TW201635069A - Environment control system, control device, program - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is capable of maintaining or improving the concentration of a user without any of a visual stimulant, an auditory stimulant, or an olfactory stimulant. This environment control system comprises an environment forming device (10) and a control device (20). The control device (20) includes a storage unit (21), a processing unit (22), and an instruction unit (23). The storage unit (21) stores first period information that determines an operation period (Ts) of the environment forming device (10) such that an awakening airflow (Fs) for restoring concentration of the user (Us)is formed, second period information that determines a reference period (Tw) which is longer than the operation period (Ts), and velocity information that determines wind velocity of the awakening airflow (Fs). The processing unit (22) determines operation of the environment forming device (10) on the basis of the first period information, the second period information, and the velocity information. The instruction unit (23) instructs the environment forming device (10) on the operation determined by the processing unit (22). The reference period (Tw) is determined so as to include at least one operation period (Ts).

Description

Environmental control system, control device, program

The present invention relates to an environmental control system for controlling environmental factors that affect the concentration of users of a work space, a control device for use in the environmental control system, and a program for causing a computer to function as a control device.

In general, the work efficiency of a user who performs work in a work space such as a learning space or an office space is affected by the degree of concentration (hereinafter referred to as "concentration"). Moreover, the degree of concentration of the user varies depending on various environmental elements. For this reason, there has been proposed a technique for controlling an environmental element that affects the degree of concentration of a user (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-59677, and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-245356). The techniques described in both documents 1 and 2 control the lighting environment in the environmental elements of the work space in which the user is located.

The technique described in Document 1 is to add single-wavelength light by illumination of white light in order to increase the degree of wakingness and to improve work efficiency. According to the technique described in Document 1, by adopting this configuration, work efficiency can be improved without excessively lighting the energy.

On the other hand, in Document 2, it is described that the illuminance of the time zone after lunch is set to be higher than the normal illuminance, and the illuminance of the other time zone is set to be lower than the normal illuminance. According to this configuration, in the technique described in Document 2, the work efficiency in the time zone after lunch can be improved, and the total energy consumption can be suppressed.

Further, in order to improve the work efficiency of the user, in Document 1, attention is paid to the wavelength component included in the illumination light, and in Document 2, attention is paid to the intensity of the illumination light, so that the user is caused by the change in the color tone or the change in the brightness. The possibility of discomfort. Moreover, there is no possibility of a visual stimulus of a degree of discomfort, and there is a possibility that the work efficiency cannot be sufficiently improved.

Further, it is also known to use a technique of olfactory stimulation or auditory stimulation in order to increase the concentration of the user, but the individual's response to the olfactory stimuli is large, and the technique of giving the auditory stimuli has a noise, and also hinders communication. The possibility.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an environmental control system that maintains or enhances the concentration of a user without using any of visual stimulation, auditory stimulation, or olfactory stimulation. Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a control device for use in the environmental control system and a program for causing a computer to function as a control device.

An environmental control system according to an aspect of the present invention includes: an environment forming device having a function of forming an air flow in a work space; and a control device for maintaining or enhancing a concentration of consciousness of a user existing in the work space a degree, that is, a degree of concentration, controlling the operation of the environment forming device; and the control device includes: a memory portion that memorizes to form a awake airflow for restoring concentration of the user, and determines an operation period of the environment forming device The first period information, the second period information of the reference period longer than the operation period, and the speed information for determining the wind speed of the awake airflow; the processing unit is based on the first period information, the second period information, And the speed information to determine an operation content of the environment forming apparatus; and an instruction unit that instructs the environment forming apparatus to determine an operation content determined by the processing unit; and the reference period includes one or more operation periods The way is decided.

A control device according to an aspect of the present invention is characterized by being used in the above-described environmental control system.

One aspect of the present invention is to enable a computer to be used as an environmental control for the above The system controls the device to function.

10‧‧‧Environmental forming device

11‧‧‧Air blower

12‧‧‧Ventilator

13‧‧‧ air conditioning

20‧‧‧Control device

21‧‧‧Memory Department

22‧‧‧Processing Department

23‧‧‧Instructions

24‧‧‧ Input Department

25‧‧‧clock department

26‧‧‧Acquisition Department

27‧‧‧Selection Department

30‧‧‧Measurement device

40‧‧‧operator

50‧‧‧ sensor

Es‧‧‧Workspace

Fs‧‧‧ awake airflow

Fw‧‧‧ micro airflow

During the operation of Ts‧‧

Tw‧‧‧ benchmark period

Us‧‧‧Users

Fig. 1 is a schematic view showing a configuration common to the first to fourth embodiments.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a view showing an operation example of the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

Fig. 4 is a view showing a specific example of the awake airflow used in the first to fourth embodiments.

Fig. 5 is a view showing another specific example of the awake airflow used in the first to fourth embodiments.

Fig. 6 is a view showing a measurement example for quantifying the concentration in the first to fourth embodiments.

Fig. 7 is a view showing an example of the effect of the first embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing the third embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing the fourth embodiment.

(Embodiment 1)

In the present embodiment, in order to maintain or increase the concentration of the user in the work space, the configuration of the air flow for controlling the work space is employed. However, in order to maintain or increase the concentration of the user, it is also possible to use the control of the air environment other than the airflow in the work space. In addition to airflow, the air environment also contains the concentration (physical, chemical, biological) concentration, temperature, and relative humidity of the air. Physical substances in the air are known as dust, yellow sand, and particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5, etc.). Further, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, aldehydes (especially formaldehyde), VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds), and the like are known as chemical substances in the air. The biological substances in the air are known as mold, virus, pollen, and the like.

Therefore, in order to change the air environment, consideration is given to the ventilation of the work space, the formation of the airflow in the work space, the adjustment of the temperature or humidity of the work space, and the removal of substances in the air. The formation of airflow, temperature or humidity adjustment also affects the comfort of the user.

