JP2014134974A - Traffic signal control system, traffic signal controller and signal light controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a traffic signal control system capable of improving reliability by eliminating wiring between a traffic signal controller and a light device, the traffic signal controller and a signal light device.SOLUTION: A traffic signal controller transmits a lighting signal to a light device controller 10 by superposing the lighting signal of a different frequency corresponding to a signal light of each light device. The light device controller 10 acquires the lighting signal transmitted by the traffic signal controller. A filter part 16 transmits a lighting signal in which the frequency of the acquired lighting signal is a predetermined frequency. A control part 11 performs control so that a signal light corresponding to the frequency is lighted while acquiring the lighting signal transmitted from the filter part 16.

Description

  The present invention relates to a traffic signal control system including a traffic signal controller that controls a plurality of signal lights of different lamp colors that are included in a plurality of lamps, the traffic signal controller, and a lamp controller that controls the lamp.

  The traffic signal controller switches the lamp color of the signal lamp of each lamp based on the display data including the lamp color information that defines the lamp color of each lamp and the display time of each lamp color at each step. . Such a traffic signal controller is installed near an intersection, and is connected to each lamp provided at a predetermined position of the intersection by a signal line. The traffic signal controller lights a signal lamp by applying a predetermined voltage to a signal line connected to each lamp (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2012-181651 A

  However, in the conventional traffic signal controller, since the traffic signal controller and each lamp are connected by a signal line, if the number of lamps to be controlled increases, the traffic signal controller and the lamps The number of signal lines connecting them increases. For this reason, the installation work of the signal line becomes complicated, and it may be difficult to wire the signal line depending on the structure of the intersection. On the other hand, if the number of signal lines increases, there is a problem that the possibility of wiring mistakes increases or the possibility of failure due to signal line defects increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a traffic signal control system capable of improving the reliability by reducing wiring between a traffic signal controller and a lamp, and the traffic signal control system It is an object of the present invention to provide a traffic signal controller and a lamp controller that constitute the above.

  A traffic signal control system according to a first aspect of the present invention is a traffic signal control system comprising a plurality of lamps having a plurality of signal lights of different lamp colors and a traffic signal controller for controlling the signal lamps. One or a plurality of lamp controllers to be controlled, and the traffic signal controller includes a transmitter for transmitting lighting signals of different frequencies corresponding to the respective signal lamps to the lamp controller, and the lamp controller Includes a first determination unit that determines whether or not a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled has been acquired, and a signal lamp that corresponds to the frequency while the first determination unit determines that the lighting signal has been acquired. And a first control unit that controls to turn off the signal lamp to be controlled when it is determined that the first determination unit is turned on and has not been acquired.

  The traffic signal control system according to a second aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to the first aspect, wherein the traffic signal controller detects a frequency of a lighting signal transmitted to the lamp controller and a signal lamp of a plurality of lamps. Whether or not the combination of the storage unit that stores information related to signal lamps that are prohibited from simultaneous lighting and the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency detected by the detection unit matches the combination of signal lights that are prohibited from simultaneous lighting. A second determination unit for determining, and a second control unit for controlling the signal lamps of the plurality of lamps to be in a predetermined state when the second determination unit determines that the combination of the signal lamps matches. And

  The traffic signal control system according to a third aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to the second aspect, wherein the second control unit intermittently transmits or transmits a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamps of the plurality of lamps from the transmission unit. It is characterized in that it is controlled to stop.

  A traffic signal control system according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the lamp controller is a plurality of signal lights that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously among the signal lights of the plurality of lamps. The first determination unit determines whether or not the combination of the signal lamps corresponding to the frequency of the acquired lighting signal matches the combination of the signal lamps for which simultaneous lighting is prohibited. The first control unit is configured to control the signal lamp to be controlled to a predetermined state when the first determination unit determines that the combination of the signal lamps matches. .

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the traffic signal control system according to the fourth aspect, wherein the first control unit controls the signal light to be controlled to be in a blinking state or a light-off state.

