Environmental Control System

The information processing device optimizes indoor environments by using user data to enhance productivity and comfort, addressing psychological and physical factors in environmental control systems.

JP7784026B1Active Publication Date: 2025-12-10MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORP
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2025534183
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Patents
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2024-11-11
Filing Date
2025-02-19
Publication Date
2025-12-10
Estimated Expiration
2045-02-19

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Conventional environmental control systems fail to account for human psychological effects, leading to suboptimal environments that do not enhance productivity.

Method used

An information processing device that acquires user information including personal and business data to control indoor environments, using an estimation model to optimize conditions for improved productivity and comfort.

Benefits of technology

The system enhances productivity and job satisfaction by creating environments tailored to individual user needs, addressing psychological and physical comfort through controlled environmental factors.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

An information processing device that controls the environment of an indoor space in which at least one user can be active includes an information acquisition unit that acquires user information about the user, and a control unit that controls the environment to be suitable for the user based on the user information acquired by the information acquisition unit, where the user information includes at least one of personal information about the user's mind and body and business information about the work in which the user is engaged.
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device used for environmental control of an indoor space and an environmental control system including the information processing device. [Background technology]

[0002] In order to realize a comfortable environment for the human body in an indoor space, a method of controlling the indoor environment by processing information using output values ​​from various sensors is generally used. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an environmental control system that estimates the state of a person using human information about the person in the indoor space, the indoor environment, and a human model that simulates a person, and controls an air conditioning system so that the state of the person becomes a target state. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-071097 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The human model used in the environmental control system of Patent Document 1 imitates the physical parts and movements of the human body, such as the skeleton, joints, and skin, and the input human information is biological information such as weight, age, and gender, as well as objective information such as ethnic or geographical information. However, because human psychological effects also have an impact on providing a productive environment in which people actually feel comfortable or easy to work, conventional environmental control systems have sometimes been unable to improve productivity.

[0005] The present disclosure is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an information processing device and an environmental control system for realizing an environment that can improve human productivity in an indoor space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The information processing device of the present disclosure is an information processing device that controls the environment of an indoor space in which at least one user can be active, and is equipped with an information acquisition unit that acquires user information about the user, and a control unit that controls the environment to be suitable for the user based on the user information acquired by the information acquisition unit, where the user information includes at least one of personal information about the user's mind and body and business information about the work in which the user is engaged.

[0007] The environmental control system of the present disclosure is an environmental control system that controls the environment of an indoor space in which multiple users can be active, and includes an environmental control device that controls the environment, and a first information processing device that controls the environmental control device, wherein the first information processing device includes a first information acquisition unit that acquires first user information about a first user among the multiple users, and a first control unit that controls the environmental control device to create an environment suitable for the first user based on the first user information acquired by the first information acquisition unit, and the first user information includes at least one of personal information about the first user's mind and body and business information about the business in which the first user is engaged. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present disclosure, by using user information including at least one of personal information related to the user's mind and body and business information related to the work the user is engaged in, it is possible to realize an environment that improves human productivity in indoor spaces by controlling the environment to be suitable for the user. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an environmental control system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an information processing device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4]1 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 5] 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram of an environmental control system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram of an information processing device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations of the information processing device according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of an information processing device 1 and an environmental control system 100 including the information processing device 1 according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, components denoted by the same reference numerals are identical or equivalent components, and this is common throughout the specification. Note that in each drawing, the relative dimensional relationship or shape of each component may differ from the actual ones.

[0011] Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an environmental control system 100 according to a first embodiment. The environmental control system 100 of this embodiment controls the environment of an indoor space where at least one user, including user Pa, can be active, thereby improving the productivity of user Pa. As shown in FIG. 1, the environmental control system 100 of this embodiment includes an information processing device 1, an environmental information measuring device 2, and an environmental control device 3. The information processing device 1 is connected to the environmental information measuring device 2 and the environmental control device 3 so as to be able to communicate with them via wired or wireless communication. For the wired or wireless communication, an interface conforming to a communication standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), Wi-Fi (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), LTE (registered trademark), or LoRaWan (registered trademark) is used.