In the present embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1, it is assumed that the work space Es in which the user Us is located is indoor. Further, in the present embodiment, the environment forming apparatus 10 is a fan that forms an air flow inside the work space Es or a blower 11 such as a circulator, but as shown in Fig. 1, instead of using air discharged from the work space Es, The ventilating fan 12 that introduces external air to the working space may also be used in combination. Further, other environment forming apparatuses 10 such as an air conditioner or an air cleaner may be used instead, and may be used in combination.

The ventilating fan 12 may be configured to discharge air from the working space Es to the external space while exchanging air from the external space, and exchange heat during the intake and exhaust. Further, the ventilating device for ventilation may be an opening portion of a window that performs natural ventilation, in addition to the ventilating fan 12 that mechanically ventilates. These environment forming devices 10 are used alone or in combination.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the control device 20 controls the operations of the two environment forming devices 10 (the blower 11 and the ventilating fan 12). That is, in the present embodiment, the environment control system is constructed by the two environment forming apparatuses 10 and the control apparatus 20. Since the concentration of the user Us changes over time during the mental work, it is preferable that the control device 20 forms an air environment in which the concentration is maintained or increased in accordance with the timing of the decrease in concentration. The forming device 10 operates. The degree of concentration of the user Us can be monitored using the measuring device 30, but in the following configuration, it is not necessary to measure the degree of concentration by the measuring device 30.

As shown in FIG. 2, the control device 20 includes a storage unit 21, a processing unit 22, and an instruction unit 23. The memory unit 21 stores information for controlling the environment forming apparatuses 10, and the processing unit 22 is configured to determine the contents of the operations of the environment forming apparatuses 10 using the information stored in the memory unit 21. Further, the instruction unit 23 instructs the environment forming apparatus 10 of the content of the operation determined by the processing unit 22. The control device 20 shown in FIG. 2 includes an input unit 24 and a clock unit 25, and further includes an acquisition unit 26. The input unit 24 receives input information input by an operation from the operator 40. Further, the clock unit 25 is timed to determine the timing at which each environment forming apparatus 10 is operated. Timing.

The processing unit 22 performs a process of outputting the instruction of each environment forming device 10 to the instruction unit 23 using the information stored in the memory unit 21 and the time counted by the clock unit 25. Further, the processing unit 22 performs processing for inputting information received from the operator 40 based on the input unit 24, and processing for storing the information in the memory unit 21, or processing for instructing each of the environment forming apparatuses 10 to the instruction unit 23, and the like. .

In the configuration example shown in FIG. 2, the acquisition unit 26 has a function of receiving the information from the sensor 50 and transferring it to the processing unit 22. However, when the measurement device 30 (see FIG. 1) is used, the acquisition unit 26 also There may be a function of transferring information on the degree of concentration measured by the measuring device 30 to the processing unit 22. The sensor 50 measures the concentration of the substance in the air in the air environment. Although the sensor 50 is not essential, the memory unit 21 memorizes the target value of the concentration of the substance measured with respect to the sensor 50 when the sensor 50 is provided. The processing unit 22 instructs the instruction unit 23 to control the operation of each environment forming device 10 based on the relationship between the measured value of the sensor 50 and the target value of the memory unit 21.

In addition, it is known that the concentration will increase or decrease over time. In the control device 20 of the present embodiment, by controlling the environment forming device 10 (the blower 11), the airflow blown toward the user Us in the work space Es is changed as shown in Fig. 3, thereby maintaining or improving the concentration of the user Us. . In the example shown in FIG. 3, the awake airflow Fs which gives a relatively strong stimulation to the user Us is intermittently generated, and the concentration of the user Us is suppressed by the awake airflow Fs. That is, the blower 11 controls the direction of the airflow so that the awake airflow Fs is blown toward the user Us.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the blower 11 also generates a micro airflow Fw having a wind speed lower than the awake airflow Fs, and generates a micro airflow Fw at least during the period in which the awake airflow Fs is not generated. Here, the micro airflow Fw fluctuates in the wind speed, and also includes a period in which the wind speed is 0 [m/s], and continues to occur (in the example of Fig. 3, the wind speed is not shown as 0 [m/s]). The wind speed of the micro airflow Fw can be fixed, but by giving fluctuations, the possibility of the user's Us being cold due to the micro airflow is reduced. Sex. As fluctuations, for example, 1/f fluctuations are employed. In order to impart fluctuations to the wind speed, in addition to controlling the number of rotations of the blades provided in the blower 11, the direction of the airflow formed by the blower 11 may be changed.

Similarly to the awake airflow Fs, the blower 11 controls the direction of the airflow so that the micro airflow Fw is blown toward the user Us. The wind speed of the micro airflow Fw is less than one-half of the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the maximum value of the wind speed of the micro airflow Fw is 4 times the maximum wind speed of the awake airflow Fs. 1 is set in the following way. For example, the maximum value of the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs is set to 1.6 [m/s], and the maximum value of the wind speed of the micro airflow Fw is set to 0.4 [m/s]. Further, it is preferable that the difference in wind speed between the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw is 0.5 [m/s] or more.

The micro airflow Fw is generated at least during the period in which the awake airflow Fs is not generated, and as shown in FIG. 3, it may be continuously generated while the awake airflow Fs is being generated. In the case where the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw are used in combination, it is preferable to separately provide the air blower 11 (first air blower) that generates the awake airflow Fs and the air blower 11 (second air blower) that generates the micro airflow Fw. When the single blower 11 is used for the generation of the awake airflow Fs and the generation of the micro airflow Fw, the generation of the awake airflow Fs and the generation of the micro airflow Fw can also be switched. Although it is not necessary to generate the micro airflow Fw, the heat dissipation from the head of the user Us can be promoted by causing the micro airflow Fw to flow near the head of the user Us.

