Gas Flow Rate Estimation via Image Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for estimating gas flow rates during leaks are complex and not easily applicable, particularly in determining the degree of danger associated with gas explosions.
Innovation Solution
A device and method that calculates gas flow rates by using an average movement vector to determine gas passage time and volume within an image, incorporating gas concentration thickness products to estimate the flow rate, with optional consideration of non-gas regions for accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the gas flow rate is estimated using the method in Patent Literature 1 (calculating mass leak rate from mass of gas cloud passing through virtual plane), then the gas flow rate can be estimated, but the estimation process becomes complex and difficult to apply easily
Solution Approach 1:
The gas cloud is segmented into multiple cross-sections along the flow direction, with each cross-section having its own concentration thickness product calculation. This allows the complex 3D gas cloud to be broken down into manageable 2D image analysis units, simplifying the overall estimation process while maintaining accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts only the necessary parameters (concentration thickness product and flow velocity) from the complex gas cloud data, eliminating the need to calculate the entire mass of the gas cloud. This extraction approach simplifies the estimation process by focusing only on the critical parameters needed for flow rate calculation
2Ease of operation
If the gas region is analyzed without considering non-gas regions, then the calculation is simpler, but the estimation accuracy decreases due to potential interruptions in the gas region
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the gas region analysis by detecting non-gas regions within the calculated gas region and excluding them from the concentration thickness product calculation. This dynamic adaptation allows the system to maintain calculation simplicity while improving accuracy by accounting for interruptions in the gas region
Solution Approach 2:
A determination unit acts as an intermediary between the gas region calculation and the concentration thickness product calculation. This intermediary detects and identifies non-gas regions, allowing the system to filter out inaccurate data points while maintaining the overall simplicity of the estimation process
Data Source
AI summary
A gas flow rate estimation device includes a first calculation unit that calculates, by using an average movement vector of a gas region included in an image, a gas passage time for leaked gas to pass through the gas region, a second calculation unit that calculates a gas volume in the gas region by using a gas concentration thickness product of the gas region, and a third calculation unit that calculates an estimated value of a flow rate of the gas by using the gas passage time and the gas volume.