EP0021060B1 - Guiding system for individual traffic - Google Patents

Abstract

1. A control system for individual traffic in a road network comprising stationary transmitting devices (3, BK) arranged in the region of the roadways and which cyclically transmit to all passing vehicles (1 ; FZ) items of control information supplied by a central unit (Z) and/or are permanently stored, in order to reach all destinations attainable from their location, each of the individual vehicles (1 ; FZ) is provided with a receiving device (ME) for the items of control information supplied by the control beacons (BK) and an input device (EG) for the input of a specific destination, and wherein the items of control information which relate to the selected destination are selected and displayed on a display device (AG) via a destination comparison device (VI), characterized in that each item of control information which is destined to be displayed in the vehicle (FZ) is transmitted together with a location characterisation of the specified region of its display and stored in an information store (SP1) arranged in the vehicle (FZ), in addition each vehicle (1 ; FZ) contains a navigation device (AN) which operates independently of the central unit (Z) and serves to continuously determine the vehicle position and further contains a location comparison device (V2) which serves to continuously compare the current vehicle positon with the stored location characterisations, and that whenever the stored location characterisation and the established vehicle positon are identical the items of control information assigned to the location characterisation in question are displayed on the display device (AG).

Description

The invention relates to a control system for individual traffic in a road network with fixed transmission devices (guide beacons) arranged on the roadways, which transmit control information transmitted and / or permanently stored by a central station to all passing vehicles to reach all travel destinations accessible from their location , In each of the vehicles there is a receiving device for the guidance information transmitted by the beacons and an input device for inputting a specific destination, and the guidance information associated with the selected destination can be selected via a destination comparison device and displayed via a display device.

A method for information transmission corresponding to such a control system is already known (DE-AS 1 951 992). This method already has the advantage over other known systems that only stationary transmitting devices are required along the route and only receiving devices are required in the vehicles. In addition, transmission antennas are routed in the known method for transmitting the guidance information in the carriageway; but since no information is provided by the vehicle and since the information provided by the transmitting device is simultaneously transmitted in the same way to all passing vehicles, the transmission can also be carried out in a simpler manner via beacons arranged on the roadside, for example.

However, the known method still has the disadvantage that the transmission devices must be arranged where the guidance information must be displayed to the vehicle driver. This display must be made in good time, that is, an appropriate distance before an intersection, so that the vehicle driver can adjust to any changes in direction and, for example, adapt accordingly. However, these points for the correct display can often be unfavorable in terms of supply technology, so that in general separate supply lines and, under certain circumstances, separate housings and the like must be created. This can lead to difficulties in different cases, in any case it means a relatively high effort. However, such a control system can only come into play if the fixed facilities are fully installed, regardless of the number of participating vehicles, i.e. the initial investment is very high.

The object of the invention is to design a control system in such a way that it is always possible to display the control information in the vehicle in a location-appropriate manner with relatively few fixed devices.

This object is achieved according to the invention in a control system of the type mentioned at the outset in that each control information item intended for display in the vehicle can be transmitted together with a location identifier for the intended area of its display and can be stored in an information memory provided in the vehicle, and that in each vehicle there is also an independent one The navigation device working from the control center for the continuous determination of the vehicle position and a location comparison device for the continuous comparison of the current vehicle position with the stored location markings are provided, and that when the stored location identification and the determined vehicle position match, the guide information associated with the relevant location identification can be displayed on the display device are.

The control system according to the invention thus works with an independent navigation device, with which a location determination is constantly carried out on the way from one guide beacon to the next and is used for the comparison with the stored location markings. Systems for determining the location are known per se, for example from US Pat. No. 3,789,198. There, a coupling navigation method is described, in which the values determined in the vehicle for the distance covered by the vehicle and the changes in angle that have occurred are transmitted to a control center and are vectorially added there. In this document, however, a method is also specified in which a vehicle receives its location parameters when it passes a beacon and transmits it to the control center. An independent navigation in the vehicle is not provided in this known system.

In the control system according to the invention, the display of the control information in the vehicle is separated from the transmission of this information in terms of location and time. This makes it possible to arrange the guide beacons at locations that are technically most convenient. For example, it is possible to take advantage of the traffic light systems with masts, network connections, equipment cabinets and cable ducts located directly at intersections and to couple the beacon with these traffic control devices. For example, a beacon can be accommodated in or placed on a signal generator housing.

In the control system according to the invention, the stationary devices can thus be designed relatively cheaply, which favors the construction of such a comprehensive system. The beacons can not only be arranged in economically advantageous places, but also the number of beacons can be reduced. Because since the lead Information does not have to be displayed in the vehicle at the same time at the location of the beacon, this beacon can also transmit guidance information for a longer distance. The guidance information is stored for an entire section in the vehicle, with the information that corresponds to the position just reached being output in the vehicle bit by bit.

