EP3738856A1 - Verkehrssignalanlage und verfahren zur steuerung der verkehrssignalvorrichtung - Google Patents

Verkehrssignalanlage und verfahren zur steuerung der verkehrssignalvorrichtung Download PDF

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Publication number
EP3738856A1
EP3738856A1 EP20174978.5A EP20174978A EP3738856A1 EP 3738856 A1 EP3738856 A1 EP 3738856A1 EP 20174978 A EP20174978 A EP 20174978A EP 3738856 A1 EP3738856 A1 EP 3738856A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
leds
led
light emitting
output
signal
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP20174978.5A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Inventor
Gert Andersson
Fredrik Carlberg
Rasmus BACKMAN
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Industrispar Svenska AB
Original Assignee
Industrispar Svenska AB
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Industrispar Svenska AB filed Critical Industrispar Svenska AB
Publication of EP3738856A1 publication Critical patent/EP3738856A1/de
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L5/00—Local operating mechanisms for points or track-mounted scotch-blocks; Visible or audible signals; Local operating mechanisms for visible or audible signals
    • B61L5/12—Visible signals
    • B61L5/18—Light signals; Mechanisms associated therewith, e.g. blinders
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09F—DISPLAYING; ADVERTISING; SIGNS; LABELS OR NAME-PLATES; SEALS
    • G09F13/00—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising
    • G09F13/20—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising with luminescent surfaces or parts
    • G09F13/22—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising with luminescent surfaces or parts electroluminescent
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L5/00—Local operating mechanisms for points or track-mounted scotch-blocks; Visible or audible signals; Local operating mechanisms for visible or audible signals
    • B61L5/12—Visible signals
    • B61L5/18—Light signals; Mechanisms associated therewith, e.g. blinders
    • B61L5/1809—Daylight signals
    • B61L5/1881—Wiring diagrams for power supply, control or testing
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09F—DISPLAYING; ADVERTISING; SIGNS; LABELS OR NAME-PLATES; SEALS
    • G09F13/00—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising
    • G09F13/04—Signs, boards or panels, illuminated from behind the insignia
    • G09F13/0418—Constructional details
    • G09F13/0472—Traffic signs
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H05—ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H05B—ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL
    • H05B47/00—Circuit arrangements for operating light sources in general, i.e. where the type of light source is not relevant
    • H05B47/10—Controlling the light source
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B61—RAILWAYS
    • B61L—GUIDING RAILWAY TRAFFIC; ENSURING THE SAFETY OF RAILWAY TRAFFIC
    • B61L2207/00—Features of light signals
    • B61L2207/02—Features of light signals using light-emitting diodes [LEDs]
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G08—SIGNALLING
    • G08G—TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
    • G08G1/00—Traffic control systems for road vehicles
    • G08G1/09—Arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions
    • G08G1/095—Traffic lights
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09F—DISPLAYING; ADVERTISING; SIGNS; LABELS OR NAME-PLATES; SEALS
    • G09F13/00—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising
    • G09F13/20—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising with luminescent surfaces or parts
    • G09F13/22—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising with luminescent surfaces or parts electroluminescent
    • G09F2013/222—Illuminated signs; Luminous advertising with luminescent surfaces or parts electroluminescent with LEDs

