JP7728086B2 - Equipment system, equipment system control method, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to an equipment system, a control method for the equipment system, and a program .

BACKGROUND ART In recent years, buildings such as office buildings are equipped with facilities and equipment such as air conditioners and lighting equipment.
For example, if an air conditioner is installed in a building, the air conditioner detects the presence of a person in the air-conditioned area and performs appropriate air conditioning control to maintain a temperature and humidity that the person feels comfortable at.
More specifically, the air conditioner detects the position of a person within the air-conditioned area from the captured thermal image.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an air conditioning unit that estimates a person's position from a thermal image. In this air conditioner, the position of a person is estimated using the position of the person's feet in a thermal image acquired by a thermal image acquisition unit, the height of the thermal image acquisition unit from the floor, and the effective viewing angle of the thermal image acquisition unit.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-135441

Recently, in order to curb the spread of viral infections such as COVID-19, there has been a demand to maintain social distance so that people do not get too close to each other, even within buildings. The prior art described in Patent Document 1 above was unable to curb the spread of viral infections when such social distance was not maintained.

Therefore, there was a need for technology that could curb the spread of viral infections when social distancing is not maintained within buildings.

The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an equipment system, an equipment system control method, and a program that can suppress the spread of viral infections when social distancing is not maintained within a building.

In order to achieve the above object, the equipment system according to the present disclosure includes:
a thermal image capturing means for capturing a thermal image;
a position detection means for detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing means;
a number-of-people calculation means for calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected by the position detection means;
and an equipment control means for causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated by the number of people calculation means is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value ,
The position detection means detects the position of the person based on the size of the person's head in the thermal image.

In the equipment system according to the present disclosure, the thermal image capturing means captures a thermal image. The position detecting means detects the position of each person based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing means. The number of people calculating means calculates the number of people per unit area from the position of each person detected by the position detecting means. The equipment control means then causes the air conditioner to operate to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated by the number of people calculating means is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold . The position detecting means detects the position of each person based on the size of the person's head in the thermal image.
As a result, the spread of viral infections can be curbed when social distancing is not maintained within a building.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an overall configuration of a lighting system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a thermal image capturing device. FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the photographable range of a thermal image photographing device; FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the installation state of a thermal image capturing device and the captureable range. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the y coordinate in a thermal image and the distance on the floor. FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the pixel configuration of a thermal image. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing specific examples of thermal images, in which (a) shows a person's entire body, and (b) shows a person's upper body only. A diagram showing an example of thermal images displayed in time series. A diagram to explain the difference in position between a person standing and sitting FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a table stored in a various value management unit; A diagram for explaining the relationship between the linear distance from the thermal imaging device to a person's head and the size of the head on the thermal image. A diagram for explaining that the linear distance rd from the thermal image capture device to the person's head can be obtained based on the head size on the thermal image. FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the y coordinate and the depression angle θ in a thermal image. A diagram for explaining that the distance r on the floor surface can be obtained from the relationship between the linear distance rd and the depression angle θ. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a lighting controller. 1 is a flowchart for explaining a position detection process executed by a thermal image capturing device and a lighting control process executed by a lighting controller. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of an air conditioning system according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. A diagram showing an example of the configuration of an air conditioning controller 1 is a flowchart illustrating a position detection process performed by a thermal image capturing device and an air conditioning control process performed by an air conditioning controller.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, a lighting system and an air conditioning system will be described as examples of equipment systems, but the present disclosure can be similarly applied to equipment systems in general. That is, the embodiments described below are for illustrative purposes only and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, those skilled in the art can adopt embodiments in which each or all of the elements are replaced with equivalents, and these embodiments are also within the scope of the present disclosure. That is, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described below and can be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure.
In addition, in each of the drawings that will be described in the following embodiments, the same reference numerals will be used to designate common elements.

(Embodiment 1)
1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a lighting system 1 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. The lighting system 1 is an example of an equipment system, and is installed in, for example, an office building to control lighting within the floor.
1, the lighting system 1 includes a plurality of thermal image capturing devices 10, a plurality of lighting devices 20, a concentrator 30, and a lighting controller 40. In the first embodiment, the lighting devices 20 correspond to the alarm devices.

As shown in FIG. 2, the thermal imaging device 10 includes a thermal imaging unit 11, which is an example of a thermal imaging means, a thermal image management unit 12, a human detection unit 13, which is an example of a position detection means, an information detection unit 14, which is an example of a distance calculation means or a number of people calculation means, a various value management unit 15, a communication unit 16, which is an example of a transmission means, and a control unit 17. The human detection unit 13, information detection unit 14, and control unit 17 are realized, for example, by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) using RAM (Random Access Memory) as work memory and appropriately executing programs stored in ROM.

The thermal image capturing unit 11 captures a thermal image of the target space. For example, the thermal image capturing unit 11 has a rotation mechanism and captures a 360° rotation of the thermal image as a single thermal image.
Specifically, the thermal image capturing device 10 is installed on the ceiling surface of a floor as shown in Fig. 3. The thermal image capturing unit 11 captures thermal images within the captureable range by operating the rotation mechanism. In the first embodiment, the thermal image capturing unit 11 corresponds to the thermal image capturing means.
More specifically, the thermal imaging device 10 is installed at an installation depression angle α relative to the ceiling surface, as shown in Figure 4. Therefore, the thermal imaging unit 11 can capture images within a range of a field angle 2β, with the installation depression angle α at the center. In other words, the minimum depression angle of the captureable range is α-β, and the maximum depression angle of the captureable range is α+β.
Here, if the height from the floor where the thermal imaging device 10 is installed is h and the position on the floor vertically below the thermal imaging device 10 is P, the distance r on the floor from P when photographing at a depression angle θ can be calculated using the following formula.