The auto-navigation device expediently works according to the known principle of dead reckoning, the respective vehicle position being determined by vectorial addition. In this case, the travel route is expediently determined via a travel pulse generator and the travel direction via a magnetic field probe. Since dead reckoning always has a certain error over longer distances, it is still advisable to enter correction values again and again when passing through beacons. This is done in the simplest way in that the beacon transmits its exact location coordinates to the passing vehicle. These exact location coordinates can then be used as a starting point for the additional dead reckoning.

The guidance information is expediently transmitted to the vehicles in the form of guidance vectors and displayed there. For larger distances between the beacons with several changes, this guidance information can be transmitted and displayed as a chain of guidance vectors. Each guidance vector can be determined by the coordinates of the next intermediate destination (tip of the vector).

The equipment of the vehicles is somewhat more complex than the known systems due to the additional car navigation device, but this additional device has, besides the already mentioned lower expenditure for the overall system, also further advantages for the individual vehicle. The car navigation device in the vehicle can be used to check whether the driver has correctly understood and carried out the guidance information. If the guidance information has been given as a guidance vector, monitoring areas can be calculated for each guidance vector from the maximum possible path and angle errors of the coupling navigation device. If the vehicle leaves such a monitoring area, this can be determined and displayed by a test device. In this case, all other advertisements are expediently deleted. The recommended direction of travel, i.e. the guidance vector, can be displayed in the vehicle in the form of a direction arrow, the distance to the location of the next due change of direction also being able to be displayed via a numerical display.

Another advantage of the additional car navigation device is that autonomous route guidance is possible beyond the area provided with a guide beacon. For example, when leaving the area with a beacon, for example when crossing the border abroad, you can enter relative target coordinates. These target coordinates can be compared in a further comparison device with the respective vehicle position determined in the car navigation device and can be evaluated in terms of amount and direction to output a target vector. The air line vector can then be continuously displayed in the vehicle according to the direction and distance from the current location to the destination.

• Figur 1 eine mögliche Anordnung der einzelnen Geräte eines erfindungsgemäßen Leitsystems,
• Figur 2 ein Blockschaltbild für den Aufbau eines solchen Leitsystems,
• Figur 3 die Darstellung einer Leitempfehlung als Kette von Leitvektoren,
• Figur 4 ein mögliches Anzeigegerät im Fahrzeug für die empfohlene Fahrtrichtung.

The invention is explained in more detail below using exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawing. It shows

• FIG. 1 shows a possible arrangement of the individual devices of a control system according to the invention,
• FIG. 2 shows a block diagram for the construction of such a control system,
• FIG. 3 shows a guidance recommendation as a chain of guidance vectors,
• Figure 4 shows a possible display device in the vehicle for the recommended direction of travel.

In the example of FIG. 1, the possible arrangement of the stationary devices on the one hand and the vehicle devices on the other hand is shown. A vehicle 1 that is moving along a road 2 receives its guidance information from a fixed transmitter, the guidance beacon 3. This guidance beacon 3 is arranged on an already existing signal mast 4, which carries, for example, a light signal transmitter 5 and an information panel 6. In order to accommodate the beacon 3 in a particularly simple and protected manner, a signal transmitter housing 5 was selected, which is designed for four signal fields 6. The beacon 3 is inserted into the signal transmitter housing above the three built-in signal fields for the three signal colors. The traffic control device is arranged on the roadside in a housing 7, which can at the same time contain a normal traffic control device.

The beacon expediently contains a microwave or infrared transmitter which transmits the guidance information to the vehicle 1, specifically to each passing vehicle 1. Since the light signal transmitters are set up at intersections, the guidance information emitted here is not the information belonging to this intersection, but guidance information that is only up-to-date at the next and further intersections and is then to be displayed there in vehicle 1.

The vehicle 1 contains a microwave or infrared receiver 8, which receives the guidance information from the guidance beacon 3 and feeds it to the car navigation device 9. This car navigation device 9 simultaneously receives information about the amount and direction of the distance traveled. For this purpose, a travel pulse generator 10 for travel measurement and a magnetic field probe 11 for measuring the respective direction of travel are attached to the vehicle. A microprocessor provided in the car navigation device 9 forms from the measured values of the displacement encoder and the magnetic field probe in incremental path vectors and adds them continuously. Based on the vehicle position determined in this way, the location-dependent guidance information can be selected from a larger block and displayed at the right time. For this purpose, an input and output device 12 is connected to the car navigation device. The latter contains, for example, a keypad for entering the selected destination and a display device. This display device shows the guidance information corresponding to the selected destination at the given time and place. In addition, traffic signs and other information applicable on the route can be transmitted from the beacon 3 to the vehicle, stored in the car navigation device 9 and displayed at the right time via the input and output device 12. The correct time is to be understood as the point of use, i.e. the place where the display appears and the duration of the display, i.e. the route during which the display is to take place.

