Plate survey device and plate survey system

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a plate survey device and a plate survey system that are suitable for a plate survey at the boundary between a continental plate and an oceanic plate. [Solution] A plate survey device 1 is formed so as to be capable of underwater movement and comprises: a survey device body 10; and a movement distance acquisition device 23 that is provided to the survey device body 10 and acquires the movement distance of seabed plates (continental plate LP, oceanic plate HP). A plate survey system 100 comprises the plate survey device 1 and a calculation device 220 that calculates, from the movement distance of the seabed plates acquired by the movement distance acquisition device 23, a change in speed accompanying the movement of the seabed plates.

Description

Plate survey device and plate survey system

[0001] The present invention relates to a plate inspection device and a plate inspection system.

[0002] The applicant of the present application has disclosed, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, an energy supply system that uses an energy absorption device to absorb and utilize energy such as frictional energy caused by friction between plates at active faults, energy caused by the repulsion of land plates during earthquakes, and impact energy caused by the collision of land plates. This energy supply system requires investigation of the condition of plates at active faults, particularly at the boundary between the land plate and the ocean plate, such as whether the optimal amount of energy that can be absorbed by the energy absorption device is accumulated. Furthermore, the boundary between the land plate and the ocean plate is known to be located in the deep sea. Investigation of plates in the deep sea could utilize underwater propelled drones, such as those disclosed in Patent Document 2.

[0003] JP 2022-164500 A JP 2023-20057 A

[0004] Conventional underwater drones have not been suitable for investigating plates at the boundary between land and ocean plates. Even if conventional underwater drones were designed to be capable of traveling to the deep sea, they would not be suitable for investigating the extraction and utilization of energy from plates at active faults.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a plate surveying device and a plate surveying system suitable for surveying plates at the boundary between land plates and ocean plates.

[0006] The plate investigation device of the present invention is a plate investigation device that is configured to be movable underwater, and comprises an investigation device main body and a movement distance acquisition device that is provided on the investigation device main body and acquires the movement distance of the seabed plate.

[0007] The plate investigation system according to the present invention comprises the above-mentioned plate investigation device and a calculation device that calculates the change in velocity accompanying the movement of the seafloor plate from the movement distance of the seafloor plate acquired by the movement distance acquisition device.

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a plate investigation device and a plate investigation system that are suitable for investigating plates at the boundary between land plates and ocean plates.

[0009] Fig. 1 is an overall side view of a plate investigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which a plate investigation system according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed from land to sea; Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a plate investigation system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0010] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below. The plate investigation device 1 shown in Figure 1 is configured to be movable underwater. The plate investigation device 1 has an investigation device main body 10 that is roughly bullet-shaped. The head 11 of the investigation device main body 10 has a shape obtained by dividing an oval sphere in the longitudinal direction. In the following description, the head 11 side will be referred to as the front, the opposite side as the rear, and the left side when facing forward will be referred to as the left, and the right side as the right.

[0011] The investigation device main body 10 includes a housing made of a highly rigid α+β titanium alloy. This allows it to be propelled in the deep sea (for example, at depths of 6,000 m or more). The investigation device main body 10 can also be provided with a housing containing diamond or beryllium.

[0012] Robot arms 12 are provided on the left and right sides of the head 11 of the investigation device main body 10. The head 11 is also provided with an imaging window 13 for capturing moving images and still images using an imaging device (not shown) provided inside the investigation device main body 10. The head 11 is also provided above the imaging window 13 with an illumination window 14 for illuminating the imaging location, etc., using a lighting device (not shown) provided inside the investigation device main body 10.

[0013] The investigation device main body 10 is also provided with a steering device 20, a control device 21, a communication device 22, and a travel distance acquisition device 23. The steering device 20 includes a power unit (not shown) that generates propulsive force, such as a motor to which a screw is attached. The steering device 20 also includes a steering mechanism (not shown) that changes the direction in which the plate investigation device 1 propels. The steering mechanism can be configured, for example, by connecting the drive shaft of the motor or the like to the screw shaft with a ball joint or the like, so that the direction of the screw can be changed. Alternatively, the steering mechanism can be configured with a steering member (not shown) attached to the investigation device main body 10.

[0014] The control device 21 is configured with at least one processor, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and is configured to be able to control the steering device 20. For example, the control device 21 can operate the plate inspection device 1 by controlling the steering device 20 based on a control signal received via the communication device 22. In addition to controlling the steering device 20, the control device 21 can also be configured to control the operation of the robot arm 12, the imaging device, the lighting device, etc.

[0015] The communication device 22 is connected to the control device 21. The communication device 22 is configured to be capable of wireless communication with an external device. Alternatively, the communication device 22 can be configured to communicate with the external device via wired communication. The external device can be installed on land or mounted on a ship sailing at sea. This external device can be, for example, a controller that sends control signals to propel the plate investigation device 1, or a device that acquires position information from a GPS device 30 (described later) and performs various calculations to calculate results. When it is difficult for the plate investigation device 1 to communicate wirelessly directly with a base station on land or a ship at sea while sailing in the deep sea, the communication device 22 transmits and receives control signals and data via a repeater 400 (described later).

[0016] The travel distance acquisition device 23 includes a computer including a CPU and a GPS device 30, and is configured to be able to acquire the travel distance of the seafloor plate. The plate investigation device 1 can use the robot arm 12 to securely attach multiple GPS devices 30 to the seafloor plate. Here, the seafloor plate consists of a land plate LP and an ocean plate HP, as shown in FIG. 2, and the multiple GPS devices 30 can be securely attached to each of the land plate LP and the ocean plate HP near the boundary portion CP between the land plate LP and the ocean plate HP. The multiple GPS devices 30 are securely attached to the seafloor plate by one or more plate investigation devices 1.

