JPH0921738A - Method and system for measuring concentration of microorganism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize an accurate on-line measuring system for a trace of microorganism by determining a concentrating rate based on a predetermined target value and a predetermined directly measured quality value of water to be measured and then concentrating the water to be measured to that concentrating rate so that the concentration of microorganism is increased. SOLUTION: Stock water 1 in a lake or dam is sampled with a pump 10 and passed through a strainer in order to remove large dirt, e.g. sand and leaves, thus producing a water to be measured and then the turbidity thereof is measured 30. A concentrating rate determining unit 40 then determines a correct concentrating rate based on the turnbidity data and a predetermined target value using an apparatus 60 for measuring the image of microorganism and a concentrator 50 concentrates the water to be measured to that concentration rate. A unit 70 for calculating the concentration of microorganism calculates the concentration of microorganism in the nonconcentrated water to be measured based on the measured 60 quantity of microorganism and concentration rate of the water to be measured and the concentration of microorganism is displayed 80 along with the turbidity, concentrating rate and the quantity of microorganism. Since the water to be measured is concentrated to a level appropriate for measurement 60 of microorganism, efficiency and accuracy can be enhanced in the measurement.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for measuring the concentration of microorganisms in stored water such as lakes, dams, rivers, and ponds, raw water in water purification plants, water in a water purification process, and purified water after treatment. The present invention relates to a method for controlling concentration of measured water in image measurement.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art At present, water pollution is progressing in lakes and rivers, causing a problem that the tap water has a musty odor due to the generation of water-bloom and red tide. In order to avoid the damage of water-bloom and red tide, it is urgently needed to elucidate the generation mechanism.To this end, it is necessary to analyze the number of occurrence of microorganisms that are the causative species in consideration of weather conditions and geographical conditions. It is essential.

However, since measurement of microorganisms requires skill and time, it is difficult to continuously acquire measurement data required for detailed data analysis. That is, the microbial concentration in natural lake water or river water is usually several tens at most.
^It is as low as ³ cells / ml, and it is very inefficient to observe microorganisms and measure microorganisms. Therefore, in lakes and dams in various places, methods such as sedimentation, suction and centrifugation are used.
Observe microorganisms after concentrating nearly 100-fold over 1-3 days. In addition, due to the lack of engineers, a series of microorganism measurement work from concentration to identification is often entrusted to specialists, and it actually takes several weeks to several months to obtain microbial concentration data for each type. What is needed is the current situation.

In addition, a water purification plant is usually provided with a plurality of filtration basins to remove suspended substances in raw water taken from lakes, dams, rivers and the like. However, in rare cases, such as during precipitation or immediately after backwashing the filter basin, microorganisms may leak into the treated purified water, which is a problem. The amount of microorganisms in the filtered water is very small,
The establishment of measurement technology is desired.

Regarding such automatic measurement of microorganisms,
A method of using an optical fiber and a method of indirectly measuring from the amount of chlorophyll a have been developed. However, both methods can measure the total amount of microorganisms, but cannot determine the type of microorganisms. However, since the algae and red tides described above are abnormal growth phenomena of microorganisms of a specific species, determination of the type of microorganisms is a very important factor in water quality management.

The inventors have previously invented an on-line measurement method by image processing of microorganisms (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-263).
No. 411). In the present invention, the types of microorganisms can be roughly classified by image-processing the microscopic image of the microorganisms and digitizing the characteristics of each type. In addition, the progress of water pollution in water bodies is detected or predicted based on the number of occurrences of each type of microorganisms, which is useful for water purification.

[0007]

In the above prior art, an enlarged image obtained by a microscope is image-processed to classify and measure microorganisms. The lower the enlargement ratio, the larger the visual field range of one image and the better the processing efficiency. However, in order to obtain a certain level of classification accuracy, it is necessary to increase the enlargement ratio to some extent. In the experiments by the inventors, the amount of water entering one screen was 1 at the optimum magnification in the classification and measurement of microorganisms by image processing.
It was from 0 to ^{2 to} 10 to ¹ μl. However, since the concentration of microorganisms in the natural waters is very low as described above, only one microorganism is observed in 10 to 100 screens at this magnification. This tendency is more remarkable in purified water.

Processing an entire image, including a large number of images free of microorganisms, is very inefficient and expensive to operate. Therefore, in the above-mentioned invention, the means for concentrating the measured water before the image processing is provided.

However, no consideration is given to a method of controlling the concentration rate. When the microorganisms in the water area are abnormally generated, they may reach 100 times the normal amount. Therefore, a plurality of microorganisms are overlapped and measured as one, resulting in a large error. Also,
Although the turbidity of water to be measured, which is related to the concentration of microorganisms, can be used as an index for controlling the concentration rate, turbidity changes significantly due to rainfall, etc., and it is difficult to make accurate measurements that are not affected by environmental conditions.

An object of the present invention is to appropriately control the concentration rate of water to be measured for image measurement, to efficiently and highly accurately measure the concentration (number) of microorganisms by type, and To provide a device.

An object of the present invention is to provide a concentration measuring method and apparatus capable of controlling the concentration rate without being influenced by environmental conditions such as rainfall and capable of measuring a minute amount of microorganisms accurately and online.

[0012]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In the method for measuring the concentration of microorganisms by measuring the concentration of microorganisms in water by predetermined image processing, the above-mentioned object is to determine a predetermined water quality value which is dependent on the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water and serves as an index thereof. Directly measured from the measured water, the target value is predetermined so that the microorganisms in the measured water can be measured properly without becoming overcrowded or depopulated, based on this target value and the predetermined water quality value. This is achieved by determining the concentration rate, concentrating the measured water to the concentration rate so that the microorganism concentration thereof increases, and measuring the concentrated measured water by the predetermined image processing.

