JP2654902B2 - Fish finder - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fish finder, and more particularly, to a fish finder for displaying predicted information in front of a bow in association with each other.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the transmission and reception directions of ultrasonic pulses in a conventional fish finder. A fish finder mounted on a ship generally transmits and receives ultrasonic pulses vertically downward in water. It is equipped with a transducer that waves and obtains a reflected echo below the vertical. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display example of a reflected echo in a conventional fish finder. The portion on the right side of the drawing is generally called an A-scope, and the vertically downward reflected echo (currently obtained at the present time) is obtained. Is displayed in an envelope with the amplitude value as the horizontal axis.

[0005] The left part of the drawing is an image showing the history (history) of successively obtained reflected echoes, wherein the horizontal axis represents time T and the vertical axis represents depth. The image of the reflected echo is time T
As the time elapses, the image moves from the right end to the left and is displayed. When the left end is reached, the image is erased and a fish school image for a fixed (T) time is displayed. Therefore, the video displayed on the right end is the latest video data, and becomes the past video data as it approaches the left end.

A fish finder is a device for detecting the presence of a fish school and information on the bottom of the water by utilizing the reflection of an ultrasonic pulse emitted into the water on the school of fish and the bottom of the water, and is generally provided at the bottom of a ship. Using a transducer to emit an ultrasonic pulse into the water, this pulse reflects the echo reflected by the school of fish and the bottom of the water,
Extracts as an electric signal, and displays information on schools of fish, water bottom, etc. on a CRT
On a display screen such as an image display or an LCD, shading or color classification is performed using a difference in electric signal depending on the size and density of the school of fish, and the scale of the school of fish is distinguished and displayed.

[0005]

As described above, the conventional fish finder as described above obtains a reflected echo in a vertically downward direction in water by using a transducer for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic pulse vertically. Therefore, there is a problem that only information about the fish school and the water bottom in the vertical downward direction can be obtained.

That is, in the case of being used by being mounted on a navigating fishing boat or the like, it is possible to know current information and past history vertically below the boat, but it is not possible to obtain prediction information. Therefore, even if there is a dangerous situation for maneuvering first such as a shallow water in front of the bow, there is no other way but to predict it from the past history, and there is a great danger when traveling at high speed. Also, since only information in the vertical direction can be obtained in the search for fish schools, it is not possible to accurately confirm the fish schools unless the fish schools are located.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a fish finder capable of obtaining prediction information.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A fish finder according to the present invention repeatedly transmits and receives ultrasonic waves at a predetermined angle of depression in water forward of a bow, and converts image information based on the obtained reflected signal to substantially the above angle of depression. Display on the display screen at the same angle,
By repeatedly displaying this display for each reflection signal while scrolling in the horizontal direction, a fish finder image from a predetermined position in front of the bow to a position vertically below the ship is obtained on the display screen. Further, it is decided that the image is made to substantially coincide with the A-scope display below the vertical.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the transmitting and receiving directions of ultrasonic pulses in the present invention. In this embodiment, not only a vertical downward direction but also a forward direction of a bow is specified. An example of transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic pulse at a depression angle of 45 ° in the embodiment is shown. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of the transducers in this embodiment. In FIG. 3, one of the two transducers is directed vertically downward to transmit and receive an ultrasonic pulse, and the other is forward. It is configured to transmit and receive waves in the 45 ° direction. FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of display on a display. The right part of the drawing shows information on the water bottom and fish school in the forward direction of the bow, and the left part of the drawing shows the A scope of the reflected echo in the downward vertical direction. . That is, the right side of the drawing, which shows the forward direction of the bow, sequentially generates images along the display line 100 that is approximately the same angle as the beam transmission / reception angle of 45 ° and rises to the right and descends to the left, and sequentially generates the generated images to the left. Scroll to the left as you move toward the past, so that the past image at the far left is almost the same as the image when the ship proceeded and came directly below this ship (ie, the A-scope image immediately below). Will be displayed. When a vertically downward transducer is not used, only the right part of the drawing is displayed.
Hereinafter, only an embodiment in which a vertically downward transducer is used will be described.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a transmission trigger generator, 2
Is a transmission unit, 3 is a changeover switch for switching the transducer, 4 is a direct transducer arranged to transmit and receive an ultrasonic pulse in a vertical downward direction, 5 is a bow forward (hereinafter, referred to as “forward”).
Forward transducer) arranged to transmit and receive ultrasonic pulses at a depression angle of 45 ° to the front direction, 6 is a receiving unit,
7 is an A / D converter, 8 is a fish finder buffer memory, 10 is a coordinate converter for calculating a storage address of forward data, 12
Is a boat speed input section for inputting a boat speed obtained from outside, 13 is a signal control section, 14 is a display control section, 15 is a display memory, 1
Reference numeral 6 denotes a display.

Next, the operation will be described. The transmission trigger generating unit 1 generates a transmission trigger pulse for emitting an ultrasonic pulse based on transmission timing information transmitted each time the ship moves a preset distance from the signal control unit 13. This trigger pulse is sent to 2. In response to the trigger pulse, the transmitting unit 2 generates a transmission signal that is a high-frequency electric signal having a constant pulse width, and transmits the transmission signal via the changeover switch 3 to the direct-downward transducer 4 or the forward transducer 5. Send to The changeover switch 3 receives a transducer switching signal sent from the signal control unit 13 and alternately switches the direct transducer 4 or the forward transducer 5 to transmit a transmission signal.

