JP2024071116A - CO2 absorption evaluation system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a CO2 absorption amount evaluation system that is capable of highly accurately evaluating a CO2 absorption amount by seaweed on a seaweed bed to be evaluated.SOLUTION: A CO2 absorption amount evaluation system evaluates a CO2 absorption amount by seaweed on a seaweed bed to be evaluated comprises: a camera; a LiDAR; a mobile body to which the camera and the LiDAR are mounted, and which is constituted to move underwater; and a CO2 absorption amount evaluation device, where the CO2 absorption amount evaluation device has: a measurement part which measures an area of a front face of seaweed per plant on the seaweed bed from an image of underwater captured by the camera, and measures a depth of seaweed per plant from a scanning result of underwater by the LiDAR; and a calculation part which calculates a weight of seaweed per plant on the basis of a measurement result by the measurement part, and calculates a CO2 absorption amount by seaweed on the seaweed bed on the basis of the calculated weight of seaweed per plant and the number of seaweed plants on the seaweed bed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

This disclosure relates to a CO2 absorption evaluation system.

In recent years, there has been a demand for highly accurate evaluation of the amount of CO2 absorbed by seaweed in seaweed beds. In order to accurately evaluate the amount of CO2 absorbed by seaweed in seaweed beds, it is necessary to accurately measure the total weight of the seaweed in the seaweed beds.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for measuring underwater topography using a LIDAR that measures position by scanning horizontally and a LIDAR that measures water depth by scanning vertically.

JP 2019-78732 A

Patent Document 1 only discloses surveying underwater topography, but does not disclose or suggest anything about evaluating the amount of CO2 absorbed by seaweed.

The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above background, and aims to provide a CO2 absorption evaluation system that can evaluate with high accuracy the amount of CO2 absorption by seaweed in the seaweed bed being evaluated.

The CO2 absorption evaluation system according to the present disclosure is a CO2 absorption evaluation system for evaluating the amount of CO2 absorption by seaweed in a seaweed bed to be evaluated, and includes a camera, a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), a mobile body to which the camera and the LiDAR are attached and configured to be able to move underwater, and a CO2 absorption evaluation device. The CO2 absorption evaluation device has a measurement unit that measures the frontal area of each seaweed plant in the seaweed bed from an image taken underwater by the camera and measures the depth of each seaweed plant from the results of scanning the water with the LiDAR, and a calculation unit that calculates the weight of the seaweed per plant based on the measurement results by the measurement unit, and calculates the amount of CO2 absorption by the seaweed in the seaweed bed based on the calculated weight of the seaweed per plant and the number of seaweed plants in the seaweed bed. This CO2 absorption evaluation system can obtain three-dimensional information about the seaweed in the seaweed bed being evaluated, allowing it to highly accurately evaluate the amount of CO2 absorption by the seaweed in the seaweed bed being evaluated.

This disclosure provides a CO2 absorption evaluation system that can accurately evaluate the amount of CO2 absorbed by seaweed in the seaweed bed being evaluated.

1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a CO2 absorption amount evaluation system according to a first embodiment. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CO2 absorption amount evaluation system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an image taken from above the seaweed bed to be evaluated. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of seaweed cultivated in a seaweed bed to be evaluated.

The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the invention according to the claims is not limited to the following embodiments. Furthermore, not all of the configurations described in the embodiments are necessarily essential as means for solving the problems. For clarity of explanation, the following description and drawings have been omitted and simplified as appropriate. In each drawing, the same elements are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations have been omitted as necessary.

<First embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a CO2 absorption evaluation system 1 according to a first embodiment. The CO2 absorption evaluation system 1 according to this embodiment is applied to, for example, a seaweed bed where a predetermined number of seaweeds are cultivated. Here, the CO2 absorption evaluation system 1 according to this embodiment uses a mobile body equipped with a camera and a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) to acquire three-dimensional information about the seaweed in the seaweed bed to be evaluated, thereby enabling highly accurate evaluation of the CO2 absorption amount by the seaweed in the seaweed bed to be evaluated. A specific description will be given below.

As shown in FIG. 1, the CO2 absorption evaluation system 1 includes a CO2 absorption evaluation device 10, an operation terminal 20, a mobile body 30, and a network 50. The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 can be referred to as a CO2 absorption evaluation system by itself. The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10, the operation terminal 20, and the mobile body 30 are configured to be able to communicate with each other via a wired or wireless network 50. In this embodiment, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 and the operation terminal 20 are provided separately, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 may have the function of the operation terminal 20. In other words, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 and the operation terminal 20 may be formed integrally.

The operation terminal 20 is a communication-capable terminal that is owned by the user or temporarily assigned to the user, and is, for example, a PC (Personal Computer) terminal, a mobile terminal such as a smartphone or tablet terminal, or a dedicated communication terminal prepared for this system.