Alternatively, in a microorganism concentration measuring device for measuring the concentration of microorganisms in water by image processing, one of turbidity, absorbance, chlorophyll a concentration, which is an index depending on the microorganism concentration of water to be measured, or , Water quality measuring means for measuring a predetermined water quality value consisting of two or more of these,
Concentrating means for concentrating to a concentration ratio designated to increase the microbial concentration of the measured water, imaging means for visually enlarging and imaging the concentrated microorganisms in the measured water, and an imaging means for acquiring an enlarged image, Microbial image measuring means for measuring the concentration of microorganisms in the enlarged image by image processing, and the target value or numerical range of the predetermined water quality value that is appropriately measured without the microorganisms in the enlarged image becoming overcrowded or depopulated. Storage means for storing, a concentration value control means for determining the concentration rate based on a target value or numerical range of the water quality value and a predetermined water quality value measured by the water quality measuring means, and controlling the concentration means; And a microbial concentration calculating means for calculating the microbial concentration in the water to be measured before concentration from the concentration rate of the concentrating means and the microbial concentration measured by the microbial image measuring means. More is achieved.

[0014]

The concentration of microorganisms in ordinary lakes and marshes is about 1 in 100 sheets of the enlarged image, and the measurement efficiency is extremely poor unless the water to be measured is concentrated. On the other hand, if a water-bloom or red tide occurs, the concentration of microorganisms will increase by an order of magnitude.Therefore, if the water to be measured is concentrated according to the normal condition, the microorganisms will overlap and the measurement accuracy will decrease, causing the cause of these occurrences. It is difficult to understand.

According to the present invention, first, a water quality value which is an index of the concentration of microorganisms in the water to be measured, for example, a chlorophyll a concentration which is uniquely sensitive to turbidity (transparency) and phytoplankton (such as water-bloom and red tide) is measured. To do. This is equivalent to simply measuring the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water for the time being. Next, the concentration ratio is determined based on the predetermined target value and the water quality value so that the microorganisms in the enlarged (microscope) image of the water to be measured are optimized without becoming overcrowded or depopulated, The measured water is controlled to this concentration rate.

Therefore, the concentration of the water to be measured is controlled within the range of the microbial concentration suitable for the image measurement of the microorganisms, so that both the measurement efficiency and the measurement accuracy can be improved.

Further, the target value viewed from the water quality value serving as an index of the microorganism concentration varies depending on the environmental conditions of measurement, such as weather, water temperature, and temperature. According to the present invention, the target value is made variable according to these environmental conditions to avoid a decrease in measurement accuracy and efficiency.

Further, the measured value by the turbidity meter greatly varies depending on the amount of rainfall. In this respect, the measurement value of the chlorophyll a concentration meter is mainly sensitive to spot plankton and is not significantly affected by sediment or the like, which is advantageous in the case of rainfall.
According to the present invention, since the turbidimeter and the chlorophyll a concentration meter are used together and the specific gravity of the turbidimeter is reduced or cut depending on the degree of rainfall, it is possible to avoid a decrease in measurement accuracy due to rainfall.

With this configuration, when it is necessary to measure the microbial concentration online and acquire the time series data (important for clarifying the plankton generation), or when the microbial concentration is very small and the effect of sediment inflow due to rainfall is It is effective in controlling the water quality of outstanding raw water.

[0020]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an automatic microorganism concentration measuring system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1
Is stored water such as lakes and dams, 10 is a water sampling device such as a pump, 20 is a pretreatment device such as a strainer, 30 is a turbidimeter, 40 is a concentration rate determination device, 50 is a concentration device, and 60 is a microorganism image measurement. A device, 70 is a microorganism concentration calculation device, and 80 is an input / output device such as a display device.

That is, the measured water sampled by the pump 10 is subjected to a strainer 20 to remove large contaminants such as sand and leaves, and then the turbidity meter 30 measures the turbidity to measure the turbidity data. Based on the above, the concentration rate determining device 40 determines an appropriate concentration rate for the microorganism image measurement, and the concentration device 50 concentrates the measured water to that concentration rate. The microorganism image measuring device 60 measures the amount of microorganisms in the concentrated measured water, and the microorganism concentration calculating device 70 calculates the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water before concentration from the microorganism amount data and the concentration rate in the concentration device 50. To do. This microorganism concentration is displayed on the display device 80 together with the turbidity data, the concentration rate, the amount of microorganisms, and the like.

The above-mentioned microorganism image measurement is to classify the captured microorganisms in an enlarged image of the microorganisms in the water to be measured obtained from a microscope or the like, and measure the number and / or area of each classification item.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the image measurement target screen and the measurement result (the number of microorganisms). In the image measuring method, when a plurality of microorganisms are captured in an overlapping or contacting state, a measured value smaller than the actual number is obtained. In the case of Example 1, since the microorganisms in the image measurement target screen are dispersed, the actual number of the microorganisms and the measurement result match. In the case of Example 2, duplication and connection of microorganisms are seen on the image measurement target screen, and the actual number and the measurement result do not match. In addition, classification by shape also gives inaccurate results.

The state as in Example 2 is due to the fact that the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water is too high. However, if the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water is too low, the probability that microorganisms will be captured on the measurement target screen will decrease, so a huge number of screens must be processed in order to obtain accurate measurement results. No, processing efficiency is poor. Therefore, when measuring a microorganism image, it is desirable that the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water be within a certain appropriate range.

In order to keep the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water within an appropriate range, the concentration rate determination according to this embodiment is performed as follows.

