Utility pole management task assistance method and utility pole management task assistance system

Abstract

The present invention contributes to labor saving for a utility pole management task of a customer who manages utility poles.　This utility pole management task assistance system comprises: a calculation unit that calculates the total cost of a task to be improved, on the basis of the number of utility poles located in a data collection target area and the cost required for confirming the sites of the utility poles, these items of data being acquired from a customer; an agreement formation unit that multiplies the total cost by a prescribed contribution rate, calculates an amount of improvement achieved by automation of a site image collection task, presents the improvement amount to the customer, and forms an agreement with the customer; an image collection unit that, after formation of an agreement with the customer, implements collection of site images captured using a moving body on which a camera is mounted; a matching unit that, on the basis of a utility-pole image included in the site image and utility-pole information recorded in a utility pole management ledger belonging to the customer, identifies a utility pole in the utility pole management ledger, the utility pole corresponding to the utility pole image; and a utility pole information provision unit that configures a utility pole management database in which the image of the utility pole captured using the mobile body is added to the data in the utility pole management ledger belonging to the customer and provides the utility pole management database to the customer.

Description

Utility pole management support method and utility pole management support system

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and a system for supporting utility pole management work.

[0002] Utility pole inspections are carried out by electric power companies across Japan. It is said that there are 20 million of these utility poles across the country. However, the number of workers who inspect and install these utility poles is aging and decreasing, so there is a need to make inspection work more efficient.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses an example of a patrol inspection system. According to the document, in this patrol inspection system, an information terminal identifies the pole number of a utility pole that the system is about to pass by using images from a 360-degree camera and a GPS function during patrol, and determines whether or not there is an abnormality in the equipment to be inspected on that utility pole based on the detection results of an anomaly detection sensor. The document also describes that, upon receiving an instruction to end the patrol, the information terminal transmits the inspection results stored in the memory unit and images associated with the location information at the time of shooting to a management server.

[0004] JP 2019-32684 A

[0005] The information terminals described in Patent Document 1 are assumed to be car navigation systems installed in electric power company vehicles and mobile terminals such as smartphones and tablets owned by inspectors. This requires workers to travel to the site. In the future, the number of workers is expected to decrease further and the workers are aging, so drastic measures, including the use of external resources, are required.

[0006] The present disclosure aims to provide a method and system for supporting utility pole management operations that can contribute to reducing the labor required for utility pole management operations for customers who manage utility poles.

[0007] According to a first aspect, there is provided a method for supporting utility pole management work, which includes calculating the total cost of the work to be improved using at least the number of utility poles located in an area to be subject to data collection and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site, which are obtained from a customer who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger, multiplying this total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the amount of improvement achieved by automating the work of collecting site images, and presenting this to the customer, and after reaching an agreement with the customer, collecting site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera, and identifying the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole based on the image of the utility pole included in the site image and the information of the utility pole recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger, and constructing a utility pole management database in which the image of the utility pole taken by the mobile object is added to the data in the customer's utility pole management ledger, and providing this to the customer.

[0008] According to a second aspect, there is provided a support system for utility pole management work, comprising: a calculation unit that calculates the total cost of the work to be improved using at least the number of utility poles located in an area to be subject to data collection and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site, both of which are obtained from a customer who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger; a consensus building unit that multiplies the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the amount of improvement achieved by automating the work of collecting site images, presents this to the customer, and reaches an agreement with the customer; an image collection unit that, after reaching an agreement with the customer, collects site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera; a matching unit that identifies the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole, based on the image of the utility pole included in the site image and the information on the utility pole recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger; and a utility pole information provision unit that creates a utility pole management database in which the image of the utility pole taken by the mobile object is added to the data in the customer's utility pole management ledger, and provides this to the customer.

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to contribute to reducing the labor required for pole management operations for customers who manage utility poles.

[0010] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of a support system of the present disclosure. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the overall operation of one configuration of the present disclosure. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating detailed operation of one configuration of the present disclosure. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of another support system of the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating detailed operation of another configuration of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a computer constituting an information processing device of the present disclosure.

