JP2009069164A - Fish finder - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that it is difficult to simultaneously grasp the detailed conditions of a fish school and a sedimentary layer on the bottom of water in the display screen of a fish finder. <P>SOLUTION: A finder includes a transceiving unit which transmits search signals for searching for objects and which receives reflection signals, a detection part which detects the depth of water or the bottom of water based on reflection signals, and a fish finder which enables separation of a first object from the reflection signals above a boundary determined by a user setting based on the depth of water or the bottom of water within reflection signals according to a first sensitivity set by the user when reflection signals are visualized, enables separation of a second subject from the reflection signals below the boundary according to a second sensitivity, different from the first sensitivity, set by the user, and has a display processing part which displays the upper portion of the boundary on a first display area of a search image and the lower portion of the boundary on a second display area of the search image below the first display area. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fish finder technique, and more particularly to a fish finder using sound waves.

  In general, a fish finder emits ultrasonic waves as detection waves into the water, and visualizes the status of the school of fish and the seabed based on the reflected waves. A typical fish finder includes a transducer that emits detection waves into the water and receives reflected waves from the water, a transmitter that drives the transducers, a receiver that amplifies and detects signals from the transducers, and a transducer. And a processing unit that detects an underwater state based on the received reflected wave and a visualization unit that visualizes the detection result. The processing unit measures the distance to the object based on the elapsed time from the transmission of the detection wave to the reception of the reflected wave. The visualization unit draws on the display device so that the user can recognize the intensity of the reflected wave and the size and distance of the object.

  The transducer is an acoustoelectric transducer for transmitting and receiving waves, and is usually attached to the bottom of the ship. The transducer is a vibrator such as an electrostrictive vibrator or a magnetostrictive vibrator. The frequency of the detection wave depends on the detection purpose. Increasing the frequency facilitates attenuation and shortens the range of sound waves, but increases the object identification resolution. When the frequency is lowered, the identification resolution is lowered, but the reachable distance becomes long and detection is possible up to a deep water depth. Therefore, the frequency of the detection wave is determined according to the fish species to be detected and the water depth of the operating water area. In order to take advantage of both high-frequency and low-frequency characteristics, a plurality of detection waves may be used. In that case, a transducer, a transmission unit, and a reception unit corresponding to each frequency are provided.

The visualization unit described above assigns a color to an object, that is, a school of fish or a water bottom, according to the intensity of the reflected signal, and makes it easy to identify. Since the reflected signal is generated not only for the school of fish but also for the sediment layer on the bottom of the water, the user must detect the layer of sand, bedrock, etc. deposited on the sea floor in addition to detecting the school of fish based on the fish search screen. You can also. These are also information on fishing. Furthermore, it can also be used for the purpose of investigating the accumulation state of sludge and other deposits deposited on the bottom of the water (Patent Document 1). In addition, there is a technique that adjusts a visualization range by acquiring a reflected wave using a receiving unit having a wide dynamic range and performing gain adjustment (Patent Document 2).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-248082 Japanese Patent No. 3234988 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-20689

  In general, the intensity of a reflected signal from a fish school (hereinafter simply referred to as “fish reflected signal”) is weaker than a reflected signal from a water bottom (hereinafter simply referred to as “water bottom reflected signal”). For this reason, if colors are assigned to each reflected signal based on the intensity as it is, either one will become inconspicuous, or it will be saturated and will be expressed in a single color even though there is a change in intensity. There is a possibility of sneaking.

  FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a case where the sensitivity is adjusted so that the intensity of the fish reflection signal A becomes a display color indicating the maximum level. In this figure, the color assignment to the fish reflection signal A is performed appropriately, but the assignment to the bottom reflection signal B is saturated and the intensity is higher than the fish reflection signal A even though the signal is stronger than the fish reflection signal A. It is expressed in the same color as the reflected signal A.

  FIG. 1B is a diagram showing a case where the sensitivity is adjusted so that the intensity of the water bottom reflection signal B becomes a display color indicating the maximum level. In this case, although the color allocation to the water bottom reflection signal B is appropriately performed, the fish school reflection signal A becomes inconspicuous. In this way, when the sensitivity is adjusted according to one of the two, the discrimination of the other is reduced. The user needs to frequently adjust the sensitivity in accordance with the intensity of the reflected signal of the target object, for example, a school of fish or the bottom of the water.