FIG. 3 shows the configuration of the concentration rate determining device. Four
Reference numeral 01 is a concentration ratio calculation circuit, and 402 is a rule base.
The concentration rate calculation circuit 401 refers to the target value of turbidity stored in advance in the rule base 402, and based on the turbidity data transmitted from the turbidity meter 30, calculates the concentration rate X by the formula (1). To do.

[0028]

## EQU1 ## X = T / T ₀ (1) where T: target turbidity value (mg / l), T ₀ : turbidimeter 3
The measured value is 0 (mg / l).

Here, when the equation (1) is decomposed in detail, the general relationship between the turbidity and the microorganism concentration is expressed by the equation (2).

[0030]

## EQU00002 ## M = .alpha.T (2) where M is the microorganism concentration (cells / ml), and .alpha. Is a conversion coefficient from the turbidity of the measured water to the microorganism concentration. Here, the numerical range of the microbial concentration M in which the microbial image measurement is properly performed is represented by the equation (3).

[0031]

## EQU3 ## β ₁ <M <β ₂ (3) where β ₁ and β _{2 are} constants (cells / ml).
From Expressions (2) and (3), the numerical range of the turbidity T of the water to be measured in which the microorganism image measurement is properly performed is derived as Expression (4).

[0032]

[Formula 4] β ₁ / α <T <β ₂ / α (4) Here, the turbidity T ₀ measured by the turbidity meter 30 is sufficiently smaller than T in the numerical range of the formula (4) (T _{When 0} << T, the appropriate numerical range of the concentration rate X is derived as in Expression (5).

[0033]

## EQU5 ## β ₁ / αT ₀ <X <β ₂ / αT ₀ (5) However, the concentration rate X has the relationship (X = T / T ₀ ) of the equation (1). From this, the concentration rate calculation circuit 401 calculates an appropriate concentration rate based on the equation (6).

[0034]

## EQU6 ## X = (β ₁ + β ₂ ) / 2αT ₀ (6) If (β ₁ + β ₂ ) / 2α = T is substituted in equation (6), the equation returns to equation (1), and You can see that the conversion was done correctly. It should be noted that the values of β ₁ and β ₂ are set based on the accumulation of appropriate values under various past conditions, the results of test runs, and the like.

By the way, in water bodies such as lakes and rivers, the turbidity rapidly increases during or immediately after precipitation. However, since the microbial concentration does not fluctuate rapidly, it becomes necessary to adjust the conversion coefficient α in the equation (2). The microbial concentration also changes depending on environmental conditions such as weather, temperature, and water temperature. Therefore, a plurality of conversion factors α in equation (2) are prepared and selected according to changes in environmental conditions and used.

The conversion factor α is selected by the rule base 402.
For example, a plurality of rules (Rule 1) "If the weather is fine and the temperature and water temperature are both high, the conversion factor is α ₁ " (Rule 2) "If it is light rain and the temperature and water temperature are both low, the conversion factor is α ₂ ”. . . . . . . . . . . . . (Rule i) “Condition: conversion coefficient is α _i if“ environmental condition: ..., ”is prepared and the conversion coefficient α _i corresponding to the environmental condition is referred to. In addition, using the inference engine, a plurality of if-the
It is also possible to infer n rules in multiple stages.

The environmental conditions are input by the operator from the input / output device 80 and transmitted to the rule base 402. Alternatively, a method may be used in which a reference conversion coefficient α ₀ is set, water temperature measuring means, precipitation measuring means, and the like are provided, and the conversion coefficient α is adjusted based on the measurement data transmitted from these.

As described above, the concentration factor calculation circuit 401
An appropriate concentration rate is determined with reference to the stored contents of the rule base 402, and the concentration apparatus 50 and the microorganism concentration calculation apparatus 7 are determined.
Send to 0.

In this embodiment, since the concentration rate is treated as a continuous variable, the concentration rate is calculated as a concrete numerical value. However, a method of selecting the concentration rate from the numerical values set in stages may be used. That is, the concentration rate is set to be discontinuous, for example, as six values of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, and 300. Concentration factor calculation circuit 40
From among these six numerical values, 1 selects a value falling within the numerical range calculated by the above equation (5) and determines it as an appropriate concentration rate.

In this example, the turbidity was used as an index of the concentration of microorganisms in the water to be measured, and an appropriate concentration rate was determined based on the turbidity value measured by the turbidimeter 30. However, instead of the turbidity, the absorbance or the chlorophyll a concentration can be measured and used as an index of the microorganism concentration. That is,
Even when the turbidimeter 30 is replaced with an absorptiometer or a chlorophyll a meter, the calculation performed in the concentration determination device 40 is the same as that of the turbidimeter described above.

Further, an absorbance meter or a chlorophyll a meter may be used together with the turbidimeter 30. FIG. 4 shows the configuration of a microorganism concentration automatic measurement system that uses both a turbidity meter and a chlorophyll a meter. In the figure, except for the chlorophyll a total 31,
It is equivalent to the configuration of FIG. The concentration determination device 40 takes in the turbidity from the turbidimeter 30 and the chlorophyll a concentration from the chlorophyll a meter 31, selects one of them according to environmental conditions, or adds or averages the two in a predetermined relationship. ,
Alternatively, an appropriate concentration rate or a numerical range of the concentration rate is determined by properly using each dispersion and the like.

The calculation of the concentration rate by the chlorophyll a meter 31 is performed as follows. First, the formula (1) is transformed into the formula (7).

[0043]

X = C / C ₀ (7) where X: concentration ratio, C: chlorophyll a concentration target value (μg / l), C ₀ : chlorophyll a concentration by chlorophyll a total 31 (μg / l) Is. The chlorophyll a concentration C can be converted into the microorganism concentration M by the equation (8), where a conversion coefficient α ′ is used.

