbit observation satellites take measurements from a lower altitude than high-orbit observation satellites, the resolution of the observation data is relatively higher than that of high-orbit observation satellites. Also, as shown in Figure 4, there are parts of the observation area of ​​a low-orbit observation satellite that do not overlap with the observation area of ​​an unmanned vehicle system, depending on the orbit and time of day of the low-orbit observation satellite.

[0030] (A-2. Configuration of Satellite Observation System 3000) Next, the configuration of the satellite observation system 3000 will be described using Figure 5. Figure 5 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the satellite observation system 3000. As shown in Figure 5, the satellite observation system 3000 includes an observation satellite 3100 and a satellite observation data management system 3200.

[0031] The observation satellite 3100 may be an artificial satellite placed in a geosynchronous orbit, a medium earth orbit (MEO), a low earth orbit, or another orbit. When a geostationary satellite placed in a geostationary orbit is used as the observation satellite 3100, the environmental condition of the ocean area to be observed can be constantly remotely measured using a measurement device. In addition, an orbital satellite placed in a medium earth orbit (MEO) or a low earth orbit can remotely measure the environmental condition of the ocean area using a measurement device when passing over the ocean area to be observed. As an example, the observation satellite 3100 may include U.S. artificial satellites such as AQUA and TERRA.

[0032] The measurement equipment mounted on the observation satellite 3100 will consist of a spectroscopic camera (such as a multispectral camera or hyperspectral camera) that can measure multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the sea surface (including wavelength components outside the visible light wavelength band), an optical camera, an infrared sensor, a microwave measurement sensor that measures the radiance temperature and reception time of microwaves emitted from the sea surface, a scatterometer that measures the scattering intensity of electromagnetic waves irradiated onto the sea surface, a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) that measures the reflected waves of electromagnetic waves irradiated onto the sea surface, and an infrared sensor or optical camera that measures infrared rays emitted from the sea surface.

[0033] The satellite observation data management system 3200 receives satellite observation data from the observation satellite 3100, processes and analyzes the satellite observation data, and can determine environmental conditions near the sea surface in marine areas, including chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration), salinity concentration, water temperature, ocean wind, sea surface height, ocean currents and tidal currents.

[0034] To determine the chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration), the satellite observation data management system 3200 receives satellite observation data of multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the ocean surface measured by a spectroscopic camera from the observation satellite 3100, and can determine the chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration) using the ratio of the blue wavelength component to the green wavelength component. Alternatively, the satellite observation data management system 3200 can receive observation data of multiple wavelength components and determine the chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration) from the ratio of the difference between the red wavelength component (665 nm) and the red edge wavelength component (708 nm) and the sum of these components using the normalized chlorophyll index (NDCI). Here, the spectroscopic camera is a measurement sensor such as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) mounted on the U.S. satellites AQUA and TERRA.

[0035] As another method for determining chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration), the satellite observation data management system 3200 can receive optical image data containing a large number of wavelengths of information acquired by a spectroscopic camera (such as a multispectral camera or hyperspectral camera) or optical camera on the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, and use a technique such as FLH (Fluorescence Line Height) to determine the concentration of phytoplankton (mainly chlorophyll-a) in the ocean based on the brightness of fluorescence at a specific wavelength around 685 nm due to the chlorophyll luminescence phenomenon.

[0036] Next, when determining the salinity concentration of the sea surface, the satellite observation data management system 3200 receives observation data of microwave radiance temperature measured by a microwave measurement sensor from the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, and utilizes the characteristic that the higher the salinity of seawater, the higher the conductivity of seawater and the lower the microwave radiance temperature from the sea surface, to determine the salinity of seawater based on the observation data of microwave radiance temperature.

[0037] Next, when determining the temperature of seawater, the satellite observation data management system 3200 receives observation data of microwave radiance temperature measured by a microwave measurement sensor from the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, and can calculate the physical temperature of the sea surface based on the observation data of microwave radiance temperature.

[0038] As another method for determining the water temperature of the sea surface, the satellite observation data management system 3200 can receive observation data of infrared radiation intensity measured by an infrared sensor from the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, and calculate the physical temperature of the sea surface based on the observation data of infrared radiation intensity.

[0039] Next, when determining wind conditions in an offshore area, the satellite observation data management system 3200 receives observation data on the scattering intensity of electromagnetic waves irradiated onto the sea surface measured by a scatterometer from the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, and determines the wind speed in the offshore area based on the observation data on the scattering intensity of electromagnetic waves, utilizing the property that sea surface roughness (waves) is proportional to microwave scattering, and that the stronger the wind speed, the rougher the sea surface and the stronger the scattering. In addition, wind direction can also be determined by observing the same offshore area from multiple directions.

[0040] As another method for determining wind conditions in an offshore area, the satellite observation data management system 3200 can receive observation data of high-resolution microwave images measured by synthetic aperture radar (SAR), analyze the sea surface roughness from the microwave images, and estimate wind speed based on Bragg scattering theory, etc. It can also estimate wind direction from the sea surface pattern.

[0041] Next, when determining the height of the sea surface, the satellite observation data management system 3200 receives observation data on the reception time of microwaves measured by a microwave measurement sensor from the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, determines the round-trip time from when the microwaves are emitted from the satellite until they are reflected off the sea surface and return, calculates the relative distance between the satellite and the sea surface from the round-trip time, and can determine the sea surface height based on the calculated relative distance and the orbital altitude of the satellite.

[0042] Next, when determining the location of ocean currents or tidal currents, the satellite observation data management system 3200 receives image data of the sea surface measured by an infrared sensor or optical sensor from the observation satellite 3100 as satellite observation data, and can determine the location of the ocean currents or tidal currents from the temperature distribution and color distribution of the sea surface.

[0043] The satellite observation data management system 3200 may also have a function to record the implementation schedule of past satellite observations, satellite observation data measured in the past, and the results of environmental state assessments. Furthermore, the satellite observation data management system 3200 may have a function to record orbital information and future observation schedule information for multiple observation satellites 3100, or to predict future observation schedules based on the orbital information.

[0044] The satellite observation data management system 3200 has the function of transmitting the above-mentioned satellite observation data, environmental state determination results, orbital information of the multiple observation satellites 3100, and information on future observation schedules to the integrated control system 2000.

[0045] (A-3. Configuration of Unmanned Vehicle 1010) Next, the functions and details implemented in the unmanned watercraft 1010 will be described using Figure 6. In the present invention, an unmanned watercraft includes any mobile body capable of navigating on or underwater, regardless of whether it is autonomous or remotely controlled, and includes any mobile body including a mobile buoy that can move using a battery, an internal combustion engine, or a thrust generating unit that utilizes wind power or wave power.

[0046] Fig. 6 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the unmanned watercraft 1010. Although Fig. 6 illustrates the functional block diagram of the unmanned watercraft 1010, whether the unmanned watercraft 1010 is used as the parent unit 1001 or the child unit 1002, the functions implemented in the unmanned watercraft 1010 can be similar to those shown in Fig. 6. The unmanned watercraft 1010 includes a measurement unit 1100, a vessel status determination unit 1200, a navigation unit 1300, a communication unit 1400, a data processing unit 1500, a recording unit 1600, and a power supply unit 1700.

[0047] The measurement unit 1100 is a functional unit that uses a measurement sensor 1110 to measure various state quantities that indicate the environmental state around the vehicle as the measurement target 7000, and acquires the measured state quantities as unmanned boat observation data. The measurement unit 1100 includes the measurement sensor 1110 and a measurement control unit 1120.

[0048] For example, the measurement sensor 1110 can be composed of a spectroscopic camera (multispectral camera, hyperspectral camera, etc.) that measures multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the sea surface, an optical camera that measures optical images that are observation data of light emitted from the sea surface, a CTD measurement device (Conductivity, Temperature, Depth) that measures the electrical conductivity, water temperature, and pressure of seawater, a temperature sensor that measures seawater temperature, a wind condition sensor that measures wind speed or direction at sea, a GNSS positioning signal receiving device that receives GNSS positioning signals, etc.

[0049] Furthermore, the measurement sensor 1110 is not limited to measurements on the sea surface or ocean surface, and may have a mechanism for measuring depth in the sea using a measurement sensor 1110 suspended from the hull, for example.

[0050] Here, observation data of multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the ocean surface obtained by a spectroscopic camera (multispectral camera, hyperspectral camera, etc.) can be used to determine chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration) by analyzing the ratio of blue wavelength components to green wavelength components.In addition, observation data of multiple wavelength components can be used to determine chlorophyll concentration (i.e., phytoplankton concentration) by using NDCI (Normalized Chlorophyll Index) to analyze the ratio of the difference and sum of the red wavelength component (665 nm) and the red edge wavelength component (708 nm).

[0051] In addition, optical image data of the ocean surface obtained by spectroscopic cameras or optical cameras can be used to determine the concentration of marine phytoplankton (mainly chlorophyll-a) by analyzing the brightness of fluorescence at a specific wavelength around 685 nm, which is caused by the chlorophyll emission phenomenon, using techniques such as FLH (Fluorescence Line Height).

[0052] In addition, the observation data of seawater electrical conductivity, water temperature, and pressure measured by the CTD measurement device can be used to calculate the salinity of seawater using the internationally standardized salinity scale PSS-78 (Practical Salinity Scale 1978).

[0053] The GNSS positioning signals acquired by the GNSS positioning signal receiving device can be used to calculate the global coordinates of the unmanned vessel in the vertical direction (Z direction), and can be used to determine the sea level height at the position of the unmanned vessel.The GNSS positioning signals acquired by the GNSS positioning signal receiving device can be used to calculate the global coordinates of the unmanned vessel in the horizontal plane (X, Y plane), and by analyzing the time changes in the global coordinates when the thrust generating unit 1310 of the unmanned vessel is stopped, can be used to determine the direction and speed of ocean or tidal currents at the position of the unmanned vessel.

[0054] In addition to the various sensors described above, the measurement sensor 1110 may also include laser sensors such as LiDAR that acquire point cloud data, optical ranging sensors such as ToF sensors (Time of Flight sensors), and sonic sensors including sonar that uses sound waves such as ultrasound.

[0055] The measurement control unit 1120 can control at least one of the attitude angles of the measurement sensor 1110 around three axes relative to the unmanned watercraft 1010 by operating a sensor attitude changing device that can change the attitude of the measurement sensor 1110. It can also control measurement operations such as the measurement frequency and measurement timing of the measurement sensor 1110. For example, if the measurement sensor is a spectroscopic camera or an optical camera, the measurement control unit 1120 can adjust the frame rate and shutter speed of the spectroscopic camera or optical camera. If the measurement sensor is a spectroscopic camera, the measurement control unit 1120 can change the multiple wavelength components acquired by the spectroscopic camera. If the measurement sensor is a spectroscopic camera or optical camera, the measurement control unit 1120 can change the zoom amount and resolution of the spectroscopic camera or optical camera to any control amount. The measurement control unit 1120 can adjust the measurement sensitivity of the measurement sensor 1110 to any control amount.

[0056] Next, the unmanned watercraft 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 and internal and external states of the unmanned watercraft 1010. The navigation state determination unit 1210 determines the position (two-dimensional or three-dimensional), movement speed, heading, movement direction, movement acceleration / deceleration, turning speed, and other state quantities related to the navigation state of the unmanned watercraft. The internal state determination unit 1220 determines the SOC (State of Charge) of a power storage device such as a battery mounted on the unmanned watercraft, the possible travel distance that can be calculated from the SOC, temporary abnormal states of equipment mounted on the unmanned watercraft (temperature abnormality, communication abnormality, etc.), and equipment failure states. In addition, the external condition determination unit 1230 determines the communication conditions such as the communication strength (dB value, etc.) of wireless communication with other unmanned boats 1010 within the unmanned boat system 1000, or the communication speed and communication delay of wireless communication with the overall control system 2000 via a communication satellite 6100 or a terrestrial base station 6200, or the wave height and weather (rain, snow, cloudy, etc.) around the unmanned boat.