  The traffic signal control system according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the lighting detection unit according to any one of the first to fifth aspects of the present invention, wherein the lamp controller detects lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled. And when a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is acquired, and when the lighting detection section detects that the signal lamp is extinguished, an abnormality determining section that determines that the signal lamp is abnormally extinguished is provided. Features.

  The traffic signal control system according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the lighting detection unit according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the lamp control unit detects lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled. And an abnormality determination unit that determines that the signal lamp is lit abnormally when the lighting detection unit detects the lighting of the signal lamp when the lighting signal of the frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is not acquired. It is characterized by that.

  The traffic signal control system according to an eighth invention is the traffic light control system according to the sixth invention or the seventh invention, wherein the lamp controller corresponds to the signal light when the abnormality determination unit determines that the signal lamp is abnormally turned off or abnormally lit. It is characterized by comprising a lamp transmitter for transmitting a notification signal having a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal to the traffic signal controller.

  A traffic signal control system according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, wherein the lamp controller includes a power supply unit that supplies power to the lamp to be controlled. 1 control part is made to control in order to stop the electric power supply from the said electric power supply part, when the several signal lamps from which simultaneous lighting is prohibited among the signal lights of several lamps are blue light color It is characterized by.

  The traffic signal control system according to a tenth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to ninth aspects, wherein the traffic signal controller transmits a confirmation signal of a predetermined frequency from the transmitter to each lamp controller. Each lamp controller has a response signal having a frequency different from the predetermined frequency at the time when the inherent delay time of each lamp controller has elapsed since the acquisition time at which the confirmation signal was acquired. A response signal transmitter for transmitting to the traffic signal controller, wherein the traffic signal controller detects a frequency of the response signal, and whether or not the response signal is acquired by the response signal detector And a detector for detecting normality or abnormality of each lamp controller.

  The traffic signal control system according to an eleventh aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, wherein the lamp controller transmits a lighting signal having a predetermined frequency, and transmits the filter section. And an acquisition unit that acquires the illuminated signal.

  The traffic signal control system according to a twelfth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to eleventh aspects, wherein the lighting signal is transmitted so that one of the different frequencies of the lighting signal is not a multiple of the other frequency. A generation unit for generating is provided.

  A traffic signal control system according to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to twelfth aspects of the present invention, wherein the transmitter, the lamp transmitter, or the response signal transmitter receives the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal. The transmission is performed by wireless communication.

  The traffic signal control system according to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to thirteenth aspects, wherein the transmitter, the lamp transmitter, or the response signal transmitter is the lighting signal to which a plurality of frequencies are assigned. A notification signal or a response signal is transmitted.

  A traffic signal control system according to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to thirteenth aspects, wherein a power line is connected between the traffic signal controller and the lamp controller. The lamp transmitting unit or the response signal transmitting unit transmits the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal by superimposing on the power line by electromagnetic induction.

  A traffic signal control system according to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to fifteenth aspects, wherein the traffic signal controller controls each signal lamp included in a plurality of lamps installed at a plurality of intersections. It is characterized by the above.

  The traffic signal control system according to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention is the traffic signal control system according to any one of the first to sixteenth aspects, wherein the transmission unit transmits a carrier wave having a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp to the lamp controller. The lamp controller includes a carrier wave determination unit that determines the presence or absence of a carrier wave having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled, and the first control unit determines that there is a carrier wave in the carrier wave determination unit. During this period, control is performed to turn on the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the carrier wave.

  A traffic signal controller according to an eighteenth aspect of the present invention is a traffic signal controller that controls a plurality of signal lights of different lamp colors that a plurality of lamps have, and is one or more lamp controller that controls each signal lamp of the lamp. On the other hand, it has a transmission part which transmits the lighting signal of a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  A lamp controller according to a nineteenth aspect of the present invention is a lamp controller that controls each signal lamp of a plurality of lamps having a plurality of signal lights of different lamp colors, and provides a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled. A determination unit that determines whether or not it has been acquired; and while the determination unit determines that acquisition has been performed, a signal lamp corresponding to the frequency is turned on, and the determination unit determines that acquisition has not been performed; And a control unit for controlling to turn off the signal lamp.