[0044]

M = α′C (8) Therefore, as in the case of the turbidimeter, the appropriate concentration rate X can be calculated by the equation (9).

[0045]

X = (β ′ ₁ + β ′ ₂ ) / 2α′C ₀ (9) where β ′ ₁ and β ′ _{2 are} constants (cells / ml) and the upper and lower limit values of the proper microbial concentration ( β ′ ₁ <M <β ′ ₂ ).

By the way, since chlorophyll a is a substance that is uniquely sensitive to phytoplankton, chlorophyll a
Concentration is not so affected by sediment. On the other hand, the turbidity measured by the turbidimeter rapidly increases due to the inflow of sediment when raining. Therefore, at the time of rainfall, only the chlorophyll a concentration may be used.

When both measured values are used in combination, the rule base 402 in the concentration determination device 40 stores the following determination formula (10) for the conversion coefficient α of the turbidimeter.
The conversion coefficient α is changed according to the weather (rainfall amount). this is,
This corresponds to correcting the target value T of turbidity.

[0048]

[Equation 10] If T <k _f , the conversion coefficient is α _j (clear, cloudy) If k _f <T <k _r , the conversion coefficient is α _k (during light rain) (10) If k _r <T, the conversion coefficient Is α _m (in rainy weather) where, the equation (10) is a correlation between the appropriate range of the turbidity target value (mg / l) or the equation (4) and the rainfall condition, and It is a simplification of the rule by. Therefore, the conversion factor according to the rule of the environmental condition excluding the rainfall condition may be used as a reference and adjusted by the equation (10).

As described above, by using the turbidity meter and the chlorophyll a meter together, it is possible to measure or set environmental conditions such as weather and appropriately determine the concentration rate without the intervention of an operator. According to this, it is suitable for time-series measurement of microorganism concentration online, and for water quality control of sewerage where the influence of rainfall is large even though the microorganism concentration is small.

Next, in the automatic microorganism concentration measuring system of the present embodiment, the configuration and operation of the concentrating device 50 and the subsequent components shown in FIG. 1 will be described.

The concentrating device 50 increases the microbial concentration in the water to be measured by using a method such as membrane filtration, sedimentation, suction or centrifugation. The water to be measured that has passed through the concentrating device 50 and is sent to the microorganism image measuring device 60 will be referred to as concentrated water below.

FIG. 5 shows the structure of a membrane filtration type concentrator 50. Reference numeral 501 is a concentration processing control unit, 502 is a concentration rate storage unit, 503 is a raw water supply valve, 504 is a concentrated water outflow valve, 50
5 is a surplus water outflow valve, 506 is a chamber, 507 is a filtration membrane, 508 is a liquid level upper limit sensor, 509 is a liquid level lower limit sensor, and 510 is a stirrer. In the figure, the raw water is the measured water supplied to the concentrating device 50, and the surplus water is the raw water remaining after the concentrated water is taken out. Further, the raw water supply valve 503, the concentrated water outflow valve 504, and the surplus water outflow valve 50.
5 are valves for opening and closing pipes for supplying raw water, outflowing concentrated water, and outflowing excess water, respectively. Although the chamber 506 has a structure in which it is divided into two cells by a filtration membrane 507, the pipes for supplying raw water and for flowing out concentrated water are in the same cell.
The piping for excess water outflow is connected to another cell. Here, it is desirable that the capacity of the cell on the side to which the pipe for the excess water outflow is connected is as small as possible. The concentrating device may employ a centrifugal concentrating method or a chemical precipitation method in which a drug having a microorganism fixing ability is injected to precipitate microorganisms.

Next, referring to Table 1, the concentration process will be described.

[0054]

[Table 1]

The concentration treatment control unit 501 is provided with a raw water supply valve 50.
3, the concentrated water outflow valve 504 and the surplus water outflow valve 505 are controlled to open and close as shown in Table 1 to realize the processing contents of the first to fourth periods of the concentration processing.

Further, the concentration processing control unit 501 determines that the concentration rate determination device 40 determines the concentration rate storage unit 5 in the second stage of the concentration processing.
The concentration rate is controlled based on the set value (appropriate concentration rate) stored in 02. This concentration rate control is performed by controlling the positions of the liquid level upper limit sensor 508 and the liquid level lower limit sensor 509 (usually only the lower limit sensor) according to equation (11).

[0057]

X ₀ = V ₁ / V ₂ (11) where X ₀ : concentration ratio set value (concentration multiple) stored in the concentration ratio storage unit 502, V ₁ : liquid level upper limit sensor 50
Liquid volume at the detection end of No. 8 (ml), V ₂ : liquid volume at the detection end of the liquid level lower limit sensor 509 (m)
l).

Hereinafter, the concentration process of the concentration device 50 will be described with time. First, the concentration process control unit 501 is activated at preset constant time intervals, and as the first stage of the concentration process,
As shown in Table 1, the raw water supply valve 503 is opened, and the concentrated water outflow valve 504 and the surplus water outflow valve 505 are closed. That is, in the first stage of the concentration treatment, the raw water sent from the pretreatment device 20 flows into the chamber 506 from the raw water supply valve 503 and is stored therein.

Next, the raw water flowing into the chamber 506 is
When reaching the liquid level upper limit sensor 508, the liquid level upper limit sensor 50
8 issues a signal to the concentration processing control unit 501 to end the first period of the concentration process and shift to the second period of the concentration process. The concentration processing control unit 501 opens the surplus water outflow valve 505 and opens the raw water supply valve 5.
03 and the concentrated water outflow valve 504 are set to a closed state. That is, in the second stage of the concentration process, the raw water stored in the chamber 506 is filtered by the filtration membrane 507, and the filtered water is discharged as excess water from the excess water outflow valve 505. Here, the microorganisms that cannot pass through the pores of the filtration membrane 507 are in the chamber 50.
6, and the concentration of microorganisms in the raw water in the chamber 506 increases.