[0012] The information processing device 1 is a personal status support system linked to a user Pa. The information processing device 1 is, for example, an autonomous robot as shown in FIG. 1. The appearance and shape of the information processing device 1 can be arranged by the user Pa. By configuring the information processing device 1 in this way, the user Pa can feel a sense of familiarity with the information processing device 1, and the user Pa and the information processing device 1 are more strongly linked.

[0013] The information processing device 1 is not limited to a robot as shown in FIG. 1, but may be a terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet, or a wearable device such as a smartwatch. Alternatively, the information processing device 1 may be a device realized by embedding or attaching a chip having the functions of the information processing device 1 in something the user likes. The information processing device 1 is a device unique to the user Pa, and starts operating when the user Pa is authenticated, such as by inputting an identification number, fingerprint authentication, or face authentication.

[0014] The environmental information measuring device 2 is a device that measures environmental information of an indoor space where the user Pa is present. The environmental information is, for example, at least one of the indoor temperature, humidity, CO2 concentration, dust concentration, illuminance, odor intensity, noise level, and number of people present. The environmental information measuring device 2 is, for example, at least one of a temperature sensor that measures the indoor temperature, a humidity sensor that measures humidity, a CO2 sensor that measures the CO2 concentration, a dust sensor that measures the dust concentration, an illuminance sensor that measures illuminance, an odor sensor that measures odor intensity, a volume sensor that measures the noise level, and an infrared sensor or camera that detects the number of people present. The environmental information measured by the environmental information measuring device 2 is transmitted to the information processing device 1. Note that the environmental information measuring device 2 and the environmental information are not limited to the examples listed above, and other devices and information may also be used.

[0015] The environmental control device 3 is a device that controls the environment of the indoor space where the user Pa is present. The environmental control device 3 is, for example, at least one of an air conditioner, a humidifier, a dehumidifier, a ventilation device, an air purifier, a lighting device, an acoustic device such as a speaker (including a silencer), and a fragrance diffuser that emits a fragrance. The air conditioner, the humidifier, the dehumidifier, and the ventilation device control the temperature and humidity in the room. The ventilation device and the air purifier control the CO2 concentration, dust concentration, and odor intensity in the room. The lighting device controls the illuminance in the room. The acoustic device controls the noise level in the room. The fragrance diffuser controls the odor intensity in the room. Note that the environmental control device 3 is not limited to the examples listed above, and may be other devices.

[0016] In the environmental control system 100 of this embodiment, the information processing device 1 estimates environmental control information for realizing optimal ease of work for the user Pa based on environmental information measured by the environmental information measuring device 2 and user information including personal information and task information acquired from the user Pa, and controls the environmental control device 3 based on the estimated environmental control information. The ease of work for the user Pa is, for example, the degree to which the user Pa can work in a space feeling comfortable both physically and mentally, or the degree to which the user Pa can approach their work positively (job satisfaction). Furthermore, in this disclosure, "optimal" does not only refer to what is actually optimal, but also includes what is defined as optimal by the user Pa or what is set as optimal in the information processing device 1.

[0017] The user information of user Pa includes personal information and work information of user Pa. The personal information of user Pa is information about the mind and body of user Pa, and includes, for example, information about the state of user Pa, such as user Pa's speech and behavior, mental and physical state, and behavioral history, and at least one of user Pa's biological information, such as user Pa's brain waves, heart rate, pulse wave, body temperature, and posture. User Pa's speech and behavior are speech and behavior that indicate user Pa's comfort or psychological state, such as "hot," "cold," or "tired," and the mental and physical state indicates the mental and physical state regarding work, such as "can't concentrate" or "tired." The personal information of user Pa may be input by user Pa to the information processing device 1, or may be measured by a biological information sensor (not shown), such as a microphone, camera, infrared sensor, electroencephalograph, activity meter, heart rate meter, thermometer, or acceleration sensor, and input to the information processing device 1. If the information processing device 1 is a wearable device, such as a smartwatch, the information processing device 1 may be equipped with a biological information sensor for measuring human information.