  In the first invention, the eighteenth invention, and the nineteenth invention, one or a plurality of lamp controller is provided for controlling each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled. The lamp may be a vehicle lamp or both a vehicle lamp and a pedestrian lamp. The lamp controller may control one lamp or a plurality of lamps. The transmission unit of the traffic signal controller transmits, for example, a lighting signal having a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp to the lamp controller in a superimposed manner. The transmission unit may use wired communication or wireless communication. The lighting signal is a signal having a different frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of each lamp, for example, a sine wave signal. The frequency can be, for example, about several hundred Hz to several kHz. A lighting signal with one frequency may correspond to one signal lamp, or lighting signals with a plurality of frequencies may correspond to one signal lamp.

  The 1st determination part of a lamp control machine determines whether the lighting signal of the frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of control object was acquired. For example, a transmission filter that can transmit only a lighting signal having a predetermined frequency or a plurality of frequencies is provided, and only the transmitted lighting signal can be acquired. The first control unit performs control so that the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency is turned on while the first determination unit determines that the lighting signal having the required frequency is acquired. In addition, when the first control unit determines that the lighting signal is not acquired by the first determination unit, the first control unit controls to turn off the signal lamp to be controlled.

  When using wired communication, the frequency of the lighting signal sent to the communication line between the traffic signal controller and the lamp controller is different according to the signal lamp of each lamp. Even if the lighting signal is simultaneously superimposed on the communication line and transmitted, the lighting signal can be extracted and acquired for each frequency. As a result, conventionally, it was necessary to use a signal line for each signal light between the traffic signal controller and each signal light, but a lighting signal for lighting each signal light on a common communication line. Since they can be simultaneously superimposed, the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be connected by a common communication line, and the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be reduced. In addition, since the number of wirings can be reduced, the possibility of wiring mistakes and the possibility of failure due to signal line defects can be reduced and the reliability can be improved. In addition, since the wiring can be reduced, the wiring work becomes very easy, and the wiring work can be easily performed regardless of the structure of the intersection.

  In the second invention, the detection unit of the traffic signal controller detects the frequency of the lighting signal transmitted to the lamp controller. The detection unit can detect not only the lighting signal transmitted from the traffic signal controller to the lamp controller, but also the frequency of the lighting signal transmitted to the lamp controller for some reason. The storage unit stores information related to signal lights that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously among the signal lights of a plurality of lamps. The signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously are, for example, blue (including blue arrows) signal lamps for roads that intersect each other at intersections (for example, main roads and secondary roads). A 2nd determination part determines whether the combination of the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency detected by the detection part corresponds with the combination of the signal lamp from which simultaneous lighting is prohibited. For example, it is determined whether a combination of signal lights corresponding to the detected frequency matches a combination of a blue signal light corresponding to the main road and a blue signal light corresponding to the secondary road.

  When the second determination unit determines that the combination of the signal lamps matches, the second control unit controls the signal lamps of the plurality of lamps to be in a predetermined state. The predetermined state is, for example, a state in which a signal lamp corresponding to the main road and a signal lamp corresponding to the secondary road are extinguished, or a state in which the yellow signal lamp corresponding to the main road is blinked and a red signal lamp corresponding to the secondary road Is a state of blinking. Even if the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, the signal lamp can be put in a safe state even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp. it can.

  In the third aspect of the invention, the second control unit controls to intermittently transmit a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamps of the plurality of lamps from the transmission unit or to stop transmission. For example, the yellow signal lamp can be blinked by intermittently transmitting a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the yellow signal lamp for the main road. Similarly, the red signal lamp can be blinked by intermittently transmitting a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the red signal lamp for the secondary road. Further, by stopping the transmission of the lighting signal of the frequency corresponding to each signal lamp for the main road and the secondary road, all the signal lamps can be extinguished. As a result, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp, the signal lamp is brought into a safe state. can do.

