JP2005348003A - Directional device and optical space transmission device using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To automatically and accurately direct a directed body mounted on a moving body toward a predetermined position on a fixed side.
Optical space transmission is performed between a vehicle-side optical communication device and a ground-side optical communication device. The swivel base 13 mounted on the vehicle adjusts the directivity direction of the optical communication device 11 and the television camera 14 with respect to the vehicle. The camera 14 captures an image including an image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12. The processing / control unit 15 processes an image picked up by the camera 14 to detect a vehicle with respect to a direction based on the vehicle heading from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 to the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12. A shift in the directivity direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 as a reference is obtained. Based on this deviation, the processing / control unit 15 controls the swivel base 13 so that the light emitting / receiving unit 11 a of the optical communication device 11 is directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12 a of the optical communication device 12.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a pointing device that automatically points a directed body mounted on a moving body toward a predetermined position on a fixed side, and an optical space transmission device using the pointing device.

  In an optical space transmission device that has two optical communication devices and performs optical space transmission in one direction or in both directions between them, at least one of the optical communication devices can perform stable communication without increasing the amount of emitted light. By directing the light emitting / receiving unit (or light emitting unit or light receiving unit) to the position of the light receiving / emitting unit (or light receiving unit or light emitting unit) of the other optical communication device, the light receiving / emitting unit of the one optical communication device It is preferable to match the optical axes such as in the direction toward the light emitting / receiving section of the other optical communication device.

  Therefore, in the optical space transmission device disclosed in Patent Document 1 below, for each of the two optical communication devices respectively arranged on the fixed side, the light emitting and receiving unit of the optical communication device is mounted on the camera platform, The direction of light receiving signal is maximized by sampling the light receiving signal level of the light receiving / emitting unit in each directivity direction while scanning to change the direction of the light receiving / emitting unit. After that, the pan head is moved and stopped so that the found directivity direction is obtained.

Further, in the optical space transmission device disclosed in claim 2 and FIG. 4 of the following Patent Document 2, the optical communication device mounted on the vehicle (moving body) and the optical communication arranged on the ground side (fixed side) Optical space transmission is performed in one direction from the ground side to the vehicle side with respect to the device, but in the same manner as the optical space transmission device disclosed in Patent Document 1, light reception by the light receiving unit of the optical communication device on the vehicle side The direction of the light receiving unit is changed by a vehicle-side direction controller (corresponding to the pan head) so that the signal level is maximized. Although not described directly in Patent Document 2, in FIG. 4 of Patent Document 2, the light receiving signal from the light receiving unit of the optical communication device on the vehicle side is input to the direction controller on the vehicle side. Therefore, the directional controller on the vehicle side performs scanning for changing the directional direction of the light receiving unit of the optical communication device on the vehicle side in the same direction as in the case of Patent Document 1, and in each directional direction. The light receiving signal level of the light receiving / emitting unit is sampled to find the directivity direction that maximizes the light receiving signal level, and then the direction of the light receiving unit of the optical communication device on the vehicle side so as to be the found directivity direction It is thought that it controls.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-231301 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-68268

  However, in the optical space transmission device disclosed in Patent Document 1 and the optical space transmission device disclosed in Claim 2 and FIG. 4 of Patent Document 2, the pan head or the like is controlled based on the received light signal level. Therefore, as described above, in order to find the directivity direction in which the light reception signal level becomes maximum, the light reception level in each directivity direction is performed while performing a scan that changes the directivity direction of the light emitting / receiving unit or the light receiving unit of the optical communication device. Must be sampled. As described above, a scanning operation with mechanical movement (that is, a change in pointing direction) is indispensable, but this scanning operation takes time.

  Accordingly, when two optical communication devices are arranged on the fixed side as in the optical space transmission device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the positional relationship between the two optical communication devices does not change after being arranged once. However, as in the optical space transmission device disclosed in claim 2 and FIG. 4 of Patent Document 2, one optical communication device is mounted on a moving body such as a vehicle and the other optical communication device is fixed. Since the positional relationship between the two may change from moment to moment, the light receiving / emitting portion of the optical communication device on the mobile body is directed accurately toward the light emitting / receiving portion of the fixed optical communication device. It was difficult.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a pointing device capable of automatically and accurately directing a directed body mounted on a moving body toward a predetermined position on a fixed side, and this An object of the present invention is to provide an optical space transmission device that can perform more stable communication between the moving body side and the fixed side without increasing the amount of emitted light by using the directional device.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a pointing device according to a first aspect of the present invention is a pointing device that automatically points a directed body mounted on a moving body toward a predetermined position on a fixed side. A direction-of-direction adjusting means for adjusting a pointing direction of the directed body mounted on the body with reference to the moving body; and a first position based on the moving body that substantially goes from the directed body toward the predetermined position. A detection unit that sequentially detects a direction or a shift of a pointing direction of the directed body with respect to the moving body with respect to the first direction; and the first direction or the shift detected by the detection unit Control means for controlling the directivity direction adjusting means so that the directed body is directed toward the predetermined position, and the detecting means is an index provided in the vicinity of the predetermined position. Before taking an image containing An imaging unit mounted on a mobile body, in which by processing an image captured by the imaging means; and a processing means for obtaining said first direction or said deviation.

  In the first aspect, an image including the index on the fixed side is captured, the captured image is processed to acquire the first direction or the deviation, and the directivity direction adjusting unit is controlled based on the captured image. Thus, the directed body mounted on the moving body is automatically directed toward a predetermined position on the fixed side. According to the first aspect, since the first direction or the shift is acquired using the image as described above, the scanning operation accompanied by the mechanical movement as in the conventional technique described above becomes unnecessary. Therefore, according to the first aspect, since the directed body on the moving body side can be quickly directed toward the predetermined position, the directed body is directed accurately toward the predetermined position on the fixed side. be able to.

  A pointing device according to a second aspect of the present invention is the pointing device according to the first aspect, wherein the pointing direction adjusting means is based on the moving body together with the pointing direction of the directed body with respect to the moving body. The directing direction of the imaging means is adjusted.

  According to the second aspect, the directivity adjusting means adjusts the directivity direction of not only the directed object but also the imaging means together, so that the imaging means having a lens with a relatively narrow angle of view is used. be able to. Therefore, it is possible to improve the accuracy of searching for an image corresponding to the index in the image captured by the imaging means, and thus to direct the directed body toward a predetermined position on the fixed side. However, in the first aspect, the imaging unit may be fixed to the moving body so that the directing direction of the imaging unit with respect to the moving body does not change. Even in this case, by using a lens having a wide angle of view as the imaging unit, the index can be placed in the field of view of the imaging unit.

  The pointing device according to a third aspect of the present invention is the pointing device according to the first or second aspect, wherein the movement is performed within an area set in advance based on the predetermined position based on position information indicating the position of the moving body. Area determining means for determining whether or not a body is located, and the control means corresponds to the area when the area determining means first determines that the moving body is located in the area. The directivity adjusting means is controlled so that the directed body is oriented in a preset direction.

  According to the third aspect, when the moving body first enters the area, the pointing direction of the directed body is initially set to a direction set in advance corresponding to the area. Therefore, for example, even when the directivity adjustment means adjusts the directivity direction of not only the object to be directed but also the image pickup means, the imaging is performed from the beginning when the moving body enters the area. The image including the image of the index can be reliably captured by the means. Even if the first direction or the deviation cannot be obtained at all from the image captured by the imaging unit due to the influence of weather conditions or the like, It is possible to make the directivity direction close to a certain degree to the directivity direction toward the predetermined position.

  The pointing device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is directed to the directed object according to the third aspect, wherein the control means determines that the moving body is not located within the area when the area determination means determines that the moving body is not located within the area. The control for directing the camera toward the predetermined position corresponding to the area is stopped.

  According to the fourth aspect, when the moving body is not located in the area, the control by the control means is stopped, and therefore, a useless control operation is prevented, which is preferable.

  The directing device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the directivity device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the processing unit uses the template corresponding to the index to display the image captured by the imaging unit. Search means for searching for an image corresponding to the index is provided, and the first direction or the shift is obtained based on the position of the image corresponding to the index found by the search means. The fifth aspect is a specific example of the processing means.

  The directing device according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the pointing device according to the fifth aspect, wherein the template and the image are picked up at a reduction ratio or an enlargement ratio based on position information indicating a position of the moving body. The search is performed after reducing or enlarging one of the images.

  When the angle of view of the imaging unit is fixed, the size of the image of the index in the image captured by the imaging unit increases as the imaging unit mounted on the moving body approaches the index. Therefore, when the search is performed as in the sixth aspect, it is possible to increase the accuracy of the search while reducing the processing amount of the search. As a result, the directed object is directed toward the predetermined position on the fixed side with higher accuracy. Can be oriented.

  The directing device according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the pointing device according to the fifth or sixth aspect, wherein the processing means is based on an image corresponding to the index found by the search means. Means for updating the template used when searching for an image corresponding to the index from the next time onward is included.

  When the template is updated as in the seventh aspect, the accuracy of the search can be improved, and as a result, the directed object can be directed more accurately toward the predetermined position on the fixed side.

  A directing device according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is the directivity apparatus according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, wherein the moving body is a railway vehicle or a vehicle traveling on a road. In the eighth aspect, an example of a moving body is given, but in the first to seventh aspects, the moving body is not limited to this example.

  A directivity device according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is the directivity device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, wherein the directed body is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light emitting unit, or a light receiving unit of the first optical communication device, The predetermined position is a position where the light emitting / receiving unit, the light receiving unit, or the light emitting unit of the second optical communication device is arranged, and bidirectional or one-way between the first optical communication device and the second optical communication device. Light spatial transmission is performed in the direction, and the indicator is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light receiving unit, a light emitting unit, or another indicator provided in the vicinity of the second optical communication device.

  The ninth aspect is an example in which the directing device according to the first to eighth aspects is used for a spatial transmission device, but the directing apparatus according to the first to eighth aspects is used for various other purposes. Can be used.

  An optical space transmission device according to a tenth aspect of the present invention includes a first optical communication device mounted on a moving body, and a second optical communication device disposed on a fixed side, wherein the first light An optical space transmission device that performs optical space transmission in both directions or in one direction between a communication device and the second optical communication device, comprising the directional device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, The directed body is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light emitting unit or a light receiving unit of the first optical communication device, and the predetermined position is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light receiving unit or a light emitting unit of the second optical communication device. And the indicator is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light receiving unit or a light emitting unit of the second optical communication device or another indicator provided in the vicinity thereof.

  In the optical space transmission device according to the tenth aspect, the pointing device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects is used. Therefore, the light emitting / receiving unit and the like of the first optical communication device mounted on the moving body can be accurately directed toward the light emitting and receiving unit and the like of the fixed-side optical communication device. Therefore, more stable communication can be performed between the moving body side and the fixed side without increasing the amount of emitted light.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the directional device which can orientate the to-be-directed body mounted in a mobile body to the predetermined position of a fixed side automatically and accurately, and by using this directing device, emitted light quantity can be reduced. It is possible to provide an optical space transmission device that can perform more stable communication between the moving body side and the fixed side without increasing the size.

  Hereinafter, an apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing an optical space transmission device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view schematically showing an arrangement example of some components of the optical space transmission device shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic front view schematically showing the optical communication device 11, the TV camera 14, and the swivel base 13 in FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic side view schematically showing the optical communication device 11, the TV camera 14, and the swivel base 13 in FIG.

  In FIG. 2, 1 is a track as a track, and 2 is a railway vehicle (in this embodiment, a leading vehicle of a train) as a moving body that travels on the track 1 in the traveling direction indicated by an arrow X.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the optical space transmission device according to the present embodiment includes an optical communication device 11 mounted on the vehicle 2 and an optical communication device 12 arranged on the ground side (fixed side). ing.

  The ground-side optical communication device 12 is arranged on the side of the line 1 with a support or the like, and the range of the light beam that can be transmitted and received is set, for example, to the range indicated by the imaginary line in FIG. . The orientation of the optical communication device 12 and the range of light beams that can be transmitted and received are appropriately set according to the straight line / curve of the line 1, the state of the gradient, the desired communication area, and the like.

  Although FIG. 2 shows a state in the vicinity of one communication area, in the present embodiment, a plurality of communication areas are set at a plurality of different locations, and the ground side corresponds to each communication area. One optical communication device 12 is arranged at a time. Every time the vehicle 2 enters each communication area, communication by optical space transmission is performed between the optical communication device 12 on the ground side and the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle 2 side arranged corresponding to the communication area. However, only one communication area and only one optical communication device 12 may be arranged.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a control execution area is set corresponding to one ground-side optical communication device 12. This control execution area is set as an area including a communication area corresponding to the optical communication device 12. The control execution area may coincide with the communication area, but is preferably set slightly wider than the communication area.

  In the present embodiment, optical space transmission is performed bi-directionally between the optical communication devices 11 and 12, and as shown in FIG. 1, the optical communication device 11 includes a light receiving unit and a light receiving unit arranged close to each other. The optical communication device 12 includes a light receiving / emitting unit 12a including a light receiving unit and a light emitting unit that are arranged close to each other. However, when performing optical space transmission in one direction between the optical communication devices 11 and 12, the optical communication device 11 has only one of the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit, and the optical communication device 12 includes the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit. It is only necessary to have the other of the parts.

  The space optical transmission apparatus according to the present embodiment automatically points the light emitting / receiving section 11a of the vehicle-side optical communication apparatus 11 as the directed body toward the position of the light receiving / emitting section 12a of the ground-side optical communication apparatus 12. A pointing device is provided. This pointing device is mounted on a vehicle 2 and, as shown in FIG. 1, is a swivel base (sometimes called a pan head or the like) 13 as a directing direction adjusting means and a television camera (CCD) as an imaging means. Camera) 14 and a processing / control unit 15 configured by using, for example, a computer or the like. In the present invention, the imaging means is not necessarily limited to the television camera.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, the swivel base 13 includes a base 21 fixed to the vehicle 2, a mounting base 22, a pan adjusting mechanism 23 including a pan driving motor 23a, and a tilt driving. A tilt adjusting mechanism 24 including a motor 24a, a pan driving circuit 25 for driving the pan driving motor 23a, and a tilt driving circuit 26 for driving the tilt driving motor 24a are provided. Needless to say, the drive circuits 25 and 26 may be arranged outside the swivel base 13. In the present embodiment, pulse motors are used as the drive motors 23a and 24a, and positioning control of the drive motors 23a and 24a, that is, pan and tilt positioning control can be performed by open loop control. However, a pan detector and a tilt detector may be provided on the swivel base 13, and pan and tilt positioning control may be performed by feedback control.

