JP2006215796A - Gate apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gate apparatus that enables agreeable passage by preventing users' circulation disturbances. <P>SOLUTION: The gate apparatus, which reads information from a storage medium carried by a user and determines whether or not to permit the passage of the user according to the information, comprises a illumination means for illuminating illumination light to an entry side passage surface, an accessibility determination means for determining whether or not the passage is accessible, and a illumination control means for causing the illumination means to radiate predetermined illumination light if the accessibility determination means denies access. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a gate device that reads information from, for example, a storage medium possessed by a user and determines whether or not it can pass based on the read information.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, gate devices such as automatic ticket gates that are installed at a railway station and read information from a storage medium such as a boarding ticket or commuter pass owned by a user to determine whether the user can pass are provided.

  As such a gate device, a gate device that does not require the use of a conventional blocking door, roll bar, or the like has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). This gate device is provided with a light emission notification means that can be visually recognized by a passing user instead of a blocking door, a roll bar, and the like, and causes the light emission notification means to emit light when it is determined that passage is impossible.

  However, since this light emission notification means is a substitute for a blocking door, a roll bar and the like as described above, it is provided on the exit side of the passage, and for a user who is determined not to pass. Since the light emission notification is made, the user who is going to use it side by side is not notified before approaching the gate device that it is impossible to enter.

  On the other hand, as another gate device, an automatic ticket gate that displays whether a passage is allowed or not has been proposed (see Patent Document 2). In this automatic ticket gate, the entry permission / impossibility display is performed by a display unit at the upper front of the automatic ticket gate or a screen provided on the ceiling.

  However, since the user looks down near the entrance of the ticket, the screen provided on the ceiling has received little attention from the user. In addition, the display part provided in the upper front part is difficult to see with a human figure at the time of congestion, and when multiple automatic ticket gates are arranged side by side, the displayed indication of whether entry is possible or not is It was difficult for the user to determine which display was on the left or right passage of the automatic ticket gate with the display. Therefore, even with this automatic ticket gate, the user could not surely know that the entry was impossible before approaching the gate device.

  For this reason, when a user who approaches one of a plurality of gate devices arranged side by side knows that entry is impossible only after approaching, the user must move to another gate device again. However, the flow of the user is disturbed, and there is a problem that a time loss occurs in the user who is in a hurry.

  In addition, during congestion, other users enter the other gate devices one after another in a row, so that the user moving to the other gate device interrupts the row, and there is a lot of disturbance in the flow of one person. There was also a problem that the traffic flow of the number of people was disturbed and the traffic was more crowded.

Utility Model Registration No. 2572324 JP 2000-123206 A

  An object of this invention is to propose the gate apparatus which prevents disturbance of a user's flow line and can pass comfortably in view of the problem mentioned above.

The present invention is a gate device that reads information from a storage medium possessed by a user and determines whether or not the user can pass based on the information, and an irradiating unit that irradiates the surface of the passage on the entrance side with irradiation light; A gate apparatus comprising: an entry permission determination unit that determines whether or not to enter the passage; and an irradiation control unit that irradiates the irradiation unit with predetermined irradiation light when the entry determination unit determines that entry is impossible. It is characterized by that.
Thereby, since irradiation light is irradiated to the inaccessible passage itself, the user can easily know which passage is inaccessible. That is, even if the user walks while looking down near the entrance of the ticket, the irradiation light irradiated on the surface of the passage on the entrance side can be easily seen before approaching the gate device, and moreover, Even at times, it is possible to visually recognize the irradiation light leaking from the gap between the users lined up in front of the passage to be used.

As an aspect of the present invention, the predetermined irradiation light can be constituted by irradiation light having a different color from the irradiation light irradiated when it is determined that entry is possible.
As a result, the user can clearly recognize the gate device that is allowed to enter and the gate device that is not allowed to enter.

Further, as an aspect of the present invention, a user detection unit that detects a user passing through the passage is provided, and the irradiation control unit is stored in a state where the user detection unit detects a user passing through When the information is read from the medium to determine whether it can pass or not, if it is in any state, the irradiation means flashes the irradiation light, otherwise the irradiation means is illuminated with the irradiation light It can be set as the structure made to do.
Thereby, the state which can receive a user's storage medium, and the state in the determination process which interrupts the next reception temporarily can be shown by irradiation of irradiation light.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a gate device that can prevent a user's flow line from being disturbed and can pass comfortably.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
First, with reference to the perspective view shown in FIG. 1, the configuration of the automatic ticket gate 1 installed at the entrance to the railway station will be described.