[0011] First, an overview of one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the reference numerals in this overview are added to each element for convenience as an example to facilitate understanding, and are not intended to limit the present disclosure to the illustrated form. Furthermore, connecting lines between blocks in the drawings and the like referred to in the following description include both bidirectional and unidirectional lines. Unidirectional arrows are used to schematically indicate the flow of main signals (data) and do not exclude bidirectionality. A program is executed via a computer device, which includes, for example, a processor, a storage device, an input device, a communication interface, and, if necessary, a display device. Furthermore, this computer device is configured to be able to communicate with internal or external devices (including computers) via the communication interface, whether wired or wireless. Furthermore, ports or interfaces are present at the input / output connection points of each block in the drawings, but are not shown.

[0012] In one embodiment, the present disclosure can be realized by a utility pole management support system 10, as shown in FIG. 1 , including a calculation unit 11, a consensus building unit 12, an image collection unit 13, a matching unit 14, and a utility pole information provision unit 15. More specifically, the calculation unit 11 calculates the total cost of the work to be improved using at least the number of utility poles located in the area to be collected, which are acquired from a customer who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger 20, and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site. The total cost of the work to be improved can be calculated, for example, by multiplying the number of utility poles by the cost required to inspect one utility pole on site. Of course, management fees and the like may also be added to the total cost of the work to be improved. The utility pole management ledger is a ledger that registers the type and location of each utility pole identified by its pole number or utility pole identification information. Of course, a database or the like that registers the type and location of each utility pole for purposes such as utility pole management can also be used as the utility pole management ledger.

[0013] The consensus building unit 12 multiplies the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the improvement amount resulting from automating the site image collection work, presents this to the customer, and reaches an agreement with the customer. The calculation unit 11 and the consensus building unit 12 can also be implemented by an estimate server published on the Internet. In this case, the estimate server receives input of the number of utility poles located in the data collection area and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site, then multiplies this by a predetermined contribution rate to present the improvement amount resulting from automating the site image collection work, and reaches an agreement. To calculate a more advanced improvement amount, a person in charge may visit the customer to interview them and estimate the improvement amount resulting from automating the site image collection work based on detailed information.

[0014] After reaching an agreement with the customer, the image collection unit 13 collects site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera. Specifically, when the image collection unit 13 receives site images from a designated mobile object, it sends the site images to the matching unit 14 and requests a match with the utility pole data registered in the utility pole management ledger 20. Note that the mobile object equipped with a camera may be a vehicle or an unmanned aerial vehicle (drone). Furthermore, cameras mounted on these mobile objects may also be cameras for dashcams or built-in cameras in smartphones. When using such devices, there is an advantage in that the captured images can be transmitted using the communication functions of these devices.

[0015] The matching unit 14 identifies the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the utility pole image based on the utility pole image included in the site image and the utility pole information recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger. The utility pole identification process can be performed, for example, by comparing the utility pole's location information (latitude and longitude) recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger with the shooting location information attached to the site image. If the comparison results in the two positions being close to each other, the matching unit 14 determines that the utility pole included in the site image is the same as the utility pole recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger. Of course, the method for determining the identity of utility poles is not limited to this. For example, the identity of the two may be determined by comparing the features of an image of a utility pole taken in advance with the features of an image of a utility pole captured in site images collected by the image collection unit 13, based on the identity of their shapes, the utility pole number obtained by character recognition, etc.

[0016] The utility pole information providing unit 15 creates a utility pole management database 21 (hereinafter referred to as the "utility pole management DB 21") by adding images of utility poles photographed by the mobile body to the data in the customer's utility pole management ledger 20, and provides utility pole information with on-site images in response to a request from the customer.

[0017] The utility pole management support system 10 (hereinafter abbreviated as "support system 10") configured as described above operates as follows: First, the support system 10 calculates the total cost of the work to be improved using the number of utility poles located in the area for which data collection has been input and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site (step S01 in FIG. 2).