For convenience of explanation, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an x axis, a y axis, and a z axis that are orthogonal to each other with respect to the base 23 are defined. In the swivel base 13, the rotation position (pan) of the mounting base 22 around the axis O ₁ parallel to the z-axis direction is adjusted by the pan adjustment mechanism 23, and the axis O included in the plane parallel to the xy plane is adjusted by the tilt adjustment mechanism 23. The rotational position (tilt) of the _two mounting bases 22 is adjusted. Note that the orientation of the axis O _{2 in} a plane parallel to the xy plane changes according to the pan. In the present embodiment, the base 23 is fixed to the vehicle 2 so that the xy plane is substantially a horizontal plane, but the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the directivity direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 and the directivity direction of the television camera 14 are substantially parallel (that is, the light receiving / emitting light of the optical communication device 11). The direction of the optical axis of the part 11a and the direction of the optical axis of the imaging lens 14a of the television camera 14 are substantially parallel to each other). Thereby, when the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle 2 side points toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the ground side or the vicinity thereof, the ground side is within the field of view of the TV camera 14. An optical communication device 12 can be inserted. However, the directivity directions of both need not be substantially parallel. In the present embodiment, the entire optical communication device 11 is mounted on the mounting table 22, but portions other than the light emitting / receiving unit 11 a in the optical communication device 11 are not necessarily mounted on the mounting table 22. Alternatively, it may be fixed to the vehicle 2.

  By mounting the optical communication device 11 and the TV camera 14 on the mounting table 22 of the swivel base 13 in this way, the swivel base 13 is directed in the direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 11 with respect to the vehicle 2. With this adjustment, the directivity direction of the TV camera 14 with respect to the vehicle 2 is also adjusted.

  The processing / control unit 15 receives the image signal from the TV camera 14, the speed information of the host vehicle 2, and the position information of the host vehicle 2, and sends control signals to the drive circuits 25 and 26 of the turntable 13 based on these signals. By giving, the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side is automatically directed toward the position of the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the ground side. Note that the speed information of the host vehicle 2 is obtained from a speed detector (not shown) mounted on the vehicle 2. Since railcars and the like usually have a detector that detects the position of the host vehicle 2, a position detection signal from the detection device may be used as the position information of the host vehicle 2. Further, for example, another position detector such as a GPS position detector may be provided in the vehicle 2 and a position detection signal from the position detector may be used as the position information of the host vehicle 2.

  The operation of the processing / control unit 15 will be specifically described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 are schematic flowcharts showing an example of the operation of the processing / control unit 15.

  The processing / control unit 15 starts an operation before the host vehicle 2 reaches any of the control execution areas (see FIG. 2), and first acquires position information of the host vehicle 2 from the position detector ( Step S1).

  Next, the processing / control unit 15 determines whether or not the host vehicle 2 is in the next control execution area based on the position information of the host vehicle 2 acquired in step S1 (step S2). Information indicating the position of each control execution area is stored in advance in a memory (not shown) of the processing / control unit 15. If it is determined that the host vehicle 2 is not in the control execution area, the process returns to step S1 and waits for the host vehicle 2 to enter the next control execution area. On the other hand, if it is determined that the host vehicle 2 is in the control execution area, the process proceeds to step S3.

  In step S3, the processing / control unit 15 gives control signals to the drive circuits 25 and 26 of the turntable 13, respectively, and the pointing direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 with respect to the own vehicle 2 is preset. The pan and tilt of the swivel 13 are controlled so as to be in the direction (this information is stored in advance in the memory of the processing / control unit 15 corresponding to the control execution area). Here, the preset direction is such that when the host vehicle 2 is located at the start position K (see FIG. 2) of the control execution area, the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 corresponds to the control execution area. The orientation is directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 arranged. At the time of step S3, since the host vehicle 2 can be regarded as being substantially located at the start position K of the control execution area, the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side receives and receives the optical communication device 12 on the ground side. The light is directed toward the light emitting unit 12a. Even if the angle of view of the imaging lens 14a of the television camera 14 is relatively narrow, the step S3 ensures that the ground-side optical communication device 12 is within the field of view of the television camera 14.

  Next, the processing / control unit 15 includes the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 corresponding to the control execution area (in this embodiment, an index indicating the position of the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the optical communication device 12). As the first use when searching for the image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 from the image captured by the television camera 14, it is stored in the memory of the processing / control unit 15 in advance. A template (hereinafter referred to as “initial template corresponding to the control execution area”) is set as a template T used in the next search (step S4). An example of this initial template corresponding to the image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 is schematically shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the size of the initial template is the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 in the image captured by the television camera 14 when the host vehicle 2 is located at the start position K of the control execution area. The size of the image is the same.

  In the present invention, in this embodiment, instead of using the light emitting / receiving unit 12a itself of the optical communication device 12 as an index indicating the position of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12, the light receiving / emitting light of the optical communication device 12 is used. Other indicators provided in the vicinity of the portion 12a (for example, a display board on which a graphic or the like that can be easily identified and recognized by others can be used) may be used. In this case, needless to say, a template corresponding to the index is used.

  Next, the processing / control unit 15 sets the count value n stored in its own memory to 1. The count value n is basically a value indicating how many times sampling is performed in the control execution area, and in association with the count value n, steps S6 to S9 and S15 to be described later are performed. The values and images taken in at S18 are stored.