In general, an updraft is generated around the head due to the heat of the human body, and if it is compared with the lower body, there is a tendency that the temperature boundary layer is thickened from the upper body to the periphery of the head. That is, there is a possibility that the effect of the awake airflow Fs is weakened by the upward airflow from the upper body to the periphery of the head. In particular, since the awake airflow Fs is intermittently blown toward the user Us, there is a possibility that the stimulation is weakened by the upward airflow. On the other hand, when the awake airflow Fs is not blown against the user Us, if the micro airflow Fw is blown toward the upper body to the vicinity of the head, the temperature boundary layer is thinned, and heat dissipation from the human body is promoted. As a result, the stimulating effect by the awake airflow Fs can be improved. Moreover, since the heat dissipation of the head is promoted by the micro airflow Fw, it is possible to obtain It is said that the head is cold and hot.

As information for generating the awake airflow Fs, the memory unit 21 stores the first period information during the operation period of the air blower 11 that determines the awake airflow Fs, and determines the operation period of the air blower 11 in such a manner that the awake airflow Fs is intermittently generated. Information for the second period of the base period. Further, the memory unit 21 also stores speed information for determining the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs. The period during which the awake airflow Fs is generated during the operation period as described herein is determined in such a manner that the reference period includes at least one operation period. The reference period is the period of control determined by the method including one or more operating periods. The operation period is selected from the range of 3 seconds to 60 seconds, and the reference period is selected from the range of 5 minutes or more and 40 minutes or less. Further, the maximum value of the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs is selected from the range of 0.5 [m/s] or more and 2 [m/s]. By determining the operation period, the reference period, and the wind speed in these numerical ranges, the awake airflow Fs which contributes to suppressing the decrease in concentration can be generated. Further, the wind speed of the present embodiment is directed to the wind speed of the airflow blown by the user Us.

If the operation period is determined to be 10 seconds and the reference period is determined to be 10 minutes, the blower 11 operates for at least 10 seconds during the 10-minute reference period. In the operation example shown in FIG. 3, although the awake airflow Fs is generated at intervals of 10 minutes, the time interval during which the awake airflow Fs is generated may not be fixed, and the period during which the awake airflow Fs is generated every 10 minutes of the reference period may be appropriately determined. That is, the time interval during which the awake airflow Fs is generated may be unequal intervals, and the frequency (number of times) at which the awake airflow Fs is generated during the reference period may not be fixed.

However, the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs is not fixed during the operation period. As shown in Fig. 4, the wind speed increases with the passage of time during the initial period of operation Ts, and the wind speed decreases with the passage of time during the end of the operation period Ts. In Fig. 4, a symbol Tw indicates a period during which the awake airflow Fs is not generated. Therefore, the variation of the wind speed during the period Tw corresponds to the micro airflow Fw.

The awake airflow Fs gives the user Us a stimulus that is stronger as the wind speed increases, and the wind speed increases as the rate increases. On the other hand, since the rate of decrease when the wind speed is reduced does not greatly affect the concentration, in the example shown in FIG. 4, compared with the absolute value of the increase rate, The absolute value of the reduction rate is small. In other words, it is preferable that the processing unit 22 determines the operation content of the blower 11 so that the wind speed rapidly rises and the wind speed gradually decreases in the operation period Ts during which the awake airflow Fs is generated. The example shown in Fig. 5 shows a case where the increase rate of the wind speed when the wake-up airflow Fs is generated is larger than that of the example of Fig. 4. Thus, if the awake airflow Fs increases the rate of increase of the wind speed, the awake airflow Fs is more irritating to the user Us.

In order to adjust the rate of increase of the wind speed when the wake-up airflow Fs is generated, it is only necessary to adjust the configuration of the power supplied to the blower 11. If the blower 11 is provided with a vane or a shutter capable of controlling the wind direction, the airflow speed of the airflow generated by the blower 11 may be increased in a state where the airflow is not blown against the user Us, so that the airflow of the awake airflow Fs may be The blade or shutter is controlled by the user Us blowing.

In addition, since the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw are controlled in such a manner as to be blown toward the user Us, there is a possibility that the allowable range of the warmth of the user Us is exceeded depending on the maximum value of the wind speed or the operation period. Sex. In other words, depending on the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs blown to the user Us, there is a possibility that the temperature of the body of the user Us is too low or too high. Therefore, it is preferable that the maximum value of the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs and the operation period are adjusted according to the temperature of the work space Es. In general, it can be said that the lower the temperature, the smaller the maximum value of the wind speed, and the shorter the operation period. Moreover, in the case of a high temperature, by increasing the maximum value of the wind speed, the operation period is prolonged, which contributes to lowering the body temperature. In order to perform such control, as long as the sensor 50 monitors the indoor temperature, the processing unit 22 may extract information for control from the memory unit 21 based on the temperature measured by the sensor 50.

As described above, the information (the first period information, the second period information, and the speed information) for indicating the blower 11 to generate the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw must be memorized by the storage unit 21. The information can be stored in advance in the memory unit 21 composed of a ROM (Read Only Memory), or can be supplied from the operator 40 to the memory unit 21 via the input unit 24.

The operator 40 can be dedicated to the control device 20, but can also be a smart phone, A terminal device selected by a tablet terminal, a personal computer or the like is used as the operator 40. When the terminal device is used as the operator 40, the above control can be performed by storing the information in the operator 40 and the operator 40 is transferred to the storage unit 21 as needed.

Further, since the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw must be blown to a specific portion of the user Us, it is necessary to adjust the direction of the airflow generated by the blower 11. Therefore, the control device 20 controls the blower 11 so that the wind blows the fan 11 to the respective portions of the user during the initial setting. On the other hand, the user Us uses the manipulator 40 to notify the control device 20 that the wind from the blower 11 has been blown to a specific portion of the user. The processing unit 22 stores control information corresponding to the direction of the airflow generated by the blower 11 in the memory unit 21 based on the timing notified from the operator 40.

