ES2537064T3 - Luminous information panel comprising a battery, a firing device and control means housed within a functional space of the panel - Google Patents

Abstract

Illuminated information panel, of the type comprising: - an informative front face (1) provided with luminous means (11); - a protection element (2) added to said front face (1) in such a way that it covers the rear face of said front face; - at least one battery (5) that guarantees the electrical supply of said panel; - at least one firing device (7), such as a vehicle detection radar; - means (6) for controlling said light means connected to said trigger device (7) in such a way that said light means (11) are activated; said front face (1) and said protection element (2) together delimit a functional internal space inside which said battery (5), said firing device (7) and said control means (6) are housed, and characterized in that it comprises at least one intermediate plate (3), (4) mounted within said functional internal space, said intermediate plate (3), (4) presenting notches (32), (33), (34), (41 ), (42), (43) forming means for positioning said battery (5), said firing device (7) and said control means (6).

Description

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DESCRIPTION

Luminous information panel comprising a battery, a firing device and control means housed within a functional space of the panel

The field of the invention is that of the design and manufacture of road information panels. More precisely, the invention relates to a luminous information panel, of the type comprising an informative front face provided with light means activated, for example, by the presence of a vehicle near the panel, the presence of the vehicle being detected by a radar associated with the panel.

In the field of the invention, it is already customary to have, in some urban areas (or other areas), luminous information panels. To avoid the monotony of a permanently flashing light signal, some of these panels are equipped with a firing device that can be a radar, so that the panel's light means are turned on when the radar detects a vehicle.

These panels can be arranged at the population entrances to ensure that a speed limit is respected,

or in the vicinity of some areas that require special attention to ensure the safety or comfort of users, for example in the vicinity of school establishments or sports complexes.

The design of the intermittently illuminated luminous information panels is as follows.

The panel itself comprises an informative front face, which has a road or other signaling symbol, luminous means traditionally constituted by LEDs that are distributed on the front face (its distribution on the front face depends on the symbol or message represented).

A vehicle detection radar is associated with the panel, and is usually mounted on the pole that supports the panel.

In general, a mechanically independent panel box is also provided, and this box can in particular house an electronic board for managing the light panel (LED lighting management based on the signals transmitted by the firing device (a radar, for example), timing, battery regulation management via a photovoltaic panel ...).

The box can also house a panel power supply battery and the components to which it is associated. In this case, the assembly that includes the luminous information panel also includes a photovoltaic panel, usually mounted on the upper end of the pole that supports the panel being oriented in such a way that it captures the maximum of solar radiation.

Said prior art assembly is composed, as illustrated in Figure 1, by:

- an information panel 10, comprising a front face that has a road (or other) symbol, by which

light means 20 are distributed; -a post 30 that supports the panel; -a box 40 within which the electrical components, clock and other electronic elements of

panel light management; - a vehicle detection radar 50, supported by post 30 and disposed above the panel; Y,

eventually, -a photovoltaic panel 60, mounted at the end of the post 30, designed to ensure the recharging of the batteries

housed inside the box 40 by means of an electronic control card.

It is understood that said assembly is, therefore, composed of different mechanically independent elements from each other, which must therefore be mounted one after the other, and then electrically connected to each other, as shown in document FR 2 663,771.

This set implies, therefore, relatively important installation times, and the assembly of this set must be carried out by a specialized person. This results in the consequent installation costs.

In addition, once the assembly is mounted on the pole, the arrangement of the different elements of the assembly is relatively bulky at the height of the pole and gives the assembly a rather unsightly appearance.

On the other hand, the elements of the set are easily accessible and thus can be subjected to vandalism.

The invention also aims to solve these drawbacks of the prior art.

More precisely, the invention aims to offer a luminous information panel that can be installed easily and quickly.

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The invention also aims to offer an information panel of this type that is small in size compared to prior art solutions.

The invention also aims to offer such an information panel that is less exposed to eventual acts of vandalism.

