KR101109460B1 - System for monitoring environments of the sea - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is an underwater sensor unit that can measure the specific physical properties of the water; A body having an inner space in which the underwater sensor unit can be elevated; An upper frame part disposed on an upper part of the body and equipped with various sensors and antennas; And it is installed in the body or the upper frame portion relates to a marine environment monitoring system including a winch that can be raised or lowered automatically or manually the underwater sensor.

Marine Environment, Monitoring, Winch, Underwater Sensor Unit, Elevation

Description

System for monitoring environments of the sea

The present invention relates to a marine environment monitoring system, and in more detail, an unmanned automatic system capable of observing, recording, and analyzing changes in marine environment can automatically lift and lift the underwater sensor, and self-power generation is possible. It relates to a marine environment monitoring system that can be used in large seas.

Observation of marine environment is largely based on: (i) the method of surveying by ship, ii) the method of surveying large oceans at once by using satellites, (i) the method of continuously surveying data at one point by using buoys, and (iv) other It is done by walking or diving.

In Korea, it is relatively common to survey ships or satellites or walk directly into the tidal flats.

However, research by submersibles and buoys is not yet easy due to various reasons such as cost / maintenance.

On the other hand, buoy surveys are a way to collect marine data continuously at a point in the ocean over time, and the data produced in this way (called time-series data) is constantly changing. Very useful for scientists who require it.

Buoys are mainly mooring buoys that can continuously observe meteorological and marine data at their peaks, and drift buoys that transmit observation data along the current.

Existing mooring buoys are fixed by a single anchor and connected by a mooring line, so it is difficult to make accurate measurements in the ocean where the flow velocity is high, or where the difference between tides and tides is large.

In addition, the automatic adjustment of the sensor, etc. according to the depth to be measured, there is an inconvenience to go to adjust again after the observation at the installed point.

In addition, there is a problem that the underwater sensor exposed to the water is easily broken by the floating material.

The present invention devised to solve the problems of the prior art as described above is equipped with a winch that can automatically lift the underwater sensor unit by the ocean (East Sea) where the flow velocity is strong, or even in the sea where the difference between the tide is large (west sea) The purpose is to provide a system that can monitor the environment.

In addition, its purpose is to provide a marine environment monitoring system capable of self-power generation, and can support a variety of wireless communication.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a marine environment monitoring system capable of protecting the underwater sensor unit.

The object of the present invention is an underwater sensor unit that can measure the specific physical properties of the water; A body having an inner space in which the underwater sensor unit can be elevated; An upper frame part disposed on an upper part of the body and equipped with various sensors and antennas; And it is achieved by the marine environment monitoring system including a winch installed in the body or the upper frame portion capable of lifting the underwater sensor unit automatically or manually.

 On the other hand, the body or the upper frame portion may include a control unit for driving the winch in accordance with the measurement conditions received from the user computer through telecommunications.

Meanwhile, the telecommunication can selectively use CDMA communication or low-orbit satellite communication.

On the other hand, the winch drum for winding or unwinding the cable connected to the underwater sensor; A motor providing rotational force to the drum; A reducer for reducing the rotational speed of the motor; And it may include a winch control unit for controlling the drive of the motor.

On the other hand, the winch may include an operation unit that can receive the operating conditions of the winch by manual or remote control.

On the other hand, the underwater sensor unit underwater sensor for measuring a specific physical property of the underwater; And an underwater sensor frame which fixes the underwater sensor and moves up and down with the underwater sensor.

On the other hand, a buffer device for protecting the underwater sensor unit may be formed by accommodating the underwater sensor unit under the body.

On the other hand, the underwater sensor unit may be provided with a plurality of trubidity sensor connected via a connection line of different lengths.

In addition, by mounting two or more turbidity sensors through connecting wires of different lengths, sediment on the sea floor can be easily observed.

Therefore, the marine environment monitoring system according to the present invention employs a winch that can lift the underwater sensor unit automatically or manually to monitor the marine environment regularly even in the sea (East Sea) where the flow velocity is high or the sea where the difference between tides is large (West Sea). This has a possible advantage.

In addition, self-power is possible by providing a wind generator or a solar generator, there is an advantage that can support various wireless communication.

