JP2005189701A - Light-emitting road sign system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a road sign system which can generate more light colors, using few light sources. <P>SOLUTION: This light-emitting road sign system has a light-emitting substance 1, having at least two kinds of light-emitting sources which are different in color, an emitted light color setup means 2 to set the colors for the light of the light-emitting substance 1, and a brightness control means 3 to control the brightness of the above light-emitting substances following the emitted light color setup by the emitted light color setup means 2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a self-luminous road sign system including a light emitter, and in particular, by controlling a light emission luminance balance of a light source including light sources of different colors, the light emission color of the light emitter can be changed to various colors. The present invention relates to a self-luminous road sign system that provides more information with abundant color display so that it can be synthesized and changed.

Conventionally, various self-luminous road sign devices have been applied as road signs for performing gaze guidance, warning display, and the like for road users. These self-luminous road signs are for controlling the color of the illuminant according to the road conditions, and comprise a illuminant formed integrally with light emitting diodes that emit light of two different colors, When the temperature is higher than the temperature indicating that the road surface is frozen, the light flashes orange, and when the temperature is lower than the temperature, the road surface is frozen by changing to red and flashing. Has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2000-256520 A

  However, in the illuminant used for the self-luminous label described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, a maximum of three light emission colors (clear light-emitting diode light emission, red light-emitting diode light emission, and clear light-emitting diode light emission and red light are used with two color light sources. (Simultaneous light emission of light emitting diodes) can be realized, and there is a problem that the amount of information that can be provided as a road sign device is limited. In order to solve such a problem, an object of the present invention is to provide a road sign system that generates more emission colors using a few light sources.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a light-emitting body having a light source that emits light of at least two different colors, and a light emission color for setting a light emission color of the light-emitting body. The present invention provides a self-luminous road sign system comprising: setting means; and brightness control means for controlling the light emission brightness of each light source in accordance with the light emission color set by the light emission color setting means.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the self-luminous road sign system includes the light emitter including at least two different color light sources, a light emission color setting means for setting a light emission color of the light emitter, Brightness control means for controlling the light emission brightness of each light source. Since the light emitter includes light sources of at least two different colors, the light emission color of the light emitter can be changed to various colors by changing the light emission luminance of the light sources of the different colors. The light emission color setting means for setting the light emission color of the light emitter sets the light emission color of the light emitter according to the information desired to be displayed, and the brightness control means is configured according to the light emission color set by the light emission color setting means. The light emission luminance of each light source can be controlled so that the light emission color of the light emitter becomes the set light emission color. Therefore, according to the self-luminous road sign system according to the present invention, it is possible to provide more luminescent colors using few light sources.

  Preferably, as described in claim 2, the light emitter is configured to include red, green, and blue light sources.

  According to the invention which concerns on Claim 2, the said light-emitting body can synthesize | combine the luminescent color of the said light-emitting body into arbitrary colors by comprising the light source of red, green, and blue.

  Preferably, the light emission color setting means sets the light emission color based on any one of an input from a measuring instrument, an external light emission color designation, and a built-in light emission color output pattern. Configured to do.

  According to the invention of claim 3, if the emission color setting means sets the emission color based on the input from the measuring instrument, for example, it reflects the external circumstances such as the environment such as temperature and wind speed. The light emission color of the road sign can be automatically changed according to the information. Further, if the emission color setting means sets the emission color based on the designation of the emission color from the outside, the emission color of the road sign can be controlled from the outside whenever necessary. Further, if the emission color setting means sets the emission color based on a built-in color output pattern, the emission color of the sign can be automatically changed according to a preset schedule.

  Preferably, as described in claim 4, the emission color setting means sets a plurality of types of emission colors in advance, and corresponds to the magnitude of the input signal from the measuring device in accordance with preset emission color selection conditions. Select the emission color specified in the external emission color designation signal, or select the emission color according to the built-in emission color output pattern, and the selected emission color and A corresponding emission color setting signal is output.

  According to the invention of claim 4, the emission color setting means presets a plurality of types of emission colors as necessary, and the magnitude of an input signal from the measuring device according to preset emission color selection conditions. By selecting a light emission color corresponding to, and outputting it as a light emission color signal corresponding to the selected light emission color, it is possible to realize a light emission color setting reflecting information from the measuring instrument. In addition, the light emission color designated by the external light emission color designation signal is selected, and the light emission color setting signal corresponding to the selected light emission color is output, thereby realizing the light emission color designation from the outside. be able to. Further, by selecting a light emission color according to the built-in light emission color output pattern and outputting a light emission color setting signal corresponding to the selected light emission color, light emission reflecting the light emission color built-in pattern is output. Color settings can be realized.