[0018] Next, the support system 10 multiplies the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the improvement amount resulting from automating the site image collection work, presents this to the customer, and reaches an agreement with the customer (step S02 in FIG. 2). Here, the contribution rate is a rate used to convert the man-hours that can be reduced by automating the site image collection work into a monetary amount. For example, if the total cost of the work to be improved is 1 billion yen and the contribution rate is 50%, the improvement amount resulting from automating the site image collection work will be 500 million yen. The customer will compare this improvement amount with the service fee and decide whether or not to use the support service for site image collection work provided by the support system 10.

[0019] The contribution rate is preferably adjusted to an appropriate value depending on the size of the service area and the difficulty of on-site inspection. For example, if the service area is large, the customer's labor hours will be correspondingly large, so a high contribution rate can be set. Conversely, if the service area is small, the customer's labor hours will be small, so a low contribution rate can be set. Furthermore, the contribution rate may be increased or decreased based on regional characteristics in addition to the size of the service area. For example, in areas requiring more frequent inspections (e.g., areas with major roads, heavy traffic, or coastal areas where deterioration is rapid due to salt damage), it is preferable to set the contribution rate to a higher value than in other areas. Similarly, in snowy and cold regions, the cost of on-site inspection (traveling to the site) is high, so it is preferable to set the contribution rate to a higher value than in other areas. Furthermore, in areas with heavy traffic, the efficiency of on-site inspections is reduced due to traffic congestion, so it is preferable to set the contribution rate to a higher value than in other areas. Furthermore, depending on the season, snow accumulation and icing may cause the collected on-site images to become unclear. In this case, the amount of work required for the customer to be reduced will be small, so the contribution rate may be set to a low value. By setting the contribution rate appropriately in this way, it becomes easier to reach an agreement with the customer.

[0020] After reaching an agreement with the customer, the support system 10 collects site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera (step S11 in FIG. 3). The support system 10 then matches the information in the utility pole management ledger with the images of utility poles captured in the collected site images, thereby constructing the utility pole management DB 21 (step S12 in FIG. 3). The support system 10 repeats the operations of steps S11 and S12 until a predetermined number of utility poles have been identified.

[0021] Thereafter, when the customer's worker requests information about the specified utility pole using terminal T (step S21 in Figure 4), the support system 10 retrieves information including an image of the specified utility pole from the utility pole management DB 21 and sends it to the worker's terminal T (step S22 in Figure 4).

[0022] As explained above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to promote labor-saving in utility pole management work with the consent of the customer. The reason for this is that a system has been established in which the economic benefits to the customer are demonstrated, consent is obtained, and then on-site images can be taken by a mobile object and accumulated in the utility pole management DB.

[0023] [First Embodiment] Next, a first embodiment in which site images are collected using a vehicle as a moving body will be described. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing one configuration of the present disclosure. Referring to Fig. 5, the configuration includes a utility pole management support system 100 (hereinafter abbreviated as "support system 100") arranged on a cloud computing platform, a patrol vehicle 300 that transmits images to the support system 100, and a terminal T of a worker that receives site images from the support system 100.

[0024] The patrol vehicle 300 may be a vehicle operated by the operator of the support system 100, or may be a vehicle of a cooperating company that has a contract with the operator of the support system 100, a patrol vehicle of a local government, or a vehicle of a general user.

[0025] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the support system 100 of the present disclosure. Referring to Fig. 6, the support system 100 for utility pole management work is shown, which is configured to include an estimate server 100a and a utility pole management system 100b.

[0026] The estimate server 100a includes a calculation unit 101 and a consensus building unit 102. The calculation unit 101 presents a registration form to the customer's terminal, requesting the transmission of information necessary for the estimate, and calculates the total cost of the work to be improved based on the input content of this registration form. In the case of utility pole management work, the total cost of the work to be improved can be calculated based on the number of utility poles located in the area for which data is collected and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site. Of course, the method for calculating the total cost of the work to be improved is not limited to this method. For example, utility poles can be classified according to the difficulty of on-site inspection, and the total cost of the work to be improved can be calculated using the number of utility poles in each class and the on-site inspection cost for each class.