[0057] The method by which the navigation state determination unit 1210 determines the position, moving speed, moving direction, and acceleration / deceleration of the aircraft itself is not particularly limited, but for example, the current position, moving speed, and moving direction of the aircraft itself can be determined using GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System), GPS (Global Positioning System), RTK-GNSS (Real Time Kinematic - Global Navigation Satellite System), etc. Here, the aircraft's own position information includes at least two-dimensional coordinate information (e.g., latitude and longitude) in a planar view, and preferably includes three-dimensional coordinate information including altitude information. Furthermore, the acceleration / deceleration can be calculated based on the amount of change over time in the determined moving speed.

[0058] The method for measuring the aircraft's heading is to determine the aircraft's heading at the current time using, for example, a geomagnetic sensor, a GNSS compass, or SLAM technology using the seabed shape. The heading includes an attitude angle (orientation) in a planar view around at least the Z axis, and preferably may be attitude information around three axes: the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis. The turning speed can be calculated based on the amount of change over time in the determined heading information.

[0059] In addition, the aircraft status determination unit 1200 may have a function to transmit a time status to the overall control system 2000 if the unmanned watercraft is unable to perform a measurement operation in accordance with a control command sent from the overall control system 2000, for example, if the unmanned watercraft is unable to arrive at the target movement position within the specified time, or if the measurement operation cannot be performed due to an interrupt command from another task.

[0060] Next, the navigation unit 1300 includes a thrust generating unit 1310, an attitude control mechanism 1320, and a navigation control unit 1330, and is a functional unit that navigates the aircraft in any direction according to operational commands received via the communication unit 1400 (described later). The thrust generating unit 1310 can be any means capable of generating thrust, and as an example, can be configured with a propeller driven by the power of an engine or an electric motor. The thrust generating unit 1310 can also be configured with a sail that generates thrust by receiving wind, or with a wave glider that generates thrust by receiving wave power.

[0061] The attitude control mechanism 1320 is composed of a rudder mounted on the airframe, a propeller attitude change mechanism that can change the attitude angle of the propeller (mainly the yaw angle around the Z axis), etc., and can control the nose direction (yaw angle) of the aircraft by changing these angles. In addition, a center of gravity position change mechanism that changes the position of a heavy object inside the aircraft using an actuator can also control the attitude angles of the aircraft, such as the roll angle around the X axis and the pitch angle around the Y axis.

[0062] The navigation control unit 1330 is a functional unit that controls the thrust generation unit 1310 and the attitude control mechanism 1320 to control the navigation operation of the aircraft. The navigation control unit 1330 has one or more processors, such as a programmable processor (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), an MPU, or a DSP), and is equipped with a processing unit that can access a memory (storage unit). The memory stores logic, code, and / or program instructions that the processing unit can execute to perform one or more processing steps.

[0063] The processing unit includes a control module configured to control the navigation status of the aircraft. For example, the control module adjusts the aircraft's position on the sea surface, movement speed, movement acceleration / deceleration, heading, turning speed, and attitude angle around three axes. That is, the navigation control unit 1330 controls the navigation operation of the aircraft by causing the aircraft to perform various operations such as forward movement, reverse movement, acceleration, deceleration, and turning.

[0064] Next, the communication unit 1400 includes an unmanned craft-to-unmanned craft communication unit 1410 and an overall control communication unit 1420, and is a functional unit that communicates with other unmanned crafts 1010 in the unmanned craft system 1000 and the overall control system 2000. The unmanned craft-to-unmanned craft communication unit 1410 includes a communication antenna used for a maritime wireless communication network, and communicates with other unmanned crafts 1010 in the unmanned craft system 1000. The overall control communication unit 1420 includes a satellite communication antenna capable of communicating with a communication satellite 6100 or a communication antenna capable of communicating with a terrestrial base station 6200, and communicates with the overall control system 2000 via the communication satellite 6100 or the terrestrial base station 6200. In addition to the above-mentioned communication units, the communication unit may also include an AIS antenna or a VHF antenna, and may include a communication unit that communicates with external surveillance crafts and AIS base stations.

[0065] Next, the data processing unit 1500 is a functional unit that performs data processing such as primary processing and data compression of the unmanned boat observation data acquired by the measurement sensor 1110. The data processing unit 1500 can perform primary processing, such as data analysis of the raw measurement data (unmanned boat observation data) acquired by the measurement sensor 1110 and generating transmission data to be wirelessly transmitted from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000. In addition, the data processing unit 1500 can perform data compression processing to compress the raw measurement data (unmanned boat observation data) to generate transmission data, so as to reduce the transmission load when wirelessly transmitting the transmission data from the unmanned boat system 1000 to the overall control system 2000. Furthermore, the data processing unit 1500 can analyze and process the unmanned boat observation data to determine the environmental state of the measurement target 7000 and transmit the determination result to the overall control system 2000.

[0066] Next, the recording unit 1600 includes a measurement data recording unit 1610 and a host vehicle status recording unit 1620. The measurement data recording unit 1610 records the unmanned boat observation data measured by the measurement unit 1100 and the transmission data processed by the data processing unit 1500. The host vehicle status recording unit 1620 records various status information related to the host vehicle determined by the host vehicle status determination unit 1200.

[0067] Next, the power supply unit 1700 is a functional unit that supplies power to each functional unit of the unmanned watercraft 1010. The power supply unit 1700 includes a power storage device 1710, a power generation device 1720, and a power control unit 1730. The power storage device 1710 can be configured as a battery or other device with a power storage function. The power generation device 1720 can be configured as a solar panel that generates power using sunlight or a wave power generation device that generates power using wave power. The power control unit 1730 is a functional unit that controls the charging and discharging of the power storage device 1710 and also controls the power generation operation of the power generation device 1720.

[0068] (A-4. Configuration of the integrated control system 2000) Next, the functions and contents of the overall control system 2000 will be described using Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the overall control system 2000. As shown in Fig. 7, the overall control system 2000 includes an information acquisition unit 2100, an observation data management unit 2200, a sea state determination unit 2300, an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400, a plan generation unit 2500, an observation operation control unit 2600, and an information input / output unit 270.

[0069] (A-4-1. Information acquisition department 2100) The information acquisition unit 2100 is a functional unit that acquires various information required for processing by each functional unit of the overall control system 2000 from a user input acceptance unit 2730 (described later), the satellite observation system 3000, the user terminal 4000, and the external system 5000. The information acquisition unit 2100 includes a prior information acquisition unit 2110, a measurement request information acquisition unit 2120, a satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, a satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140, an unmanned watercraft observation data acquisition unit 2150, and an unmanned watercraft operation information acquisition unit 2160.

[0070] The prior information acquisition unit 2110 is a functional unit that acquires prior information before environmental observation is performed by the unmanned watercraft system 1000. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the content of the prior information acquired by the prior information acquisition unit 2110. As shown in Fig. 8, the prior information acquired by the prior information acquisition unit 2110 includes measured state quantities (measurement sensors), unmanned watercraft-related information, and past investigation history information.

[0071] The measured state quantities (measurement sensors) include the type of marine environmental state to be determined and information on the measurement sensors or measured state quantities installed on the observation satellite and unmanned vessel to determine the type of each marine environmental state.

[0072] When the marine environmental state to be determined is phytoplankton concentration or chlorophyll concentration, the measurement sensor installed on the observation satellite is a spectroscopic camera (multispectral camera) or an optical camera (hyperspectral camera), and the measurement sensor installed on the unmanned boat is a spectroscopic camera (multispectral camera) or an optical camera (hyperspectral camera).

[0073] Furthermore, when the marine environmental condition to be determined is the salinity concentration in the ocean, the measurement sensor installed on the observation satellite is a microwave measurement sensor that measures the radiance temperature of microwaves in the 1.4 GHz band from the sea surface, and the measurement sensor installed on the unmanned boat is a CTD measurement device that measures the electrical conductivity, water temperature, and water pressure of seawater.

[0074] Furthermore, when the marine environmental condition to be determined is the seawater temperature near the sea surface, the measurement sensor installed on the observation satellite is a microwave sensor that observes electromagnetic waves emitted from the sea surface or an infrared sensor that observes infrared rays, and the measurement sensor installed on the unmanned boat is a temperature sensor that measures the seawater temperature.

[0075] Furthermore, when the marine environmental condition to be determined is the wind conditions in the offshore area, the measurement sensor mounted on the observation satellite is a scatterometer that measures the scattering of electromagnetic waves on the sea surface, or a synthetic aperture radar, and the measurement sensor mounted on the unmanned boat is a wind condition sensor that measures wind speed and direction.

[0076] Furthermore, when the marine environmental condition to be determined is the height of the sea surface, the measurement sensor mounted on the observation satellite is a microwave measurement sensor that measures reflected microwaves, and the measurement sensor mounted on the unmanned boat is a GNSS positioning signal receiving device that receives GNSS positioning signals.

[0077] Furthermore, when the marine environmental condition to be determined is an ocean current or tidal current, the measurement sensor mounted on the observation satellite is an infrared sensor or optical camera that measures the sea surface temperature or color, and the measurement sensor mounted on the unmanned boat is a GNSS positioning signal receiving device that receives GNSS positioning signals.

[0078] Next, the unmanned watercraft-related information includes information about the unmanned watercraft system 1000, such as information about the system configuration, onboard measurement sensors, and aircraft performance. The system configuration includes information about the number of unmanned watercraft 1010 belonging to the unmanned watercraft system 1000, and the number of parent and child watercraft. The onboard measurement sensors are type information about the measurement sensors 1110 mounted on the unmanned watercraft 1010. The aircraft performance is information about various performance aspects of the unmanned watercraft 1010, such as the navigation performance of the navigation unit 1300 of the unmanned watercraft 1010, the communication performance of the communication unit 1400, the measurement performance of the measurement unit 1100, the power storage performance and power generation performance of the power supply unit 1700, etc.

[0079] Next, the past investigation history information includes history information regarding measurement operations previously performed by the environmental observation system 1, such as the measurement location, measurement time, observation data, and information regarding the environmental state determined from the observation data.

[0080] The measurement request information acquisition unit 2120 is a functional unit that acquires measurement request information input from the user terminal 4000, etc. For example, the measurement request information acquisition unit 2120 can acquire measurement request information that includes the details of the marine environmental state to be determined and the observation conditions when observing the marine environmental state.

[0081] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of measurement request information acquired by the measurement request information acquisition unit 2120. As shown in Fig. 9, the measurement request information acquired by the measurement request information acquisition unit 2120 includes a determination target and an observation condition.

[0082] The information to be determined includes information specifying the type of marine environmental state to be determined in environmental observation, such as seawater quality, meteorological information, and oceanographic information. Seawater quality includes phytoplankton concentration (or chlorophyll concentration), seawater salinity, and seawater temperature. Meteorological information includes wind conditions, including wind speed and direction, in the marine area. Oceanographic information includes sea surface height, ocean currents, and tidal currents.

[0083] Next, the observation condition information includes various condition information for performing measurements for environmental observation, such as area, time, measurement completion conditions, measurement frequency, measurement completion conditions, and measurement method. The area information is information that specifies the position or area to be measured, and can be specified as a specific designated planar position or area in a two-dimensional area on the sea surface, or a designated three-dimensional position or area in a three-dimensional area underwater. It may also include desired information for the desired unmanned boat measurement area where measurements will be performed by unmanned boat system 1000.

[0084] The time information includes information specifying the date and time and time period (time period in a 24-hour cycle) for the observation. The measurement frequency information includes information on how often the measurement is performed, and is specified, for example, by the number of measurements to be performed per day. The measurement completion condition information includes condition information for determining that the measurement for environmental observation has been completed, and can be specified, for example, by the area to be measured, date and time, and frequency.

[0085] The measurement method information also includes information specifying the behavior of the unmanned vessel 1010 when conducting observations, and can include, for example, interval mooring measurement, in which measurements are taken periodically while the unmanned vessel 1010 is moored, continuous measurement, in which measurements are taken constantly in real time while the unmanned vessel 1010 is sailing, arbitrary time measurement, in which measurements are taken at any specified time, trigger measurement, in which measurements are taken when a specified trigger is detected, speed correction measurement, in which measurements are taken while traveling and measurement errors caused by the traveling speed are corrected, unmanned vessel synchronous measurement, in which measurements are taken by synchronizing measurement sensors mounted on multiple unmanned vessels 1010, and satellite-unmanned vessel synchronous measurement, in which measurements are taken by synchronizing the measurement timing of the measurement sensor on the observation satellite and the measurement sensor on the unmanned vessel.