  In the fourth aspect of the invention, the storage unit of the lamp controller stores information related to a plurality of signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously among the signal lamps of the plurality of lamp units. The signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously are, for example, blue (including blue arrows) signal lamps for roads that intersect each other at intersections (for example, main roads and secondary roads). A 1st determination part determines whether the combination of the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the acquired lighting signal corresponds with the combination of the signal lamp for which simultaneous lighting is prohibited. For example, it is determined whether a combination of signal lights corresponding to the frequency of the acquired lighting signal matches a combination of a blue signal lamp corresponding to the main road and a blue signal lamp corresponding to the secondary road.

  When the first determination unit determines that the combination of the signal lamps matches, the first control unit controls the signal lamp to be controlled to be in a predetermined state. The predetermined state is, for example, a state in which a signal lamp corresponding to the main road and a signal lamp corresponding to the secondary road are extinguished, or a state in which the yellow signal lamp corresponding to the main road is blinked and a red signal lamp corresponding to the secondary road Is a state of blinking. Even if the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, the signal lamp can be put in a safe state even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp. it can.

  In the fifth invention, the first control unit controls the signal lamp to be controlled to be in a blinking state or a extinguished state. For example, a yellow signal light for the main road can be blinked, and a red signal light for the secondary road can be blinked. Further, the signal lights for the main road and the secondary road can be extinguished. As a result, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp, the signal lamp is brought into a safe state. can do.

  In the sixth invention, the lighting detection unit of the lamp controller detects the lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled. A drive line is connected between the lamp controller and each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled, and the signal lamp can be turned on by applying a required voltage to the drive line. The lighting detection unit may detect a current flowing through the drive line, or may detect a voltage applied to the drive line. The abnormality determining unit determines that the signal lamp is abnormally turned off when the lighting detection unit detects that the signal lamp is turned off when a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is acquired. In other words, when the traffic signal controller sends a command to turn on an arbitrary signal lamp of the lamp, but the signal lamp is not turned on, the abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp is determined. Can do.

  In the seventh invention, the lighting detection unit of the lamp controller detects the lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled. A drive line is connected between the lamp controller and each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled, and the signal lamp can be turned on by applying a required voltage to the drive line. The lighting detection unit may detect a current flowing through the drive line, or may detect a voltage applied to the drive line. The abnormality determination unit determines that the signal lamp is abnormally lit when the lighting detection unit detects the lighting of the signal lamp when the lighting signal having the frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is not acquired. That is, if the traffic signal controller is not instructed to turn on an arbitrary signal lamp of the lamp, but the signal lamp is on, the abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp is determined. Can do.

  In the eighth aspect of the invention, when the abnormality determination unit determines that the signal lamp is abnormally turned off or abnormally lit, the lamp transmission unit of the lamp controller corresponds to the signal lamp and has a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal. A notification signal is transmitted to the traffic signal controller. Thereby, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, it is possible to reliably detect the occurrence of abnormal turn-off or abnormal lighting of the signal lamp due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp.

  In the ninth invention, the power supply unit of the lamp controller supplies power to the lamp to be controlled. The power supply unit may supply direct current (voltage, current) to the lamp, or may supply alternating current (voltage, current). The traffic signal controller supplies AC or DC to the power supply unit. A 1st control part stops the electric power supply from an electric power supply part, when the some signal light from which simultaneous lighting is prohibited among the signal lights of several lamps is a blue light color (a blue signal light is also included). Control as much as possible. As a result, the blue signal light can be reliably turned off, and a situation in which the vehicle enters the intersection by mistake can be prevented to ensure safety.