[0018] The work information of user Pa is information about the work performed by user Pa, and may include, for example, at least one of user Pa's schedule, affiliation, job title, work content, and work hours. The schedule is user Pa's hourly work schedule or outings. The work content includes, for example, specific work content such as document preparation or meetings, the type of work such as intellectual labor (desk work) or physical labor, or the workload such as light work or heavy labor. Note that "physical labor" here includes work performed inside a building, such as the work of a factory line worker or a hospital nurse, but does not include outdoor work such as at a construction site. The work information of user Pa may be input by user Pa into the information processing device 1, or may be acquired from an external management device that manages user Pa's work information. Furthermore, user Pa's work content and work hours may be acquired by measurement using a biometric information sensor, such as a microphone, camera, infrared sensor, activity meter, or acceleration sensor, and then input to the information processing device 1. Note that the personal information and work information of user Pa are not limited to the examples listed above and may include other information.

[0019] 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the information processing device 1 according to embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing device 1 includes a control device 11, a storage device 12, an input device 13, and an output device 14.

[0020] The control device 11 has, as functional units, an information acquisition unit 111, an estimation unit 112, and a control unit 113. The control device 11 is configured with dedicated hardware or a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) that executes a program stored in a memory. Figures 3 and 4 are hardware configuration diagrams showing an example configuration of the control device 11 according to the first embodiment.

[0021] 3, when the control device 11 is dedicated hardware, the control device 11 is configured by a processing circuit 600. The processing circuit 600 corresponds to, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit), an FPGA (field-programmable gate array), or a combination thereof. The information acquisition unit 111, the estimation unit 112, and the control unit 113 of the control device 11 may be realized by separate hardware components or by a single piece of hardware.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 4, when the control device 11 is configured with a processor 601, the information acquisition unit 111, the estimation unit 112, and the control unit 113 of the control device 11 are realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. The software or firmware is written as a program and stored in a memory 602 that constitutes the storage device 12. The processor 601 and the memory 602 are communicatively connected to each other via a bus 603. The processor 601 realizes the information acquisition unit 111, the estimation unit 112, and the control unit 113 by reading and executing the program stored in the memory 602. Note that the control device 11 may have multiple processors 601 and multiple memories 602, which cooperate to realize each functional unit of the control device 11. Alternatively, some of the functions of the control device 11 may be realized by dedicated hardware, and some may be realized by software or firmware.

[0023] Returning to FIG. 2 , the information acquisition unit 111 performs wired or wireless communication with the environment information measuring device 2 to acquire environmental information of the indoor space from the environment information measuring device 2. The information acquisition unit 111 also acquires personal information and task information of the user Pa input via the input device 13. Alternatively, the information acquisition unit 111 may perform wired or wireless communication with a biometric information sensor to acquire the personal information and task information of the user Pa. The information acquisition unit 111 may acquire information periodically at predetermined time intervals (e.g., 30 minutes) or when instructed by the user Pa. Alternatively, the information acquisition unit 111 may acquire environmental information when the personal information and task information are input by the user Pa via the input device 13.

[0024] The estimation unit 112 estimates environmental control information for realizing optimal ease of work for the user Pa, using the environmental information, personnel information, and task information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 and the trained estimation model 120 stored in the storage device 12. In detail, the estimation unit 112 inputs the environmental information, personnel information, and task information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 as input data to the estimation model 120, and acquires the environmental control information output from the estimation model 120 as an estimation result. The environmental control information is, for example, at least one of the indoor temperature, humidity, CO2 concentration, dust concentration, illuminance, odor intensity, and noise level for realizing optimal ease of work for the user Pa. Note that the environmental control information is not limited to the examples listed above, and may be other information.

[0025] The control unit 113 controls the environmental control device 3 to make the indoor space environment suitable for the user Pa, based on the environmental control information estimated by the estimation unit 112. Specifically, the control unit 113 controls the environmental control device 3 to set any one of the indoor temperature, humidity, CO2 concentration, dust concentration, illuminance, odor intensity, and noise level included in the environmental control information as a target.