  Preferably, as described in claim 5, the luminance control means is configured to indicate a correspondence relationship between the plurality of types of light emission colors set in advance and the luminance values of the light sources necessary for combining the light emission colors. A data table is stored in advance, and the data table includes means for determining a luminance value of each light source corresponding to the light emission color specified in the light emission color setting signal.

  According to the invention of claim 5, the brightness control means is a data table representing a correspondence relationship between the plurality of types of light emission colors set in advance and the brightness values of the respective light sources necessary for synthesizing the respective light emission colors. Prepared in advance, and provided with means for determining the luminance value of each light source corresponding to the light emission color specified in the light emission color setting signal by the data table, the light emission specified in the light emission color setting signal The brightness value of each light source necessary for synthesizing the colors can be easily and quickly determined.

Preferably, as described in claim 6, the brightness control means includes pulse control means,
The pulse control means is configured to generate a pulse having a pulse width, a number of pulses, or a pulse amplitude proportional to a luminance value of each light source.

  According to the invention of claim 6, the luminance control means includes pulse control means, and the pulse control means has a pulse width proportional to the luminance value of each light source, or the number of pulses, or pulse amplitude. Therefore, a pulse control signal reflecting the designated luminance value can be output.

  Preferably, as described in claim 7, the brightness control means includes a constant current circuit for supplying a current to each light source, and the constant current circuit is controlled by the pulses output from the pulse control means. The current is output to each of the light sources.

  According to the invention of claim 7, the brightness control means includes a constant current circuit for supplying a current to each of the light sources, and the constant current circuit is controlled by the pulse output from the pulse control means. Current value corresponding to the designated luminance value can be supplied to each light source of the light emitter, so that the light emission luminance of each light source of the light emitter is designated. It is possible to control so that the brightness value becomes the same.

  Alternatively, as described in claim 8, the luminance control means is provided with a plurality of constant current circuits that output current values respectively corresponding to a plurality of levels of luminance values in each light source. A data table indicating a correspondence relationship between a light emission color of a seed and a constant current circuit in each light source to be selected to synthesize the light emission color is stored in advance, and the data table specifies the light emission color setting signal. The constant current circuit in each light source corresponding to the emission color is selected, and the output current of the selected constant current circuit is supplied to the corresponding light source.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, the luminance control means is provided with a plurality of constant current circuits that output current values respectively corresponding to a plurality of levels of luminance values in each light source, and is further set in advance. Since a data table indicating a correspondence relationship between a plurality of types of light emission colors and a constant current circuit in each of the light sources to be selected to synthesize the light emission colors is stored in advance, if the data table is used, The constant current circuit in each of the light sources corresponding to the emission color specified in the emission color setting signal is quickly selected, and the output current of the selected constant current circuit is supplied to the corresponding light source. The set emission color can be synthesized.

  Alternatively, according to a ninth aspect of the present invention, the plurality of light emitters are configured to be arranged on a label in a matrix form.

  According to the invention according to claim 9, by arranging the light emitters on the label in a matrix, not only the emission color of the label can be changed, but also different colors can be displayed simultaneously. A rich display of characters or pictures can be realized.

  As described above, according to the self-luminous road sign according to the present invention, it is possible to realize display of more luminescent colors with few light sources. Alternatively, the specification of the emission color is based on either an external input, an input of a measuring instrument, or a built-in emission color output pattern, so that the emission color of the road sign can be controlled according to various needs. . Furthermore, by arranging a plurality of light emitters on the road sign in a matrix, not only the light emission color of the sign can be changed, but also different light emission colors can be displayed simultaneously. Therefore, according to the self-luminous road sign system of the present invention, it is possible to realize a road sign that can meet various application purposes and can provide more abundant information.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a self-luminous road sign system (hereinafter referred to as this system as appropriate) according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the present system sets the light emitter 1 having a plurality of light sources of different colors, the light emission color setting means 2 for designating the light emission color of the light emitter 1, and the light emission color setting means 2. Luminance control means 3 for controlling the light emission luminance of the light source by controlling the current supplied to the light source of each color included in the light emitter 1 according to the emitted color.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a state in which the present system is installed on a road. As shown in FIG. 2, the light emitter 1 is attached to a sign board 4 installed along a road, and is connected to an analog circuit board 6 by a cable 8. The analog circuit board 6 is connected to a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC) 5 by communication means 7. Here, the color setting means 2 and a part of the brightness control means 3 are configured by software installed in the PC 5, and processing described later is executed by the software. The output brightness control signal from the PC 5 is transmitted to the remaining part of the brightness control means 6 installed in the analog circuit board 6 via the communication means 7 and output from the remaining part of the brightness control means 6. The transmitted current is transmitted to each light source constituting the light emitter 1 via the cable 8.