By performing such initial setting, the direction of the airflow from the blower 11 can be adjusted in such a manner that the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw are blown to a suitable portion for the user Us. In other words, the processing unit 22 determines the position of the user Us that forms the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw by blowing the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw to a specific portion of the user Us, and determines the operation of the air blower 11 as the air blower 11 content. The operation content determined by the processing unit 22 is instructed to the blower 11 by the instruction unit 23, and the blower 11 controls the direction of the airflow in accordance with an instruction from the instruction unit 23. That is, the blower 11 is controlled such that the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw are blown to a specific portion of the user Us.

Here, it is preferable that the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw prevent the user's eyes from drying up, that is, the position of the air blower 11 is set so as not to blow against the face of the user Us. The position of the blower 11 is preferably set to be obliquely rearward of the user Us so as not to block the airflow by the chair or the like.

When the environmental control system of the present embodiment is used, the control device 20 must start the control of the environment forming device 10 when the user Us starts the mental work. The time when the control device 20 starts the control of the environment forming device 10 can be instructed by the user Us from the operator 40, but the camera monitoring the user Us or the sensor monitoring the user Us can also be used. The situation in which the user Us is seated at a specific location is measured.

In addition, it can be considered that the concentration of the user Us is maintained from the time when the control device 20 starts the control of the environment forming device 10 until a specific period (about 15 minutes to 20 minutes). Therefore, the awake airflow may not be generated from the control of the environment forming apparatus 10 from the control device 20 until a certain period of time, and the above-described operation is performed after the lapse of the period. Further, during the period from the start of control of the environment forming apparatus 10 by the control device 20 to a specific period, the reference period can be shortened as time passes, and the reference period is fixed after a predetermined period of time has elapsed.

The above-described control device 20 includes an element having a processor that operates according to a program as a main hardware requirement. Such a component can use a microcontroller having a memory, or a microprocessor separately provided with a memory. That is, the control device 20 is constructed using a computer. The program is used to make the computer function as the control device 20 described below. The program is provided in addition to the ROM (Read Only Memory), and is also provided by a recording medium such as a computer readable optical disc, or by an electrical communication network such as the Internet.

(concentration)

Further, although such terms as "concentration" are used in the present embodiment, such terms as "concentration" are less clearly defined. When the concentration is quantified, for example, the concentration time ratio described below can be used for the indicator. The concentration time ratio refers to the ratio of the time when the person is in the mental work, and the time when the work time is concentrated.

The concept of the concentrated time ratio is based on a model in which a person has performed a mental work, and includes a state in which a cognitive resource has been assigned to a work subject and a state in which a cognitive resource is not assigned to the work target. In this model, the state in which the cognitive resource is assigned to the object is set to the "job state", and the state in which the cognitive resource is not allocated to the object and the rest is taken for a long time is called "long-term rest". Also, the cognitive resources will have been assigned to the object but in a short time The state of unconsciously stopping the work processing is called "short-term rest". The state of "short-term rest" is known to be physiologically generated with a fixed probability during the period of "working state".

Since "job status" and "short-term rest" have assigned the state of cognitive resources to the subject, they are regarded as a centralized state. Since "long-term rest" does not assign a state of cognitive resources to the object, it is regarded as a non-centralized state. Therefore, it can be seen that the state of the person who operates the time is divided into three types of "working status", "short-term rest" and "long-term rest", or two types of "working status", "short-term rest" and "long-term rest". State, then the concentration can be quantified.

Here, a technique for determining a period of concentration in a specific period, rather than a technique for measuring concentration in real time, will be described. In this case, for example, for a subject who measures concentration, a plurality of questions in which the difference in difficulty is small are proposed, and the time (answer time) required for the subject to answer the question is measured for all the questions. Next, as shown in FIG. 6, a histogram is generated by finding a frequency for each partition of the answer time. In the case of the above model, it is estimated that the histogram represents the result of superimposing the concentrated state and the decentralized state.

When a suitable problem is given, an experimental result in which the histogram has a shape having two or more peaks can be obtained. That is, two or more mountain-shaped regions are generated in the histogram. It is explained that the mountain-shaped area containing the shortest peak of the response indicates a state in which the "job status" and the "short-term rest" are mixed, and the mountain-shaped area including other peaks indicates that the "job status", "short-term rest" and " The state of long-term rest. The reason is that even if it is in a concentrated state, depending on the difference in difficulty of the problem, there is a possibility that the answer time becomes long.

Here, if it is assumed that the difficulty degree of the problem is a fixed ideal state, the mountain region estimated to be represented by the histogram can be approximated by the probability density function f(t) of the logarithmic normal distribution as a function of the answer time t. However, in reality, the difficulty of the problem cannot be completely ruled out. Therefore, the mountain-like region with the shortest answer time in the two mountainous regions is interpreted as an overview of only the portion with a shorter response time than the peak and the normal distribution of the log near the peak. The rate density function f(x) is consistent. Further, the parameters (expected value and dispersion) of the probability density function f(x) are determined so as to approximate the portion.

If the parameter of the probability density function f(x) is determined, the expected value of the answer time can be obtained. The result of multiplying the calculated expected value by the number of all questions can be interpreted as the time at which the subject is in a concentrated state from the time when the problem is started until the end of the total time (total answer time). Moreover, the time obtained by subtracting the time from the total answer time in the concentrated state can be interpreted as the time in the decentralized state. Therefore, the time ratio of the time in the concentrated state to the total answer time is set as the concentration time ratio, and it is determined that the larger the concentration time ratio is, the higher the concentration degree is.

In the above example, the concentration time ratio is an index of concentration, and the concentration can be quantified using other indexes described later. In particular, when the concentration time ratio is obtained, it is necessary to perform an operation of giving a plurality of questions to the subject to answer the questions, and it is difficult to obtain an index of concentration in the work. Therefore, when the apparatus 10 (see FIG. 1) is controlled according to the degree of concentration, it is necessary to measure an index of concentration equivalent to the concentration time ratio by other techniques.