The mode of operation of the control system is explained below using the block diagram of FIG. 2. The system initially has a control center Z, which receives traffic information from the entire detectable area and uses this information to compile guidance information for the individual desired requests. For each point of departure there is a certain bundle of target desires and corresponding guide information. This bundle of guidance information is transmitted to the relevant starting points for the fixed beacon located there. As mentioned, the beacon BK does not have to be set up directly at the respective starting point. Rather, the beacon is located at a convenient location near one or more starting positions for guidance information.

The individual beacons BK are thus connected to the central station Z via lines L or radio channels. From there they receive guidance information and, if necessary, also pass on information determined on the spot via the lines L to the head office. The individual beacon then cyclically emits its associated guidance information to the passing vehicles. As mentioned, this guidance information comes from the central office Z. In addition, location-specific guidance information can also be stored in the beacon itself, which information is always valid regardless of the higher-level traffic situation and is therefore also continuously emitted to the vehicles. In addition, for example, traffic signs, speed regulations for certain sections of the route and similar information can also be used.

The vehicle device FZ initially contains the microwave or infrared receiver ME, which receives the guidance information from the beacon and supplies the car navigation device AN. The guidance information emitted by the beacon and recorded by the receiver ME is sorted by destination, i.e. each guidance information is assigned to a specific destination. The incoming guidance information is first fed to a comparison device V1, into which the destination desired by the driver is also input via an input device EG and a destination memory ZSP. This input device, EG can be, for example, a keyboard or the like. If the selected destination coincides with the destination assigned to guidance information, this guidance information relating to it is entered into the information memory SP1 and stored. In general, several pieces of guidance information will be assigned to a particular destination.

In addition, each guidance information includes a location about the position from which the guidance information should apply. This location does not have to match the location of the beacon. This location determination is stored with the respective guidance information in the information memory SP1.

A position memory SP2 also contains the respective current vehicle position, and this vehicle position is continuously fed from the information memory SP1 to a location comparison device V2 together with the stored location determinations associated with specific guidance information. As soon as the current vehicle position matches a stored location determination, the associated guidance information is fed from the information memory SP1 to an output device AG. This is usually an optical display device that displays instructions in the form of direction arrows, for example. Other information can also be displayed either graphically (traffic signals) or digitally (speed limits and other information).

The vehicle position is continuously updated in the position memory SP2. For this purpose, the stored location coordinates are continuously fed to an adder ADD, into which the distance traveled is simultaneously input and vectorially added to the old position coordinates. The path vectors are determined from the measured values of a path pulse generator WG and a magnetic field probe MS in a vector determination device VB. A microprocessor is expediently used for this purpose.

The position measurement can be easily corrected when passing a beacon. For this purpose, the respective beacon BK sends out its absolute location coordinates in addition to the guidance information. These location coordinates are also received in the receiver ME and fed to the position memory SP2. In the position memory SP2, the previously calculated location coordinates are then replaced by the location coordinates of the beacons BK. These then serve as the starting point for further paddock navigation.

The guidance information is expediently given as a chain of guidance vectors, as shown in FIG. 3. The recommended route starts, for example, at a lead beacon BK or continues at the last intermediate goal of a lead recommendation. 3 now shows what information is transmitted, for example, for the route section shown and is displayed in the vehicle. If the vehicle begins to follow the guidance vector LV1, which is determined in the car navigation device AN, the traffic sign “main traffic road is also shown in the example shown. In Fig. 3, the display time is given as the number of guide vectors for the characters concerned. The above-mentioned traffic sign “main road” is therefore displayed for the duration of a guidance vector. Even while the vehicle is following the guidance vector LV1, the guidance vector LV2 is calculated from the stored coordinates of its beginning and its end and is already displayed. The driver therefore has time to get into the right lane.

At the beginning of guidance vector LV2, the traffic sign "Pay attention to the right of way" appears and is displayed for a period of five guidance vectors, ie until the end of guidance vector LV6. In addition, an arrow indicating the direction of travel for the guidance vector LV3 is displayed. The car navigation device can also continuously calculate and display the distance to the intersection at the end of the guidance vector LV2. When driving through the guidance vector LV3, children are pointed out; at the beginning of the guidance vector LV5, a warning appears about a traffic light system at the next intersection; further traffic signs can be transmitted and displayed in the same way. A display option for the guide vector is shown in FIG. 4. This is a round instrument 21 with an angle division 22, an arrow 23 describing the direction of travel recommended in each case. In the middle there is also a display field 24 for an alphanumeric distance specification. Here you can see when the recommended and displayed change of direction applies. In the example of FIG. 4, it can thus be seen on the display device that after 310 meters, a turn is to be made to the right.

