JP2012221793A - Signal lamp control device, device for creating data for signal light control, and programs therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a signal lamp consisting of a plurality of cells that emits the light of different colors by the same control signal or the light of color according to different control signals.SOLUTION: A setting file FL set for a signal light that includes a plurality of LEDs of different lighting colors in each cell is stored in a flash ROM 14. By the setting file FL, the cell and the lighting color are individually associated with each one of a plurality of control signals given from the outside for making the cell emit light. By replacing the lighting color in the setting file FL with a combination of an LED corresponding to the lighting color based on a conversion table creating section 411, a conversion table TBL that specifies an LED to be turned on in a cell corresponding to a control signal is created and stored in a memory 13. In relation to the control signal from the outside, an I/O control section 412 controls inside I/O so as to turn on an LED that is specified in a cell corresponding to the control signal by referring to the conversion table TBL.

Description

  The present invention relates to a stack type signal lamp control device capable of easily changing an emission color, a device for creating signal light control data, and a program thereof.

  In general, a signal lamp is well known as means for notifying the operating status of the apparatus. As a signal lamp, a stacked type signal lamp in which a plurality of light emitting portions having different emission colors are stacked is widely used.

  Lighting of such a signal lamp is controlled by a control signal supplied from a control device such as a programmable logic controller (PLC) that controls the device. Usually, a plurality of control signals are prepared, and a light emitting unit corresponding to each control signal is caused to emit light in the emission color of the light emitting unit. Since the user gives a unique meaning to the emission color of the light emitting unit, the user wants to use a signal lamp in which the light emitting unit is arranged accordingly. For example, when the uppermost light emitting unit emits red light when an abnormality occurs in the device, control between the control device and the signal lamp is performed so that a control signal output when the abnormality occurs in the device is given to the light emitting unit. Connect the signal wiring.

  However, in the above-mentioned stacked type signal lamp, the arrangement of the light emitting unit is fixed such that the upper part is a red light emitting part, the middle part is a yellow light emitting part, and the lower part is a green light emitting part. The position of the light emitting part (light emission color) cannot be changed in accordance with. In addition, the emission color itself cannot be changed to a completely different emission color.

  Therefore, in order to meet such a user's request, the manufacturer of the signal lamp needs to manufacture a signal lamp with a different arrangement of the light emitting units and keep it in stock. Further, such a signal lamp may not correspond to a new control signal when the control signal is different from that before the replacement by replacing the control device after introduction.

  As a signal lamp that solves the above inconvenience, there is a signal lamp in which a plurality of LEDs having different lighting colors are incorporated in one unit (Patent Document 1). Such a signal lamp is based on the premise that the unit is used alone, but since one unit emits light in different colors, it can be configured as a stacked signal lamp by providing a laminated connection structure. In such a signal lamp, it is possible to change the emission color of the units in each layer without changing the arrangement of the units.

JP 2000-353401 A (released on December 19, 2000)

  Since the signal lamp described in Patent Document 1 uses a single unit independently, the lighting state of each LED may be controlled when changing the lighting color. However, when a plurality of such units are combined to form a stacked signal lamp, it is necessary to individually control the lighting of the LEDs of each unit.

  For this reason, when changing the light emission state of each unit arbitrarily, the lighting control of LED becomes complicated. For example, in order to notify the operating status of the same device, when the light emission state of each unit is changed by the same control signal according to the situation, it is necessary to change the connection of the control signal wiring to each unit. is there. Further, when the control signal changes as described above, a desired light emission state corresponding to the control signal cannot be obtained. In order to eliminate such inconvenience, it is necessary to change the connection of the above wiring to each unit.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to cause a signal lamp composed of a plurality of cells to emit light with different emission colors by the same control signal, or to emit light according to different control signals. It is an object of the present invention to provide a signal light control device that can emit light with colors.

  The signal lamp control device according to the present invention includes a plurality of LEDs having different lighting colors, and a signal lamp that controls lighting of the LEDs in a signal lamp in which a plurality of light emitting layers emitting light having a light emission color determined by a combination of the LEDs to be lighted are stacked. A control device, comprising: energization means for energizing the LED; and setting information in which the light emitting layer and the emission color are individually associated with each of a plurality of control signals given from the outside in order to cause the light emitting layer to emit light. The lighting information for specifying the LED to be lit in the light emitting layer corresponding to the control signal is created by replacing the light emitting color in the setting information with the combination corresponding to the light emitting color. Lighting information creating means, and based on the lighting information, the LED to be turned on corresponding to the control signal inputted It is characterized in that it comprises a current supply control means for controlling the energization means to electricity.

  In the above configuration, the lighting information is created by the lighting information creating unit replacing the corresponding light emission color in the setting information based on the setting information stored in the storage unit. The LED to be lit in the light emitting layer corresponding to the control signal is specified by the lighting information.

  For example, it is assumed that the control signals are three signals specified by No. 1, No. 1, and No. 2, and the light emitting layers are three layers (first to third light emitting layers). In addition, the first to third light emitting layers emit light of “red”, “yellow”, and “green”, respectively. In this case, in the setting information, the control signals of No. 0, No. 1, and No. 2 are individually associated with the first to third emission layers and the emission colors of “red”, “yellow”, and “green”, respectively. Suppose that it is set to be able to. Each light emitting layer is assumed to have LEDs of three colors of R, G, and B. In this case, the above-mentioned emission colors “red”, “yellow”, and “green” are replaced by combinations of R, R, G, and G LEDs (see FIG. 7B) by the lighting information creation unit. .