These objectives, as well as others that will be shown below, are achieved by means of the invention which has as its object a luminous information panel, of the type comprising the characteristics of claim 1.

In this way, a luminous information panel is achieved that integrates the set of components related to its operation, which allows obtaining an installed set that has a very small volume with respect to the prior art assemblies.

The panel itself obviously has a slightly increased thickness with respect to the classic panels, but only the panel according to the invention can be seen on the post that supports it, the other components being housed inside the panel.

Thus, a panel according to the invention also has the advantage of being little exposed to eventual acts of vandalism, since all the components related to its operation are not visible or accessible.

A main advantage of the invention also lies in the ease and speed of installation of the panel: all mechanical joints and electrical connections are made before installation in place, with the installer having only to mount the panel on a pole.

According to the invention, the panel comprises at least one intermediate plate mounted within said functional internal space, said intermediate plate having recesses forming positioning means of said battery of said firing device and said control means.

In this way, a simple assembly panel is obtained during assembly, the locations of the different components being predefined.

In this case, said recesses are preferably sized in such a way that they correspond, in a plane parallel to that of said front face, to the external contours of said battery and / or said firing device and / or said control means, in such a way that the blocking in its position of said battery and / or of said firing device and / or of said control means is guaranteed.

In this way, the assembly and assembly of the different components inside the functional internal space can be done easily and quickly: the components are placed inside the predefined recesses and are kept in their position within the functional internal space without it is necessary to add fixing means (such as screws, for example).

Advantageously, the panel comprises a first and a second intermediate plates against each other.

The implantation of the different elements within the functional internal space of the panel may require the realization of recesses that are not in correspondence with each other in a direction corresponding to the thickness of the functional internal space. In terms of manufacturing, the use of two intermediate plates, then placed against each other within the functional internal space, allows the realization of recesses in the first plate and recesses in the second plate that are not in correspondence with the recesses of the first plate, the recesses that are not in correspondence may eventually communicate with each other once the two plates are placed against each other. In this way, the two plates can be manufactured easily and inexpensively independently of each other, which would not happen in the case of a single plate that, for the same three-dimensional distribution of the recesses, would need a manufacturing process (machining, molding ...) at least complex, if not impossible.

According to another advantageous feature, the panel comprises at least one photovoltaic panel designed to guarantee the recharging of said or said batteries.

This arrangement allows to make the panel installation even easier and faster. In fact, in this way the panel is autonomous in power supply and it is therefore not necessary at all to connect the panel to an external power supply to recharge the batteries.

Advantageously, said photovoltaic panel is supported by said protection element. This implantation of the photovoltaic panel gives it a more integrated and more compact aesthetic appearance than an implantation of the photovoltaic panel on the pole that supports the panel.

In this case, said protection element preferably has a recess that forms a housing for said photovoltaic panel.

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In this way, the photovoltaic panel is fitted inside the protection element and can be pre-assembled with the panel, before the latter is installed in its place.

Advantageously, said photovoltaic panel is of the polycrystalline type.

Indeed, the applicant has verified that said photovoltaic panel is sufficient to guarantee, by means of an electronic control card (which guarantees the management of the battery charge), the recharging of the batteries in any circumstance, and despite the fixed orientation imposed by the panel and / or the reduced exposure surface.

According to another characteristic, the panel comprises at least one connector that allows said battery and / or said trigger device and / or said control means to be connected to peripheral equipment.

In this way, maintenance and / or testing operations can be carried out without having to proceed with the disassembly of the panel.

Preferably, the connector is accessible through an opening made in said protection element.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be shown more clearly in reading the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, which is given by way of illustration and not limitation, and of the accompanying drawings, in which:

15 - Figure 1 is a view of a luminous information panel according to the prior art; - Figure 2 is a partial schematic representation of a luminous information panel according to the invention; Figure 3 is an exploded schematic view of a luminous information panel according to the invention; -Figure 4 is a schematic front view of a first intermediate plate designed to equip a panel

20 informative light according to the invention; -Figure 5 is a schematic front view of a second intermediate plate designed to equip a luminous information panel according to the invention; -Figure 6 is a schematic front view of a protection element of a luminous information panel according to the invention.

