Plant management system, plant management method, plant management program, and plant management device

Abstract

The present invention enables a growth state of a plant to be managed in time series. This plant management system 100 comprises: a first image acquisition unit 120 that sequentially acquires, in association with imaging times, a plurality of first pieces of image information obtained by imaging plants cultivated in a cultivation facility at different times; a state evaluation unit 130 that evaluates growth states of the plants for each specific area of the plurality of first pieces of image information; and an association unit 170 that generates trace information in which the evaluated growth states and the imaging times are associated with each other.

Description

Plant management system, plant management method, plant management program, and plant management device CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2023-103139, filed on June 23, 2023, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to a plant management system, a plant management method, a plant management program, and a plant management device.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a plant cultivation device having a plurality of sensors that monitor the growth state of the plants being cultivated, an environmental control means that controls the environment, which is at least one of the conditions of light, air, water, and space, within the plant cultivation device, and a process control means that controls the work process of cultivating the plants, with the aim of providing a mechanism for both environmental control within the device and process control for the work process of cultivating the plants.

[0004] Patent Publication No. 2021-166495

[0005] However, the plant cultivation device described in Patent Document 1 was unable to manage the growth state of plants over time. Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to enable the management of the growth state of plants over time.

[0006] A plant management system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a first image acquisition unit that sequentially acquires a first plurality of image information of plants cultivated in a cultivation facility, the image information being associated with the image acquisition time; a condition evaluation unit that evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific area of ​​the first plurality of image information; and a matching unit that generates trace information that matches the evaluated growth condition with the image acquisition time.

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it becomes possible to manage the growth status of plants over time.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a plant management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an overview of processing in the plant management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of an example of a cultivation facility. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a specific area. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a method for evaluating wind conditions by an environmental evaluation unit 150. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of trace information stored in a storage unit 110. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the plant management system 100. FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the plant management system 100. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the plant management system 100. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a computer 1000.

[0009] Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the dimensions and ratios of the drawings are not limited to those shown in the drawings.

[0010] 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a plant management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The plant management system 100 is communicably connected to an imaging system 200, an administrator system 300, and a facility control system 400 via a network such as the Internet or a predetermined interface.

[0011] The plant management system 100 is an information processing system implemented by a plant management program, and generates trace information that associates the growth status of a plant evaluated based on multiple pieces of image information with the time of photographing. Furthermore, the plant management system 100 outputs control instruction information for controlling the growth environment of the plant based on the trace information.

[0012] The plant management system 100, the photography system 200, the administrator system 300, and the facility control system 400 will be described in detail below.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an overview of the processing in the plant management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0014] First, a facility control system 400 controls the growth environment of plants cultivated in a cultivation facility. The facility control system 400 controls, for example, environmental items of the cultivation facility as the growth environment 102 (e.g., light, temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, nutrients, moisture, accumulated temperature, accumulated illuminance, accumulated carbon dioxide concentration, pH of the aqueous solution, EC (fertilizer concentration) of the aqueous solution, etc.). A camera 104 photographs plants 103 growing in the cultivation facility at different photographing times. The plants 103 grow over time. Details of the environmental items will be described later.

[0015] Next, the plant management system 100 evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific area of ​​the multiple image information captured based on the multiple image information captured, and generates trace information 105 that associates the evaluated growth condition with the time of capture.

[0016] Then, based on the trace information 105, the plant management system 100 outputs control instruction information to the facility control system 400 for controlling the plant growth environment. The facility control system 400 controls the plant growth environment based on the control instruction information. Here, the control system 400 may, for example, control the cultivation facility (e.g., control the air conditioning), display the trace information and the control instruction information on a display device (e.g., a monitor of the manager system 300), or issue an alert or a notification of work to a terminal device carried by the manager system 300 or a person (e.g., the manager of the cultivation facility).

[0017] BACKGROUND ART In recent years, in response to the need for more efficient plant cultivation, there are cases where plants are cultivated by controlling the plant growth environment.

[0018] Here, the plant growth environment 102 is defined by at least one environmental item. The environmental items include, for example, environmental items for a certain space (so-called macro environmental items) and environmental items for the range of one to several plants (so-called micro environmental items). The macro environmental items include, for example, sunlight (amount of light, direction), cultivation facility lighting (intensity, direction, color), temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, nutrient amount, water amount, water temperature, air conditioning (set temperature, air volume, wind direction), ventilation fan, etc. The micro environmental items include, for example, the state of the wind blowing on the plant (air volume or wind direction), the surface temperature of the plant, etc.

[0019] Macro-environmental factors can affect micro-environmental factors. That is, the air conditioning settings can affect the amount of wind blowing on the plants. Micro-environmental factors can then affect the growth conditions of the plants. For example, even if the same air conditioning settings are used throughout the cultivation facility, there may be differences in micro-environmental factors between plants near the air conditioning outlet and those far from the outlet, which may result in different growth conditions.

[0020] In this way, the growth state of a plant can change depending on the state of the environmental items in the growth environment. However, in the past, it was not possible to trace the growth state of a plant and the growth environment, and therefore it was not possible to understand the influence of the growth environment on the growth state of a plant.

[0021] Therefore, the plant management system 100 generates trace information for each specific area (described later) based on the image information of the plants, and manages the growth status of the plants throughout the cultivation facility in chronological order. This allows the plant management system 100 to trace the growth status of the plants until the end of growth (e.g., harvest) while taking into account micro-environmental factors. This also allows the user to understand the impact of the plant's growth environment on the growth status. Furthermore, for example, this makes it possible to visualize the growth status and accurately predict yields, and by cultivating plants more efficiently, further increases in yield are expected. This also makes it possible to predict problems that occur during plant growth (e.g., sudden withering) and detect abnormalities in the cultivation facility's equipment.