[0086] The satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 is a functional unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite 3100, or analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data using the satellite observation data management system 3200.

[0087] The satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140 is a functional unit that acquires from the satellite observation data management system 3200 information on the implementation schedule of satellite observations conducted in the past, orbital information of multiple observation satellites 3100 and information on future observation schedules, or information on future observation schedules calculated based on the orbital information.

[0088] The unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit 2150 is a functional unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data observed by the measurement sensor 1110 mounted on the unmanned boat 1010. In particular, it can acquire in real time unmanned boat observation data obtained by measuring using an unmanned boat in accordance with an unmanned boat observation plan generated by the plan generation unit described below, or analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data by the unmanned boat data processing unit 1500.

[0089] The unmanned watercraft operation information acquisition unit 2160 is a functional unit that acquires information on the results of the determination of the navigation state, internal state, and external state determined by the unmanned watercraft 1010's own watercraft state determination unit 1200 in real time.

[0090] (A-4-2. Observation Data Management Unit 2200) The observation data management unit 2200 is a functional unit that determines the data quality of the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, analysis results generated based on the satellite observation data, or the implementation schedule of past satellite observations acquired by the satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140, orbital information of multiple observation satellites 3100, future observation schedules, future observation schedules calculated based on the orbital information, or unmanned watercraft observation data acquired by the unmanned watercraft observation data acquisition unit 2150, and generates integrated data that integrates the satellite observation data, analysis results, and unmanned watercraft observation data. The observation data management unit 2200 includes a data quality determination unit 2210 and an observation data integration unit 2220.

[0091] The data quality determination unit 2210 is a functional unit that determines the data quality of the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, or the analysis results generated based on the satellite observation data, or the unmanned boat observation data acquired by the unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit 2150.

[0092] For example, the data quality determination unit 2210 can determine, based on satellite observation data, an area where the marine environment cannot be observed or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not satisfy a predetermined condition as an observation abnormal area. Furthermore, when an area where the marine environment cannot be observed or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not satisfy a predetermined condition is determined, the data quality determination unit 2210 may have a function to determine the cause of the inability to observe the marine environment and the cause of the data quality not satisfying the predetermined condition.

[0093] In this case, for example, if the data quality determination unit 2210 determines based on satellite observation data that the marine area is blocked by an obstacle, it can determine that clouds, smoke, or other obstacles between the observation satellite and the marine area are the cause of the data anomaly. Furthermore, based on the satellite observation data, if the brightness of the observation data from the measurement sensors, such as an optical camera or a spectroscopic camera, is too high, it can determine that the amount of solar radiation in the marine area is too high. On the other hand, if the brightness of the observation data from the measurement sensors, such as an optical camera or a spectroscopic camera, is too low, it can determine that the amount of solar radiation in the marine area is too low (e.g., at night). Furthermore, based on the satellite observation data, if the brightness of the observation data from the measurement sensor, such as an infrared sensor, is too high, it can determine that an eruption, fire, or other heat source exists near the marine area. In this way, the data quality determination unit 2210 can determine the cause of the data anomaly based on satellite observation data.

[0094] Furthermore, the data quality determination unit 2210 can calculate the measurement frequency of past satellite observation data and determine whether there is an area where the measurement frequency is lower than a predetermined frequency, based on information about the implementation schedule of satellite observations that were carried out in the past, acquired by the satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140. In this case, for example, the data quality determination unit 2210 can determine the observation area on the sea surface where observation was carried out by the measurement sensor, based on satellite orbit information and information about the field of view of the measurement sensor, and determine the area on the sea surface where the measurement frequency is lower than a predetermined frequency, based on the observation area.

[0095] In addition, the data quality determination unit 2210 can determine whether there are any areas where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, based on information on the future observation schedule of satellite observations acquired by the satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140.

[0096] The data quality determination unit 2210 may also calculate an uncertainty score (0-100%) for each measurement point based on the signal-to-noise ratio (SN ratio) of the observation data, atmospheric correction parameters, and cloud cover data, generate a reliability heat map, and determine the data quality based on the generated heat map.As another example, the data quality determination unit 2210 may perform spatial statistical analysis of satellite observation data, detect local statistical outliers, and further determine the data quality by a method of extracting data whose rate of change in comparison with time-series data exceeds a predetermined value.

[0097] The data quality determination unit 2210 may also have a function to compare observation data with a reference value, calculate the amount of drift based on the difference data from the reference value, and automatically update the configuration coefficients to automatically correct the observation data when the amount of drift exceeds a threshold.The data quality determination unit 2210 may also have a function to perform a correlation analysis of observation data measured by an adjacent unmanned vessel and calculate the degree of deviation from the predicted value by a physical model, determine values ​​that exceed a statistical threshold as abnormal values, and correct the observation data using an interpolation algorithm.

[0098] For example, the observation data integration unit 2220 is a functional unit that integrates satellite observation data or analysis data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 and unmanned boat observation data or analysis data acquired by the unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit 2150 to generate integrated data.

[0099] The observation data integration unit 2220 also uses wavelet transform to decompose the satellite observation data or its analysis data and the unmanned vessel observation data or its analysis data into scale levels of different granularity (from coarse information to fine information), and selects whether to use the satellite observation data or the unmanned vessel observation data at each scale level of granularity. Here, for example, at coarse scale levels, satellite observation data covering a wide area is primarily used, and at fine scale levels, unmanned vessel observation data with narrow area and high resolution is primarily used, and by integrating each observation data using inverse wavelet transform, wide-area and high-resolution integrated data is generated.

[0100] (A-4-3. Ocean State Determination Unit 2300) The ocean state determination unit 2300 is a functional unit that analyzes satellite observation data, unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data that combines satellite observation data or its analysis data with unmanned boat observation data or its analysis data, to determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of the ocean environmental state in the ocean area. The ocean state determination unit 2300 includes a current state determination unit 2310, a future state prediction unit 2320, and an observation anomaly determination unit 2330.

[0101] The current state determination unit 2310 is a functional unit that analyzes satellite observation data, unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data combining satellite observation data and unmanned boat observation data to determine various current two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental conditions and their distribution in the marine area. The current state determination unit 2310 can determine, as various environmental conditions in the marine area, the distribution of at least one of, for example, the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current. Furthermore, the current state determination unit 2310 may have the function of determining other environmental conditions, such as rain cloud distribution, seawater surface temperature distribution, wave conditions, wave distribution, the range of areas with insufficient light, and the range of sunlight reflection.

[0102] The future state prediction unit 2320 is a functional unit that analyzes satellite observation data, unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data that combines satellite observation data and unmanned boat observation data, and predicts and determines various future two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental states and their distribution in the marine area.

[0103] The future state prediction unit 2320 periodically performs deep learning based on the time series information of the marine environmental state determined by the current state determination unit 2310, and can improve the prediction accuracy of future changes in the marine environmental state predicted based on the current marine environmental state.

[0104] The current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 determine the current and future concentrations of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean based on satellite observation data, which is observation data of multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the ocean surface by a spectroscopic camera on an observation satellite, or observation data of light emitted from the ocean surface by an optical camera on an observation satellite, and further determine the current and future concentrations of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean based on observation data of multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the ocean surface by a spectroscopic camera on an unmanned boat, or unmanned boat observation data, which is observation data of light emitted from the ocean surface obtained by an optical camera on an unmanned boat, and can determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of chlorophyll or phytoplankton concentrations in the ocean area based on either or both of these chlorophyll or phytoplankton concentration determination results.

[0105] In addition, the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 determine the current and future ocean salinity concentrations based on satellite observation data, which is observation data of the radiance temperature of microwaves emitted from the sea surface observed by a microwave measurement sensor on an observation satellite, and further determine the current and future ocean salinity concentrations based on unmanned boat observation data, which is observation data of electrical conductivity, water temperature, and water pressure measured by a CTD measurement device on an unmanned boat, and can determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of ocean salinity in the marine area based on either or both of these ocean salinity determination results.

[0106] In addition, the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 determine the current and future sea water temperatures based on satellite observation data, which is observation data of the radiance temperature of microwaves emitted from the sea surface observed by a microwave measurement sensor on an observation satellite, or observation data of infrared rays emitted from the sea surface observed by an infrared sensor, and further determine the current and future sea water temperatures based on unmanned boat observation data, which is observation data of sea water temperatures measured by a temperature sensor on an unmanned boat, and can determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of sea water temperatures based on information on either or both of these sea water temperature determination results.

[0107] In addition, the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 determine the wind conditions in the offshore area based on satellite observation data, which is observation data of reflected waves of electromagnetic waves irradiated onto the sea surface observed by a scatterometer or synthetic aperture radar on an observation satellite, and further determine the wind conditions in the offshore area based on unmanned boat observation data, which is observation data of measured wind speed or wind direction on the sea surface observed by a wind condition sensor on an unmanned boat, and can determine the distribution of current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional wind conditions based on either or both of these wind condition determination results.

[0108] In addition, the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 determine the sea surface height based on satellite observation data, which is observation data of the reception time of microwaves emitted onto the sea surface observed by a microwave measurement sensor on an observation satellite, and further determine the sea surface height based on unmanned boat observation data, which is observation data of GNSS positioning signals measured by a GNSS positioning signal receiving device on an unmanned boat, and can determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional sea surface height distribution based on either or both of these sea surface height determination results.

[0109] In addition, the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 determine the location of ocean currents or tidal currents based on satellite observation data, which is observation data of infrared rays emitted from the sea surface by an infrared sensor on an observation satellite, or optical images of the sea surface acquired by an optical camera on an observation satellite, and further determine the location of ocean currents or tidal currents based on unmanned boat observation data, which is GNSS positioning data measured by a GNSS positioning signal receiving device on an unmanned boat, and can determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of the locations of ocean currents or tidal currents based on either or both of these determination results of the location of the ocean currents or tidal currents.

[0110] The observed anomaly determination unit 2330 can determine whether there is an abnormal value area where the values ​​of the determination results of various current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental states in the marine area determined by the current state determination unit 2310 or the future state prediction unit 2320 are abnormal values ​​that deviate from a predetermined normal range, or whether there is a rapidly changing area where the absolute values ​​of at least one of the following values ​​are greater than a predetermined value: the difference in change (ΔX) between before and after a predetermined time in the determined marine environmental state value, the range of change between the maximum and minimum values ​​within the predetermined time, the amount of change per predetermined time (X / h), or the rate of change per predetermined time (% / h).

[0111] The observation anomaly determination unit 2330 applies an anomaly detection algorithm (such as the local outlier factor method) to the values ​​of the determination results of various environmental conditions determined by the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320, and if the anomaly score exceeds a predetermined threshold, it issues an emergency alert from the information input / output unit 2700 or user terminal 4000 described below, and also controls the observation operation control unit 2600 to rush an unmanned boat to the area where an anomaly score exceeding the threshold is detected.

[0112] (A-4-4. Unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400) The unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400 is a functional unit that determines whether observation using multiple unmanned boats is necessary based on the content and measurement frequency of the acquired satellite observation data, the future measurement schedule of the satellite observation data, the marine environmental state determined by the ocean state determination unit, etc.

[0113] For example, when the data quality determination unit 2210 of the observation data management unit 2200 determines that there are areas where the marine environment cannot be observed based on satellite observation data, or areas where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not meet specified conditions, or areas where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a specified frequency, the unmanned vessel observation necessity determination unit 2400 can determine that unmanned vessel observation using multiple unmanned vessels is necessary for the above-mentioned areas.

[0114] As another example, when the data quality determination unit 2210 determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by an observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, the unmanned vessel observation necessity determination unit 2400 can determine that unmanned vessel observation using multiple unmanned vessels is necessary for the above-mentioned area.