  In the tenth invention, the transmission unit of the traffic signal controller transmits a confirmation signal of a predetermined frequency to each lamp controller. The predetermined frequency is a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal. Each lamp controller acquires a confirmation signal. The response signal transmission unit transmits a response signal having a frequency different from the frequency of the confirmation signal to the traffic signal controller at the time when the inherent delay time of each lamp controller has elapsed from the acquisition time at which the confirmation signal was acquired. For example, it is assumed that a traffic signal controller and four lamp controller A, B, C, D are connected by a communication line. The lamp controllers A, B, C, and D have their own delay times Δt1, Δt2, Δt3, and Δt4, respectively. Assuming that the time when each lamp controller acquires the confirmation signal is t0, the lamp controllers A, B, C, and D transmit response signals at times t0 + Δt1, t0 + Δt2, t0 + Δt3, and t0 + Δt4, respectively.

  The response signal detection unit of the traffic signal controller detects the frequency of the response signal. Since each lamp controller transmits a response signal after the elapse of a specific delay time, response signals from a plurality of lamp controllers are not superimposed on the communication line, and the response signals can be reliably detected. . The detection unit detects normality or abnormality of each lamp controller depending on whether the response signal is acquired by the response signal detection unit. For example, if the frequency of the response signal can be detected at the time of t0 + Δt1, it can be detected that the lamp controller A is normal. Moreover, when the frequency of the response signal cannot be detected at the time of t0 + Δt1, it can be detected that the lamp controller A is abnormal. Thereby, even if it is a case where the wiring between a traffic signal controller and a lamp is reduced, the operation state of a lamp controller can be detected reliably.

  In the eleventh aspect, the filter unit of the lamp controller transmits a lighting signal having a predetermined frequency. An acquisition part acquires the lighting signal which permeate | transmitted the filter part. Thereby, only the lighting signal of a required frequency can be acquired from the lighting signals with different frequencies.

  In the twelfth invention, the generation unit generates the lighting signal so that one frequency among the different frequencies of the lighting signal is not a multiple of the other frequency. Thereby, even when the lighting signals of a plurality of frequencies having different frequencies are superimposed on the communication line, it is possible to prevent the lighting signal frequencies from interfering with each other to attenuate the intensity (power) of the lighting signal.

  In the thirteenth aspect, the transmission unit of the traffic signal controller, the lamp transmission unit or the response signal transmission unit of the lamp controller transmits the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal by wireless communication. When transmitting a lighting signal, a notification signal, or a response signal by wireless communication, a predetermined carrier wave (for example, several tens of kHz to several MHz) is modulated using the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal (for example, amplitude modulation, Frequency modulation etc.). Thereby, a communication line or a signal line becomes unnecessary, and the wiring between a traffic signal controller and a lamp can be reduced.

  In the fourteenth aspect, the transmitter, the lamp transmitter, or the response signal transmitter transmits a lighting signal, a notification signal, or a response signal to which a plurality of frequencies are assigned. For example, two types of lighting signals, a lighting signal with a frequency of 425 Hz and a lighting signal with 3145 Hz, are assigned to one signal lamp. By making lighting signals of multiple frequencies correspond to one signal lamp, even if one lighting signal cannot be acquired correctly due to noise or the like, if the other lighting signal can be acquired, the control of the signal lamp is correctly performed. Therefore, the noise resistance of the system can be improved. The frequency to be assigned is not limited to two, and may be three or more. The same applies to the notification signal or the response signal.

  In the fifteenth invention, a power line is connected between the traffic signal controller and the lamp controller, and the transmitter of the traffic signal controller, the lamp transmitter of the lamp controller or the response signal transmitter Transmits a lighting signal, a notification signal, or a response signal superimposed on a power line by electromagnetic induction. When transmitting a lighting signal, a notification signal, or a response signal superimposed on a power line, a predetermined carrier wave (for example, several tens of kHz to several MHz) is modulated (for example, an amplitude) using the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal. Modulation, frequency modulation, etc.), and the modulated signal may be superimposed on the power line by electromagnetic induction. Thereby, a communication line or a signal line becomes unnecessary, and the wiring between a traffic signal controller and a lamp can be reduced.