25 As indicated above, the principle of the invention is based on the fact of designing an information panel that has a compact shape while defining a functional internal space that allows housing the components related to its operation, in particular a or several batteries, means for controlling the light media, and a firing device (which in the following description is formed by a vehicle detection radar).

In reference to Figures 2 and 3, a luminous information panel according to the invention comprises:

- an informative front face 1 provided with a multitude of luminous means 11 made up of LEDs, this front face presenting a pre-printed message or not (here a classic road sign symbol: a speed limit) and the LEDs being distributed in such a way , when lit, that either repeat and underline the shape of the road marking symbol, or display a symbol or any other message;

35 -a protection element 2, with a shape and dimensions corresponding to those of the informative front face 1, this protection element being added to the front face, behind it, such that it covers the informative front face.

The informative front face can be made in the classic way in embedded sheet metal, and even in a composite material. The protection element is made, in turn, in polyethylene (high water resistance), and even

40 in other composite material.

An information panel according to the invention further comprises:

-a means of power supply, in this case two battery blocks 5; - a firing device (here a radar 7, in this case an integrated Doppler radar that has a range of between 150 and 200 meters, whose antenna 70 is mounted attached to the informative front face 1, on the outer side of the panel);

-a control means 6 of the luminous means 11, mounted inside a box, designed to guarantee the operation of the panel, in particular by activating the lighting of the light means in case the trigger device (here the radar) detect a vehicle which emits a signal to the control means where appropriate, the latter being coupled to timing means to turn off the means

50 lights after a predetermined period of time.

According to the principle of the invention, the informative front face 1 and the protection element 2 delimit together a functional internal space inside which the battery blocks 5, the control means 6 and the firing device ( here the radar 7).

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It should be noted that the assembly of the protection element 2 on the informative front face 1 is not carried out by means of a waterproof assembly; on the contrary, all components mounted within the functional internal space are made so that they are tight, as are the different electrical connections.

In addition, the informative front face has a peripheral flange 12 whose width corresponds substantially to the

5 thickness of the panel once the protection element 2 has been added on the front face 1 for information. In other words, the protection element, once assembled on the informative front face, is separated from the outer face 13 of the informative front face with a distance corresponding to that of the peripheral flange 12 of the informative front face.

It should be noted that, similarly, the peripheral flange could be provided in the protection element with, in this case, an informative front face that is presented in the form of a flat element.

According to another possible variant, the edges of the informative front face and of the protection element can each have a peripheral flange, then the two peripheral flanges are designed to fit inside each other or to abut against each other.

As can be seen in Figures 2 and 3, the panel comprises two intermediate plates 3, 4 mounted inside

15 of the functional internal space delimited by the informative front face 1 and the protection element 2, each of these plates having recesses (described in more detail below) that correspond to the locations of the battery blocks and / or of the firing device (here the radar) and / or of the control means.

Figure 4 is a schematic front view of the first of these intermediate plates located, once assembled the panel, against the informative front face 1.

20 As can be seen in this figure, this intermediate plate 3 has fixing means 31, in the upper and lower parts of the plate, designed to cooperate with sliding 14 (figure 2) joined in the inner face of the face informative front 1 to guarantee the assembly of the plate 3 with the informative front face.

Plate 3 also has the following recesses:

25-two recesses 32 corresponding to the locations of the battery blocks 5; - a recess 33 corresponding to the location of the control means 6 (or of a box within which the control means are housed), the width and height dimensions of this recess 33 corresponding to those of the means of control (the recess 33 being, in other words, sized in such a way that it corresponds to the external contours of the control means (or, in this case, those of the box inside)

30 of which the controls are housed) in a plane parallel to that of the informative front face, such that the control means (or the box that integrates them) are embedded inside the recess 33, thereby remaining the means of control (or the box that integrates them) located and locked inside recess 33; -a recess 34 corresponding to the location of the radar 7: it should be noted that the height of this recess and that of the corresponding recess 43 on the second plate 4 are greater than the height of the radar 7, for