When the amount of raw water in the chamber 506 decreases and the liquid level reaches the liquid level lower limit sensor 509, the liquid level lower limit sensor 5
09 issues a signal to the concentration processing control unit 501 to shift to the third period of concentration processing. The concentration processing control unit 501 opens the concentrated water outflow valve 504, the raw water supply valve 503, and the surplus water outflow valve 5.
Set 05 to the closed state. That is, in the third stage of the concentration process, the raw water remaining in the chamber 506 and having the microorganism concentration increased is extracted from the concentrated water outflow valve 504 as concentrated water.

After the total amount of the concentrated water in the chamber 506 has been extracted, the fourth stage of the concentration process is started. The fourth stage of the concentration treatment is a rest period of the treatment, and the concentration treatment control unit 501 controls the raw water supply valve 5
03, concentrated water outflow valve 504, and excess water outflow valve 505 are all closed.

Further, the concentration control section 501 is such that at least during the second stage of the concentration process, preferably during the first period to the third period of the concentration process, microorganisms or suspended substances in the raw water or the concentrated water do not precipitate. And stirs with a stir bar 510. This stirring reduces clogging of the filtration membrane 507 and improves the concentration treatment efficiency.

The concentrating device 50 concentrates the stored water 1 sent from the pretreatment device 20 by repeating the above-described first to fourth concentrating treatments.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram for explaining the backwashing mechanism of the concentrating device, in which each element of FIG. 5 for concentrating is omitted. 511 is a backwash processing control unit, 512 is a backwash water supply valve,
513 is a backwash water outflow valve. The position where the backwash water supply pipe for opening and closing the backwash water supply valve 512 is connected to the chamber 506 is the cell on the same side as the pipe for the excess water outflow, and the backwash water outflow valve 513 opens and closes the backwash water. The water supply pipe is connected to another cell, that is, a cell on the same side as the pipes for supplying raw water and for supplying concentrated water. In addition, the backwash water is filtered through the filtration membrane 50.
For the purpose of cleaning 7, it is desirable to supply it to the chamber 506 in a pressurized state with a pump or the like.

According to this backwashing mechanism, the concentrating device 50 is
The backwashing treatment shown in Table 2 is inserted in the fourth stage of the concentration treatment in which the concentration treatment is stopped.

[0066]

[Table 2]

The backwashing process will be described below with time. After repeating the concentration process for a preset number of times, the concentration process control unit 501 issues a start signal to the backwash process control unit 511 in the fourth stage of the concentration process. When the backwash process control unit 511 receives the activation signal from the concentration process control unit 501, the backwash water supply valve 5 as shown in Table 2 is set as the first period of the backwash process.
12 is opened and the backwash water outflow valve 513 is closed. The backwash process control unit 511 also moves the liquid level upper limit sensor 508 to the backwash process position where the liquid level upper limit sensor 508 is stored in advance, and the stirrer 510 is moved.
To run. That is, in the first stage of the backwashing process, the supplied backwashing water flows into the chamber 506 and is stored while washing the filtration membrane 507.

Next, when the backwash water stored in the chamber 506 reaches the liquid level upper limit sensor 509, the liquid level upper limit sensor 509 issues a signal to the backwash process control unit 511 to start the first period of the backwash process. This is the second stage of the backwash process. The backwash process control unit 511 sets the backwash water outflow valve 513 in the open state and the backwash water supply valve 512 in the closed state. The stirring of the backwash water by the stirrer 510 is continued. That is, in the second stage of the concentration process, the backwash water stored in the chamber 506 is discharged from the backwash water outflow valve 513 together with the substance desorbed from the filtration membrane 507 by the backwash.

After the total amount of the backwash water in the chamber 506 has been withdrawn, the backwash process is terminated and the process returns to the fourth stage of the concentration process. That is, the backwash process control unit 511 controls the backwash water supply valve 512,
And the backwash water outflow valve 513 is closed.

By inserting such a backwashing treatment, the clogging of the filtration membrane 507 caused by the microorganisms or suspended substances in the raw water caused by repeating the concentration treatment again is properly washed to improve the efficiency of the concentration treatment and the filtration membrane 507. It is possible to reduce maintenance.

In this embodiment, the backwash process control section 51 is used.
The timing of activating 1 was determined by the number of times the concentration process was repeated. However, the degree of progress of clogging of the filtration membrane 507 depends not only on the number of times of the concentration treatment but also on the substance concentration in the stored water 1 which is the raw water, and is reflected in the treatment time of the third stage of the concentration treatment. Therefore, the timing of backwashing may be determined using the length of the treatment time in the third stage of concentration treatment as an index.

The concentrating device 50 of the present embodiment has been described above with the configuration shown in FIG. 5, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the control of the concentration rate may be performed by the measured value of the flow meter instead of the position control of the liquid level sensor.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the concentrating device 50 when a flow meter is used. The components other than the integrating flow meter (F) are the same as those in FIG. The liquid level sensors 508 and 509 are fixed at predetermined upper / lower limit positions. Integrated flow meters 514, 51
Reference numerals 5 and 516 respectively measure the amount of raw water from the pretreatment device 20, the amount of surplus water extracted in the second stage of the concentration process, and the amount of concentrated water extracted in the third stage of the concentration process and sent to the microorganism image measuring device 60. Between these three items of water volume and concentration,
The correlation of Expression (12) is established.

