JP2001052291A - Vehicle monitor system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a vehicle monitor system which can monitor the states of individual vehicles in a specific monitor section. SOLUTION: A CCD camera 32 picks up an image of the license plate of a vehicle entering the monitor section, ID information as its entry contents is analyzed by an entrance-side recognition part 36, and the time at this time is specified. Similarly, the ID information entered into the license plate of the vehicle exiting from the monitor section is obtained by a CCD camera 42 and an exit-side recognition part 46 and the time at this time is specified. A processing server 26 decides whether or not the vehicle has passed through the monitor section, whether a vehicle is traveling before having passed through the section, or whether the a vehicle is stopping according to those pieces of ID information and time information.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a vehicle monitoring system, and more particularly, to a vehicle monitoring system capable of monitoring the state of an individual vehicle in a specific monitoring section.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a vehicle enters a specific section and
The determination of the exit is made by vehicle sensors provided on the entrance side and the exit side of the section, and this vehicle sensor was constituted by an ultrasonic transducer, a loop coil, and the like.

[0003]

However, the above-mentioned vehicle detector can confirm the number and types of vehicles passing therethrough, but cannot obtain information on individual vehicles.

[0004] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned disadvantages, and has as its object to provide a vehicle monitoring system capable of individually monitoring the state of vehicles in a specific monitoring section. .

[0005]

A vehicle monitoring system according to the present invention comprises: ID acquisition means for acquiring vehicle ID information at an entrance and an exit of a specific monitoring section; and an entrance and an exit of the monitoring section. A time specifying means for specifying the entry time and the exit time of the vehicle,
A monitoring unit that monitors a state of the vehicle based on the ID information from the ID acquisition unit and the entry time and the exit time from the time specification unit (the invention according to claim 1). ).

[0006] In this case, the time specifying means includes the ID.
The entry time and the exit time are specified based on the time at which the acquisition unit acquires the ID information of the vehicle (the invention according to claim 2).

Further, the monitoring means has a passage end determining means for determining whether or not the vehicle has passed through the monitoring section as a state of the vehicle based on the ID information from the ID acquiring means. (The invention according to claim 3).

Further, the monitoring means is required for the vehicle to pass through the monitoring section on the basis of the ID information from the ID obtaining means and the entry time and the exit time from the time specifying means. A transit time measuring means for determining transit time is provided (the invention according to claim 4).

Further, the monitoring means includes the ID information from the ID acquisition means, the entry time and the exit time from the time identification means, a result of the judgment by the passage end judgment means, and the passage time measurement means. Based on the passing time from when the vehicle has not passed through the monitoring section, it is determined whether the vehicle is traveling in the monitoring section or stopped in the monitoring section. A stop determining means is provided (the invention according to claim 5).

With this configuration, it is possible to monitor the state of each vehicle in the monitoring section and to grasp the traffic condition in the monitoring section.

[0011] The ID obtaining means includes: an image pickup means for picking up an image of a license plate of the vehicle to obtain image data;
The ID based on the image data obtained by the imaging means
An analysis means for analyzing the content of the number plate of the vehicle as information may be configured (the invention according to claim 6).

[0012]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a vehicle monitoring system 10 to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied.
Indicates a tunnel 12 as a monitoring section by the vehicle monitoring system 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle monitoring system 10
Are an entrance-side number recognition device 20 and an exit-side number recognition device 22 as ID acquisition means and time identification means,
It is mainly composed of a processing server 26 and a management server 28 connected to the entrance-side number recognition device 20 and the exit-side number recognition device 22 via a communication network 24.

The entrance number recognizing device 20 has a CCD camera 32 as an image pickup means. The CCD camera 32 is provided on the entrance side of the tunnel 12 shown in FIG. 2, and captures an image of the front part Aa of the vehicle A (see FIG. 3) when the vehicle A passes through the field of view 34 thereof. The obtained image is output as a video signal Sva to the entrance-side recognition section (analysis means) 36 shown in FIG. In this case, the CCD camera 3
As 2, it is preferable to employ one having a resolution of about 1000 × 1000 pixels (the same applies to a CCD camera 42 described later).