[0026] The storage device 12 is configured with, for example, a volatile or non-volatile semiconductor memory such as a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a flash memory, an erasable and programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable and programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a combination thereof. The storage device 12 stores programs used for estimation and control by the control device 11, as well as various data such as calculation formulas and thresholds used to execute the programs.

[0027] The storage device 12 also stores an estimation model 120. The estimation model 120 is a trained model that receives environmental information, personnel information, and task information as input data and outputs environmental control information for achieving optimal work comfort as output data. The estimation model 120 is trained using training data specific to user Pa. The estimation model 120 is trained by supervised learning using, for example, a neural network.

[0028] An example of a learning method for the estimation model 120 will be described. The estimation model 120 uses past environmental information, at least one of personal information and task information of user Pa, and the user Pa's work ease degree at that time as learning data to learn environmental control information that optimizes the work ease degree. The work ease degree is a numerical representation of an effect or index obtained from the perspective of labor productivity (work ease), motivation (job satisfaction), or physical and mental health (fatigue prevention). For example, it is work efficiency from the perspective of labor productivity, reduction in working hours, an intellectual productivity improvement index, a degree of concentration on work, an engagement index from the perspective of motivation, a comfort index, a fatigue index, a medical cost reduction rate, or a sleep index from the perspective of physical and mental health. The work ease degree of user Pa in the learning data can be obtained from past feedback from user Pa. Feedback from user Pa may be obtained from at least one of information regarding the user Pa's status in the personal information, such as the user's words and actions, physical and mental state, and behavioral history, and biometric information such as the user Pa's brain waves, heart rate, pulse waves, body temperature, and posture, or may be input from user Pa via input device 13.

[0029] For example, the estimation model 120 is trained using training data in which the noise level is 60 [dB] and the ease of working is 2 when user Pa is doing desk work, and training data in which the noise level is 40 [dB] and the ease of working is the optimal value of 5 when user Pa is doing desk work. Note that the greater the ease of working, the easier it is to work. In this case, when the trained estimation model 120 receives input data indicating a noise level of 60 [dB] in the environmental information and information indicating that the user is doing desk work, it outputs a noise level of 40 [dB] as the environmental control information. The above is just an example, and in reality, the estimation model 120 is trained to output optimal environmental control information taking multiple factors into account.

[0030] Even in the same environment, the degree of ease of working varies from person to person. Furthermore, the degree of ease of working also varies depending on the combination of the work content and the environment. For example, when doing desk work, some people find it easier to work in a quiet environment, while others find it easier to work in an environment with music playing. Even among people who find it easier to work in a quiet environment when doing desk work, some find it easier to work with music playing when doing physical labor, while others find it easier to work in quiet conditions even when doing physical labor. The estimation model 120 learns past environmental information, at least one of user Pa's personal information and task information, and user Pa's ease of working at that time as learning data, and can output an estimation result that optimizes the ease of working specific to user Pa based on user Pa's physical and psychological states.

[0031] The input device 13 is, for example, an operating device such as a keyboard, a mouse, or a touch panel operated by the user Pa, a camera that captures an image of the user P, or a microphone that captures the voice of the user Pa. At least one of personal information and business information of the user Pa is input to the input device 13. The input device 13 transmits the input information to the information acquisition unit 111 of the control device 11.

[0032] The output device 14 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display that outputs visual information to the user Pa, or a speaker that outputs audio information to the user Pa. The output device 14 outputs current environmental information, environmental control information estimated by the estimation unit 112, or the like.

[0033] 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations of the information processing device 1 according to the first embodiment. First, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires environmental information, person information, and task information from the environmental information measuring device 2 and the user Pa as input information to be input to the estimation model 120 (S1). Next, the estimation unit 112 estimates environmental control information using the trained estimation model 120 stored in the storage device 12 (S2). Here, the estimation unit 112 inputs the environmental information, person information, and task information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 into the estimation model 120, and obtains environmental control information as output data.