[Equation 1]
r = h/tan θ
(α-β≦θ≦α+β)

Therefore, the maximum distance rmax, which is the maximum value of distance r, and the minimum distance rmin, which is the minimum value of distance r, can be calculated using the following formulas.

[Equation 2]
rmax = h/tan(α-β)
rmin = h/tan(α+β)

More specifically, in Figure 4, an example will be described in which the installation depression angle α of the thermal imaging device 10 is 50°, the height h from the floor is 2.8 m, and the angle of view 2β of the thermal imaging unit 11 is 60°. Also, an example will be described in which the number of vertical pixels of the thermal image captured by the thermal imaging unit 11 is 120.

In this case, the depression angle θ that results in the maximum distance rmax is α-β, which is 50-30, or 20°. Also, the depression angle θ that results in the minimum distance rmin is α+β, which is 50+30, or 80°. In other words, the range of depression angles θ within the photographable range is 20° to 80°.
Since the number of vertical pixels in the thermal image is 120, the range of depression angle θ is divided into 0.5° increments by 60°/120. More specifically, the range of depression angle θ is from 20.25° (20° + 0.5°/2 = 0.25°) to 79.75°, divided into 0.5° increments. As shown in Figure 5, when this is expressed by the y coordinates of 119 to 0 for 120 pixels, depression angles θ from 20.25° to 79.75° correspond to distances r from 7.59m to 0.51m.

The thermal image capturing unit 11 then operates the rotation mechanism to capture thermal images for a full 360° rotation, ultimately resulting in a thermal image with the pixel configuration shown in Figure 6. The pixel configuration of the thermal image shown in Figure 6 shows an example of 3600 dots in the horizontal direction, i.e., the x direction, and 120 dots in the vertical direction, i.e., the y direction.
In the case of this thermal image, the x-direction has 3600 dots from 0 to 3599, so 360°/3600 dots means that the deflection angle φ increases in increments of 0.1° per dot in the x-direction. In other words, the deflection angle φ that is the starting point for creating the thermal image is 0°, and the deflection angle φ increases in increments of 0.1° up to 359.9° per revolution.
The Cartesian coordinates (x, y) in such a thermal image can be converted into polar coordinates (r, φ) corresponding to the actual position in relation to FIG. 5 described above.
For example, the pixel (x, y) = (10, 80) in Fig. 6 is converted to (r, φ) = (3.37, 1.0), which means that an object located at a distance r of 3.37 m and a deflection angle φ of 1.0° has been photographed.

Specifically, this thermal image capturing unit 11 captures thermal images such as those shown in Figures 7(a) and (b). Figure 7(a) is an example of a thermal image capturing a person's entire body, from head to legs. On the other hand, Figure 7(b) is an example of a thermal image capturing a person's upper body, in which the head can be identified but the legs cannot be identified as they are hidden by furniture.

Returning to FIG. 2, the thermal image management unit 12 manages the thermal images captured by the thermal image capturing unit 11 in chronological order.
For example, by managing the thermal images in chronological order, the thermal image management unit 12 can capture the movement of a person captured in the thermal image, as shown in Fig. 8. Note that only the head of the person is shown in the thermal image in Fig. 8. As the person is moving, it can be recognized that the person is walking in an upright position.

2, the human detection unit 13 determines whether a person is present or not from the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing unit 11, and detects the position of the person if a person is present. In the first embodiment, the human detection unit 13 corresponds to the position detection means.
For example, when the human detection unit 13 determines that a person is present, if the person's legs can be identified, it detects the person's position from the position of the legs in the thermal image.On the other hand, if the person's legs cannot be identified but the head can be identified, it determines whether the person is standing or sitting, and detects the person's position from the determination result and the head position in the thermal image.
9, if the legs of person H1 are photographed, the human detection unit 13 detects the (r, φ) coordinates, which are the actual position of person H1, from the (x, y) coordinates of the legs in the thermal image. Also, if the legs are not photographed, as in the case of people H2 and H3, the human detection unit 13 determines whether the person is standing or sitting, and detects the (r, φ) coordinates, which are the actual positions of people H2 and H3, from the determination result and the (x, y) coordinates of the head in the thermal image.

For example, the following description will be given assuming that the average head height of a person in a standing position is 1.6 m and the average head height of a person in a sitting position is 1.2 m. The following description will be given assuming that the installation height h of the thermal imaging device 10 is 2.8 m and the other installation conditions of the thermal imaging device 10 are the same as those described in Figure 4 above. In this case, the various value management unit 15 (described later) stores a table as shown in Figure 10.
When the legs are photographed, such as in the case of person H1 in Figure 9, the human detection unit 13 detects the distance r at the (r, φ) coordinate by referring to the y coordinate and leg item in the table in Figure 10.
Furthermore, when the person is determined to be in a sitting position, such as person H2 in Figure 9, even if the legs are not photographed, the person detection unit 13 detects the distance rsi in the (r, φ) coordinate by referring to the y coordinate and the sitting position item in the table in Figure 10.
Furthermore, when the person detection unit 13 determines that a person is standing, even if the legs are not photographed, as in the case of person H3 in Figure 9, it detects the distance rst at the (r, φ) coordinate by referring to the y coordinate and the standing position item in the table in Figure 10.