In addition, there is an advantage that the shock absorber is provided inside the body to protect the underwater sensor.

In addition, by mounting two or more turbidity sensors through connecting wires of different lengths, sediment on the sea floor can be easily observed.

The terms or words used in this specification and claims are not to be construed as being limited to their ordinary or dictionary meanings, and the inventors may appropriately define the concept of terms in order to best describe their invention. It should be interpreted as meaning and concept corresponding to the technical idea of the present invention based on the principle that the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the specification and the drawings shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical idea of the present invention, various modifications that can be replaced at the time of the present application It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

1 is a cross-sectional view of the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the marine environment monitoring system of FIG.

1 and 2, the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a body 100, the underwater sensor unit 200 and the upper frame portion 300 and the like.

The underwater sensor unit 200 may include various underwater sensors 202 for monitoring the marine environment.

For example, one or more turbidity sensors may be mounted to enable measurement of layer turbidity of the mud layer, and sensors for measuring various salinities, pH, water temperature, and flow rate may be installed.

The general buoy or marine environment monitoring system is configured to operate more than 1m away from the sea floor for the safety of the equipment (underwater sensor unit), but since the sediment moves within 1m from the sea floor, Is very difficult to observe bottom sediments.

Accordingly, in the marine environment monitoring system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in FIG. 5, one or more turbidity sensors 207 and 208 may be connected to the underwater sensor unit 200 through separate connection lines 207a and 208a. ) It can be mounted on the bottom to facilitate observation.

In addition, when two or more turbidity sensors 207 and 208 are mounted, the lengths of the connecting lines 207a and 208a may be different so that the sediments of the sea bottom may be observed according to the height from the sea bottom.

In addition, a CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, Depth) sensor module or simply a depth sensor may be mounted.

The depth sensor is a sensor that allows the sensor to measure the water pressure and calculate the depth according to the hydrostatic equation.

The underwater sensor 202 is supported by the underwater sensor frame 204 and the lifting and lowering movement through the central portion of the body 100 by the winch 350.

On the other hand, when the underwater sensor frame 204 is exposed to the outside of the lower body 100 may be damaged by various suspended substances, etc., while the underwater sensor 200 does not perform a profiling operation, it is located inside the body 100. And it may be provided with a shock absorber 102 for the protection of the underwater sensor frame 202.

To this end, the shock absorber 102 may be formed of polyurethane foam or the like, but the material is not limited thereto.

The shock absorber 102 may be configured to prevent the sensor frame 204 from rising into the air and to be detachable from the upper portion of the body 100 for smooth maintenance and repair of the underwater sensor.

The body 100 may have various shapes such as an empty pipe shape or an inverted triangle shape, and may be made of stainless steel, aluminum alloy, etc. to prevent corrosion by seawater.

The lower portion of the body 100 can be provided with a balance member 104 for giving a sense of stability by lowering the center of gravity of the body 100, by configuring the lower portion of the body in the form of an elongated pipe to balance the overall balance of the body 100 have.

The upper frame portion 300 is provided on the upper portion of the body 100 for installing a weather sensor, various antennas and a control unit.

FIG. 1 exemplarily shows a global positioning system (GPS) antenna 302, a wireless communication antenna 304, a wind vane 306, a weather meter 308, a sheave 310, and an upper frame unit 300. A solar panel 312, a controller 314, a winch 350 and a battery hull 316 are illustrated.

In addition, although the upper frame portion 300 is shown in the ring-shaped frame consisting of a plurality of bars (bar) in Figure 1 and 2 is not limited to this, in the present invention 'upper frame portion' is a plurality of thin plate, bar It consists of a mechanism device that can be equipped with a variety of sensors, antennas and the like.

When the GPS antenna 302 receives a signal from a GPS satellite, a GPS receiving module (not shown) generates location information based on the received signal.

The wind direction wind speed data measured by the wind vane 306, temperature data measured by the air temperature meter 308, various data measured by the underwater sensor unit 200 and data measured by various sensors not shown in FIG. Together with the generated location information data, it is transmitted to a remote user computer through CDMA communication or low-orbit satellite communication.