35 allow the passage of cables to which the radar is connected and allow the necessary manipulations for placement by gluing with putty points and to make it waterproof with high water resistance silicone; in addition, the radar antenna is held on the outer face of the informative front face by screwing it and sealed with high water resistance silicone;

- a recess 35 forming a passage for the electrical connection wires that extend from a cell 41 40 "day / night" and from a fuse holder 42 both supported by the second intermediate plate 4; - a hole 36 corresponding to the location of a connector 8 (figure 2) that allows the panel to be connected to external peripheral equipment; -one holes 37, placed on the periphery of the intermediate plate 3, which allow the passage of fixing means that guarantee the solidarity of the assembly consisting of the informative front face 1, the intermediate plates 3, 4 45 and the element 2 of protection;

-a few holes 370 made in metal inserts 371 in such a way that they move in height (up and down) the fixing points of the assembly in the post (this to take into account the location of the photovoltaic panel described below) ; - some holes 38 that allow the passage of the fixing means of the two intermediate plates between each other and to the face

50 informative front.

Figure 5 is a schematic front view of the second intermediate plate 4 located, once assembled the panel, on the side of the protection element 2 within the functional internal space delimited by the informative front face and the protection element 2.

As can be seen in this figure, the intermediate plate 4 has the following recesses:

55 -a recess 41 that corresponds to the location of the control means 6 (or the box that integrates them): it should be noted that this recess 41 has width dimensions greater than those of recess 33 of the plate 3, to allow the cables connected to the control means to be accommodated;

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-a recesses 42 corresponding to the locations of the battery blocks 5, these recesses being sized in such a way that they correspond to the external contours of the battery blocks in a plane parallel to that of the front face in such a way that they guarantee positioning and the lock in position of the battery blocks;

- a recess 43 corresponding to the location of the radar 7; -a hole 44 corresponding to the location of the connector 8; -a hole 410 into which cell 41 "day / night" is intended to be embedded; - a hole 420 into which the fuse holder 42 is intended to be embedded; -a few holes 47 placed on the periphery of the plate 4, which allow the passage of the fixing means

mentioned above in reference to the holes 37 of the plate 3, the holes 47 of the plate 4 being placed in correspondence with the holes 37 of the plate 3;

- some holes 470 which allow the passage of the fixing means mentioned above in reference to the holes 370 of the plate 3, the holes 470 of the plate 4 being placed in correspondence with the holes 370 of the plate 3;

- by allowing the holes 48 to pass the fixing means of the two intermediate plates to each other and to the informative front face, the position of these holes in the plate 4 corresponds to that of the holes 38 in the plate 3; -a few recesses 45 techniques for the passage of cables.

On the other hand, according to a preferred form of the invention, the luminous information panel also comprises a photovoltaic panel 9, designed to guarantee the recharge of the battery blocks 5, by means of an electronic control card integrated in the means of panel control

This photovoltaic panel is of the polycrystalline type.

This photovoltaic panel 9 is supported by the protection element 2 described below in reference to Figure 6.

As can be seen in this figure, the protection element 2 has a recess 61 that has dimensions in height and width that correspond to those of the photovoltaic panel 9 such that it is embedded in the recess 61 (intercalating a seal 610 between the photovoltaic panel 9 and the protection element 2).

As mentioned previously, the panel integrates a connector 8, this connector being provided to allow the battery, the photovoltaic panel, the radar or the control means to be connected to external peripheral equipment, to guarantee for example the recharging of the batteries , the flow of the photovoltaic panel, the parameterization of the radar, the retrieval of information from the radar, the execution of tests ...

Referring to Figure 2, this connector 8 has fixing pins 80. The connector 8 is fixed to the intermediate plate 3 by means of these fixing pins 80, the intermediate plate 3 having holes for receiving the fixing means.