[0027] The consensus building unit 102 multiplies the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the improvement amount due to the automation of the site image collection work, presents this to the customer, and builds an agreement with the customer. One method for building an agreement with the customer is to place an order button or an email form launch button on a screen displaying the improvement amount due to the automation of the site image collection work, and have the customer operate these buttons. Of course, a "change quote conditions" button may be placed so that the customer can change the quote conditions, and a new quote can be created by changing the values ​​on the registration form.

[0028] The utility pole management system 100b includes an image collection unit 103, a matching unit 104, a utility pole information provision unit 105, and a utility pole management database 201 (hereinafter referred to as "utility pole management DB 201"). After reaching an agreement with the customer, the image collection unit 103 collects site images using a patrol vehicle 300 equipped with a camera and a positioning means. The positioning means for the patrol vehicle 300 can be a global positioning system (GPS) or a real-time kinematic (RTK). The patrol vehicle 300 travels along a pre-set course or the like and captures images of the surrounding area using the equipped camera. The patrol vehicle 300 then transmits the captured images to the support system 100. The patrol vehicle 300 also transmits position information measured by the positioning means to the support system 100. The image is linked to time information, and by comparing the time information with the location information, the location where the image was taken can be identified. Of course, the patrol vehicle 300 may perform a process of linking the location information to the transmitted image before transmitting the image.

[0029] The image collection unit 103 extracts site images from the images taken by the patrol vehicle 300 as described above and sends them to the matching unit 104. Although omitted in the example of Fig. 6, a storage device may be provided to store the images received from the patrol vehicle 300 for a certain period of time.

[0030] The matching unit 104 identifies the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the utility pole photographed by the patrol vehicle 300, based on the image of the utility pole included in the site image and the utility pole information recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger 200. The utility pole identification process can be performed, for example, by comparing the utility pole's location information (latitude and longitude) recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger with the photographing location information attached to the site image. If the comparison shows that the two positions are close to each other, the matching unit 104 determines that the utility pole included in the site image is the utility pole listed in the utility pole management ledger. Note that the method for determining the identity of utility poles is not limited to this. For example, the identity of the two may be determined by comparing the features of an image of a utility pole photographed in advance with the features of an image of a utility pole captured in the site image collected by the image collection unit 13, based on the identity of their shapes, the utility pole number obtained by character recognition, etc. Finally, the matching unit 104 sends a combination of the on-site image and the contents of the utility pole management ledger to the utility pole information providing unit 105. At this time, the matching unit 104 may be configured to send to the utility pole information providing unit 105 a plurality of images sent from the patrol vehicle 300 in association with the utility poles in the utility pole management ledger.

[0031] The utility pole information providing unit 105 uses the information identified by the matching unit 104 to create a utility pole management DB 201 in which images of utility poles photographed by the mobile body are added to the data in the customer's utility pole management ledger 20. When multiple images of a utility pole in the utility pole management ledger are sent from the matching unit 104, the utility pole information providing unit 105 adds these multiple images to the utility pole management database. In this way, it is possible to enrich the images of utility poles registered in the utility pole management database. Furthermore, the utility pole information providing unit 105 provides utility pole information with on-site images in response to a request from the worker's terminal T.

[0032] 6, the utility pole management ledger 200 is stored on the customer side, but the utility pole management ledger 200 may be located on a cloud platform or on the utility pole management system 100b side. Also, the utility pole management DB 201 may be located on the utility pole management system 100b side, or may be located on a cloud platform.

[0033] Next, the overall operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the overall operation of one configuration. Referring to Fig. 7, first, the quotation server 100a analyzes the business to be improved based on information acquired from the customer, and calculates the total cost of the business to be improved (step S001).

[0034] Next, the estimate server 100a presents the customer with the amount of improvement that can be achieved by automating the work of collecting site images, and forms an agreement with the customer (step S002).