  In the sixteenth aspect, the traffic signal controller controls each signal lamp included in the plurality of lamps installed at the plurality of intersections. That is, the traffic signal controller can control signal lights at a plurality of intersections as well as at one intersection through the lamp controller. In the conventional technology, since it was necessary to use a separate signal line for each signal light between the traffic signal controller and each signal light, it is not possible to wire a signal line over a long distance to a signal light at a distant intersection. It was not realistic and practically impossible. However, according to the present invention, since the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be reduced, it becomes possible to control the signal lights at intersections far away.

  In the seventeenth aspect, the transmission unit transmits carrier waves having different frequencies corresponding to the respective signal lamps to the lamp controller. The carrier wave is also called a carrier, for example, and has a sinusoidal waveform. The carrier wave determination unit of the lamp controller determines the presence or absence of a carrier wave having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled. Since the presence / absence of a carrier wave having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is determined, for example, a process of demodulating the carrier wave to extract a required signal from the carrier wave and logically interpreting or calculating the extracted signal becomes unnecessary. The first control unit controls to turn on the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the carrier while the carrier determination unit determines that there is a carrier. Accordingly, it is possible to control the lighting of the control target signal lamp only by determining the presence or absence of a carrier wave.

  According to the present invention, the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be reduced to improve the reliability.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of installation in the intersection of the traffic signal control system of this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of a structure of the traffic signal control system of this Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a structure of the traffic signal controller of this Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a structure of the lamp controller of this Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the frequency of the lighting signal for lighting each signal lamp of a lamp device. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the switching timing of a signal lamp. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the frequency of the lighting signal which the traffic signal controller of this Embodiment superimposes on a communication line. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the frequency of an alerting | reporting signal, a confirmation signal, and a response signal. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the method of determining the normality or abnormality of the lamp controller of the traffic signal control system of this Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of installation in the intersection as a comparative example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the wiring example of the cable between the traffic signal controller as a comparative example, and a lamp. It is a schematic diagram which shows the relationship between the lighting signal of the traffic signal control system of this Embodiment, and the lighting state of a signal lamp. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example in the case of transmitting lighting instruction | command using the transmission cable as a comparative example. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of a structure of a power line superimposition system.

(Embodiment 1)
Hereinafter, a traffic signal control system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an installation example at an intersection of the traffic signal control system of the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the traffic signal control system of the present embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the traffic signal control system includes a traffic signal controller 50, vehicle lamps 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d fixed to pillars installed in the vicinity of the four corners of an intersection, pedestrian lamps. 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d, lamp controllers 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d and the like. Vehicle lamps and pedestrian lamps are also referred to as lamps. Further, the traffic signal control system may be configured not to include a pedestrian lamp.

  As shown in FIG. 1, two roads intersect at an intersection. For convenience, one road is a main road (lateral road in FIG. 1), and the other road that intersects the main road is a secondary road (FIG. 1). In the vertical direction). Vehicle lights 1a and 1c are provided for the main road, and vehicle lights 1b and 1d are provided for the secondary road. In addition, pedestrian lamps 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d are provided on the crosswalk of the secondary road. A pedestrian lamp can be installed on the main road with a pedestrian crossing.

  The vehicle lamps 1a and 1c for the main road include, for example, a blue lamp color (1G) signal lamp, a yellow lamp color (1Y) signal lamp, and a red lamp color (1R) signal lamp. The vehicle lamps 1b and 1d for the secondary road include, for example, a blue lamp color (2G) signal lamp, a yellow lamp color (2Y) signal lamp, and a red lamp color (2R) signal lamp. It is also possible to provide a blue arrow signal lamp in the vehicle lamp. Each pedestrian lamp 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d has a blue lamp color (1PG) signal lamp and a red lamp color (1PR) signal lamp.

