JP2020161143A - Flying object, check method, and check system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technology of carrying out checking of an inner wall of a flying object caused to fly while not making contact with (for example, the inner wall of) a structure in a desired direction without depending on a GPS.SOLUTION: A flying object 1 which photographs inner walls of a structure of a substantially tubular shape, includes: a measurement part which measures a distance from the inner walls (RW and LW); a control part which controls the flying object so as to maintain predetermined distance from the inner walls based on results of the measurement performed by the measurement part; and a photographing part which photographs at least surfaces of the inner walls. The control part performs flight control on the flying object through autonomous flight, sets a virtual flight space V within a predetermined range of the structure, and performs control so that the flying object flies in the flight space.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

The present invention relates to an air vehicle.

Although GPS (Global Positioning System) is often used to control an air vehicle, GPS radio waves may not reach when inspecting structures, and flight control that does not rely on GPS is also performed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system for grasping a self-position using distance measurement data and two-dimensional image data.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-11414

However, in the system described in Patent Document 1, when flying in a dark part such as inside a structure (for example, inside a tubular structure such as a tunnel, a duct, or an underdrain), the position of the self is not secured unless a light source is secured. Cannot be measured.

The present invention has been made in view of such a background, and the inner wall is inspected by flying the flying object in a desired direction in a desired direction so as not to come into contact with the structure (inner wall, etc.) without relying on GPS. The purpose is to provide technology.

The main invention of the present invention for solving the above problems is a flying object that images an inner wall of a substantially tubular structure, and is based on a measuring unit that measures a distance from the inner wall and a measurement result by the measuring unit. The flying object includes a control unit that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall, and an imaging unit that images at least the surface of the inner wall. The control unit is the flying object. Is controlled by autonomous flight, a virtual flight space is set within a predetermined range in the structure, and the flight body is controlled to fly in the flight space.

Other problems disclosed in the present application and solutions thereof will be clarified in the columns and drawings of the embodiments of the invention.

According to the present invention, the flying object can be flown so as not to come into contact with the structure.

It is a functional block diagram of the flying object 1 which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the outline of the inspection system by this embodiment. It is the figure which showed the inside of the tunnel of FIG. 2 from the vertical direction. It is the figure which showed the inside of the tunnel of FIG. 2 from the horizontal direction. It is a figure which conceptually shows the state of the imaging of the inspection system of FIG. It is another figure which conceptually shows the state of imaging of the inspection system of FIG. It is still another figure which conceptually shows the state of the imaging of the inspection system of FIG. It is an image example obtained by imaging of the inspection system of FIG. It is a figure which shows the example which applied the inspection system by this embodiment to other structures. It is a figure which shows the state of the flight of the flying object of the inspection system by this embodiment. It is a figure which showed the inspection system shown in FIG. 10 from the horizontal direction. It is a figure which shows the state of the flight by another embodiment by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state of the imaging by the flying object of FIG. It is a figure which shows the state of another flight by another embodiment by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state of another flight by another embodiment by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state of another flight by another embodiment by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state of another flight by another embodiment by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state of another flight by another embodiment by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state of another flight by another embodiment by this invention.

The contents of the embodiments of the present invention will be described in a list. The flying object according to the embodiment of the present invention has the following configuration.