[0022] The cultivation facility may be a facility for greenhouse horticulture, where plants are cultivated by controlling the growth environment within the facility, or may be a greenhouse cultivation facility that allows for year-round, planned production of plants such as vegetables by controlling the environment and predicting growth based on monitoring the environment and growth. In other words, the cultivation facility may be a plant factory, or may be a cultivation facility such as a field or a greenhouse.

[0023] Furthermore, plant factories may be broadly divided into two types: "fully artificial light type" plants that are produced in a closed environment without using sunlight and by controlling the environment to carry out planned production year-round; and "sunlight utilization type" plants that are produced in a semi-closed environment such as a greenhouse, primarily using sunlight, and that carry out planned production year-round using supplemental lighting on rainy or cloudy days and techniques for suppressing high temperatures in the summer.

[0024] Furthermore, the cultivation method implemented in the cultivation facility may be either hydroponic cultivation or soil cultivation, or may be another cultivation method (for example, rock wool cultivation). Here, hydroponic cultivation is a method of growing plants using water and liquid fertilizer (nutrient solution) without using soil, and is also called hydroculture. In hydroponic cultivation, the roots of plants are immersed in water (solution) containing fertilizer, and the necessary water, nutrients, and oxygen are absorbed through the roots. In contrast, soil cultivation refers to cultivation using soil. Hereinafter, this embodiment will be described using an example of hydroponic cultivation implemented in a plant factory, but this embodiment is not limited to hydroponic cultivation.

[0025] Fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view of an example of a cultivation facility. Note that the cultivation facility shown in Fig. 3 is an example, and other cultivation facilities may also be used.

[0026] In the cultivation facility shown in Figure 3, plants 103 are grown on cultivation panels 107 installed on cultivation shelves 106. The cultivation shelves 106 are configured in a multi-tiered structure, which allows the plants 103 to be grown over a large area while saving space. The cultivation facility also includes a camera 104 that takes pictures of the plants 103.

[0027] In the cultivation facility shown in Fig. 3, multiple cameras 104 are fixedly installed at predetermined intervals. The cameras 104 can capture images of a predetermined area including the plants 103. The cameras 104 may capture images of each plant 103 individually, or may capture images of multiple plants at once. The cameras 104 may also be movable within the cultivation facility.

[0028] A cultivation tank 108 is installed on each level of the cultivation shelf 106, and a cultivation panel 107 floats in a pool of nutrient solution flowing through the cultivation tank 108. As an example, the cultivation tank 108 can store water used in hydroponic cultivation, and it is preferable that the water flows in a predetermined direction without stagnating. To create a water flow, each cultivation tank 108 may be provided with a water inlet and a drain outlet. Furthermore, the water flowing through the cultivation tank 108 may contain dissolved nutrients required for hydroponic cultivation.

[0029] The cultivation panel 107 may be a floating board that can float in the nutrient solution pool with the plant 103 placed on it. The cultivation panel 107 may have a through-hole for installing the plant 103 to be grown. In this case, the plant 103 is fixed to the cultivation panel 107 with its leaves exposed to the air and its roots immersed in the nutrient solution pool.

[0030] The cultivation panel 107 may be fixed to a predetermined position in the cultivation tank 108, or may be movable horizontally in the cultivation tank 108. As an example, in a cultivation shelf 106 configured to be long in the long side direction, the cultivation panel 107 may be moved from one end to the other end of the cultivation tank 108 over several hours to several days. Specifically, the cultivation panel 107 with the seedlings of the plants 103 fixed thereto may be introduced into one end of the cultivation shelf 106, and after several days, the plants 103 grown from the seedlings may be discharged from the other end of the cultivation shelf 106. This allows the plants 103 to be grown continuously.

[0031] In soil cultivation, plants are prone to disease due to various bacteria in the soil, necessitating the use of pesticides, so it is desirable to monitor the plants and check for any abnormalities. In contrast, hydroponic cultivation in plant factories is generally said to be less prone to insect infestation and disease. However, plants do not necessarily grow smoothly, and even in a completely enclosed environment, defective plants can occur when growth conditions tend to deviate from the adjusted range, such as during seasonal changes. Examples of defective plants here include, for leafy vegetables, defects in the head size or number of leaves, or various symptoms such as chip burn.

[0032] The plants cultivated in the cultivation facility are not particularly limited, but may be, for example, vegetables, particularly leafy vegetables.

[0033] Next, the photographing system 200, the administrator system 300, and the facility control system 400 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

[0034] The photography system 200 is a system that photographs plants growing in a cultivation facility. The photography system 200, for example, photographs plants and outputs the photographed images to the plant management system 100.

[0035] The imaging system 200 may include, for example, a camera 104 .

[0036] The photographing method of the photographing system 200 is not limited, but may be, for example, a method of photographing the plant from above, from the side, or from below. Furthermore, the photographing system 200 may directly photograph the plant, or may photograph the reflected image reflected by a mirror.

[0037] The imaging system 200 may capture so-called still images, or may capture thermographic images that allow temperature measurement.

[0038] The photography system 200 may also photograph plants in a video format.

[0039] The manager system 300 is a computer used by a manager who manages the cultivation facility, and may be a smartphone, tablet terminal, personal computer, or the like.

[0040] The manager refers to the trace information, which will be described later, using the manager system 300. The manager can refer to the trace information to manage the growth conditions of the plants. The manager can also refer to the trace information to control the facility control system 400, which will be described later, through the manager system 300, and control the growth environment of the cultivation facility in accordance with the growth conditions of the plants.

[0041] The facility control system 400 is an information processing system that controls the growing environment of plants.

[0042] The facility control system 400 controls the environmental items, thereby controlling the plant growth environment defined by the environmental items.

[0043] The facility control system 400 can control, for example, macro environmental items. That is, the environmental items that the facility control system 400 can control are not particularly limited, but include, for example, the state of sunlight (amount of light, direction), lighting of the cultivation facility (intensity, direction, color), temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration, amount of nutrients, amount of water, water temperature, air conditioning (set temperature, air volume, air direction), ventilation fan, etc.