  When a control signal is input in a state where the lighting information is created, the energization control unit controls the energization unit to turn on the LED to be lit corresponding to the control signal based on the lighting information. Then, the LED to be lit is energized by the energizing means and is lit.

  For example, when the R and G LEDs are specified by the lighting information to cause the second light emitting layer to emit “yellow” with respect to the first control signal, the R and G of the second light emitting layer are specified. LED lights up.

  The signal lamp control program of the present invention is a signal lamp control program for causing a computer to function as the lighting information creating means and the energization control means in the signal light control device.

  In this way, the signal lamp can be controlled by software by causing the computer to read and execute the signal lamp control program. Thereby, control of a signal lamp can be easily changed by changing setting information suitably.

  The signal light control data creation device of the present invention is a signal light control data creation device for creating the setting information used in the signal light control device, wherein the light emitting layer and the light emission color are respectively added to a plurality of the control signals. It is characterized by comprising user interface providing means for providing a user interface associated with each.

  In the above configuration, the light emitting layer and the light emission color can be associated with the control signal using the user interface provided by the user interface providing means. Thereby, it is possible to easily create the setting information by the user using the signal light control data creation device.

  The signal light control data creation program of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to function as the user interface providing means in the signal light control data creation device.

  As described above, the setting information can be created by software by causing the computer to read and execute the signal lamp control data creation program. Thereby, creation of setting information by a user can be performed easily.

  Since the signal lamp control device according to the present invention is configured as described above, a signal lamp composed of a plurality of cells is caused to emit light with different emission colors by the same control signal, or with emission colors according to different control signals. It can be made to emit light. Therefore, it is not necessary to construct a control system for generating a special control signal by the user, and the light emission of the signal lamp can be easily controlled using a control signal provided from a control device such as an existing PLC. There is an effect.

It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the signal lamp which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows a partial structure of the said signal lamp. It is a front view which shows the structure of the LED board attached to the said signal lamp. It is a front view which expands and shows a part of structure of the other LED board attached to the said signal lamp. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control circuit which controls the said signal lamp. It is a figure which shows the color code showing the relationship between the color which can be light-emitted with the said signal lamp, and the lighting color (R, G, B) of LED. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the setting file of the light emission example 1 memorize | stored in flash ROM in the said control circuit, (b) is the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file developed by the memory in the said control circuit. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control part implement | achieved in the said control circuit. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of PC which produces the setting file utilized with the said control circuit. It is a figure which shows the structure of the setting file preparation window which the setting file preparation part which the said PC has provides as a user interface. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the said setting file of the light emission example 2, (b) is a figure which shows the structure of the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the said setting file of the light emission example 3, (b) is a figure which shows the structure of the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the said setting file of the light emission example 4, (b) is a figure which shows the structure of the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the said setting file of the light emission example 5, (b) is a figure which shows the structure of the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the said setting file of the light emission example 6, (b) is a figure which shows the structure of the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file. (A) is a figure which shows the structure of the said setting file of the light emission example 7, (b) is a figure which shows the structure of the conversion table corresponding to the said setting file. (A)-(g) is a figure which shows the light emission example of each cell in the said signal lamp.

  One embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to FIGS.

[1. (Configuration of signal light)
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the signal lamp 1 is configured by a globe 2 and a base housing 3 in appearance.

[1-1. (Glove structure)
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the globe 2 is a cover formed in a cylindrical shape, and is configured by joining the divided bodies 21 and 22. The divided bodies 21 and 22 are made of resin or the like.

  The globe 2 is not limited to a cylindrical shape, and may be a rectangular tube shape.

  Further, the inside of the globe 2 is partitioned by a light shielding plate 23 at a predetermined interval. In the globe 2, the space defined by the light shielding plate 23 forms cells CL <b> 1 to CL <b> 12 (light emitting layer) in the signal lamp 1. Thereby, the signal lamp 1 has a structure in which a plurality of cells CL1 to CL12 are stacked.

  In addition, about the cells CL1-CL12, the code | symbol "CL" is used when explaining a common matter. In the following description, a case where the number of cells CL is 12 will be described.

  The light shielding plate 23 is assembled by fitting into the globe 2 so as to shield the light emitted from the LEDs 7 arranged in each cell CL so as not to enter the adjacent cell CL. Since the surface of the light shielding plate 23 is made of a reflective material, the light emitted from the LED 7 can be reflected and diffused to the outside. The light shielding plate 23 is configured by joining the semicircular plates 24 and 25.

  The semicircular plates 24 and 25 have cutout recesses 24a and 25a at the edge portions on the respective joining sides. The recesses 24a and 25a form a rectangular hole in the central portion of the light shielding plate 23 in a state where the semicircular plates 24 and 25 are joined. This hole is used for arranging and holding the LED substrate 4.

[1-2. Base housing structure
As shown in FIG. 1, the base housing 3 is a basic portion that supports the globe 2 and is formed in a cylindrical shape by resin or the like. A control board 5 is disposed on the bottom surface in the base housing 3. The control board 5 is a board on which a control circuit 11 (see FIG. 5) described later is mounted.

[1-3. LED board structure and arrangement]
As shown in FIG. 3, the LED board 4 includes a printed wiring board 6 and a plurality of LEDs 7. The printed wiring board 6 is formed in a long rectangular shape, and LEDs 7 are mounted on both sides.

