JP2006105745A - Outdoor installed type data collector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve environmental resistance performance of an outdoor installation type data collector, using a further compact constitution. <P>SOLUTION: This outdoor installed type data collector has a casing, having a cylindrical body part 32 for storing a main device part for forming at least a part of an information acquiring means and a transmission means and opening at least upward and an umbrella part 31 for covering the body part 32 from above, and a fan 41 for generating ventilation flow in the casing; and exhausts air in the casing from clearance between the body part 32 and the umbrella part 31. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an outdoor installation type data collection apparatus that is installed outdoors on a farm, a ranch or the like, and acquires weather data such as temperature, humidity, and amount of solar radiation of the farm.

In recent years, with the rapid advancement of IT, there is an increasing demand for installing electronic devices and network devices outdoors. Specifically, for example, if you want to observe weather on a farm and take appropriate measures on crops, or control indoor air conditioners etc. based on the temperature and humidity observed outdoors to save energy. There are cases where you want to.
JP 2002-183242 A

  However, conventionally, when such electronic devices are installed outdoors, a form in which the electronic devices and the like are housed in a casing having a strong outer casing and measures for air conditioning and sunshine has been adopted. In addition to being large, there was a problem that the beauty was impaired.

  On the other hand, if the configuration is more compact, air conditioning and sunshine countermeasures cannot be adequately taken, and there is a concern that malfunctions may occur in built-in electronic devices, such as the temperature inside the housing rising. .

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to improve the environmental resistance performance of an outdoor installation type data collection device with a more compact configuration.

  The invention according to claim 1 is an outdoor installation type data collection device comprising information acquisition means for acquiring outdoor environmental information and transmission means for transmitting the acquired environmental information through an electric communication line. A cylindrical body portion that houses at least a part of the information acquisition means and the transmission means and opens upward, and an umbrella portion that covers the body portion from above with a predetermined gap. , And a ventilation fan that generates a ventilation flow in the casing, and the air in the casing is discharged from the gap between the trunk portion and the umbrella portion.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the outdoor-installed data collection device, the umbrella portion has a bottomed cylindrical shape, opens downward, and has a predetermined upper and side portions of the trunk portion. It is characterized by covering with a gap.

  The invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that, in the outdoor installation type data collecting apparatus, a rib projecting further upward from the upper opening is provided on the trunk portion, and the umbrella portion is attached to the rib. To do.

  In the invention of claim 4, the main device part includes an electronic circuit board on which electronic components are mounted, and the electronic circuit board has a posture in which the board surface is along the flow direction of the ventilation flow in the trunk part. It is characterized by being arranged.

  In the invention of claim 5, the information acquisition means includes a sensor for detecting a property of the outside air, and the sensor is arranged at a position upstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the main unit. And

  In the invention of claim 6, the ventilation fan is disposed at a position upstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the main unit and downstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the sensor. .

  The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that at least a part of the casing is transparent, and the information acquisition means includes a sunshine sensor arranged inside the transparent portion of the casing.

  In the invention of claim 8, there is provided control information generating means for generating control information for controlling the indoor equipment from the information acquired by the information acquiring means, and the transmitting means transmits the control information. Features.

  The invention according to claim 9 is characterized in that a connector for connecting a sensor outside the casing to the main unit is provided on the lower surface of the casing.

  The invention according to claim 10 is characterized in that a leg portion for separating the casing from the ground is provided, and a water tap and / or a power outlet is provided on the leg portion.

  The invention of claim 11 is characterized in that a control means for controlling opening and closing of the water tap is provided.

  The invention according to claim 12 is characterized in that at least a part of the casing is transparent, and the information acquisition means includes a camera disposed inside the transparent portion of the casing.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the casing can be configured relatively simply by the cylindrical body portion and the umbrella portion covering the upper portion thereof, and the ventilation fan is provided. The temperature rise in the casing due to heat generation can be suppressed. Furthermore, since air is discharged from the gap between the trunk portion and the umbrella portion, the intrusion of rainwater from the exhaust passage can be suppressed.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to form an exhaust path directed downward by a gap formed by the outer surface of the trunk portion and the inner surface of the umbrella portion, and it is possible to more reliably suppress the intrusion of rainwater. Moreover, since the umbrella part is spaced apart from the trunk part with a predetermined gap, heat from direct sunlight is less likely to be conducted from the umbrella part, and temperature rise in the casing can be further suppressed.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to form a gap between the upper end of the trunk portion and the ceiling surface of the umbrella portion with a relatively simple configuration using ribs.