Thereafter, the processing and control unit 15 takes in the current vehicle speed Vn in the memory of its own (step S6), and in the memory takes in the current time t _n (step S7), and further, a television in the memory capturing an image _{I n} obtained to date from the camera 14 (step S8). Schematically shown in FIG. 8 An example of the image I _n. A hatched portion 30 in FIG. 8 is an image (target) of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 to be searched. In FIG. 8, 31 is an image of the line 1. Note that the television camera 14 sequentially captures images in the visual field at a predetermined cycle.

Next, the processing and control unit 15 (here, the initial template which is set in step S4) template T which is currently set with, from the entire image I _n targets (in this embodiment taken in step S8 In the embodiment, an image of the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 is searched (step S9). As a search method, for example, a general method using normalized cross-correlation can be employed.

  Subsequently, the processing / control unit 15 determines whether a target has been found by the search in Step S9 (Step S10). If no target is found, the process proceeds to step S14. If a target is found, the process proceeds to step S11.

In step S11, the processing and control unit 15, the image of the target found in step S10, the position _{A n (i n, j n} ) in the image _{I n} acquires, the position _A n _(i n, j _n ), the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 is directed from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 to the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 based on the vehicle 2. The current deviation with respect to the direction with respect to the vehicle 2 is calculated as a pan deviation Δθ _xn and a tilt deviation Δθ _yn . As the target image position A _n (i _n , j _n ), for example, the center position of the target image may be adopted.

Step S11 will be described with reference to FIGS. 9, position _{A n (i n, j n} ) of the target image on the image _{I n} is a diagram showing coordinates in Figure 9, with respect to the imaging plane of the television camera 14, a television camera 14 XY coordinates with the optical axis O as the origin. FIG. 9 also shows an ideal position A ₀ (i ₀ , j ₀ ) described later on the image In. 10 and 11, the optical axis O is the Z axis in addition to the same X axis and Y axis as in FIG. 9. FIG. 10 shows the relationship between the positions A _n and A ₀ , the current position B _n of the light emitting / receiving unit 12 a of the optical communication device 12, and the ideal direction described later, as viewed from the Y-axis direction. FIG. 11 shows the relationship between the positions A _n and A ₀ , the current position B _n of the light emitting / receiving unit 12 a of the optical communication device 12, and the ideal direction described later, as viewed from the X-axis direction. 10 and 11, E indicates the center of the imaging lens 14a of the television camera 14, and f indicates the focal length of the imaging lens 14a.

Here, in order to simplify the explanation, it is assumed that the Y axis in FIGS. 9 to 11 is not so inclined with respect to the axis O ₁ of the pan in FIGS. 3 and 4 and FIGS. The X axis in the middle is assumed to be parallel to the tilt axis O _{2 in} FIGS. However, the present invention is not limited to these.

Now, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, an angle θ _x0 is formed around the Y axis with respect to the optical axis O of the imaging lens 14a of the television camera 14, and an angle θ _y0 is formed around the X axis and passes through the point E. When the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 is in the direction (referred to as an ideal direction), the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the vehicle side optical communication device 11 is directed toward the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 It is assumed that the positional relationship between the optical communication device 11 and the television camera 14 is set when the slewing base 13 is mounted on the mounting base 22 so as to be oriented. When the light receiving and emitting unit 12a of the optical communication apparatus 12 is in the ideal direction, the position on the image _{I n} of the image of the person receiving the light emitting portion 12a (referred to as ideal _{position.) A 0 (i 0,} j 0) is 9 to 11 as shown in FIG.

In contrast, targets that are found in step S10, the position An _{(i n, j} n) in the image _{I n} is shifted from an ideal position on the image _{I n A 0 (i 0,} j 0) . This is because, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the current position _Bn of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 is in a direction deviating from the ideal direction. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the position B _n forms an angle θ _xn around the Y axis with respect to the optical axis O of the imaging lens 14a of the television camera 14, and forms an angle θ _yn around the X axis and E It is in a direction passing through the point (a direction shifted by an angle Δθ _xn around the Y axis from the ideal direction and shifted by an angle Δθ _yn around the X axis).

The angle Δθ _xn is a vehicle heading from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 in the direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 with respect to the vehicle 2. This corresponds to the current deviation around the Y axis with respect to the direction with reference to 2. The angle Δθ _yn is a vehicle heading from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12 in the direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 with respect to the vehicle 2. This corresponds to a shift around the current X axis with respect to a direction based on 2. Since the Y axis in FIGS. 9 to 11 is not so inclined with respect to the pan axis O _{1 in} FIGS. 3 and 4, the angle Δθ _xn can be regarded as a pan shift. Further, since the X axis in FIGS. 9 to 11 is parallel to the tilt axis O _{2 in} FIGS. 3 and 4, the angle Δθ _yn is a tilt shift.

The pan shift Δθ _xn and the tilt shift Δθ _yn are expressed by the following equations 1 and 2, as can be seen from FIGS.

In step S <b _> 11, the processing / control unit 15 determines the pan shift Δθ _xn and the tilt from the position A _n (i _n , j _n ) and the ideal position A ₀ (i ₀ , j ₀ ) according to the _equations 1 and 2. The deviation Δθ _yn is calculated. The ideal position A ₀ (i ₀ , j ₀ ) is determined when the TV camera 14 and the optical communication device 11 are mounted on the mounting base 22 of the swivel base 13 according to the positional relationship between them. Pre-stored in memory.