  The LED 7 is a surface mount type (chip type) LED. The LEDs 7 are dispersed and mounted on the LED substrate 4 so as to be located in each cell CL of the globe 2. Specifically, the LEDs 7 having different lighting colors are arranged on the LED substrate 4 at positions corresponding to the respective cells CL. As a result, each cell CL has a plurality of LEDs 7.

  In the following description, a case where LEDs of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) are provided as LEDs 7 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the LED board 4 may be mounted with a bullet-type LED 8 instead of the surface-mounted LED 7. Each LED 8 is soldered to the printed wiring board 6 so that the LED 8 is disposed in a through hole 6 a formed in the printed wiring board 6. Hereinafter, an example using the LED 7 will be described, but it goes without saying that the signal lamp 1 of the present embodiment functions similarly even if the LED 8 is used.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the LED substrate 4 is held by the light shielding plates 23 by being sandwiched between the recesses 24 a and 25 a by the semicircular plates 24 and 25. In this way, the LED substrate 4 is disposed in the globe 2.

  In addition, about the arrangement | positioning structure in the globe 2 of the LED board 4, it is not limited to said example.

[1-4. Configuration of control circuit)
As shown in FIG. 5, the control circuit 11 (signal lamp control device) divides the cells CL1 to CL12 into groups set in advance, and lightings designated for each group based on a control signal from the outside. The lighting of the color LED 7 is controlled. In order to realize this control function, the control circuit 11 includes a CPU 12, a memory 13, a flash ROM 14, an internal I / O 15, a memory card interface ("memory card I / F" in the figure) 16, a USB-UART converter 17 and an external device. I / O18 is provided. The control circuit 11 controls lighting of the LEDs 7 in the cell CL based on a control signal from a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) 31.

[1-4-1. Configuration of PLC]
The PLC 31 is a control device that controls the device 34 for which the signal lamp 1 displays the operation status, and changes the value of the control signal according to the operation status of the device 34. A plurality of control signals are prepared, and each takes a binary value of “1” (active) for causing the cell CL to emit light and “0” (inactive) for preventing the cell CL to emit light. A plurality of signal lines for transmitting each control signal and one signal line for ground are individually wired between the PLC 31 and the signal lamp 1 (control circuit 11).

  The signal line for the control signal is provided according to the maximum control signal that the PLC 31 can output. When three control signals of No. 0, No. 1, and No. 2 described later are used, at least three signal lines for control signals are required.

[1-4-2. Configuration file and conversion table configuration]
Next, the setting file FL and conversion table TBL handled by the CPU 12 will be described.

  First, as can be seen from the color code shown in FIG. 6, the colors that can be expressed by the light emission of the R, G, and B LEDs 7 are seven colors (lighting) of red, green, blue, yellow, purple, light blue, and white, and colorless. 8 colors consisting of (non-lighting). In the color code, “0” represents the off state of the LED 7 and “1” represents the on state of the LED 7.

  The above color code is stored in the above-described storage area built in the CPU 12 described later, for example.

<setting file>
The setting file FL (setting information) associates each cell CL and the light emission color with each of the above control signals. With this setting file FL, when the value of the corresponding control signal is “1”, the cell CL and the emission color corresponding to the control signal are specified. For example, in the setting file FL shown in FIG. 7A, three control signals 0, 1, and 2 are prepared as control signals. In this setting file FL, the cells CL1 to CL4 and “red” emission color are set in the control signal No. 0, and the cells CL5 to CL8 and “yellow” emission color are set in the No. 1 control signal. In the control signal, the cells CL9 to CL12 and the emission color of “green” are set.

<Conversion table>
The conversion table TBL is a table that is created based on the setting file FL and associates the control signal from the PLC 31 with the LED 7 that is lit in the cell CL corresponding to the control signal. In other words, the conversion table TBL converts the value of “1” of the control signal into the lighting state (whether or not lighting) of the LED 7 in the corresponding cell CL. Therefore, when a control signal is input, the conversion table TBL outputs a lighting state for the cell CL corresponding to the control signal when the value is “1”.

  As shown in FIG. 7B, in the conversion table TBL, “1” indicates that the LED 7 is lit, and “0” indicates that the LED 7 is not lit. This conversion table TBL is created based on the setting file FL shown in FIG. In the conversion table TBL, the control signals (“1”) of No. 0, No. 1, and No. 2 respectively turn on the R LEDs 7 of the cells CL1 to CL4 and the R and G LEDs 7 of the cells CL5 to CL8. And the lighting of the G LED 7 in the cells CL9 to CL12.

[1-4-3. CPU configuration]
The CPU 12 has the following functions (1) to (4).
(1) Memory Control As shown in FIG. 5, the CPU 12 controls writing and reading of the memory 13 and the flash ROM 14. In particular, the CPU 12 reads the setting file FL described above from the memory card 32 via the memory card interface 16 and writes it to the flash ROM 14. Alternatively, the CPU 12 acquires the setting file FL from the PC (personal computer) 33 via the USB-UART converter 17 and writes it in the flash ROM 14. Further, the CPU 12 writes the conversion table TBL created as described later in the memory 13.
(2) Communication control The CPU 12 controls communication with an external device. Specifically, the CPU 12 controls communication with the PC 33 via the USB-UART converter 17 and communication with the PLC 31 via the external I / O 18.
(3) I / O control The CPU 12 controls the operation of the internal I / O 15 in order to control the turning on and off of the LED 7. This I / O control function will be described in detail later as a control function (a control unit 41 (see FIG. 8) described later) realized by the CPU 12 executing a control program.
(4) Creation of Conversion Table The CPU 12 creates a conversion table TBL based on the setting file FL stored in the flash ROM 14 and stores the conversion table TBL in the memory 13. The function of creating the conversion table TBL will be described later in detail as a control function (a control unit 41 described later) realized by the CPU 12 executing a control program.