Whether a person is standing or sitting is determined from the thermal images managed in chronological order by the thermal image management unit 12 described above. For example, the human detection unit 13 determines that a person is standing if it can recognize the movement of the person, as shown in Figure 8 described above. On the other hand, the human detection unit 13 determines that a person is sitting if it cannot recognize the movement of the person in the thermal images managed in chronological order. Note that this method of determining whether a person is standing or sitting is just one example, and other methods may also be used. For example, in an office, the head positions of people sitting in chairs may be registered in advance, and if the head position of a person captured in a thermal image is within a specified distance of any of the registered head positions, the person may be determined to be sitting; otherwise, the person may be determined to be standing.

The human detection unit 13 may also detect the position of a person based on the size of the person's head captured in the thermal image.
For example, a correspondence table such as that shown in Fig. 11 is stored in the various value management unit 15, which will be described later. The correspondence table shown in Fig. 11 indicates the correspondence relationship between the distance rd from the thermal image capturing device 10 to the person's head and the head size hh on the thermal image, which is obtained in advance by measurement or calculation.
The head size hh in Fig. 11 is the horizontal head size, which has less error. In other words, while the head size in the vertical direction is subject to large error due to the angle of looking down from the thermal image capture device 10, the head size in the horizontal direction is less susceptible to such an effect, so the horizontal head size is used.
The range of distance rd is, for example, 0 to 8.0 m. Note that 8.0 m is the distance to the farthest end of the image capturing range of the thermal image capturing device 10. The interval size within the range of distance rd is, for example, 0.1 m. Note that this interval size is set taking into consideration the allowable error in measuring the distance between people and the resolution of the thermal image, etc.

The human detection unit 13 then determines the distance rd by referring to the horizontal head size of the person captured in the thermal image and the correspondence table in Fig. 11. For example, as shown in Fig. 12, when the horizontal head size on the thermal image is 50 dots, the human detection unit 13 determines that the distance rd is 5.0 m by referring to the correspondence table in Fig. 11.
13, the depression angle θ can be determined from the head position in the thermal image. For example, if the y coordinate of the head position in the thermal image is 80°, the human detection unit 13 determines that the depression angle θ is 39.75°.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14, for a person whose head is photographed at a position a distance rd away from the thermal image photographing device 10 at a depression angle θ, the distance r on the floor from P can be calculated using the following formula:

[Equation 3]
r = rd cosθ

For example, in FIG. 14, when the depression angle θ is 39.75° and the distance rd is 5.0 m, the human detection unit 13 determines that the distance r is 3.84 m from 5.0×cos(39.75°).
In this way, the human detection unit 13 can detect the position of a person based on the size of the person's head captured in the thermal image.

By using the above-described method to detect the position of a person using the human detection unit 13, the thermal imaging device 10 of embodiment 1 can detect the position of a person more accurately than the prior art described in Patent Document 1. In particular, when the prior art described in Patent Document 1 is applied inside a building such as an office building, there is a problem in that the position of a person cannot be estimated. For example, in a real office, there are furniture such as desks, chairs, shelves, and electronic devices, and depending on the relative positions of the furniture, the person, and the thermal imaging unit 11, the legs of a person shown in the thermal image may be hidden by the furniture. In such cases, the position of the person's legs cannot be obtained from the thermal image, and the prior art described in Patent Document 1 cannot estimate the position of a person. The thermal imaging device 10 of embodiment 1 solves the problem of the prior art described in Patent Document 1 and can therefore detect the position of a person more accurately.

2, the information detection unit 14 calculates the distance d between people from the position of each person detected by the person detection unit 13. In the first embodiment, the information detection unit 14 corresponds to the distance calculation means.
For example, the information detection unit 14 calculates the distance d between people using the following formula: The (r, φ) coordinates of one person are (r1, φ1), and the (r, φ) coordinates of the other person are (r2, φ2).

The information detection unit 14 may also calculate the number of people per unit area. For example, the information detection unit 14 counts the number of people detected by the person detection unit 13 for each specified range and calculates the number of people per unit area. In this case, the information detection unit 14 corresponds to the number of people calculation means.
The information detection unit 14 may also estimate the body temperature of the person detected by the person detection unit 13. For example, the information detection unit 14 may recognize the person's forehead or face in the thermal image and estimate the person's body temperature from the temperature at that location. Furthermore, the information detection unit 14 may determine whether the person is wearing a mask from, for example, the temperature difference between the upper and lower parts of the face.

The various value management unit 15 manages various pieces of information required in the thermal image capturing device 10 .
For example, the various value management unit 15 acquires and stores the value of the installation height h of the thermal image capturing device 10. Note that, in case the value of the installation height h cannot be acquired, a default value of the installation height h may be stored.
The various value management unit 15 also stores values such as the installation depression angle α and the angle of view 2β of the thermal image capturing device 10 that are determined in advance in the product specifications.
The various value management unit 15 also stores in advance the table shown in FIG. 10 and the correspondence table shown in FIG.
The various value management unit 15 may also acquire and store threshold values such as an upper limit for the number of people per unit area and an upper limit for normal body temperature.