[0115] As another example, the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400 can determine that unmanned boat observation using multiple unmanned boats is necessary for the above-mentioned area if the observation abnormality determination unit 2330 of the ocean state determination unit 2300 determines that there is an area where the ocean environmental state value is an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range, or if it determines that there is an area where the absolute value of at least one of the following is greater than a predetermined value: the difference in change (ΔX) between before and after a predetermined time in the determined ocean environmental state value, the change range between the maximum and minimum values ​​within the predetermined time, the change amount per predetermined time (X / h), or the change rate per predetermined time (% / h).

[0116] (A-4-5. Plan Generation Unit 2500) The plan generation unit 2500 is a functional unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using multiple unmanned boats based on the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, or analysis data of the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 or generated by the ocean state determination unit 2300. The plan generation unit 2500 includes an observation state abnormality determination unit 2510, an observation plan generation unit 2520, a maintenance plan generation unit 2530, and an external observation request generation unit 2540.

[0117] The observation state abnormality determination unit 2510 is a functional unit that acquires information on the determination results of the navigation state, internal state, and external state determined by the unmanned vessel 1010's own vessel state determination unit 1200 via the unmanned vessel operation information acquisition unit 2160, and determines whether there is an abnormality in the observation state by the unmanned vessel based on the above information.

[0118] The observed state abnormality determination unit 2510 can determine, as an abnormal state or a failure state, for example, when the SOC (State of Charge) of a power storage device such as a battery mounted on the unmanned watercraft is below a predetermined value, when the travelable distance that can be calculated from the SOC is below a predetermined distance, when a temporary abnormal state (temperature abnormality, communication abnormality, etc.) of equipment mounted on the unmanned watercraft is in a malfunction state, etc. Furthermore, the observed state abnormality determination unit 2510 can determine that an abnormal state of the external environment exists when the wave height or weather (rain, snow, cloudiness, etc.) around the unmanned watercraft becomes worse than predetermined conditions.

[0119] The observed state abnormality determination unit 2510 may have a function of performing machine learning using a machine learning model based on the unmanned watercraft's past power consumption history information and charge / discharge cycle data, and predicting the SOC up to a future time (for example, 48 hours from now) at a predetermined time interval (in 30-minute increments) based on the current SOC and environmental conditions.The observed state abnormality determination unit 2510 may also perform a power consumption simulation based on surrounding sea state information (wave height, wind speed, tidal current data) and the unmanned watercraft's hull motion equation, and predict the SOC under various sea state conditions.

[0120] The observation plan generation unit 2520 is a functional unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using multiple unmanned boats based on the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, or the analysis results of the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 or generated by the ocean state determination unit 2300.

[0121] For example, if the observation data management unit 2200 determines that there are areas where the marine environment cannot be observed based on satellite observation data, or areas where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not meet specified conditions, or areas where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a specified frequency, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can generate an unmanned boat observation plan that includes at least one of the target areas for unmanned boat observation, including the above-mentioned areas, the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned boats in the above-mentioned areas, and the travel routes to the above-mentioned areas.

[0122] In addition, if a large number of areas are detected where observation has not been possible, or where the data quality does not meet the specified conditions, or where the satellite measurement frequency is lower than the specified frequency, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can set a priority for each detected area and generate an unmanned boat observation plan in which measurements are carried out by unmanned boats in order of priority, starting with the areas with the highest priority.

[0123] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can predict the data quality to be obtained by the current observation plan based on the results of real-time monitoring of the data quality of the unmanned vessel observation data, and modify the observation plan to improve the data quality.

[0124] As another example, if the observation data management unit 2200 determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled observation by an observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can generate an unmanned watercraft observation plan based on information about the future planned observation schedule for observing the area by the observation satellite, including an observation implementation schedule for conducting unmanned watercraft observations at times that complement the intervals between the future scheduled observations by the observation satellite. By generating such an unmanned watercraft observation plan, the intervals between the future scheduled observations by the observation satellite can be complemented by unmanned watercraft observations, and observation data can be obtained with a certain degree of frequency.

[0125] As another example, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can generate an unmanned boat observation plan including an observation implementation schedule for conducting unmanned boat observations at timings approximately synchronized with the future scheduled observation timings of the observation satellite, based on information on the future observation schedule of the observation satellite observing the marine area acquired by the satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140.

[0126] As another example, if the observation abnormality determination unit 2330 determines that there is an area where the value of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit 2300 is an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range, or where the absolute values ​​of at least one of the following values ​​are greater than a predetermined value: the difference in change (ΔX) between the determined marine environmental state value before and after a predetermined time, the change range between the maximum and minimum values ​​within a predetermined time, the change amount per predetermined time (X / h), or the change rate per predetermined time (% / h), the observation plan generation unit 2520 can generate at least one of an unmanned boat observation plan that sets the target area for unmanned boat observation including the above-mentioned area, an unmanned boat observation plan that includes specification information for the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned boats in the above-mentioned area, or an unmanned boat observation plan that includes specification information for the travel route to the above-mentioned area.

[0127] As another example, if the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 determines that there is an area where the marine environmental state value is an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range, or where the absolute values ​​of at least one of the following values ​​are greater than a predetermined value: the difference in change (ΔX) between the determined marine environmental state value before and after a predetermined time, the change range between the maximum and minimum values ​​within a predetermined time, the change amount per predetermined time (X / h), or the change rate per predetermined time (% / h), the observation plan generation unit 2520 can generate an unmanned boat observation plan that includes at least one of an unmanned boat patrol schedule, a replacement schedule, a standby location for the replacement boat, and the number of standby replacement boats, allowing a single or multiple unmanned boats to measure the above-mentioned area at a frequency higher than a predetermined frequency.

[0128] Here, the term "replacement vehicle" refers to an unmanned boat that is waiting to take over from the deployed unmanned boat that is deployed on the sea to conduct environmental observations, and multiple replacement vehicles are kept waiting at defined waiting positions around the sea area where the deployed vehicle will perform observation operations. As mentioned above, in order to measure a specified area more frequently than a specified frequency, the waiting positions must be set to a fairly close position so that the replacement vehicles can be sent to the specified area immediately, and it is also necessary to have a sufficient number of replacement vehicles waiting at the waiting positions.

[0129] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can determine the operational conditions and performance limits of the unmanned vessel based on information such as system configuration, aircraft performance, and onboard measurement sensors obtained as unmanned vessel-related information included in the advance information, and generate the above-mentioned unmanned vessel observation plan within the determined operational conditions and performance limits.

[0130] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can generate an unmanned vessel observation plan including a charging plan for the storage device 1710 using the power generation device 1720 based on the internal state determined by the unmanned vessel 1010's own vessel state determination unit 1200, for example, the SOC of the storage device, via the unmanned vessel operation information acquisition unit 2160.

[0131] The observation plan generation unit 2520 may have the function of automatically determining observation conditions (measurement sensors, measurement timing, etc.) that are less likely to cause the above-mentioned problems, using the judgment results of the data quality judgment unit 2210 on past unmanned boat observation data, i.e., the frequency at which it is judged that the marine environment has not been observed or that the data quality of the unmanned boat observation data does not meet the specified conditions, and the judgment results on the causes of this occurrence, as learning data.

[0132] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 may apply a learning algorithm to historical information on the information acquisition efficiency (amount of information / cost) of past unmanned boat observation data, and learn optimal measurement plans such as measurement frequency and unmanned boat deployment density for each area within the marine area and type of marine environmental state, thereby generating an unmanned boat observation plan.

[0133] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can calculate a navigation safety evaluation index that indicates whether the unmanned vessel can navigate safely based on weather forecast information for the surrounding area (wind speed, wave height, precipitation, etc.), and generate an unmanned vessel observation plan that includes a travel route plan that avoids areas and time periods below a specified safety threshold.

[0134] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can determine the feasibility of multiple candidate observation plans through simulation based on information such as the unmanned vessel's navigation performance (maximum movement speed, etc.) and other aircraft performance contained in the advance information acquired by the advance information acquisition unit 2110, the SOC of the power storage device acquired by the unmanned vessel operation information acquisition unit 2160, and future predicted power consumption, and can adopt an observation plan with a success rate of a specified probability (90%) or higher.

[0135] In addition, the observation plan generation unit 2520 can analyze error statistical data between prediction information for future marine environmental conditions and the judgment results for marine environmental conditions based on actually measured observation data, identify conditions (area, time period, season, type of marine environmental condition, etc.) where the prediction accuracy of future marine environmental conditions is low, and generate an unmanned boat observation plan that can increase the observation density for those conditions and improve the prediction accuracy of future marine environmental conditions.

[0136] The observation plan generation unit 2520 may also have the function of running a simulation using a prediction information for surrounding weather and sea conditions and an observation success probability model that can obtain observation data of the expected data quality, generating an observation plan that maximizes the expected value of observation success, and outputting this as suggested information to the display unit 2720 or the user terminal 4000.

[0137] The maintenance plan generation unit 2530 is a functional unit that generates maintenance plans for multiple unmanned watercraft. The maintenance plan generation unit 2530 generates a maintenance plan that includes a status monitoring plan that includes abnormalities and failures in the airframe and unmanned watercraft system of each unmanned watercraft, and a plan for replacing or repairing consumables and broken parts.

[0138] The maintenance plan generation unit 2530 can generate a maintenance plan including a plan for replacing the unmanned vessel based on the internal state determined by the unmanned vessel 1010's own vessel state determination unit 1200, for example, the SOC of the storage device, via the unmanned vessel operation information acquisition unit 2160.

[0139] The external observation request generation unit 2540 is a functional unit that generates an observation request for the environmental state to an external system that observes the environmental state of the marine area, such as the external system 5000. The external observation request generation unit 2540 determines the operational conditions and performance limits of the unmanned vessel based on, for example, information on the system configuration, aircraft performance, and onboard measurement sensors acquired as unmanned vessel-related information included in the advance information, and can generate an observation request command to the external system 5000 if it determines that the observation conditions (area, time, measurement frequency, measurement method, etc.) included in the measurement request information cannot be met within the determined operational conditions and performance limits.

[0140] In addition, the external observation request generation unit 2540 can generate an observation request command to the external system 5000 when it determines that the observation conditions (area, time, measurement frequency, measurement method, etc.) included in the measurement request information cannot be met based on the internal state determined by the unmanned boat 1010's own aircraft state determination unit 1200, for example, the SOC of the storage device.

[0141] (A-4-6. Observation operation control unit 2600) The observation operation control unit 2600 is a functional unit that executes unmanned boat observation, measuring the environmental conditions of an ocean area using measurement sensors mounted on multiple unmanned boats, in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan generated by the plan generation unit 2500. The observation operation control unit 2600 can generate various control commands, such as coordinated operation of multiple unmanned boats, placement and movement paths, relative distances, role allocation, autonomous navigation, and communication network configuration between the unmanned boats.

[0142] For example, the observation operation control unit 2600 can perform unmanned vessel observation in multiple measurement modes, including a wide-area deployment measurement mode in which the measurement sensors 1110 of multiple unmanned vessels are synchronized to perform measurements in a wide-area deployment state in which the multiple unmanned vessels are arranged so that the relative distance between them is longer than a predetermined distance, and a narrow-area deployment measurement mode in which the measurement sensors 1110 of multiple unmanned vessels are synchronized to perform measurements in a narrow-area deployment state in which the relative distance between the multiple unmanned vessels is shorter than a predetermined distance. For example, the unmanned vessel group control unit 2610 can select the measurement mode from the wide-area deployment measurement mode and the narrow-area deployment measurement mode based on information about the size of the area included in the measurement request information, such as selecting the wide-area deployment measurement mode when the measurement request area is wide and selecting the narrow-area deployment measurement mode when the measurement request area is narrow.

[0143] The observation operation control unit 2600 can also control the placement of multiple unmanned vehicles in a second area where the absolute value of the current or future spatial change (ΔX) or rate of change (ΔX / km) or fluctuation range (spatial amplitude of fluctuation between maximum and minimum values) of the marine environmental state determined by the current state determination unit 2310 or future state prediction unit 2320 of the marine state determination unit 2300 is greater than in the first area, so that the placement density of the multiple unmanned vehicles is higher than the placement density of the multiple unmanned vehicles in the first area. In this way, the placement of multiple unmanned vehicles can be controlled based on the spatial gradient of the state quantity of the marine state so that unmanned vehicles are placed at a higher density in areas with a steeper gradient and at a lower density in areas with a gentler gradient.

