Imaging device

Abstract

To improve operability and convenience in a handy-type imaging device for gas detection.SOLUTION: An imaging device 10 used for gas detection includes: an infrared imaging element that converts a target image incident through a lens unit 101 into an electrical signal; an image processing unit that generates image data in which gas is visualized by the electrical signal; and a communication unit that establishes communication with an external mobile terminal and transmits the obtained image data. A terminal holding section 30 for holding the external mobile terminal is provided on an opposite side from the lens unit 101 of a device housing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to imaging devices, and in particular to imaging devices used for gas detection. [Background technology]

[0002] Gas plants, petrochemical plants, thermal power plants, steel-related facilities, etc. handle large amounts of gas during operation. In such facilities, the risk of gas leakage due to aging deterioration of the facilities or operational errors is recognized, and development is underway of imaging devices that can image and visualize gas in order to minimize gas leakage before it leads to a major accident (for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Such imaging devices used for gas detection are installed in multiple locations within large facilities such as petrochemical plants, and image data is sent to a central monitoring room where it is analyzed by a large computer to monitor for gas leaks. However, it can be difficult to install a large number of imaging devices in all facilities, and there is a demand for handheld imaging devices that can be carried by monitors to detect gas leaks in small areas that cannot be detected by fixed imaging devices. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2017 / 073430 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, it is difficult to equip handheld imaging devices with large displays, making them less user-friendly. Furthermore, it is difficult to transmit image data to a central monitoring room using wired connections, so it is desirable to have an environment such as a wireless LAN. However, in situations where handheld imaging devices are expected to be useful, such as during disasters or accidents, it is anticipated that the receiving device may not be able to use wireless communication due to a power outage or other reasons.

[0006] Therefore, if the imaging device itself is to be made to perform more advanced image analysis as an option, it will need to be equipped with a CPU with higher processing power and a memory unit with larger capacity.In addition, power consumption will increase, so the battery capacity will also need to be larger.This could lead to higher costs and an increase in the size of the device, making it difficult to fully meet the demands of a handheld imaging device.

[0007] In view of the above circumstances, the present disclosure aims to provide an imaging device for gas detection that is easy to use and expandable, while ensuring portability and low cost as a handy type without adding unnecessary optional functions to the device main body. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] An imaging device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an imaging device used for gas detection, and includes an image acquisition unit that converts an incident target image through an optical lens into an electrical signal to acquire image data, and a communication unit that establishes communication with an external mobile terminal and transmits the acquired image data, and the imaging device is mounted on a device casing. On the rear surface opposite to the front surface on which the optical lens is disposed, The external mobile terminal Easy to put on and take off A holding means is provided to hold the In addition, a display unit that displays an image based on the image data is provided on a side surface of the device housing. It is characterized by:

[0009] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the image acquisition means acquires the image data by converting the target image into an electrical signal using an infrared imaging element.

[0010] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the image acquisition means includes an image processing unit that processes the image data to generate image data in which the gas is visualized.

[0011] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the communication means includes a communication unit that establishes communication with the external mobile terminal via short-range wireless communication compliant with the NFC standard, and the communication unit is located within the device housing and within a communication range of the short-range wireless communication with the external mobile terminal held by the holding means.

[0012] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the communication means includes a communication unit that establishes communication with the external portable terminal via wired communication that complies with the USB standard, a USB male connector is arranged in the holding means, and when the external portable terminal is held in the holding means, the USB female connector of the external portable terminal is directly connected to the USB male connector.

[0013] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the external portable terminal has installed thereon a first program for analyzing the state of gas based on image data, and / or a second program for accessing a website on the Internet and using a web application on the website, and the communication means, after establishing communication with the external portable terminal, launches the first program to cause the external portable terminal to perform analysis of the image data, or instructs the external portable terminal to perform analysis of the image data using the web application via the second program.

[0015] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the external portable terminal includes a magnetic material, and the holding means includes a magnet, and the external portable terminal is held in the device housing by the magnetic force of the magnet.