The communication unit 16 transmits various information to the lighting controller 40 via the concentrator 30. For example, the communication unit 16 transmits information such as the (r, φ) coordinates that are the actual positions of people detected by the person detection unit 13 and the distance d between people that is determined by the information detection unit 14 to the lighting controller 40. The communication unit 16 may also transmit information on the number of people per unit area to the lighting controller 40. In the first embodiment, the communication unit 16 corresponds to the transmitting means.
Furthermore, the communication unit 16 may be capable of communicating with a smartphone, a personal computer, etc. For example, when installing the thermal image capturing device 10, the communication unit 16 communicates with the installer's smartphone and receives the value of the set height h input by the installer. The communication unit 16 supplies the received value of the set height h to the various value management unit 15 and stores it therein. Furthermore, as will be described later, the communication unit 16 may be configured to transmit warning messages, warning images, etc. to smartphones, personal computers, etc. used by people on the floor.

The control unit 17 controls the entire thermal image capturing device 10 .
For example, the control unit 17 controls the thermal image capturing unit 11 to periodically capture thermal images. Furthermore, every time the thermal image capturing unit 11 finishes capturing a thermal image, the control unit 17 controls the human detection unit 13 to detect the position of a person captured in the thermal image and the information detection unit 14 to calculate the distance between people. The control unit 17 then controls the communication unit 16 to transmit information including the distance between people to the lighting controller 40.

Returning to Figure 1, the lighting equipment 20 is, for example, lighting that uses a fluorescent lamp, LED, or the like as a light source, and is installed on the ceiling of the floor. The lighting equipment 20 not only turns the lighting on and off, but also changes the light emission color, brightness, etc., according to control from the lighting controller 40.

The concentrator 30 is, for example, a hub, and transmits information sent from multiple thermal imaging devices 10 to the lighting controller 40. It also transmits information sent from the lighting controller 40 to the target thermal imaging device 10.

As shown in FIG. 15, the lighting controller 40 includes a lighting control unit 41, which is an example of equipment control means, a warning discrimination unit 42, which is an example of discrimination means, a control communication unit 43, an information communication unit 44, which is an example of receiving means, and a control unit 45. Note that the lighting control unit 41, warning discrimination unit 42, and control unit 45 are realized, for example, by the CPU using RAM as work memory and appropriately executing programs stored in ROM.

The lighting control unit 41 controls the turning on or off of the lighting device 20. In the first embodiment, the lighting control unit 41 corresponds to the device control unit.
Furthermore, as will be described later, when the warning determination unit 42 determines that a warning needs to be issued, the lighting control unit 41 controls the lighting device 20 to issue a warning. For example, the lighting control unit 41 controls the lighting device 20 to change the light emission color, brightness, etc. of the lighting. In addition, the lighting control unit 41 may control the lighting device 20 to blink at a predetermined tempo.

The warning determination unit 42 determines whether or not to issue a warning according to the information received from the thermal imaging device 10. For example, when information on the distance d between people is sent from the thermal imaging device 10, the warning determination unit 42 determines that a warning should be issued if the distance d is equal to or less than a threshold value. Also, when information on the number of people per unit area is sent from the thermal imaging device 10, the warning determination unit 42 determines that a warning should be issued if the number of people is equal to or greater than a threshold value. In the first embodiment, the warning determination unit 42 corresponds to the determination means.
The lighting controller 40 manages the installation positions of the lighting devices 20 on the floor, and when it determines that a warning should be issued, the warning determination unit 42 identifies the lighting devices 20 to be controlled. For example, if the distance d between people is equal to or less than a threshold value, the warning determination unit 42 identifies the lighting devices 20 installed closest to the people. Furthermore, if the number of people per unit area is equal to or greater than a threshold value, the warning determination unit 42 identifies the lighting devices 20 installed in the corresponding area. In the first embodiment, the warning determination unit 42 corresponds to the device identification means.

The control communication unit 43 communicates with the lighting device 20.

The information communication unit 44 communicates with the thermal imaging device 10 via the concentrator 30. For example, the information communication unit 44 receives information including the distance d between people sent from the thermal imaging device 10. In embodiment 1, the information communication unit 44 corresponds to the receiving means.

The control unit 45 controls the entire lighting controller 40.

The operation of the lighting system 1 configured as described above will be described below with reference to FIG. 16. FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating the position detection process performed by the thermal image capture device 10 and the lighting control process performed by the lighting controller 40. This position detection process and lighting control process are executed repeatedly, for example, at a specified cycle.

First, the thermal imaging device 10 determines whether the set height value has been acquired (step S101). In other words, the thermal imaging device 10 determines whether the value of height h in Figure 4 described above has been acquired.

When the thermal imaging device 10 determines that the set height value has been acquired (Step S101: Yes), it proceeds to Step S103, which will be described later.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the value of the set height has not been acquired (step S101; No), the thermal image capturing device 10 acquires the value of the set height (step S102).
For example, the thermal imaging device 10 communicates with the installer's smartphone to acquire the value of the height h at which the thermal imaging device 10 is installed. Specifically, when a setting app is executed on the installer's smartphone and the value of the installation height h is input in accordance with a request from the setting app, the value is supplied to the various value management unit 15 via the communication unit 16 and stored therein.