  Next, each component of the system shown in FIG. 1 will be described in more detail.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing a procedure of processing executed by the emission color setting unit 2 of the present system. As described above, the processing of the emission color setting means 2 is realized by software installed in the PC 5 shown in FIG. As the light emission color setting process by the light emission color setting means 2 of the present embodiment, from the process 22 for setting the light emission color by designating the light emission color from the outside and the measuring instrument (for example, temperature sensor, speed sensor, light sensor, etc.). The process 23 for setting the emission color by the input of, and the process 24 for setting the emission color by the built-in output pattern of the emission color can be selected. When setting the emission color by the emission color setting means 2, first, the selection process of the emission color setting process shown in 21 is executed. More specifically, values (I to III) corresponding to the light emission color setting process to be selected are input using a keyboard or the like provided in the PC 5. When I is input, the process shown in 22 is executed. More specifically, when an emission color command value corresponding to each of a plurality of preset emission colors is input from a keyboard or the like provided in the PC 5, an emission color setting signal corresponding to the input command value is output. Is done. When II is input, the process shown in 23 is executed. More specifically, the emission color is set according to a predetermined color selection condition. For example, when the input value from the measuring instrument is smaller than a specific value, the green emission color is selected, the emission color setting signal corresponding to the green emission color is output, and the input value from the measuring instrument is When a specific value is exceeded, a yellow emission color is selected, and an emission color setting signal corresponding to the yellow emission color is output. When III is input, the process shown in 24 is executed. More specifically, the light emission color is selected according to a light emission color output pattern stored in advance. For example, a yellow emission color is selected from 1 o'clock to 17 o'clock, and an emission color setting signal corresponding to the yellow emission color is output. From 17:00 to 24 o'clock, a red emission color is selected, and a red emission color is selected. A corresponding emission color setting signal is output.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the first embodiment of the luminance control means 3 of the present system. In the present embodiment, the light sources constituting the light emitter are red, green, and blue (hereinafter referred to as R, G, and B). As shown in FIG. 4, the brightness control means 3 of this embodiment includes a current circuit 33 that supplies current to the light sources of the respective colors, a brightness pulse control circuit 32 that controls the magnitude of the current, and light emission of the entire light emitter. An operation operation circuit 34 for controlling the state and a luminance value determining unit 31 for determining the luminance value of each light source are provided. The luminance pulse control circuit 32, the operation operation circuit 34, and the current circuit 33 are set in the analog circuit board 6 shown in FIG. 2, but the luminance value determination unit 31 is software installed in the PC 5 shown in FIG. It is realized by.

  The brightness value determination unit 31 stores in advance a data table that represents a correspondence relationship between a plurality of types of light emission colors set in advance and the brightness values of the respective light sources necessary for synthesizing the light emission colors. When the luminance value determination unit 31 receives the emission color setting signal from the emission color setting unit 2, the luminance value of the R light source, the luminance value of the G light source, the B light source corresponding to the set emission color based on the data table are received. Each luminance value is selected and output. The output luminance value of the R light source, the luminance value of the G light source, and the luminance value of the B light source are sent from the PC 5 to the luminance pulse control circuit 32 installed in the analog panel 6 by the communication means 7.

  The luminance pulse control circuit 32 includes an R light source luminance pulse control circuit 32a, a G light source luminance pulse control circuit 32b, and a B light source luminance pulse control circuit 32c. On the other hand, the operation operation circuit 34 generates a pulse signal for controlling the lighting, extinction or blinking state of the light emitter 1 and the light emission intensity of the light emitter 1, and the same operation pulse (see FIGS. 5, 6, and 7). Signal) is output to the luminance pulse control circuits 32a, 32b, 32c. The luminance pulse control circuit 32a of the R light source receives an input signal of the luminance value of the R light source, generates a pulse (FIG. 5) having a pulse width, a pulse number, or a pulse amplitude proportional to the luminance value, and further The result (shown in FIG. 5) obtained by performing an AND operation with the operation pulse input from the operation operation circuit 34 is output as a pulse control signal for the R light source. Similarly, the luminance pulse control circuit 32b of the G light source receives an input signal of the luminance value of the G light source, and generates a pulse (FIG. 6) having a pulse width, pulse number, or pulse amplitude proportional to the luminance value. Further, the operation pulse input from the operation operation circuit 34 and the result of ANDing the operation pulse (shown in FIG. 6) are output as a G light source pulse control signal, and the B light source luminance pulse control circuit 32c is An input signal of the luminance value of the B light source is received, a pulse having a pulse width, a pulse number, or a pulse amplitude proportional to the luminance value (FIG. 7) is generated, and the pulse is input from the operation operation circuit 34. The operation pulse and the result of “AND” operation (shown in FIG. 7) are output as a pulse control signal for the B light source.