 The wireless communication antenna 304 is an antenna for code division multiple access (CDMA) communication, low-orbit satellite communication, and the like, and may include one or more antennas.

CDMA communication is a digital mobile communication method using spread-band technology developed by Qualcomm of the United States, also known as code division multiple access and code division multiple access.

The low orbit satellite communication system is a global personal portable communication system using a low orbit satellite (LEOS).

At the World Radiocommunication Administration Meeting (WARC-92) held by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in 1992, the bands 1 to 3 GHz are widely used for mobile satellite services (MSS) to meet the growing demand for mobile communications using satellites. The Radio Regulations (RR) were amended in 1993 to enable mobile satellite services using low orbit satellites in response to strong US proposals.

Low-orbiting satellites are generically referred to as satellites orbiting the earth at orbits lower than the stationary orbit of 35,786 km in altitude. Specifically, low-orbiting satellites (about 1,000 km altitude) and medium-orbiting satellites (MEOS: about 10,000 km altitude). ) And a high elliptical orbit satellite (HEOS) with a wide range of altitudes.

Iridium, Globalstar and Orbcom are low-orbit satellite systems and Odyssey is a mid-orbit satellite system.

In addition, the United States' Teledesic system is a low-orbit satellite system, and Inmarsek's Project-21 system is a mid-orbit satellite system.

These various satellite mobile communications can be launched from multiple orbits passing through the North Pole and the South Pole, respectively, and can communicate from anywhere in the world using any one of them.

The wireless communication antenna 304 allows a wireless communication module (not shown) to wirelessly exchange various data with a remote user computer (PC, Workstation, mobile phone, PDA, notebook computer, server computer, etc.).

On the other hand, low-orbit satellite communication such as CDMA communication and ofcom communication can be used in dual (dual) to enable data transmission through the ofcom communication in the region where CDMA communication is impossible.

CDMA communication is low cost and high speed, while CDMA communication is mainly used only in the offshore as a means of communication such as mobile phone. Ofcom communication is satellite communication, so it can be used in the sea, but communication costs are high and slow.

Therefore, if necessary, it can be configured to complement the advantages and disadvantages of low-orbit satellite communications, such as CDMA communication and ofcom communication. That is, CDMA communication can be used when CDMA communication is possible, and low-orbit satellite communication can be used in the case where CDMA communication is not possible.

The solar panel 312 or a small wind turbine (not shown) is connected to a solar cell module (not shown) and a wind power module (not shown), respectively, to store power in a rechargeable battery through a charging circuit, thereby monitoring the marine environment. The self-development of the clinic may allow for longer periods of mooring.

Meanwhile, the solar panel 312 may be symmetrically structured, that is, the solar panel 312 may be symmetrically positioned at both sides of the upper frame part 300 to achieve stability. The control unit 314 for installing various loggers or the like may be disposed in the center of the 300.

The upper frame 300 is equipped with wind speed, air temperature, barometric pressure sensor to measure the weather data, the tide, water temperature, electrical conductivity, turbidity, chlorophyll, depth at the predetermined position of the underwater sensor unit 200 or the body It can be configured to measure complex marine environment data with various sensors for measuring dissolved oxygen, frankincense flow rate, etc.

In addition, an ADCP (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) 318 may be mounted at a predetermined position of the body 100.

ADCP transmits ultrasonic waves at a constant frequency into the water, collects echoes scattered by suspended particles, and measures the flow rate using the Doppler effect.

At this time, by using the time difference of the return echo, it arranges by a certain depth according to the depth to create the distribution of flow velocity by depth, and calculates the average flow velocity using the depth.

In other words, the ADCP can be installed to enable floor profiling and flow velocity measurement as well as regular profiling.

In addition, the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention by installing the winch 350 in the body 100 or the upper frame portion 300, the body 100 to automatically or manually the underwater sensor unit 200 It is configured to move up and down through the center of the.

The battery hull 316 is a space for battery installation, and the battery hull 316 may be installed at a position symmetrical with the winch 350 to stabilize the entire system.

On the other hand, by making the interior of the body 100 in a partition structure can be secured stability of the entire structure even if some sections are damaged and the seawater is introduced.

3 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a winch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The winch 350 may include a motor 351, a reducer 352, a drum 353, a winch control unit 354, and the like.