Since the guidance information, in particular the recommendations about changes in direction, are each coupled to a location determination and stored together with this location determination in the information memory SP1, the compliance with this guidance information can also be monitored via the auto-navigation device AN. Monitoring areas were therefore calculated in the vehicle device for each guide vector from the maximum possible path and angle errors of the coupling navigation device. Such monitoring areas UF are shown in dotted lines in FIG. 3. If the vehicle leaves such a monitoring area, all of the following guidance recommendations are void until the next beacon; the other ads are deleted or the information is blocked. In the block diagram of FIG. 3, the monitoring areas are expediently stored in the memory SP1. They are compared in the test facility V3 with the respective location coordinates of the vehicle. If the vehicle leaves the monitoring area, this can be indicated optically or acoustically in the output device. Further guidance information is only displayed again when the vehicle passes the next guidance beacon BK and receives new, valid guidance information.

If the destination lies outside the area covered by the control system, autonomous route guidance can be achieved via the car navigation device. For this purpose, a target vector according to magnitude and direction is entered via the input device into a comparison device V4, which at the same time receives the vehicle position determined by coupling navigation from the position memory. The comparison device V4 then continuously provides the air line vector (direction and distance) from the current location to the destination via the output device.

Claims (14)

1. A control system for individual traffic in a road network comprising stationary transmitting devices (3, BK) arranged in the region of the roadways and which cyclically transmit to all passing vehicles (1 ; FZ) items of control information supplied by a central unit (Z) and/or are permanently stored, in order to reach all destinations attainable from their location, each of the individual vehicles (1 ; FZ) is provided with a receiving device (ME) for the items of control information supplied by the control beacons (BK) and an input device (EG) for the input of a specific destination, and wherein the items of control information which relate to the selected destination are selected and displayed on a display device (AG) via a destination comparison device (VI), characterised in that each item of control information which is destined to be displayed in the vehicle (FZ) is transmitted together with a location characterisation of the specified region of its display and stored in an information store (SP1) arranged in the vehicle (FZ), in addition each vehicle (1 ; FZ) contains a navigation device (AN) which operates independently of the central unit (Z) and serves to continuously determine the vehicle position and further contains a location comparison device (V2) which serves to continuously compare the current vehicle position with the stored location characterisations, and that whenever the stored location characterisation and the established vehicle position are identical the items of control information assigned to the location characterisation in question are displayed on the display device (AG).

2. A control system as claimed in Claim 1, characterised in that the control beacons (3) are locally coupled to traffic signal devices (5, 7).

3. A control system as claimed in Claim 2, characterised in that at least the transmitting device (3) of a control beacon (BK) is accommodated in a signal generator housing (5).

4. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the navigation device (AN) which operates in accordance with . the coupling navigation principle (known per se) comprises a path pulse generator (WG) which serves to determine the path of travel and a magnetic field probe (MG) which serves to determine the direction of travel, whose outputs are logic-linked in the vehicle itself in order to determine the particular travel vector.

5. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the items of control information are transmitted from the control beacons (BK) to the vehicles (FZ) in blocks classified in accordance with travel destinations and compared in a destination comparison device (VI) in the vehicle (FZ) with the selected travel destination, and that the items of control information which correspond to the selected travel destination are fed to the information store (SP1).

6. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 5, characterised in that a plurality of items of control information assigned to different output positions are transmitted via a control beacon and displayed consecutively in the vehicles whenever the position in question is reached.

7. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 4 to 6, characterised in that correction values are transmitted by the control beacons at output coordinates for further coupling navigation.

8. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 7, characterised in that items of clock control information are transmitted to the vehicles (SZ) in the form of control vectors (LV) and displayed therein.

9. A control system as claimed in Claim 8, characterised in that the items of control information are transmitted as a chain of control vectors (LV1, LV2 ... LVS) and displayed in the vehicles (FZ).

10. A control system as claimed in Claim 8 or 9, characterised in that in the navigation device (AN) monitoring areas (UF) are determined for each control vector (LV1) from the maximum permissible deviation, departure from such a monitoring area determined via a checking device (V3) and indicated by a signal.

11. A control system as claimed in Claim 10, characterised in that in the event of departure from a monitoring area (UF) the emission of the remainder of the stored items of control information is suppressed via the checking device (V3).

12. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 11, characterised in that a recommended travel direction is displayed in the vehicle as a travel direction arrow (23) on an angular scale (22).

13. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 12, characterised in that the distance to a recommended change of travel direction is represented by a numerical display (24) in the vehicle.

14. A control system as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 13, characterised in that absolute destination coordinates are input into a further comparison device (V4) and compared with the particular vehicle position determined in the navigation device (AN) and analysed in terms of amount and direction for the output of a target vector.

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