In addition, when the subject is continuously given a problem across a relatively long period of time (for example, 3 hours), the following insight can be obtained: if no change is made to the work environment, each relatively short time (for example, 1 The concentration of ~10 minutes) changes as characteristic C1 shown in Fig. 7. That is, when the mental work is continued for a relatively long period of time, the concentration is changed by repeating the increase and decrease every 20 to 40 minutes. In short, if the mental work is continued, the concentration has a characteristic that it rises from a higher state as time passes, and then recovers and rises, and falls again, repeating the increase and decrease. In the present embodiment, based on the characteristic, the reference period, which is the period of the above control, is determined. There are individual differences in the period of concentration change, and the period during which the concentration changes is varied depending on various factors. If attention is paid to the fluctuation of the concentration with time as described above, it can be said that the improvement of the work efficiency of the mental work can be suppressed as long as the concentration is lowered.

According to this embodiment, the manner in which the awake airflow and the micro airflow are generated in the work space Es When the environment forming apparatus 10 is controlled, as shown by the characteristic C2 in Fig. 7, the decrease in concentration can be suppressed. That is, by using the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 to maintain or increase the degree of concentration, it is possible to prevent the concentration of the user from being greatly reduced over a relatively long period of time. In other words, when the awake airflow and the micro airflow are used in combination, the decrease in the concentration is suppressed, and as a result, the work efficiency can be expected to be improved. In addition, even if only the awake airflow is used, the decrease in concentration can be suppressed.

With regard to the case where the technique of using the awake airflow and the micro airflow is used as in the present embodiment, and the case where the awake airflow and the micro airflow are not used, the concentration can be improved by about 12% by the technique of the present embodiment. The result.

The environmental control system according to the above embodiment includes the environment forming device 10 and the control device 20. The environment forming device 10 has a function of forming an air flow in the work space. The control device 20 controls the operation of the environment forming device 10 so as to maintain or increase the degree of concentration of the user Us existing in the work space Es, that is, the degree of concentration. The control device 20 includes a storage unit 21, a processing unit 22, and an instruction unit 23. The memory unit 21 stores the first period information of the operation period Ts of the environment forming apparatus 10 and the second period information of the reference period Tw longer than the operation period Ts, in such a manner as to form the awake airflow Fs for restoring the concentration of the user Us. And the speed information that determines the wind speed of the awake airflow Fs. The processing unit 22 determines the content of the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 based on the first period information, the second period information, and the speed information. The instruction unit 23 instructs the environment forming apparatus 10 of the content of the operation determined by the processing unit 22. The reference period Tw is determined in such a manner that the operation period Ts is included once or more.

According to this configuration, by blowing the awake airflow Fs against the user Us, the concentration of the user Us can be maintained or improved by using only the airflow. That is, the concentration of the user Us can be maintained or increased without using any of visual stimulation, auditory stimulation, or olfactory stimulation.

Preferably, the control device 20 is provided with an input unit 24 that receives input information input by an operation. In this case, the storage unit 21 stores the first period information, the second period information, and the speed information included in the input information.

According to this configuration, the information of the control environment forming device 10 can be used as input information. Give.

Preferably, the processing unit 22 determines the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 in the portion where the awake airflow Fs is formed in the work space Es so that the awake airflow Fs is blown against the specific portion of the user Us.

According to this configuration, for example, the awake airflow Fs can be determined only by blowing the upper body of the user Us.

Preferably, the Ts is selected from the range of 3 seconds or more and 60 seconds or less during the operation period, and the reference period Tw is selected from the range of 5 minutes or more and 40 minutes or less, and the maximum wind speed of the awake airflow Fs is from 0.5 [m/ s] or more and a range of 2 [m/s] or less is selected.

The user Us can be appropriately stimulated by selecting the conditions associated with the awake airflow Fs within the range.

Preferably, the memory unit 21 stores environmental information including the wind speed of the micro airflow Fw having a wind speed of 1/s or less with respect to the awake airflow Fs. In this case, the processing unit 22 determines the operation content of the environment forming apparatus 10 so that the micro airflow Fw is generated during at least the period in which the awake airflow Fs is stopped, based on the first period information, the second period information, and the environmental information. Further, it is preferable that the processing unit 22 determines the portion where the micro airflow Fw is formed in the work space Es as the operation content of the environment forming device 10 so that the micro airflow Fw is blown against the user Us.

According to this configuration, the temperature boundary layer around the user Us can be thinned by the micro air flow, and as a result, the effect of suppressing the decrease in the concentration of the awake airflow Fs is improved.

Here, it is preferable that the environment forming apparatus 10 is a blower 11 that forms an air flow in the work space Es. That is, since the awake airflow Fs and the micro airflow Fw are generated in a manner that is blown toward the user Us, if the airflow is formed by the blower 11, the control of the airflow blown to the specific portion of the user Us can be easily performed. .

(Embodiment 2)

In the first embodiment, it has been explained that the awake airflow and the micro airflow are generated in the work space Es. The manner in which the environment forming device 10 is controlled is controlled. Both the awake airflow and the micro airflow are generated by blowing against a specific part of the user Us (upper body and near the head). In the present embodiment, a configuration example in which an ambient airflow that is not blown to the user Us is formed in the work space Es will be described. The configuration of this embodiment is the same as the configuration of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 2 .

The period during which the ambient airflow is formed is the same as the micro airflow, and the wind speed of the ambient airflow may be less than the wind speed of the awake airflow. Further, the micro airflow is controlled in a wind direction so as to be blown toward the user Us, but the ambient airflow is controlled in a wind direction so as not to be blown toward the user Us. That is, the period of generating the ambient airflow is the same as that of the micro airflow, and the wind speed of the ambient airflow is different from the wind speed of the micro airflow, and the difference is that the user air blows against the micro airflow, and the ambient airflow is not opposite to the user. Us blowing. The ambient airflow is preferably formed so that the vicinity of the user Us is upward. When the air conditioner 13 (see FIG. 1) disposed above the work space Es is used as the environment forming apparatus 10, the ambient airflow is formed to face downward. The information for forming the ambient airflow is memorized by the memory unit 21 as surrounding information. Therefore, the processing unit 22 determines the content of the operation so that the environment forming device 10 generates an ambient airflow using the surrounding information.