In order to remotely control the winch 350, when the user computer transmits information on the number of profiling times, observation depth change periods, etc. to the control unit 314 through CDMA communication or low-orbit satellite communication, the control unit 314 transmits the information to the winch control unit 354. Commands related to the number of profiling times, observation depth change periods, etc., and the drive processor commands the motor 351 through a driver to enable automatic profiling.

That is, when the user sets the number of measurements (pro-liing), the Altimeter (not shown), which is a sound wave receiver of the underwater sensor unit 200, may automatically set the observation depth interval after measuring the entire depth.

For example, if the user sets the number of measurements five times, and the depth measured by Altimeter is 20m, the user can measure every 4m.

The winch control unit 354 may not exist, and in this case, the main processor, the driver, or the like in the control unit 314 may play a role of the winch control unit 354.

In addition, the operation panel and display unit (not shown) may be installed at a predetermined position (or an upper frame or body) of the winch for manual operation such as direct operation of the winch 350 by hand or operation by a remote controller. The diving length, the towing speed and the like of the cable 355 can be displayed on the display unit.

The reducer 352 is for adjusting (reducing) the driving speed of the motor 351, and the drum 353 serves to wind the cable 355 for elevating the underwater sensor unit 200, and the cable 355 The guide plate 358 may exist to smoothly wind or unwind the drum 353.

In addition, one end of the rotation shaft 356 may be connected to the reducer 352 or the motor 351, and the other end thereof may be connected to a slip ring 357. That is, by supporting both ends of the rotating shaft 356 so that the drum 353 can be wound around the cable 355 in a stable manner.

On the other hand, although not shown in Figure 3, the winch 350 may be provided with a load sensor, proximity sensor, tachometer.

The load sensor may be installed on the rotating shaft 356 and detects a load applied to the rotating shaft 356 and transmits the signal to the winch control unit 354.

The winch control unit 354 may increase the output of the motor 351 when a large load is applied to the rotating shaft according to the signal of the load detection sensor, and reduce the output of the motor 351 when the load is small.

4 is a block diagram illustrating the operation of the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to FIG. 4, but for convenience, reference numerals of FIGS. 1 to 3 are used together when necessary.

The solar cell module 402 and the wind power generation module 404 are for self-generation, and the solar cell module 402 is connected to the solar panel 314 to convert solar light energy into electrical energy to charge the circuit 406. In addition, the wind power generation module 404 converts the mechanical energy of a fan (not shown) driven by the wind into electrical energy and provides it to the charging circuit 406.

The charging circuit 406 stores electrical energy by supplying electrical energy from the solar cell module 402 and the wind power generation module 404 to the rechargeable battery 408.

The driving power generation unit 410 generates power used in the marine environment monitoring system of the present invention to control the controller 412, winch 414, wireless communication module 416, GPS receiving module 418, memory unit 420 ), The water sensor unit 422, the underwater sensor unit 424 and the ADCP (426) to supply power.

The control unit 412 controls each part of the marine environment monitoring system of the present invention, receives the driving information of the winch 414 from the wireless communication module 416, the water sensor unit 422, the underwater sensor unit 424, The driving information of the GPS receiving module 418 and the winch 414 is transmitted to the remote user computer through the wireless communication module 416.

The winch 414 automatically receives the driving signal from the control unit 412 and automatically performs the lifting operation of the underwater sensor unit 424, and manually performs the lifting operation of the underwater sensor unit 424 when necessary.

The wireless communication module 416 performs wireless communication such as CDMA communication and low orbit satellite communication.

The GPS receiving module 418 receives GPS information from the satellite and transmits the GPS information to the controller 412.

The memory unit 420 temporarily or permanently stores data measured by various sensors, wireless communication data, GPS data, winch driving information data, and the like, and transmits the data to the controller 412 when necessary.

The water sensor unit 422 is used to collectively refer to sensors for sensing various marine environment information in the water, not underwater, such as the wind vane 306 and the thermometer 308.

The underwater sensor unit 424 includes a turbidity sensor, salinity, pH, water temperature, flow rate sensor, and the like, and monitors the marine environment in the water and transmits it to the controller 412.