  The automatic ticket checker 1 is provided with two ticket checker bodies 10 (10a, 10b) facing left and right, and a ticket check passage 3 is formed between the facing portions. Here, the right ticket gate main body 10b is configured with the front facing forward, and the left ticket gate main body 10a is configured with the rear facing forward, and restricts passage in both front and rear directions to pass and reject.

  The ticket gate main body 10 is composed of an inner casing 12 on the ticket gate passage 3 side and an outer casing 11 (a part called a bar) connected to the outside of the inner casing 12, and the whole is a normal adult It is about the height of a person's abdomen.

  A reading surface 16 of a storage medium reading unit for reading information from the storage medium 40 is provided on the entrance side of the upper surface of the inner housing 12 (the front side in the figure in the case of the ticket gate body 10b). The reading surface 16 is inclined forward and downward so that the user can easily present the storage medium 40. Here, the storage medium 40 is a non-contact communicable storage medium, and is a non-contact IC card that has an IC and an antenna and communicates with an induction electromagnetic field. The storage medium 40 is used as a boarding ticket, a commuter pass, or a prepaid card, and stores boarding related information such as a use section and an expiration date. The storage medium 40 is not limited to a non-contact IC card, and may be constituted by other storage media such as a contact type IC card and a magnetic storage card.

  A display surface 14 is provided on the upper surface outlet side of the inner housing 12 to display information indicating whether passage is possible or not. The display surface 14 is inclined forward and downward so that a passing user can easily see.

  Further, on the side surface of the inner casing 12 on the ticket gate passage 3 side, doors 18 are provided on the entrance side and the exit side, respectively, and a plurality of human detection sensors 15 are provided in parallel between the doors 18. The door 18 is configured to open when it can pass, and to close when it cannot pass. The human detection sensor 15 detects whether there is a passing user.

  Further, a light source 19 (an entrance-side light source 19a and an exit-side light source 19b) is provided at a position below each door 18 on the side surface of the inner housing 12 on the ticket gate passage 3 side. The light source 19 irradiates a passage surface 3 a on the entrance side of the ticket gate passage 3 and a passage surface (not shown) on the exit side widely to the outside of the ticket gate passage 3. Therefore, the irradiation light irradiated onto the passage surface by the light source 19 can be visually recognized by the user even from the direction orthogonal to the passing direction, that is, from the lateral direction.

  Further, a passage display surface 17 for displaying whether or not the vehicle can enter is indicated by an arrow or a cross in front of the entrance side of the inner housing 12. Like the conventional automatic ticket gate, this passage display surface 17 displays whether or not it is possible to enter toward the front, and it is difficult for a user approaching from the side to see, but whether or not the user approaching from the front can enter. Can be notified.

  With the above configuration, when the storage medium 40 is presented on the reading surface 16 by the user, the boarding related information stored in the storage medium 40 is read to determine whether or not the vehicle can pass, and the door 18 restricts the user's passage. can do. Whether or not to allow the user to enter the ticket gate passage 3 can be notified by display on the passage display surface 17 and irradiation of the entrance-side passage surface 3a by the entrance-side light source 19a. it can.

  The automatic ticket gate 1 has been described as being a dual-purpose machine that permits passage in both directions. However, in the case of a dedicated machine that permits passage in only one direction, for example, the ticket gate body 10b is placed in the width direction of the ticket gate passage 3. It is good to arrange a plurality of them side by side.

Next, the configuration of the automatic ticket gate 1 will be described with reference to the block diagram shown in FIG.
The automatic ticket gate 1 includes an operation unit 21, a power supply unit 22, a door unit 23, a storage medium reading unit 24, a human detection unit 25, a control unit 28, an alarm lamp unit 31, a voice guidance unit 32, a passage display unit 33, and a guidance display. It is comprised by each apparatus, such as the part 34 and the channel | path state irradiation part 35. FIG.

The operation unit 21 is an operation unit that is operated by maintenance personnel when maintaining the automatic ticket gate 1, and transmits an operated operation signal to the control unit 28.
The power supply unit 22 converts the voltage of the commercial power supply into various operating voltages and supplies power to each device of the automatic ticket gate 1.
The door portion 23 has driving means such as a motor, and opens and closes the door 18 in accordance with a control signal received from the control portion 28.

