Network simulation device, network simulation method, and network simulation program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10885237-B2
Application number	US-201615555427-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 19, 2016
Priority date	Mar 4, 2015
Publication date	Jan 5, 2021
Grant date	Jan 5, 2021

Abstract

A network simulation device of the present invention: accepts an input of first plane information being positional information on a network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions out of three dimensions as coordinate axes; creates network model information which defines a coordinate value of the remaining one dimension as unknown based on the accepted first plane information; accepts selection of the element having the coordinate value defined as unknown by a user from the elements which appear in the first plane information; accepts an input of second plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions including the remaining one dimension as coordinate axes; and determines a numerical value of the coordinate value defined as unknown of the selected element in the created network model information based on the accepted second plane information.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A network simulation device comprising:
a storage unit which stores network model information which stores three-dimensional coordinate values of each of elements constituting a network; and
a control unit programmed to execute a program stored in the storage unit, and when the program is executed, the control unit
accepts an input of first plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions out of three dimensions as coordinate axes,
creates the network model information which defines a coordinate value of the remaining one dimension as unknown based on the accepted first plane information,
accepts selection of an element having the coordinate value defined as unknown, by a user from the elements which appear in the first plane information,
accepts an input of second plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions including the remaining one dimension as coordinate axes, and
determines a numerical value of the coordinate value defined as unknown of the selected element in the created network model information based on the accepted second

second plane information,
outputs updated network model information of the elements, wherein the elements are one of actual pipes or actual wires that make up the network; and
creates a network model of actual pipes or actual wires using the outputs of the updated network model information of the elements without the need for three-dimensional processing.

2. The network simulation device according to claim 1 , wherein
the control unit
accepts an input of an attribute of the element by the user,
accepts an input of an operating value of the given element by the user, and
outputs for each element a result of simulating a numerical value indicating a characteristic of the network based on the accepted attribute, the accepted operating value, and the network model information.

3. The network simulation device according to claim 2 , wherein
the control unit accepts an input of a total length of the selected element and a total number of instruments in the selected element by the user, while accepting an input of the second plane information.

4. The network simulation device according to claim 3 , wherein
the storage unit stores pattern information which stores the total length of the selected element and the total number of instruments in the selected element in association with a shape pattern of each of a plurality of the elements, and
the control unit
accepts selection of the shape pattern which matches the selected element, by the user, while accepting the total length of the selected element and the total number of instruments in the selected element, and
acquires the total length of the selected element and the total number of instruments in the selected element corresponding to the selected shape pattern.

5. The network simulation device according to claim 4 , wherein
the control unit accepts an input of the first plane information and the second plane information as image data.

6. The network simulation device according to claim 5 , wherein
the control unit determines as the first plane information the coordinate plane with the largest total number of the elements which appear when the network is projected.

7. The network simulation device according to claim 6 , wherein
the control unit
accepts an input of a threshold value by the user, for the numerical value indicating the characteristic,
identifies the element in an abnormal status based on a quantitative relationship between the numerical value indicating the characteristic and the accepted threshold value, and
highlights the identified element.

8. The network simulation device according to claim 7 , wherein
the network is a pipe network which supplies compressed air,
the attribute and the operating value do not include a flow rate value, and
the characteristic includes the flow rate value and a pressure loss.

9. A network simulation method of a network simulation device, comprising:
causing a storage unit of the network simulation device to store network model information which stores three-dimensional coordinate values of each of elements constituting a network; and
causing a control unit of the network simulation device
to accept an input of first plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions out of three dimensions as coordinate axes,
to create the network model information which defines a coordinate value of the remaining one dimension as unknown based on the accepted first plane information,
to accept selection of an element having the coordinate value defined as unknown by a user from the elements which appear in the first plane information,
to accept an input of second plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions including the remaining one dimension as coordinate axes, and
to determine a numerical value of the coordinate value defined as unknown of the selected element in the created network model information based on the accepted second

plane information,
to output updated network model information of the elements, wherein the elements are one of actual pipes or actual wires that make up the network; and
to create a network model of actual pipes or actual wires using the outputs of the updated network model information of the elements without the need for three-dimensional processing.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a network simulation program which causes a network simulation device to execute a method, comprising:
causing a storage unit of the network simulation device to store network model information which stores three-dimensional coordinate values of each of elements constituting a network; and
causing a control unit of the network simulation device to execute processing of
accepting an input of first plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions out of three dimensions as coordinate axes,
creating the network model information which defines a coordinate value of the remaining one dimension as unknown based on the accepted first plane information,
accepting selection of an element having the coordinate value defined as unknown by a user from the elements which appear in the first plane information,
accepting an input of second plane information being positional information on the network projected onto a coordinate plane having any two dimensions including the remaining one dimension as coordinate axes, and
determining a numerical value of the coordinate value defined as unknown of the selected element in the created network model information based on the accepted second

plane information,
outputting updated network model information of the elements, wherein the elements are one of actual pipes or actual wires that make up the network; and
creating a network model of actual pipes or actual wires using the outputs of the updated network model information of the elements without the need for three-dimensional processing.

Assignees

• Hitachi Industry Equipment Systems Co Ltd

Inventors

• Liu Yaping
• Yashiki Tatsurou
• Tanaka Hideharu
• TOTTORI Nobuhiro
• SHINADA Yoriyuki

Classifications

• G06F30/28

  using fluid dynamics, e.g. using Navier-Stokes equations or computational fluid dynamics [CFD] · CPC title

• G06F30/12

  characterised by design entry means specially adapted for CAD, e.g. graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for CAD · CPC title

• G06F2113/14

  Pipes · CPC title

• G06F30/18 Primary

  Network design, e.g. design based on topological or interconnect aspects of utility systems, piping, heating ventilation air conditioning [HVAC] or cabling (circuit design at the physical level G06F30/39; network planning tools for wireless communication networks H04W16/18) · CPC title

• G06T19/00

  Manipulating three-dimensional [3D] models or images for computer graphics · CPC title