[0016] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the holding means has a pair of gripping members whose distance from each other is changeable, and by changing the distance between the pair of gripping members, it is possible to hold external portable terminals of different sizes.

[0017] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the holding means has a posture changing mechanism that can change the posture of the external portable terminal.

[0018] In another aspect of the present disclosure, the holding means is detachable from the device housing. [Effects of the Invention]

[0019] According to the above aspect, by establishing communication with the external portable terminal by the communication means and transmitting image data acquired by the image acquisition means, it becomes possible to use the display unit of the external portable terminal or the processing power of the CPU of the external portable terminal (improved scalability), and in particular, it is possible to improve operability without increasing the specifications of the imaging device itself, and it is possible to suppress increases in cost and size of the device. Furthermore, the external portable terminal can be held in the housing of the imaging device by the holding means when connection is required, and compared to when the external portable terminal is held in a separate location, it can be handled as a single unit, which is also excellent in portability and convenience. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1A is an external view of an imaging device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 1B is an external perspective view showing the imaging device when an external mobile terminal is mounted thereon. [Figure 2] 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of each control unit of the imaging device and the external mobile terminal. FIG. [Figure 3] 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure of communication control performed on the imaging device side. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure of communication control performed on the external mobile terminal side. [Figure 5]1 is a diagram illustrating a first configuration example of a terminal holding unit provided on the rear surface of an imaging device. [Figure 6] 10(a) and 10(b) are diagrams illustrating a second configuration example of a terminal holding unit provided on the rear surface of the imaging device. [Figure 7] 10(a), 10(b), and 10(c) are diagrams illustrating a third configuration example of a terminal holding unit provided on the rear surface of an imaging device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] <Embodiment> Hereinafter, an imaging device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0022] (1) Appearance of the imaging device FIG. 1(a) is an external view of the imaging device 10, and FIG. 1(b) is a perspective view showing the state when an external mobile terminal 20 is mounted on a terminal holding section 30 on the back side of the imaging device 10.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 1(a), a lens unit 101 is attached to the front of a housing 11 of an imaging device 10, and a handle 111 is formed on the top for ease of carrying by users such as security personnel.

[0024] In addition, a display unit 105 consisting of a display device such as an LCD display or an organic EL display is provided on the side of the housing 11 to allow the imaging results to be viewed, and a terminal holding unit (holding means) 30 for holding the external mobile terminal 20 is provided on the back of the housing 11 (the side opposite to the side on which the lens unit 101 of the device main body is installed).

[0025] The terminal holding part 30 has a clip 32 formed of an elastic material such as resin attached to its lower end, and by clamping the lower end of the external portable terminal 20 with the clip 32 while the back of the external portable terminal 20 is leaned against the holding plate (backrest plate) 31 of the terminal holding part 30, which is inclined toward the side where the lens unit 101 is installed, the external portable terminal 20 can be held by the imaging device 10 and carried as a unit.

[0026] (2) Control system for the imaging device and external mobile terminal FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the control systems of the imaging device 10 and the external mobile terminal 20. As shown in FIG.

[0027] (2-1) Control system of the imaging device The control system on the imaging device 10 side consists of a lens unit 101 equipped with an optical lens and a small motor for focus adjustment, an infrared imaging element 102 that converts the infrared image formed by the lens unit 101 into an image signal, an image processing unit 103 that generates visible image data, an image memory unit 104 that stores the image data generated by the image processing unit 103, a display unit 105 that displays an image of the detection target based on the image data stored in the image memory unit 104, a communication unit 109 for communicating with the external mobile terminal 20, a CPU 106, a RAM 107, and a ROM 108.

[0028] The CPU 106 reads out the necessary programs from the ROM 108 and uses the RAM 107 as a work area to control the operation of each of the lens unit 101, the infrared imaging element 102, the image processing unit 103, the image memory unit 104, the display unit 105, and the communication unit 109, thereby detecting whether or not gas is generated within the target imaging area.

[0029] In this embodiment, image data (raw data) is formed by CPU 106 based on the electrical signal (image signal) obtained by infrared imaging element 102, and is further processed in image processing unit 103 to generate visible image data, which corresponds to the ``image acquisition unit'' in this invention.

[0030] In addition, in this embodiment, the infrared imaging element 102 detects infrared light having a wavelength of, for example, 3.2 to 3.4 μm, converts it into an electrical signal, and processes this raw data in the image processing unit 103 to create a visible image, thereby making it possible to detect hydrocarbon gases such as methane, ethane, ethylene, and propylene.

[0031] The image data visualized by the image processing unit 103 is stored in the image memory unit 104, and an image based on the image data is displayed on the display unit 105, allowing the monitor to visually check whether there is a gas leak within the area to be photographed.

[0032] In this embodiment, the image processing unit 103 generates image data in which the gas present in the target region is visualized by performing a gas region visualization process, etc., based on the image signal from the infrared imaging element 102. Such a gas region visualization process is performed by extracting a specific frequency component from the image signal, thereby visualizing a region in which the gas image has temporal fluctuations, as described in Patent Document 1, for example.

[0033] The CPU 106 can determine the presence or absence of gas (gas detection) based on the visualized image data. On the display unit 105, for example, characters indicating the result of gas detection are displayed together with the visualized image of the gas.

[0034] In addition, under the control of the CPU 106, the communication unit 109 establishes communication with the external mobile terminal 20 held in the terminal holding unit 30, transmits image data to the external mobile terminal 20, and activates a specific image analysis program pre-installed in the external mobile terminal 20 to perform a detailed analysis of the image data.

[0035] (2-2) Control System on the External Mobile Terminal 20 Side The external mobile terminal 20 includes a tablet terminal, a smartphone, or the like, and is generally available on the market.

[0036] The control system of the external mobile terminal 20 includes a CPU 201 , a RAM 202 , a ROM 203 , a display unit 204 , a storage 205 , and a communication unit 206 .

[0037] The CPU 201 reads an OS (operating system) and other programs from the ROM 203, or reads downloaded applications stored in the storage (memory) 205, and executes control using the RAM 202 as a work area, so that the CPU 201 can perform basic operations as an external mobile terminal. The CPU 201 also communicates wirelessly with the imaging device 10 via the communication unit 206.

[0038] (3) Communication control The procedure for communication control executed between the imaging device 10 and the external mobile terminal 20 will be described below.

[0039] (3-1) Communication control on the imaging device 10 side FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for communication control performed on the imaging device 10 side.

[0040] For example, if a monitor operating the imaging device 10 notices that an image of gas is being displayed on the display unit 105 and feels that further detailed analysis is necessary for confirmation, he or she turns on the power of the external mobile terminal 20 in his or her hand and places it in the terminal holding unit 30 of the imaging device 10 (step S11).

[0041] Communication unit 109 of imaging device 10 and communication unit 206 of external mobile terminal 20 each have a communication circuit (NFC circuit) that performs short-range wireless communication compliant with the NFC (Near Field Communication) standard, and thereby imaging device 10 establishes communication with external mobile terminal 20 (step S12), and imaging device 10 requests external mobile terminal 20 to transmit information (name of the analysis program) related to an image analysis program installed in external mobile terminal 20 (step S13). Note that because the communication distance of the NFC circuit is very short (approximately 10 cm), communication unit 109 is desirably disposed within housing 11 of imaging device 10 as close as possible to terminal holding unit 30 (within the range of the communication distance).

[0042] When the imaging device 10 receives the information about the analysis program from the external mobile terminal 20, it displays the information on the display unit 105 as, for example, an icon (step S14).

[0043] The display unit 105 is, for example, a liquid crystal display with a touch panel laminated thereon, and allows the user to select a program to be executed by touching the icon.

[0044] When the CPU 106 accepts the selection (step S15), it instructs the external mobile terminal 20 via the communication unit 109 to start the selected analysis program (step S16), transfers the infrared image data to be analyzed (in this embodiment, raw data) to the external mobile terminal 20 (step S17), and terminates communication control.

[0045] (3-2) Communication control on the external mobile terminal 20 side FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure for communication control performed on the external mobile terminal 20 side.

[0046] The communication unit 206 of the external mobile terminal 20 establishes communication with the imaging device 10 via short-range wireless communication compliant with the NFC standard (step S21), receives a request from the imaging device 10 to send information about an image analysis program installed in the external mobile terminal 20, and sends the information to the imaging device 10 (step S22).

[0047] The user has previously accessed a specific website, downloaded a necessary analysis program, and installed it in the storage 205 of the external mobile terminal 20 .

[0048] In this embodiment, examples of the analysis programs installed include a gas leakage amount analysis program for estimating the amount of leaked gas and a gas concentration analysis program for estimating the concentration of leaked gas (see storage 205 in Figure 2).

[0049] Then, the CPU 11 receives an instruction to start the selected analysis program from the imaging device 10, starts the analysis program (step S23), receives infrared image data from the imaging device 10 (step S24), and executes the analysis program on the image data (step S25).

[0050] For example, when a gas leakage amount analysis program is selected from the imaging device 10, multiple frames of images are received from the imaging device 10, for example, per second, and the changes in the gas image in each frame are analyzed to estimate the gas leakage amount (specifically, see Patent Publication No. 2019-568790).

[0051] The analysis result is then displayed on the display unit 204 of the external mobile terminal 20 (step S26).

[0052] The analysis results may be transmitted to the image capture device 10 and displayed on the display unit 105, or may be stored in the image storage unit 104 in association with the image data that was the subject of the analysis.

[0053] By configuring as described above, the analysis that should be processed by the imaging device 10 can be shared with the general-purpose external mobile terminal 20, so the processing content can be expanded without incurring an increase in costs while keeping the specifications of the imaging device 10 itself the same as before.

[0054] Furthermore, the external mobile terminal 20 is held by the terminal holding part 30 on the rear part of the housing 11 of the imaging device 10, and can be carried as a unit, which is highly convenient.

[0055] In addition, since the display unit 204 of the external mobile terminal 20 is usually formed by laminating a touch panel on the surface of a display device, convenience can be further improved by displaying the operation buttons (icons) required to operate the imaging device 10 on the display unit 204 of the external mobile terminal 20 so that the user can operate them by touch.

[0056] <<Variations>> The present disclosure is not limited to the scope disclosed in the above embodiment, and for example, the following modified examples are also possible.

[0057] (1) In the above embodiment, communication between the imaging device 10 and the external mobile terminal 20 uses wireless communication conforming to the NFC standard, but other communication standards, such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), may also be used. Furthermore, for example, the communication unit 109 of the imaging device 10 may be provided with a Wi-Fi router function, and communication may be performed according to a wireless LAN communication standard such as IEEE 802.11ac.

[0058] Alternatively, after first establishing communication using the NFC standard, image data may be transmitted using a communication standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) or Wi-Fi.

[0059] It is also possible to configure the imaging device 10 and the external portable terminal 20 to communicate via a wired connection. For example, the imaging device 10 and the external portable terminal 20 may be configured to communicate via a wired connection based on the USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard. In this case, the imaging device 10 and the external portable terminal 20 may be connected via a USB cord. Furthermore, since the external portable terminal 20 is usually provided with a female USB connector, for example, a male connector may be provided on the base portion 34 ( FIG. 5 ) of the terminal holding portion 30 of the imaging device 10, and when the external portable terminal 20 is mounted on the imaging device 10, the female connector and the male connector may be connected simultaneously, thereby improving operability.

[0060] (2) In the above embodiment, a so-called infrared camera is described, which acquires image data by converting a target image into an infrared image signal using the infrared imaging element 102. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any imaging device capable of detecting the gas to be monitored may be used. For example, if the target gas to be monitored is a gas that can be detected with visible light, such as white smoke-like water vapor, a general visible light camera may be used. Furthermore, the method for detecting a gas region is not limited to the above, and any process capable of detecting a gas region may be used.