[1-4-4. Configuration of memory and flash ROM]
The memory 13 is provided for developing the conversion table TBL. The memory 13 is used as a work area when the CPU 12 performs various processes.

  The flash ROM 14 (storage means) is provided for storing the setting file FL. After the setting file FL is stored in the flash ROM 14, the memory card 32 and the PC 33 may be disconnected from the control circuit 11.

  Since the data size of the setting file FL is small, even if a CPU having a nonvolatile storage area (EPROM area or flash ROM small area) is used as the CPU 12, the setting file FL is stored in the storage area. Good. Thereby, it is not necessary to separately provide the flash ROM 14, and the cost of the signal lamp 1 can be reduced.

[1-4-5. Internal I / O configuration]
The internal I / O 15 (energization means) is a circuit that switches between energization and non-energization of the LED 7 under the control of the CPU 12 (control unit 41). Specifically, the internal I / O 15 has the same number of transistors as the LEDs 7 in order to connect and disconnect each LED 7 and a power supply circuit (not shown). Each transistor turns the transistor ON / OFF by an ON / OFF control signal given from the CPU 12 (control unit 41).

[1-4-6. (Memory card interface configuration)
The memory card interface 16 is a reader / writer that reads data from the memory card 32 and writes data to the memory card 32. Examples of the memory card 32 that can be read and written by the memory card interface 16 include an SD card (registered trademark) and a CF card (registered trademark).

  When the setting file FL stored in the memory card 32 is read into the flash ROM 14 by the memory card interface 16, a different setting file FL may be stored for each memory card 32. Thereby, the setting file FL can be changed only by exchanging the memory card 32.

  Further, by storing the setting file FL in the memory card 32, the generated setting file FL can be read by the control circuit 11 even when the setting file FL is generated by the PC 33 located away from the signal lamp 1.

[1-4-7. Configuration of USB-UART converter]
The USB-UART converter 17 is a circuit that converts a USB signal from the PC 33 into an asynchronous serial signal. By using the USB-UART converter 17, the signal lamp 1 can be provided with a USB port, and generally communication with the PC 33 having the USB port is facilitated. Therefore, the setting file FL created by the PC 33 can be transferred to the control circuit 11 via the USB cable.

[1-4-8. Configuration of external I / O]
The external I / O 18 is an I / O that performs communication with the PLC 31, and transfers the control signal input from the PLC 31 to the CPU 12. A control signal is input to each input port of the external I / O 18 and is captured by the CPU 12. The external I / O 18 and the PLC 31 are connected by a plurality of signal lines for transmitting a plurality of control signals, respectively, and a single signal line for ground.

[1-4-9. Configuration of control unit]
As shown in FIG. 8, the control unit 41 represents a control function realized by the CPU 12 executing a control program as a block. The control unit 41 includes a conversion table creation unit 411 and an I / O control unit 412.

[1-4-9 (a). Configuration of conversion table creation unit]
The conversion table creation unit 411 (lighting information creation unit) reads the setting file FL from the flash ROM 14 and converts the conversion table TBL based on the correspondence between the cell CL and the emission color for the control signal set in the setting file FL. Create Specifically, the conversion table creation unit 411 replaces the emission color in the above association with a combination of R, G, and B LEDs 7 corresponding to the emission color with reference to the color code described above. Thereby, the conversion table creation unit 411 creates a conversion table TBL (lighting information) that identifies the LED to be lit in the cell CL corresponding to the control signal. Further, when the control signal “1” is input, the conversion table creation unit 411 outputs the lighting state of the LED 7 in the cell CL corresponding to the control signal, and when the control signal “0” is input, The conversion table TBL is configured not to output the lighting state of the LED 7 in the cell CL corresponding to the control signal.

  The conversion table creation unit 411 writes the conversion table TBL created in this way into the memory 13.

[1-4-9 (b). Configuration of I / O control unit]
The I / O control unit 412 (energization control means) controls ON / OFF of the transistors in the internal I / O 15 with reference to the conversion table TBL based on the control signal from the PLC 31 as follows. Specifically, the I / O control unit 412 takes in the values of the control signals of No. 0, No. 1 and No. 2 input from the PLC 31 to the external I / O 18 into the register of the CPU 12. Further, the I / O control unit 412 gives the value of each captured control signal as an input value to the conversion table TBL, and outputs an ON / OFF control signal based on the lighting state of the LED 7 output corresponding to the input value. Output.

  For example, when the control signals of No. 0, No. 1, and No. 2 are “1”, “0”, and “0”, respectively, they correspond to the No. 0 control signal in the conversion table TBL shown in FIG. A lighting state is output to the cells CL1 to CL4. On the other hand, the lighting state is not output to the cells CL5 to CL8 and the cells CL9 to CL12 corresponding to the first and second control signals. In this case, the I / O control unit 412 gives an ON / OFF control signal to the internal I / O 15 so that only the R LEDs 7 of the cells CL1 to CL4 are turned on.