[0017] Here, the GPS device 30 is a device that includes a GPS (Global Positioning System). The travel distance acquisition device 23 receives position information from each GPS device 30 at predetermined time intervals, and can acquire the travel distance of the seafloor plates (land plate LP, ocean plate HP) from the difference between the positions of each piece of position information.

[0018] The plate investigation system 100 includes a plate investigation device 1, a first base station 200 installed on land (land L), a second base station 300 mounted on a ship sailing on the sea (sea S), and a repeater 400 floating in the sea (sea S). As shown in FIG. 3, the first base station 200 includes a communication device 210 and a calculation device 220. The communication device 210 can exchange data with other base stations such as the second base station 300.

[0019] The calculation device 220 calculates the change in velocity accompanying the movement of the seafloor plate from the movement distance of the seafloor plate acquired by the movement distance acquisition device 23 of the plate investigation device 1. The calculation device 220 can be formed, for example, by executing a program on a PC (personal computer). The calculation device 220 can also calculate the acceleration accompanying the movement of the seafloor plate based on the change in velocity accompanying the movement of the seafloor plate.

[0020] The second base station 300 includes a communication device 310. The communication device 310 transmits location information received from the GPS device 30 via the repeater 400 to the first base station 200. The repeater 400 repeats radio waves when the radio waves do not sufficiently reach the multiple GPS devices 30 attached to the seabed plate. In other words, the repeater 400 relays data acquired by the travel distance acquisition device 23.

[0021] In the plate survey system 100, the travel distances of multiple GPS devices 30 attached to the seafloor plates are acquired as information indicating the travel distance of the seafloor plates (land plate LP, ocean plate HP), and this information is sent to the first base station 200 via the repeater 400 and the second base station 300. The calculation device 220 of the first base station 200 then calculates the velocity change associated with the movement of the seafloor plate from the travel distance of the seafloor plate. A change in the velocity of the seafloor plate, for example, when the speed of the seafloor plate suddenly slows or stops, is considered to indicate an increase in energy at the boundary portion CP between the land plate LP and ocean plate HP. This is because the frictional force at the boundary portion CP is increasing, applying a moving force to the land plate LP and ocean plate HP, but the land plate LP and ocean plate HP (especially the ocean plate HP) are considered to be in a stationary state.

[0022] The calculation device 220 can further identify locations where energy absorbing devices for absorbing the energy held by the seafloor plate should be installed by performing AI (artificial intelligence) processing based on the calculated velocity changes. That is, by machine learning a large amount of velocity change data and the amount of energy absorbed by the seafloor plate at the locations where the data was obtained, it is possible to install energy absorbing devices in locations where the seafloor plate holds a large amount of energy.

[0023] In addition to investigating the seafloor plates using the GPS device 30, the plate investigation system 100 can also investigate the following items by equipping it with corresponding measurement devices. For example, it can measure water pressure and water temperature and analyze their changes. It can also measure tidal currents, tidal power, brightness, geology, etc. In other words, it can be equipped with devices to investigate the state of the seafloor plates (state of magma) and conduct various investigations.

[0024] Furthermore, the power plant of the plate investigation device 1 can be of various types, and in particular can be a hydrogen engine or an EV engine. This allows for sustainable and stable private power generation. Furthermore, in addition to the main engine, the power plant can also be equipped with a spare engine for emergency response. The spare engine can be a gasoline engine. The positioning and navigation equipment of the plate investigation device 1 can also be viewed in 3D virtual images at a base station via a camera mounted on the plate investigation device 1, and an automatic adjustment device for true course, magnetic course, deviation, etc. can also be installed.

[0025] Furthermore, the plate investigation device 1 is configured to communicate with the second base station 300 via the repeater 400, but for example, the second base station 300 and the plate investigation device 1 can be connected by a wired cable. The cable can also be run underground from the land near the plate. Furthermore, multiple repeaters 400 can be installed at predetermined intervals.

[0026] The plate survey system 100 and the plate survey device 1 can conduct various surveys of the seafloor plates as well as various other seafloor and underwater surveys, such as surveys of seafloor water quality and surveys of marine resources, minerals, etc. Furthermore, by surveying the seafloor topography, tidal currents, etc., it is possible to create nautical charts, which can be used as an aid in the regulation of collisions at sea.

[0027] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment and can be implemented with various modifications.

[0028] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Plate investigation device 10 Investigation device main body 11 Head 12 Robot arm 13 Imaging window 14 Lighting window 20 Steering device 21 Control device 22 Communication device 23 Travel distance acquisition device 30 GPS device 100 Plate investigation system 200 First base station 210 Communication device 220 Calculation device 300 Second base station 310 Communication device 400 Repeater

Claims

1. A plate survey device formed to be movable in water, comprising a survey device main body and a moving distance acquisition device provided on the survey device main body for acquiring the moving distance of a submarine plate.

2. The plate survey device according to claim 1, wherein the survey device main body includes a housing made of an α+β type titanium alloy.

3. The plate survey device according to claim 1, further comprising a steering device including a steering mechanism and a power device for generating a propulsive force, a control device for controlling the steering device, and a communication device connected to the control device and formed to be communicable with an external device.

4. A plate survey system comprising the plate survey device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, and a calculation device for calculating a change in speed associated with the movement of the submarine plate from the moving distance of the submarine plate acquired by the moving distance acquisition device.

5. The plate survey system according to claim 4, wherein the calculation device performs AI processing based on the calculated change in speed to identify a position where an energy absorption device for absorbing the energy possessed by the submarine plate should be installed.

6. The plate survey system according to claim 4, further comprising a repeater for relaying data acquired by the moving distance acquisition device.

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