[0044] Furthermore, the facility control system 400 controls environmental items (for example, macro environmental items) in accordance with control instruction information, which will be described later.

[0045] Although FIG. 1 shows one each of the photography system 200, administrator system 300, and facility control system 400, there may be a plurality of each of the photography system 200, administrator system 300, and facility control system 400.

[0046] Next, details of the plant management system 100 will be described. The plant management system 100 includes a memory unit 110, a first image acquisition unit 120, a state evaluation unit 130, a second image acquisition unit 140, an environment evaluation unit 150, an environment acquisition unit 160, an association unit 170, an item identification unit 180, and a control instruction output unit 190. Each unit shown in Fig. 1 can be realized, for example, by using a memory area or by a processor executing a program stored in the memory area.

[0047] The storage unit 110 stores information to be processed in the plant management system 100. The storage unit 110 can store, for example, growth environment information, growth state information, trace information, control instruction information, a first plurality of image information, and a second plurality of image information, which will be described later.

[0048] The first image acquisition unit 120 sequentially acquires a first plurality of image information of plants cultivated in a cultivation facility, photographed at different times, in association with the photographing time, and stores the first plurality of image information in the memory unit 110.

[0049] The first image acquisition unit 120 can acquire the first plurality of pieces of image information in order from the imaging system 200, for example.

[0050] The first image acquisition unit 120 may acquire, for example, a first plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing each plant stalk, or may acquire a first plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing a plurality of plant stalks. The first plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing a plurality of plant stalks may be, for example, image information obtained by photographing a plurality of plant stalks for each cultivation panel 107.

[0051] The first plurality of image information may be a plurality of image information captured at a fixed interval, or may be a plurality of image information captured at different intervals. The interval between captures of the first plurality of image information may be any interval that corresponds to the growth rate of the plant, and may be, for example, every few hours, every day, or every few days. Note that the "fixed interval" does not have to be a strictly constant time interval, but may be any time interval that can be considered substantially the same as the constant time interval.

[0052] The first plurality of image information may be a plurality of image information taken from the same position, or may be a plurality of image information taken from different positions. Note that the "same position" does not have to be the same position in the strict sense, as long as it is a position that can be considered substantially the same position.

[0053] The condition evaluation unit 130 evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific region of the first plurality of image information, and stores growth condition information indicating the evaluation results in the storage unit 110.

[0054] Here, the state evaluation unit 130 may evaluate the growth state of the plant for each interval between captures of the first plurality of image information. That is, the state evaluation unit 130 can, for example, repeat the process of evaluating the growth state of the plant at the capture time based on each of the first plurality of image information as many times as the number of pieces of the first plurality of image information. In other words, the state evaluation unit 130 can trace the growth state of the plant over a certain time scale (e.g., several days, several weeks, or several months).

[0055] The condition evaluation unit 130 may evaluate the growth condition of the plant in sequence according to the acquisition by the first image acquisition unit 120, or may evaluate the growth condition of the plant at a predetermined timing, for example, when the first image acquisition unit 120 acquires a predetermined number of pieces of image information, or at a predetermined time period (for example, an evaluation time interval such as every day, every three days, etc.).

[0056] The condition evaluation unit 130 can, for example, analyze the first plurality of image information to evaluate the size of the plant (e.g., leaves) captured in each of the first plurality of image information or the presence or absence of tip burn as the growth condition of the plant. Specifically, the condition evaluation unit 130 generates, for example, size information indicating the size of the plant or tip burn information indicating the presence or absence of tip burn as growth condition information indicating the evaluated growth condition. Furthermore, the condition evaluation unit 130 may evaluate the shape or estimated weight of the plant captured in each of the first plurality of image information, or the condition of a specific part of the plant (e.g., leaves or roots), as the growth condition information indicating the evaluation result. Here, the condition evaluation unit 130 may evaluate the overall shape of the plant based on at least one of the seedling height (height of the seedling when viewed from the side), width (width when viewed from above), and shape of the leaf tips. The condition evaluation unit 130 generates, for example, growth condition information indicating the evaluated growth condition, such as shape information indicating the shape of the plant, estimated weight information indicating the estimated weight, or partial condition information indicating the condition (e.g., strength or degree of decay) of a specific part of the plant (e.g., leaves or roots).

[0057] The condition evaluation unit 130 may also generate, as the growth condition information, comprehensive evaluation information indicating the results of a comprehensive evaluation of the growth condition of the plant based on, for example, size information and tip burn information. This allows the plant management system 100 to comprehensively evaluate the growth condition of the plant while taking into account specific factors (e.g., size, presence or absence of tip burn). The condition evaluation unit 130 may also generate, as the growth condition information, comprehensive evaluation information based on at least one of shape information, estimated weight information, and partial condition information. Here, for example, the larger the size, the fewer tip burns (i.e., the greater the amount of marketable parts), the more oval the overall shape of the plant and the less the leaves open, the stronger a specific part of the plant, or the less rotten a specific part of the plant is, the higher the condition evaluation unit 130 may evaluate the growth condition of the plant.

[0058] The algorithm for generating the overall evaluation information is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, an algorithm that generates overall evaluation information by weighting each specific item based on a predetermined weight associated with each specific item (e.g., size, presence or absence of tip burn, shape, estimated weight, or condition of a specific part). The generation algorithm may be, for example, an algorithm generated by machine learning based on training data that associates image information with scoring information scored by a human who references an image for each specific item. In this case, the generation algorithm, for example, inputs image information, outputs scoring results for each specific item, and the condition evaluation unit 130 generates the output scoring results (or a score based on the scoring results) as the overall evaluation information. The generation algorithm may also be an algorithm generated by machine learning based on training data that associates image information with the actual yield of the plant represented by the image information. In this case, the generation algorithm inputs image information, outputs an expected yield, and the condition evaluation unit 130 generates the output expected yield (or a score based on the expected yield) as the overall evaluation information. The generation algorithm may also output a deviation score that represents the degree of deviation from a desirable growth state according to the time (e.g., number of days) since the start of growth. In this case, the state evaluation unit 130 generates comprehensive evaluation information based on the output deviation score. Note that the degree of deviation may be, for example, an index based on the difference between the score for a desirable growth state output through a predetermined algorithm and the score for the plant being evaluated.