[0144] Furthermore, when the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 detects an abnormal value outside the predetermined normal range of marine environmental conditions, the observation operation control unit 2600 can send a summons signal to unmanned vessels deployed within a predetermined distance and control the deployment of the unmanned vessels so that they are deployed to positions surrounding the abnormality detection location. Here, the predetermined normal range of marine conditions is, for example, a preset numerical range, with upper and lower limits set based on the range within which marine environmental conditions can vary under normal conditions. The predetermined normal range of marine conditions may also be a range of values ​​set by aggregating or performing frequency analysis on past weather data for the past few days or for several years covering the same season and time period. The normal range can be determined by any of the following: a range of average values, a range of maximum and minimum values, a range of ±3σ values ​​after frequency analysis, etc. In this case, it is desirable to remove past data showing abnormal weather conditions from the calculation of the normal range.

[0145] In addition, when the observation operation control unit 2600 generates a movement route based on information such as a movement target included in the unmanned boat observation plan generated by the plan generation unit 2500, it can generate a movement route that allows the unmanned boat to move to the movement target position in the shortest distance or shortest time based on the current position of the unmanned boat, the movement target position, and information on surrounding sea conditions (wind, wave height, etc.).

[0146] The observation operation control unit 2600 can also grasp the SOC of the power storage device of each of the multiple unmanned watercraft in real time, predict future power consumption based on the unmanned watercraft observation plan, and, based on this information, determine the allocation of observation operations to the unmanned watercraft, which can extend the operating time of the unmanned watercraft system as a whole. The observation operation control unit 2600 can also have a function to calculate the degree of conformance between the unmanned watercraft's aircraft performance contained in the advance information and the requirements of the unmanned watercraft observation plan, and perform task allocation optimization using the Hungarian method or the like.

[0147] In addition, the observation operation control unit 2600 grasps the SOC of the power storage device of each of the multiple unmanned boats in real time, and when the SOC falls below a predetermined value (e.g., 30%), it switches the unmanned boat into a charging mode using the power generation device 1720 and sends a command to other unmanned boats deployed in the surrounding area of ​​the unmanned boat to take over the measurement operation task, thereby preventing interruptions or delays in the observation task due to a decrease in SOC.

[0148] The observation operation control unit 2600 can also calculate a travel route that minimizes power consumption based on ocean current data and wind condition data for the surrounding area, and perform autonomous navigation by combining route search and position estimation using a Kalman filter. The observation operation control unit 2600 may also have a function to calculate the ratio of importance to cost (required time, power consumption, etc.) of an observation position and determine the position with the highest importance / cost ratio as the observation target position. Furthermore, the observation operation control unit 2600 may have a function to determine the observation target position by taking into account the degree of impact on surrounding fishing boats and other ships.

[0149] Here, the observation operation control unit 2600 can also control the operations of multiple unmanned watercraft in real time according to information about the current or future distribution of seawater temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300. This control function will be described below.

[0150] First, the observation operation control unit 2600 can control the placement or movement routes of multiple unmanned watercraft based on information relating to the current or future distribution of seawater temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300.

[0151] When controlling the placement or movement path in this manner, for example, if the observation operation control unit 2600 detects an unmanned vessel in a high-temperature state where the temperature of the equipment on board the unmanned vessel is above a predetermined high-temperature judgment temperature or is relatively hotter than other unmanned vessels based on the status information of the unmanned vessels acquired by the unmanned vessel operation information acquisition unit 2160, the observation operation control unit 2600 can, based on the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution information of seawater temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300, place the high-temperature unmanned vessel in a low-temperature seawater area where the seawater temperature is below a predetermined seawater temperature or is lower than the equipment temperature inside the unmanned vessel by a predetermined difference temperature or more, or pass the high-temperature unmanned vessel through a low-temperature seawater area, or control the movement of multiple unmanned vessels to avoid high-temperature seawater areas where the seawater temperature is above a predetermined seawater temperature or is higher than the equipment temperature inside the unmanned vessel by a predetermined difference temperature or more.

[0152] Furthermore, when controlling the movement of multiple unmanned vessels so that they are placed in or pass through a low-temperature seawater area, the observation operation control unit 2600 determines the low-temperature seawater area and executes cooling control to limit the processing load of the internal equipment (devices, power storage devices, etc.) of the unmanned vessels in the determined low-temperature seawater area to a predetermined value or less, thereby more effectively lowering the temperature of the equipment mounted on the unmanned vessels. Furthermore, when performing cooling control to cool the equipment using water cooling with seawater, it is possible to determine whether the water cooling effect is greater when the unmanned vessel is anchored (motor not running) or when the unmanned vessel is cruising, and then decide on the operating mode (anchored state or cruising state) that will produce the greatest cooling effect.

[0153] Furthermore, when the observation operation control unit 2600 controls the movement of an unmanned vessel in a high temperature state to avoid high temperature seawater areas, it determines the above-mentioned high temperature seawater areas and performs cooling control in the determined high temperature seawater areas to limit the processing load of the internal equipment (devices, power storage devices, etc.) of the unmanned vessel to below a predetermined value, thereby preventing the temperature of the equipment installed on the unmanned vessel from rising further.

[0154] As another example of control when controlling placement or movement path in this manner, for example, when the observation operation control unit 2600 detects an unmanned vessel in a low temperature state where the temperature of the equipment installed on the unmanned vessel is below a predetermined low temperature judgment temperature or is relatively cooler than other unmanned vessels based on the status information of the unmanned vessel acquired by the unmanned vessel operation information acquisition unit 2160, the observation operation control unit 2600 can control the movement of multiple unmanned vessels so that the unmanned vessel in a low temperature state is placed in a high temperature seawater area where the seawater temperature is above a predetermined seawater temperature or where the seawater temperature is higher than the equipment temperature inside the unmanned vessel by a predetermined temperature difference or more, based on the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution information of the seawater temperature determined by the ocean condition determination unit 2300, or so that the unmanned vessel in a low temperature state passes through a high temperature seawater area.

[0155] Furthermore, when the observation operation control unit 2600 places a low-temperature unmanned vessel in a high-temperature seawater area or controls the movement of multiple unmanned vessels so that the vessel passes through, it can determine the high-temperature seawater area and, in the determined high-temperature water temperature area, keep the internal equipment (devices, power storage devices, etc.) of the unmanned vessels warm or heat them with seawater, or in addition, perform heat-keeping and temperature-raising control to keep the processing load of the internal equipment above a predetermined value, or adjust the processing load to keep the temperature of the internal equipment above a predetermined temperature.

[0156] In this way, by controlling the placement or movement routes of multiple unmanned vessels based on the distribution of seawater temperature, it is possible to control the temperature of the equipment inside the unmanned vessels within a temperature range in which the equipment can operate normally, thereby improving the operating rate of the unmanned vessel system and improving the reliability of the system.

[0157] In addition, the observation operation control unit 2600 can control the locations where the storage devices of multiple unmanned boats are charged based on information on the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300, or the differential temperature between the seawater temperature and the storage devices of the unmanned boats.

[0158] When controlling the charging location of the power storage device in this manner, for example, the observation operation control unit 2600 determines the season to include at least one of summer and winter, and if it determines that the current season is summer, it can determine, based on information on the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300, areas where the seawater temperature is relatively low compared to the surrounding areas, or areas where the seawater temperature is lower than a first predetermined temperature, or areas where the seawater temperature is lower than that of the power storage device, as charging locations for multiple unmanned boats, and perform charging control to charge the power storage device 1710 using the power generation device 1720 in that area.

[0159] Similarly, when the observation operation control unit 2600 determines that the current season is winter, it can determine, based on information on the current or future distribution of sea water temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300, areas where the sea water temperature is relatively high compared to the surrounding areas, or areas where the sea water temperature is higher than a second predetermined temperature, or areas where the sea water temperature is higher than the temperature of the power storage device, as charging locations for multiple unmanned boats, and perform charging control in that area to charge the power storage device 1710 using the power generation device 1720.

[0160] In this way, by determining an area suitable for charging the storage device based on the seawater temperature and the temperature difference between the seawater temperature and the storage device, and by charging the storage device in that area, the storage device can be charged in a location with a better temperature environment, which makes it possible to suppress deterioration of the storage device and reduce the maintenance and operating costs of the unmanned boat system.

[0161] In addition, based on information on the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300, the observation operation control unit 2600 can estimate or predict in advance the locations where the seawater temperature will be below a predetermined temperature or will be lower than the temperature of the equipment inside the unmanned vessel by a predetermined temperature difference or more, and limit the output of the unmanned vessel's power storage device in low-seawater areas where the seawater temperature is estimated or predicted in advance to be below the predetermined temperature.

[0162] When limiting the output of the power storage device in this manner, for example, the observation operation control unit 2600 can predict and calculate the internal resistance value of the power storage device or the output voltage drop of the power storage device based on information about the seawater temperature in the low-seawater area, and limit the output of the power storage device in the low-seawater area based on the predicted internal resistance value or output voltage drop.

[0163] In this way, by limiting the output of the unmanned watercraft's power storage device in low-seawater areas determined based on the seawater temperature or the temperature difference between the seawater temperature and the power storage device, or by performing other energy management, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the output voltage suddenly drops due to an IR drop in the power storage device, making it impossible to use each function of the unmanned watercraft.

[0164] (A-4-7. Information input / output unit 2700) The information input / output unit 2700 is a functional unit that has functions for inputting and outputting information between the unmanned watercraft 1010, the user terminal 4000, the external system 5000, etc., displaying and outputting information to the user, and receiving information input from the user. The information input / output unit 2700 includes a display information generation unit 2710, a display unit 2720, a user input reception unit 2730, a control command transmission unit 2740, and a display information transmission unit 2750.

[0165] The display information generation unit 2710 is a functional unit that generates display information to be displayed on the display unit 272. For example, the display information generation unit 2710 can generate display information that integrates satellite images, aerial images, two-dimensional map information, or three-dimensional map information with distribution information of marine environmental conditions, based on two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution information of current or future marine environmental conditions determined by the current state determination unit 2310 or future state prediction unit 2320 of the marine state determination unit 2300.

[0166] In addition, the display information generation unit 2710 may have the function of reducing the dimension of judgment data for multiple types of marine environmental conditions using principal component analysis, generating display data that combines 3D volume rendering and isosurface extraction, and further generating display information that includes abnormality information detected using an abnormality detection algorithm.

[0167] In addition, the display information generation unit 2710 may have the function of extracting past cases similar to the current unmanned boat observation plan based on a database of various information such as unmanned boat observation data related to observation tasks carried out in the past, ocean state judgment results, and unmanned boat observation plans, and generating display information including the extracted past information.

[0168] The display unit 2720 is a functional unit that displays and outputs information acquired and generated by each functional unit of the integrated control system 2000. For example, the display unit 2720 can display and output advance information such as that shown in Fig. 8 acquired by the advance information acquisition unit 2110, measurement request information such as that shown in Fig. 9 acquired by the measurement request information acquisition unit 2120, satellite observation data or analysis data thereof acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, various information acquired by the satellite operation information acquisition unit 2140, unmanned watercraft observation data or analysis data thereof acquired by the unmanned watercraft observation data acquisition unit 2150, various information acquired by the unmanned watercraft operation information acquisition unit 2160, and the like.

[0169] As another example, the display unit 2430 may have a function of displaying and outputting the determination results by the data quality determination unit 2210 of the observation data management unit 2200 and the integrated data generated by the observation data integration unit 2220.

[0170] As another example, the display unit 2430 may have a function to display and output information such as current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution information on the marine environmental state determined by the current state determination unit 2310 or the future state prediction unit 2320 of the marine state determination unit 2300, or information on the marine environmental state determined by the observed anomaly determination unit 2330 to be an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range.

[0171] As another example, the display unit 2430 may have the function of displaying and outputting information regarding the abnormality determination results determined by the observation state abnormality determination unit 2510 of the plan generation unit 2500, information regarding the observation plan generated by the observation plan generation unit 2520, information regarding the maintenance plan generated by the maintenance plan generation unit 2530, information regarding the observation request command generated by the external observation request generation unit 2540, and information regarding the control command for the unmanned craft generated by the observation operation control unit 2600.