[1-4-9 (c). Realization form of control unit]
Program codes (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of a control program (signal lamp control program) for realizing the control unit 41 configured as described above are stored in a predetermined area such as a program storage area in the CPU 12 in advance. Has been. Alternatively, the program code may be downloaded via the network if the control circuit 11 is configured to be able to communicate with the network.

  This network is not limited to the Internet or a LAN, and an intranet or an extranet can be used. In addition, ISDN (integrated services digital network), VAN (value-added network), CATV (community antenna television) communication network, virtual private network, telephone line network, mobile communication network, satellite communication A net or the like is also available. Further, the transmission medium constituting the network is not particularly limited. For example, IEEE (institute of electrical and electronic engineers) 1394, USB, power line carrier, cable TV line, telephone line, ADSL (asynchronous digital subscriber loop) line, etc. It may be wired. Alternatively, the transmission medium may be an infrared ray such as IrDA or a remote controller. Further, as a wireless traditional medium, Bluetooth (registered trademark), 802.11 wireless, HDR (high data rate), satellite line, terrestrial digital network, and the like can be used.

  However, when the control program is downloaded from the network in this way, the download program may be stored in the control circuit 11 in advance, or may be installed from another recording medium.

[2. PC configuration]
The PC 33 is a general-purpose personal computer and can have a function of creating a setting file FL. The function of creating the setting file FL is provided as an application program and is installed in the PC 33, whereby the PC 33 can be operated as a signal light control data creation device. Hereinafter, the configuration of the PC 33 will be described in detail.

  9, the PC 33 includes a setting file creation unit 331, a memory 332, a storage device 333, a USB interface (indicated by “USB I / F” in the figure) 334, and a memory card interface (in the figure). 335) (indicated by “memory card I / F”).

[2-1. Configuration of the configuration file creation unit]
The setting file creation unit 331 (user interface providing unit) creates the setting file FL by associating the cell CL and the emission color with the control signal described above based on information given by the user. The setting file creation unit 331 provides, for example, a setting file creation window 101 as shown in FIG. 10 as a user interface in order to support input of information by the user.

  The user interface is not limited to the setting file creation window 101 described below, and other user interfaces may be used.

[2-1-1. Configuration of the configuration file creation window]
The setting file creation window 101 has a setting matrix 103.

  The setting matrix 103 has a matrix-like input field 103a composed of rows corresponding to the cells CL1 to CL12 and columns corresponding to the control signals. In the input field 103a, a setting box 103b is provided at a portion where the above-described row and column intersect. The setting matrix 103 enables, for example, settings for six control signals of No. 0, No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, and No. 5 as control signals, but the number of control signals is limited to this. Not.

  The number of control signals is the maximum number of control signals that the PLC 31 can output. Therefore, which control signal is used is arbitrarily determined by the user. FIG. 10 shows an example using control signals of No. 0, No. 1, and No. 2.

  The setting matrix 103 is configured to set the emission color of the cell CL in each of the setting boxes 103b. Specifically, each setting box 103b is configured by a list box so that one can be selected from the light emission colors (previously described eight colors) of the cell CL. Thereby, the cell CL and the emission color can be associated with the control signal.

  Although not shown, for example, a button for designating any of the control signals may be prepared in the setting file creation window 101. Thereby, the setting in the setting matrix 103 can be received only for the control signal designated by the user.

  As described above, the setting file creation window 101 is configured so that each cell CL and emission color can be individually associated with each of a plurality of control signals prepared in advance. In addition, it can be said that the setting matrix 103 visualizes the correspondence in the setting file FL in an easy-to-understand manner for the user. Thereby, the user can easily set the emission color for the control signal and the cell CL.

  When an operation for saving a setting file is performed by the user, the setting file creation unit 331 determines the correspondence between the control signal set by the setting file creation window 101 and the emission color, and stores the setting file FL including these. Save to device 333. Furthermore, the setting file creation unit 331 transmits the setting file FL read from the storage device 333 to the control circuit 11 via the USB interface 334 or writes it to the memory card 32 via the memory card interface 335 as necessary. To do.

[2-1-2. Realization form of setting file creation unit]
The setting file creation unit 331 configured as described above is realized by executing the application program (signal lamp control data creation program) on the CPU as described above. Program codes (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of this application program are stored in a predetermined area such as the storage device 333 in advance. Alternatively, the program code can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium configured to be separable from the PC 33. The program code may be installed in the PC 33 from the recording medium.

  As the recording medium, for example, a tape-type, disk-type, or semiconductor memory-type medium can be used. As the tape medium, a magnetic tape, a cassette tape or the like is used. Magnetic disk media include magnetic disks such as floppy (registered trademark) disks / hard disks. In addition, optical disc media are optical discs such as CD-ROM (compact disc read-only memory) / MO (magneto-optical) / MD (mini disc) / DVD (digital versatile disk) / CD-R (CD recordable). including. The semiconductor memory medium includes a card medium such as an IC card (including a memory card) / optical card. Semiconductor memory media include mask ROM / EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory) / EEPROM (electrically erasable and programmable read-only memory) / flash ROM.

  Alternatively, the program code may be downloaded via the network if the PC 33 is configured to be able to communicate with the network. As this network, the above-described various networks for downloading the program code of the control program for realizing the control unit 41 can be used.

[3. (Signal lamp operation)
Next, the lighting operation of the signal lamp 1 configured as described above will be described.

[3-1. (Create conversion table)
First, the setting file FL read from the memory card 32 or the PC 33 is written to the flash ROM 14 of the control circuit 11. In this state, the conversion table creation unit 411 creates a conversion table TBL as shown in FIG. 7B with reference to each piece of information set in the setting file FL stored in the flash ROM 14. The conversion table TBL is written into the memory 13 by the conversion table creation unit 411.

  For example, for the cells CL1 to CL4, the cells CL5 to CL8, and the cells CL9 to CL12, the control signals of No. 0, No. 1, and No. 2, and the emission colors of “red”, “yellow”, and “green”, respectively. Is defined in the setting file FL. In this case, in the conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 7B, the lighting state of the LED 7 in each cell CL with respect to the control signal is defined based on the association.

[3-2. External I / O control]
When a control signal is input from the PLC 31 to the control circuit 11 via the external I / O 18, the values of the 0th, 1st and 2nd control signals are taken into the register of the CPU 12 by the I / O control unit 412. In this state, when a control signal that is “1” is input to the conversion table TBL in the memory 13 by the I / O control unit 412, the lighting state of the cell CL corresponding to the control signal is output from the conversion table TBL. The Then, the I / O control unit 412 outputs an ON / OFF control signal to the internal I / O 15 so that the LED 7 corresponding to the lighting state is turned on in the cell CL that is the output target of the lighting state. In the internal I / O 15, the transistor corresponding to the LED 7 to be lit is turned on in response to the ON / OFF control signal. Thereby, LED7 matched with the control signal by the conversion table TBL lights.

[3-3. Example of cell emission)
Several examples of light emission of the signal lamp 1 configured and operating as described above will be described.

<Light emission example 1>
In the light emission example 1, the setting file FL shown in FIG. 7A is used. In this setting file FL, the cells CL1 to CL4 and the emission color “red” are associated with the 0th control signal, and the cells CL5 to CL8 and the emission color “yellow” are associated with the 1st control signal. The cells are associated with the cells CL9 to CL12 and the emission color “green”.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 7B is created based on the setting file FL. In this conversion table TBL and other conversion tables TBL described later, a combination of the control signal and the LED 7 to be lit is associated with each cell CL. Therefore, by using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, when the control signal No. 0 is “1”, the cells CL1 to CL4 emit light in “red”, and when the control signal No. 1 is “1”, the cells CL5 to CL8 are “yellow”. ", And when the second control signal is" 1 ", the cells CL9 to CL12 emit" green ".

In this light emission example, four adjacent cells CL emit light of the same color. Thereby, the signal lamp 1 can be used as a signal lamp of three layers (three colors).
<Light emission example 2>
In the light emission example 2, the setting file FL shown in FIG. 11A is used. In this setting file FL, the cells CL9 to CL12 and the emission color “red” are associated with the control signal No. 0, and the cells CL5 to CL8 and the emission color “yellow” are associated with the No. 1 control signal. The cells are associated with the cells CL1 to CL4 and the emission color “green”.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 11B is created based on the setting file FL. By using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, when the control signal No. 0 is “1”, the cells CL9 to CL12 emit light in “red”, and when the control signal No. 1 is “1”, the cells CL5 to CL8 are “yellow”. , And when the second control signal is “1”, the cells CL1 to CL4 emit “green”.

In this light emission example, as in the light emission example 1, the signal lamp 1 can be used as a signal lamp having three layers (three colors). However, in this light emission example, even though the same light emission color is used, the correspondence between the cells CL1 to CL4 and the cells CL9 to CL12 is different from that of the control signal, so the light emission color (color position) is the same as that of the light emission example 1. Different.
<Light emission example 3>
In the light emission example 3, the setting file FL shown in FIG. In this setting file FL, the cells CL1 to CL4 and the emission color “green” are associated with the 0th control signal, and the cells CL5 to CL8 and the emission color “yellow” are associated with the 1st control signal. The cells are associated with the cells CL9 to CL12 and the emission color “red”.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 12B is created based on the setting file FL. By using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, when the control signal No. 0 becomes “1”, the cells CL1 to CL4 emit “green”, and when the control signal No. 1 becomes “1”, the cells CL5 to CL8 become “yellow”. , And when the second control signal becomes “1”, the cells CL9 to CL12 emit “red”.

In this light emission example, the cells CL1 to C12 emit light in the same light emission pattern as in the light emission example 2, but the correspondence between the cells CL1 to CL4 and the cells CL9 to CL12 is different from that in the light emission example 2. In this light emission example, the correspondence between the cells CL1 to CL4 and the cells CL9 to CL12 is the same as that of the light emission example 1, but the light emission color associated with the control signal is different from that of the light emission example 1. .
<Light emission example 4>
In the light emission example 4, the setting file FL shown in FIG. 13A is used. In this setting file FL, the cells CL1 to CL4 and the emission color “blue” are associated with the control signal No. 0, and the cells CL5 to CL8 and the emission color “white” are associated with the control signal No. 1, and the control No. 2 is performed. The cells are associated with the cells CL9 to CL12 and the emission color “purple”.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 13B is created based on the setting file FL. By using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, when the control signal No. 0 is “1”, the cells CL1 to CL4 emit light “blue”, and when the control signal No. 1 is “1”, the cells CL5 to CL8 are “white”. ", And when the second control signal is" 1 ", the cells CL9 to CL12 emit light in" purple ".