[0034] The control unit 113 controls the environmental control device 3 based on the environmental control information estimated by the estimation unit 112 (S3). For example, the control unit 113 instructs the air conditioner to set the temperature included in the environmental control information as the set temperature. Alternatively, the control unit 113 instructs the audio device to set the noise level included in the environmental control information as the set volume.

[0035] As described above, in this embodiment, the information processing device 1 associated with the user Pa controls the environment to be suitable for the user Pa using user information including personal information related to the user Pa's physical and mental health and task information related to the task the user Pa is engaged in, thereby improving the productivity of the user Pa. Furthermore, by using the estimation model 120 trained using learning data specific to the user Pa, it is possible to estimate environmental control information for realizing optimal ease of work for the user Pa. Then, by controlling the environmental control device 3 based on the estimated environmental control information, it is possible to further improve the productivity of the user Pa. Furthermore, controlling the environment using the information processing device 1 of this embodiment can improve the ease of work and job satisfaction of the user Pa, and also contribute to preventing mental and physical fatigue.

[0036] Embodiment 2 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of an environmental control system 100A according to embodiment 2. The environmental control system 100A of this embodiment differs from embodiment 1 in that at least two or more of a plurality of information processing devices 1a to 1d linked to a plurality of users Pa to Pd, respectively, cooperate via communication to control the environment of an indoor space, thereby improving the productivity of the plurality of users Pa to Pd.

[0037] As shown in Fig. 6, an environmental control system 100A of this embodiment includes a plurality of information processing devices 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d linked to a plurality of users Pa, Pb, Pc, and Pd to be linked with each other, an environment information measuring device 2, and an environment control device 3. The information processing devices 1a to 1d are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via wire or wirelessly. The information processing devices 1a to 1d are also connected to the environment information measuring device 2 and the environment control device 3 so as to be able to communicate with each other via wire or wirelessly. The configurations and functions of the environment information measuring device 2 and the environment control device 3 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0038] The information processing devices 1a to 1d are personal condition support systems linked to users Pa to Pd, respectively. As in the first embodiment, the information processing devices 1a to 1d are terminal devices such as robots, smartphones, or tablets, or wearable devices such as smart watches. Alternatively, the information processing devices 1a to 1d may be devices realized by embedding or attaching a chip having the functions of the information processing device 1 in something the user likes. The information processing devices 1a to 1d are devices unique to each of users Pa to Pd, and start operating when each user is authenticated, such as by inputting an identification number, fingerprint authentication, or face authentication.

[0039] The information processing devices 1a to 1d of this embodiment estimate environmental control information Ia to Id for realizing an optimal working environment for each of the users Pa to Pd, based on the environmental information measured by the environmental information measuring device 2 and the personal information and task information acquired from each of the users Pa to Pd. Furthermore, the information processing device 1a integrates the environmental control information Ia to Id estimated by the information processing devices 1a to 1d to generate environmental control information Iu for realizing an optimal working environment for each of the users Pa to Pd, and controls the environmental control device 3 based on the generated environmental control information Iu. The information processing device 1a that controls the environmental control device 3 is the "first information processing device," and any of the information processing devices 1b to 1d that cooperate with the information processing device 1a is the "second information processing device." Furthermore, the user Pa linked to the information processing device 1a is the "first user," and any of the users Pb to Pd linked to the information processing devices 1b to 1d is the "second user."