  The inventor of the present invention has made the present invention by recognizing such a point, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for improving the distinction between a school of fish and a sedimentary layer on the same fish search screen. It is also intended to provide a user interface for using such technology. Furthermore, it is to improve the operability and convenience of the fish finder.

  One embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus for detecting a school of fish. This device includes a transmission / reception unit that transmits a detection signal and receives a reflection signal, a detection unit that detects a bottom of the water based on the reflection signal, and a boundary that is determined based on the bottom of the water when the reflection signal is visualized. And a display processing unit for performing display with the sensitivity changed below. Thereby, it can visualize with the sensitivity according to each reflection intensity of the upper and lower sides of a boundary, for example, a fish school and a sedimentary layer.

  The display processing unit may perform display by changing a display target range above and below the boundary. Thus, by setting independent display target ranges above and below the boundary, the intensity range for visualizing the reflected waves by the school of fish and the intensity range for visualizing the reflected waves by the deposited layer can be set separately.

  This apparatus may have an operation unit for making two different settings above and below the boundary. That is, two types of settings may be permitted for the sensitivity and the display target range. If two knobs and other means are provided in order to make two settings for the sensitivity and the display target range, a total of four setting means are provided. However, both the sensitivity and the display target range can be combined with one setting means by time division or other methods, and in that case, a total of two sets are provided. Further, if the sensitivity and the display target range are set by a method such as time division, a total of one setting unit is sufficient.

  Another aspect of the present invention is a method for detecting a school of fish. The method includes receiving a setting for assigning a color based on different rules above and below a boundary determined based on the bottom of the water, and transmitting a detection signal and detecting the bottom of the water based on the received reflected signal. And a step of performing a visualization process according to the setting.

  Yet another embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus for detecting a school of fish. This device is independent of the first sensitivity, the display processing unit that visualizes the reflected signal obtained from a single receiver unit with the first sensitivity and the second sensitivity, the first sensitivity adjustment unit that sets the first sensitivity, and the first sensitivity. And a second sensitivity adjustment unit for setting the second sensitivity. Accordingly, when the reflected signal is visualized with different sensitivities, it is possible to save the user from adjusting the sensitivity according to the detection target. “Detection target” is an object to be visualized.

  Yet another embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus for detecting a school of fish. This apparatus includes a display processing unit that visualizes a reflected signal obtained from a single receiving unit in a first display target range and a second display target range, a first range adjustment unit that sets a first display target range, And a second range adjustment unit that sets the second display target range independently of the first display target range. Thereby, when the reflected signal is visualized in different display target ranges, it is possible to save the user from adjusting the display target range according to the detection target.

  Yet another embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus for detecting a school of fish. This apparatus is independent of the receiving unit that receives the reflected signal, the first display area that displays the image obtained by performing the first visualization process on the reflected signal, and the first visualization process on the reflected signal. A second display area for displaying the image subjected to the second visualization process, and a display processing unit for simultaneously displaying the first display area and the second display area on the display screen. Thereby, it is possible to simultaneously display images generated by performing a plurality of visualization processes on a single reflected signal at the same time.

  Further, the fish finder according to the present invention transmits a detection signal for detecting a target, receives a reflection signal, a detection unit for detecting a water depth or a bottom based on the reflection signal, and visualizes the reflection signal. The first target can be selected with the first sensitivity set by the user from the reflected signal above the boundary determined by the setting from the user with reference to the water depth or the bottom of the reflected signal, and reflected below the boundary. The second target can be selected from the signal with the second sensitivity set by the user different from the first sensitivity, the upper part of the boundary including the first target is displayed with the first sensitivity, and the second target is displayed. A display processing unit that displays the lower part of the boundary including the second sensitivity, and the display processing unit has a first display target range set by the user from the reflected signal above the boundary among the reflected signals. Select one target The second target is selected in the second display target range set by the user from the reflected signal below the boundary, and the upper part of the boundary including the first target is displayed in the first display target range. The lower part of the boundary including the target is displayed in the second display target range, and there is an operation unit for setting at least two different display target ranges above and below the boundary. The upper part of the boundary is displayed in the first display area of one detection image, and the lower part of the boundary is displayed in the second display area below the first display area of one detection image.

  The fish finder according to the present invention is more preferably characterized in that the boundary is a water bottom.