[0172] The user input accepting unit 2730 is a functional unit that accepts any user input information related to various information displayed on the display unit 2720 or unrelated to the displayed information. For example, the user input accepting unit 2730 can accept commands to change the displayed observation plan or maintenance plan, an observation request command to the external system 5000, or a control command to the unmanned craft. The user input information accepted by the user input accepting unit 2730 can include an operation intervention command from the user to the unmanned craft 1010, etc.

[0173] The user input receiving unit 2440 may be a portable mobile terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a notebook PC, etc. The user input information may also be received via an operation button provided on the display screen of the display unit 2430.

[0174] The control command transmitter 2740 is a functional unit that transmits control commands for the unmanned craft 1010 generated by the observation operation controller 2600 to the unmanned craft 1010 via the communications satellite 6100 or the terrestrial base station 6200 .

[0175] The display information transmission unit 2750 is a functional unit that transmits display information to the user terminal 4000. Note that the display information transmitted by the display information transmission unit 2750 to the user terminal 4000 may include various types of information to be displayed on the display unit 2720.

[0176] (A-5. Control flow of environmental observation system 1) Next, the control flow of the environment observation system will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0177] (A-5-1. High-level control flow of environmental observation system 1) FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the control flow of the upper level processing of the environment observing system 1.

[0178] First, the prior information acquisition unit 2110 acquires prior information including measured state quantities (measurement sensors) for determining the marine environmental state, unmanned boat-related information, past investigation history information, etc. (step 101). In this step, for example, various types of prior information as shown in Fig. 8 are acquired.

[0179] Next, the measurement request information acquisition unit 2120 acquires measurement request information including the type of marine environmental state to be determined and various information related to observation conditions (step 102). In this step, for example, various types of advance information such as those shown in Fig. 9 are acquired.

[0180] Next, the observation data management unit 2200 acquires each observation data via the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 and the unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit 2150, and manages the observation data (step 103). The detailed processing of this step will be described later.

[0181] Next, the ocean state determination unit 2300 analyzes the satellite observation data, or the unmanned boat observation data, or integrated data that combines the satellite observation data or its analysis data with the unmanned boat observation data or its analysis data, to determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of the ocean environment state in the ocean area (step 104). The detailed processing content of this step will be described later.

[0182] Next, the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400 determines whether or not observation using multiple unmanned boats is necessary based on the content and measurement frequency of the acquired satellite observation data, the future measurement schedule of the satellite observation data, the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit, etc. (Step 105). The detailed processing content of this step will be described later.

[0183] Next, the plan generation unit 2500 generates an unmanned boat observation plan using multiple unmanned boats based on the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, or analysis data of the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 or generated by the ocean state determination unit 2300 (step 106). The detailed processing of this step will be described later.

[0184] Next, the observation operation control unit 2600 executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using measurement sensors mounted on the multiple unmanned boats, in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan generated by the plan generation unit 2500 (step 107). The detailed processing of this step will be described later.

[0185] Next, the ocean state determination unit 2300 analyzes the newly acquired unmanned boat observation data or its analysis data, or integrated data that combines the satellite observation data or its analysis data with the newly acquired unmanned boat observation data or its analysis data, and updates and determines the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of the ocean environment state in the ocean area (step 108).

[0186] Next, the information input / output unit 2700 outputs the determination results such as the distribution of the marine environment state updated and determined by the marine state determination unit 2300 (step 109).

[0187] Next, the observation operation control unit 2600 determines whether the environmental observation mission is complete, and determines the next processing step to transition to depending on the result of the completion determination (step 110). If it is determined in this step that the environmental observation mission is incomplete, the processing transitions to step 105; on the other hand, if it is determined that the environmental observation mission is complete, the processing transitions to step 111.

[0188] Next, if it is determined in step 110 that the environmental observation mission is completed, the observation operation control unit 2600 causes the unmanned craft to return (step 111).

[0189] (A-5-2. Control flow of the observation data management unit 2200) 11 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of observation data management by the observation data management unit 2200. In particular, FIG. 11 shows detailed processing of step 103 in the flowchart of FIG.

[0190] First, the observation data management unit 2200 acquires unmanned boat observation data measured in the past by the unmanned boat 1010 (step 201). In this step, for example, the unmanned boat observation data measured in the past by the unmanned boat 1010 can be acquired via the unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit 2150, or by reading out past unmanned boat observation data recorded in a recording unit in the overall control system 2000 (not shown).

[0191] Next, the observation data management unit 2200 acquires satellite observation data via the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 (step 202).

[0192] Next, the data quality determination unit 2210 determines the data quality of the acquired satellite observation data and unmanned watercraft observation data (step 203). In this step, for example, the data quality determination unit 2210 determines the data quality of the satellite observation data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130, or the analysis results generated based on the satellite observation data, or the unmanned watercraft observation data acquired by the unmanned watercraft observation data acquisition unit 2150.

[0193] Next, the observation data integration unit 2220 integrates the satellite observation data or analysis data acquired by the satellite observation data acquisition unit 2130 and the unmanned boat observation data or analysis data acquired by the unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit 2150 to generate integrated data (step 204).

[0194] Next, the information input / output unit 2700 displays and outputs the data quality judgment result of the observation data judged by the data quality judgment unit 2210 (step 205).

[0195] (A-5-3. Control flow of the ocean state determination unit 2300) 12 is a flowchart showing the flow of the ocean state determination process by the ocean state determination unit 2300. In particular, FIG. 12 shows detailed processing of step 104 in the flowchart of FIG.

[0196] First, the current state determination unit 2310 determines the current marine environmental state and its distribution (step 301). In this step, for example, the current environmental states in the marine area can be determined to be at least one of the following distribution states: the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current.

[0197] Next, the future state prediction unit 2320 determines the future marine environmental state and its distribution (step 302). In this step, for example, various future environmental states in the marine area can be predicted and determined, such as the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the distribution state of at least one of the ocean currents or tidal currents.

[0198] Next, the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 determines whether the determination results of various current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental states in the marine area determined by the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320 correspond to a predetermined observation anomaly (step 303). In this step, for example, it is possible to determine whether there is an abnormal value area where the values ​​of the determination results of various current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental states in the marine area are abnormal values ​​that deviate from a predetermined normal range. Alternatively, it is possible to determine whether there is a rapidly changing area where the absolute value of any of the amount of change difference between before and after a predetermined time, the amount of change within a predetermined time, the amount of change per unit time, and the rate of change per unit time of the determined marine environmental state is greater than a predetermined value.

[0199] Next, the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 generates the result of the observation anomaly determination as two-dimensional map information (step 304). In this step, for example, a two-dimensional map or a three-dimensional map of the result of the observation anomaly determination regarding at least one of the marine environmental conditions, such as the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the offshore area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current, is generated.

[0200] Next, the information input / output unit 2700 displays and outputs the observation anomaly determination result of the ocean observation state determined by the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 (step 305).

[0201] (A-5-4. Control flow of the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400) 13 is a flowchart showing the control flow for determining whether or not unmanned boat observation is necessary by the unmanned boat observation necessity determining unit 2400. In particular, FIG. 13 shows detailed processing of step 105 in the flowchart of FIG.

[0202] First, based on the determination result of the data quality determination unit 2210, areas where observation of the marine environment has not been possible using satellite observation data are determined (step 401).

[0203] Next, based on the determination result of the data quality determination unit 2210, it is determined whether the area has a data quality of satellite observation data that does not satisfy a predetermined condition (step 402).

[0204] Next, based on the determination result of the data quality determination unit 2210, it is determined whether the area has been observed by satellites in the past with a frequency lower than a predetermined frequency (step 403).

[0205] Next, based on the determination result of the data quality determination unit 2210, an area is determined in which the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period (step 404).

[0206] Next, based on the determination result of the observation anomaly determination unit 2330, an abnormal value area is determined in which the determined value of the marine environmental state is an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range (step 405).

[0207] Next, based on the judgment result of the observation anomaly judgment unit 2330, a rapid change area is judged where the absolute value of the time change amount indicating the amount of change in the value of the marine environmental state over a predetermined time period or the time change rate indicating the rate of change per predetermined time period is greater than a predetermined value (step 406).

[0208] (A-5-4-1. Control flow of the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400) Fig. 17 is a diagram showing a specific example of the determination process when determining whether unmanned boat observation is necessary by the unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit 2400. In particular, Fig. 17 shows an example of the unmanned boat observation necessity determination process when determining the distribution of seawater temperature based on acquired satellite observation data.

[0209] Fig. 17 shows a two-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature determined by the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 based on satellite observation data. For example, Area 1 shown in Fig. 17 indicates an area where seawater temperature cannot be observed because the reflected microwaves cannot be measured by the satellite microwave measurement sensor due to clouds, which are obstacles, as a result of the processing in step 401 in Fig. 13.

[0210] Area 2 indicates an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, as determined by the process in step 404 in FIG.

[0211] Area 3 indicates an abnormal value area where the seawater temperature determination value is an abnormal value outside the predetermined normal range (for example, an abnormally high temperature exceeding the upper limit temperature of the normal range) as a result of the processing in step 405 of FIG.

[0212] In this way, the unmanned boat observation necessity determining unit 2400 can determine whether unmanned boat observation is necessary for each area of ​​the ocean area using a plurality of determination conditions such as those shown in FIG.

[0213] (A-5-5. Control flow of the plan generation unit 2500) 14 is a flowchart showing the plan generation processing flow when an unmanned boat observation plan is generated by the plan generation unit 2500. In particular, FIG. 14 shows detailed processing of step 106 in the flowchart of FIG.

[0214] First, the observation state abnormality determination unit 2510 determines whether there is an abnormality in the observation state of the unmanned watercraft (step 501). In this step, for example, information on the determination results of the navigation state, internal state, and external state determined by the own watercraft state determination unit 1200 of the unmanned watercraft 1010 is acquired, and based on this information, it is determined whether there is an abnormality in the observation state of the unmanned watercraft.

[0215] Next, the observation plan generation unit 2520 generates an observation plan for the unmanned vehicle (step 502). In this step, an unmanned vehicle observation plan is generated that includes at least one of the target area for unmanned vehicle observation, the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned vehicle, and the movement route.

[0216] Next, the maintenance plan generation unit 2530 generates a maintenance plan for the multiple unmanned watercraft (step 503). In this step, for example, a maintenance plan is generated that includes a status monitoring plan that includes abnormalities and failures in the watercraft and the unmanned watercraft system of each unmanned watercraft, and a plan for replacing or repairing consumables and faulty parts. In this step, a maintenance plan that includes a plan for replacing the watercraft may also be generated via the unmanned watercraft operation information acquisition unit 2160 based on the internal state determined by the watercraft status determination unit 1200 of the unmanned watercraft 1010, for example, the SOC of the power storage device.

[0217] Next, the external observation request generation unit 2540 generates an observation request for the environmental state to an external system that observes the environmental state of the marine area, such as the external system 5000 (step 504).

[0218] (A-5-6. Control flow of the observation operation control unit 2600) 15 is a flowchart showing the control process flow of the measurement operation of the unmanned vessel by the observation operation control unit 2600. In particular, FIG. 15 shows detailed processing of step 107 in the flowchart of FIG.

[0219] First, the location status of the multiple unmanned crafts 1010 is determined based on the position information of the multiple unmanned crafts 1010 acquired by the unmanned craft operation information acquisition unit 2160 (step 601). In this step, the location status is determined by determining the relative distances between the unmanned crafts and the density of unmanned crafts per unit area.

[0220] Next, updated information on the determination results of the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional seawater temperature distribution state determined by the ocean state determination unit 2300 is obtained in real time (step 602).

[0221] Next, the unmanned watercraft operation information acquisition unit 2160 grasps the status of the internal devices of the plurality of unmanned watercrafts 1010 (step 603). The temperature state of each functional unit, particularly the temperature state of the power storage device 1710, is grasped.

[0222] Next, the observation operation control unit 2600 generates a measurement operation command for the unmanned watercraft based on the information obtained in each step described above (step 604).

[0223] Next, the unmanned boat measures unmanned boat observation data in accordance with the measurement operation command, and the unmanned boat observation data is transmitted to the overall control system 2000 (step 605).