[0059] The specific area evaluated by the condition evaluation unit 130 (and the environment evaluation unit 150, described later) is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a single plant. This allows the plant management system 100 to manage the growth state of plants on a plant-by-plant basis, thereby enabling more accurate plant management. The specific area may also be multiple plants, or may be the cultivation panel 107. This allows the plant management system 100 to manage the growth state of multiple plants at a time, thereby simplifying plant management.

[0060] 4A is a diagram showing an example of a specific region. FIG. 4A shows a plant fixed to the cultivation panel 107. The specific region may be a region 410 including one plant, a region 420 including multiple plants, or a region 430 including the cultivation panel 107. For example, when one image field of view includes one cultivation panel 107, the condition evaluation unit 130 may evaluate the growth state of each of the nine plants included in the image field of view as shown in FIG. 4A , may evaluate the growth state of multiple plants as a group, such as every two plants, or may evaluate the growth state of the entire cultivation panel 107.

[0061] The second image acquisition unit 140 sequentially acquires a second plurality of image information photographed at different times of plants cultivated in the cultivation facility, corresponding to the photographing time, and stores the second plurality of image information in the memory unit 110.

[0062] The second image acquisition unit 140 can, for example, sequentially acquire the second plurality of pieces of image information from the imaging system 200. Note that the second image acquisition unit 140 may acquire the second plurality of pieces of image information from an imaging system 200 different from the imaging system 200 from which the first image acquisition unit 120 acquired the image information.

[0063] The second image acquisition unit 140 may acquire, for example, a second plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing each plant stalk, or may acquire a second plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing a plurality of plant stalks. The second plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing a plurality of plant stalks may be, for example, image information obtained by photographing a plurality of plant stalks for each cultivation panel 107.

[0064] The second plurality of image information may be a plurality of image information captured at a fixed interval, or may be a plurality of image information captured at different intervals. The interval between captures of the second plurality of image information may be any interval that corresponds to the growth rate of the plant, and may be, for example, every few hours, every day, or every few days. Note that the "fixed interval" does not have to be a strictly constant time interval, but may be any time interval that can be considered substantially the same as the constant time interval.

[0065] The second plurality of image information may be a plurality of image information taken from the same position, or may be a plurality of image information taken from different positions. Note that the "same position" does not have to be the same position in the strict sense, as long as it is a position that can be considered substantially the same position.

[0066] The second plurality of image information may be thermographic images or images in which a thermographic image and a visible image are superimposed, thereby enabling the environment evaluation unit 150 (described later) to evaluate the surface temperature of the plants for each specific region.

[0067] The shooting intervals for the second plurality of image information may be the same as or different from the shooting intervals for the first plurality of image information.

[0068] The second plurality of image information may be images captured at a predetermined interval shorter than the interval between the first plurality of image information. The predetermined interval may be, for example, several to several tens of frames per second. This allows the environment assessment unit 150, which will be described later, to assess the wind conditions for each specific area.

[0069] The first plurality of image information may be image information for evaluating the growth state of a plant, and the second plurality of image information may be image information for evaluating the growth environment of the plant (e.g., the surface temperature of the plant or wind conditions). That is, the first plurality of image information and the second plurality of image information may be image information used for different evaluations.

[0070] The second plurality of pieces of image information may be the same as the first plurality of pieces of image information, which allows the plant management system 100 to evaluate the growth condition and the growth environment based on the same image information.

[0071] The environment evaluation unit 150 evaluates the plant growth environment for each specific region of the second plurality of image information, and stores growth environment information indicating the evaluation results in the storage unit 110.

[0072] The environmental evaluation unit 150 may evaluate the plant growth environment in sequence according to the acquisition by the second image acquisition unit 140, or may evaluate the plant growth environment at a predetermined timing, for example, when the second image acquisition unit 140 acquires a predetermined number of pieces of image information, or at a predetermined time period (for example, an evaluation time interval such as every day, every three days, etc.).

[0073] For example, when one image field of view includes one cultivation panel 107, the environmental evaluation unit 150 may evaluate the growth environment for each of the nine plants included in the image field of view as shown in Figure 4A, or may evaluate the growth environment for multiple plants as a group, such as every two plants, or may evaluate the growth environment for the entire cultivation panel 107.

[0074] The environmental evaluation unit 150 can evaluate, as environmental items (particularly micro environmental items), for example, the surface temperature of the plants and the state of the wind blowing on the plants.

[0075] The environment evaluation unit 150 can evaluate the surface temperature of the plant as the plant growth environment by, for example, analyzing the second plurality of pieces of image information. Specifically, the environment evaluation unit 150 analyzes the second plurality of pieces of image information, which are, for example, thermo images, to generate surface temperature information indicating the surface temperature of the plant.

[0076] In this case, the surface temperature indicated by the surface temperature information is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, the highest temperature in one or more plant regions (e.g., leaves) included in the specific region, or a statistical value (e.g., average temperature) calculated based on the temperature distribution in one or more plant regions included in the specific region. Furthermore, the surface temperature indicated by the surface temperature information may represent the temperature distribution in multiple regions using a standard deviation, maximum temperature, and minimum temperature.