[0074]

X ₀ = Va / (Va−Vb) = Va / Vc = (Vb + Vc) / Vc (12) where X ₀ : concentration ratio set value, Va: flow into the chamber 506 in the first phase of concentration processing The raw water amount (ml), Vb: surplus water amount extracted in the second stage of the concentration treatment (ml), and Vc: concentrated water amount extracted in the third stage of the concentration treatment (ml).

That is, for example, if the raw water amount (Va) used in one concentration process is constant, the concentration rate can be controlled by adjusting the excess water amount (Vb) extracted in the second stage of the concentration process. it can. Further, by setting the amount of concentrated water to a constant value and adjusting the amount of raw water by back-calculating according to the set value of the concentration rate, it is possible to obtain a constant amount of concentrated water every time. Since the amount of concentrated water has a relationship of Vc = Va-Vb, the flow meter 516 can be omitted. Furthermore, the inflow amount Va
If the liquid level upper limit sensor 508 controls the flow rate to be constant, the flowmeter 51 for measuring the extracted excess water amount Vb.
Only 5 is required. Further, the flow meter is not an integrating type, and the current flow rate may be measured and integrated.

Next, the microorganism image measuring device is shown in FIG.
This will be described with reference to the functional block diagram of FIG. The microorganism image measuring device 60 is roughly divided into two parts, an imaging unit 601 and an image processing unit 602. Imaging unit 60
Reference numeral 1 is for capturing an enlarged image of the microorganisms in the concentrated water sent from the concentrating device 50 and transmitting it to the image processing unit 602.
Specifically, a camera similar to a television camera connected to a biological microscope is desirable. The image processing unit 602 measures the microorganisms by classifying them into a plurality of types by image processing.
The number of microbes and / or the area occupied by the microbes in the enlarged image of the concentrated water transmitted from the imaging unit 601 are measured.

In the image pickup section 601, 601a is an image acquisition circuit and 601b is an A / D conversion circuit. The image acquisition circuit 601a captures an enlarged grayscale image of concentrated water at regular intervals. Here, the activation time interval of the image acquisition circuit 601a is equal to the activation signal time interval of the concentration processing control unit 501 of the concentration device 50. Alternatively, the image acquisition circuit 601a may be activated by a signal from the concentration control unit 501.
The image acquired by the video acquisition circuit 601a is A /
The digital signal is converted into a digital signal by the D conversion circuit 601b and transmitted to the image processing unit 602. Video acquisition circuit 60
The concentrated water imaged by 1a is drained to the outside of the device.

In the image processing unit 602, the image processing circuit 602a processes the received image, and for each recognized object, the area and perimeter, the short side / long side length,
Image feature quantities such as the number of holes, the area of holes, and the number of protrusion points are calculated. Here, the object refers to microorganisms existing in the concentrated water and other dust (eg, a granular lump of earth and sand). Further, the image processing is to construct and execute an algorithm for microbial classification measurement by combining image processing methods such as binarization processing, noise removal processing, and labeling processing. Specifically, the Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-2 by the present inventors
The image processing method disclosed in No. 63411 can be used.

The image processed by the image processing circuit 602a is input and stored in the image memory 602b together with the enlarged grayscale image before being processed. Image processing circuit 602
The image feature amount of each object obtained in a is the information processing circuit 602.
c. The information processing circuit 602c classifies the object into a plurality of items with reference to the determination rule previously input to the rule base 602d, and counts each of the classification items. here,
The classification items are mainly based on the shape of the object, and are, for example, linear, star-shaped, rectangular, circular, and elliptical. In the rule base 602d, the determination rule based on the numerical range of the image characteristic amount (or the predetermined numerical value obtained by the calculation of a plurality of image characteristic amounts) is input for each shape. For example, "if the ratio of the short side to the long side is a constant value a ₁ or less and the number of protrusion points is a constant value a ₂ or less, the object is linear" or "the area of the object and the circumscribed If the ratio of the areas of the rectangles is a constant value b ₁ or less and the number of protruding points is a constant value b ₂ or more, the object is a star. "
Shape determination rule.

The counting result of the information processing circuit 602c is transmitted to the microorganism concentration calculating device 70 and the display device 80 and is also input and stored in the database 602e.

According to the present embodiment, the effect of shape recognition, which is an advantage of image measurement, can be enhanced, and the number of individuals of each type of microorganism can be accurately measured.

The processing of the microorganism image measuring device 60 has been described above. The microorganism image measuring device 60 can be activated not only at regular time intervals but also at the operator's discretion so as to cope with water quality accidents and abnormal weather.

Next, the structure and processing contents of the microorganism concentration calculating device 70 will be described with reference to FIG. In the figure, 701 is a microorganism concentration calculation circuit, and 702 is a database. Information processing circuit 60 of microorganism image measuring device 60
The microorganism image measurement result transmitted from 2c is input to the microorganism concentration calculation circuit 701. Microbial concentration calculation circuit 70
1 indicates the microbial concentration B in the measured water before concentration as shown in Expression (13) from the microbial data obtained by the microbial image measuring device 60 and the value of the concentration ratio transmitted from the concentration ratio calculating device 40. calculate.

[0084]

[Equation 13] B = γB ₀ / X ₀ (13) where, B ₀ : microorganism concentration in the stored water 1 (cells /
ml), γ: conversion factor, X ₀ : concentration rate.

Here, the conversion coefficient γ is a numerical value depending on the amount of water to be measured that can be captured in one visual field range of the enlarged image used for measuring the microorganism image, and γ = 10 ³ / μl. The microorganism concentration calculation circuit 701 uses the database 702 and the display device 8 to calculate the microorganism concentration calculated from the equation (13).
Send to 0.