[0040] FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram of an information processing device 1a according to the second embodiment. The information processing devices 1b to 1d also have the same configuration and functions as the information processing device 1a, but are not shown in FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 7, the information processing device 1a has a control device 11A, a storage device 12, an input device 13, and an output device 14. The information processing devices 1b to 1d also have the same control device 11A, storage device 12, input device 13, and output device 14 as the information processing device 1a. The configurations and functions of the storage device 12, input device 13, and output device 14 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0041] The control device 11A has, as functional units, an information acquisition unit 111, an estimation unit 112, a control unit 113, and an integration unit 115. The control devices 11A of the information processing devices 1b to 1d also have the information acquisition unit 111, the estimation unit 112, the control unit 113, and the integration unit 115 similar to the control device 11A of the information processing device 1a. The information acquisition unit 111 of the information processing device 1a is a "first information acquisition unit," the user information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 of the information processing device 1a is "first user information," and the control unit 113 is a "first control unit." Furthermore, the information acquisition units 111 of the information processing devices 1b to 1d are "second information acquisition units," the user information acquired by the information acquisition units 111 of the information processing devices 1b to 1d is "second user information," and the control unit 113 is a "second control unit." The functions of the information acquisition unit 111, the estimation unit 112, and the control unit 113 are the same as those in the first embodiment. The integration unit 115 communicates with the information processing devices 1b to 1d that are to be linked, acquires the environmental control information Ib to Id estimated by the information processing devices 1b to 1d, and integrates the environmental control information Ia estimated by its own device (information processing device 1a) with the acquired environmental control information Ib to Id to generate optimal environmental control information Iu.

[0042] The integrating unit 115 acquires environmental control information from information processing devices that are present in the same indoor space as the information processing device 1a itself, or that are present near the information processing device 1a itself (i.e., within a predetermined distance range) as collaboration targets. Alternatively, the integrating unit 115 may use information processing devices that are linked to users who belong to the same department, group, or team as the user Pa that is linked to the information processing device 1a itself, or information processing devices that are linked to users who are performing the same work as the user Pa that is linked to the information processing device 1a itself. Note that, in this embodiment, an example is described in which collaboration is performed with three information processing devices other than the information processing device 1a itself (four in total), but the number of collaboration targets is not limited to this, and collaboration may be performed with one or more information processing devices other than the information processing device 1a itself (two in total).

[0043] The integrating unit 115 determines environmental control information Iu that maximizes the ease of working for all of the linked users Pa to Pd, based on the environmental control information Ia estimated by the estimating unit 112 and the environmental control information Ib to Id estimated by the linked information processing devices 1b to 1d. For example, if the temperature in the environmental control information Ia is 23°C, the temperature in the environmental control information Ib is 23°C, the temperature in the environmental control information Ic is 23°C, and the temperature in the environmental control information Id is 25°C, the integrating unit 115 may use the average value of 23.5°C as the final environmental control information Iu, or may use the most frequent value of 23°C as the final environmental control information Iu.

[0044] 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations of the information processing device 1a according to the second embodiment. First, the information acquisition unit 111 acquires environmental information, personal information, and task information from the environmental information measuring device 2 and the user Pa as input information to be input to the estimation model 120 (S11). Next, the estimation unit 112 estimates environmental control information Ia using the trained estimation model 120 stored in the storage device 12 (S12). The estimation unit 112 inputs the environmental information, personal information, and task information acquired by the information acquisition unit 111 into the estimation model 120, and obtains environmental control information Ia as output data.

[0045] Next, the integrating unit 115 acquires the environmental control information Ib-Id estimated by the information processing devices 1b-1d to be linked (S13). The integrating unit 115 then integrates the multiple pieces of environmental control information Ia-Id to generate final environmental control information Iu (S14). The control unit 113 controls the environmental control device 3 based on the environmental control information Iu integrated by the integrating unit 115 (S15).

[0046] As described above, in this embodiment, by using the environmental control information Ia-Id estimated by the information processing devices 1a-1d, it is possible to estimate the environmental control information Iu that realizes optimal ease of work for a group including the users Pa-Pd. Then, by controlling the environmental control device 3 based on the estimated environmental control information Iu, it is possible to improve the productivity of the group of the users Pa-Pd.

[0047] Although the above description has been given taking the example of the information processing device 1a controlling the environmental control device 3, any of the information processing devices 1b to 1d may control the environmental control device 3. Which information processing device controls the environmental control device 3 may be set in advance by users Pa to Pd, or may be dynamically set according to the state of each information processing device.