When the ambient airflow is formed by the environment forming apparatus 10, the air in the room is stirred by the ambient airflow, so that the air stagnation in the work space Es is eliminated, and the variation in the temperature distribution of the work space Es is suppressed. In particular, when the temperature of the working space Es is relatively high, the effect of having a cold head heat due to the micro airflow can be expected. However, when the temperature in the working space Es is relatively low, the micro airflow is used. When Us blows, there is a possibility that the temperature of the user Us is lowered and the concentration is lowered. In such a case, when the ambient airflow is formed, the air in the work space Es is stirred, and the deposition of air around the user Us is reduced, and it is expected that the effect of stimuli by the awake airflow can be easily ensured. Other configurations and operations of this embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment.

In the environmental control system of the present embodiment, the memory unit 21 stores surrounding information of the wind speed of the ambient airflow including the wind speed below the wind speed of the awake airflow. In this case, processing The part 22 determines the operation content of the environment forming apparatus 10 so that the ambient airflow is generated at least during the period in which the awake airflow Fs is stopped based on the first period information, the second period information, and the surrounding information. Further, the processing unit 22 determines the position at which the ambient airflow is formed in the work space Es as the operation content of the environment forming device 10 so that the ambient airflow does not blow against the user Us.

According to this configuration, the space in which the working space Es is stirred by the ambient airflow suppresses the deposition of the air in the working space Es, and as a result, it is expected to contribute to maintaining or improving the concentration of the user Us.

(Embodiment 3)

In the present embodiment, three kinds of air flows of the awake airflow, the micro airflow, and the ambient airflow are used. As shown in Fig. 8, the selection unit 27 is added to the configuration of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 2. The processing unit 22 of the present embodiment can select the first operational state of the micro airflow and the second operational state of the ambient airflow, and the selection unit 27 can select either the first operational state or the second operational state. .

The selection unit 27 can switch between the first operation state and the second operation state by the operation input from the operator 40. However, when the sensor 50 monitors the temperature of the work space Es, the sensor 50 can also be used according to the sensor 50. The first operational state and the second operational state are selected by measuring the temperature. Table 1 shows an example of information stored in the memory unit 21 when the selection unit 27 switches between the first operation state and the second operation state based on the temperature measured by the sensor 50.

In the example shown in Table 1, the first operating state is selected when the temperature is 24 [° C.] or higher, and the information of the memory unit 21 is determined in such a manner that the second operating state is selected when the temperature is less than 24 [° C.]. In the first operation state, the operation state of the micro airflow is used. In the example shown in Table 1, the awake airflow and the micro airflow are generated at 24 [° C.] or more. In the second operational state, the operating state of the ambient airflow is used. In the example shown in Table 1, the awake airflow and the ambient airflow are generated at less than 24 [° C.]. That is, when the temperature of the body sense caused by the micro airflow causes the user Us to feel cold, an ambient airflow is generated instead of the micro airflow, and conversely, when the user Us feels hot under the ambient airflow, A micro airflow is generated to lower the somatosensory temperature.

According to the present embodiment, by appropriately combining the micro airflow and the ambient airflow, an environment comfortable to the user Us is formed, and as a result, the degree of concentration can be maintained or improved. Other configurations and operations of this embodiment are the same as those of the above embodiment.

In the environmental control system according to the above-described embodiment, the memory unit 21 stores environmental information including the wind speed of the micro airflow Fw having a wind speed of 1/s or less with respect to the awake airflow Fs, and includes the awake airflow Fs. Information about the wind speed of the ambient airflow below the wind speed. The processing unit 22 can select the first operation state and the second operation state, and the control device 20 includes the selection unit 27 that selects either of the first operation state and the second operation state. In the first operation state, the processing unit 22 determines the operation content of the environment forming apparatus 10 such that the micro airflow Fw is generated during at least the period in which the awake airflow Fs is stopped based on the first period information, the second period information, and the environmental information. Further, in the first operation state, the processing unit 22 determines the portion where the micro airflow Fw is formed in the work space as the operation content of the environment forming device 10 by blowing the micro airflow Fw against the user Us. In the second operation state, the processing unit 22 determines the operation content of the environment forming apparatus 10 such that the ambient airflow is generated during at least the period in which the awake airflow Fs is stopped based on the first period information, the second period information, and the surrounding information. Further, in the second operation state, the processing unit 22 does not blow the ambient airflow to the user. In the manner, the portion where the ambient airflow is formed in the work space Es is determined as the action content of the environment forming device 10.

According to this configuration, since either one of the first operation state and the second operation state can be selected in accordance with the temperature of the work space Es, the user Us can maintain or improve the concentration in a comfortable environment.

(Embodiment 4)

In the present embodiment, as shown in Fig. 9, a configuration of the measuring device 30 for measuring the degree of concentration is added to the configuration of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 2 . The measuring device 30 is arranged such that the data relating to the concentration of the user Us is measured as shown in FIG. 1, and the data measured by the measuring device 30 is supplied to the processing unit 22 via the obtaining unit 26. The processing unit 22 evaluates the degree of concentration based on the data measured by the measuring device 30, and determines the content of the action of the environment forming device 10 based on the evaluation result.

The processing unit 22 determines the operation timing of the environment forming apparatus 10 such that the state of the specific threshold is lowered from the state where the concentration is maximum, and the awake airflow is generated. The processing unit 22 can determine the timing of the operation content of the environment forming apparatus 10 so as to generate the awake airflow when the concentration is lowered to the specific reference value. Alternatively, the processing unit 22 may calculate the rate of change when the concentration is lowered, and compare the calculated rate of change with the specific range, and use the time when the decrease in concentration becomes sharp as the awake airflow generated by the environment forming device 10. Timing.