[0035] After reaching an agreement with the customer, the utility pole management system 100b begins preparation for the service. Specifically, the patrol vehicle 300 is instructed to transmit the captured images to the utility pole management system 100b (step S003). This instruction to transmit the images to the utility pole management system 100b does not have to be explicit. For example, it may be possible to transmit to the passenger of the patrol vehicle 300 authentication information required to transmit images to the utility pole management system 100b, information regarding compensation for providing the images, and the like. In this case, the vehicles that can participate in the system as the patrol vehicle 300 may be expanded to include vehicles of users who have received the authentication information, rather than specific, predetermined vehicles.

[0036] Thereafter, the utility pole management system 100b receives on-site images from the patrol vehicle 300 (step S004). Then, the utility pole management system 100b links the received on-site images with the utility pole management ledger and updates the utility pole management DB 201 (step S005).

[0037] Before going to the site, the customer's worker uses the terminal T to access the utility pole management system 100b and check images of the site, etc. (Step S006). Then, after checking the site conditions and the state of the utility pole, the customer's worker heads to the site and performs on-site work.

[0038] Figure 8 is a diagram for explaining the detailed operations of steps S004 to S005 in Figure 7. In the example of Figure 8, GPS information is used as the location information. As described above, the patrol vehicle 300 travels along a pre-set course or the like and captures images of the surrounding area using an on-board camera. Then, while traveling or after completing the travel, the patrol vehicle 300 transmits the images and location information (GPS information) to the utility pole management system 100b (step S101).

[0039] The images and location information (GPS information) transmitted from the patrol vehicle 300 are received by the image collection unit 103 of the utility pole management system 100b (step S101).The utility pole management system 100b then matches the received on-site images with data in the utility pole management ledger, and updates the utility pole management DB 201 (step S103).

[0040] Meanwhile, before going to the site, the customer's worker uses terminal T to access utility pole management system 100b and search for utility poles to be inspected and repaired (step S104). Utility pole management system 100b searches utility pole management DB 201 and transmits information including an image of the relevant utility pole to terminal T. The customer's worker checks the contents of the utility pole information including the image of the utility pole received from utility pole management system 100b (step S105).

[0041] As described above, this embodiment makes it possible to reduce the work required for site inspections and pole condition checks, which account for a large proportion of a customer's utility pole management operations. Furthermore, this embodiment allows workers to view site images and make appropriate preparations, thereby preventing work difficulties due to a lack of tools or delays in arranging with other subcontractors. For example, if a utility pole is covered with tree branches, the customer's workers can prepare pruning shears or request a tree pruning company to prune the trees before heading to the site. Depending on the contribution rate when calculating the improvement amount presented to the customer in step S002, the total benefit received by these customers is expected to exceed the improvement amount. This is because the number of utility poles and their inspection costs are used in calculating the improvement amount, and the support system 100 prevents rework due to insufficient site inspections and unintended additional work.

[0042] [Second embodiment] Next, a second embodiment will be described in which a function for extracting utility poles to be inspected and notifying customers is added to the utility pole management system 100b. Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the detailed configuration of another support system of the present disclosure. The difference from the configuration example shown in Fig. 5 is that an inspection target extraction unit 106 has been added to the utility pole management system 100c. The other configuration is the same as the configuration in Fig. 5, so the following description will focus on the differences.

[0043] The inspection target extraction unit 106 extracts utility poles requiring inspection using the collected site images at a predetermined time interval X (second time interval) and notifies the customer. This time interval X (second time interval) is preferably equal to or longer than the time interval (first time interval) at which the patrol vehicle 300 patrols the target utility pole. The reason for setting the predetermined time interval X (second time interval) long is that changes in the image will not appear unless the time interval is equal to or longer than the time interval at which the patrol vehicle 300 patrols the target utility pole. More preferably, the inspection target extraction unit 106 can extract utility poles requiring inspection when the information in the utility pole management DB 201 is updated, i.e., synchronized with the patrol of the patrol vehicle 300. In this way, it is possible to determine whether or not each utility pole requires inspection using the latest site images added to the utility pole management DB 201.

[0044] 10 is a diagram for explaining the additional operation of the utility pole management system 100b. As shown in Fig. 10, the utility pole management system 100b extracts utility poles that require inspection using the collected site images at predetermined time intervals X (second time intervals) (step S201).