  The lamp controller 10a is a vehicle lamp 1a and a pedestrian lamp 2a, and the lamp controller 10b is a vehicle lamp 1b and a pedestrian lamp 2b. The lamp controller 10c uses the vehicle lamp 1c and the pedestrian lamp 2c as control target lamps, and the lamp controller 10d uses the vehicle lamp 1d and the pedestrian lamp 2d as control targets. . In the example of FIG. 1, one lamp controller controls a set of vehicle lamps and pedestrian lamps. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and one lamp controller is used. However, a plurality of sets of vehicle lamps and pedestrian lamps may be controlled. In addition, the lamp controller may be attached to the column, may be built in the column, or may be built in the lamp.

  Wiring 31, 32, 33, and 34 are provided between the traffic signal controller 50 and the lamp controllers 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d, respectively. As shown in FIG. 2, the wiring 31 includes two power lines and two communication lines. The same applies to the other wirings 32, 33 and 34. Hereinafter, the wirings 31 to 34 are also referred to as power lines 31 to 34 or communication lines 31 to 34.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the traffic signal controller 50 of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the traffic signal controller 50 includes a control unit 51 configured by a CPU or the like, a storage unit 52, a determination unit 53, a signal generation unit 54, a transmission unit 55, a filter unit 56, a reception unit 57, a power source. Unit 58, detection unit 59, and the like.

  The power supply unit 58 includes an open / close switch, a switchboard, and the like, and supplies an AC voltage supplied from a commercial power supply (not shown) to the lamp controllers 10a to 10d via the power lines (31 to 34). In the lamp controllers 10a to 10d, if the input voltage is configured to be a DC voltage, the AC voltage is converted into a DC voltage by the power supply unit 58, and the converted DC voltage is converted into power lines (31 to 34). It can also be supplied to the lamp controllers 10a to 10d via the.

  The signal generation unit 54 has a function as a generation unit, and generates a lighting signal having a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp of each vehicle lamp and pedestrian lamp. Moreover, the signal generation part 54 produces | generates the confirmation signal for requesting | requiring the response signal from each lamp controller 10a-10d. The lighting signal and the confirmation signal are, for example, sine wave signals having a predetermined frequency. Details of the lighting signal and the confirmation signal will be described later.

  The transmission unit 55 transmits the lighting signal or confirmation signal generated by the signal generation unit 54 to each of the lamp controllers 10a to 10d via the communication lines 31 to 34 under the control of the control unit 51. Although the transmission part 55 can transmit a sinusoidal lighting signal or a confirmation signal as it is via the communication lines 31-34, it is not limited to this. For example, the transmission unit 55 includes a carrier wave generation unit, a modulation unit, and the like, and modulates a carrier wave having a predetermined frequency (for example, several tens of kHz to several tens of MHz) with a lighting signal and a confirmation signal (for example, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, etc.) And a modulated carrier wave may be transmitted.

  The receiving unit 57 receives the lighting signal transmitted on the communication lines 31 to 34. That is, the receiving unit 57 is not only a lighting signal transmitted by the transmission unit 55 of the traffic signal controller 50 but also a lighting that is transmitted to the lamp controllers 10a to 10d for some reason and appears on the communication lines 31 to 34. A signal can also be received.

  The receiving unit 57 receives a response signal transmitted from each of the lamp controllers 10a to 10d, an abnormal turn-off signal as a notification signal, an abnormal lighting signal, and a blue abnormal lighting signal. The response signal and the notification signal are sinusoidal signals having a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal. Details of the response signal and the notification signal will be described later. Moreover, although the receiving part 57 can receive the sine wave-like response signal and alerting | reporting signal as it is via the communication lines 31-34, it is not limited to this. For example, the reception unit 57 may include a demodulation unit and the like, and a response signal and a notification signal may be extracted by demodulating a modulated carrier wave (for example, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, etc.).

  The filter unit 56 has a function as a second detection unit, and detects the frequency of the lighting signal, the response signal, and the notification signal (abnormal lighting signal, abnormal lighting signal, and blue abnormal lighting signal) received by the receiving unit 57. That is, the filter unit 56 includes a plurality of transmission filters that can individually transmit a lighting signal, a response signal, and a notification signal each having a specific frequency. The filter unit 56 can detect each of the lighting signal, the response signal, and the notification signal having different frequencies by having a plurality of transmission filters for the frequency to be detected.