The measuring device 30 must monitor the concentration non-invasively to the user and detect changes in concentration at relatively short time intervals (e.g., 1 to 10 minutes). Preferably, the measuring device 30 is not only non-invasive but also non-contact, but may also comprise a contact with the user like a headband or a wristband.

As the measuring device 30, for example, a camera that photographs a user is used. The acquisition unit 26 acquires information such as body movement, posture, pupil diameter, and blink frequency using an image of a user photographed by the camera, and the processing unit 22 obtains information by using the information individually or in combination. The evaluation value of the concentration. Here, the processing unit 22 is configured to associate the information with the above-described concentration time ratio and register it in the comparison table (memory unit 21). The processing unit 22 quantifies the concentration by comparing the information obtained from the acquisition unit 26 with the comparison table and converting it into a concentrated time ratio.

Further, as described above, the technique of converting the information obtained from the image captured by the camera into the concentrated time ratio is an example of the technique of quantifying the concentration, and the measuring device 30 may be information as long as it is the target of concentration. Then monitor the composition of other information. For example, the measuring device 30 may be configured to detect a change in skin temperature of a specific portion of the user by a thermometer, and to detect a body current other than brain waves or brain waves.

The processing unit 22 determines the content of the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 based on the estimated degree of concentration, for example, as follows. When the air blower 11 is used as the environment forming apparatus 10, and the determination processing unit 22 is in the order of maintaining or increasing the degree of concentration, the processing unit 22 determines the operation content of the blower 11 so as to generate the awake airflow.

In addition, the sensor 50 may also be configured to measure the concentration of a substance in the air in an air environment. In this case, the target value of the substance concentration measured by the sensor 50 is determined in advance in the memory unit 21, and the processing unit 22 determines the environment by comparing the substance concentration obtained by the acquisition unit 26 with the target value. The action content of the device 10 is formed.

The concentration of the substance in the air is called air quality, and the air quality includes various environmental factors such as carbon dioxide concentration, oxygen concentration, relative humidity (water vapor concentration), odor components (volatile components: aldehydes, VOC, etc.), dust, and the like. . The sensor 50 measures the environmental elements of the environmental elements included in the air quality, and the processing unit 22 controls the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 using the target value of the concentration of the environmental elements measured by the sensor 50. The target value is only required to statistically determine the value of the decrease or increase in concentration of the user based on the measured value.

Here, the processing unit 22 is configured such that when the environment forming device 10 is operated to maintain or increase the concentration, if the environmental element measured by the sensor 50 reaches the target value, Then, the operation of the environment forming device 10 is returned to the original state. For example, when the environmental element to be focused is set to the concentration of carbon dioxide, the target value is set to 400 ppm or the like.

In this case, in order to maintain or increase the degree of concentration, when the concentration of carbon dioxide is lowered to 400 ppm during the operation of the ventilating fan 12 so as to increase the amount of introduction of the outside air to the working space, the ventilating fan 12 is returned to the original operation. action.

Further, in the configuration in which the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 is controlled based on the time measured by the clock unit 25, when the target value set for the environmental element measured by the sensor 50 is applied, the following example can be performed. The action. At present, it is assumed that the environment forming device 10 is the ventilating fan 12, and the environmental element of the eye is the concentration of carbon dioxide, and the target value is 400 ppm. The target value is set to be 2 or less of the standard carbon dioxide concentration in the room, and preferably 2 or less. That is, the target value is set to 700 ppm or less, preferably 500 ppm or less. Further, in the example described below, it is assumed that the concentration starts to decrease after 25 minutes from the start of the mental work.

In this case, the processing unit 22 maintains or improves the concentration by causing the ventilating fan 12 to operate at a high speed (high speed) 25 minutes after the start of the mental work. Thereafter, the processing unit 22 waits for, for example, 400 ppm after the carbon dioxide concentration measured by the sensor 50 reaches the target value, until the ventilating fan 12 is returned to the original state.

When the user is irritated by blowing the awake airflow to the user, the concentration of the user changes immediately after the blower 11 is controlled. On the other hand, when the ventilating fan 12 is used to adjust the air quality in the room, the time from the start of the operation of the ventilating fan 12 to the improvement of the air quality in the room to a desired level becomes a relatively long time (for example, 20 minutes). Therefore, it is also possible to start the operation of the ventilating fan 12 with respect to the time zone in which the predicted concentration is lowered, and the time required for the indoor air quality to be improved to the required degree.

Further, when the environment forming apparatus 10 uses a rotary type motor as a power source like the ventilating fan 12, the target value can be determined based on the number of rotations of the motor. In other words, the sensor 50 can be used, and the number of rotations of the motor can be used as the target value to determine when the operation of the ventilating fan 12 is resumed. sequence.

Further, the processing unit 22 may be configured to differentiate the operation of the environment forming apparatus 10 in accordance with the degree of concentration. For example, the concentration may be divided into a plurality of stages, and the speed or target value of the airflow may be changed at each stage. Further, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the action of the environment forming device 10 is changed according to the time zone, such as the biological rhythm of the circadian rhythm.

The environmental control system of the present embodiment described above includes a measuring device 30 for measuring the concentration of the user of the work space. In this configuration, the control device 20 controls the operation of the environment forming device 10 in such a manner as to maintain or increase the concentration measured by the measuring device 30.

Since the environmental control system performs feedback control by monitoring the degree of concentration of the user by the measuring device 30, the environment forming device 10 can be controlled at an appropriate timing to maintain or improve the concentration.

Further, the control device 20 may be provided with a clock unit 25 for counting time. In this configuration, the control device 20 controls the environment formation by maintaining or increasing the degree of concentration according to the time counted by the clock unit 25 by using the relationship between the time counted by the clock unit 25 and the degree of concentration of the user. The action of device 10.