The entrance recognition unit 36 digitizes the video signal Sva from the CCD camera 32 and forms grayscale two-dimensional image data of about 256 gradations. Then, from this image data, as shown in FIG. 3, the contents described on the number plate 38 of the vehicle A @ land support characters (characters indicating the land transportation branch office or the automobile inspection registration office at the position of the home base of use) 38a, vehicle type number (classification number according to vehicle type and use) 38b, use character (character indicating whether or not it is for business use) 38c, serial designation number 38d #, and size of number plate 38 (length × width size) ) And the color c of the license plate 38 {different between white (or yellow) and green (or black)} is recognized and analyzed. In addition, these land support character 38a, vehicle type number 38b, use character 38c, serial designation number 38d, size s, and paint color c are also described as unique information (ID information) of the vehicle A.

Further, the entrance-side recognizing unit 36 specifies the time (recognition time) ta at which the ID information is recognized as the entry time of the vehicle A. Then, the recognition time ta and the I
D information is output as entrance-side recognition data Da.

On the other hand, the exit number recognition device 22 includes a CCD camera 42 having substantially the same configuration as the CCD camera 32. The CCD camera 42 is provided on the exit side of the tunnel 12 shown in FIG. 2, and when the vehicle A passes through the field of view 44, a rear portion Ab of the vehicle A (see FIG. 4).
1 and the obtained image is used as a video signal Svb in FIG.
Is output to the exit-side recognition unit (analysis means) 46 shown in FIG. The exit side CCD camera 42 is connected to the entrance side CC camera.
Similarly to the D camera 32, the front part Aa of the vehicle A may be imaged and output.

The exit-side recognition unit 46 digitizes the video signal Svb from the CCD camera 42 and forms grayscale two-dimensional image data of about 256 gradations. Then, the ID information of the vehicle A is recognized and analyzed from the image data.

The exit recognition section 46 specifies the time (recognition time) tb at which the ID information was recognized as the exit time of the vehicle A. The recognition time tb and the I
D information is output as exit-side recognition data Db.

As shown in FIG. 1, the entrance recognition data Da from the entrance recognition unit 36 and the exit recognition data Db from the exit recognition unit 46 are sent to the processing server 26 via the communication network 24, respectively. Supplied.

The communication network 24 is a network (wired or wireless) installed by a communication carrier.
Or a dedicated network (wired or wireless) installed to connect one vehicle monitoring system 10 or a plurality of vehicle monitoring systems including the same. In addition, the entrance-side number recognition device 20, the exit-side number recognition device 22, the processing server 26, and the management server 2
8 may be directly connected by a cable or the like.

The processing server 26 comprises a general-purpose computer (including a personal computer), an operating system (OS) mounted on the computer, and an input / output library.

FIG. 5 shows the configuration of the processing server 26. The processing server 26 includes an entrance-side input processing unit 52
And the exit side input processing unit 54, and the entrance side data holding unit 56 and the exit side data holding unit 5 connected to the entrance side input processing unit 52 and the exit side input processing unit 54, respectively.
8 is provided.

The entrance-side input processing unit 52 performs a process of fetching entrance-side recognition data Da from the entrance-side recognition unit 36 of the entrance-side number recognition device 20 and outputting the data to the entrance-side data holding unit 56. In this case, the entrance-side recognition data D
a is output in chronological order based on the recognition time ta.

The entrance-side data holding unit 56 temporarily stores entrance-side recognition data Da from the entrance-side input processing unit 52. Then, in accordance with a control signal Sa from the periodic processing start unit 76 described later, the entrance side recognition data Da is output, and a process of initializing the memory contents of the entrance side data holding unit 56 is performed.

On the other hand, the exit-side input processing section 54 fetches the exit-side recognition data Db from the exit-side recognition section 46 of the exit-side number recognition device 22 in the same manner as the entrance-side input processing section 52, and Output to the holding unit 58.

The exit-side data holding unit 58 temporarily stores the exit-side recognition data Db from the exit-side input processing unit 54, similarly to the entrance-side data holding unit 56. The exit side recognition data Db is output in accordance with the control signal Sa from the periodic processing start unit 76, and a process of initializing the memory contents of the exit side data holding unit 58 is performed.

The processing server 26 includes a passing number measurement processing unit 62 as a monitoring unit for monitoring the state of the vehicle A, a comparison / collation processing unit (passing end determination unit) 64, and a passing time measurement processing unit (passing Time measuring means) 66, state determining unit (running / stop determining means) 68, and external output processing unit 70
have. In addition, these passing number measurement processing unit 62,
The comparison / collation processing unit 64, the passing time measurement processing unit 66, the state determination unit 68, and the external output processing unit 70 perform predetermined processing according to the control signal Sa supplied from the periodic processing start unit 76 as a trigger signal.