Thereafter, the processing / control unit 15 determines that the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side has the optical communication device 12 on the ground side based on the pan shift Δθ _xn and tilt shift Δθ _yn calculated in step S11. Control signals are given to the drive circuits 25 and 26 of the swivel base 13 so as to be directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a (step S12). Specifically, the processing / control unit 15 rotates the swivel base 13 so that the pan of the mounting base 22 of the swivel base 13 rotates by Δθ _{xn and} the tilt of the mounting base 22 of the swivel base 13 rotates by Δθ _yn. A control signal is given to each of the drive circuits 25 and 26. Accordingly, in FIGS. 10 and 11, the pan and tilt in the ideal direction rotate together with the optical axis O of the television camera 14, and the ideal direction substantially coincides with the direction toward the position _Bn. Become.

Next, the processing and control unit 15 updates the template that is currently set as the template T to be used in the next search, the target image in the image I _n found in the search in step S9, the target Is set as a template T used in the next search (step S13).

Subsequently, after setting the count value n to 2 (step S14), the processing / control unit 15 captures the current vehicle speed V _n in its own memory (step S15), and stores the current time in the memory. the t _n uptake (step S16), and further captures image _{I n} obtained to date from the television camera 14 in the memory (step S17).

Next, the processing / control unit 15 acquires the current position of the host vehicle 2 (step S18). In step S18, the position information of the host vehicle 2 may be acquired from the position detector in the same manner as in step S1, or the following number is assumed on the assumption that the host vehicle 2 is performing a uniform acceleration linear motion. 3 and Equation 4 are used to calculate the distance D _n that the host vehicle 2 has moved and the distance z _n from the host vehicle 2 to the target (the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the ground side). It may be used as the position. Here, z ₀ in Equation 4 is the distance from the start position K of the control execution area to the target, as shown in FIG.

  Thereafter, the processing / control unit 15 determines whether or not the host vehicle 2 is within the control execution area based on the position information of the host vehicle 2 acquired in Step S15 (Step S19). If it is determined that the host vehicle 2 is within the control execution area, the process proceeds to step S20. If it is determined that the host vehicle 2 is out of the control execution area, the operation in the control execution area is stopped. Then, the process proceeds to step S28.

  In step S28, the processing / control unit 15 determines whether or not the next control execution area exists. This determination can be made based on the position information of the host vehicle 2 acquired in step S15 and information on each control execution area stored in advance in the memory of the processing / control unit 15. If the next control execution area exists, the process returns to step S1. If the next control execution area does not exist, the processing / control unit 15 ends the operation.

In step S20, the processing and control unit 15, the number 5 below, the size of the target image in the image I _n-1 taken last the size of the target image in an image I _n captured in this step S17 for conforming to shrink to be, the reduction ratio S _n of the image I _n, is calculated. Z _{n in} FIG. 5 may be calculated based on the position information fetched from the position detector, as in step S18.

When the host vehicle 2 is moving in the traveling direction X in FIG. 2, images sequentially captured from the TV camera 14 are gradually enlarged. Therefore, the target image in the image (the optical communication device 12 on the ground side). The image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a becomes larger. Therefore, in order to increase the search accuracy while reducing the search processing amount, it is preferable that the size of the template T matches the size of the target image in the image. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the reduction rate _Sn is calculated in step S20.

Figure 12 is a target _'and, the real image Tn' real T _n positions (light emitting and receiving portions 12a of the ground side of the optical communication apparatus 12) between the image T _n which is formed on the image plane P of the television camera 14 by Showing the relationship. As already described, in FIG. 12, the distance z _n is the distance from the host vehicle 2 to the target (the light receiving and emitting unit 12a of the ground side optical communication device 12), E is the center of the imaging lens 14a of the TV camera 14, and f Is the focal length of the imaging lens 14a. As can be seen from FIG. 12, the magnification of the image T _{n in} this case is f / (z _n −f). Therefore, it can be seen that the reduction ratio S _n described above can be obtained by equation (5).

After step S20, processing and control unit 15, by reducing the image _{I n} captured by the reduction ratio _{S n} calculated in step S20 in step S17, it creates a reduced image _{I n} '(step S21).

Next, the processing / control unit 15 uses the currently set template T to select the target (in this embodiment, the ground-side optical communication device 12 of the reduced image I _n ′ created in step S21). The image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a is searched (step S22). As a search method, a general method can be adopted as in step S9.

  Subsequently, the processing / control unit 15 determines whether a target has been found by the search in step S22 (step S23). If no target is found, the process returns to step S15. If a target is found, the process proceeds to step S24.

In step S24, the processing / control unit 15 acquires a position A _n ′ (i _n ′, j _n ′) on the reduced image I _n ′ of the target image found in step S23, and this position A _n. Based on '(i _n ', j _n '), the optical communication device on the ground side from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 in the direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 with reference to the vehicle 2 12 are calculated as pan deviation Δθ _xn and tilt deviation Δθ _yn . As the target position A _n ′ (i _n ′, j _n ′), for example, the center position of the target may be adopted.