The ADCP 426 measures the flow rate and transmits the flow rate to the controller 412.

As described above, the marine environment monitoring system according to the present invention employs a winch capable of automatically or manually lifting the underwater sensor unit, so that even in the sea (the East Sea) where the flow velocity is high or in the sea where the difference between tides is large (the West Sea), Monitoring of the environment is possible.

In addition, by providing a wind power generation module and / or a solar cell module can be self-powered, it is possible to selectively use CDMA communication or low-orbit satellite communication.

In addition, it is possible to prevent damage to the underwater sensor unit due to the floating material by accommodating the underwater sensor unit with a buffer device inside the body.

6 is a view for explaining the mooring line of the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Conventional mooring buoy is a mooring line, but the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention is a mooring line (152a, 154a, 156a, in consideration of the strong flow rate and large even in the installation area) Two or more mooring lines of 158a) may be used.

At this time, each of the pendulum (152, 154, 156, 158) to take into account the direction of the bird to create a direction perpendicular to the direction of the bird at the time of creation and algae to consider the stability of buoys (marine environmental monitoring system).

This can be said to be a stable mooring method that sufficiently reflects the environmental characteristics of the site rather than the general method using a single invasion.

As described above, the marine environment monitoring system according to the present invention employs a winch capable of automatically or manually lifting the underwater sensor unit, so that even in the sea (the East Sea) where the flow velocity is high or in the sea where the difference between tides is large (the West Sea), Monitoring of the environment is possible.

In addition, by providing a wind power generation module and / or a solar cell module can be self-powered, it is possible to selectively use CDMA communication or low-orbit satellite communication.

In addition, it is possible to prevent damage to the underwater sensor unit due to the floating material by accommodating the underwater sensor unit with a buffer device inside the body.

In addition, by mounting two or more turbidity sensors through connecting wires of different lengths, sediment on the sea floor can be easily observed.

Although the present invention has been shown and described with reference to the preferred embodiments as described above, it is not limited to the above embodiments and those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Various changes and modifications will be possible.

1 is a cross-sectional view of the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the marine environment monitoring system of FIG.

3 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a winch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a block diagram illustrating the operation of the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a view showing an underwater sensor unit equipped with a turbidity sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a view showing the mooring line of the marine environment monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: body 102: shock absorber

104: balance member 200: underwater sensor

202: underwater sensor 204: underwater sensor frame

300: upper frame portion 302: GPS antenna

304: wireless communication antenna 306: wind vane

308: Thermometer 310: Sheave

312 solar panel 314 control unit

316: Battery Hull 318: ADCP

350: winch 351: motor

352: reducer 353: drum

354: winch control unit 355: cable

356: axis of rotation 357: slip ring

358: guide plate

Claims (8)

An underwater sensor unit capable of measuring specific physical properties in the water; A body having an inner space in which the underwater sensor unit can be elevated; An upper frame part disposed at an upper part of the body and equipped with various sensors and antennas; And It is installed on the body or the upper frame portion and winch capable of lifting the underwater sensor unit automatically or manually; A shock absorber is formed in the lower part of the body to receive the underwater sensor part and protect the underwater sensor part. The underwater sensor unit has a depth sensor and a marine environment monitoring system, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of turbidity (trubidity sensor) connected through a connection line having a different length from each other The method of claim 1, The body or the upper frame portion marine environment monitoring system including a control unit for driving the winch in accordance with the measurement conditions received from the user through the telecommunications. 3. The method of claim 2, The telecommunication is marine environment monitoring system that can selectively use CDMA communication or low-orbit satellite communication. The method of claim 1, The winch A drum for winding or releasing a cable connected to the underwater sensor; A motor providing rotational force to the drum; A reducer for reducing the rotational speed of the motor; And Winch control unit for controlling the drive of the motor Marine environment monitoring system comprising a. 5. The method of claim 4, The winch marine environment monitoring system including an operation unit that can receive the operating conditions of the winch manually or remote control. The method of claim 1, The underwater sensor unit An underwater sensor for measuring specific physical properties of the water; And A marine environment monitoring system comprising a; an underwater sensor frame for fixing the underwater sensor and lifting up and down with the underwater sensor. delete delete

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