The passing number measurement processing unit 62 fetches the entrance-side recognition data Da from the entrance-side data holding unit 56 and, based on the entrance-side recognition data Da, determines the number Na of vehicles A that have entered the tunnel 12. A process for measuring for each classification of the vehicle A is performed.

Specifically, the classification of the vehicle A is specified by searching the classification table 72 shown in FIG. 6 from the vehicle type number 38b and the size s included in the entrance-side recognition data Da, and further, the specified classification Each time, from the recognition time ta included in the entrance-side recognition data Da, the tunnel 12
The number Na of vehicles A entering the vehicle is measured at predetermined time intervals.
Then, it outputs the number Na of vehicles A obtained for each classification to the external output processing unit 70 as passing number data Dc. The number Na of vehicles A included in the passing number data Dc is the number Na of vehicles A passing through the tunnel 12.
Shall be processed as

The classification table 72 shown in FIG. 6 is configured as a table in which the relationship between the classification items of the vehicle A and the criterion (vehicle type number 38b, size s, paint color c, etc.) is recorded. Therefore, by specifying the vehicle type number 38b and the size s, the classification of the vehicle A can be obtained from the classification table 72.

The comparison / collation processing unit 64 takes in the entrance-side recognition data Da from the entrance-side data holding unit 56 and the exit-side recognition data Db from the exit-side recognition unit 46,
These entrance-side recognition data Da and exit-side recognition data D
The ID information included in b is compared and collated.

Then, the comparison / collation processing unit 64 outputs the entrance-side recognition data Da and the exit-side recognition data Db whose ID information matches each other to the passing time measurement processing unit 66 as the matching data Dd. On the other hand, the entrance-side recognition data Da for which there is no exit-side recognition data Db with the matching ID information is output to the state determination unit 68 as non-coincidence data De.

The comparison / collation processing unit 64 stores inconsistency data De 'obtained in the past, and the entrance recognition data Da included in the inconsistency data De' is newly supplied to the exit side. If any of the recognition data Db matches the ID information, it is output as the coincidence data Dd together with the exit-side recognition data Db. on the other hand,
If there is no exit-side recognition data Db whose ID information matches, the exit-side recognition data Db is sent to the state determination unit 68 in a state where it is included in the newly obtained mismatch data De.

The passing time measurement processing unit 66 is required for each vehicle A to pass through the tunnel 12 based on the coincidence data Dd (entrance-side recognition data Da and exit-side recognition data Db) from the comparison / collation processing unit 64. An average value (average transit time) t1 of the obtained times is obtained. And this average transit time t
1 is output to the state determination unit 68 and the external output processing unit 70 as the passage time data Df.

The state judging section 68 determines the traveling / running time of each vehicle A based on the mismatch data De from the comparison / collation processing section 64 and the passage time data Df from the passage time measurement processing section 66.
Determine the stop state.

Specifically, first, based on the following equation, the difference between the recognition time ta included in the mismatch data De (entrance-side recognition data Da) and the current time tc is calculated as the elapsed time tc.
Ask for 2.

T2 = tc-ta The current time tc
Is obtained by counting clock pulses pc from a system timer 74 described later.

Next, based on the following conditional expression, the elapsed time t2 is calculated based on the average transit time t1 included in the transit time data Df.
The traveling / stop state of the vehicle A is determined by performing a process of comparing with.

T2 <k × t1: Running t2 ≧ k × t1: Stopping In this equation, k is a predetermined margin coefficient (k> 1), and the running speed of the vehicle A, the road environment, etc. Is set for each system. The average transit time t1 is considered as a time (passage time) predicted to be required for the vehicle A to pass through the tunnel 12.

In the state determination section 68, t2 <k × t1
When it is determined that the vehicle A is running,
The flag F indicating the running / stop state of the vehicle A is set to F = 1 (the vehicle A1 in FIG. 2 corresponds to this). Then, the state determination unit 68 adds the flag F (F = 1) to the mismatch data De corresponding to the vehicle A to form running vehicle data Dg, and outputs this to the external output processing unit 70. I do.

On the other hand, in the state determination section 68, t2 ≧ k
× t1, and when it is determined that the vehicle A is stopped, the flag F indicating the running / stop state of the vehicle A is set to F = 0
(The vehicle A2 in FIG. 2 corresponds to this). Then, the state determination unit 68 adds the flag F (F = 0) to the inconsistency data De corresponding to the vehicle A to form stopped vehicle data Dh, and outputs this to the external output processing unit 70. I do.