In this light emission example, as in the light emission example 1, the signal lamp 1 can be used as a signal lamp having three layers (three colors). However, in this light emission example, even if the same control signal is associated with the cell CL constituting each layer, the light emission color to be used is different from that of the light emission example 1.
<Light emission example 5>
In the light emission example 5, the setting file FL shown in FIG. 14A is used. In this setting file FL, the cells CL1, CL4, CL7, CL10 and the emission color “red” are associated with the control signal No. 0, and the cells CL2, CL5, CL8, CL11 and the emission color “yellow” are associated with the control signal No. 1. The second control signal is associated with the cells CL3, CL6, CL9, CL12 and the emission color “green”.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 14B is created based on the setting file FL. By using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, the cells CL1, CL4, CL7, and CL10 emit “red” when the control signal 0 is “1”, and the cells CL2 and CL2 when the control signal 1 is “1”. CL5, CL8, and CL11 emit light at “yellow”, and when the second control signal becomes “1”, the cells CL3, CL6, CL9, and CL12 emit light at “green”.

In this light emission example, unlike the light emission examples 1 to 4, adjacent cells CL emit light in different colors.
<Light emission example 6>
In the light emission example 6, the setting file FL shown in FIG. 15A is used. In this setting file FL, the cells CL1 to CL3 and the emission color “red” are associated with the 0th control signal, and the cells CL4 to CL6 and the emission color “yellow” are associated with the 1st control signal. The cells CL7 to CL9 and the emission color “green” are associated with the signal, and the cells CL10 to CL12 and the emission color “blue” are associated with the third control signal.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 15B is created based on the setting file FL. By using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, when the control signals of No. 0 to No. 3 are “1”, the cells CL1 to CL3 emit light “red”, the cells CL4 to CL6 emit light “yellow”, and the cell CL7. ˜CL9 emits light with “green”, and the cells CL10 to CL12 emit with “blue”.

In this light emission example, unlike the light emission examples 1 to 5, light is emitted in four colors by using four control signals.
<Light emission example 7>
In the light emission example 7, the setting file FL shown in FIG. In the setting file FL, the cells CL1 and CL2 and the emission color “red” are associated with the control signal No. 0, and the cells CL3 and CL4 and the emission color “yellow” are associated with the control signal No. 1 and the control No. 2 is performed. The cells are associated with the cells CL5 and CL6 and the emission color “green”. Also, in this setting file FL, the cells CL7 and CL8 and the emission color “blue” are associated with the third control signal, and the cells CL9 and CL10 and the emission color “white” are associated with the fourth control signal. Are associated with the cells CL11 and CL12 and the emission color “purple”.

  The conversion table TBL shown in FIG. 16B is created based on the setting file FL. By using such a conversion table TBL, the cells CL1 to CL12 can be turned on as shown in FIG. Specifically, when the control signals of Nos. 0 to 2 are “1”, the cells CL1 and CL2 emit “red”, the cells CL3 and CL4 emit “yellow”, and the cell CL5 , CL6 emits light with “green”. When the control signals of No. 3 to No. 5 are “1”, the cells CL7 and CL8 emit “blue”, the cells CL9 and CL10 emit “white”, and the cells CL11 and CL12 Flashes in “purple”.

  In this light emission example, unlike the light emission examples 1 to 6, light is emitted in six colors by using six control signals.

[4. Summary of Embodiments]
The signal lamp 1 according to the present embodiment has the following remarkable effects by being configured and operating as described above.

[4-1. (Signal light control)
The signal lamp 1 is identified by the control unit 41 in accordance with the control signal inputted to the LED 7 to be lit in each cell CL according to the correspondence of the conversion table TBL created based on the information defined in the setting file FL, The identified LED 7 is turned on. Thereby, using the setting file FL, the cell CL and the emission color can be arbitrarily associated with the control signal, and the emission pattern of the signal lamp 1 can be set as desired.

  Therefore, each cell CL can emit light with various light emission patterns as shown in FIGS. 17A to 17G in one signal lamp 1.

<Changing the emission color position>
Accordingly, even when the same control signal is used, the cells CL (light emission color positions) that emit light with the same light emission color can be made different. This is because various light emission patterns can be obtained by arbitrarily selecting the cell CL and the light emission color associated with the control signal. For example, the light emission patterns shown in FIGS. 17A and 17C have the same control signal, but the cell CL associated with this control signal is the same, while the light emission color associated with this control signal. There are some differences. For this reason, as in the cells CL1 to CL4 and the cells CL9 to CL12 in the light emission pattern cells shown in FIGS. ”, And the positions of the emission colors are different.

<Changing the emission color>
The same can be said for different emission colors for the same control signal. For example, the light emission patterns shown in FIGS. 17A and 17D have the same control signal, but have the same cell CL associated with this control signal, while the light emission color associated with this control signal. Are all different. For this reason, as in the light emission patterns shown in FIGS. 17A and 17D, the light emission colors of the cells CL1 to CL12 are completely different with respect to the same control signal of Nos. 0 to 2.

<Changing control signal mapping>
Even if the same control signal is used, the correspondence of the cell CL to the control signal can be made different without changing the cell CL (light emission color position) that emits light with the same emission color. For example, although the light emission patterns shown in FIGS. 17B and 17C are the same, the cells CL and the light emission colors associated with this control signal are partially different. Therefore, for example, according to the control signal No. 0, the cells CL9 to CL12 emit “red” in the light emission pattern shown in FIG. 17B, while the cells CL1 to CL4 in the light emission pattern shown in FIG. Emits “green” light. Therefore, even if different control signals are used, the same cell CL can be made to emit light with the same emission color.

<Change control signal>
Even if the control signal is varied, a light emission pattern corresponding to the control signal can be obtained. For example, the light emission patterns shown in FIGS. 17A and 17F have different numbers of control signals. In the light emission pattern shown in FIG. 17A, “red”, “yellow”, and “green” are emitted using three control signals. On the other hand, in the light emission pattern shown in FIG. 17F, the cells CL10 to CL12 can be caused to emit light in four colors based on the third control signal. Further, in the light emission pattern shown in FIG. 17G, by using six control signals, “white” and “purple” are further emitted, so that six colors can be emitted.

  Thereby, when it becomes necessary to change the number of emission colors of the signal lamp 1 according to the product manufactured by the device 34, it can be used by changing the control signal and changing the setting file FL accordingly. The number of light emission can be changed to a desired number within the range of the number of control signals. For example, by changing the control signal from the state where the three emission colors are emitted as shown in FIG. 17A, the emission color is increased to four colors as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 17G, the emission color can be increased to six colors.

[4-2. (Signal light structure)
When a signal lamp is configured by combining a plurality of units described in Patent Document 1, a structure for mechanically and electrically connecting each unit is required. Such a connection structure not only requires mechanical accuracy, but also due to environmental influences such as vibration of the device and aging, not only the connection mechanism is loosened, but also poor connection and fusion of electrical contacts occur. There is an inconvenience that it is easy.

  On the other hand, in the signal lamp 1, a cell CL is formed by dividing the globe 2 by a light shielding plate 23 at a predetermined interval, and an LED 7 having the same configuration is disposed in each cell CL. Further, the globe 2 is integrally formed, and the LED 7 is mounted on the single LED substrate 4 so as to be positioned in each cell CL. With such a structure, there is no need for a structural and electrical connection structure between the units as in the signal lamp connecting the plurality of units. Therefore, the signal lamp 1 can be easily manufactured.

  Moreover, the light emission pattern of the cell CL can be arbitrarily changed as described above. Thereby, it becomes possible to emit light with a large number of light emission patterns by the signal lamp 1 having a single configuration. Therefore, it is not necessary to manufacture and hold a signal lamp having a fixed light emission pattern as an inventory.

  Further, by forming each cell CL relatively thin, not only the total length of the signal lamp 1 can be suppressed, but also the length of the group can be suppressed even when a group is formed by a plurality of cells CL.

[4-3. Setting file creation)
The PC 33 includes the setting file creation unit 331, so that a user can create a desired setting file. Thereby, the setting file can be directly transferred from the PC 33 to the signal lamp 1 via the USB cable, or can be read into the signal lamp 1 via the memory card 32.

[5. (Additional notes)
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope shown in the claims. That is, embodiments obtained by combining technical means appropriately modified within the scope of the claims are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  The signal lamp control device of the present invention controls the lighting of the LEDs in each layer so as to emit light with the set number of divisions and the light emission pattern for a stacked signal lamp having LEDs of different lighting colors in each layer. Thereby, the signal lamp control apparatus of this invention can be utilized suitably for adding the function which can change a light emission form freely to the signal lamp which has a single hardware structure.

1 Signal Light 2 Globe 4 LED Board 6 Printed Wiring Board 7 LED
8 LED
11 Control circuit (signal lamp control device)
12 CPU
13 Memory 14 Flash ROM (storage means)
15 Internal I / O (energization means)
16 Memory card interface 17 USB-UART converter 18 External I / O
31 PLC
32 Memory card 33 PC
41 Control Unit 101 Setting File Creation Window (User Interface)
103 Setting matrix 331 Setting file creation unit (user interface providing means)
334 USB interface 335 Memory card interface 411 Conversion table creation unit (lighting information creation means)
412 I / O control unit (energization control means)
CL cell (light emitting layer)
FL setting file (setting information)
TBL conversion table (lighting information)

Claims (4)

A signal lamp control device that controls the lighting of the LED in a signal lamp having a plurality of light emitting layers that have a plurality of light emitting layers that emit light with a light emission color determined by a combination of the LEDs to be lighted, and having a plurality of LEDs with different lighting colors,
Energization means for energizing the LED;
Storage means for storing setting information in which the light emitting layer and the emission color are individually associated with each of a plurality of control signals given from the outside in order to cause the light emitting layer to emit light;
Lighting information creating means for creating lighting information for identifying the LED to be turned on in the light emitting layer corresponding to the control signal by replacing the emission color in the setting information with the combination corresponding to the emission color;
A signal lamp control device comprising: an energization control unit that controls the energization unit to energize the LED to be lit corresponding to the input control signal based on the lighting information.   The signal lamp control program for functioning a computer as the said lighting information preparation means and the said electricity supply control means in the signal lamp control apparatus of Claim 1. A signal light control data creation device for creating the setting information used in the signal light control device according to claim 1,
A signal light control data creation device, comprising: a user interface providing unit that provides a user interface that individually associates the light emitting layer and the light emission color with each of the plurality of control signals.   A signal light control data creation program for causing a computer to function as the user interface providing means in the signal light control data creation device according to claim 3.

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