For example, a user who wishes to evaluate the amount of CO2 absorption in a seaweed bed to be evaluated inputs information about the seaweed bed to be evaluated into the operation terminal 20 by operating the operation screen, keyboard, etc. of the operation terminal 20. Here, the information about the seaweed bed to be evaluated refers to information such as the location of the seaweed bed, the area of the seaweed bed, the number of seaweed strains cultivated in the seaweed bed, and the type of seaweed. The operation terminal 20 accepts this information and transmits it to the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 via the network 50. The operation terminal 20 also receives the evaluation results output from the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 via the network 50 and displays them on a monitor, etc.

The mobile body 30 is configured to be able to move underwater. For example, the mobile body 30 is a drone that is configured to be able to fly in the air as well as move underwater. In addition, a camera 31 and a LiDAR 32 are attached to the mobile body 30. Therefore, the mobile body 30 can take images of the underwater environment using the camera 31 and scan the underwater environment using the LiDAR 32. The mobile body 30 transmits images of the underwater environment taken by the camera 31 and the results of scanning the underwater environment using the LiDAR 32 to the CO2 absorption amount evaluation device 10 via the network 50.

The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 is a device that evaluates the CO2 absorption amount in the seaweed bed to be evaluated. Specifically, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 includes an acquisition unit 11, a mobile unit control unit 12, a measurement unit 13, a calculation unit 14, and an output unit 15.

The acquisition unit 11 acquires information about the seaweed bed to be evaluated transmitted from the operation terminal 20. The mobile object control unit 12 refers to the position information of the seaweed bed to be evaluated acquired by the acquisition unit 11, and moves (flies) the mobile object 30 to the seaweed bed to be evaluated, and then causes the mobile object 30 to photograph the underwater environment using the camera 31 and scan the underwater environment using the LiDAR 32. The acquisition unit 11 further acquires images of the underwater environment captured by the camera 31 and the results of scanning the underwater environment using the LiDAR 32.

The measurement unit 13 first measures the front area of each seaweed plant in the seaweed bed to be evaluated from an image captured underwater by the camera 31. The measurement unit 13 also measures the depth of each seaweed plant (thickness of the seaweed) in the seaweed bed to be evaluated from the results of scanning the water with the LiDAR 32. Here, the measurement unit 13 may measure each of the front area and depth of each seaweed plant, or may measure the average front area and depth of each seaweed plant from the front areas and depths of two or more seaweed plants.

The calculation unit 14 calculates the weight of the seaweed per stalk based on the measurement results by the measurement unit 13, and calculates the amount of CO2 absorption by the seaweed in the seaweed bed being evaluated based on the calculated weight of the seaweed per stalk and the number of seaweed stalks cultivated in the seaweed bed being evaluated. Note that the number of seaweed stalks cultivated in the seaweed bed being evaluated is determined in advance.

The output unit 15 outputs the CO2 absorption amount (evaluation result) calculated by the calculation unit 14. The information (evaluation result) output from the output unit 15 is transferred to the operation terminal 20, for example, via the network 50, and displayed on the monitor of the operation terminal 20. This allows the user to know the evaluation result of the CO2 absorption amount in the seaweed bed being evaluated.

(Operation of CO2 Absorption Amount Evaluation System 1)
Next, the operation of the CO2 absorption amount evaluation system 1 will be described using Figs. 2 to 4 in addition to Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CO2 absorption amount evaluation system 1. Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of an image of the seaweed bed A1 to be evaluated taken from above. As shown in Fig. 3, the seaweed bed A1 to be evaluated is located in the sea near the coast. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of seaweed 101 cultivated in the seaweed bed A1 to be evaluated.

In the CO2 absorption evaluation system 1, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 first acquires information about the seaweed bed A1 to be evaluated, transmitted from the operation terminal 20 or the like (step S101). Then, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 refers to the location information of the seaweed bed A1 included in the acquired information about the seaweed bed A1, moves (flies) the mobile body 30 to the seaweed bed A1, and then has the mobile body 30 photograph the underwater environment using the camera 31 and scan the underwater environment using the LiDAR 32 (step S102). The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 acquires images of the underwater environment captured by the camera 31 and results of scanning the underwater environment using the LiDAR 32 (step S103). Then, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 measures the frontal area of each seaweed plant in the seaweed bed A1 from the images of the underwater environment captured by the camera 31 (step S104). The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 also measures the depth (thickness of the seaweed) of each seaweed in the seaweed bed A1 from the results of scanning the water with the LiDAR 32 (step S105). Referring to the example of FIG. 4, the CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 measures the area of the front (zx plane) of the seaweed 101 and measures the depth (length in the y direction) of the seaweed 101. The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 then calculates the weight of the seaweed per seaweed based on the measurement results (step S106), and calculates the amount of CO2 absorption by the seaweed in the seaweed bed A1 based on the calculated weight of the seaweed per seaweed and the number of seaweed strains cultivated in the seaweed bed A1 (step S107). The CO2 absorption evaluation device 10 then outputs information related to the calculated amount of CO2 absorption (step S108).