The thermal image capturing device 10 captures a thermal image (step S103).
That is, the thermal image capturing unit 11 operates the rotation mechanism to capture thermal images for a full 360° rotation. For example, the thermal image capturing unit 11 captures a thermal image with the pixel configuration shown in Fig. 6. In the first embodiment, the process of step S103 corresponds to the thermal image capturing step.

The thermal image capturing device 10 detects the position of each person from the thermal image (step S104).
That is, the human detection unit 13 determines whether a human is present or not from the thermal image captured in step S103, and detects the position of the human if a human is present. Note that in the first embodiment, the process of step S104 corresponds to the position detection step.
9, if the legs of person H1 are photographed, the human detection unit 13 detects the (r, φ) coordinates of the actual position of person H1 from the (x, y) coordinates of the legs in the thermal image. Also, if the legs are not photographed, as in the case of people H2 and H3, the human detection unit 13 determines whether the person is standing or sitting, and detects the (r, φ) coordinates of the actual positions of people H2 and H3 from the determination result and the (x, y) coordinates of the head in the thermal image.
Whether a person is standing or sitting is determined from the thermal images managed in chronological order. For example, the human detection unit 13 determines that a person is standing if human movement is recognized in the thermal images managed in chronological order as shown in Figure 8 above. On the other hand, the human detection unit 13 determines that a person is sitting if human movement is not recognized in the thermal images managed in chronological order.

The thermal image capturing device 10 calculates the distance d between people (step S105).
That is, the information detection unit 14 calculates the distance d between people from the position of each person detected in the above step S104. Note that in the first embodiment, the process of step S105 corresponds to the distance calculation step.
For example, the information detection unit 14 obtains the distance d between people according to the above-mentioned formula 4.
The information detection unit 14 may also calculate the number of people per unit area in step S105. In this case, the process in step S105 corresponds to a number of people calculation step.

The thermal imaging device 10 transmits information including the distance d (step S106).
For example, the communication unit 16 transmits information such as the position of each person detected in step S104 and the distance d between people calculated in step S105 to the lighting controller 40. The communication unit 16 may also transmit information on the number of people per unit area to the lighting controller 40. In the first embodiment, the process of step S106 corresponds to the transmitting step.

When the information is transmitted from the thermal image capturing device 10 in this manner, the illumination controller 40 receives the information including the distance d (step S201).
That is, the information communication unit 44 receives information including the distance d. In the first embodiment, the process of step S201 corresponds to the receiving step.

The lighting controller 40 determines whether the received information is equal to or less than the threshold value (step S202). Note that in the first embodiment, the process of step S202 corresponds to the determining step.
For example, the warning determination unit 42 determines whether the distance d is equal to or less than a threshold value in the information received in step S201. If the distance d is equal to or less than the threshold value, the warning determination unit 42 determines that a warning is necessary, and if the distance d is greater than the threshold value, the warning determination unit 42 determines that a warning is not necessary.
In addition, when the information received in step S201 includes the number of people per unit area, the warning determination unit 42 may determine whether that number is equal to or greater than a threshold value. Note that the warning determination unit 42 determines that a warning is necessary when the number of people per unit area is equal to or greater than the threshold value, and determines that a warning is not necessary when the number of people per unit area is less than the threshold value.

If the lighting controller 40 determines that the value is not below the threshold (step S202; No), it ends the lighting control process.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the difference is equal to or less than the threshold value (step S202; Yes), the lighting controller 40 identifies the corresponding lighting device 20 (step S203). Note that in the first embodiment, the process of step S203 corresponds to the device identification step.
For example, if the distance d is equal to or less than the threshold value, the warning determination unit 42 identifies the lighting device 20 installed closest to the positions of those people.
In addition, when the number of people per unit area is equal to or greater than a threshold value, the warning determination unit 42 identifies a plurality of lighting devices 20 installed in the corresponding area.

The lighting controller 40 controls the identified lighting device 20 to display a warning (step S204). Note that in the first embodiment, the process of step S204 corresponds to the device control step.
For example, the lighting control unit 41 controls the lighting device 20 to change the light emission color, brightness, etc. Alternatively, the lighting control unit 41 may control the lighting device 20 to blink at a predetermined tempo.

This position detection process enables more accurate detection of people's positions, and accordingly, the distance between people or the number of people per unit area can be calculated more accurately. Then, if the distance between people is closer than a specified value or the number of people per unit area is greater than a specified value, the lighting control process controls the lighting devices 20 to issue a warning.
As a result, the spread of viral infections can be curbed when social distancing is not maintained within a building.

In the above-described first embodiment, the case where a normal lighting device 20 is controlled has been described, but if the lighting device 20 is a projector, the lighting controller 40 may control the projector to issue a warning by displaying a warning message, a warning image, or the like on the floor or wall. In this case, the projector corresponds to the warning device.
Furthermore, if the lighting controller 40 is capable of communicating with terminal devices such as smartphones and personal computers used by people on the floor, the lighting controller 40 may issue a warning by transmitting a warning message, a warning image, etc. to the terminal devices. In this case, the terminal devices correspond to the warning devices.
Furthermore, if the lighting controller 40 can send instructions to the public address system, the warning may be issued through a sound device such as a speaker or buzzer provided in the public address system. In this case, the sound equipment for the public address system corresponds to the notification device.