In the state determination section 68, the vehicle A
ID information (model number 38b, size s and paint color c)
The classification of the vehicle A is obtained by searching the classification table 72 of FIG. This classification is added to the traveling vehicle data Dg and the stopped vehicle data Dh output from the state determination unit 68. In this case, this classification may include a vehicle example in the classification table 72.

The external output processing unit 70 includes the passing number data Dc from the passing number measurement processing unit 62, the passing time data Df from the passing time measurement processing unit 66, and the state determination unit 68.
Vehicle data Dg and stopped vehicle data D from
h, and supplies them to the management server 28 via the communication line network 24 shown in FIG.

The processing server 26 includes a system timer 74, which is a real-time clock (RTC), and a periodic processing starting unit 76. System timer 74
Is configured to output a clock pulse pc for timing. The periodic processing start unit 76 is provided with the system timer 7
The control signal Sa as a trigger signal is input to the entry-side data holding unit 5 at every predetermined period (for example, 30 seconds to 1 minute) obtained by counting the clock pulses pc from the control unit 4.
6, exit side data holding unit 58, passing number measurement processing unit 6
2. Output to the comparison / collation processing unit 64, the passing time measurement processing unit 66, the state determination unit 68, and the external output processing unit 70.

As shown in FIG. 1, the management server 28 receives the passing vehicle number data Dc, the passing time data Df, the traveling vehicle data Dg, and the stopped vehicle data Dh from the processing server 26 through the communication network 24. Supplied via The management server 28 determines the vehicle A that has passed through the tunnel 12 based on the passing vehicle number data Dc, the passing time data Df, the traveling vehicle data Dg, and the stopped vehicle data Dh.
, The average passage time t1 when the vehicle A passes through the tunnel 12, the presence or absence of the vehicle A traveling in the tunnel 12 or stopped in the tunnel 12, and its I
A display (not shown) (e.g., the management server 2)
8 (display of a client computer connected to the client computer 8).

As described above, in this embodiment,
The number Na of vehicles A passing through the tunnel 12 as a monitoring section is obtained for each classification of the vehicles A. Further, an average transit time t1 required for the vehicle A to pass through the tunnel 12 is obtained.

In this case, the traffic condition in the tunnel 12 is analyzed and displayed on a display panel or the like (not shown), so that the vehicle A (vehicle A3 in FIG. 2) trying to enter the traffic condition into the tunnel 12 You can let them know.

The classification of vehicle A and the average transit time t
From 1, the amount of exhaust gas emitted by the vehicle A can be predicted. Therefore, the operation of the exhaust equipment (not shown) in the tunnel 12 can be efficiently controlled based on the exhaust gas amount.

Further, from the classification of the vehicle A and the average transit time t1, the degree of deterioration of the equipment in the tunnel 12 (for example, the state of wear of the road surface) can be predicted. For this reason, it is possible to make an efficient maintenance and repair plan for the equipment.

Further, in this embodiment, it is determined whether or not there is a vehicle A traveling in the tunnel 12 and a vehicle A stopped in the tunnel 12, and these vehicles A are identified based on the ID information. Can be. Further, it is possible to specify which classification the vehicle A belongs to.

For this reason, when there is a stopped vehicle A (vehicle A2 in FIG. 2) in the tunnel 12, a subsequent panel that attempts to enter the tunnel 12 using a display panel, a traffic light, etc., not shown. For vehicle A (vehicle A3 in FIG. 2),
A warning may be issued to warn the user or prohibit entry.

Further, the tunnel 12 may be damaged due to an earthquake or the like.
When the collapse 80 of the inner wall occurs inside the vehicle A based on the ID information of the vehicle A determined to be stopped in the tunnel 12, for example, the vehicle A whose course is blocked by the collapse 80 The rescue work of (vehicle A2 in FIG. 2) can be performed quickly. In particular, by grasping the classification of the vehicle A2, it is possible to accurately adjust the initial response system of the rescue operation. Further, the owner of the vehicle A2 can be specified.

Further, in this embodiment, a general-purpose computer can be used as the processing server 26 constituting the vehicle monitoring system 10, so that the cost for constructing the vehicle monitoring system 10 can be reduced. be able to.

In this embodiment, the tunnel 12
Is set as a monitoring section, and vehicle A
As the monitoring section, an arbitrary section on a structure such as a bridge, a mountain road, a road along a coast, a highway, or the like can be set.