[0045] Next, the utility pole management system 100b notifies the terminal T of the customer's worker of the presence of the extracted utility pole to be inspected (step S202).

[0046] The customer's worker who has received the notification uses terminal T to access utility pole management system 100b and request information about the notified utility pole (step S203). Utility pole management system 100b searches utility pole management DB 201 and transmits information including an image of the relevant utility pole to terminal T. The customer's worker checks the contents of the utility pole information including the image of the utility pole received from utility pole management system 100b (step S204). The customer's worker then begins preparations for the inspection work.

[0047] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to create plans for the inspection and renewal of utility poles using information accumulated in the utility pole management DB 201. Furthermore, when extracting utility poles to be inspected, it is also preferable to narrow down the utility poles that require inspection through prior machine learning. In this way, it is possible to optimize the inspection cycle and reduce the costs required for inspection.

[0048] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and further modifications, substitutions, and adjustments can be made without departing from the basic technical concept of the present disclosure. For example, the network configurations, element configurations, and data representation formats shown in the drawings are examples intended to aid in understanding the present disclosure, and are not limited to the configurations shown in these drawings.

[0049] For example, in the first and second embodiments described above, the patrol vehicle 300 is used as the mobile body, but the mobile body may be an unmanned aerial vehicle, a public transportation vehicle, or the like.

[0050] Furthermore, in the above-described first and second embodiments, examples have been described in which the object of management is a utility pole, but the present disclosure can also be applied to the inspection of facilities other than utility poles. Examples of such facilities include road signs, manholes, traffic signals, electronic bulletin boards, and machinery installed on sidewalks. In other words, the present disclosure can also be applied to support the inspection of facilities other than utility poles.

[0051] (Hardware Configuration) In each embodiment of the present disclosure, each component of each device represents a functional unit block. Some or all of the components of each device are realized by an arbitrary combination of an information processing device 900 and a program, for example, as shown in FIG. 11 . FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing device 900 that realizes each component of each device. The information processing device 900 includes, as an example, the following configuration: - CPU (Central Processing Unit) 901 - ROM (Read Only Memory) 902 - RAM (Random Access Memory) 903 - Program 904 loaded into RAM 903 - Storage device 905 that stores the program 904 - Drive device 907 that reads and writes to a recording medium 906 - Communication interface 908 that connects to a communication network 909 - Input / output interface 910 that inputs and outputs data - Bus 911 that connects each component

[0052] Each component of each device in each embodiment is realized by the CPU 901 acquiring and executing a program 904 that realizes these functions. That is, the CPU 901 in FIG. 11 executes a utility pole image matching program and an information provision program, and performs an update process for each calculation parameter stored in the RAM 903, storage device 905, etc. The program 904 that realizes the function of each component of each device is stored in advance in, for example, the storage device 905 or ROM 902, and is read out by the CPU 901 as needed. The program 904 may be supplied to the CPU 901 via the communication network 909, or may be stored in advance in the recording medium 906, and the drive device 907 may read out the program and supply it to the CPU 901.

[0053] There are various variations in the method of realizing each device. For example, each device may be realized by any combination of a separate information processing device 900 and a program for each component. Furthermore, multiple components provided in each device may be realized by any combination of a single information processing device 900 and a program. In other words, each unit (processing means, function) of the utility pole management work support system 100 shown in the first and second embodiments can be realized by a computer program that causes a processor installed in the device to execute each of the above-mentioned processes using its hardware.

[0054] In addition, some or all of the components of each device may be realized by other general-purpose or dedicated circuits, processors, etc., or a combination of these. These may be configured by a single chip, or by multiple chips connected via a bus.

[0055] Some or all of the components of each device may be realized by a combination of the above-mentioned circuits and programs.

[0056] When some or all of the components of each device are realized by multiple information processing devices, circuits, etc., the multiple information processing devices, circuits, etc. may be centrally or decentralized. For example, the information processing devices, circuits, etc. may be realized as a client-server system, a cloud computing system, or the like, in a form in which each device is connected via a communication network.

