JP2008134922A - Moving object terminal for position monitoring system moving object - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To secure monitoring of a moving object and to reduce the cost for system construction/operation in the system monitoring the movement of the moving object, by deriving the present position of the moving object by using positioning information in the Global Positioning System (GPS). <P>SOLUTION: The moving object terminal 20 is provided with a microcomputer 21, attached with a flash ROM21A to which a zone region is set beforehand; a GPS antenna 22 and a GPS receiver 23 for acquiring the position information; and a communications device 24 for communication with a base station 5, and the moving object terminal 20 is mounted to or attached to the moving object. The microcomputer determines whether the moving body is positioned inside the zone, based on the moving object position information from the GPS receiver and the zone region data set to the flash ROM. Then, the microcomputer notifies the result of the determination, etc., to the base station through the communicator, as necessary. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a moving body position monitoring system that obtains the current position of a moving body using positioning information of a global positioning system (GPS) and monitors the movement of the moving body with respect to a target range, and is particularly mounted on the moving body. The present invention relates to a mobile terminal to be mounted.

  This type of mobile object position monitoring system has been proposed as a system for remotely monitoring a mobile object that is operated for a long distance and a mobile object that is a person or animal whose current position is to be monitored by a base station (for example, Patent Document 1). reference).

  An example of the configuration of this moving body position monitoring system is shown in FIG. The mobile terminal 1 is mounted on or attached to a mobile body 2 such as a vehicle, and a GPS antenna and a GPS receiver provided with the positioning information emitted from three or more GPS satellites 3A, 3B, 3C. The current position is obtained by receiving the information, and the current position information is notified to the base station 5 using the communication line 4 such as a public line or the Internet. The base station 5 has map information in a database, zone (target coordinate range) data is set in advance, and the mobile station coordinates on the map are calculated from the current position information received from the mobile terminal 1, thereby calculating the inside of the zone. It is determined whether or not the mobile object is located at the mobile terminal, and this determination information is notified as event information (such as arrival of the mobile object) to the user's mobile phone (wireless terminal) or the monitor's personal computer via the communication line 4. .

The determination process of the mobile body position within and outside the zone at the base station is as shown in FIG. The zone is set as a circular area having a radius R from the center position coordinate (X, Y). For this zone setting, the position information of the moving body is notified as coordinates (x, y), and the distance L to the zone center at this time is calculated as follows:
L = √ {(Y−y) ² + (X−x) ² }
When the distance L is equal to or less than the radius R, it is determined that the position is within the zone. For example, when the moving body position is a coordinate (x1, y1) on the circumference of a circular area having a radius R from the center position coordinate (X, Y) of the zone, the distance L ₁ is
L ₁ = √ {(Y−y1) ² + (X−x1) ² } = R
Therefore, it can be determined that the coordinates (x1, y1) are located in the zone.

Further, as shown in FIG. 11B, the base station monitors the moving path of the moving body. For example, when the moving body moves along the path indicated by the arrow A, the time point when the moving body enters the zone (x2, Event information is transmitted at y2) and at the time of exit (x3, y3).
JP 2002-208096 A

  The conventional mobile body position monitoring system has the following problems in order to reliably monitor the mobile body and reduce the cost of system construction / operation.

  (1) If a mobile object is to be monitored at a relatively short time interval, the frequency of communication between the mobile terminal and the base station will increase, the communication cost will increase, and if the power supply of the mobile terminal is a battery, it will be consumed. I'll speed up. As a countermeasure against this, when monitoring is performed at a relatively long time interval, the determination process is not performed when the moving object reaches the zone, and the determination is made after the moving object has left the zone. (Monitoring failure).

  (2) The mobile terminal transmits the location information of the mobile unit to the base station, and the mobile terminal determines whether the mobile unit is located in a zone set by the base station. If the communication with the base station is interrupted for some reason (for example, deterioration of the wireless environment, communication line congestion, the base station is communicating with other mobile terminals, etc.) Monitoring fails.

  (3) The base station obtains the distance L when determining whether or not the mobile object is located in the zone. However, when the number of calculation steps is large and many mobile objects are monitored in a short cycle, However, the computation load of the base station becomes high. For this reason, the number of mobile units that can be monitored at the same time is limited, resulting in a system with low performance, or an expensive system with higher processing capacity than necessary.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a mobile terminal of a mobile body position monitoring system capable of reliably monitoring a mobile body and reducing the cost of system construction / operation.