  In addition, another fish finder according to the present invention includes a first sensitivity adjustment unit that sets the first sensitivity, a second sensitivity adjustment unit that sets the second sensitivity independently of the first sensitivity, A boundary setting unit for setting a boundary depth for switching between the first sensitivity and the second sensitivity, and a reflected signal obtained from a single receiving unit from a reflected signal above the boundary depth with a first sensitivity. The second target is selected with a second sensitivity different from the first sensitivity from the reflected signal below the boundary depth, and the first sensitivity is detected above the boundary depth including the first target. And a display processing unit that displays the second depth below the boundary depth including the second target with a second sensitivity.

  In addition, the other fish finder according to the present invention preferably sets the first display target range and the second display target range independent of the first display target range. A second range adjustment unit, wherein the display processing unit sorts the first target in the first display target range from the reflected signal above the boundary depth among the reflected signals, and from the reflected signal below the boundary depth The second target is selected in the second display target range, the upper part of the boundary depth including the first target is displayed in the first display target range, and the lower part of the boundary depth including the second target is displayed in the second range. It is a display processing unit that displays in a display target range.

  In another fish finder according to the present invention, more preferably, the display processing unit includes a first display area for displaying an image above the boundary depth, and a second display area for displaying an image below the boundary depth. , And a display processing unit that displays the screen as one continuous screen.

  Moreover, the fish school detection method according to the present invention includes a setting step for accepting settings of a first visualization range and a second visualization range different from the first visualization range, and a reflection signal transmitted and received by the detection signal. Detecting the bottom of the water based on the signal, and selecting the first detection target according to the first visualization range from the reflected signal above the boundary determined based on the bottom of the reflected signal, and from the reflected signal below the boundary Selecting the second detection object according to the second visualization range, and reflecting the first and second detection objects for the first detection object and the second detection object, respectively. Assigning a display color according to the intensity of the signal.

  In the fish school detection method according to the present invention, it is preferable that the setting step further accepts a boundary setting.

  In addition, the fish finder according to the present invention provides a single receiving unit that receives a reflected signal, and a reflected signal obtained from the single receiving unit with a first sensitivity and a first display target range. The visualization process is performed, the second visualization process is performed with the second sensitivity and the second display target range, the first display area displaying the image subjected to the first visualization process, and the second visualization process is performed. A display processing unit for simultaneously displaying a second display area for displaying an image on the display screen, a first sensitivity adjusting unit for setting the first sensitivity, and setting the second sensitivity independently of the first sensitivity A second sensitivity adjusting unit, a first range adjusting unit for setting the first display target range, and a second range adjusting unit for setting the second display target range independently of the first display target range. It is characterized by.

  In the fish finder according to the present invention, preferably, the display processing unit performs the first visualization process so that the first detection target is clearly displayed in the first display area, and the first detection target A second visualization process is performed so that a second detection target detected at a depth different from the above is clearly displayed in the second display area.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described components and the expression of the present invention converted between the apparatus, method, system, and computer program are also effective as an aspect of the present invention.

  According to the present invention, an underwater state can be provided to a user with two different sensitivities and display target ranges above and below the boundary with respect to the water bottom. Further, the user can arbitrarily set the sensitivity and the display target range. Moreover, the detection image visualized with two different sensitivities and display target ranges can be displayed simultaneously. In addition, the detection screen can be redrawn without returning to the past detection location. In addition, the convenience and operability of the fish finder can be improved.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 2 is a diagram for conceptually explaining the color assignment method according to the intensity of the reflected signal according to the first embodiment. In the present embodiment, the sensitivity and display target range for fish school detection and the sensitivity and display target range for bottom sediment detection can be set independently with the water bottom P as a boundary. Below, the display target determined by the sensitivity and the display target range, that is, the intensity range of the reflected signal to be visualized, is expressed as the “visualization range”, and the visualization range for fish school detection is called the “fish school range”. The range is called “bottom quality range”. “Sensitivity” is, for example, the minimum intensity of the intensity range to be visualized in the dynamic range of the receiver, that is, the measurable intensity range. Further, the intensity range to be visualized is referred to as a “display target range”. The intensity range of the reflected wave that is actually visualized is determined by two parameters: sensitivity and display target range. For example, if the sensitivity is S and the display target range is T, the intensity range X to be visualized is
S ≦ X ≦ (S + T)
It becomes. The reflected wave in the intensity range thus determined is visualized.