  The current circuit 33 includes an R light source current circuit 33a for supplying current to the R light source, a G light source current circuit 33b for supplying current to the G light source, and a B light source current circuit 33c for supplying current to the B light source. Is provided. The current circuit 33a of the R light source supplies the R light source with an alternating current (R current) controlled by the input pulse of the R light source. Similarly, the current circuit 33b of the G light source supplies an alternating current (G current) controlled by the input pulse of the G light source to the G light source, and the current circuit 33c of the B light source supplies the current circuit 33c of the B light source. An alternating current (B current) controlled by pulses is supplied to the B light source.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the second embodiment of the luminance control means 3 of the present system. In the present embodiment, the light sources constituting the light emitter are also red, green, and blue (hereinafter referred to as R, G, and B). As shown in FIG. 8, the luminance control means 3 of this embodiment includes a current circuit (33A1, 33A2, and 33A3) that supplies current to each light source, a current circuit determination unit 31A that selects a current circuit, and a light emitter. And an operation operation circuit 34A for controlling the light emission state 1. The current circuit (33A1, 33A2, and 33A3) and the operation circuit 34A are installed in the analog circuit board 6 shown in FIG. 2, but the current circuit determination unit 31A is realized by software installed in the PC 5 shown in FIG. .

  The current circuit includes a constant current circuit 33A1 for outputting current to the R light source, a constant current circuit 33A2 for outputting current to the G light source, and a constant current circuit 33A3 for outputting current to the B light source. It has. Further, the constant current circuit 33A1 includes a current circuit 1 for the R light source, a current circuit 2 for the R light source, and a current circuit 3 for the R light source that have different output current values. Any output of the current circuit is selected and output to the R light source. Similarly, the constant current circuit 33A2 includes a G light source current circuit 1, a G light source current circuit 2, and a G light source current circuit 3, which have different output current values. One of the outputs of the constant current circuit is selected and output to the G light source. The constant current circuit 33A3 includes a B light source current circuit 1 of a constant current circuit and a B light source current circuit 2 having different output current values. And the current circuit 3 of the B light source, and the output of any one of these constant current circuits is selected and output to the B light source.

  The output current value of each constant current circuit in each light source is set in advance so as to correspond to each luminance value of each light source necessary for synthesizing a plurality of preset emission colors. The current circuit determination unit 31A stores in advance a data table indicating a correspondence relationship between a plurality of types of light emission colors set in advance and constant current circuits in each light source to be selected to synthesize each light emission color. The current circuit determination unit 31A receives a light emission color setting signal from the light emission color setting means 2, and selects one constant current circuit corresponding to the set light emission color from each light source according to the data table, An operation signal is output to each selected constant current circuit. These operation signals are sent from the PC 5 to the selected constant current circuit in each light source installed on the analog board 6 by the communication means 7.

  The operation operation circuit 34A uniformly applies operation pulses for controlling the lighting, extinction point, or blinking state and light emission intensity of the entire light emitter, to each constant current circuit (current circuit 1 to 3 of the R light source, current of the G light source). To circuits 1 to 3 and B light source current circuits 1 to 3). Among the constant current circuits in each light source (current circuits 1 to 3 for the R light source, current circuits 1 to 3 for the G light source, and current circuits 1 to 3 for the B light source), only the constant current circuit that has received the operation signal is The current is generated, and the generated current is output to the corresponding light source under the control of the input operation pulse.

  FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram showing a configuration diagram of the light emitter 1 according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9, the light emitter 1 is installed on a road sign 4 installed along the road as shown in FIG. The light emitter 1 of the present embodiment includes one or more red LEDs 1a serving as an R light source, one or more green LEDs 1b serving as a G light source, and one or more blue LEDs 1c serving as a B light source. The LED 1a, LED 1b, and LED 1c are supplied from the current circuits 33a, 33b, and 33c in the first embodiment of the luminance control means 3 or the current circuits 33A1, 33A2, and 33A3 in the second embodiment of the luminance control means 3. The red, green, and blue light is emitted by the current of the R light source, the current of the G light source, and the current of the B light source. The emission luminance values of the LED 1a, LED 1b, and LED 1c are proportional to the supplied current. The light emission color of the light emitter 1 is determined by the light emission luminance value of each of the LED 1a, LED 1b, and LED 1c.

  FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment in which a plurality of light emitters 1 are arranged in a matrix. If the light emitter devices arranged in a matrix are arranged on the road sign 4 shown in FIG. 2 and the light emission color of each light emitter 1 is controlled as described above, different light emission colors can be simultaneously applied to the sign plate 4. It can be displayed. That is, one road sign can provide not only information by color change but also information by displaying multicolored characters and pictures at the same time.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a self-luminous road sign system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a state in which the present system is installed on a road. FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing a procedure of processing executed by the emission color setting unit 2 of the present system. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the first embodiment of the luminance control means 3 of the present system. FIG. 5 is a pulse waveform diagram showing generation of pulses of the R light source. FIG. 6 is a pulse waveform diagram showing generation of pulses of the G light source. FIG. 7 is a pulse waveform diagram showing generation of pulses of the B light source. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the second embodiment of the luminance control means 3 of the present system. FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram showing a configuration diagram of the light emitter 1 according to the present invention. FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment in which a plurality of light emitters 1 are arranged in a matrix.

Explanation of symbols

1 Light emitter 1a Red LED
1b Green LED
1c Blue LED
2 Light emission color setting means 21 Light emission color setting process selection process 22 Process of setting light emission color by specifying light emission color from the outside 23 Process of setting light emission color by input from measuring instrument 24 Output pattern of built-in light emission color 3 Luminance control means 31 Luminance value determination unit 31A Current circuit determination unit 32 Luminance pulse control circuit 32a Luminance pulse control circuit of R light source 32b Luminance pulse control circuit of G light source 32c Luminance pulse control circuit of B light source 33 Current circuit 33A1 Current circuit of R light source 33A2 Current circuit of G light source 33A3 Current circuit of B light source 4 Marking plate 5 Personal computer (PC)
6 Analog circuit board 7 Communication means 8 Cable

Claims (9)

A light emitter comprising a light source that respectively emits at least two different colors of light;
A light emission color setting means for setting a light emission color of the light emitter;
A self-luminous road sign system comprising: luminance control means for controlling the light emission luminance of each light source according to the light emission color set by the light emission color setting means. The self-luminous road sign system according to claim 1, wherein the luminous body includes red, green, and blue light sources. The emission color setting means includes
3. The self-luminous road according to claim 1, wherein the light emission color is set based on any one of an input from a measuring instrument, a designation of a light emission color from the outside, and an output pattern of a built-in light emission color. Sign system. The emission color setting means includes
Multiple types of emission colors are set in advance,
Select the emission color corresponding to the magnitude of the input signal from the measuring device according to the preset emission color selection conditions,
Or select the emission color specified in the external emission color designation signal,
Or select the emission color according to the built-in emission color output pattern,
The self-luminous road sign system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a light emission color setting signal corresponding to the selected light emission color is output. The brightness control means stores in advance a data table that represents a correspondence relationship between the plurality of types of light emission colors set in advance and the brightness values of the respective light sources necessary for combining the respective light emission colors, and the data table 5. The self-luminous road sign system according to claim 4, further comprising means for determining a luminance value of each of the light sources corresponding to the light emission color designated in the light emission color setting signal. The brightness control means includes pulse control means,
6. The pulse control unit according to claim 1, wherein the pulse control unit generates a pulse having a pulse width, a number of pulses, or a pulse amplitude proportional to a luminance value of each light source. Self-luminous road sign system. The brightness control means includes a constant current circuit for supplying a current to each light source,
The self-luminous road sign system according to claim 6, wherein the constant current circuit outputs a current controlled by the pulse output from the pulse control means to each of the light sources. The luminance control means is provided with a plurality of constant current circuits that output current values respectively corresponding to a plurality of levels of luminance values in each light source,
A data table indicating a correspondence relationship between a plurality of preset emission colors and a constant current circuit in each light source to be selected to synthesize the emission colors is stored in advance,
The data table selects the constant current circuit in each light source corresponding to the light emission color specified in the light emission color setting signal, and the output current of the selected constant current circuit is supplied to the corresponding light source. The self-luminous road sign system according to claim 5. The self-luminous road sign system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the plurality of light emitters are arranged on a sign in a matrix.