  The storage medium reading unit 24 reads information stored in the storage unit of the storage medium 40 in a non-contact manner by an induction electromagnetic field in accordance with a control signal from the control unit 28. The information read here includes boarding-related information such as a use section and an expiration date, identification information such as an ID number, and personal information such as a user's name and address. The storage medium reading unit 24 is not limited to this configuration, and has an appropriate configuration such as a configuration including a reading unit including a magnetic head that accepts insertion of a card-type magnetic storage medium and reads information from the magnetic storage medium. be able to.

  The human detection unit 25 detects the passage of the user in the ticket gate passage 3 by the human detection sensor 15 (FIG. 1) and transmits the detected signal to the control unit 28. The human detection sensor 15 can be configured by an appropriate sensor such as a transmissive sensor or a reflective sensor.

The control unit 28 includes a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM, and drives and controls each connected device according to a program and setting information stored in the ROM.
The control unit 28 determines, as control operations executed according to the program, whether or not to allow passage based on information in the storage medium 40, whether or not each device has a state abnormality, whether or not to enter, and the passage state when it is determined that entry is impossible Irradiation of irradiation light by the irradiation unit 35 is executed. Further, if a normal response signal does not return when a control signal or the like is transmitted to each device, it is determined that there is a state abnormality inside the device, and processing for notifying the abnormality by the alarm lamp unit 31 or the like is also executed.

The alarm lamp unit 31 displays a lamp indicating that the passage is impossible according to a control signal from the control unit 28.
According to the control signal of the control unit 28, the voice guidance unit 32 performs voice notification or sound of an alarm sound by a speaker, for example, “Turn to the passage where an attendant is present”.

According to the control signal of the control unit 28, the passage display unit 33 displays an upward arrow when entry into the ticket gate passage 3 is allowed, and a cross mark when entry is impossible.
The guidance display unit 34 is composed of a liquid crystal display device, and displays whether or not it can be passed by characters, figures, or the like in accordance with a control signal from the control unit 28.

The passage state irradiating unit 35, according to the control signal of the control unit 28, the color of the irradiation light irradiated from the entrance side light source 19 a and the exit side light source 19 b (FIG. 1) to the passage surface, and the irradiation method (lighting / flashing / extinguishing) To change.
The alarm lamp unit 31, the voice guidance unit 32, the passage display unit 33, the guidance display unit 34, and the passage state irradiation unit 35 are configured to be driven in synchronization.

  With the above-described configuration, the automatic ticket gate 1 can read the information on the storage medium 40 by the storage medium reading unit 24, determine whether or not to pass, and control the opening and closing of the door 18. At the same time, when the entry into the ticket gate passage 3 is made impossible to enter, the passage display unit 33 and the passage state irradiation unit 35 can notify the user that the entry is impossible.

Next, irradiation setting information stored in the control unit 28 will be described together with a configuration diagram of information shown in FIG.
The irradiation setting information includes dedicated machine setting information 61 shown in FIG. 3 (A) and dual-purpose machine setting information 62 shown in FIG. 3 (B). Each information is irradiated by the passage state irradiation unit 35. The irradiation pattern which comprises the color of irradiation light and the irradiation method is memorize | stored.
Here, the automatic ticket gate 1 can be used as a dedicated machine or a dual-purpose machine depending on the location (corner) where the automatic ticket gate 1 is installed and the time zone. It is set by the host device. Accordingly, the dedicated machine setting information 61 and the dual-purpose machine setting information 62 are read out from the control unit 28 in accordance with the dedicated machine / double-purpose machine setting.

  The irradiation patterns include waiting patterns 61a and 62a from the completion of the passage determination process for determining whether or not the user can pass through until the next storage medium 40 is detected, and the storage medium reading unit 24 using the storage medium 40. Three types of patterns 61b and 62b during passage determination processing from the detection to the end of pass / fail determination and abnormal patterns 61c and 62c such as device abnormality or determination out are set.

The standby patterns 61a and 62a will be described in detail. The dedicated machine setting information 61 is set so that the entrance side is lit blue (blue continuous irradiation) and the exit side is lit red. The side is also set to light blue.
The passage determination processing patterns 61b and 62b will be described in detail. In both the dedicated machine setting information 61 and the dual-purpose machine setting information 62, both the entrance side and the exit side are set to flash blue (intermittent blue irradiation). .
Describing in detail the abnormal time patterns 61c and 62c, both the dedicated machine setting information 61 and the dual-purpose machine setting information 62 set both the entrance side and the exit side to blink red.