  In this figure, the first fish reflection signal A1, the second fish reflection signal A2, the third fish reflection signal A3, and the first water bottom reflection signal B1 and the second water bottom reflection signal B2 that are generated from the different fish schools. It is shown. The three fish reflection signals are selected for visualization in the fish range, and the second fish reflection signal A2 and the third fish reflection signal A3 in the fish range are displayed on the fish finder screen. Then, colors are assigned according to the intensity of the second fish school reflection signal A2 and the third fish school reflection signal A3 and displayed on the fish finder screen.

  The two bottom reflection signals are visualized in the bottom range, and the first bottom reflection signal B1 and the second bottom reflection signal B2 in the bottom range are displayed on the fish finder screen. Then, colors are assigned according to the intensities of the first water bottom reflection signal B1 and the second water bottom reflection signal B2, and are displayed on the fish finder screen. Thereby, an appropriate color is assigned to both the school of fish and the sedimentary layer according to the intensity of the reflected signal.

  FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of the fish finder 100 according to the embodiment. The timing generation unit 34 instructs the transmission unit 12 to transmit a detection wave, and outputs a sampling start timing and a sampling end timing to the sampling clock generation unit 22. The transmission unit 12 outputs an electrical signal for driving the transducer 16 to the transducer 16. The transducer 16 is a transducer, for example, and emits a detection wave into the water based on the electrical signal supplied from the transmitter 12. The detection waves collide with the school of fish 18 and the seabed 20 and become reflected waves. The transducer 16 receives these reflected waves, converts them into reflected signals that are electrical signals, and outputs them to the receiver 14.

  The receiving unit 14 amplifies and detects the reflected signal supplied from the transducer 16 and compresses the signal by, for example, a logarithmic amplifier circuit. Thereby, the receiver 14 has a wide dynamic range. Sound waves are attenuated while propagating in water. The amount of attenuation increases as the propagation distance increases. As a result, even with an object of the same size, the intensity of the reflected wave becomes weaker as the distance from the sound source increases. Therefore, STC (Sensitivity Time Control) is performed to suppress the influence of attenuation by changing the amplification factor according to the arrival time of the reflected wave.

  In order to perform STC, the timing generator 34 outputs the STC activation timing to the STC signal generator 44. The STC signal generation unit 44 acquires the STC characteristic instruction value from the STC adjustment unit 32 and outputs the STC signal to the reception unit 14 at the STC timing. Based on the STC signal, the receiving unit 14 decreases the amplification factor as the detection distance is shorter, and increases the amplification factor as the detection distance is longer.

  The A / D conversion unit 26 converts the amplified reflected signal into a digital value (hereinafter simply referred to as “detection information”) at the sampling timing supplied from the sampling clock generation unit 22 and stores the digital value in the buffer memory 24. Furthermore, the A / D conversion unit 26 outputs the detection information to the display processing unit 70. The detection information includes the intensity of the reflected signal and the arrival time after transmitting the detection wave.

  The display processing unit 70 performs a predetermined visualization process on the detection information and causes the display unit 46 to display a detection image. The display processing unit 70 includes a seabed detection unit 36, a detected image generation unit 102, a drawing processor 48, and a video memory 50. The seabed detection unit 36 detects the water bottom based on the detection information held in the buffer memory 24, that is, the intensity of the reflected wave, calculates the depth of the water bottom, that is, the water depth from the arrival time of the reflected wave, and detects the image. To 102. The detection image generation unit 102 calculates the intensity of the reflected wave and the depth of the object from the detection information. Then, the detection image generation unit 102 selects a reflected wave from the object above the bottom of the water in the fish range, and selects a reflected wave from the object below the bottom in the bottom range to generate a detection line. The detection image generation unit 102 determines the display position on the detection line based on the depth, and determines the display color according to the intensity. The detection image generation unit 102 stores the detection line generated via the drawing processor 48 in the video memory 50. The drawing processor 48 arranges the detection lines held in the video memory 50 in order on the display unit 46 to display the detection image.

  The sensitivity adjustment unit 104 of the operation unit 108 has an input interface such as a knob, a switch, and a volume, for example, receives sensitivity for fish school detection and sensitivity for bottom sediment detection from the user, and outputs it to the detection image generation unit 102. To do. The display target range adjustment unit 106 of the operation unit 108 has the same input interface as the sensitivity adjustment unit 104, receives a display target range for fish school detection and a display target range for bottom sediment detection from the user, and generates a detection image. Output to the unit 102.