[0057] It should be noted that the above-described embodiments are preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to only the above-described embodiments. In other words, those skilled in the art can modify or substitute the above-described embodiments to construct various modified forms without departing from the gist of the present disclosure.

[0058] A part or all of the above-described embodiments can be described as, but not limited to, the following supplementary notes.

[0059] [Appendix 1] A method of supporting utility pole management operations, comprising: calculating the total cost of the operations to be improved based on the number of utility poles located in an area for which data is to be collected and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site, obtained from a customer who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger; multiplying the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the amount of improvement achieved by automating the work of collecting on-site images, and presenting this to the customer; after reaching an agreement with the customer, collecting on-site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera; identifying the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole, based on the image of the utility pole included in the on-site images and the information of the utility pole recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger; constructing a utility pole management database in which the image of the utility pole taken by the mobile object is added to the data in the customer's utility pole management ledger, and providing this to the customer. [Appendix 2] The above-mentioned method for supporting utility pole management work can take the form of: utility poles in the utility pole management ledger are linked with location information; and the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger corresponding to the image of the utility pole is identified by comparing the location information with the location information of the mobile body. [Appendix 3] The above-mentioned method for supporting utility pole management work can further take the form of adjusting the value of the contribution rate according to the size of the area for which data is collected or the characteristics of the region. [Appendix 4] The above-mentioned method for supporting utility pole management work can take the form of: having the mobile body patrol at a first time interval and continuing to collect the site images; and using the collected site images at a second time interval, extracting utility poles requiring inspection and notifying the customer. [Appendix 5] The above-mentioned method for supporting utility pole management work can take the form of adding, as the site images, a plurality of images of the area around the utility pole taken by the mobile body to the utility pole management database.[Supplementary Note 6] A support system for utility pole management work, comprising: a calculation unit that calculates the total cost of work to be improved based on the number of utility poles located in an area for which data collection is to be performed, and the cost required to inspect the utility poles on site, both of which are obtained from a customer who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger; a consensus building unit that multiplies the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the amount of improvement achieved by automating the work of collecting site images, presents this to the customer, and reaches an agreement with the customer; an image collection unit that collects site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera after reaching an agreement with the customer; a matching unit that identifies a utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole, based on the image of the utility pole included in the site images and the information of the utility pole recorded in the customer's utility pole management ledger; and a utility pole information provision unit that creates a utility pole management database by adding images of utility poles taken by the mobile object to the data in the customer's utility pole management ledger, and provides this to the customer. [Appendix 7] The utility poles in the utility pole management ledger of the utility pole management support system described above are linked with location information, and the matching unit can be configured to identify the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole by comparing the location information with the location information of the mobile body. [Appendix 8] The consensus building unit of the utility pole management support system described above can be configured to use a contribution rate adjusted according to the size of the area from which the data is collected or the characteristics of the region. [Appendix 9] The image collection unit of the utility pole management support system described above can patrol the mobile body at a first time interval and continue to collect the site images, and the utility pole management support system described above can further be configured to include an inspection target notification unit that uses the collected site images at a second time interval to extract utility poles that require inspection and notify the customer. [Appendix 10] The utility pole management support system described above can be configured to add multiple images of the area around the utility pole taken by the mobile body as the site images to the utility pole management database. The embodiments described in the above appendices can be combined with each other after necessary modifications are made. For example, a configuration that combines the contents of appendices 2 and 3 is also included in the scope of disclosure of this specification.

[0060] The disclosures of the above-cited patent documents are incorporated herein by reference and may be used as the basis or part of this disclosure, as necessary. Modifications and adjustments of the embodiments and examples are possible within the scope of this disclosure (including the claims), and further based on its basic technical concept. Furthermore, various combinations and selections (including partial deletions) of various disclosed elements (including elements of each claim, each element of each embodiment or example, each element of each drawing, etc.) are possible within the scope of this disclosure. In other words, this disclosure naturally includes various modifications and alterations that would be possible by a person skilled in the art in accordance with the entire disclosure, including the claims, and the technical concept. In particular, with regard to the numerical ranges described herein, any numerical value or subrange within that range should be construed as specifically described, even if not otherwise specified. Furthermore, the disclosures of the above-cited documents, when used in part or in whole in combination with the disclosures herein as part of this disclosure, in accordance with the spirit of this disclosure, are also deemed to be included in the disclosures of this application.