[0061] (3) In the above embodiment, a specific website is accessed from the external mobile terminal 20, and the necessary analysis program (first program) is downloaded to the external mobile terminal 20 in advance and installed in the storage 205. When an instruction to start a program specified by the imaging device 10 is received, the analysis program is started and executed on the image data in the external mobile terminal 20.

[0062] However, the present invention is not limited to this, and in an environment where the Internet can be used wirelessly, a web application may be used to analyze image data.

[0063] For example, a web server on the Internet may be accessed via a predetermined browser (second program) installed on the external mobile terminal 20, and a target application (web application) may be run on the web server to analyze the image data. In this case, the image data to be analyzed is transmitted to the web server. The external mobile terminal 20 receives the analysis results of the web application from the web server and displays them on the display unit 204 or transmits them to the imaging device 10.

[0064] However, if a web application is embedded in the homepage of a web site opened in a browser, the image data can be analyzed by the external mobile terminal 20, so there is no need to send the image data to the web server.

[0065] (4) In the above embodiment, the terminal holding unit 30 is configured by a holding plate 31 and a clip 32 arranged on the back surface of the housing 11 of the imaging device 10. However, in the case of an external portable terminal 20 having a housing or a magnetic body inside, a base 34 may be provided on the lower end of the terminal holding unit 30 and a magnet 331 may be arranged on the holding plate 33, as shown in Fig. 5. If the magnetic force of the magnet 331 is strong, the base 34 is not necessarily required.

[0066] The terminal holding unit 30 may be configured to hold the external portable terminal 20 so that the attitude of the terminal 20 relative to the imaging device 10 can be changed.

[0067] For example, as shown in FIG. 6(a), a holding plate 35 having a clip 32 at its lower end may be attached to the rear surface of the housing 11 of the imaging device 10 via a ball joint 36 so that its position can be changed.

[0068] Ball joint 36 is made up of ball member 38 arranged on the back surface of holding plate 35, and holder member 37 arranged on the back surface of housing 11, with a spherical inner surface, into which ball member 38 is fitted and held. This allows holding plate 35 to change its position within a predetermined angle range relative to imaging device 10, enabling the user to tilt external mobile terminal 20 to an angle that is easy to view.

[0069] Furthermore, by forming the ball holding portion 37 from a flexible material such as resin, it is possible to remove the ball member 38 from the ball holding portion 37 as shown in Figure 6(b), thereby separating the holding plate 35 from the imaging device 10.

[0070] The configuration that allows the attitude of the holding plate 35 to be changed relative to the housing 11 of the imaging device 10 and the configuration that allows the holding plate 35 to be removed from the housing 11 are not limited to the configuration shown in FIG.

[0071] Furthermore, the terminal holding section 30 may be configured to hold the external mobile terminal 21 with a pair of holding members 181, 182 from the left and right, as shown in FIG. 7(a).

[0072] The gripping members 181 and 182 are biased in a direction in which they approach each other, and are capable of holding external portable terminals 22 of different sizes as shown in FIG. 7(b).

[0073] FIG. 7(c) is a schematic diagram showing an example of a terminal holding section 30 in which the distance between the gripping members 181 and 182 is variable.

[0074] The gripping members 181, 182 are each held by racks 183, 184 on the rear surface of the housing 11 so that they can slide horizontally, and the gripping members 181, 182 are attached to the outer ends of the racks 183, 184 so as to be perpendicular to the sliding direction of the racks.

[0075] The teeth of the racks 183 and 184 face each other and mesh with the same pinion 185 from above and below. A shaft 186 of the pinion 185 is urged to rotate in the G direction in Fig. 7(c) by a spiral spring (not shown) or the like, which urges the racks 183 and 184 in the H1 direction and the H2 direction, respectively, so that the gripping members 181 and 182 come close to each other, and by widening the distance between the pair of gripping members 181 and 182, external portable terminals 20 of various sizes can be easily held.