  The timing generation unit 34, the seabed detection unit 36, the detection image generation unit 102, and the STC signal generation unit 44 are functional blocks configured by causing the CPU 56 to execute a program. The program memory 54 stores programs for configuring those functional blocks. The main memory 52 is used by the CPU 56 when executing a program. In another example, these functional blocks may be realized by hardware.

  FIG. 4 is an internal configuration diagram of the detected image generation unit 102 of FIG. The water depth calculation unit 124 detects the peak of the reflected wave based on the detection information supplied from the A / D conversion unit 26 and calculates the water depth thereof. The water depth calculation unit 124 outputs the water depth value and strength to the storage unit 110. The accumulating unit 110 stores the depth value of the object acquired by one detection sequence, the intensity of the reflected wave, and the depth of the water bottom supplied from the seabed detection unit 36 in association with each other. FIG. 5 conceptually shows an example of the data structure of the storage unit 110. The accumulation unit 110 holds the strength and the water depth so as to correspond to each pixel included in the display unit 46 of FIG. This figure shows the data structure when the number of pixels of the display unit 46 is 640 × 480, but the present invention is not limited to this number of pixels. In another example, the intensity, the water depth, and the bottom depth may be held in association with information for specifying a detection sequence such as a detection time or a detection number.

  Returning to FIG. 4, the sensitivity information storage unit 120 holds sensitivity for fish school detection and sensitivity for water bottom detection. The display target range storage unit 122 holds a display target range for fish school detection and a display target range for bottom sediment detection. The capture unit 128 captures the sensitivity and the display target range set by the user from the sensitivity adjustment unit 104 and the display target range adjustment unit 106 in FIG. 3 and holds them in the sensitivity information storage unit 120 and the display target range storage unit 122. Let The capturing unit 128 performs this capturing process at a predetermined interval. Accordingly, the latest sensitivity and display target range are always held in the sensitivity information storage unit 120 and the display target range storage unit 122.

  Based on the fish range and bottom sediment range determined by the sensitivity and the display target range, the sorting unit 112 stores the reflected wave to be visualized from the storage unit 110 based on the sensitivity and the display target range stored in the sensitivity information storage unit 120 and the display target range storage unit 122. Select strength. At the time of the selection, the fish range is applied to the reflected signal from a position shallower than the bottom depth in each detection line, and the bottom sediment range is applied to the reflected signal from a position deeper than the bottom depth.

  The color arrangement unit 126 assigns a display color according to the intensity of the reflected wave selected by the selection unit 112. The color arrangement unit 126 may divide the visualization range equally or unequally by the number of colors used for the color arrangement and relatively assign colors. Thereby, the intensity | strength in each of a fish range or a bottom sediment range can be clarified. Moreover, you may have a table for coloration for every fish range and bottom sediment range. Thereby, the user can set a color scheme for each range. In this way, the color arrangement unit 126 can set a color arrangement rule for each combination of sensitivity and display target range described above, for example.

  Since the accumulation unit 110 holds detection information in a wide dynamic range, even when the visualization range is changed by the operation of the sensitivity adjustment unit 104 or the display target range adjustment unit 106 by the user, the selection unit 112 is in the visualization range. In response, the visualization process can be performed again. Thereby, the user can refer again to the detection screen in which at least one of the sensitivity and the display target range is changed without actually returning to the past detection location.

  FIG. 6A is a flowchart of the display processing of one detection line. First, the selection unit 112 reads the depth of the bottom of the line to be drawn from the accumulation unit 110 in FIG. 4 (S10). Next, the sorting unit 112 in FIG. 4 sorts objects having a depth shallower than the read water bottom depth based on the fish school range, and performs a color arrangement process on each of them (S12). Then, the sorting unit 112 sorts objects having a depth deeper than the water depth based on the bottom sediment range, and performs a color arrangement process on each of them (S14). By repeating this series of processing over all detection lines, a fish detection screen is constructed.