[Item 1]
A flying object that images the inner wall of a substantially tubular structure.
A measuring unit that measures the distance to the inner wall,
A control unit that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall based on the measurement result by the measurement unit.
An air vehicle including an imaging unit that images at least the surface of the inner wall.
[Item 2]
The flying object according to claim 1.
The measuring unit measures the distance from the target side surface of one of the inner walls.
The control unit is an air vehicle that controls the air vehicle so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the target side surface.
[Item 3]
The flying object according to claim 1 or 2.
The control unit sets a virtual flight space within a predetermined range in the structure, and controls the flying object to fly in the flight space.
Aircraft.
[Item 4]
The flying object according to claim 3.
The control unit sets the flight space within a predetermined range from the center of the structure along the extending direction of the structure, and flies in the flight space.
Aircraft.
[Item 5]
The flying object according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The control unit controls the flying body to fly in the center of the structure along the extending direction of the structure.
Aircraft.
[Item 6]
The flying object according to any one of claims 1 to 5.
The imaging unit continuously images the surface of the inner wall so that the imaging ranges overlap.
Aircraft.
[Item 7]
The flying object according to claim 6.
The structure has a left side surface, a right side surface, an upper side surface, and a lower side surface when viewed along the traveling direction.
The imaging range is obtained by alternately repeating at least the first imaging in which the left side surface, the upper side surface, and the right side surface are imaged, and the second imaging in which the right side surface, the upper side surface, and the left side surface are imaged in this order. Further includes an image pickup control unit that controls the image pickup unit so that the headpiece overlaps in both the travel direction and the direction orthogonal to the travel direction.
Aircraft.
[Item 8]
The flying object according to any one of claims 1 to 5.
The measuring unit includes a three-dimensional LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranger).
Aircraft.
[Item 9]
This is an inspection method that uses an air vehicle to image the inner wall of a substantially tubular structure.
A measurement step that measures the distance between the flying object and the inner wall,
A control step that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall based on the measurement result.
An imaging step that images at least the surface of the inner wall,
Includes analytical steps to analyze the imaged surface.
Inspection method.
[Item 10]
An inspection system that includes an air vehicle and an analyzer, and is an inspection system that images the inner wall of a substantially tubular structure.
The flying object
A measuring unit that measures the distance to the inner wall,
A control unit that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall based on the measurement result by the measurement unit.
It is provided with an imaging unit that images at least the surface of the inner wall.
The analyzer
Includes an analyzer that analyzes the imaged surface.
Inspection system.

<Embodiment 1>
Hereinafter, the inspection system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The inspection system according to the present invention is for inspecting the inside of a tubular structure surrounded at least vertically and horizontally, such as a tunnel, a duct, and an underdrain.

FIG. 1 shows a functional block diagram of an air vehicle used in the present embodiment. The block diagram shown is an example, and may have other functions.

The flight controller 11 can have one or more processors such as a programmable processor (eg, central processing unit (CPU)).

The flight controller 11 has a memory 12 and can access the memory 12. Memory 12 stores logic, code, and / or program instructions that the flight controller 11 can execute to perform one or more steps.

The memory 12 may include, for example, a separable medium such as an SD card or random access memory (RAM) or an external storage device. The data acquired from the cameras and the sensors 13 may be directly transmitted and stored in the memory 12. For example, still image / moving image data taken by a camera or the like 13 is recorded in the internal memory or an external memory. The camera 13 is installed on the flying object via the gimbal 14.

The flight controller 11 includes a control module configured to control the state of the flying object 1. For example, the control module adjusts the spatial arrangement, velocity, and / or acceleration of the flying object 1 having 6 degrees of freedom (translational motions x, y and z, and rotational motions θx, θy and θz). The propulsion mechanism (motor 16 and the like) of the flying object 1 is controlled via the above. The motor 16 rotates the propeller 17 to generate lift of the flying object 1. The control module can control one or more of the states of the mounting unit and the sensors.

The flight controller 11 is a transmitter / receiver configured to transmit and / or receive data from one or more external devices (eg, transmitter / receiver (propo), terminal, display device, or other remote controller). It is possible to communicate with 18. The transmitter / receiver 18 can use any suitable communication means such as wired communication or wireless communication.

The transmission / reception unit 18 uses one or more of, for example, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), infrared rays, wireless, WiFi, a point-to-point (P2P) network, a telecommunications network, and cloud communication. can do.

The transmission / reception unit 18 transmits and / or receives one or more of the data acquired by the sensors 19, the processing result generated by the flight controller 11, the predetermined control data, the user command from the terminal or the remote controller, and the like. be able to.

Sensors 19 according to this embodiment may include inertial sensors (acceleration sensors, gyro sensors), GPS sensors, proximity sensors (eg, sonar), or vision / image sensors (eg, cameras).

The measuring unit 20 according to the present embodiment is composed of a three-dimensional LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranger). The measuring unit 20 can adopt any mechanism such as a stereo camera that can recognize the depth and a mechanism that can detect a separated object (distance). ..

As shown in FIG. 2, in the present embodiment, the flying object 1 is made to fly inside the tunnel-shaped structure 5 along the extending direction d of the structure 5.

The structure 5 has a left side surface LW, a right side surface RW, an upper side surface TW, and a lower side surface GND when viewed along the stretching direction d (that is, the traveling direction). The aircraft body 1 flies from the entrance In toward the entrance / exit Out.