  According to the invention of claim 4, since the electronic circuit board is disposed in such a manner that the board surface is in a posture along the flow direction of the ventilation flow in the trunk part, the components of the main apparatus part mounted on the board and the board itself are easily cooled. Therefore, the temperature rise in the casing can be further suppressed.

  According to the invention of claim 5, since the sensor for detecting the property of the outside air is arranged at a position upstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the main device part, it is possible to suppress the influence of heat generation of the main device part on the sensor. Therefore, it is possible to detect the external air properties with higher accuracy.

  According to the invention of claim 6, since the ventilation fan is arranged between the main device part and the sensor and the main device part and the sensor are isolated by the ventilation fan, the influence of the heat of the main device part is exerted on the sensor. Can be further suppressed, and the property of the outside air can be detected with higher accuracy.

  According to the invention of claim 7, since the sunshine sensor is arranged inside the transparent part of the casing, the sunshine sensor can be protected inside the casing, and the durability can be improved.

  According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, since the control information generating means for generating the control information for controlling the indoor equipment is provided, the indoor equipment can be controlled according to the outdoor environment, and the energy of the indoor equipment can be controlled. Can be reduced.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, since the connector for connecting the sensor outside the casing to the main device portion is provided on the lower surface of the casing, various sensors can be retrofitted and the expandability becomes high, so that It is possible to collect more suitable data.

  According to the invention of claim 10, since the water faucet or the power outlet is provided in the leg portion, the work using water or the electric appliance can be performed more easily near the outdoor installation type data collecting device. .

  According to the invention of claim 11, since the control means for controlling the opening and closing of the water tap is provided, watering can be automatically performed.

  According to the invention of claim 12, since the camera is housed in the casing, it is possible to check the situation near the installation location with a still image or a moving image, and to improve the durability of the camera by the amount that can be protected in the casing. be able to.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network system using outdoor information.

  The network system 1 in FIG. 1 includes an indoor device 2 provided indoors, a data collection device 3 provided outdoors, and a totaling server provided on the side of a totalizer that totals data collected by the data collection device 3 4 and an analysis server 5 provided on the side of the analyst who analyzes the data aggregated by the aggregation server 4 using an analysis technique such as statistical processing. Information is mutually communicable via the telecommunication line 6.

  The indoor device 2 can be configured as a general-purpose information processing device such as a personal computer, a mobile phone, or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant). In this case, a function for browsing, transmitting and receiving various information via the telecommunication line 6, A computer program for realizing the function of remotely operating the data collection device 3 via the telecommunication line 6 is installed. Alternatively, the indoor device 2 may be included as a device to be controlled by the network system 1, such as an air conditioner, a lighting fixture, an electric curtain, or an electric blind.

  The data collection device 3 operates by collecting power from a power source (not shown) such as a solar panel, a wind power generation system, a 100V power source, a 12V battery, etc. via a power source circuit (not shown). Various types of outdoor data can be transmitted to other devices via the telecommunication line 6. Here, as outdoor data (environmental information) that can be handled by the data collection device 3, for example, data indicating the outdoor environment (data indicating the nature of the outside air (for example, temperature, humidity, etc.), light intensity, rainfall, wind speed, etc. ) And camera images. Further, the data collection device 3 is configured to be remotely operable from the indoor device 2 or the like via the telecommunication line 6. A specific configuration of the data collection device 3 will be described in detail later.

  The aggregation server 4 is configured by a general-purpose information processing device such as a workstation, and has a function of receiving information detected by the data collection device 3, a function of counting the received information in a predetermined format, and an analysis server 5 A computer program for realizing a function for transmitting to a computer is installed.

  The analysis server 5 is configured by a general-purpose information processing device such as a workstation, and is required by analyzing the received information using an analysis technique such as statistical processing, a function of receiving information transmitted from the aggregation server 4 A computer program for realizing a function of extracting the information and a function of transmitting the extracted information to the indoor device 2 is installed.