(Embodiment 2)
In the first embodiment, the lighting system 1 has been described as an example of an equipment system, but other equipment systems may be used. An air conditioning system 2 according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below.

17 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of an air conditioning system 2 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The air conditioning system 2 is an example of an equipment system, and is installed in, for example, an office building to control air conditioning within the floor.
As shown in FIG. 17, the air conditioning system 2 includes a plurality of thermal image capturing devices 10, a plurality of air conditioners 50, a line concentrator 30, and an air conditioning controller 60.
The thermal image capturing device 10 and the concentrator 30 have the same configuration as the lighting system 1 according to the first embodiment.

The air conditioner 50 is, for example, an indoor unit installed on the ceiling within a floor, and is connected via piping to an outdoor unit (not shown) installed outdoors. The air conditioner 50 has, for example, an expansion valve and a heat exchanger, and adjusts the temperature or humidity of the target space by evaporating or condensing the refrigerant sent from the outdoor unit via piping in the heat exchanger. In this case, the air conditioner 50 has an air blowing function, in order to draw air from within the floor into the indoor unit and blow the air heated or cooled by the heat exchanger into the floor.
The air conditioner 50 is a ventilation device that ventilates the inside of a floor, for example, and exhausts air from the inside of the floor to the outside or supplies air from the outside of the floor to the inside of the floor. In this case, the air conditioner 50 has a ventilation function.
The air conditioner 50 may have both an air blowing mechanism and a ventilation function.

As shown in FIG. 18, the air conditioning controller 60 includes an air conditioning control unit 61, which is an example of equipment control means, a ventilation determination unit 62, which is an example of determination means, a control communication unit 63, an information communication unit 64, which is an example of receiving means, and a control unit 65. Note that the air conditioning control unit 61, ventilation determination unit 62, and control unit 65 are realized, for example, by a CPU using RAM as work memory and appropriately executing programs stored in ROM.

The air conditioning control unit 61 controls the air conditioner 50 to adjust the temperature or humidity in the floor. In the second embodiment, the air conditioning control unit 61 corresponds to the device control means.
Furthermore, as will be described later, when the ventilation determining unit 62 determines that ventilation is necessary, the air conditioning control unit 61 controls the air conditioner 50 to prompt ventilation.
As a control to promote ventilation, for example, when the air conditioner 50 has a blowing function, the air conditioning control unit 61 maximizes the air volume of the air conditioner 50 and directs it in the direction of an open window or the intake of a device with a ventilation function, such as a ventilation fan or range hood, so that the air within the floor is ventilated.
Furthermore, as a control to promote ventilation, for example, if the air conditioner 50 has a blowing function, the air conditioning control unit 61 may maximize the airflow of the air conditioner 50 toward the corners or walls of the floor where air tends to stagnate, thereby moving the air located in the areas where air tends to stagnate, and ventilating the air throughout the entire floor.
Furthermore, as a control to promote ventilation, for example, if the air conditioner 50 has a ventilation function, the air conditioning control unit 61 may operate the ventilation function of the air conditioner 50 at maximum.

The ventilation determination unit 62 determines whether ventilation should be performed according to the information received from the thermal imaging device 10. For example, when information on the distance d between people is sent from the thermal imaging device 10, the ventilation determination unit 62 determines that ventilation should be performed if the distance d is equal to or less than a threshold value. Also, when information on the number of people per unit area is sent from the thermal imaging device 10, the ventilation determination unit 62 determines that ventilation should be performed if the number of people is equal to or greater than a threshold value. In the second embodiment, the ventilation determination unit 62 corresponds to the determination means.
The air conditioning controller 60 manages the installation positions of each air conditioner 50 on the floor where it is installed, and the installation positions of small-open windows. When it is determined that ventilation should be performed, the ventilation determination unit 62 identifies the air conditioner 50 to be controlled. For example, if the distance d between people is equal to or less than a threshold value, the ventilation determination unit 62 identifies the air conditioner 50 installed closest to the people's locations. Furthermore, if the number of people per unit area is equal to or greater than a threshold value, the ventilation determination unit 62 identifies multiple air conditioners 50 installed in the corresponding area. In the second embodiment, the ventilation determination unit 62 corresponds to the device identification means.

The control communication unit 63 communicates with the air conditioner 50.

The information communication unit 64 communicates with the thermal imaging device 10 via the concentrator 30. For example, the information communication unit 64 receives information including the distance d between people sent from the thermal imaging device 10. In embodiment 2, the information communication unit 64 corresponds to the receiving means.

The control unit 65 controls the entire air conditioning controller 60.

The operation of the air conditioning system 2 configured as above will be described below with reference to Fig. 19. Fig. 19 is a flowchart for explaining the position detection process executed by the thermal image capturing device 10 and the air conditioning control process executed by the air conditioning controller 60. The position detection process and the lighting control process are executed repeatedly at a specified cycle, for example.
The position detection process is the same as the process in FIG. 16 described above, and will therefore only be briefly described.

First, the thermal imaging device 10 determines whether the set height value has been acquired (step S101), and if it determines that it has been acquired (step S101; Yes), it proceeds to step S103, which will be described later.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the set height value has not been acquired (step S101; No), the thermal imaging device 10 acquires the set height value (step S102).

The thermal imaging device 10 captures a thermal image (step S103), detects the position of each person from the thermal image (step S104), and then calculates the distance d between people (step S105). Note that in step S105, the number of people per unit area may also be calculated.

The thermal imaging device 10 transmits information including the distance d (step S106). Note that in step S106, information on the number of people per unit area may also be transmitted.

In this way, when the information is transmitted from the thermal image capturing device 10, the air conditioning controller 60 receives the information including the distance d (step S301). Note that in the second embodiment, the process of step S301 corresponds to the receiving step.
That is, the information communication unit 64 receives information including the distance d.

The air conditioning controller 60 determines whether the received information is equal to or less than the threshold value (step S302). Note that in the second embodiment, the process of step S302 corresponds to the determining step.
For example, the ventilation determination unit 62 determines whether the distance d is equal to or less than a threshold value in the information received in step S301. If the distance d is equal to or less than the threshold value, the ventilation determination unit 62 determines that ventilation is necessary, and if the distance d is greater than the threshold value, the ventilation determination unit 62 determines that ventilation is not necessary.
In addition, when the information received in step S301 includes the number of people per unit area, the ventilation determination unit 62 may determine whether that number is equal to or greater than a threshold value. Note that the ventilation determination unit 62 determines that ventilation is necessary when the number of people per unit area is equal to or greater than the threshold value, and determines that ventilation is not necessary when the number of people per unit area is less than the threshold value.

If the air conditioning controller 60 determines that the temperature is not below the threshold (step S302; No), it ends the air conditioning control process.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the temperature is equal to or lower than the threshold value (step S302; Yes), the air conditioning controller 60 identifies the corresponding air conditioner 50 (step S303). Note that in the second embodiment, the processing in step S303 corresponds to the device identification step.
For example, if the distance d is equal to or less than a threshold value, the ventilation determining unit 62 identifies the location of those people and the air conditioner 50 installed closest thereto.
Additionally, when the number of people per unit area is equal to or greater than a threshold value, the ventilation determination unit 62 identifies a plurality of air conditioners 50 installed in the corresponding area.

The air conditioning controller 60 controls the identified air conditioner 50 to promote ventilation (step S304). Note that in the second embodiment, the process of step S304 corresponds to the device control step.
For example, if the air conditioner 50 has a blowing function, the air conditioning control unit 61 maximizes the air volume of the air conditioner 50 and directs it in the direction of an open window or the intake port of a device with a ventilation function, such as a ventilation fan or range hood, so that the air within the floor is ventilated.
Also, for example, if the air conditioner 50 has a blowing function, the air conditioning control unit 61 may maximize the airflow of the air conditioner 50 toward the corners or walls of the floor where air tends to stagnate, thereby moving the air located in the areas where air tends to stagnate and ventilating the air throughout the floor.
Furthermore, when the air conditioner 50 has a ventilation function, the air conditioning control unit 61 may operate the air conditioner 50 with the ventilation function at maximum.

This position detection process makes it possible to detect the positions of people more accurately, and therefore the distance between people or the number of people per unit area can also be calculated more accurately.Then, when the distance between people is closer than specified or the number of people per unit area is greater than specified, the air conditioning control process controls the air conditioner 50 to ventilate.
As a result, the spread of viral infections can be curbed when social distancing is not maintained within a building.

In the above-mentioned second embodiment, a case where control is performed to encourage ventilation was described, but as in the first embodiment, a warning may also be issued. For example, if an LED display is possible on the operation panel of the air conditioner 50, a warning may be issued by making the LED blink at a predetermined rate. Also, equipment other than the air conditioner 50 may be controlled to encourage ventilation. For example, if the opening and closing of doors or windows within a floor can be controlled by the air conditioning controller 60, the air conditioning controller 60 may encourage ventilation by controlling the doors or windows to be open.

(Other embodiments)
In the above embodiments 1 and 2, the lighting controller 40 and the air conditioning controller 60 are described as determining whether the distance between people is below a threshold value or whether the number of people per unit area is above a threshold value, but this determination may also be performed by the thermal imaging device 10.
In this case, a warning can be issued by transmitting a warning message, a warning image, etc. from the thermal imaging device 10 to terminal devices such as smartphones and personal computers used by people on the floor. In other words, a warning can be issued even with a simple configuration of the thermal imaging device 10 installed on the floor and the terminal devices used on the floor. In this case, the terminal devices correspond to the notification devices.

In addition, in the above-mentioned first and second embodiments, the thermal imaging device 10 has a position detection means and a distance calculation means or a number of people calculation means, and performs the position detection step and the distance calculation step or the number of people calculation step, but this is not limited to this. For example, the lighting controller 40 or the air conditioning controller 60 may have a position detection means and a distance calculation means or a number of people calculation means, and perform the position detection step and the distance calculation step or the number of people calculation step. In this case, the thermal imaging device 10 transmits information including the captured thermal image, and the lighting controller 40 or the air conditioning controller 60 receives information including the thermal image transmitted from the thermal imaging device 10.

