JP2006123813A - Warning light system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve a problem that a flickering variation pattern that a conventional warning light system has is too monotonous to arouse sufficient attention. <P>SOLUTION: A LED flickering signal for flickering a LED at a prescribed period is transmitted to a LED warning light 1 from a driving device 4, and a siren signal of a prescribed frequency is transmitted to a speaker 3 for reproducing a siren sound from the device 4. The period for flickering the LED is synchronized with a variation period of the frequency of the siren signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a warning light system provided in an emergency vehicle or the like.

A conventional warning light mounted on an emergency vehicle has a revolving light unit, a flashing light unit, a speaker, a reflector, and the like arranged on the same base. It was activated and scattered all over the perimeter with a warning light.
The light source of the rotating lamp is a light bulb, and since the number of flashes is determined by the motor used, it is always constant. The light source of the flashing light is also a light bulb, and the number of flashes is determined by the electronic circuit that controls the flashing, and is always constant.

There are various purpose vehicles such as police vehicles, fire fighting vehicles, and ambulance vehicles in emergency vehicles, but all were equipped with similar warning lights.
Recently, a warning light using an LED as a light source has been developed, and a circuit block diagram of the warning light system is shown in FIG.
The warning light system includes an LED warning light 1a attached to the roof of the vehicle and a driving device 4a for driving the LED warning light 1a to light.

The LED warning lamp 1a includes a plurality of LED units 2, a speaker 3, and a lighting / flashing circuit 9 therein.
The speaker 3 utters a siren sound or the like. The lighting / flashing circuit 9 lights / flashes the LED unit 2 in order to call attention of surrounding people and vehicles.
On the other hand, the driving device 4 a includes a control unit 5 a including a CPU and a memory, and a power amplifier 7. The control unit 5a generates a siren sound signal and outputs an on / off signal of the lighting / flashing circuit 9 according to manual operation of the siren switch 6 provided in the front operation unit of the control device.

The control unit 5 a supplies the generated siren sound signal to the power amplifier 7. The power amplifier 7 generates enough power to drive the speaker and supplies it to the LED warning light speaker through the line.
Further, the on / off signal output from the control unit 5a starts / stops the lighting / flashing circuit 9 in the LED warning light 1a through a line. That is, when an ON signal is sent from the controller 5a to the lighting / flashing circuit 9, the lighting / flashing circuit 9 turns on / flashes the LED unit 2 in a predetermined pattern.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 9-85

This lighting / flashing pattern is described in a setting file or a memory inside the lighting / flashing circuit 9, and cannot be easily changed from the drive device 4a side. If the lighting / flashing pattern is to be changed, the setting of the lighting / flashing circuit 9 must be changed or the entire lighting / flashing circuit 9 must be replaced, resulting in extra costs for the change.
In other words, it can be said that this warning light system is basically configured with the same idea as a conventional light bulb type warning light that operates only by supplying power to the warning light.

The warning light system is mainly installed in emergency cars and road maintenance work vehicles to ensure the safety of surrounding pedestrians and traveling vehicles. Therefore, the presence of warning lights or warning lights There is a need for ingenuity to quickly recognize the behavior of emergency vehicles, etc. along with their existence.
Examples of the “behavior of an emergency vehicle” include emergency driving, normal driving, working / stopping, and whether to go straight, turn right, or turn left at an intersection.

If the behavior of these emergency vehicles can be incorporated as information in the lighting / flashing state of the warning light system, attention should be paid more appropriately to surrounding pedestrians and traveling vehicles (hereinafter referred to as “observers”). Can be aroused.
Therefore, the present invention solves the problem that occurs because the lighting / flashing pattern of the conventional warning light system cannot be easily changed, and the behavior information of emergency vehicles and the like is obtained as visual information, that is, the LED unit. An object of the present invention is to provide a warning light system that can be easily used as a light emission pattern.

  The warning light system of the present invention includes a warning light in which a speaker and a plurality of light emitting units are arranged on a base, and a control device capable of independently controlling lighting of each light emitting unit of the warning light. The control device sends out a flashing signal for blinking the light emitting unit at a predetermined cycle to the warning light, and sends out a siren signal whose frequency changes periodically to the speaker. The cycle of blinking the light emitting unit is synchronized with the frequency change cycle of the siren signal (Claim 1).

According to this configuration, the period for flashing the light emitting unit is shortened or lengthened during the period when the frequency of the siren signal is high, and the period for flashing the light emitting unit is shortened or lengthened during the period when the frequency of the siren signal is low. Control can be performed.
Therefore, it is possible to create a blinking change pattern that changes in synchronization with the siren sound, compared to the conventional case where the light-emitting unit blinking change pattern is fixed at a constant cycle, and the viewer can quickly distinguish between police vehicles and emergency vehicles. It is possible to call out and get accurate attention.

  Further, the control device receives a signal for determining whether the vehicle is stopped or traveling, and changes the cycle of blinking the light emitting unit according to the traveling / stopping state of the vehicle based on the signal. (Claim 2). This makes it possible to change the blinking cycle of the light-emitting unit while the vehicle is stopped and running, so that the information on whether the emergency vehicle is stopped or running can be visually transmitted to the viewer. it can.

  Further, the control device may receive a blinker signal for determining whether or not the vehicle turns right and left, and display the warning light in a fluidized manner in accordance with the vehicle right or left turn determination based on the blinker signal. (Claim 3). The information indicating that the vehicle turns right and left can be supplemented by the flow display of the warning light, and the right and left turn information such as an emergency car can be visually and easily transmitted to surrounding pedestrians and traveling vehicles.

  The control device may input a vehicle speed signal and change a cycle of blinking the light emitting unit according to the vehicle speed based on the vehicle speed signal. According to this, during the period when the vehicle travels at a high speed, the cycle for blinking the light emitting unit is shortened or lengthened, and during the period when the vehicle travels at a low speed, the cycle for blinking the light emitting unit is lengthened or shortened. It can be performed. Therefore, it is possible to create a blinking change pattern that changes according to the speed of the vehicle rather than a fixed-cycle light-emitting unit blinking change pattern, and by reducing the distance traveled in the extinguished state, The recognition of emergency vehicles and the like is improved, and the vehicle speed information can be obtained from the blinking speed, which leads to improvement of safety of the viewer.

As described above, according to the warning light system of the present invention, the lighting / flashing change pattern of the light emitting unit is transmitted in accordance with the behavior of the emergency vehicle or the like as compared with the conventional warning light system. Can be alerted enough.
In addition, in the conventional warning light, it was necessary to provide a dedicated electronic circuit for blinking separately in the warning light, but this dedicated electronic circuit can be installed by transmitting a blinking signal of the warning light from the control device. Can be abolished, leading to cost reduction.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a plan view of an LED warning light 1 constituting a part of the warning light system of the present invention.
The LED warning lamp 1 has a plurality of LED units 2 arranged on an elongated base 8 made of an aluminum material or the like. The base 8 is attached to the roof of the vehicle so that the short direction of the base coincides with the traveling direction. A speaker 3 is attached to the center of the base 8 facing forward.

The number of LED units 2 is not limited, but in the example of FIG. In one LED unit 2, a plurality of (for example, three) LEDs are arranged.
FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the warning light system of the present invention. The warning light system includes an LED warning light 1 and a driving device 4 for driving the LED warning light 1.

The LED warning light 1 is provided with a speaker 3 and a circuit of the LED unit 2.
The LED unit 2 includes a FET having a gate connected to each signal line from the driving device 4, and the plurality of LEDs are connected in parallel to the FET. Twelve such LED units 2 are arranged as described above.

The drive device 4 is attached to a place that is easy to operate inside the vehicle, and includes a control unit 5, a siren switch 6 attached to the control unit 5, and a power amplifier 7 that drives the speaker 3 of the LED warning light 1. Have
The siren switch 6 is a switch operated when the LED warning lamp 1 is turned on or an alarm sound is generated from the speaker 3 for emergency traveling.