  FIG. 6B is a flowchart of processing for storing the sensitivity and the display target range in the sensitivity information storage unit 120 in FIG. 4 and the display target range storage unit 122 in FIG. 4, respectively. When the fish finder 100 in this embodiment is activated, this process is started. The capture unit 128 of FIG. 4 captures the sensitivity for fish school detection and the sensitivity for bottom sediment detection from the sensitivity adjustment unit 104 of FIG. 3 (S20), and stores them in the sensitivity information storage unit 120. In addition, the capture unit 128 captures the display target range for fish school detection and the display target range for bottom sediment detection from the display target range adjustment unit 106 and stores them in the display target range storage unit 122. Further, the capturing unit 128 captures another set value set by the user via the operation unit 108 of FIG. 3 (S24). The capturing unit 128 waits until a predetermined time, for example, 50 ms elapses (N in S26), and when it elapses (Y in S26), returns to S20. For this reason, the latest setting values are always stored in the respective storage units.

<Second Embodiment>
FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of a fish finder 200 according to the second embodiment. The configuration denoted by the same reference numeral as that described with reference to FIG. 3 has the same function or operation as the configuration denoted by the same reference symbol described with reference to FIG. In the following description, configurations having different functions or operations will be mainly described. The LOG receiver 164 is a receiver having a wide dynamic range amplifier circuit such as a logarithmic amplifier circuit. A receiver having such a wide dynamic range is still used. However, in order to maintain the user-friendliness, it is actually 20 for the purpose of taking over the color expression at the beginning of the use of the fish detector, that is, when the current receiver does not have a wide dynamic range. Only a few dB was used. The present inventor has focused on this point and has come up with a technique for visualizing a reflected signal obtained from a single receiving unit with a plurality of sensitivities by effectively utilizing a range that has not been conventionally used.

  The A / D converter 26 samples the reflected wave from the LOG receiver 164 at the rising or falling timing of the sampling clock supplied from the sampling clock generator 22 and converts it into digital data detection information. The display processing unit 165 performs a predetermined visualization process on the detection information and causes the display unit 46 to display a detection image. The display processing unit 165 includes a seabed detection unit 36, a detected image generation unit 102, a screen mode control unit 158, an auxiliary information generation unit 160, a drawing processor 162, and a video memory 50. The detected image generation unit 102 colors the reflected signal according to the intensity based on the sensitivity and display target range instructed by the user via the operation unit 166.

  The first sensitivity adjustment unit 150a and the second sensitivity adjustment unit 150b (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as “sensitivity adjustment unit 150”) have an input interface such as a volume, for example. And output to the detected image generation unit 102. Accordingly, the user can set the first sensitivity and the second sensitivity independently. The first range adjustment unit 152a and the second range adjustment unit 152b (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as “range adjustment unit 152”) have an input interface such as a volume, and the first display target range and the second display target. Each range is received from the user and output to the detected image generation unit 102. Thus, the user can set the first display target range and the second display target range independently. These sensitivities and display target ranges are acquired by the acquisition unit 128 of FIG. 4 and stored in the sensitivity information storage unit 120 and the display target range storage unit 122 of FIG. The sensitivity adjustment unit 150 and the range adjustment unit 152 may hold in advance predetermined sensitivity and a display target range as preset values. For example, the sensitivity and display target range of a conventional fish finder may be set as preset values.

  The detection image generation unit 102 includes a combination of the first sensitivity and the first display target range (hereinafter simply referred to as “first visualization range”) and a combination of the second sensitivity and the second display target range (hereinafter simply referred to as “second”). Visualize the reflected signal separately in the visualization range). That is, the detected image generation unit 102 generates display data for the same reflected signal based on two visualization ranges. In another example, a plurality of sensitivity adjustment units 150 and range adjustment units 152 may be provided according to the number of visualization ranges.

  The screen mode control unit 158 controls the display form of the detected image based on the screen mode switching instruction from the mode switching unit 154 and the boundary instruction from the boundary setting unit 156. The screen mode control unit 158 instructs the drawing processor 162 about the display form.

  FIG. 8A is a diagram illustrating an example of a display form of the detection image. The display screen 170 is displayed on the display unit 46. The display screen 170 includes a first display area 170a and a second display area 170b, and displays a detection image when visualization is performed in different display target ranges. FIG. 9A is a diagram showing the relationship between the first visualization range and the second visualization range at this time. In FIG. 9A, a wide display target range is set in the first visualization range, and a display target range similar to that of the conventional machine is set in the second visualization range, for example. With this setting, as shown in FIG. 8A, the first display area 170a has an object with a high reflected signal intensity such as a fish or the seabed from an object with a weak reflected signal intensity such as plankton. And the detection image excluding plankton is displayed in the second display area 170b. In this way, the fish finder screen generated based on multiple visualization ranges is displayed at the same time, so for example, while grasping the distribution of plankton and small fish that feed on large fish on one fish finder screen, You can also search for large fish. In addition, the detection image visualized in the visualization range equivalent to the conventional machine can be displayed in one display area, and the detection image visualized in the visualization range arbitrarily set by the user can be displayed in the other display area.

  FIG. 8B is a diagram illustrating an example of the display screen 172 when visualization is performed with different sensitivities. The display screen 172 includes a first display area 172a and a second display area 172b, and displays a detection image when visualization is performed with different sensitivities. FIG. 9B is a diagram showing the relationship between the first visualization range and the second visualization range at this time. Further, each detected image in FIGS. 8A and 8B is subjected to a color arrangement process according to the visualization range used for visualization. This color arrangement process is performed by the color arrangement unit 126 of FIG.

  FIG. 8C shows a state in which one detection image is divided into a first display area 180a and a second display area 180b, and detection images with different visualization ranges are displayed in the respective areas. The detected image is a single image, which is divided upward and downward. That is, this detection image is visualized by changing the visualization range above and below the boundary determined based on the water depth or the bottom of the water. FIG. 9C is a diagram showing the relationship between the first visualization range and the second visualization range at this time. In FIG. 9C, the visualization ranges are set independently above and below the boundary L, respectively. In this way, for example, in order to avoid the influence of noise such as plankton that exists in a position close to the water surface, the sensitivity is set so as to avoid plankton in the upper part, and the sensitivity is set so that a weak reflected signal is visualized in the lower part. be able to.

  In such a display, the color scheme used for visualization may be changed between the first display area 180a and the second display area 180b. For example, the color arrangement unit 126 in FIG. 4 performs processing for displaying in the color scheme of a general fish finder on the first display area 180a, and displays information on a general fish finder in the second display area 180b. You may perform the process for shading display with a color scheme. For example, red in one display area is displayed as red shading in the other display area. That is, the color arrangement unit 126 performs a color arrangement process so that the user can recognize which of the first visualization range and the second visualization range is visualized. As described above, the color arrangement unit 126 may change the color arrangement according to the display form of the detected image, that is, the display mode.

  Returning to FIG. 7, the boundary setting unit 156 receives a boundary L for switching the visualization range from the user. The boundary L may be set with the water surface as a reference, or may be set with the water bottom as a reference. The screen mode control unit 158 instructs the drawing processor 162 to perform display with the visualization range changed above and below the boundary L set in the boundary setting unit 156. As a result, the display screen 180 described with reference to FIG. 8C is displayed on the display unit 46. The auxiliary information generation unit 160 generates auxiliary information such as a depth scale and character information to be added to the detection image. The drawing processor 162 displays the auxiliary information on the display unit so as to overlap the detected image.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a flowchart of processing in the fish finder 200 of FIG. The fish detector 200 mainly executes a setting value acquisition process 190 for reading various setting values from the operation unit 166 of FIG. 7 and a visualization process 192 for visualizing the detection signal. The setting value acquisition process 190 is executed at a constant cycle, for example, at intervals of 50 ms. The visualization process 192 is executed for each detection signal.

  In the set value acquisition processing 190, first, the capturing unit 128 of FIG. 4 captures the first sensitivity from the first sensitivity adjusting unit 150a (S52). Similarly, the acquisition unit 128 acquires the second sensitivity from the second sensitivity adjustment unit 150b (S54). Next, the capturing unit 128 captures the first display target range from the first range adjusting unit 152a (S56). Similarly, the capturing unit 128 captures the second display target range from the second range adjusting unit 152b (S58). In addition, the capturing unit 128 captures setting values set by the user other than the sensitivity and the display target range, such as the screen mode, from the operation unit 166 (S60). The capturing unit 128 determines whether or not to end the capturing process (S62). When the capture process is continued (N in S62), for example, it waits for 50 ms (S50), and returns to S52. When the capture process is terminated (Y in S62), the capture is terminated. As described above, by periodically reading the setting value, even when the user changes the setting value, the setting can be reflected in the visualization process almost in real time.