The color of the irradiation light emitted by the light source 19 is set to one of blue and red. However, the blue light source 19 is not limited to blue, and may be green. The light source 19 is not limited to red but may be pink or orange.
With this configuration of the setting information, the user can intuitively understand whether or not the user can enter the ticket gate 3.

  Next, with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, the control executed by the control unit 28 of the automatic ticket gate 1 will be described in detail with reference to the explanatory diagram showing the irradiation of the dedicated machine in FIG.

  First, the control unit 28 detects whether there is an abnormality in each device in the automatic ticket gate 1 (step n1). If there is no abnormality, the control unit 28 determines that the user can enter, and the passage state irradiation unit 35 performs irradiation of the standby patterns 61a and 62a (FIG. 3) (step n2). At this time, if the automatic ticket gate 1 is set as a dedicated machine from the host device, the dedicated machine setting information 61 is read from the control unit 28, and the entrance side light source 19a is illuminated with blue light as shown in FIG. Light is emitted to the entrance-side passage surface 3a, and the exit-side light source 19b emits red-lit illumination light to the exit-side passage surface 3b.

  Next, the control unit 28 proceeds to step n4 until the storage medium reading unit 24 detects the storage medium 40 (step n3: No). In step n4, if there is no abnormality, the process returns to step n2 to continue irradiation (step n4: Yes), and if there is an abnormality, it is determined that the user cannot enter and the process proceeds to step n8 (step n4: No). ).

  Here, “abnormal” mainly refers to a case where the user M1 attempts to pass without presenting the storage medium 40 and detects this passage by the human detection unit 25, but is not limited to this. State abnormalities are also included. The internal device state abnormality corresponds to, for example, a case where a malfunction occurs due to a momentary power interruption.

  When the storage medium reading unit 24 detects the storage medium 40 in step n3 (step n3: Yes), the control unit 28 determines whether or not the user can pass based on the read information, and the passage state irradiation unit 35. By this, irradiation of the patterns 61b and 62b (FIG. 3) during the passage determination process is executed (step n5). At this time, as shown in FIG. 5B, the entrance-side light source 19a and the exit-side light source 19b both irradiate the flashing irradiation light on the entrance-side passage surface 3a and the exit-side passage surface 3b, respectively. Will be.

Further, the control unit 28 advances the process to step n7 until the passage determination process is completed and the detection of the user M1 by the human detection unit 25 is turned off (step n6: No).
In step n7, if there is no abnormality, the process returns to step n5 (step n7: Yes). As shown in FIG. 5C, while the user M1 is passing through the ticket gate 3, Continue irradiation. If there is an abnormality, it is determined that the next user cannot be entered, and the process proceeds to step n8 (step n7: No).

  Here, “abnormality” mainly corresponds to a case where it is determined that the user M1 does not pass through the passage determination of the user M1, but also includes an internal device state abnormality. For example, when the storage medium 40 is a magnetic storage medium, and the configuration is such that the passage is accepted and the passage is judged to be acceptable, the internal device is abnormal in condition. To do.

  If the passage determination process is completed in step n6 and the detection of the user M1 by the human detection unit 25 is turned off (step n6: Yes), the process returns to step n1. As a result, if there is no abnormality (step n1: Yes), the control unit 28 determines that the user can enter, and if the automatic ticket gate 1 is set as a dedicated device from the host device, the control unit 28 determines from the dedicated device. The setting information 61 is read, and as shown in FIG. 6D, the entrance-side light source 19a irradiates blue-lit irradiation light on the passage surface 3a on the entrance-side, and the exit-side light source 19b emits red-lit irradiation light on the exit side. The irradiation pattern is returned to the waiting pattern 61a (FIG. 3) that irradiates the passage surface 3b of the user, and the next user M1 is allowed to enter.

  When there is an abnormality in step n4 or step n7, the control unit 28 determines that the next user cannot enter, and the passage state irradiation unit 35 emits the abnormal patterns 61c and 62c (FIG. 3). Execute (step n8). At this time, as shown in FIG. 6E, the entrance-side light source 19a and the exit-side light source 19b both irradiate the flashing irradiation light on the entrance-side passage surface 3a and the exit-side passage surface 3b, respectively. This means that it is impossible to enter. Therefore, the next user M2 who is walking toward the automatic ticket gate 1 can immediately recognize that entry is impossible.

  The control unit 28 returns the process to step n8 until it detects the cancellation of the abnormality and continues the irradiation (step n9: No). If the cancellation of the abnormality can be detected, it determines that the user can enter and performs the process at step n2. Return (step n9: Yes), the process proceeds to the standby patterns 61a and 62a. This abnormality is canceled when the human detection unit 25 detects that the user M1 has returned to the entrance side from the ticket gate passage 3 after determining that the passage is impossible in the passage determination process, or when the internal device state abnormality has been resolved. Etc.

  With the above operation, when the user refuses to enter the ticket gate 3, that is, when there is an abnormality (passage determination or equipment state abnormality), the red irradiation light is applied to the entrance-side passage surface 3 a. Irradiate and notify the user that entry is impossible. Before the user approaches the automatic ticket gate 1, the user can visually recognize that the ticket gate passage 3 cannot be entered by looking at the red irradiation light widely irradiated on the entrance-side passage surface 3a. Therefore, the user can approach toward the automatic ticket gate 1 in the ticket gate passage 3 that can be entered among a plurality of automatic ticket gates 1 arranged in parallel. For this reason, it is possible to reduce the disturbance of the user's flow line, and to promote an orderly and smooth passage even when crowded.

  In addition, during the passage determination process, the acceptance of the storage medium 40 is temporarily suspended. At this time, since the blue flashing irradiation light is irradiated to the passage surface 3a on the entrance side, the user is in the process. Can be easily recognized, and if the processing is completed, it can be estimated that the next entry is possible. Therefore, the automatic ticket gate 1 can be used without confusion.

  In the case of a dedicated machine, the exit determination pattern 61a is set to emit blue flashing irradiation light on the exit side, but may be set to emit red flashing or red lighting irradiation light. In this case, it is possible to prevent the user on the exit side from misunderstanding that it is a dual-use machine type automatic ticket gate 1 that can enter in the opposite direction.

  Moreover, the position where the entrance-side light source 19a and the exit-side light source 19b are provided may be set near the upper part of the automatic ticket gate 1, for example, above the door 18, so that the irradiation light is irradiated downward from a high position. In this case, since the irradiation light can be irradiated to the surface of the passage including the user's waist instead of irradiating the irradiation light only to the user's feet, the user can more easily visually recognize the irradiation light. it can.

In correspondence between the configuration of the present invention and the above-described embodiment,
The gate device of the present invention corresponds to the automatic ticket gate 1 of the embodiment,
Similarly,
The passage corresponds to the ticket gate passage 3,
The user detection means corresponds to the human detection unit 25,
The irradiation means corresponds to the passage state irradiation unit 35,
The entry availability determination means corresponds to the control unit 28 that executes steps n1, n3, n4, n6, n7, n9,
The irradiation control means corresponds to the control unit 28 that executes steps n2, n5n, and n8.
The present invention is not limited only to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and many embodiments can be obtained.

The perspective view which shows the structure of an automatic ticket gate. The block diagram which shows the structure of an automatic ticket gate. Explanatory drawing of irradiation setting information. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of an automatic ticket gate. Explanatory drawing which shows irradiation of a dedicated machine. Explanatory drawing which shows irradiation of a dedicated machine.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Automatic ticket gate 3 ... Ticket gate passage 3a ... Entrance side passage surface 25 ... Human detection part 28 ... Control part 35 ... Passage state irradiation part 40 ... Storage medium

Claims (3)

A gate device that reads information from a storage medium possessed by a user and determines whether or not the user can pass based on the information,
Irradiating means for irradiating the entrance side passage surface with irradiation light;
An entry availability determination means for determining whether or not to enter the passage; and
A gate device comprising: an irradiation control unit that irradiates the irradiation unit with predetermined irradiation light when the entry determination unit determines that entry is impossible. The gate device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined irradiation light is configured by irradiation light having a color different from that irradiated when it is determined that entry is possible. User detection means for detecting a user passing through the passage,
The irradiation control means;
Irradiating the irradiation means if the user detection means is detecting a user who is passing or is in a state of determining whether to pass by reading information from a storage medium. Flashing light,
3. The gate device according to claim 1, wherein in other cases, the irradiation means is configured to irradiate the irradiation light with illumination light.

Images