It should be noted that the hole 44 of the plate 4 has a diameter greater than that of the hole of the plate 3, to allow both the body of the connector 8 and these fixing pins to be accommodated.

In addition, the protection element 2 has:

- a recess 62 corresponding to the locations of cell 41 "day / night" and fuse holder 42; - a hole 63 forming an opening within the protection element through which connector 8 is accessible (adding a sealing plug in the accessible part of the connector); -one holes 64.

The assembly of a luminous information panel according to the embodiment just described is carried out as follows:

- the intermediate plate 3 is placed against the inner face of the informative front face 1 (the luminous means consisting of LEDs having been previously mounted on it and the sealing of the LED network being obtained by a resin procedure);

-the control means 6 (or the box that integrates them) are embedded inside the recess 33 of a plate 3

intermediate; -the battery blocks 5 are embedded inside the recesses 32 of the intermediate plate 3; - the radar 7 is placed inside the recess 34 of the intermediate plate 3 (having been fixed and glued

previously the radar antenna 70 against the outer face of the informative front face); - the connector 8 is mounted on the intermediate plate 3; - the intermediate plate 4 is added against the intermediate plate 3, having previously been mounted on the plate 4

intermediate the “day / night” cell and the fuse holder;

-the first fixing means are placed through the holes 48 of the intermediate plate 4 and the holes 38 of the intermediate plate 3 such that they are integral with each other and with the informative front face by means of the slides 14 ;

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-the protection element 2 is added against the intermediate plate 3 (the photovoltaic panel having been previously mounted inside the recess 61 provided thereto);

- a series of second fixing means is placed through the holes 64 of the protection element 2, the holes 47, 470 of the intermediate plate 4 and the holes 37, 370 of the intermediate plate 3 in such a way as to guarantee the solidarity of the protection element 2 with the two intermediate plates 3, 4.

Of course, the electrical connections of the different components to each other are made progressively during assembly.

Claims (9)

5 10 fifteen twenty 25 30 35 1. Luminous information panel, of the type comprising: - an informative front face (1) provided with luminous means (11); - a protection element (2) added to said front face (1) such that it covers the rear face of said front face; -at least one battery (5) that guarantees the power supply of said panel; - at least one firing device (7), such as a vehicle detection radar; - means (6) for controlling said light means connected to said trigger device (7) in such a way that said light means (11) are activated; said front face (1) and said protection element (2) together define a functional internal space inside which said battery (5), said trigger device (7) and said control means (6) are housed, and characterized in that it comprises at least one intermediate plate (3), (4) mounted within said functional internal space, said plate (3) presenting, (4) intermediate recesses (32), (33), (34), (41 ), (42), (43) forming positioning means of said battery (5), of said firing device (7) and of said control means (6). 2. Luminous information panel according to claim 1, characterized in that said recesses (32), (33), (34), (41), (42), (43) are sized so that they correspond, in a plane parallel to said front face (1), to the external contours of said battery (5) and / or said firing device (7) and / or said means (6) of control, in such a way as to guarantee the blocking in its position of said battery (5) and / or of said radar (7) and / or of said control means (6).

3.

Luminous information panel according to one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that it comprises a first (3) and a second (4) intermediate plates against each other.

Four.

Luminous information panel according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises at least one photovoltaic panel (9) intended to guarantee the recharging of said or said batteries (5).

5.

 Luminous information panel according to claim 4, characterized in that said photovoltaic panel (9) is supported by said protection element (2).

6.

Luminous information panel according to claim 5, characterized in that said protection element (2) has a recess (61) forming a housing for said photovoltaic panel (9).

7.

 Luminous information panel according to claim 6, characterized in that said photovoltaic panel (9) is of the polycrystalline type.

8.

Luminous information panel according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that it comprises at least one connector (8) that allows connecting said battery (5) and / or said radar (7) and / or said means (6) of control of peripheral equipment.

9.

Luminous information panel according to claim 8, characterized in that said connector (8) is accessible by an opening (63) made in said protection element (2).

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