In response to the operation of the switch 6, the controller 5 sends an LED blinking signal to the signal line and sends a siren signal having a predetermined frequency to the power amplifier 7. Further, the control unit 5 inputs a vehicle speed signal and a blinker signal for determining whether the vehicle turns right or left from a tachometer or the like.
The control unit 5 includes a central processing circuit (CPU) and a memory, and operates with an on-vehicle power supply, and has a function of generating an LED blinking signal and a siren signal having a predetermined frequency.

  The control unit 5 can supply a blinking signal having a different pattern for each LED unit 2. That is, since each LED unit 2 can be driven independently, a plurality of LED units 2 can be visually recognized as if they were one LED unit. Furthermore, more effective alerting can be performed by linking the LED blinking signal pattern with the change pattern of the siren signal. By changing the LED blinking signal pattern according to whether the vehicle is stopped or traveling, it is possible to prevent a rear-end collision with an emergency vehicle or the like that is stopped or working. By changing the LED blinking signal pattern according to whether the vehicle turns right or left, it is possible to understand the behavior of emergency vehicles etc. at intersections more quickly, leading to further contribution to traffic safety and improvement of work efficiency of road maintenance work, etc. .

  FIG. 3 is a graph showing the change pattern of the siren signal and the waveform of the LED blinking signal pattern linked to the change pattern. Fig.3 (a) shows the change of the frequency of a siren signal, FIG.3 (b) shows a LED blink signal waveform. The horizontal axis is time t, and it is assumed that the siren switch 6 is turned on at the origin t = 0. The frequency of the siren signal changes smoothly. This corresponds to the sound of a police car “Woo-woo”.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the siren signal rises from frequency 0 and reciprocates between frequencies 850 Hz and 450 Hz. The LED blinking signal is a rectangular wave pulse signal, and the blinking cycle repeats a fast state and a slow state.
In the present invention, the blinking pattern of the LED blinking signal is changed in synchronization with the change of the siren signal. That is, as shown in FIG. 3B, the blinking of the LED unit 2 is accelerated during a period when the frequency of the siren signal is high, and the blinking of the LED unit 2 is delayed during a period when the frequency of the siren signal is low. . For this reason, the change in the level of the siren sound and the flashing speed of the LED warning light 1 are synchronized, and the LED warning light 1 flashes. Can tell.

  FIG. 4 is a graph showing still another relationship between the change pattern of the siren signal and the LED blinking signal pattern linked thereto. Fig.4 (a) shows the change of the frequency of a siren signal, FIG.4 (b) shows a LED blink signal waveform. The frequency of the siren signal changes stepwise between 780 Hz and 960 Hz. This corresponds to the sound “Peepy Peep”. On the other hand, the LED blinking signal is a rectangular wave pulse signal, and the blinking cycle repeats a fast state and a slow state.

  Also in this embodiment, the blinking pattern of the LED blinking signal is changed in synchronization with the change of the siren signal. That is, as shown in FIG. 4B, the blinking of the LED unit 2 is accelerated during a period when the frequency of the siren signal is high, and the blinking of the LED unit 2 is delayed during a period when the frequency of the siren signal is low. For this reason, since the change in the level of the siren sound and the blinking speed of the LED warning light 1 are displayed in synchronization with each other, the approach of the emergency vehicle or the like can be more accurately conveyed to the viewer through vision.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing an LED blink signal waveform in still another embodiment.
In this embodiment, the control unit 5 determines whether the vehicle is stopped or traveling based on the vehicle speed signal. If it is determined that the vehicle is traveling, the LED blinking is shortened. If it is determined that the vehicle is stopped, the LED blinking is lengthened. Therefore, information on whether the vehicle is stopped or traveling can be visually transmitted to the pedestrians such as pedestrians and traveling vehicles, and traffic safety can be achieved.