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a LED-based traffic signalling device and more specific to a LED-based light emitting traffic signalling device.
  • Traffic signalling devices and in particular to traffic lights for warning, aiding, and/or informing of dangers, specific traffic situations, and/or obstacles.
  • traffic signalling devices have been supporting drivers of various vehicles for a long time.
  • Various transport systems such as roads, railway, and even shipping and air traffic relies on the reliable operation of such visual signalling systems.
  • road traffic and railway traffic are dependent on these signalling lights to convey important information, e.g. warning for a train approaching a railway crossing may be of vital importance for pedestrians, car drivers, truck drivers, etc. Therefore, it is important that these traffic lights always are operational.
  • One object of the present invention is to provide improved traffic lights and in particular improved LED based traffic lights.
  • a LED-based traffic signalling device including a light emitting signal area.
  • the light emitting signal area comprises a plurality of LEDs arranged in at least two separately controllable sets of LEDs, wherein a visual output from the light emitting signal area having a first set of the LEDs activated corresponds to a visual output from the light emitting signal area having a second set of the LEDs activated; a LED operation detector connected to the first set of LEDs being configured to detect that the LEDs of the first set of LEDs is failing in emitting required luminance and including a status output configured to indicate failure of the first set of LEDs if failure of the first set of LEDs is detected; and a switch controlled by the output from the LED operation detector and configured to activate the second set of LEDs in response to the output of the LED operation detector indicating failure of the first set of LEDs.
  • One advantage of the above traffic signalling device is that the reliability of possibly critical visual signals is increased by the traffic signalling device continuing emitting the required signal even if a primary light source fails. Moreover, the resulting visual output corresponding for the emitted light from the first set of LEDs and for the emitted light from the second set of LEDs is advantageous in that the signalling will be at the required standard and as easy to observe for a person as if the original light source was operational. Hence, the safety for drivers of vehicles or other persons affected by the signalling from the traffic signalling device is increased, because the traffic signalling device continues to deliver all traffic signals even if a light source has failed.
  • an alert signal terminal is configured to be in a non-alert state when first set of LEDs is operational and to be set in an alert state when second set of LEDs is activated.
  • the LEDs of the first set of LEDs and the LEDs of the second set of LEDs are equally distributed over the light emitting signal area.
  • the traffic signalling device may generate light signals according to requirements even if the primary light source, e.g. the first set of LEDs, is failing. Further, the characteristics of the light emitted from the traffic signalling device may be essentially the same before and after a failure of the primary light source.
  • the LEDs of the first and second sets of LEDs are arranged in a grid and wherein a LED having neighbouring LEDs in all nine neighbouring positions in the grid have at least four of the neighbouring positions occupied by LEDs from the other set of LEDs. This is one way to achieve the feature of equally distributing LEDs from the two sets over the light emitting signalling area and the advantages are thus the same.
  • the LED operation detector is a current sensor configured to detect the current through the first set of LEDs and outputting a signal indicating the current through the first set of LEDs.
  • the traffic signalling device may include a first LED driver configured to drive the first set of LEDs and a second LED driver configured to drive the second set of LEDs, wherein the switch controlled by the output from the LED operation detector is included in the second LED driver.
  • any of the above embodiments of LED-based traffic signalling devices may be used in a traffic signalling system.
  • the advantages for the features are described above.
  • a process for controlling a traffic signalling device comprises receiving a light control signal indicating whether to emit light or not; continuously checking if a first set of LEDs is emitting required luminance; setting a fail signal if the first set of LEDs does not emit required luminance; driving a first set of LEDs to emit light in accordance with the control signal if the fail-signal is not set; and driving a second set of LEDs to emit light in accordance with the control signal if the fail-signal is set.
  • the driving of the first set of LEDs to emit light generate a visual output and wherein the driving of the second set of LEDs to emit light generate a corresponding visual output.
  • the resulting visual output corresponding for the emitted light from the first set of LEDs and for the emitted light from the second set of LEDs is advantageous in that the signalling will be at the required standard and as easy to observe for a person as if the original light source was operational. Hence, the safety for drivers of vehicles or other persons affected by the signalling from the traffic signalling device is increased, because the traffic signalling device continues to deliver all traffic signals even if a light source has failed.
  • the present invention relates to LED-based traffic signalling devices.
  • An example of a traffic signalling device is a railroad crossing signalling device as the one showed in Fig. 1 .
  • the traffic signalling device 10 includes a light emitting signal area 12 and electronics for controlling the light emission from the light emitting signal area 12.
  • a traffic signalling device 10 may include one or a plurality of light emitting signal areas 12 depending on the function of the particular traffic signalling device. There may be provided separate electronics controlling the light emission for each light emitting signal area alternatively a circuitry common to all light emitting signal areas 12 may be provided. In yet other alternative embodiments including a plurality of light emitting signal areas 12 some areas may have common control circuitry and some may have control circuitry for a single light emitting signal area 12.
  • a light emitting signal area 12 includes LEDs 20, 22, operating as a light source for the traffic signalling device 10.
  • the light emitting signal area 12 includes two sets of LEDs, a first set of LEDs 20 and a second set of LEDs 22. Each set of LEDs is separately driven and may be activated individually at different points in time or simultaneously.
  • the two sets of LEDs 20, 22, are arranged in the light emitting signal area 12 so that the visual output from the light emitting signal area 12 with only the first set of LEDs 20 activated corresponds to the visual output from the light emitting signal area 12 with only the second set of LEDs 22 activated.
  • Corresponding visual output in the context of the present description may be interpreted as the luminance of the output from each of the two sets of LEDs 20,22, being substantially equal and the impression of the shape of the output from each of the two sets of LEDs 20, 22 being substantially equal.
  • corresponding visual output from the first set of LEDs and from the second set of LEDs respectively is achieved by arranging the LEDs in a grid and having every second LED in a row belonging to the first set of LEDs and the LEDs in-between the LEDs of the first set of LEDs belonging to the second set of LEDs, as shown in Fig. 2 .
  • the two LEDs referred to using numeral 20 and numeral 22 respectively and drawn outside the light emitting signal area 12 is not supposed to be LEDs positioned outside the light emitting area, but are included in the figure in order to indicate that the circles marked as white are LEDs belonging to the first set of LEDs 20 and the circles having hatching are LEDs belonging to the second set of LEDs 22.
  • the electronics controlling the operation of the light emitting signal area 12 include a power input 30, a light control terminal 32, a LED driver 34 driving the first set of LEDs 20, a LED driver 36 driving the second set of LEDs 22, a LED operation detector 38, and an alert output terminal 40.
  • the power input 30 is providing the power to the circuitry.
  • the light control terminal 32 is a terminal that is arranged to receive control signals from a traffic light controller or traffic light managing system determining if the light emitting signal area 12 is to be activated, i.e. emit light, or not.
  • the light control terminal is connected to each of the two LED drivers 34, 36, in order to convey the control signal to each of the LED drivers.
  • a first one of the LED drivers 34 is driving the first set of LEDs 20 in response to the control signal from the light control terminal 32.
  • the LED operation detector 38 is configured to indicate if the first set of LEDs is failing in emitting the required luminance when the light control terminal 32 is signalling that the light emitting signal area 12 is to emit light.
  • the LED operation detector 38 may monitor if the first set of LEDs 20 is emitting the required luminance by, for example, monitoring the current from the driver to the first set or LEDs 20 or by measuring a forward voltage over one or a plurality of LEDs in the first set of LEDs 20.
  • a second one of the LED drivers 36 is driving the LEDs of the second set of LEDs 22 also in response to the control signal from the light control terminal 32.
  • the second LED driver 36 driving the second set of LEDs 22 is blocked from activation if not the LED operation detector 38 indicates that the first set of LEDs 20 is failing.
  • the second LED driver 36 has the function of a switch responsive to the signal from the LED operation detector 38 and switching between blocked, i.e. not driving the second set of LEDs to emit light at all, and active, i.e. driving the second set of LEDs to emit light in response to the control signal.
  • the LED operation detector 38 indicates that the first set of LEDs 20 is failing then the second LED driver 36 drives the second set of LEDs 22 in accordance with the control signal from the light control terminal 32.
  • the LED operation detector also provides a signal to the alert output terminal 40, indicating that one set of LEDs is failing and that it may time for maintenance.
  • This terminal may be monitored by the traffic light controller or traffic light managing system and its status or its indication that the first set of LEDs 20 are failing may be communicated to a central maintenance function.
  • step S406 The process of emitting light by the traffic signalling device in accordance with some embodiments of the invention is depicted in the flowchart of Fig. 4 .
  • the first set of LEDs 20 is emitting light in accordance with the control signal on the control terminal 32, step S402, and the second set of LEDs 22 is dark, step S404, until the first set of LEDs 20 fails, step S406.
  • the second LED driver is activated and the second set of LEDs 22 is emitting light in accordance with the control signal, step S408, instead of the first set of LEDs 20 emitting light.
  • the first set of LEDs 20 is not active any more, step S410.
  • the fact that the first set of LEDs is failing is indicated for the light control system via the alert output terminal 40, step S412.
  • the LED driver may in some embodiments be a TPS92610-Q1 Automotive Single-Channel Linear LED Driver including a LED Diagnostics functionality and enabled to generate a failure signal if the LED Diagnostics indicate that the LED circuitry is failing.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Traffic Control Systems (AREA)
  • Train Traffic Observation, Control, And Security (AREA)
EP20174978.5A 2019-05-16 2020-05-15 Verkehrssignalanlage und verfahren zur steuerung der verkehrssignalvorrichtung Withdrawn EP3738856A1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
SE1950582A SE1950582A1 (en) 2019-05-16 2019-05-16 Traffic signaling device and process for controlling traffic signaling device