[0224] (A-5-7. Control flow of update determination process by the ocean state determination unit 2300) 16 is a flowchart showing the control processing flow of the ocean state update determination processing by the ocean state determination unit 2300. In particular, FIG. 16 shows detailed processing of step 108 in the flowchart of FIG.

[0225] First, the current state determination unit 2310 updates and determines the current marine environmental state and its distribution based on the latest unmanned boat observation data measured by multiple unmanned boats (step 701). In this step, for example, the latest distribution state of at least one of the following current environmental states in the marine area can be updated and determined: the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current.

[0226] Next, based on the information on the current marine environmental state and its distribution determined in step 301, the current state determination unit 2310 complements and estimates the distribution of the marine environmental state at unmeasured locations where unmanned boat observation data has not been measured by an unmanned boat (step 702).

[0227] Next, the future state prediction unit 2320 updates and determines the future marine environmental state and its distribution based on the latest unmanned boat observation data measured by the multiple unmanned boats (step 703). In this step, it is possible to update and determine the latest predicted information on the distribution state of at least one of the following future environmental states in the marine area, for example, the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current.

[0228] Next, based on the latest predicted information on the future marine environmental state and its distribution determined to have been updated in step 303, the future state prediction unit 2320 performs a complementary estimation of the future distribution prediction of the marine environmental state at unmeasured locations where unmanned boat observation data has not been measured by an unmanned boat (step 704).

[0229] Next, the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 determines whether the update determination results of various current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental states in the marine area, which have been determined by the current state determination unit 2310 and the future state prediction unit 2320, correspond to a predetermined observation anomaly (step 705). In this step, for example, it is possible to determine whether there is an abnormal value area where the determined values ​​of various current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional environmental states in the marine area are abnormal values ​​that deviate from a predetermined normal range. Alternatively, it is possible to determine whether there is a rapidly changing area where the absolute value of any of the amount of change difference between before and after a predetermined time, the amount of change within a predetermined time, the amount of change per unit time, and the rate of change per unit time of the determined marine environmental state is greater than a predetermined value.

[0230] Next, the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 generates the result of the observation anomaly determination as two-dimensional map information (step 706). In this step, a two-dimensional or three-dimensional map of the result of the observation anomaly determination is generated, for example, regarding at least one of the marine environmental conditions, such as the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the offshore area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current.

[0231] Next, the information input / output unit 2700 displays and outputs the observation anomaly determination result of the ocean observation state updated and determined by the observation anomaly determination unit 2330 (step 707).

[0232] (A-6. Update Determination Processing Result by Ocean State Determination Unit 2300) Next, the results of update determination of the current or future sea state by the sea state determination unit 2300 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0233] (A-6-1. Seawater temperature distribution determined based on unmanned boat observation data) Fig. 18 is a diagram showing an example of the results of determining the distribution of seawater temperature based on unmanned boat observation data. In particular, Fig. 18 shows an example of the results of the determination process in step 701 or step 703 in the flowchart of Fig. 16.

[0234] As shown in Figure 18, multiple unmanned vessels are deployed in an ocean area, and the current or future seawater temperature at the position of each unmanned vessel is determined as the marine environmental state based on the unmanned vessel observation data measured by each unmanned vessel. In the example shown in Figure 18, information on seawater temperature at each position defined in a mesh is shown by the shades of the mesh color, for example, mesh positions with high seawater temperatures are shown in dark colors, and mesh positions with low seawater temperatures are shown in light colors.

[0235] In this way, by deploying a large number of unmanned boats in the ocean area that is the target area for marine environment observation and collecting unmanned boat observation data measured by each unmanned boat, it is possible to understand the current or future state of the ocean environment, such as seawater temperature, at each location where the unmanned boat is deployed, and to understand the current or future distribution of seawater temperature in the ocean area.

[0236] (A-6-2. Seawater temperature distribution determined by complementary estimation of unmeasured locations) Fig. 19 is a diagram showing an example of the determination result of seawater temperature distribution obtained by interpolating and estimating unmeasured positions. In particular, Fig. 19 shows an example of map information generated by the ocean state determination unit 2300 in step 706 in the flowchart of Fig. 16.

[0237] In the example shown in Figure 19, based on the results of determining the current or future sea water temperature at the position of each unmanned boat shown in Figure 18, the sea water temperature at unmeasured positions where unmanned boat observation data has not been measured is supplemented and estimated, and the results of determining the sea water temperature distribution over the entire ocean area are shown by integrating the results of determining the sea water temperature at the position of each unmanned boat and the supplementary estimates of the sea water temperature at unmeasured positions.

[0238] For example, based on the determination results of the seawater temperature at the position of each unmanned boat shown in Fig. 18, if the determination results of the seawater temperature at the positions of adjacent unmanned boats are all low, the current state determination unit 2310 or the future state prediction unit 2320 can determine that the seawater temperature at the unmeasured positions between the unmanned boats is similarly low, and conversely, if the determination results of the seawater temperature at the positions of adjacent unmanned boats are all high, the current state determination unit 2310 or the future state prediction unit 2320 can determine that the seawater temperature at the unmeasured positions between the unmanned boats is similarly high. Furthermore, if the determination results of the seawater temperature at the positions of adjacent unmanned boats are different, the seawater temperature at each unmeasured position between the unmanned boats can be determined so that the seawater temperature at the unmeasured positions between the unmanned boats changes gradually from one unmanned boat position to the other.

[0239] In this way, a large number of unmanned boats are deployed in the ocean area that is the target area for marine environment observation, unmanned boat observation data measured by each unmanned boat is collected, the marine environmental conditions such as seawater temperature at each location where the unmanned boat is deployed are determined, and based on the determination results, the seawater temperature at unmeasured locations where unmanned boat observation data has not been measured is supplemented and estimated, thereby determining the seawater temperature distribution throughout the entire ocean area.

[0240] (A-6-3. Results of three-dimensional seawater temperature distribution) Fig. 20 is a diagram showing an example of the determination result of the three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature. In particular, Fig. 20 shows an example of map information generated by the ocean state determination unit 2300 in step 706 in the flowchart of Fig. 16.

[0241] Although Fig. 19 shows a two-dimensional distribution of current or future seawater temperature, the seawater temperature distribution information determined by the current state determination unit 2310 or the future state prediction unit 2320 is not limited to a two-dimensional distribution and can also be generated as a three-dimensional distribution. The example shown in Fig. 20 is an example of a determination result when the seawater temperature distribution information determined by the current state determination unit 2310 or the future state prediction unit 2320 is determined as three-dimensional distribution information. In particular, Fig. 20 shows the distribution of seawater temperature in a three-dimensional underwater space from the sea surface in the depth direction.

[0242] As shown in Figure 20, in order to determine the distribution of seawater temperature in a three-dimensional underwater area from the sea surface to the depth direction, the unmanned vessel can acquire the observation data necessary for determining the three-dimensional distribution of seawater temperature by equipping the vessel with a measurement sensor (such as a hanging-type measurement sensor) that can measure not only the seawater temperature at the sea surface but also the seawater temperature at each depth in the sea. Note that Figure 20 uses the distribution of seawater temperature in a three-dimensional underwater area as an example, but by equipping the unmanned vessel with other measurement sensors (such as a hanging-type measurement sensor) that measure state quantities at each depth in the sea, in addition to seawater temperature, it is possible to determine the distribution of other marine environmental conditions, such as chlorophyll concentration (phytoplankton concentration), salinity concentration, and ocean / tidal currents, in a three-dimensional underwater area and generate map-formatted information.

[0243] In this way, by using a plurality of unmanned boats to measure seawater temperatures at various depths in the ocean as unmanned boat observation data, it is possible to determine the distribution of seawater temperatures in a three-dimensional underwater area.

[0244] (A-6-4. Seawater temperature distribution determination results based on satellite observation data and unmanned boat observation data) Fig. 21 shows an example of the results of determining seawater temperature distribution based on satellite observation data and unmanned boat observation data. In particular, Fig. 21 shows an example of map information generated in step 706 in the flowchart of Fig. 16.

[0245] Figures 19 and 20 show examples of generating two-dimensional or three-dimensional distributions of current or future seawater temperatures based on unmanned boat observation data measured by an unmanned boat, but this is not limited to unmanned boat observation data. As shown in Figure 21, it is possible to integrate seawater temperature distributions determined based on satellite observation data and seawater temperature distributions determined based on unmanned boat observation data to generate map information of the distribution of seawater temperatures in the entire ocean area, including the satellite observation area and the unmanned boat observation area.

[0246] The integration process of seawater temperature distribution shown in Figure 21 can be applied to, for example, abnormal areas that are determined to require unmanned boat observation, such as those shown in Figure 17 (area 1 where the reflected microwave waves cannot be measured by the satellite's microwave measurement sensor due to cloud obstructions, area 2 where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, and area 3 where the determined value of seawater temperature is an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range, etc.).

[0247] That is, for abnormal areas determined to require unmanned boat observation as shown in Fig. 17, new unmanned boat observation data is acquired, the sea water temperature distribution is determined based on the unmanned boat observation data, and the sea water temperature distribution determined based on the satellite observation data and the sea water temperature distribution determined based on the unmanned boat observation data are integrated to obtain map information of sea water temperature distribution as shown in Fig. 21. In particular, the determination results of sea water temperature distribution in unmanned boat observation areas can be obtained at a finer granularity than the determination results of sea water temperature distribution in satellite observation areas.

[0248] In this way, by determining abnormal areas based on satellite observation data and conducting unmanned boat observations of the abnormal areas, determining the wide-area seawater temperature distribution using satellite observation data, and conducting high-resolution unmanned boat observations of specific areas that require detailed observation, such as abnormal areas, it is possible to compensate for the shortcomings of satellite observation and unmanned boat observations and improve the efficiency of environmental observations in marine areas.

[0249] (A-7. Hardware Configuration) 22 is a hardware configuration diagram of an 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 has an input device 100, an output device 200, a processing device 300, a main memory device 400, an auxiliary memory device 500, a communication device 600, and a bus 700 that electrically connects these devices.

[0250] The input device 100 can constitute the user input receiving unit 2730, and is a device that allows a user to input information and instructions to the integrated control system 2000. Specifically, the input device 100 is, for example, a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, or an audio input device such as a microphone.

[0251] The output device 200 is a device that outputs various information generated by the integrated control system 2000, and can constitute the display unit 2720. Specifically, the output device 200 can constitute the display unit 2720, etc., using a display device for eyewear, AR, or VR, or can also be a printer or a speaker.

[0252] 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 processing.

[0253] The main memory device 400 is a memory device including RAM and ROM that reads and writes temporarily to memory elements at any address during processing, without requiring any waiting time depending on the access pattern. For example, RAM is temporarily written to and read from during programs, application programs, and various other processes executed by the processing device 300. ROM is a non-volatile memory that does not lose recorded information even if the device loses power. The auxiliary memory device 500 is a non-volatile memory device capable of storing digital information, such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), or flash memory.

[0254] The communication device 600 is a device that performs wireless or wired information communication with the outside.

[0255] The above-described embodiments are merely examples for facilitating understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention can be modified and improved without departing from the spirit thereof, and it goes without saying that the present invention includes equivalents thereof.