[0048] The above is a description of the embodiments, but the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments and can be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the present disclosure includes all possible combinations of the configurations described in the above embodiments. For example, the assignment of each functional unit in the control device 11 of the information processing device 1 is not limited to the example of the above embodiments. For example, each functional unit of the control device 11 may be implemented by being divided among multiple control devices, or some of the functional units of the control device 11 may be implemented by an external device capable of communicating with the information processing device 1. Furthermore, the estimation model 120 stored in the storage device 12 of the information processing device 1 may be stored in an external storage device such as online storage. Furthermore, at least some of the functional units of the control devices 11 of the multiple information processing devices 1a to 1d in embodiment 2 may be implemented centrally in an external device capable of communicating with the information processing devices 1a to 1d.

[0049] Furthermore, although the estimation model 120 in the above embodiment outputs environmental control information that realizes optimal ease of working for user Pa, the output data of the estimation model 120 is not limited to this. The estimation model 120 may also output an ease of working degree in the user Pa's current environment. In this case, the estimation unit 112 estimates environmental control information for adjusting the ease of working degree calculated by the estimation model 120 to an optimal ease of working degree. The optimal ease of working degree is assumed to be set in advance and stored in the storage device 12.

[0050] For example, the estimation unit 112 estimates environmental control information to be instructed to the environmental control device 3 using a table or a formula that represents the correspondence between the difference between the optimal ease of working degree and the current ease of working degree, and the adjustment value of the environmental information. The adjustment value of the environmental information is the amount of change in the environmental information required to make the current ease of working degree the optimal ease of working degree, and the estimation unit 112 calculates the environmental control information by adding or subtracting the adjustment value to the current environmental information measured by the environmental information measuring device 2. Furthermore, the estimation model 120 may output both environmental control information that realizes the optimal ease of working for user Pa and the ease of working degree in the current environment.

[0051] Furthermore, in the estimation model 120, environmental information, person information, and task information are input as input data when estimating environmental control information. However, at least one of the environmental information, person information, and task information may be input, rather than all of them. In this case, the user information of user Pa includes at least one of the person information and task information of user Pa. For example, only the environmental information and person information may be input to the estimation model 120, or only the environmental information and task information may be input, or only the person information and task information may be input. Furthermore, in addition to at least one of the environmental information, person information, and task information, spatial information including at least one of the size, height, wall, floor, and ceiling materials, colors, and furniture configuration of the indoor space where user Pa is present may be input to the estimation model 120. The spatial information is input, for example, by user Pa via the input device 13 and stored in the storage device 12.

[0052] Furthermore, each piece of information acquired by the information processing device 1 according to the above embodiment and the estimation results may be stored in the storage device 12 or an external storage device as a personalized database for the user Pa. Then, the information processing device 1 may re-learn the estimation model 120 based on the stored information. With this configuration, the information processing device 1 can be more closely linked to the individual user Pa. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1, 1a to 1d information processing device, 2 environmental information measuring device, 3 environmental control device, 11, 11A control device, 12 storage device, 13 input device, 14 output device, 100, 100A environmental control system, 111 information acquisition unit, 112 estimation unit, 113 control unit, 115 integration unit, 120 estimation model, 600 processing circuit, 601 processor, 602 memory, 603 bus.

Claims

[Claim 1] An environmental control system for controlling an environment in an indoor space where multiple users can be active, an environmental control device for controlling the environment; a first information processing device that controls the environmental control device; a second information processing device, The first information processing device a first information acquisition unit that acquires first user information related to a first user among the plurality of users; a first control unit that controls the environmental control device to create an environment suitable for the first user based on the first user information acquired by the first information acquisition unit, The second information processing device a second information acquisition unit that acquires second user information related to a second user among the plurality of users; a second control unit that controls the environment based on the second user information acquired by the second information acquisition unit. the first user information includes at least one of personal information regarding the mind and body of the first user and business information regarding a business in which the first user is engaged, An environmental control system in which the first control unit or the second control unit controls the environmental control device by communication between the first information processing device and the second information processing device to create an environment suitable for both the first user and the second user.

Citation Information

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