In addition, in the above-mentioned first and second embodiments, the thermal imaging device 10 transmits information to the lighting controller 40 or the air conditioning controller 60, but this is not limited to this. For example, the equipment system may further include a server, with the thermal imaging device 10 transmitting information to the server, and the lighting controller 40 or the air conditioning controller 60 receiving the information sent from the server. Furthermore, if the equipment system includes a server, the server may have at least one of a position detection means, a distance calculation means or a number of people calculation means, and an equipment identification means, and the server may perform at least one of the position detection step, the distance calculation step or the number of people calculation step, and the equipment identification step.

In addition, in the above embodiments, the position detection means and the distance calculation means or number of people calculation means are separated as different means, but this is not limited to this, and the position detection means may be included within the distance calculation means or number of people calculation means. In this case, the distance calculation means calculates the distance between people based on the thermal image, and the number of people calculation means calculates the number of people per unit area based on the thermal image. Furthermore, in the above embodiments 1 and 2, the position detection step and the distance calculation step or number of people calculation step are separated as different steps, but this is not limited to this, and the position detection step may be included within the distance calculation step or number of people calculation step. In this case, the distance calculation step calculates the distance between people based on the thermal image, and the number of people calculation step calculates the number of people per unit area based on the thermal image.

In the above embodiment, the CPU in the thermal imaging device 10, lighting controller 40, and air conditioning controller 60 uses RAM as work memory and appropriately executes control programs stored in ROM to realize the above-mentioned human detection unit 13, information detection unit 14, warning determination unit 42, ventilation determination unit 62, etc.

However, all or part of the control unit may be implemented using dedicated hardware. Examples of dedicated hardware include a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a combination of these.

The above control program can also be distributed by storing it on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), Magneto-Optical Disc, USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, memory card, or HDD.

In addition, when adopting a configuration in which such control programs are executed by a control device separate from the thermal imaging device 10, lighting controller 40, and air conditioning controller 60, the distributed program as described above can be installed on a specific or general-purpose computer, causing the computer to function as the thermal imaging device 10, lighting controller 40, and air conditioning controller 60. The control program may also be stored on a disk device owned by another server on the Internet, and downloaded from that server to the control device.

This disclosure is susceptible to various embodiments and modifications without departing from its broad spirit and scope. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments are intended to illustrate the disclosure and do not limit the scope of the disclosure. In other words, the scope of the disclosure is defined by the claims, not the embodiments. Various modifications made within the scope of the claims and their equivalents are deemed to be within the scope of the disclosure.

1. Lighting system, 10. Thermal imaging device, 11. Thermal imaging unit, 12. Thermal image management unit, 13. Human detection unit, 14. Information detection unit, 15. Various value management unit, 16. Communication unit, 20. Lighting equipment, 30. Concentrator, 40. Lighting controller, 41. Lighting control unit, 42. Warning determination unit, 43. Control and communication unit, 44. Information and communication unit, 45. Control unit, 50. Air conditioner, 60. Air conditioning controller, 61. Air conditioning control unit, 62. Ventilation determination unit, 63. Control and communication unit, 64. Information and communication unit, 65. Control unit

Claims (6)

a thermal image capturing means for capturing a thermal image;
a position detection means for detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing means;
a number-of-people calculation means for calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected by the position detection means ;
and an equipment control means for causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated by the number of people calculation means is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value ,
the position detection means detects the position of the person based on the size of the person's head in the thermal image.
Equipment systems. a thermal image capturing means for capturing a thermal image;
a position detection means for detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing means;
a number-of-people calculation means for calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected by the position detection means;
and an equipment control means for causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated by the number of people calculation means is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value,
the position detection means detects the position of the person based on the position of the person's head in the thermal image and a determination result of whether the person is standing or sitting.
Equipment systems. a thermal image capturing step of capturing a thermal image;
a position detection step of detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured in the thermal image capturing step;
a number-of-people calculation step of calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected in the position detection step;
an equipment control step of causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated in the number of people calculation step is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value;
the position detecting step detects the position of the person based on the size of the person's head in the thermal image.
Methods for controlling equipment systems. a thermal image capturing step of capturing a thermal image;
a position detection step of detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured in the thermal image capturing step;
a number-of-people calculation step of calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected in the position detection step;
an equipment control step of causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated in the number of people calculation step is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value;
the position detecting step detects the position of the person based on the position of the person's head in the thermal image and a determination result of whether the person is standing or sitting.
Methods for controlling equipment systems. On the computer,
a position detection step of detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing device;
a number-of-people calculation step of calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected in the position detection step;
a device control step of causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated in the number of people calculation step is equal to or greater than a threshold value;
In the position detection step, the position of the person is detected based on the size of the person's head in the thermal image.
A program to make it run like this . On the computer,
a position detection step of detecting the position of each person based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image capturing device;
a number-of-people calculation step of calculating the number of people per unit area from the positions of the people detected in the position detection step;
a device control step of causing an air conditioner to perform an operation to promote ventilation when the number of people calculated in the number of people calculation step is equal to or greater than a threshold value;
In the position detection step, the position of the person is detected based on the position of the person's head in the thermal image and a determination result of whether the person is standing or sitting.
A program to make it run like this.