[0077] Furthermore, the environment evaluation unit 150 can evaluate the wind conditions for each specific area as a plant growth environment by, for example, analyzing the second plurality of pieces of image information. Specifically, the environment evaluation unit 150 analyzes the second plurality of pieces of image information captured at a predetermined capture interval that is shorter than the capture interval of the first plurality of pieces of image information, and generates wind information regarding the wind conditions for each of the multiple specific areas.

[0078] Conventionally, wind sensors have been used to evaluate wind conditions in a specific area. However, wind sensors only perform fixed-point observation of wind conditions at the location where they are installed. Therefore, when evaluating wind conditions in multiple areas, particularly for specific areas (e.g., stumps), it is necessary to install a wind sensor for each specific area (e.g., stumps), making it difficult to evaluate wind conditions for each specific area. Therefore, the environment evaluation unit 150 evaluates wind conditions for each specific area of ​​the second plurality of image information. This reduces the cost and space required to install a wind sensor and enables evaluation of wind conditions for each specific area.

[0079] FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of a method for evaluating wind conditions by the environmental evaluation unit 150. FIG. 4B shows an overlaid diagram of a second plurality of image information pieces, each of which is a series of images of leaves swaying in the wind. The environmental evaluation unit 150 evaluates the wind conditions blowing on a plant, for example, based on the movement of a specific spot 440 of the plant in the second plurality of image information pieces (e.g., the trajectory and speed of the spot 440). The environmental evaluation unit 150 may evaluate the wind at a predetermined position in the second image as a vector representing the wind direction and wind speed. Alternatively, the environmental evaluation unit 150 may evaluate, as the wind conditions, a vector field representing the distribution of wind vectors in the second plurality of images.

[0080] The environment acquisition unit 160 acquires growth environment information relating to the growth environment of the plants cultivated in the cultivation facility and stores it in the memory unit 110.

[0081] The environment acquisition unit 160 can acquire growth environment information from, for example, an external information processing system (e.g., the facility control system 400). The growth environment information acquired from the external information processing system (e.g., the facility control system 400) is, for example, macro environmental items. Specifically, for example, the environment acquisition unit 160 may acquire, as growth environment information, information on various set temperatures specified by the user in the facility control system 400, such as the set temperature of an air conditioner or the set temperature of water for a culture solution, etc.

[0082] In this case, the environment acquisition unit 160 may acquire growth environment information including area temperature information indicating the temperature of a predetermined area in the cultivation facility. The predetermined area may be, for example, the surface temperature of the cultivation panel 107, the cultivation tank 108, or a predetermined location in the cultivation facility, or may be room temperature measured at a predetermined location in the cultivation facility. The surface temperature may be, for example, a value calculated based on a thermographic image of the predetermined area.

[0083] By acquiring the growth environment information including the area temperature information, the plant management system 100 can trace the temperature distribution within the cultivation facility and the growth state of the plants. In this regard, if the temperature distribution within the cultivation facility is uneven, the plants may feel stressed and their growth state may deteriorate. By acquiring the growth environment information including the area temperature information, the plant management system 100 can more accurately grasp the impact of the growth environment on the growth state of the plants.

[0084] Furthermore, the environment acquisition unit 160 can acquire growth environment information regarding the growth environment evaluated by the environment evaluation unit 150. In this case, the growth environment information may be, for example, information regarding wind conditions or plant surface temperatures for each specific area, evaluated based on the second plurality of image information.

[0085] The environment acquisition unit 160 may also acquire, as part of the growth environment information, the difference between the temperature obtained from the thermographic image and the temperature setting of the air conditioner or the room temperature. This allows the plant management system 100 to understand the difference between the setting by the facility control system 400 and the actual situation in which the plants are being grown. This allows for more effective control of environmental items.

[0086] The associating unit 170 generates trace information that associates the growth state evaluated by the state evaluating unit 130 with the photographing time, and stores the trace information in the storage unit 110.

[0087] The associating unit 170 may also generate trace information that associates the growth environment information with the image capture time. Here, the growth environment information may be growth environment information evaluated by the environment assessing unit 150, or may be growth environment information acquired by the environment acquiring unit 160 from an external information processing system (e.g., facility control system 400).

[0088] Furthermore, the associating unit 170 can generate trace information that further associates the growth state evaluated by the state evaluating unit 130 with the growth environment information and the photographing time. Here, the growth environment information may be growth environment information evaluated by the environment evaluating unit 150, or may be growth environment information acquired by the environment acquiring unit 160 from an external information processing system (e.g., facility control system 400).

[0089] In this way, the association unit 170 can trace the growth state of the plant, or the growth environment of the plant, or both, over a certain time scale (for example, over a period of several days, weeks, or months).

[0090] Furthermore, the association unit 170 may associate the growth state with the growth environment information for each plant 103. For example, in a plant factory, as the cultivation panels 107 move in a fixed direction within the plant factory, the plants 103 also grow and change their shape. Therefore, it is difficult to track the plants 103 moving in a fixed direction when images are taken with a fixed camera 104, and it may also be difficult to track the plants 103 based on image similarity because the size and shape of the plants change as they grow.

[0091] In this regard, the association unit 170 may assign a plant ID to each plant in the field of view of the first image, and may trace the position of each plant 103 in the first plurality of image information based on the flow speed of the cultivation panel 107 and the time of image capture. Furthermore, even if the plant 103 being traced goes out of the field of view of the camera 104 fixed at a certain position, the association unit 170 may calculate the time until the out-of-view plant 103 appears in the imaging field of the next camera 104 (in this case, for example, a fixed camera) based on the flow speed of the cultivation panel 107 and the time of image capture, and may trace the position of the plant 103 with the next camera 104.

[0092] The flow speed of the cultivation panel 107 may be acquired by the environment acquisition unit 160 from the facility control system 400.