  The present invention for solving the above-described problems is characterized by the following configuration.

(1) A mobile position monitoring system that obtains the current position of a moving body using positioning information of the global positioning system (GPS) and monitors the movement of the moving body with respect to a target range set as a zone area by a base station. A mobile terminal,
The mobile terminal includes a microcomputer with a non-volatile memory in which the zone area is set in advance, a GPS antenna and GPS receiver for acquiring position information, and a communication device for communication with a base station. Has or is mounted on or attached to a moving object,
The microcomputer includes means for determining whether or not the moving body is located in the zone from the moving body position information from the GPS receiver and the zone area data set in the nonvolatile memory; And a means for notifying the base station of the determination result or the like through the communication device as necessary.

  (2) The zone region is set as a center coordinate (X, Y) and a rectangle (square or rectangle) having a distance in the X and Y axis directions from the center coordinate.

(3) The zone area is provided with a rectangular zone area having two or more different sizes with respect to the same central coordinate (X, Y),
The determination by the microcomputer is characterized in that the determination frequency for the zone area located outside is lowered, and the determination frequency is increased for the zone area located inside.

(4) The zone area is provided with a different zone area size according to the distance between the current position and the target position,
When the distance between the current position of the moving body and the target position is long, the microcomputer performs a zone inside / outside determination based on a zone area that becomes a large area, and switches to a zone area that becomes a small area when reaching this zone. Means for determining inside / outside of the zone is provided.

(5) The mobile terminal is provided with a switch for driving an external device,
The microcomputer includes a determination as to whether the moving body is located in or outside the zone, and alarm means for determining whether the moving body is located in or outside the zone as a result of the determination.

  (6) When the microcomputer notifies the base station of determination results, etc. inside and outside the zone, when the communication with the base station becomes impossible, the microcomputer transmits necessary monitoring information among the subsequent processing information to the nonvolatile memory. It is characterized by comprising means for storing history information in a memory and transmitting the history information to the base station when communication with the base station becomes possible.

  (7) The microcomputer normally has means for shutting off the power of the GPS receiver, the communication device, and the display, and turning on the power of the device when these operations are required. It is characterized by having.

As described above, according to the present invention, whether or not the mobile object is located in the zone is determined by the mobile terminal, and when the mobile object is determined to be located in the zone, the determination is made inside or outside the zone. Since the result is notified to the base station as necessary, it is possible to reliably monitor the moving body and reduce the cost of system construction / operation. In particular,
(1) The communication cost can be reduced by reducing the frequency of communication with the base station and the amount of communication data.

  (2) The power consumption of the battery power source can be reduced by reducing the frequency of communication with the base station and the amount of communication data.

  (3) It is possible to reduce the load by reducing the determination process of the base station.

  (4) It is possible to monitor even when communication with the base station is interrupted for some reason (for example, communication line congestion, the base station is communicating with another mobile terminal, etc.).

  (5) By making the zone area rectangular, the number of steps for determining whether or not the moving body is located in the zone is small, and the calculation load can be reduced. In addition, a plurality of zone areas can be easily set.

  (6) The zone area is a rectangular zone area having two or more different sizes, and the discrimination frequency for the zone area on the outside is lowered, and the discrimination frequency for the zone area on the inside is increased, thereby moving the zone area. Detailed monitoring can be performed according to the distance between the body and the target position.

  (7) The zone area is a zone area whose size differs depending on the distance between the current position and the target position. When the distance between the current position and the target position of the mobile body is long, the zone area is a large area. By making a judgment inside and outside the zone and switching to a zone area that becomes a small area when reaching this zone, making a judgment inside and outside the zone, the advance notification is made early, and the target position is reached when approaching the target position It is possible to reliably notify that the time until is shortened.

  (8) By displaying the determination result of whether the moving body is located inside or outside the zone and the direction from the current position of the moving body to the zone on the display, the current position can be obtained without communicating with the base station. By notifying the vehicle driver or the like of the determination result of the inside or outside of the zone and the target direction, it is possible to support the presenting of the movement state and correction of movement (delay / advance correction, direction correction, etc.).

  (9) When communication with the base station becomes impossible, the microcomputer stores necessary monitoring information among subsequent processing information as history information in the nonvolatile memory, and can communicate with the base station. By transmitting these history information to the base station when it becomes, monitoring information during that time can be reliably obtained even when communication with the base station is impossible.