Also, a device for notifying the ID information (for example, a transmitting device for transmitting the ID information by radio waves, ultrasonic waves, etc.) and a display unit for the ID information other than the number plate 38 (for example, the ID information is recorded) Bar A) is the vehicle A
Entry number recognition device 2
0 and the exit-side number recognition device 22, these radio waves,
Means for acquiring ID information from an ultrasonic wave, a barcode, or the like may be provided.

In this case, there is no need to change the configuration of the processing server 26. That is, it is possible to correspond to various ID information acquisition systems only by changing the configuration of the entrance number recognition device 20 and the exit number recognition device 22.

Further, image data may be added to the entrance recognition data Da from the entrance number recognition device 20 and the exit recognition data Db from the exit number recognition device 22, respectively. In particular, the entrance side recognition data D
When image data is added to a, the management server 28
By checking the image of the vehicle A in the above manner, the number of occupants of the vehicle A and the like can be grasped.

[0060]

According to the vehicle monitoring system of the present invention, the ID information of the vehicle is acquired in the specific monitoring section, and the time when the vehicle enters the monitoring section and the time when the vehicle leaves the monitoring section is specified. Thus, the state of each vehicle in the monitoring section can be monitored.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle monitoring system to which an embodiment of the present invention has been applied.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a tunnel as a monitoring section by the vehicle monitoring system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a front portion of a vehicle to be monitored by the vehicle monitoring system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a rear view showing a rear part of the vehicle as a monitoring target by the vehicle monitoring system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a processing server in the vehicle monitoring system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a classification table for obtaining a classification of a vehicle.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle monitoring system 20 ... Entrance side number recognition device 22 ... Exit side number recognition device 26 ... Processing server 28 ... Management server 32, 42 ... CCD camera 36 ... Entrance side recognition part 38 ... Number plate 46 ... Exit side recognition Unit 52: Inlet-side input processing unit 54 ... Outlet-side input processing unit 56 ... Inlet-side data holding unit 58 ... Outlet-side data holding unit 62 ... Passage number measurement processing unit 64 ... Comparison / collation processing unit 66 ... Passing time measurement processing unit 68 ··· State determination unit 70 · External output processing unit 72 · Classification table 74 · System timer 76 · Periodic processing start unit

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Hideyuki Mogami 5-1-1, Shimorenjaku, Mitaka City, Tokyo Japan Radio Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Jin Nakamura 5-1-1, Shimorenjaku, Mitaka City, Tokyo Japan Radio Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Tomonori Takeshita 5-1-1 Shimorenjaku, Mitaka-shi, Tokyo Japan Radio Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 5H180 AA01 BB15 CC04 DD01 DD10

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An ID acquiring means for acquiring ID information of a vehicle on an entrance side and an exit side of a specific monitoring section, and specifying an entry time and an exit time of the vehicle on an entrance side and an exit side of the monitoring section, respectively. Time identification means, and monitoring means for monitoring the state of the vehicle based on the ID information from the ID acquisition means, and the entry time and the exit time from the time identification means. Vehicle monitoring system. 2. The vehicle surveillance system according to claim 1, wherein said time specifying means includes:
A vehicle monitoring system that specifies the entry time and the exit time based on the time at which the D information is acquired. 3. The vehicle monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring means determines that the vehicle passes through the monitoring section based on the ID information from the ID acquiring means. A vehicle surveillance system comprising a passage end determining means for determining whether or not the vehicle has been completed. 4. The vehicle monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit includes the ID information from the ID acquisition unit, the entry time from the time identification unit, and the entry time. A vehicle surveillance system comprising a transit time measuring means for calculating a transit time required for the vehicle to pass through the monitoring section based on the exit time. 5. The vehicle monitoring system according to claim 4, wherein said monitoring means includes: said ID information from said ID acquisition means; said entry time and said exit time from said time identification means; Based on the determination result and the transit time from the transit time measuring means, if the vehicle has not finished passing through the monitoring section, the vehicle is traveling in the monitoring section, or the A vehicle monitoring system comprising a traveling / stop determining means for determining whether the vehicle is stopped. 6. The vehicle monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the ID acquisition unit captures an image of a license plate of the vehicle to obtain image data. The ID based on the obtained image data
Analysis means for analyzing the content of the number plate of the vehicle as information; and a vehicle monitoring system, characterized by: