Patents Assigned to West Nippon Expressway Engineering Shikoku Company Limited
  • Patent number: 10116871
    Abstract: The invention is aimed that the soundness (degree of deterioration) of a tunnel can be inspected according to each span. The image synthesis processing is performed to obtain the image showing both sides of the tunnel lining surface according to the each span of the tunnel lining surface, by comparing the first image photographied by the photography means, showing one side face in both side faces of the tunnel lining surface, while the photography means is fixed to the first photography position, and the second image photographied by the photography means, showing the other side face in both side faces of the tunnel lining surface, while the photography means is fixed to the second photography position, and indicating the portions forming the identical span of the tunnel lining surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2018
    Assignee: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Patent number: 9869064
    Abstract: The present invention is capable of inspecting with high accuracy the shape of a road travel surface when travelling at a low speed, and even when acceleration, deceleration, or stoppages occur frequently, and generates a highly reproducible road surface longitudinal profile. A photograph is taken along the longitudinal direction of a travel path by a photography means in a light section method via a travel surface photography means (21). Corrected image information, in which a tilt in photographic image information has been corrected using inclination information, is generated on the basis of the photographic image information, the inclination information, and movement information via a road surface profile generation means (7), and thereafter the corrected image information is arranged using the movement information. Vertical motion information pertaining to the travel surface photography means is specified from image contents of overlapped regions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2018
    Assignee: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Patent number: 9810642
    Abstract: The tunnel lining surface inspection system capable of measuring the three dimensional shape of the surface of the tunnel lining surface to precisely determine whether cracking has a risk of leading to flaking, by the light section method using the photography means and the slit laser beam projecting means, mounted in the vehicle, while the vehicle is traveling in the tunnel, and the vehicle used in the system are proposed. Image processing is performed to obtain the image used for inspecting the tunnel lining surface, by using the result of the three dimensional shape measurement of one side face of the tunnel lining surface, measured while the photography means/slit laser beam projecting means arrangement means is fixed to the first measurement position, and the result of the three dimensional shape measurement of the other side face of the tunnel lining surface, measured while the photography means/slit laser beam projecting means arrangement means is fixed to the second measurement position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignee: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Patent number: 9552831
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for obtaining an accurate detected value of a similarity, such as an hitting sound.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2017
    Assignees: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED, MICHIHIRO JINNAI
    Inventors: Michihiro Jinnai, Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Publication number: 20160227126
    Abstract: The invention is aimed that the soundness (degree of deterioration) of a tunnel can be inspected according to each span. The image synthesis processing is performed to obtain the image showing both sides of the tunnel lining surface according to the each span of the tunnel lining surface, by comparing the first image photographied by the photography means, showing one side face in both side faces of the tunnel lining surface, while the photography means is fixed to the first photography position, and the second image photographied by the photography means, showing the other side face in both side faces of the tunnel lining surface, while the photography means is fixed to the second photography position, and indicating the portions forming the identical span of the tunnel lining surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 3, 2014
    Publication date: August 4, 2016
    Applicant: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Yukio AKASHI, Kazuaki HASHIMOTO, Shogo HAYASHI
  • Publication number: 20160223471
    Abstract: The tunnel lining surface inspection system capable of measuring the three dimensional shape of the surface of the tunnel lining surface to precisely determine whether cracking has a risk of leading to flaking, by the light section method using the photography means and the slit laser beam projecting means, mounted in the vehicle, while the vehicle is traveling in the tunnel, and the vehicle used in the system are proposed. Image processing is performed to obtain the image used for inspecting the tunnel lining surface, by using the result of the three dimensional shape measurement of one side face of the tunnel lining surface, measured while the photography means/slit laser beam projecting means arrangement means is fixed to the first measurement position, and the result of the three dimensional shape measurement of the other side face of the tunnel lining surface, measured while the photography means/slit laser beam projecting means arrangement means is fixed to the second measurement position.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 3, 2014
    Publication date: August 4, 2016
    Applicant: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Yukio AKASHI, Kazuaki HASHIMOTO, Shogo HAYASHI
  • Publication number: 20160225389
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for obtaining an accurate detected value of a similarity, such as an hitting sound.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 21, 2016
    Publication date: August 4, 2016
    Applicants: WEST NIPPON EXPRESSWAY ENGINEERING SHIKOKU COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventors: Michihiro JINNAI, Yukio AKASHI, Kazuaki HASHIMOTO, Shogo HAYASHI
  • Patent number: 8725430
    Abstract: A correlation is preliminarily obtained between a depth of damage and a ratio between a temperature gradient in temperature distribution on a surface of an area containing the damage and a temperature difference between a maximum temperature and a minimum temperature in the temperature distribution. The temperature distribution on the surface of the area containing the damage in the structure is then measured. Once the temperature distribution on the structure surface is obtained, attention is focused on temperature distribution between two points including the damaged area, so that a temperature difference between a maximum temperature and a minimum temperature in the distribution is obtained, and further a temperature gradient of an interval exhibiting temperature variation equal to or higher than a predetermined level is obtained.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2014
    Assignee: West Nippon Expressway Engineering Shikoku Company Limited
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Patent number: 8496373
    Abstract: A test specimen having a to-be-photographed surface and an attachment surface which is a back side thereof is produced, and attached to a structure. An artificial abnormal portion is provided between a to-be-inspected surface of the structure and the to-be-photographed surface of the test specimen. The to-be-photographed surface of the test specimen is photographed by the infrared camera. When a surface temperature difference between the abnormal and the sound portions increases to a certain level on the to-be-photographed surface, it is capable of discriminating between the abnormal and the sound portions by an infrared thermal image of the test specimen. In a time zone in which discriminating between the abnormal and the sound portions is capable, the to-be-inspected surface of the structure is photographed by the infrared camera. If there is a damage in the surface layer of the structure, a damaged position can be discriminated by an infrared thermal image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2013
    Assignee: West Nippon Expressway Engineering Shikoku Company Limited
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Patent number: 8462990
    Abstract: The IR camera (10) takes an IR thermal image of a surface of the structure (40). In the IR thermal image, temperature gradient is superposed besides temperature difference between non-defective and defective regions of the structure. The image processing unit (21) of the analysis unit (20) produces an image indicating distribution of a temperature variation other than a temperature gradient by extracting the distribution of the temperature variation from the IR thermal image. The image display unit (30) displays the image produced by the image processing unit (21). Since the distribution of the temperature variation other than the temperature gradient is extracted from the IR thermal image, a temperature difference between defective and non-defective regions in the structure (40) can be clearly displayed. Therefore, even if there exists a temperature gradient on the structure surface, the defect location in the structure can be easily determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: West Nippon Expressway Engineering Shikoku Company Limited
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi
  • Publication number: 20110071769
    Abstract: A correlation is preliminarily obtained between a depth of damage and a ratio between a temperature gradient in temperature distribution on a surface of an area containing the damage and a temperature difference between a maximum temperature and a minimum temperature in the temperature distribution. The temperature distribution on the surface of the area containing the damage in the structure is then measured. Once the temperature distribution on the structure surface is obtained, attention is focused on temperature distribution between two points including the damaged area, so that a temperature difference between a maximum temperature and a minimum temperature in the distribution is obtained, and further a temperature gradient of an interval exhibiting temperature variation equal to or higher than a predetermined level is obtained.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2009
    Publication date: March 24, 2011
    Applicant: West Nippon Expressway Engineering Shikoku Company Limited
    Inventors: Yukio Akashi, Kazuaki Hashimoto, Shogo Hayashi