  (10) The microcomputer, the GPS receiver, the communication device, and the display are normally turned off, and the battery power supply is operated by turning on the power when these operations are required. Consumption can be reduced.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a mobile terminal showing an embodiment of the present invention. A mobile terminal 20 mounted on or mounted on a mobile body includes a microcomputer 21 having a processing function based on a software configuration described as a program in a ROM or the like, a flash ROM 21A in which zone areas are set in advance, and for acquiring position information. A GPS antenna 22 and a GPS receiver 23, a communication device 24 for communication with the base station 5, a numerical value or image display 25, and a battery power source 26 are provided. The device in which the zone area is set in advance is not limited to the flash ROM, but may be a non-volatile memory.

  In this configuration, whether or not the mobile object is located in the zone is determined by the base station 5 in the conventional system, whereas in the present embodiment, the determination process is performed by the mobile terminal 20 and the mobile object is in the zone. When it is determined that it is located inside, the determination result inside / outside the zone is notified to the base station 5 as necessary.

  Because of this functional configuration, at least one zone area is preset in the flash ROM 21A, and the microcomputer 21 has a moving body based on the position information of the moving body from the GPS receiver 23 and the zone area data set in the flash ROM 21A. An arithmetic function for determining whether or not the vehicle is located in the zone is provided.

  In this way, the mobile terminal 20 has a movement status determination function and performs a position determination operation autonomously, thereby reducing the frequency of communication with the base station 5 and the amount of communication data compared to the conventional system. To reduce communication costs, reduce battery power consumption, and reduce base station decision processing to reduce the load. In addition, an I / O circuit is provided in the mobile terminal, and when the mobile body is located inside the zone area, external devices (alarm buzzer, power switch, etc.) of the mobile body can be controlled by the I / O circuit. FIG. 2 shows an example of this. The external device switch 30 receives a control signal output from the microcomputer 21 when the moving body is located in the zone region, and generates a control output for turning on or off the external device 31. External devices include, for example, watering (sprinklers), oiling, chemical spraying, air sample collection, water sample collection for seawater, lake water, rivers, soil sample collection, food collection, temperature measuring instrument, humidity measuring instrument, There are various gas measuring instruments.

  Although the zone area can be set in advance in the mobile terminal, the mobile terminal can be used as a base station by using the fact that the flash ROM becomes a device that can be rewritten online (rewritten while the apparatus is operating). It is also possible to receive zone data from 5 and write it to the flash ROM. In addition, the zone area data on the base station side can be downloaded from a non-billing communication system such as a wireless LAN, RF-ID, memory card, etc. in addition to normal serial communication, reducing communication costs and reducing setting effort. Can be reduced.

  Next, in the determination process by the mobile terminal, in the conventional system, the zone area is set as a circular area having a radius R from the center position coordinate (X, Y), whereas in the present embodiment, a rectangular zone area and By doing so, the amount of calculation required for the microcomputer 21 is reduced.

  This calculation process will be described with reference to FIG. The zone area is a square (or a rectangle) having a distance a in the X and Y axis directions from the center position coordinates (X, Y). Assuming that the current position (x, y) of the moving body is the zone area, the following four additions / subtractions and determination of whether the magnitude comparison result is satisfied or not can be made. In comparison, the load on the microcomputer 21 can be reduced. In addition, when setting it as a rectangular zone area | region, it sets as the distance a to a long side, and the distance b to a short side.

(X−a) ≦ x, (X + a) ≧ x, (Y−a) ≦ y, (Y + a) ≧ y
FIG. 4 shows a basic processing flow mounted on the microcomputer 21 of the mobile terminal 20. The microcomputer 21 acquires the zone data X, Y, a from the flash ROM 21A (S1), checks whether or not the determination time is reached in a preset cycle (S2), and at the determination time, the GPS receiver 23 Current position information (x, y) is obtained from (S3), and the inside / outside zone determination of the moving body is performed from these data by the above addition / subtraction and magnitude comparison calculation (S4). Whether the calculation result is within or outside the zone is checked (S5), and if it is within the zone, the base station is notified (S6). In addition, the determination result or the like is displayed on the display unit 25 in both cases inside and outside the zone (S7).

  Further, the microcomputer 21 has a display function for displaying on the display 25 the determination result of whether the moving body is located in or outside the zone, the direction from the current position of the moving body to the zone, and the like. With this display function, in a system in which the mobile terminal 20 is mounted on a vehicle or a person, the vehicle driver or the like is informed of the determination result whether the current position is inside or outside the zone and the target direction without communicating with the base station 5. Thus, the movement status is presented and movement correction (delay / advance correction, direction correction, etc.) is supported.

(Embodiment 2)
In the first embodiment, the zone area is set as one rectangle. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5A, rectangular zone areas A and B having two different sizes with respect to the same central coordinate are provided, and the moving path of the moving body is shown in FIG. ) In the zone area A at the point c, the zone d in the zone area B at the point d, the zone area B at the point e, and the zone area A at the point f. Judge that it was missing. Here, the discriminating frequency is lowered for the zone region A that is on the outside, and the discriminating frequency is increased for the zone region B that is on the inside.

  FIG. 6 shows a processing flow of the microcomputer 21 in the present embodiment. The microcomputer 21 acquires the zone data (X, Y, a, X, Y, b) of the zone areas A and B (S11), and the current position obtained from the data of the zone area A and the GPS receiver 23 on the outside. The zone determination calculation is performed using the information (S12), and when the determination result is outside the zone area A, the processing is interrupted until the next determination time (S13). If it is determined that it is located in the zone area A, the determination result is displayed on the display 25, and a notification process is performed on the base station 5 as necessary (S14). In this case, the determination period for the zone region A is set to be relatively long, the determination frequency is lowered, the communication cost with the base station is unnecessary or suppressed, and the power consumption by the display is suppressed.

  Next, after determining that the zone is within the zone region A, the zone determination calculation is performed for the zone region B that is located inside (S15). When the determination result is outside the zone region B, the processing is suspended until the next determination time. If it is determined that it is located in the zone region B, zone determination is performed for the inner zone (S16), the determination result is displayed on the display unit 25, and the base station is notified by the communication device 24 (S17). In this case, the determination cycle for the zone region B is set to be relatively short so that the driver of the moving object and the base station can be accurately notified when the zone is located in the zone region B.

  According to the present embodiment, the determination frequency is reduced until the moving body moves into the target zone, and the determination frequency is increased as the moving object approaches, thereby enabling low power consumption, reducing computation resources, and communication cost. Can be suppressed.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, the zone areas are determined by setting zone areas A, B, and C having three kinds of sizes at the same central coordinate and changing the determination frequency for each of the zone areas. Processing can be performed. Such a zone area can be set only by adding zones of different sizes when the distance relationship between the moving object and the target position is given. As shown in FIG. Compared with the position coordinate setting by the zone area, the zone setting becomes easier and the number of calculation steps can be reduced.

(Embodiment 3)
In the first and second embodiments, the size of the zone area is fixed. In the present embodiment, the size of the zone area is variable according to the distance between the current position and the target position.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the current position is at point a and movement starts and the target position (X, Y) is set, and the distance from the current position to the target position is long The zone A1 in the large area is judged inside / outside the zone, and at the time point b when the zone A1 is reached, the zone A1 is changed from the previous zone A1 to the zone A2 in the small area to judge inside / outside the zone.

  FIG. 9 shows a processing flow of the microcomputer 21 in this embodiment. Whether the setting of the zone area is fixed or variable is checked (S21), and if variable, the distance between the current position and the target position is checked (S22). The zone area A1 that becomes a large area is selected when it is far (S23), and the zone area A2 that becomes a small area is selected when it is close (S24), and the selected zone area A1 or A2 is used in the first embodiment. Similarly, the zone data of the zone area is acquired from the flash ROM (S23 ′, S24 ′), the inside / outside zone determination processing is performed (S25), and if the determination result is not within the zone area A2, the process returns to S22 to return to the zone Region selection and determination are repeated (S26).

  According to the present embodiment, when the target position is far from the current position, a wide zone is set, and when the target position is close, a narrow zone is set, so that the advance notification is made early and the target position is reached when the target position is approached. It is possible to reliably notify that the time until is shortened.

  In the present embodiment, the case where one zone is set is shown. However, as in the second embodiment, setting two or more zone regions at the same center coordinate is more effective.

(Embodiment 4)
In this embodiment, when the microcomputer 21 notifies the base station of the determination result etc. inside and outside the zone, when the communication with the base station 5 becomes impossible for some reason, the microcomputer 21 is necessary among the subsequent processing information. Monitoring information is stored in the flash ROM 21A as history information, and the history information is transmitted to the base station 5 when communication with the base station 5 becomes possible.

  As a result, even when communication with the base station 5 is interrupted due to deterioration of the radio environment, traffic congestion or the like, monitoring information during that time can be obtained from the base station to enable reliable monitoring.

(Embodiment 5)
In the present embodiment, the GPS receiver 23, the communication device 24, and the display device 25 are turned off during normal operation, and are operated by turning on the power of the device when these operations are required. Reduce the consumption of the battery power supply 26. This power control is realized by controlling the power switch from the microcomputer 21 via the I / O.

  For example, the microcomputer 21 is always operated, and when the current position is far from the target position, the GPS receiver 23 is intermittently operated at a relatively long period to acquire position information, and approaches the target position. In this case, the GPS receiver 23 is operated intermittently or continuously in a short cycle to obtain the inside / outside zone determination.

  Further, the communication device 24 and the display device 25 are turned on to obtain their operations only when the operations are required.

The block diagram of the mobile terminal in this invention. The block diagram of the mobile terminal in this invention. Explanatory drawing of the zone area | region in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The basic processing flow which shows Embodiment 1 of this invention. Explanatory drawing of zone area | region A, B and a movement in Embodiment 2 of this invention. The basic processing flow which shows Embodiment 2 of this invention. Explanatory drawing of zone area | region A, B, C and movement in Embodiment 2 of this invention. Explanatory drawing of zone area | region A1, A2 and movement in Embodiment 3 of this invention. The basic processing flow which shows Embodiment 3 of this invention. The block diagram of a mobile body position monitoring system. Explanatory drawing of the zone area | region and movement in a conventional system.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mobile terminal 2 Mobile 3A, 3B, 3C GPS satellite 4 Communication line 5 Base station 20 Mobile terminal 21 Microcomputer 22 GPS antenna 23 GPS receiver 24 Communication device 25 Display 26 Battery power supply 30 Switch for external device 31 External apparatus

Claims (7)

A mobile terminal of a mobile position monitoring system that obtains the current position of a mobile body using positioning information of a global positioning system (GPS) and monitors the movement of the mobile body with respect to a target range set as a zone area. ,
The mobile terminal includes a microcomputer with a non-volatile memory in which the zone area is set in advance, a GPS antenna and GPS receiver for acquiring position information, and a communication device for communication with a base station. Has or is mounted on or attached to a moving object,
The microcomputer includes means for determining whether or not the moving body is located in the zone from the moving body position information from the GPS receiver and the zone area data set in the nonvolatile memory; A mobile terminal of the mobile position monitoring system, comprising means for notifying a determination result or the like to the base station through the communication device as necessary.   The moving zone position according to claim 1, wherein the zone area is set as a center coordinate (X, Y) and a rectangle (square or rectangle) having a distance in the X and Y axis directions from the center coordinate. Mobile terminal for surveillance system. The zone area is provided with a rectangular zone area having two or more different sizes with respect to the same central coordinate (X, Y),
3. The mobile position monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein in the determination by the microcomputer, the determination frequency of the zone region that is on the outside is lowered, and the determination frequency is increased in the zone region that is on the inside. Mobile terminal. The zone area is provided with different zone areas according to the distance between the current position and the target position,
When the distance between the current position of the moving body and the target position is long, the microcomputer performs a zone inside / outside determination based on a zone area that becomes a large area, and switches to a zone area that becomes a small area when reaching this zone. The mobile terminal of the mobile body position monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising means for determining inside and outside the zone. The mobile terminal is provided with a switch for driving an external device,
5. The microcomputer according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising an alarm means for determining whether the moving body is located in or outside the zone and, as a result of the determination, whether the moving body is located in or outside the zone. A mobile terminal of the mobile body position monitoring system according to claim 1.   When the microcomputer notifies the base station of determination results, etc. inside / outside of the zone, when the communication with the base station becomes impossible, the microcomputer records a history of necessary monitoring information in the non-volatile memory. 6. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for storing the history information as information and transmitting the history information to the base station when communication with the base station becomes possible. A mobile terminal of the mobile position monitoring system described.   The microcomputer has means for shutting off the power of the GPS receiver, the communication device, and the display at normal times and turning on the power of the device at the time when these operations are required. The mobile terminal of the mobile body position monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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