[0093] The associating unit 170 may also generate trace information that further associates corresponding image information (the first plurality of image information or the second plurality of image information). Specifically, the associating unit 170 may generate trace information that associates, for example, the growth state evaluated by the state evaluation unit 130 with the image information (each of the first plurality of image information) used to evaluate the growth state and the image capture time. Alternatively, the associating unit 170 may generate trace information that associates, for example, the growth environment information evaluated by the environment evaluation unit 150 with the image information (each of the first plurality of image information) used to evaluate the growth environment information and the image capture time. This allows a person referring to the trace information (for example, a manager of the cultivation facility) to visually refer to the image information itself.

[0094] 5 is a diagram showing an example of trace information stored in the storage unit 110. The trace information stored in the storage unit 110 includes, for example, an area ID, shooting time information, growth state information, and growth environment information. The trace information may also include image information.

[0095] The area ID is information for identifying a specific area. The area ID may be associated with a plant ID that is individually assigned to each plant. The photographing time information is information relating to the photographing time.

[0096] The growth state information is information indicating the growth state evaluated by the state evaluation unit 130. The growth state information includes, for example, size information and tip burn information.

[0097] The size information may be, for example, information indicating a quantitative value corresponding to the size of the plant, or may be a qualitative value (e.g., "OK" or "NG") evaluated according to the size of the plant. Furthermore, the tip burn information may be, for example, information indicating the presence or absence of tip burn. Furthermore, the growth status information may further include overall evaluation information.

[0098] The growth environment information includes the growth environment information evaluated by the environment evaluation unit 150 and the growth environment information acquired by the environment acquisition unit 160 from an external information processing system (e.g., the facility control system 400). The growth environment information includes, for example, wind information, surface temperature information, and air conditioning setting information.

[0099] The air conditioning setting information is information about the air conditioning settings in the cultivation facility that is acquired by the environment acquisition unit 160 from an external information processing system (e.g., the facility control system 400). The air conditioning setting information may be information about the air conditioning setting temperature, air volume, and air direction, for example.

[0100] The growth environment information may further include information corresponding to micro-environmental items or information corresponding to macro-environmental items.

[0101] The plant management system 100 may output the tracing information to an external information processing system (for example, a user's terminal device or a management device of a cultivation facility). At this time, the plant management system 100 may also output display information for displaying the tracing information in a table or graph to the external information processing system. This allows a user of the external information processing system to visually grasp the tracing information and easily manage plants.

[0102] Based on the trace information, the item identification unit 180 identifies at least one environmental item related to the plant's growth environment that contributes to the plant's growth condition. The item identification unit 180 can particularly identify, for example, the accumulated temperature, accumulated illuminance, accumulated carbon dioxide concentration, pH of the aqueous solution, and EC of the aqueous solution, which contribute to the plant's growth condition. For example, if the temperature is too high or too low, plant growth will be hindered. Therefore, by identifying temperature as an environmental item that contributes to the plant's growth condition, the plant management system 100 can control the environmental item that contributes to the plant's growth condition and improve the growth environment. Furthermore, for example, if the pH of the aqueous solution is too low, root growth will be hindered, and the plant as a whole will not grow. Therefore, by identifying the pH of the aqueous solution as an environmental item that contributes to the plant's growth condition, the plant management system 100 can control the environmental item that contributes to the plant's growth condition and improve the growth environment. Furthermore, for example, within a plant factory, temperature, carbon dioxide concentration, and humidity differences occur depending on the location, resulting in plant growth variations depending on where the plants are placed. Therefore, the item identification unit 180 identifies the accumulated temperature, accumulated carbon dioxide concentration, and humidity as environmental items that contribute to the plant growth state, allowing the plant management system 100 to control the environmental items that contribute to the plant growth state and improve the growth environment. Temperature differences and carbon dioxide concentration differences within a plant factory can be caused, for example, by differences in illuminance, which can cause areas illuminated by light to become hotter, resulting in thermal convection, and by photosynthesis associated with light illumination, which can cause a decrease in carbon dioxide concentration and an increase in humidity. Furthermore, illuminance differences occur depending on the location within a plant factory, resulting in plant growth variations depending on where the plants are placed. Therefore, the item identification unit 180 identifies the accumulated illuminance as an environmental item that contributes to the plant growth state, allowing the plant management system 100 to control the environmental items that contribute to the plant growth state and improve the growth environment. Note that a difference in illuminance may occur, for example, between a plant located near the boundary between varieties with different irradiation times and a plant located in the center of the same variety.

[0103] Specifically, the item identifying unit 180 calculates, for example, the contribution of each environmental item to the growth state of the plant based on the trace information. The item identifying unit 180 may calculate the contribution by, for example, multivariate analysis or principal component analysis, or may calculate the contribution by machine learning. Then, the item identifying unit 180 identifies, for example, at least one environmental item that has a predetermined contribution.

[0104] Furthermore, the item identifying unit 180 identifies at least one environmental item that varies greatly between identified regions based on the trace information.

[0105] Specifically, the item identifying unit 180 aggregates the environmental items for each identified region based on the trace information. Then, the item identifying unit 180 identifies environmental items that vary widely between the identified regions. In this case, the item identifying unit 180 may identify environmental items that vary widely between the identified regions by, for example, performing a predetermined statistical analysis (e.g., calculating variance).

[0106] The control instruction output unit 190 generates and outputs control instruction information for executing control of the plant growth environment based on the trace information.

[0107] Furthermore, the control instruction output unit 190 can output control instruction information for executing control of at least one environmental item based on the at least one environmental item identified by the item identifying unit 180 .

[0108] The control instruction output unit 190 can generate and output control instruction information for executing control to reduce variations in the growth environment or growth state of plants among multiple specified areas. In this case, the control instruction output unit 190 may output control instruction information for executing control of at least one environmental item identified by the item identification unit 180. For example, when the control instruction output unit 190 determines that the growth environment or growth state of plants varies among plants within a specified range or less, the control instruction output unit 190 can output control instruction information for executing control of a micro environmental item. Furthermore, when the control instruction output unit 190 determines that the growth environment or growth state of plants does not vary among plants within a specified range or less, but varies among areas within the specified range, the control instruction output unit 190 can output control instruction information for executing control of a macro environmental item.