  For example, the network system 1 can be configured as a crop cultivation support system. In this case, the data collection device 3 is installed on the farmland and collects data (sunshine, temperature, humidity, camera images, etc.) related to the cultivation of the crops, and the aggregation server 4 performs data in a predetermined format for each farmhouse. The analysis server 5 extracts information on suitable farming conditions and farming conditions corresponding to the data based on the collected data, and general-purpose information processing in which the extracted data is installed in the farmer It is transmitted to the indoor device 2 as a device. This has the advantage that the productivity, safety, and quality stability of the crops are improved.

  Next, the data collection device according to the present embodiment will be described. 2 is an external view of the data collection device, FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the main part of the data collection device, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the main part of the data collection device.

  The data collection device 3 that exhibits a pole-like appearance as a whole has a casing 21 on a pole-like leg portion 33 installed on the ground. In the casing 21, information acquisition means and transmission means are provided. A main device part that constitutes at least a part of a functioning electronic device is accommodated.

  The casing 21 has at least a cylindrical trunk portion 32 that opens upward, and an umbrella portion 31 that covers the trunk portion 32 from above. Specifically, the trunk portion 32 is formed in a cylindrical shape, while the umbrella portion 31 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape that opens downward, and the umbrella portion 31 has a predetermined upper side and a lateral side of the trunk portion 32. It is a so-called nested structure that is arranged so as to cover with a gap. The body portion 32 is provided with a plurality (for example, four) of ribs 42 that protrude further upward from the upper opening, and the bottom surface (ceiling surface) of the umbrella portion 31 is brought into contact with the upper end of the rib 42. It is attached with screws. In the present embodiment, the rib 42 extends in the vertical direction adjacent to the inner peripheral surface of the body portion 32.

  And in this embodiment, in addition to this casing 21, the leg part 33 has also comprised the hollow structure. An air introduction hole 45 is formed in the side wall of the leg portion 33, and a fan 41 is provided at the lower portion (bottom portion) of the body portion 32 to generate an air flow upward in the body portion 32. The inner space of the trunk portion 32 and the inner space of the leg portion 33 communicate with each other through a through hole provided in the bottom wall of the trunk portion 32. Accordingly, the air enters the space inside the leg portion 33 from the air introduction hole 45 and flows upward, further flows upward in the space inside the trunk portion 32, and then turns back at the upper end of the trunk portion 32. It flows downward through the gap between the outer surface of the umbrella portion 31 and the inner surface of the umbrella portion 31, and is discharged from the discharge port 43 at the lower end of the umbrella portion 31. Note that a filter 49 is provided in the air introduction hole 45, and dust and dust are prevented from entering the casing 21. The filter 49 may be made of a gas permeable material that allows gas to pass therethrough and does not allow liquid to pass therethrough, so that the penetration of moisture into the leg portion 33 may be suppressed.

  The main device section roughly includes an electronic circuit board section and a camera 51, and is disposed above the fan 41 in the trunk section 32, that is, at a position downstream of the fan 41.

  The electronic circuit board portion includes a CPU board 34 and an interface board 38, and these boards 34 and 38 are coupled to each other in parallel with a predetermined gap via a bar-shaped spacer 44. The substrates 34 and 38 are arranged so that the surfaces thereof are in the vertical direction, that is, the flow direction of the ventilation flow. Specifically, one of the substrates 34 and 38 (in the present embodiment, the interface substrate 38) has a holding groove 52 extending in the vertical direction at a position facing each other on the inner peripheral surface of the body portion 32. Thus, both surfaces of the substrates 34 and 38 are arranged in the vertical direction.

  Mounted on the CPU board 34 are a CPU 35 for performing various types of arithmetic processing, a memory 36 for storing arithmetic processing programs and acquired data, a wireless LAN card 37 for transmitting and receiving data to and from external devices as transmission means, and the like. Has been. At this time, the CPU 35 may function as control information generating means for generating control information for controlling the indoor device 2 such as an air conditioner.

  On the other hand, on the interface board 38, a connector 39 for connecting a temperature sensor 46, a humidity sensor 47, a sunshine sensor 48 and a camera 51 as information acquisition means to a mounting circuit (CPU 35, memory 36, etc.) on the CPU board 34. In addition, an A / D converter 40 that converts analog data acquired by the sensors 46, 47, and 48 into digital data that can be processed by the CPU board 34 is mounted.