Since the environmental control system performs open control by using the relationship between the elapsed time and the concentration of the user, it is possible to realize the simple configuration without using the measuring device 30.

The environmental control system may also have a sensor 50 that is an environmental element of the air quality measurement of the work space. In this configuration, the control device 20 controls the operation of the environment forming device 10 so as to achieve a target value determined by the environmental elements measured by the sensor 50.

Since the environmental control system controls the operation of the environment forming device 10 in consideration of the air quality of the work space, it is possible to maintain or improve the concentration by improving the air quality acting on the concentration such as the carbon dioxide concentration and the odor.

The environment forming device 10 is a ventilating device, and the sensor 50 may be configured to measure carbon dioxide concentration as an environmental element. In this configuration, it is preferable that the control device 20 is configured such that The ventilating device is controlled in such a manner that the concentration of carbon dioxide in the working space measured by the sensor 50 does not exceed 700 ppm.

Since the environmental control system adjusts so as to prevent the carbon dioxide concentration in the working space from becoming high, the concentration reduction is suppressed, and as a result, the decrease in concentration can be suppressed.

Further, the above embodiment is an example of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention.

10‧‧‧Environmental forming device

11‧‧‧Air blower

12‧‧‧Ventilator

13‧‧‧ air conditioning

20‧‧‧Control device

30‧‧‧Measurement device

Es‧‧‧Workspace

Us‧‧‧Users

Claims (14)

An environmental control system, comprising: an environment forming device having a function of forming a gas flow in a work space; and a control device for maintaining or enhancing a concentration of concentration of the user present in the work space, that is, concentration And controlling the operation of the environment forming device; and the control device includes: a memory unit that stores the first period information during the operation period of the environment forming device in such a manner as to form a wake-up airflow for restoring the concentration of the user, Determining the second period information of the reference period longer than the operation period and the speed information for determining the wind speed of the awake airflow; the processing unit is based on the first period information, the second period information, and the speed information The operation content of the environment forming apparatus is determined; and the instruction unit instructs the environment forming apparatus to determine the content of the operation determined by the processing unit; and the reference period is determined to include the operation period of one or more times. The environmental control system of claim 1, wherein the control device further includes: an input unit that receives input information input by operation; and the memory unit memorizes the first period information and the second period included in the input information Information, and the above speed information. The environmental control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the processing unit determines the portion where the awake airflow is formed in the working space by the blowing of the awake airflow to a specific portion of the user. The action content of the device. The environmental control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the operation period is selected from a range of 3 seconds or more and 60 seconds or less, and the reference period is selected from a range of 5 minutes or more and 40 minutes or less, and the wind speed of the awake airflow is selected. The maximum value is selected from a range of 0.5 [m/s] or more and 2 [m/s] or less. The environmental control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the memory unit further stores environmental information including a wind speed of the micro airflow with a wind speed of 1/1 or less with respect to the awake airflow; and the processing unit is based on the foregoing The period information, the second period information, and the environmental information determine the operation content of the environment forming apparatus such that the micro airflow is generated during at least the period in which the awake airflow is stopped, and the micro airflow is blown toward the user. In this manner, the portion where the micro airflow is formed in the work space is determined as the operation content of the environment forming device. The environmental control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the memory unit further stores surrounding information of the wind speed of the ambient airflow including the wind speed below the wind speed of the awake airflow; and the processing unit is based on the first period information and the second The period information and the surrounding information determine the operation content of the environment forming device such that the ambient airflow is generated at least during the period in which the awake airflow is stopped, and the working space is not blown by the user airflow The portion where the ambient airflow is formed is determined as the operation content of the environment forming device. The environmental control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the memory unit further stores environmental information including a wind speed of a micro airflow having a wind speed of at least one-half of a wind speed of the awake airflow, and a wind speed lower than a wind speed including the awake airflow. The surrounding information of the wind speed of the ambient airflow; the processing unit may select the following action states: The first operation state is determined based on the first period information, the second period information, and the environmental information, and the operation content of the environment forming apparatus is determined such that the micro airflow is generated during at least the period in which the awake airflow is stopped, and The portion of the work space in which the micro airflow is formed is determined as the operation content of the environment forming device, and the second operation state is based on the first period information and the The second period information and the surrounding information determine the operation content of the environment forming device such that the ambient airflow is generated during the period in which the awake airflow is stopped, and the ambient airflow is not blown to the user. The portion in which the ambient airflow is formed in the work space is determined as the operation content of the environment forming device, and the control device further includes a selection unit that selects either the first operational state and the second operational state. The environmental control system of claim 1 or 2, wherein the environment forming device is a blower that forms an air flow in the work space. The environmental control system of claim 1 or 2, further comprising: measuring means for measuring said concentration of said user of said working space; and said controlling means for maintaining or increasing said concentration measured by said measuring means The manner of controlling the above-described environment forming device is controlled. The environmental control system of claim 1 or 2, wherein the control device further includes a clocking unit for timing, and the clock portion is used according to the relationship between the time counted by the clock unit and the concentration of the user. Place At the time of counting, the operation of the environment forming device is controlled in such a manner as to maintain or increase the concentration. The environmental control system of claim 1 or 2, further comprising: a sensor for the environmental element of the air quality measurement of the work space; and the control device is configured to achieve the above measurement by the sensor The operation of the environment forming device is controlled in such a manner that the target value is set by the environmental element. The environmental control system of claim 11, wherein the environment forming device is a ventilating device; the sensor measures a carbon dioxide concentration as a component of the environmental element; and the control device uses the working space measured by the sensor The above ventilation device is controlled in such a manner that the carbon dioxide concentration does not exceed 700 ppm. A control device, characterized in that it is used in an environmental control system according to any one of claims 1 to 12. A program for causing a computer to function as the above-described control device for use in an environmental control system according to any one of claims 1 to 12.