[0256] [A-2. Effects of this embodiment] The above-described embodiment makes it possible to improve the efficiency of environmental observation in a wide ocean area by using a plurality of unmanned boats. As an example, by generating an unmanned boat observation plan for measuring the marine environmental state using a plurality of unmanned boats based on the marine environmental state determined from observation satellite data obtained by an observation satellite, it is possible to perform environmental observation of areas that are difficult to grasp using an observation satellite or detailed environmental observation that is difficult to grasp using an observation satellite, thereby compensating for the shortcomings of satellite observation with unmanned boat observation and improving the efficiency of environmental observation in a wide ocean area. [Explanation of symbols]

[0257] 1...Environmental Observation System (System) 100...input device 200...output device 300...Processing device 400...Main storage device 500...Auxiliary storage device 600...Communication device 700...bus 1000...Unmanned boat system 1001...Base unit 1002...Sub unit 1010...Unmanned boat 1100...Measuring unit 1110...Measuring sensor 1120...Measurement control unit 1200...Own aircraft state determination unit 1210...Navigation state determination unit 1220: Internal state determination unit 1230: External state determination unit 1300...Navigation section 1310...Thrust generation section 1320: Attitude control mechanism 1330: Navigation control unit 1400...Communication unit 1410...Unmanned vehicle communication unit 1420…General Control and Communications Department 1500...Data processing unit 1600...Recording section 1610...Measurement data recording section 1620...Own aircraft status recording section 1700...power supply unit 1710...electricity storage device 1720...power generating device 1730...power control unit 2000...Comprehensive control system 2100...information acquisition unit 2110...advance information acquisition unit 2120: Measurement request information acquisition unit 2130: Satellite observation data acquisition unit 2140: Satellite operation information acquisition unit 2150: Unmanned vessel observation data acquisition unit 2160…Unmanned boat operation information acquisition department 2200: Observation data management unit 2210: Data quality assessment unit 2220…Observation Data Integration Division 2300...Ocean state determination unit 2310...Current state determination unit 2320...Future state prediction unit 2330...Observation anomaly determination unit 2400…Unmanned Boat Observation Necessity Determination Department 2500...Plan generation unit 2510...Observation state abnormality determination unit 2520...Observation plan generation unit 2530...Maintenance plan generation unit 2540...External observation request generation unit 2600...Observation operation control unit 2700...Information input / output section 2710...Display information generation section 2720: Display unit 2730: User input reception unit 2740...Control command transmitting unit 2750...Display information transmitting unit 3000...Satellite Observation System 3100...Observation satellite 3200: Satellite observation data management system 4000...User terminal 5000…External system 6100: Communications satellite 6200: Ground base station 7000...Measurement target

Claims

1. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; An environmental observation system comprising an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit that, when the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the marine environmental state cannot be observed based on the satellite observation data, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not meet predetermined conditions, or an area where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a predetermined frequency, determines that unmanned boat observation of the area is necessary.

2. 2. The environment monitoring system according to claim 1, The observation data management unit An environmental observation system that determines an area where the marine environment cannot be observed due to at least one of clouds, smoke, or other obstacles between the observation satellite and the marine area, the amount of solar radiation in the marine area, or an eruption, fire, or other heat source in the marine area or its surrounding areas, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not meet specified conditions, as an observation abnormality area.

3. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; An environmental observation system comprising an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit that determines that unmanned boat observation of an area is necessary when the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period.

4. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; a marine state determination unit that determines a marine environmental state in the marine area based on the satellite observation data; an unmanned boat observation necessity determination unit that determines that the unmanned boat observation of an area is necessary when the value of the marine environmental state determined by the ocean state determination unit is an abnormal value outside a predetermined normal range; An environmental observation system in which the specified normal range is determined by either a range set by upper and lower limits of the range in which the marine environmental state can change when it is normal, or a range of maximum and minimum values ​​of past data for the last few days or the same time of the same season, or a range of ±3σ values ​​obtained by frequency analysis of the past data.

5. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; When the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the marine environmental state cannot be observed based on the satellite observation data, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not satisfy a predetermined condition, or an area where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a predetermined frequency, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, which includes at least one of the target area for the unmanned boat observation, which includes the area, the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned boats in the area, and the travel route to the area.

6. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; an observation data management unit that manages the satellite observation data; When the observation data management unit determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, based on information about a future planned observation schedule for observing the area by the observation satellite, including an observation implementation schedule for carrying out the unmanned boat observation at a timing that complements the intervals between future planned observation times by the observation satellite.

7. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, based on information about a future planned observation schedule for observing the marine area by the observation satellite, including an observation implementation schedule for carrying out the unmanned boat observation at a timing approximately synchronized with the planned future observation timing by the observation satellite.

8. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; a marine state determination unit that determines a marine environmental state in the marine area based on the satellite observation data, When there is an area where the value of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit is an abnormal value outside a predetermined normal range, or when there is an area where the absolute value of the difference in change in the value of the marine environmental state before and after a predetermined time, the change width within a predetermined time, the change amount per unit time, or the change rate per predetermined time is greater than a predetermined value, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned boat observation plan, which includes at least one of the target area for the unmanned boat observation, which includes the area, the formation or group arrangement of multiple unmanned boats in the area, and the travel route to the area.

9. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; a marine state determination unit that determines a marine environmental state in the marine area based on the satellite observation data, When there is an area where the value of the marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit is an abnormal value outside a predetermined normal range, or when there is an area where the absolute value of the difference in change in the value of the marine environmental state before and after a predetermined time, the change width within a predetermined time, the change amount per unit time, or the change rate per predetermined time is greater than a predetermined value, The observation plan generation unit generates the unmanned vessel observation plan, which includes at least one of a patrol schedule for the unmanned vessel, a replacement schedule, a standby location for the replacement vessel, and the number of standby vessels for the replacement vessel, so that a single or multiple unmanned vessels can measure the area more frequently than a predetermined frequency.

10. An environmental observation system that observes a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: a satellite observation data acquisition unit that acquires satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation plan generation unit that generates an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control unit that executes unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition unit that acquires unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; a marine state determination unit that determines a current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of marine environmental states in the marine area based on the unmanned boat observation data; The observation operation control unit controls the placement of the multiple unmanned vessels so that, when the ocean state determination unit detects an abnormal value that deviates from a predetermined normal range of ocean environmental conditions, the multiple unmanned vessels are deployed to positions surrounding the abnormality detection location where the abnormal value was detected, in an environmental observation system.

11. 9. The environment monitoring system according to claim 1, An environmental observation system comprising an ocean state determination unit that analyzes integrated data obtained by integrating the satellite observation data or the second analysis data with the unmanned boat observation data or the first analysis data to determine the current or future two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution of the ocean environmental state in the ocean area.

12. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, The ocean condition determination unit is an environmental observation system that determines the distribution state of at least one of the following as the marine environmental state in the marine area: the concentration of chlorophyll or phytoplankton in the ocean, the salinity concentration in the ocean, the seawater temperature, the wind conditions in the marine area, the sea surface height, and the ocean current or tidal current.

13. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, the second measurement sensor is a second spectroscopic camera or a second optical camera; the first measurement sensor is a first spectroscopic camera or a first optical camera; the satellite observation data is observation data of a plurality of wavelength components of light emitted from the sea surface by the second spectroscopic camera, or observation data of light emitted from the sea surface by the second optical camera, the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of multiple wavelength components of light emitted from the sea surface obtained by the first spectroscopic camera, or observation data of light emitted from the sea surface obtained by the first optical camera, An environmental observation system, wherein the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of chlorophyll or phytoplankton concentrations in the ocean based on at least one of the satellite observation data and the unmanned boat observation data.

14. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, the second measurement sensor is a microwave measurement sensor; the first measurement sensor is a CTD measurement device that measures electrical conductivity, water temperature, and water pressure; the satellite observation data is observation data of a radiance temperature of microwaves radiated from the sea surface by the microwave measurement sensor; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of electrical conductivity, water temperature, and water pressure measured by the CTD measurement device; An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of salinity in the ocean from at least one of information on the salinity in the ocean determined based on the satellite observation data and information on the salinity in the ocean determined based on the unmanned boat observation data.

15. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, the second measurement sensor is a microwave measurement sensor or an infrared sensor; the first measurement sensor is a temperature sensor, the satellite observation data is observation data of a radiance temperature of microwaves radiated from the sea surface by the microwave measurement sensor, or observation data of infrared rays radiated from the sea surface by the infrared sensor; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of seawater temperature measured by the temperature sensor, An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of seawater temperature based on at least one of information on seawater temperature calculated using the satellite observation data and information on seawater temperature determined based on the unmanned boat observation data.

16. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, the second metrology sensor is a scatterometer or a synthetic aperture radar; the first measurement sensor is a wind condition sensor, the satellite observation data is observation data of reflected waves of electromagnetic waves irradiated onto the sea surface by the scatterometer or the synthetic aperture radar; the unmanned boat observation data is observation data of wind speed or wind direction at sea measured by the wind condition sensor, The ocean condition determination unit determines the distribution of wind conditions in the marine area from at least one of information on wind conditions in the marine area calculated based on the satellite observation data and information on wind conditions determined based on the unmanned boat observation data.

17. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, the second measurement sensor is a microwave measurement sensor; the first measurement sensor is a GNSS positioning signal receiving device, the satellite observation data is observation data of a time when microwaves emitted onto the sea surface by the microwave measurement sensor are received; the unmanned watercraft observation data is observation data of a GNSS positioning signal measured by the GNSS positioning signal receiving device, An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of sea surface height from at least one of information on sea surface height calculated based on the satellite observation data and information on sea surface height calculated based on the unmanned boat observation data.

18. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, the second measurement sensor is an infrared sensor or an optical camera; the first measurement sensor is a GNSS positioning signal receiving device, the satellite observation data is observation data of infrared rays emitted from the sea surface by the infrared sensor or an optical image of the sea surface acquired by the optical camera; the unmanned watercraft observation data is GNSS positioning data measured by the GNSS positioning signal receiving device, An environmental observation system in which the ocean state determination unit determines the distribution of ocean currents or tidal currents from information on at least one of the positions of ocean currents or tidal currents estimated based on the satellite observation data and the positions of ocean currents or tidal currents estimated based on the unmanned boat observation data.

19. The environment monitoring system according to claim 11, An environmental observation system comprising a display unit that displays and outputs two-dimensional or three-dimensional distribution information of the current or future marine environmental state determined by the marine state determination unit, or information about the marine environmental state that has been determined to be an abnormal value that deviates from a specified normal range.

20. An environmental observation method for observing a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: The computer a satellite observation data acquisition step of acquiring satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation data management step of managing the satellite observation data; an unmanned boat observation necessity determination step for determining that unmanned boat observation is necessary in an area when it is determined by the observation data management step that there is an area in which the marine environmental state cannot be observed based on the satellite observation data, or an area in which the data quality of the satellite observation data does not satisfy a predetermined condition, or an area in which the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a predetermined frequency; an observation plan generation step of generating an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control step of executing the unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats according to the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition step of acquiring unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; An environmental observation method is performed.

21. An environmental observation method for observing a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, comprising: The computer a satellite observation data acquisition step of acquiring satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation data management step of managing the satellite observation data; an unmanned boat observation necessity determination step of determining that unmanned boat observation of an area is necessary when the observation data management step determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period; an observation plan generation step of generating an unmanned boat observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned boats based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control step of executing the unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats according to the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition step of acquiring unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; An environmental observation method is performed.

22. A program used to observe a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, On the computer, a satellite observation data acquisition command for acquiring satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation data management command for managing the satellite observation data; an unmanned boat observation necessity determination command for determining that unmanned boat observation is necessary in an area when it is determined by the observation data management command that there is an area where the marine environmental state cannot be observed based on the satellite observation data, or an area where the data quality of the satellite observation data does not satisfy a predetermined condition, or an area where the measurement frequency of the satellite observation data is lower than a predetermined frequency; and an observation plan generation command for generating an unmanned vehicle observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned vehicles based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control command for executing the unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition command for acquiring unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; A program that executes.

23. A program used to observe a marine environmental state in a marine area using first measurement sensors mounted on a plurality of unmanned watercraft, On the computer, a satellite observation data acquisition command for acquiring satellite observation data obtained by observing the ocean area using a second measurement sensor mounted on an observation satellite, or second analysis data obtained by analyzing the satellite observation data; an observation data management command for managing the satellite observation data; an unmanned boat observation necessity determination command for determining that unmanned boat observation of an area is necessary when the observation data management command determines that there is an area where the period until the next scheduled measurement by the observation satellite is longer than a predetermined period; and an observation plan generation command for generating an unmanned vehicle observation plan using a plurality of the unmanned vehicles based on the acquired satellite observation data or the second analysis data; an observation operation control command for executing the unmanned boat observation to measure the environmental state of the marine area using the first measurement sensors mounted on the plurality of unmanned boats in accordance with the unmanned boat observation plan; an unmanned boat observation data acquisition command for acquiring unmanned boat observation data obtained by the unmanned boat observation or first analysis data obtained by analyzing the unmanned boat observation data; A program that executes.

Images