The display device 80 displays the water quality data of the turbidity and the concentration transmitted from the turbidity meter 30 and the chlorophyll a concentration meter 31, the concentration rate data transmitted from the concentration rate determination device 40, and the microorganism image measurement device 60. A storage means for storing the transmitted image data such as the shape and size of the microorganisms and the data of the microorganism concentration transmitted from the microorganism concentration calculation device 70 in time series is provided, and these are displayed as numerical values or graphs.

FIG. 10 shows an example of the display of each item on the display device 80. In addition to displaying all items, specific items can be selected according to an operator's instruction. For example, it is also possible to select the microorganism classification display button and display the number of distinct shapes of microorganisms shown in FIG. This display has an effect that the quality of the recognition result can be directly visually grasped.

As shown on the left side of the screen, the microbial concentration,
Changes over time such as the size of microorganisms, turbidity, chlorophyll a concentration, and concentration rate are displayed. This display has an effect that the increase / decrease of microorganisms such as blue-green algae can be grasped at a glance.
Further, by selecting the button for changing the concentration rate shown on the right side of the screen, the numerical range of the concentration rate, the conversion factor, etc. can be properly tested and adjusted while observing the processed image of the microorganisms in the measured water.

All or part of the above-described concentration rate determination device 40, concentration process control unit 501, backwash process control unit 511, microorganism image measuring device 60, microorganism concentration calculation device 70, etc. are common processing devices ( It can be realized as a software function by a CPU.

As described above, according to the microorganism concentration automatic measuring system of the present embodiment, the concentration of the water to be measured can be controlled within an appropriate range based on the water quality value thereof, so that the efficiency of the microorganism concentration measuring process can be improved. The measurement accuracy can be dramatically improved.

As a result, it is possible to efficiently measure detailed data for each type of microorganism, and it is possible to contribute to the elucidation of the mechanism of damage caused by abnormal growth of microorganisms such as red tide and water-bloom.

Since the target value of the water quality value, which is an index for controlling the concentration, can be changed automatically or semi-automatically according to the environmental conditions, online measurement becomes possible, and the water quality control in real time and time series can be performed. Data collection can be realized.

Further, since the turbidity meter and the chlorophyll a concentration meter are used together, it is possible to avoid the influence of sediment etc. due to rainfall, and it is possible to manage the concentration control for practical use. As a result, it is possible to properly concentrate and measure the concentration of minute amounts of microorganisms leaked from advanced treatment equipment such as filtration ponds and biological activated carbon towers at water purification plants, enabling real-time water quality control such as tap water. To do.

[0094]

According to the present invention, in image measurement of microbial concentration, the concentration rate is appropriately controlled based on the water quality value (turbidity, chlorophyll concentration a, etc.) that can be directly measured and the target value thereof. Therefore, it is effective in improving the measurement efficiency and reducing the measurement error.

Since the target value of the water quality value can be varied according to the environmental conditions of measurement, it is possible to measure the microorganism concentration online, contributing to real-time water quality control and the elucidation of the mechanism of occurrence of water-bloom, red tide, etc. it can.

Furthermore, since the concentration rate of the water to be measured can be controlled appropriately without being affected by the mixing of soil and sand due to rainfall, etc., the actual concentration of leaked microorganisms in the purified water in a water purification plant where the concentration of microorganisms is extremely low. It becomes possible to detect the time and contribute to the water quality control of tap water.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a microorganism concentration measuring apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of correspondence between measurement target images and measurement results in image measurement of microorganisms.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a concentration rate determination device.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a microorganism concentration measuring apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a concentrating device.

FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of a backwashing mechanism of the concentrating device.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram showing another embodiment of the concentrating device.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a microorganism image measuring device.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a microorganism concentration calculation device.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a display example of measurement results in the microorganism concentration measuring device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Reservoir water such as lakes and dams, 10 ... Water sampling device, 20 ...
Pretreatment device, 30 ... Turbidimeter, 40 ... Concentration rate determination device, 5
0 ... Concentrating device, 60 ... Microbial image measuring device, 70 ... Microbial concentration calculating device, 80 ... Display device.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Shoji Watanabe 7-1-1 Omika-cho, Hitachi-shi, Ibaraki Hitachi Ltd. Hitachi Research Laboratory (72) Inventor Yasuo Yahagi 1-chome, Omika-cho, Hitachi-shi, Ibaraki No. 1 Incorporated company Hitachi Ltd. Hitachi Research Laboratory (72) Inventor Mikio Yoda 5-2-1 Omika-cho, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture Incorporated Hitachi Ltd. Omika Plant (72) Inventor Naoki Hara Omika, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture 5-2-1 machi, Hitachi Ltd. Omika factory (72) Inventor Nobuyoshi Yamakoshi 5-2-1 Omika-cho, Hitachi-shi, Ibaraki Hitachi Ltd. Omika factory (72) Inventor Kenji Baba Ibaraki 7-1, 1-1 Omika-cho, Hitachi, Ltd. Hitachi Research Laboratory, Hitachi Ltd. (72) Inventor Katsuji Terazono Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 2-14-2 Kojimachi Inside the dam water source environment maintenance center