  The visualization process 192 is executed for each detection signal. First, the LOG receiver 164 in FIG. 7 receives a detection signal (S63). The detection image generation unit 102 in FIG. 7 performs a visualization process on the received detection signal based on the first visualization range (S64). Next, the detected image generation unit 102 performs a visualization process on the received detection signal based on the second visualization range (S66). Then, the detected image generation unit 102 determines whether or not to end the visualization process (S68). When the visualization process is continued (N in S68), the process returns to S64. When the visualization process ends (Y in S68), the detected image generation unit 102 ends the process.

  The present invention has been described based on the embodiments. The embodiments are exemplifications, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made to combinations of the respective constituent elements and processing processes, and such modifications are within the scope of the present invention. .

It is a figure for demonstrating the allocation method of the display color according to the intensity | strength of the reflected signal in the conventional fish finder. It is a figure for demonstrating the allocation method of the display color according to the intensity | strength of the reflected signal in the fish finder which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a block diagram of the fish finder based on 1st Embodiment. It is an internal block diagram of the detection image generation part of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the data structure of the storage part of FIG. It is a flowchart of the production | generation process of the detection screen in the fish finder of FIG. It is a block diagram of the fish finder based on 2nd Embodiment. (A) is a figure which shows an example which divided and displayed the detection image drawn based on a different visualization range in a respectively different area | region. (B) is a figure which shows another example which divided | segmented and displayed the detection image drawn based on a different visualization range in a respectively different area | region. (C) is a figure which shows an example which divided | segmented one detection image on the upper and lower sides of a boundary, and displayed the image based on a different visualization range. (A) is a figure showing an example of the 1st visualization range and the 2nd visualization range. (B) is a figure showing other examples of the 1st visualization range and the 2nd visualization range. (C) is a figure which shows an example of the state which set the 1st visualization range and the 2nd visualization range above and below the boundary. It is a flowchart of the process in the fish finder of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  12 transmitting unit, 14 receiving unit, 16 transducer, 100 fish detector, 102 detected image generating unit, 104 sensitivity adjusting unit, 106 display target range adjusting unit, 110 accumulating unit, 112 selecting unit, 126 color arrangement unit, 150a 1 sensitivity adjustment unit, 150b second sensitivity adjustment unit, 152a first range adjustment unit, 152b second range adjustment unit, 154 mode switching unit, 156 boundary setting unit, 158 screen mode control unit.

Claims (3)

A transmission / reception unit for transmitting a detection signal for detecting an object and receiving a reflection signal;
A detection unit for detecting a water depth or a water bottom based on the reflected signal;
When visualizing the reflected signal,
Among the reflected signals, the first target can be selected with the first sensitivity by the setting from the user from the reflected signal above the boundary determined by the setting from the user with respect to the water depth or the bottom of the water, The second target can be selected from the reflected signal below by the second sensitivity set by the user different from the first sensitivity,
A display processing unit that displays above the boundary including the first object with the first sensitivity, and displays below the boundary including the second object with the second sensitivity;
With
The display processing unit
Among the reflected signals, the first target is selected from the reflected signals above the boundary in a first display target range set by the user, and the reflected signal from the user is selected from the reflected signal below the boundary. The second target is selected in the second display target range according to the setting, the upper side of the boundary including the first target is displayed in the first display target range, and the boundary including the second target Is displayed in the second display target range,
An operation unit for setting at least two different display target ranges above and below the boundary;
The display processing unit
A school of fish characterized in that the upper part of the boundary is displayed in a first display area of one detection image, and the lower part of the boundary is displayed in a second display area below the first display area of the one detection image. Finder. A single receiver for receiving the reflected signal;
The reflected signal obtained from the single receiver is
The first visualization processing is performed with the first sensitivity and the first display target range, the second visualization processing is performed with the second sensitivity and the second display target range, and the image subjected to the first visualization processing is displayed. A display processing unit for simultaneously displaying the first display area to be displayed and the second display area for displaying the image subjected to the second visualization process on a display screen;
A first sensitivity adjustment unit for setting the first sensitivity;
A second sensitivity adjustment unit for setting the second sensitivity independently of the first sensitivity;
A first range adjustment unit for setting the first display target range;
A second range adjustment unit for setting the second display target range independently of the first display target range;
A fish finder characterized by comprising. The fish finder according to claim 2,
The display processing unit
The first visualization process is performed so that the first detection target is clearly displayed in the first display area,
The fish detection, wherein the second visualization processing is performed so that a second detection target detected at a different depth from the first detection target is clearly displayed in the second display area. Machine.

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