In this way, the CO2 absorption evaluation system 1 according to this embodiment uses a mobile body 30 equipped with a camera 31 and a LiDAR 32 to acquire three-dimensional information about the seaweed in the seaweed bed to be evaluated, and can evaluate with high accuracy the amount of CO2 absorption by the seaweed in the seaweed bed to be evaluated.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the invention. The present invention promotes the use of blue carbon (seaweed) and contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and carbon neutrality.

In addition, this disclosure can be realized by having a CPU (Central Processing Unit) execute a computer program to perform some or all of the processing of the CO2 absorption evaluation system.

The above-mentioned program includes a set of instructions (or software code) that, when loaded into a computer, causes the computer to perform one or more functions described in the embodiments. The program may be stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium or a tangible storage medium. By way of example and not limitation, computer-readable media or tangible storage media include RAM (Random-Access Memory), ROM (Read-Only Memory), flash memory, SSD (Solid-State Drive) or other memory technology, CD-ROM, DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), Blu-ray (registered trademark) disk or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device. The program may be transmitted on a temporary computer-readable medium or communication medium. By way of example and not limitation, the temporary computer-readable medium or communication medium includes electrical, optical, acoustic, or other forms of propagating signals.

A part or all of the above embodiments may be described as follows, but is not limited to the following:

(Appendix 1)
A method for evaluating the amount of CO2 absorption by seaweed in a seaweed bed to be evaluated, using a camera, a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and a mobile body to which the camera and the LiDAR are attached and configured to be movable underwater,
Measure the frontal area of each seaweed in the seaweed bed from an image taken underwater by the camera;
Measure the depth of each seaweed plant from the results of scanning the water with the LiDAR;
Calculate the weight of the seaweed per plant based on the measurement results, and calculate the amount of CO2 absorbed by the seaweed in the seaweed bed based on the calculated weight of the seaweed per plant and the number of seaweed plants in the seaweed bed.
Method for evaluating CO2 absorption amount.

(Appendix 2)
A control program for causing a computer to execute an evaluation of the amount of CO2 absorption by seaweed in a seaweed bed to be evaluated, using a camera, a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and a mobile body to which the camera and the LiDAR are attached and configured to be movable underwater,
A process of measuring the front area of the seaweed per plant in the seaweed bed from an image taken underwater by the camera;
A process of measuring the depth of the seaweed per plant based on the results of scanning the water with the LiDAR;
Calculating the weight of the seaweed per plant based on the measurement results, and calculating the amount of CO2 absorbed by the seaweed in the seaweed bed based on the calculated weight of the seaweed per plant and the number of seaweed plants in the seaweed bed;
A control program that causes a computer to execute the above.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 CO2 absorption amount evaluation system 10 CO2 absorption amount evaluation device 11 Acquisition unit 12 Mobile body control unit 13 Measurement unit 14 Calculation unit 15 Output unit 30 Mobile body 31 Camera 32 LiDAR
20 Operation terminal 50 Network 101 Seaweed A1 Seaweed bed

Claims (4)

A CO2 absorption evaluation system for evaluating the amount of CO2 absorption by seaweed in a seaweed bed to be evaluated,
A camera and
LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging);
A moving body to which the camera and the LiDAR are attached and configured to be movable underwater;
A CO2 absorption amount evaluation device;
Equipped with
The CO2 absorption amount evaluation device is
A measurement unit that measures the front area of each seaweed in the seaweed bed from an image captured underwater by the camera, and measures the depth of each seaweed from the results of scanning the water with the LiDAR;
A calculation unit that calculates the weight of the seaweed per plant based on the measurement results by the measurement unit, and calculates the amount of CO2 absorption by the seaweed in the seaweed bed based on the calculated weight of the seaweed per plant and the number of seaweed plants in the seaweed bed;
A CO2 absorption evaluation system having the above structure. The measurement unit measures an average front area of the seaweed per plant and an average depth of the seaweed per plant from two or more plants of the seaweed in the seaweed bed,
The calculation unit calculates an average weight of the seaweed per plant based on the measurement results by the measurement unit, and calculates the amount of CO2 absorbed by the seaweed in the seaweed bed based on the calculated average weight of the seaweed per plant and the number of seaweed plants in the seaweed bed.
The CO2 absorption amount evaluation system according to claim 1. The seaweed is a cultivated seaweed.
The CO2 absorption amount evaluation system according to claim 1. The number of seaweed plants in the seaweed bed is predetermined.
The CO2 absorption amount evaluation system according to claim 1.

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