Specifically, in step S24, the processing / control unit 15 calculates the pan shift θ _xn and the tilt shift Δθ _yn in accordance with _Equations 1 and 2, similarly to Step S11. However, in order to convert the position A _n ′ (i _n ′, j _n ′) on the reduced image I _n ′ to the position on the image before reduction, an expression obtained by substituting Equation 6 below into Equation 1 and a number The pan shift θ _xn and the tilt shift Δθ _yn are calculated using an equation in which the following Expression 7 is substituted into 2.

Thereafter, the processing / control unit 15 determines that the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side is the optical communication device 12 on the ground side based on the pan deviation Δθ _xn and the tilt deviation Δθ _yn calculated in step S24. A control signal is given to each of the drive circuits 25 and 26 of the turntable 13 so as to be directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a (step S25). Specifically, the processing / control unit 15 rotates the swivel base 13 so that the pan of the mounting base 22 of the swivel base 13 rotates by Δθ _{xn and} the tilt of the mounting base 22 of the swivel base 13 rotates by Δθ _yn. A control signal is given to each of the drive circuits 25 and 26. Accordingly, in FIGS. 10 and 11, the pan and tilt in the ideal direction rotate together with the optical axis O of the television camera 14, and the ideal direction substantially coincides with the direction toward the position _Bn. Become.

Next, the processing and control unit 15 are converted into the area of the previous image I _n to reduce the area of the target image in the reduced image in I _{n 'found} in the search in step S22 in reduction ratio S _n, an image of the area in the image I _n, by setting as a template T to be used in the next search, a template that is currently set as the template T to be used in the next search of the area in the image I _n The image is updated (step S26).

  Next, the count value n is incremented by 1 (step S27), and then the process returns to step S15.

As described above, in the present embodiment, an image including the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the fixed-side optical communication device 12 is captured (steps S8 and S17), the captured image is processed, and the vehicle 2 is processed. Current direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 as a reference with respect to the direction based on the vehicle 2 from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the ground side _Are obtained as pan deviation Δθ _xn and tilt deviation Δθ _yn (steps S11 and S24), and the swivel base 13 is controlled based on the obtained deviations 11a and 11b of the vehicle-side optical communication device 11. Is automatically directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the fixed-side optical communication device 12.

  According to the present embodiment, since the shift is acquired using the image in this way, the scanning operation accompanied by the mechanical movement as in the conventional technique described above becomes unnecessary. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side can be quickly directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the fixed side. The light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 can be accurately directed toward the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the fixed-side optical communication device 12. For this reason, according to the present embodiment, more stable communication can be performed between the moving body side and the fixed side without increasing the amount of emitted light.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, not only the optical communication device 11 but also the TV camera 14 is mounted on the mounting base 22 of the swivel base 13. Therefore, the television camera 14 having a lens 14a having a relatively narrow angle of view can be used. Therefore, it is possible to improve the accuracy of searching for an image corresponding to the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the fixed-side optical communication device 12 in the image captured by the television camera 14, and as a result, the light-receiving / emitting unit of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side. 11a can be directed more accurately toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the fixed side.

  However, in the present invention, the television camera 14 may be fixed to the vehicle 2 so that the directing direction of the television camera 14 with respect to the vehicle 2 does not change. Even in this case, by using the television camera 14 having the lens 14a having a wide angle of view, the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 can be placed within the field of view of the television camera 14. . When the TV camera 14 is fixed to the vehicle 2, the vehicle side is substantially based on the position of the image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12 a of the fixed optical communication device 12 in the image captured by the TV camera 14. The direction with reference to the vehicle 2 heading from the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 to the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the fixed-side optical communication device 12 can be obtained. Therefore, the deviation between this direction and the directivity direction of the current light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 can be obtained. By controlling the swivel base 13 based on this, The light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the vehicle-side optical communication device 11 can be automatically directed toward the light receiving / emitting unit 12a of the fixed-side optical communication device 12.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, when the vehicle 2 first enters the control execution area, the directivity direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 with respect to the own vehicle 2 is preset as described above. The pan and tilt of the swivel base 13 are controlled so as to be oriented. Therefore, although the TV camera 14 is also mounted on the mounting table 22 of the swivel base 13, the TV camera 14 uses the fixed-side optical communication device 12 from the beginning when the vehicle 2 enters the control execution area. An image including the image of the light emitting / receiving unit 12a can be reliably captured. Even in a situation where the panning deviation Δθ _xn and the tilt deviation Δθ _yn cannot be obtained at all from the image captured by the TV camera 14 due to the influence of weather conditions or the like, Then, the directivity direction of the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side can be made to be somewhat close to the directivity direction toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the fixed side.

  Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, when the vehicle 2 is not located within the control execution area, the process returns to step S1 if NO in step S2, and proceeds to step S28 if NO in step S19. Since the image processing and other control operations of the swivel base 13 are stopped, useless control operations are prevented, which is preferable.

Further, according to this embodiment, _'to create a reduced image I _n in step _S22' reduced image I _n in step S22 to calculate the reduction ratio S _n at step S20 because searching using the template T and Thus, the search accuracy can be increased while reducing the search processing amount. As a result, the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side is directed toward the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the optical communication device 12 on the fixed side. Can be oriented well. In the present embodiment, by reducing the image I _n without enlarging the template T, conversely, without reducing the image I _n to expand the template T, the same effect can be obtained.

  Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, since steps S13 and S26 are updated, the accuracy of the search can be improved, and as a result, the light emitting / receiving unit 11a of the optical communication device 11 on the vehicle side is replaced with the optical communication device on the fixed side. It is possible to direct more accurately toward the 12 light emitting / receiving units 12a.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to this embodiment.

  For example, although the above embodiment is an example applied to an optical space transmission device that performs optical space transmission between a railway vehicle and a fixed side, the present invention may be applied to other movements such as a vehicle traveling on a road. The present invention can also be applied to an optical space transmission device that performs optical space transmission between a body and a fixed side.

  The directing device according to the present invention can be used not only for an optical space transmission device but also for various other purposes.

It is a schematic block diagram which shows the optical space transmission apparatus by one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic plan view which shows typically the example of arrangement | positioning of a one part component of the optical space transmission apparatus shown in FIG. It is a schematic front view which shows typically the optical communication apparatus in FIG. 1, a television camera, and a turntable. It is a schematic side view which shows typically the optical communication apparatus, television camera, and turntable in FIG. It is a schematic flowchart which shows a part of operation | movement of the process / control part in FIG. 6 is a schematic flowchart showing another part of the operation of the processing / control unit in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows an example of an initial template typically. It is a figure which shows an example of the imaged image typically. It is a figure which shows the position etc. of the image of the target on an image. It is a figure which shows the relationship between each position seen from the Y-axis direction, and the ideal direction. It is a figure which shows the relationship between each position seen from the X-axis direction, and the ideal direction. It is explanatory drawing explaining the magnification of the image imaged with the television camera.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Track 2 Vehicle 11, 12 Optical communication apparatus 11a, 12a Light emitting / receiving part 13 Turning table 14 Television camera 15 Processing / control part

Claims (10)

A pointing device that automatically directs a directed body mounted on a moving body toward a predetermined position on a fixed side,
Directing direction adjusting means for adjusting the directing direction of the directed body mounted on the moving body with reference to the moving body;
The first direction based on the moving body that is substantially directed from the directed body toward the predetermined position, or the deviation of the directed direction of the directed body based on the moving body with respect to the first direction is determined. Detecting means for sequentially detecting;
Control means for controlling the pointing direction adjusting means so that the directed body is directed toward the predetermined position based on the first direction or the deviation detected by the detecting means;
With
The detection means picks up an image including an index provided in the vicinity of the predetermined position and processes the image picked up by the image pickup means mounted on the moving body and the first direction or And a processing means for obtaining the deviation.   2. The pointing direction adjusting means adjusts the pointing direction of the imaging means with respect to the moving body together with the pointing direction of the directed body with respect to the moving body. Pointing device. Based on position information indicating the position of the moving body, comprising area determining means for determining whether or not the moving body is located in an area preset with the predetermined position as a reference;
The control means, when it is first determined that the moving body is located in the area by the area determination means, so that the directed body is directed in a preset direction corresponding to the area, 3. The pointing device according to claim 1, wherein the directing direction adjusting means is controlled.   The control means stops the control for directing the directed body toward the predetermined position corresponding to the area when the area determination means determines that the moving body is not located in the area. The pointing device according to claim 3.   The processing means has search means for searching for an image corresponding to the index in an image captured by the imaging means using a template corresponding to the index, and the index found by the search means 5. The pointing device according to claim 1, wherein the first direction or the shift is obtained based on a position of a corresponding image.   The search means performs the search after reducing or enlarging one of the template and the captured image at a reduction rate or an enlargement rate based on position information indicating the position of the moving body. The pointing device according to claim 5, characterized in that:   The processing means includes means for updating the template used when the search means searches for an image corresponding to the index next time based on an image corresponding to the index found by the search means. The pointing device according to claim 5 or 6, characterized by the above.   The pointing device according to claim 1, wherein the moving body is a railway vehicle or a vehicle traveling on a road. The directed body is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light emitting unit or a light receiving unit of the first optical communication device;
The predetermined position is a position where the light emitting / receiving unit, the light receiving unit or the light emitting unit of the second optical communication device is disposed,
Optical space transmission is performed bidirectionally or unidirectionally between the first optical communication device and the second optical communication device,
9. The pointing device according to claim 1, wherein the index is a light receiving / emitting unit, a light receiving unit, or a light emitting unit of the second optical communication apparatus or another index provided in the vicinity thereof. . A first optical communication device mounted on a moving body; and a second optical communication device arranged on a fixed side, between the first optical communication device and the second optical communication device. An optical space transmission device that performs optical space transmission in both directions or in one direction,
A directional device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The directed body is a light emitting / receiving section, a light emitting section or a light receiving section of the first optical communication device;
The predetermined position is a position where the light receiving / emitting part, light receiving part or light emitting part of the second optical communication device is disposed,
The optical space transmission device, wherein the index is a light emitting / receiving unit, a light receiving unit, or a light emitting unit of the second optical communication device or another index provided in the vicinity thereof.

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