[0109] When the control instruction output unit 190 outputs control instruction information for executing control of a macro environmental item, the control instruction information may be, for example, information for controlling the macro environmental item by the facility control system 400. Specifically, the control instruction information may be, for example, information for causing the facility control system 400 to lower the air conditioning temperature by a predetermined temperature.

[0110] Furthermore, when the control instruction output unit 190 outputs control instruction information for executing control of a micro environmental item, the control instruction information may be, for example, information for the facility control system 400 to control a macro environmental item corresponding to the micro environmental item. Specifically, the control instruction information may be, for example, information for causing the facility control system 400 to lower the temperature of an air conditioner in a predetermined location by a predetermined temperature, so that only the surface temperature of the plant in the predetermined location is lowered by the predetermined temperature.

[0111] The correspondence between macro and micro environmental items, or the correspondence between the degree of control of macro and micro environmental items, may be expressed by a predetermined relational expression calculated based on trace information. Here, the predetermined relational expression may be, for example, a relational expression based on a physics-based physical model. Furthermore, the predetermined relational expression may be a relational expression based on an algorithm trained by machine learning using past indicators of macro and micro environmental items as training data.

[0112] Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of processing in the plant management system 100. The flowchart shown in Fig. 6 shows an example of processing for generating trace information including growth status information.

[0113] The first image acquisition unit 120 sequentially acquires a first plurality of pieces of image information (S601). The condition evaluation unit 130 evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific region of the first plurality of pieces of image information (S602). The association unit 170 generates trace information that associates the evaluated growth condition with the time of photographing (S603).

[0114] Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of processing in the plant management system 100. The flowchart shown in Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of processing for generating trace information including growth environment information.

[0115] The second image acquisition unit 140 sequentially acquires the second plurality of pieces of image information (S701). The environment evaluation unit 150 evaluates the plant growth environment for each specific area of ​​the second plurality of pieces of image information (S702). The association unit 170 generates trace information that associates the evaluated growth environment with the image capture time (S703).

[0116] Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of processing in the plant management system 100. The flowchart shown in Fig. 8 shows an example of processing for generating trace information including growth environment information.

[0117] The environment acquisition unit 160 acquires growth environment information from, for example, an external information processing system (S801). The association unit 170 generates trace information that associates the acquired growth environment information with time (S802).

[0118] Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of processing in the plant management system 100. The flowchart shown in Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an example of processing for outputting control instruction information.

[0119] The item specifying unit 180 specifies at least one environmental item based on the trace information (S901). The control instruction output unit 190 generates and outputs control instruction information for executing control of the growth environment (S902).

[0120] Next, an example of a hardware configuration in which the plant management system 100 is realized by a computer 1000 will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the computer 1000.

[0121] As shown in FIG. 10, a computer 1000 includes, for example, a processor 1001, a memory 1002, a storage device 1003, an input I / F unit 1004, a data I / F unit 1005, a communication I / F unit 1006, and a display device 1007.

[0122] Computer 1000 may be, for example, a server computer, a personal computer (e.g., desktop, laptop, tablet, etc.), a media computing platform (e.g., cable, satellite set-top box, digital video recorder, etc.), a handheld computing device (e.g., PDA, email client, etc.), or any other type of computing or communications platform.

[0123] The processor 1001 is a control unit that controls various processes in the computer 1000 by executing programs stored in the memory 1002 .

[0124] The memory 1002 is a storage medium such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The memory 1002 temporarily stores the program code of the program executed by the processor 1001 and data required when the program is executed.

[0125] The storage device 1003 is a non-volatile storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD), flash memory, etc. The storage device 1003 stores an operating system and various programs for realizing the above-mentioned components.

[0126] The input I / F unit 1004 is a device for receiving input from a user. The input I / F unit 1004 is, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, various sensors, a wearable device, etc. The input I / F unit 1004 may be connected to the computer 1000 via an interface such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus).

[0127] The data I / F unit 1005 is a device for inputting data from outside the computer 1000. The data I / F unit 1005 is, for example, a drive device for reading data stored in various storage media. The data I / F unit 1005 may be provided outside the computer 1000. When the data I / F unit 1005 is provided outside the computer 1000, the data I / F unit 1005 is connected to the computer 1000 via an interface such as a USB.

[0128] The communication I / F unit 1006 is a device for performing data communication via a network such as the Internet, either wired or wirelessly, with devices external to the computer 1000. The communication I / F unit 1006 may be provided external to the computer 1000. When the communication I / F unit 1006 is provided external to the computer 1000, the communication I / F unit 1006 is connected to the computer 1000 via an interface such as a USB.

[0129] The display device 1007 is a device for displaying various types of information. The display device 1007 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, a display of a wearable device, or the like. The display device 1007 may be provided outside the computer 1000. When the display device 1007 is provided outside the computer 1000, the display device 1007 is connected to the computer 1000 via, for example, a display cable. Furthermore, when a touch panel is used as the input I / F unit 1004, the display device 1007 may be configured as an integral part of the input I / F unit 1004.

[0130] The above describes one embodiment of the present disclosure. The plant management system 100 sequentially acquires a first plurality of pieces of image information obtained by photographing plants grown in a cultivation facility at different times, evaluates the growth status of the plants for each specific area of ​​the first plurality of pieces of image information, and generates trace information that associates the evaluated growth status with the time of photographing. This allows the plant management system 100 to manage the growth status of the plants chronologically.

[0131] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can acquire growth environment information related to the growth environment of a plant and generate trace information that further associates the growth environment information. This allows the growth status and growth environment of a plant to be managed chronologically, and the user can understand the impact of the growth environment on the growth status of the plant.