The transducers 4 and 5 are formed of, for example, electrostrictive elements, vibrate based on the supplied transmission signal, and emit ultrasonic pulses into water in a selected direction. The emitted ultrasonic pulse hits a school of fish or the bottom of the water in the selected direction and is reflected, and the reflected echo is received again by the same transducer, converted into an electric signal and passed through the changeover switch 3. It is sent to the receiving unit 6. The receiver 6 amplifies the reflected echo signal and sends it to the A / D converter 7 where the A / D converter 7
To convert the reflected echo signal into a digital signal corresponding to the strength of the reflected echo signal and temporarily store it in the fish school buffer memory 8.

The fish school buffer memory 8 has a capacity to store a signal obtained by converting a reflected echo signal in one direction (either directly transmitted or forward) into a digital signal. The reflected echo signal temporarily stored in the fish finder buffer memory 8 is read out every transmission, and is sent to the display control unit 14 as fish finder video data when the direct transducer 4 is selected. The display control unit 14 converts the fish finder image data into image data for A-scope display and sends the image data to the display memory 15.

When the information stored in the fish finder buffer memory 8 is information on the forward direction of the bow, that is, from the forward transducer 5, the read fish finder image data is transmitted to the coordinate conversion unit 10. Then, the display address is converted so that the fish finder image obtained by the current transmission corresponds to the screen position displayed on the display device 16, that is, is displayed along the display line 100 in FIG. Then, the fish finder image data is sent to the display controller 14 together with the display address.

That is, the coordinate conversion unit 10 displays the fish finder image obtained from the 45 ° forward direction on the display 15 on the memory 15 so as to be displayed at a 45 ° oblique direction along the display line 100. Calculate the display address. The display controller 14 converts the forward fish finder image data supplied from the coordinate converter 10 into image data to be displayed on the display 16, and then changes the forward display address sent together with the fish finder image data. And stores it in the corresponding address position on the display memory. Further, prior to the operation of drawing the latest fish finder image into the display memory 15, the display control unit 14 moves the entire past image data already stored by one pixel in parallel to the left (scrolls to the left). Perform the operation.

In this manner, as shown in FIG. 4, as the ship progresses, an image from 45 ° in front of the bow to a vertically lower position (however, the lower vertical image is a past image).
Can be obtained, and the image vertically below can be substantially matched with the A-scope image. In addition, although the leftmost image in the fish finder image in the forward direction of the bow has a temporal shift depending on the depth (that is, the image is shifted in a leftward direction, so that an image with a smaller depth becomes a newer image in time). By adjusting the scrolling speed so that the image near the water depth of 50M matches the current vertical image of the ship, it becomes possible to substantially match the A-scope image.

By these operations, the oldest fish finder image data (the leftmost image on the screen in FIG. 4) is erased every transmission, and the latest fish finder image data is always displayed along the display line 100. Become like Display memory 1
Reference numeral 5 denotes an image memory having a storage capacity corresponding to the number of vertical and horizontal pixels to be displayed on the display unit 16. The fish finder video data sent from the control unit 14 is written into the corresponding address position, and is read out in synchronization with the scanning signal of the display 16, and the fish finder video is displayed on the display 16.

The above embodiment has been described in connection with a case in which a vertically downward transducer is used in combination with a vertical transducer at the present time so that an image of the ship's own vertical and a past fish finder image substantially coincide with each other. However, the fish finder image in the forward direction can be transmitted and received at regular intervals, and in this case, it is not always necessary to match the image with the vertically lower image.

[0019]

As described above, the fish finder according to the present invention can display information from underwater in front of the ship to information in the water immediately below the ship as predictive information so that it can be visually understood easily, so that safe navigation is possible. And efficient fish school exploration can be performed. In particular, by making the scrolled image coincide with the ship speed, distance information of the prediction information can be displayed, and the situation of the underwater ahead can be easily intuitively grasped by the relative positional relationship with the own ship. Furthermore, by making it substantially coincident with the A scope display below the vertical, the prediction of the situation in front can be easily compared with the confirmation of the situation immediately below the present,
Fish exploration and danger prediction can be performed more effectively.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing transmission and reception directions of ultrasonic pulses in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an arrangement of a transducer in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a display example of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the transmission and reception directions of ultrasonic pulses in a conventional device.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display example of a display in a conventional device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 Changeover switch 4 Direct-direction transducer 5 Forward transducer 7 A / D conversion part 8 Fish finder buffer memory 10 Coordinate conversion part 12 Ship speed input part 13 Signal control part 14 Display control part 15 Display memory 16 Display 100 Display line

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A fish finder for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves from a navigating ship to the water to obtain a fish finder image, wherein the means for repeatedly transmitting ultrasonic waves with a predetermined angle of depression into the water in front of the bow and repeating reflected signals. The image information based on the obtained reflected signal is displayed on the display screen at substantially the same angle position as the depression angle, and this display is repeatedly displayed for each reflected signal while horizontally scrolling the display on the display screen. Means for obtaining a fish finder image of a predetermined time width on the display screen and updating the fish finder image. 2. The scroll speed of the display screen is synchronized with the boat speed, and when the video information capturing a predetermined point in front of the bow reaches the end of the display screen, the vertically lower part of the ship is substantially the predetermined point. The fish finder according to claim 1, wherein the horizontal axis of the display screen is configured to display the distance. 3. A means for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic wave vertically downward to obtain a reflected signal and simultaneously displaying a so-called vertical A-scope display on a display screen, wherein the A serves as vertical vertical image information of the ship. 3. The fish finder according to claim 2, wherein the scope display and the image information in front of the bow are simultaneously displayed.