  The camera 51 is installed in the trunk portion 32 above the fan 41, that is, at a position downstream of the fan 41. Since the trunk portion 32 is made of a transparent material (for example, resin), the camera 51 can acquire a still image or a moving image indicating the situation near the installation location of the data collection device 3 (outside). The acquired data is transmitted from the wireless LAN card 37 as a transmission means to the aggregation server 4 or the like via the electric communication line 6.

  The temperature sensor 46 and the humidity sensor 47 as sensors for detecting the external air property are installed below the fan 41, that is, at a position upstream of the fan 41. In the present embodiment, it is arranged in the body portion 32.

  The sunshine sensor 48 is attached to the ceiling surface of the umbrella part 31. Since the umbrella part 31 is also made of a transparent material (for example, resin) like the trunk part 32, the illuminance sensor 48 can measure the ambient illuminance.

  Further, a connector 50 is provided on the lower surface of the body portion 32 so that a sensor outside the casing can be connected to a mounting circuit (CPU 35, memory 36, etc.) on the CPU board 34.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, the leg 33 is provided with a water tap and a power outlet (both not shown), so that work using water or electric appliances can be performed more easily near the data collection device 3. It is like that. At this time, it is preferable that the CPU 35 controls the opening and closing (opening and closing) of the water tap. Specifically, the CPU 35 can execute a predetermined amount of watering at a preset timing in accordance with a program held in the memory 36. Furthermore, the watering amount or the watering timing may be variably controlled based on the acquired information. Specifically, for example, the higher the temperature, the lower the humidity, or the greater the amount of sunlight, the greater the amount of water spray or the shorter the interval of water spray.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the casing 21 can be configured relatively simply by the cylindrical body portion 32 and the umbrella portion 31 covering the upper portion thereof, and the fan 41 is provided. Therefore, the temperature rise in the casing 21 due to the heat generation of the main device portion can be suppressed. Furthermore, since air is discharged from the gap between the trunk portion 32 and the umbrella portion 31, the intrusion of rainwater from the exhaust passage can be suppressed.

  Moreover, according to this embodiment, the exhaust path which goes below by the clearance gap comprised by the outer surface of the trunk | drum 32 and the inner surface of the umbrella part 31 can be formed, and invasion of rainwater can be suppressed more reliably. it can. Moreover, since the umbrella part 31 is spaced apart from the trunk part 32 with a predetermined gap, heat from direct sunlight is less likely to be conducted from the umbrella part 31 and further suppresses a temperature rise in the casing 21. Can do.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, a gap can be formed between the upper end of the trunk portion 32 and the ceiling surface of the umbrella portion 31 with a relatively simple configuration using the ribs 42.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, since the boards 34 and 38 are arranged in a posture in which the board surface is along the flow direction of the ventilation flow in the trunk portion 32, the mounted components (CPU 35 and A / D conversion) of the boards 34 and 38 are arranged. , Etc.) and the substrates 34 and 38 themselves are easily cooled, and the temperature rise in the casing 21 can be further suppressed.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the temperature sensor 46 and the humidity sensor 47 as sensors for detecting the external air property are disposed at positions upstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the main apparatus unit. It is possible to suppress the influence of the heat generated by the device unit and to detect the external air properties with higher accuracy.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the fan 41 is disposed between the temperature sensor 46 and the humidity sensor 47 as sensors for detecting the properties of the main unit and the outside air, and the main unit and the sensor 46, 47 is isolated, it is possible to further suppress the influence of heat generated by the main unit on the sensors 46 and 47, and to detect the external air properties with higher accuracy.

  Moreover, according to this embodiment, since the sunlight sensor 48 was attached to the ceiling surface of the umbrella part 31 comprised transparently, the sunlight sensor 48 can be protected inside the casing 21, and durability can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, if the control information for controlling the indoor device 2 is generated by the CPU 35 and is transmitted to the indoor device 2 via the wireless LAN card 37 or the electric communication line 6, it is adapted to the outdoor environment. Thus, the indoor device 2 can be controlled, and the waste of energy of the indoor device 2 can be reduced.