[0132] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can sequentially acquire the second plurality of image information, evaluate the growth environment of the plant for each specific area of ​​the second plurality of image information, and acquire growth environment information related to the evaluated growth environment. This allows the plant management system 100 to manage the growth environment information evaluated based on the image information in chronological order.

[0133] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can acquire growth environment information from an external information processing system, thereby enabling the growth environment information managed by the external information processing system to be further managed in chronological order.

[0134] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can output control instruction information for executing control of the plant growth environment based on the trace information, thereby enabling the plant management system 100 to improve the growth environment.

[0135] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can output control instruction information for executing control to reduce variations in the plant growth environment among multiple specific areas, thereby enabling the plant management system 100 to improve the growth environment for each specific area.

[0136] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can identify at least one environmental item that contributes to the growth state of the plant based on the trace information and output control instruction information for executing control of the at least one environmental item. In this way, the plant management system 100 can control the environmental item that contributes to the growth state of the plant and improve the growth environment.

[0137] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 sequentially acquires a second plurality of pieces of image information captured at a predetermined interval shorter than the interval between captures of the first plurality of pieces of image information, and can evaluate the wind conditions for each specific area based on the movement of the plants in the second plurality of pieces of image information. This allows the plant management system 100 to manage the wind conditions and the growth status of the plants for each specific area in chronological order.

[0138] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can evaluate the surface temperature of the plants for each specific area, which allows the plant management system 100 to manage the surface temperature of the plants and the growth state of the plants over time.

[0139] Furthermore, the plant management system 100 can acquire growth environment information including area temperature information indicating the temperature of a predetermined area in the cultivation facility, thereby enabling the plant management system 100 to manage the temperature of the predetermined area and the growth state of the plant in chronological order.

[0140] It should be noted that the present embodiment is provided to facilitate understanding of the present disclosure and is not intended to limit the present disclosure. The present disclosure may be modified or improved without departing from the spirit thereof, and equivalents thereof are also included in the present disclosure.

[0141] In addition, in this disclosure, a "unit" does not simply mean a physical means, but also includes cases where the functions of the "unit" are realized by software. Furthermore, the functions of one "unit" or device may be realized by two or more physical means, devices, or software, and the functions of two or more "units" or devices may be realized by one physical means, device, or software.

[0142] 100 Plant management system, 102 Growth environment, 103 Plant, 104 Camera, 105 Trace information, 106 Cultivation shelf, 107 Cultivation panel, 108 Cultivation tank, 110 Memory unit, 120 First image acquisition unit, 130 State evaluation unit, 140 Second image acquisition unit, 150 Environment evaluation unit, 160 Environment acquisition unit, 170 Correspondence unit, 180 Item identification unit, 190 Control instruction output unit, 200 Photography system, 300 Administrator system, 400 Facility control system

Claims

1. A plant management system comprising: a first image acquisition unit that sequentially acquires a first plurality of image information photographed at different times of a plant cultivated in a cultivation facility, and associates the image information with the photographing time; a condition evaluation unit that evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific area of ​​the first plurality of image information; and a matching unit that generates trace information that matches the evaluated growth condition with the photographing time.

2. The plant management system of claim 1, further comprising an environment acquisition unit that acquires growth environment information regarding the growth environment of the plant, and the matching unit generates trace information that further matches the growth environment information.

3. A plant management system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a second image acquisition unit that sequentially acquires a second plurality of image information photographed at different times in association with the photographing time; and an environmental evaluation unit that evaluates the growth environment of the plant for each of the specific areas of the second plurality of image information, wherein the environmental acquisition unit acquires the growth environment information relating to the evaluated growth environment.

4. A plant management system according to claim 2, wherein the environment acquisition unit acquires the growth environment information from an external information processing system.

5. A plant management system as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a control instruction output unit that outputs control instruction information for executing control of the growth environment of the plant based on the trace information.

6. A plant management system as described in claim 5, wherein the control instruction output unit outputs the control instruction information for executing control to reduce variation in the growth environment of the plants among a plurality of specific areas.

7. The plant management system of claim 5, further comprising an item identification unit that identifies at least one environmental item related to the growth environment of the plant that contributes to the growth condition of the plant based on the trace information, and the control instruction output unit outputs control instruction information for executing control of the at least one environmental item.

8. The plant management system of claim 3, wherein the second image acquisition unit sequentially acquires the second plurality of image information captured at a predetermined shooting interval shorter than the shooting interval of the first plurality of image information, and the environmental evaluation unit evaluates the wind conditions for each of the specific areas based on the movement of the plants in the second plurality of image information.

9. The plant management system according to claim 3, wherein the environmental evaluation unit evaluates the surface temperature of the plants for each of the specific areas.

10. The plant management system according to claim 4, wherein the environment acquisition unit acquires the growth environment information including area temperature information indicating the temperature of a specified area of ​​the cultivation facility.

11. A plant management method, comprising: a computer sequentially acquiring a first plurality of image information photographed at different times of plants cultivated in a cultivation facility, corresponding to the photographing times; evaluating a growth condition of the plants for each specific area of ​​the first plurality of image information; and generating trace information that corresponds the evaluated growth condition to the photographing times.

12. A plant management program for causing a computer to implement the following: a first image acquisition unit that sequentially acquires a first plurality of image information photographed at different times of plants cultivated in a cultivation facility, and associates the image information with the photographing time; a condition evaluation unit that evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific area of ​​the first plurality of image information; and a matching unit that generates trace information that matches the evaluated growth condition with the photographing time.

13. A plant management device comprising: a first image acquisition unit that sequentially acquires a first plurality of image information photographed at different times of a plant cultivated in a cultivation facility by correlating the image information with the photographing time; a condition evaluation unit that evaluates the growth condition of the plant for each specific area of ​​the first plurality of image information; and a matching unit that generates trace information that matches the evaluated growth condition with the photographing time.