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP3738856A1 true EP3738856A1 (de) 2020-11-18

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EP20174978.5A Withdrawn EP3738856A1 (de) 2019-05-16 2020-05-15 Verkehrssignalanlage und verfahren zur steuerung der verkehrssignalvorrichtung

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EP (1) EP3738856A1 (de)
SE (1) SE1950582A1 (de)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US11510298B1 (en) 2022-02-24 2022-11-22 Bnsf Railway Company Smart lamp system and method
US11943852B2 (en) 2022-02-24 2024-03-26 Bnsf Railway Company System and method for railroad smart flasher lamps

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE19947688A1 (de) * 1999-09-24 2001-04-05 Siemens Ag LED-Lichtsignal
US20130205626A1 (en) * 2012-02-15 2013-08-15 Safety Traffic Equipment Co., Ltd Led lighting device with backup switching function

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE19947688A1 (de) * 1999-09-24 2001-04-05 Siemens Ag LED-Lichtsignal
US20130205626A1 (en) * 2012-02-15 2013-08-15 Safety Traffic Equipment Co., Ltd Led lighting device with backup switching function

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US11510298B1 (en) 2022-02-24 2022-11-22 Bnsf Railway Company Smart lamp system and method
US11895752B2 (en) 2022-02-24 2024-02-06 Bnsf Railway Company Smart lamp system and method
US11943852B2 (en) 2022-02-24 2024-03-26 Bnsf Railway Company System and method for railroad smart flasher lamps

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Publication number Publication date
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