The flight body 1 is operated by manual operation or the like up to the front of the entrance In, and the flight is controlled inside the structure 5 by autonomous flight described later.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the aircraft 1 flies equidistantly from the left side LW and the right side RW, and also equidistant from the upper side TW and the lower side GND. That is, the flying object 1 is controlled to fly near the center of the structure 5 along the extending direction d of the structure 5 (see (a) to (c)).

With the flying object 1 inside the structure 5, the LIDAR detects the distance and shape of the left side LW, the right side RW, the upper side TW, and the lower side GND. Based on the detection result, the flying object 1 can acquire information on the distance and direction to each side surface, and flies based on the information.

As shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, the flying object 1 continuously images the camera 13 up to the imaging direction PD, that is, the bottom of the left side LW, the upper side TW, and the bottom of the right side RW (No. 1). 1 Imaging step: PD1). After that, it moves in the traveling direction (PD2) and continuously images the lowermost part of the right side surface RW, the upper side surface TW, and the lowermost part of the left side surface LW (second imaging step: PD3). 1 performs flight and imaging in the traveling direction d while repeating the first imaging step and the second imaging step.

Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the imaging range is overlapped at a predetermined ratio along the imaging direction PD for imaging. By overlapping and imaging, the inner wall of the structure 5 can be imaged without exception.

When the flying object 1 moves in the traveling direction d, imaging is performed in the opposite direction as shown in FIG. At this time, the imaging ranges are overlapped at a predetermined ratio even in the traveling direction d for imaging. Further, the flying object 1 is provided with a direction control unit for making such a movement with respect to the camera. The directional control unit allows the camera to perform repetitive displacements, such as a so-called wiper.

As shown in FIG. 8, the captured image is processed as one image in which the left side surface LW, the upper side surface TW, and the right side surface RW are opened by combining the respective imaging ranges. At this time, for example, if there is a defect (abnormality such as a crack) on the wall surface, it may be visually confirmed or it may be analyzed automatically.

<Embodiment 2>
In the above-described embodiment, the height of the upper side surface TW is constant, but for example, as shown in FIG. 9, the height of the upper side surface TW of the structure 5 changes from the middle. However, it is possible to fly in the same way.

That is, when the height of the upper side surface TW is lowered by being controlled to fly in the center in the vertical direction, the flight altitude is lowered correspondingly.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, in the present embodiment, a virtual flight space V is set within a predetermined range from the center of the structure 5, and the flight body 1 is made to fly in the flight space.

That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the flight object 1 is flight-controlled so as to be within the range of the width Vw in the horizontal direction, and as shown in FIG. 11, it is within the range of the width Vh in the vertical direction. The flight is controlled so that it fits.

When the flight path is strictly defined at the center of the structure 4, if the flight path is deviated from the center even a little, the control to return the position of the flight body 1 to the center frequently works, and the image taken by the camera is taken. There is a risk of blurring. However, as described above, it is possible to solve such a problem by providing a predetermined width in the flight range.

<Embodiment 3>
As shown in FIG. 12, the flying object 1 may image any one side surface (for example, the right side surface RW). In this case, for example, while maintaining a predetermined distance L'' from the right side surface RW, the side surface is continuously imaged while flying at positions (a) to (c).

As shown in FIG. 13, the flying object 1 moves the right side surface RW while continuously overlapping the imaging range with the upper PD1 and the lower PD2.

<Embodiment 4>
As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the flying object 1 is controlled to fly in the flight space V set within a predetermined range from the center of the structure 5, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, an arbitrary flight space V'may be set in the structure 5 and controlled to fly in the flight space V'. That is, as shown in FIG. 14, the flight path is set to the left side when viewed from above, and to the downward side when viewed from the horizontal direction as shown in FIG. In this case, the flying object 1 flies in the flight space Vw in the horizontal direction and the flight space Vh in the vertical direction.

The position, size (Vw or Vh), extending direction, and shape of the flight space V'may be appropriately set according to the side surface to be imaged, the range of imaging, and the like.

<Embodiment 5>
In the above-described embodiment, the flying object 1 is controlled to fly linearly, but for example, as shown in FIG. 16, the flight position may be changed from the middle of the structure 5. Good.

For example, as shown in the figure, the position (a) to the position (b) still keep the predetermined distance L'' from the right side surface RW, and when the position (b) is reached, the predetermined distance L from the left side surface L. It is controlled to fly so as to maintain'''.

According to such flight control, for example, even if it is a so-called crank-shaped structure as shown in FIG. 17, autonomous flight and imaging can be performed.