[0061] 10, 100 Utility pole management work support system 11, 101 Calculation unit 12, 102 Consensus formation unit 13, 103 Image collection unit 14, 104 Matching unit 15, 105 Utility pole information provision unit 20, 200 Utility pole management ledger 21, 201 Utility pole management DB 100a Estimation server 100b, 100c Utility pole management system 106 Inspection target extraction unit 300 Patrol vehicle 900 Information processing device 901 CPU (Central Processing Unit) 902 ROM (Read Only Memory) 903 RAM (Random Access Memory) 904 Program 905 Storage device 906 Recording medium 907 Drive device 908 Communication interface 909 Communication network 910 Input / output interface 911 Bus T Terminal

Claims

1. A method of supporting utility pole management operations, comprising: calculating a total cost of the operations to be improved using at least the number of utility poles located in the area to be collected data and the cost required for on-site inspection of the utility poles, obtained from a client who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger; multiplying the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the amount of improvement achieved by automating the on-site image collection operations, and presenting this to the client; after reaching an agreement with the client, collecting on-site images using a mobile object equipped with a camera; identifying the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole, based on the image of the utility pole included in the on-site images and the utility pole information recorded in the client's utility pole management ledger; constructing a utility pole management database in which the image of the utility pole taken by the mobile object is added to the data in the client's utility pole management ledger, and providing this to the client.

2. A method for supporting utility pole management operations as claimed in claim 1, in which location information is linked to the utility poles in the utility pole management ledger, and the location information is collated with location information of the mobile body to identify the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole.

3. The method for supporting utility pole management operations according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising adjusting the value of said contribution rate according to the size of the area for which said data is collected or the characteristics of the region.

4. A method for supporting utility pole management operations according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising the steps of: patrolling the mobile body at a first time interval and continuing to collect site images; and extracting utility poles requiring inspection using the collected site images at a second time interval and notifying the customer.

5. A method for supporting utility pole management operations according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising adding a plurality of images of the surroundings of the utility pole taken by the mobile body as the on-site images to the utility pole management database.

6. A support system for utility pole management operations, comprising: a calculation unit that calculates the total cost of the operations to be improved using at least the number of utility poles located in the area to be collected data, obtained from a customer who manages utility poles using a utility pole management ledger, and the cost required for on-site inspection of the utility poles; a consensus building unit that multiplies the total cost by a predetermined contribution rate to calculate the amount of improvement achieved by automating the collection of on-site images, presents the amount to the customer, and reaches an agreement with the customer; an image collection unit that collects on-site images using a mobile body equipped with a camera after reaching an agreement with the customer; a matching unit that identifies a utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole, based on the image of the utility pole included in the on-site images and the information on the utility pole recorded in the utility pole management ledger of the customer; and a utility pole information provision unit that creates a utility pole management database in which the image of the utility pole taken by the mobile body is added to the data in the utility pole management ledger of the customer, and provides the database to the customer.

7. A support system for utility pole management operations as claimed in claim 6, wherein location information is linked to the utility poles in the utility pole management ledger, and the matching unit identifies the utility pole in the utility pole management ledger that corresponds to the image of the utility pole by comparing the location information with the location information of the moving body.

8. A support system for utility pole management operations according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the consensus building unit uses a contribution rate adjusted according to the size of the area for which the data is collected or the characteristics of the region.

9. A support system for utility pole management operations according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the image collection unit patrols the mobile body at a first time interval and continues to collect on-site images, and further comprises an inspection target notification unit that extracts utility poles requiring inspection using the collected on-site images at a second time interval and notifies the customer.

10. A support system for utility pole management operations according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein a plurality of images of the surroundings of the utility pole taken by the mobile body are added to the utility pole management database as the on-site images.

Images