[0076] In this modified example, the gripping members 181, 182 may be configured to be spread apart in the vertical direction. Also, a load torque may be applied so that the shaft 186 of the pinion 185 does not rotate easily. In this case, the spiral spring is not necessarily required.

[0077] (5) When imaging the same imaging area for a certain period of time, and when the imaging device 10 is always attached to the head of a tripod, for example, in the structure of the terminal holding part 30 shown in Figure 5, the external mobile terminal 20 may be held by only the holding plate 33 inclined toward the lens unit 101 and the base part 34, and in such a case, a holding device such as the magnet 331 (clip 32 in Figure 1(a)) is not necessarily required.

[0078] <Supplementary information> While the imaging device according to the present disclosure has been described above based on the embodiments and modifications, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments and modifications. The present disclosure also includes forms obtained by applying various modifications to the above-described embodiments and modifications that would occur to a person skilled in the art, and forms realized by arbitrarily combining the components and functions of the embodiments and modifications within the scope of the present disclosure. [Industrial Applicability]

[0079] The imaging device according to the present disclosure is useful as an imaging device for gas detection that is excellent in operability and expandability while maintaining portability. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 10. Imaging device 11 Device housing 101 Lens unit 102 Infrared imaging element 103 Image processing section 104 Image storage unit 105 Display section 106 CPU 107 RAM 108 ROM 109 Communications Department 20, 21, 22 External mobile terminal 201 CPU 202 RAM 203 ROM 204 Display section 205 Storage 206 Communications Department 30 Terminal holder 31, 33, 35 Holding plate 32 clips 34 Base 36 Ball Joint 37 Ball holding part 38 Ball member 181, 182 gripping member 183, 184 racks 185 Pinion 186 axes

Claims

1. An imaging device for use in gas detection, comprising: an image acquisition means for converting an incident target image via an optical lens into an electrical signal to acquire image data; a communication means for establishing communication with an external mobile terminal and transmitting the acquired image data; The device housing has a holding means for detachably holding the external portable terminal on the rear side opposite to the front side on which the optical lens is arranged, and a display unit for displaying an image based on the image data on the side of the device housing. An imaging device characterized by:

2. The image acquisition means acquires the image data by converting the target image into an electrical signal using an infrared imaging element.

2. The imaging device according to claim 1.

3. 3. The imaging device according to claim 2, wherein the image acquisition means includes an image processing section that processes the image data to generate image data in which the gas is visualized.

4. The communication means includes a communication unit that establishes communication with the external portable terminal via near field communication conforming to the NFC standard, and the communication unit is disposed within a device housing and within a communication range of the near field communication with the external portable terminal held by the holding means.

4. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the first and second lenses are arranged parallel to each other.

5. The communication means includes a communication unit that establishes communication with the external portable terminal via wired communication that complies with the USB standard, a USB male connector is disposed in the holding means, and when the external portable terminal is held in the holding means, a USB female connector of the external portable terminal is directly connected to the USB male connector.

4. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the first and second lenses are arranged parallel to each other.

6. a first program for analyzing a state of gas based on image data is installed on the external portable terminal, and / or a second program for accessing a website on the Internet and using a web application on the website is installed on the external portable terminal; After establishing communication with the external portable terminal, the communication means starts the first program to cause the external portable terminal to analyze the image data, or instructs the external portable terminal to analyze the image data using the web application via the second program.

6. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a lens.

7. The external portable terminal includes a magnetic material, and the holding means includes a magnet, and the external portable terminal is held in the device housing by the magnetic force of the magnet.

7. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a lens.

8. The holding means has a pair of gripping members whose distance from each other can be changed, and by changing the distance between the pair of gripping members, it is possible to hold external portable terminals of different sizes.

7. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a lens.

9. The holding means has a position change mechanism that can change the position of the external portable terminal.

9. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a lens.

10. The holding means is detachable from the device housing.

10. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a lens.

Images