In addition to the vehicle speed signal, a parking brake state signal can be used to determine whether the vehicle is stopped or traveling.
FIG. 6 is a front view of the LED warning light 1. The control unit 5 determines whether the vehicle is going straight ahead, right turn, or left turn based on a winker signal operated when the driver is going to turn right or left. When it is determined that the vehicle goes straight, all the LED units 2 blink simultaneously. However, when the vehicle tries to turn left, the blinking phase of the LED unit 2 is adjusted so that the lit LED unit 2 flows from right to left. However, when the vehicle is about to turn right, the blinking phase of the LED unit 2 is adjusted so that the lit LED unit 2 flows from the left to the right (FIG. 6 (b)).

Since the LED warning light 1 is installed on the roof of the vehicle or the like, it can convey the vehicle right and left turn information conspicuously to passers-by and traveling vehicles. Can be safe.
FIG. 7 is a graph showing an LED blink signal waveform in still another embodiment. The control unit 5 determines the speed of the vehicle based on the vehicle speed signal. If it is determined that the vehicle is traveling at a high speed, the LED blinking is shortened. If it is determined that the vehicle is traveling at a low speed, the LED blinking is lengthened.

  Fig.7 (a) shows the change of the speed of a vehicle, FIG.7 (b) shows LED blink signal waveform. As shown in FIG. 7A, when the vehicle starts from a stopped state and increases in speed, the blinking cycle of the LED gradually decreases. As the vehicle begins to slow down, the blinking cycle of the LEDs gradually increases. In this way, by changing the blinking speed of the LED blinking signal in conjunction with the speed of the vehicle, it is possible to convey the dynamic information of the emergency vehicle etc. to the viewer more accurately.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments. For example, it is also possible to employ other light emitting elements such as a plasma light emitting element in addition to the light emitting diode (LED) as the light emitting unit provided in the warning light. Other various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.

It is a top view of the LED warning light 1 which comprises a part of warning light system of this invention. It is a circuit diagram of the drive device 4 for driving the LED warning light 1 and the LED warning light 1. FIG. It is a graph which shows the change waveform of a siren signal, and the connection waveform of the LED blink signal pattern linked | linked to this. It is a graph which shows the other change waveform of the change pattern of a siren signal, and the LED blink signal pattern linked | linked to this. It is a graph which shows the LED blink signal waveform in other embodiment. It is a front view of the LED warning light 1 in the flow display. It is a graph which shows the LED blink signal waveform in other embodiment. It is a circuit block diagram of the conventional warning light system with which emergency vehicles etc. were equipped.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Base 3 Speaker 2 LED unit 4 Drive apparatus 5 Control part 6 Siren switch 7 Power amplifier

Claims (4)

A warning light in which a speaker and a plurality of light emitting units are arranged on a base;
A control device capable of independently controlling lighting of each light emitting unit of the warning light,
The control device sends a flashing signal for blinking the light emitting unit at a predetermined cycle to the warning light, and sends a siren signal whose frequency changes periodically to the speaker.
The warning light system characterized in that the cycle of blinking the light emitting unit is synchronized with the frequency change cycle of the siren signal. A warning light in which a plurality of light emitting units are arranged on a base;
A control device capable of independently controlling lighting of each light emitting unit of the warning light,
The control device sends out a blinking signal for blinking the light emitting unit at a predetermined cycle to the warning light,
The control device receives a signal for determining whether the vehicle is stopped or traveling, and changes the cycle of blinking the light emitting unit according to the traveling / stopping state of the vehicle based on the signal. A warning light system. A warning light in which a plurality of light emitting units are arranged on a base, and a control device capable of independently controlling lighting of each light emitting unit of the warning light,
The control device sends out a blinking signal for blinking the light emitting unit at a predetermined cycle to the warning light,
The control device inputs a blinker signal for determining whether or not the vehicle makes a right / left turn, and displays the warning light in a fluidized manner in accordance with the vehicle's right / left turn determination based on the turn signal. Warning light system. A warning light in which a plurality of light emitting units are arranged on a base, and a control device capable of independently controlling lighting of each light emitting unit of the warning light,
The control device sends out a blinking signal for blinking the light emitting unit at a predetermined cycle to the warning light,
The said control apparatus inputs the speed signal of a vehicle, The warning light system characterized by changing the period which blinks the said light emission unit according to the speed of the vehicle based on this vehicle speed signal.

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