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A method for measuring the concentration of microorganisms by measuring the concentration of microorganisms in water by predetermined image processing, wherein a predetermined water quality value, which is an index of the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water, is directly measured from the measured water. However, the target value is set in advance so that the microorganisms in the measured water are optimized without becoming overcrowded or depopulated, and the concentration rate is determined based on this target value and the predetermined water quality value. Is concentrated to the concentration ratio so that the concentration of the microorganisms increases, and the concentrated water to be measured is measured by the predetermined image processing. 2. The predetermined water quality value according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined water quality value is one of turbidity, absorbance, and chlorophyll a concentration which is a substance peculiar to phytoplankton, or a synthetic value of at least two or more. Measuring method of microbial concentration. 3. The target value of the predetermined water quality value or a conversion coefficient for calculating the target value according to claim 1 or 2, depending on weather or environmental conditions such as weather and water temperature. A method for measuring the concentration of microorganisms, characterized in that 4. The method for measuring a microorganism concentration according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the target value of the predetermined water quality value is given by a numerical range indicating an upper limit and / or a lower limit thereof. 5. A microbial concentration measuring method for measuring the concentration of microorganisms in water by predetermined image processing, wherein the turbidity and chlorophyll a concentration, which are indicators of the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water, are directly measured from the measured water. Then, the turbidity and the chlorophyll a concentration are calculated by a predetermined relational expression, and the target value of the predetermined water quality value is set so that the microorganisms in the measured water are appropriately measured without becoming overcrowded or depopulated. Determine the concentration rate from the ratio of this target value and the predetermined water quality value in advance, control the concentration of the measured water to the concentration rate, and measure the concentrated measured water by the predetermined image processing. A method for measuring the concentration of microorganisms characterized by. 6. The method for measuring a microbial concentration according to claim 5, wherein the predetermined relational expression is determined by adding or averaging the turbidity corrected according to the degree of rainfall and the chlorophyll a concentration. . 7. The predetermined image processing according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined image processing classifies the microorganisms by shape recognition and measures the microorganism concentration (the number of microorganisms or the area occupied by the microorganisms) for each type of microorganisms. A method for measuring the concentration of microorganisms, which is characterized in that 8. A microbial concentration measuring device for measuring the concentration of microorganisms in water by image processing, wherein one of turbidity, absorbance or chlorophyll-a concentration, which is an index of the microbial concentration of water to be measured, or both of them. Water quality measuring means for measuring a predetermined water quality value consisting of three or more, concentrating means for concentrating the concentration of microorganisms in the measured water to a specified concentration rate, and visually enlarging the concentrated microorganisms in the measured water. Imaging means for capturing and acquiring an enlarged image, a microorganism image measuring means for measuring the concentration of microorganisms in the enlarged image by image processing, and the microorganisms in the enlarged image are optimized without being overcrowded or depopulated Storage means for pre-storing a target value or numerical range of the predetermined water quality value, based on the target value or numerical range of the water quality value and the predetermined water quality value measured by the water quality measuring means Determining the concentration rate in, the concentration rate control means for controlling the concentration means, the concentration rate of the concentration means and the microorganism concentration measured by the microorganism image measuring means from the concentration of microorganisms in the water to be measured before concentration A microbial concentration measuring device, comprising: a microbial concentration calculating means for calculating. 9. A microbial concentration measuring device that samples water from rivers, lakes, dams, water purification plants, etc., and online-measures the concentration of microorganisms in the water to be measured by measuring the concentration of contaminants while removing impurities. Sampling means for collecting water and turbidity or chlorophyll a concentration as a predetermined water quality value depending on the microbial concentration of the measured water and used as an index, or measured turbidity and chlorophyll a concentration by a predetermined relational expression. Water quality measuring means for calculating the predetermined water quality value, concentrating means for concentrating the measured water to a specified concentration rate, and visually enlarging and imaging the microorganisms in the concentrated measured water And an image capturing unit that acquires the microbial concentration in the enlarged image, and a microbial image measuring unit that measures the microbial concentration in the enlarged image for each type of microorganism by shape recognition. Storage means for pre-storing a target value or numerical range of the predetermined water quality value that is optimized without becoming dense or sparse, a target value or numerical range of the predetermined water quality value and the predetermined water quality measured by the water quality measuring means Determine the concentration rate based on the value, the concentration rate control means for controlling the concentration means, the concentration of the concentration means and the concentration of microorganisms measured by the microorganism image measuring means in the measured water before concentration A microbial concentration measuring device, comprising: a microbial concentration calculating means for calculating a microbial concentration. 10. The storage device according to claim 8, wherein the storage device stores the target value or numerical range of the water quality value in correspondence with environmental conditions such as weather and water temperature, and the concentration rate control means sets or An apparatus for measuring a microorganism concentration, which is configured so that an appropriate value can be referred to according to the environmental condition to be measured. 11. The concentrating means according to claim 8, 9 or 10, wherein the concentrating means is provided with an upper chamber and a lower chamber which are divided by a concentrating film, and a measured water supply valve is provided above the upper chamber and a lower end thereof is provided. Concentrated liquid extraction valves are provided respectively, and a measured water discharge valve that passes through the concentrated membrane is provided at the bottom of the lower chamber, and the concentration rate control means opens the supply valve to supply the measured water to the first. Store a predetermined amount, then open the discharge valve and discharge the stored water in the upper chamber until a second predetermined amount calculated from the first predetermined amount and the concentration rate is reached, Thereafter, the extraction valve is opened to extract the measured water concentrated to the second predetermined amount, and the microorganism concentration measuring apparatus is characterized. 12. The microorganism concentration (number) calculated by the microorganism concentration calculating means, the water quality value measured by the water quality measuring means, and the concentration means according to claim 8, 9, 10 or 11. A microorganism concentration measuring apparatus, comprising: a storage unit that stores concentration rates in time series. 13. The one or more of claim 12, wherein the microorganism concentration (number) calculated by the microorganism concentration calculating means, the water quality value measured by the water quality measuring means, and the concentration rate set in the concentrating means. And a graph and a means for displaying the microbial image processed by the microbial image measuring means.