  Moreover, according to this embodiment, since the connector 50 for connecting the sensor outside the casing 21 to the main device portion is provided on the lower surface of the body portion 32, various sensors can be retrofitted and the expandability becomes high. Further, it is possible to collect data more suitably according to the installation location of the data collection device 3.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, since the water tap or the power outlet is provided on the leg portion 33, the work using water or the electric appliance can be performed more easily near the data collection device 3. As an example, when the data collection device 3 is installed in a garden or the like, there are merits that watering of plants and power supply of a lawn mower can be easily performed.

  Further, by controlling the opening and closing of the water tap by the CPU 35, watering can be performed automatically, which is convenient and allows more suitable timing or amount of watering to be executed.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the camera 51 is housed inside the body portion 32 configured to be transparent, and the acquired image data is transmitted via the wireless LAN card 37 or the telecommunication line 6. The situation in the vicinity of the place can be confirmed with still images and moving images, and the durability of the camera 51 can be improved by the amount that can be protected in the casing 21. As an example, when it is installed on a farm, it can be expected to suppress theft of crops and the like, and when it is installed on a house, etc., it can be expected to suppress empty nests.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made to the above embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the arrangement of the electronic circuit board and the camera is not limited to the above embodiment, and the vertical position may be reversed. The transmission means may be a communication means other than the wireless LAN or a wired communication means. Moreover, the outdoor installation type data collection device according to the present invention can be used even in a system without a totaling server or an analysis server. Further, only a part of the casing, not the entire casing, may be made of a transparent material, and a camera and a sunshine sensor may be arranged inside the transparent part.

1 is a schematic diagram of a network system including an outdoor installation type data collection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an external view of an outdoor installation type data collection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an outdoor installation type data collection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an outdoor installation type data collection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

2 Indoor equipment 3 Data collection device (Outdoor installation type data collection device)
21 Casing 31 Umbrella part 32 Body part 33 Leg part 34 CPU board (electronic circuit board)
38 Interface board (electronic circuit board)
41 Fan (ventilation fan)
42 Rib 46 Temperature sensor 47 Humidity sensor 48 Sunlight sensor 50 Connector 51 Camera

Claims (12)

An outdoor installation type data collection device comprising information acquisition means for acquiring outdoor environmental information, and transmission means for transmitting the acquired environmental information through a telecommunication line,
A main body part that forms at least a part of the information acquisition unit and the transmission unit, accommodates at least a cylindrical body part that opens upward, and an umbrella part that covers the body part from above with a predetermined gap. A casing having,
A ventilation fan that creates a ventilation flow in the casing;
With
An outdoor-installed data collection apparatus characterized in that air in the casing is discharged from a gap between the trunk and the umbrella.   The outdoor installation type data collection according to claim 1, wherein the umbrella part is a bottomed cylindrical shape, opens downward, and covers the upper part and the side of the trunk part with a predetermined gap. apparatus.   The outdoor installation type data collection device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a rib projecting further upward from an upper opening of the body portion is provided, and the umbrella portion is attached to the rib. The main unit includes an electronic circuit board on which electronic components are mounted,
The outdoor-installed data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the electronic circuit board has a board surface arranged in a posture along a flow direction of the ventilation flow in the trunk. . The information acquisition means includes a sensor that detects the property of the outside air,
The outdoor installation type data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the sensor is arranged at a position upstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the main device unit.   6. The outdoor installation type data according to claim 5, wherein the ventilation fan is disposed at a position upstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the main unit and downstream of the ventilation flow with respect to the sensor. Collection device. At least part of the casing is transparent,
The outdoor-installed data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the information acquisition unit includes a sunshine sensor disposed inside a transparent portion of the casing. Providing control information generating means for generating control information for controlling indoor equipment from the information acquired by the information acquiring means;
The outdoor installation type data collection device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission unit transmits the control information.   The outdoor installation type data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein a connector for connecting a sensor outside the casing to the main device portion is provided on a lower surface of the casing. Providing a leg portion for separating the casing from the ground;
The outdoor installation type data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein a water tap and / or a power outlet is provided on the leg.   The outdoor installation type data collection device according to claim 10, further comprising a control unit that controls opening and closing of the water tap. At least part of the casing is transparent,
The outdoor-installed data collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the information acquisition unit includes a camera disposed inside a transparent portion of the casing.

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