<Embodiment 6>
In the flying object 1 according to the above-described embodiment, the left side LW, the upper side TW, and the right side RW are imaged. However, for example, as shown in FIG. 18, four surfaces of the left side surface LW, the upper side surface TW, the right side surface RW, and the lower side surface GND may be imaged. That is, imaging is continuously performed in the order of imaging directions PD1, PD2, and PD3.

<Embodiment 7>
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 18, the flying object 1 is imaged so as to go around the side surface of the inner wall of the structure 5, and then the flying object 1 is made to fly in the traveling direction to advance, and then the structure 5 is further moved. Imaging was performed by repeating imaging so as to go around the side surface of the inner wall. However, for example, as shown in FIG. 19, imaging may be performed while proceeding.

As described above, according to the present invention, even in a closed place where GPS does not work (it is difficult to function), by using LIDAR, the inner wall of the structure is like a guide for flight. It is possible to autonomously fly the flying object 1 and inspect (imaging) the inside of the structure.

The air vehicle of the present invention can be used in an airplane-related industry such as a multicopter drone, and further, the present invention can be suitably used as an air vehicle for aerial photography equipped with a camera or the like. It can also be used in various industries such as security, agriculture, and infrastructure monitoring.

The above-described embodiment is merely an example for facilitating the understanding of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the interpretation of the present invention. It goes without saying that the present invention can be modified and improved without deviating from the gist thereof, and the present invention includes an equivalent thereof.

1 flying object 5 structure (tunnel)

Claims (10)

A flying object that images the inner wall of a substantially tubular structure.
A measuring unit that measures the distance to the inner wall,
A control unit that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall based on the measurement result by the measurement unit.
An air vehicle including an imaging unit that images at least the surface of the inner wall.
The control unit
The flight is controlled by autonomous flight,
A virtual flight space is set within a predetermined range in the structure, and the flying object is controlled to fly in the flight space.
An air vehicle characterized by that. The flying object according to claim 1.
The control unit sets the flight space within a predetermined range from the center of the structure along the extending direction of the structure, and flies in the flight space.
An air vehicle characterized by that. The flying object according to claim 1 or 2.
The measuring unit measures the distance from the target side surface of one of the inner walls.
The control unit is characterized in that it controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the target side surface. The flying object according to claim 1 to 3.
The control unit sets a virtual flight space within a predetermined range in the structure, and controls the flying object to fly in the flight space.
An air vehicle characterized by that. The flying object according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The control unit controls the flying body to fly in the center of the structure along the extending direction of the structure.
An air vehicle characterized by that. The flying object according to any one of claims 1 to 5.
The imaging unit continuously images the surface of the inner wall so that the imaging ranges overlap.
An air vehicle characterized by that. The flying object according to claim 6.
The structure has a left side surface, a right side surface, an upper side surface, and a lower side surface when viewed along the traveling direction.
The imaging range is obtained by alternately repeating at least the first imaging in which the left side surface, the upper side surface, and the right side surface are imaged, and the second imaging in which the right side surface, the upper side surface, and the left side surface are imaged in this order. Further includes an image pickup control unit that controls the image pickup unit so that the headpiece overlaps in both the travel direction and the direction orthogonal to the travel direction.
An air vehicle characterized by that. The flying object according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
The measuring unit includes a three-dimensional LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranger).
An air vehicle characterized by that. This is an inspection method that uses an air vehicle to image the inner wall of a substantially tubular structure.
A measurement step that measures the distance between the flying object and the inner wall,
A control step that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall based on the measurement result.
An imaging step that images at least the surface of the inner wall,
An inspection method comprising an analysis step of analyzing the imaged surface.
The control step
The flight is controlled by autonomous flight,
A virtual flight space is set within a predetermined range in the structure, and the flying object is controlled to fly in the flight space.
An inspection method characterized by that. An inspection system that includes an air vehicle and an analyzer, and is an inspection system that images the inner wall of a substantially tubular structure.
The flying object
A measuring unit that measures the distance to the inner wall,
A control unit that controls the flying object so as to maintain a predetermined distance from the inner wall based on the measurement result by the measurement unit.
It is provided with an imaging unit that images at least the surface of the inner wall.
The analyzer
Includes an analyzer that analyzes the imaged surface.
The control unit
The flight is controlled by autonomous flight,
A virtual flight space is set within a predetermined range in the structure, and the flying object is controlled to fly in the flight space.
An inspection system characterized by that.

Images