  The determination unit 53 has a function as a second determination unit, and determines whether or not the combination of signal lights corresponding to the frequency detected by the filter unit 56 matches the combination of signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously. . Details of the determination unit 53 will be described later.

  The detection unit 59 detects normality or abnormality of each lamp controller 10a to 10d depending on whether or not the frequency detected by the filter unit 56 is the frequency of the response signal.

  The storage unit 52 includes information on each lamp controller connected to the traffic signal controller 50 (for example, identification information), information on a lamp controlled by each lamp controller (for example, a lamp number), Information indicating the correspondence between the signal lamp of each lamp and the frequency of the lighting signal for lighting the signal lamp is stored.

  Moreover, the memory | storage part 52 has memorize | stored the information regarding the signal lamp from which simultaneous lighting is prohibited among the signal lamps of a some lamp device. The signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously are, for example, blue (including blue arrows) signal lamps for roads that intersect each other at intersections (for example, main roads and secondary roads). In addition, the storage unit 52 stores information on the frequency of the response signal and the notification signal (abnormal light extinction signal, abnormal lighting signal, and blue abnormal lighting signal).

  The control unit 51 has a function as a second control unit. The operation of the traffic signal controller 50 will be described later.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the lamp controller 10 of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 4, the lamp controller 10 controls the entire lamp controller, and also has a control unit 11, a transmission unit 12, a reception unit 13, and functions as a first control unit and a first determination unit. A storage unit 14, a signal generation unit 15, a filter unit 16, a power supply unit 17, an open / close switch unit 18, a current sensor unit 19 and the like are provided. The lamp controllers 10a to 10d are also referred to as the lamp controller 1. In addition, the control unit 11 can be configured in hardware using an analog circuit, a digital circuit, or a combination of both, or can be configured to perform processing in software using a CPU.

  The power supply unit 17 includes a plurality of driving units 171, 172, 173, 174, 175 corresponding to the signal lights of the vehicle lamp 1 and the pedestrian lamp 2 to be controlled which are controlled by the lamp controller 10.

  The open / close switch unit 18 includes open / close switches 181, 182, 183, 184, to individually open and close the drive lines corresponding to the signal lights of the vehicle lamp 1 and the pedestrian lamp 2 controlled by the lamp controller 10. 185. The vehicle lamps 1a to 1d are also referred to as vehicle lamps 1, and the walking vehicle lamps 2a to 2b are also referred to as pedestrian lamps 2.

  The current sensor unit 19 includes current sensors 191, 192, 193, 194, and 195 that detect currents flowing through the drive lines corresponding to the signal lights. In addition, each lamp controller 10a-10d is collectively called the lamp controller 10.

  The receiving unit 13 receives the lighting signal and the confirmation signal transmitted from the traffic signal controller 50. In addition, although the receiving part 13 can receive the sine wave-like lighting signal and confirmation signal as it is via the communication lines 31-34, it is not limited to this. For example, the receiving unit 13 may include a demodulating unit, and the modulated signal (eg, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, etc.) may be demodulated to extract the lighting signal and the confirmation signal.

  The filter unit 16 includes a plurality of transmission filters that can individually transmit a lighting signal and a confirmation signal having a specific frequency. The filter unit 16 outputs the transmitted lighting signal and confirmation signal to the control unit 11. Thereby, for example, only a lighting signal having a required frequency can be acquired from lighting signals having different frequencies.

  The control unit 11 determines whether or not a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled has been acquired. That is, the control unit 11 determines whether or not the lighting signal transmitted through the filter unit 16 is a lighting signal corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled. While determining that the lighting signal corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is acquired, the control unit 11 lights the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the lighting signal. In addition, when it is determined that the lighting signal corresponding to the control target signal lamp is not acquired, the control unit 11 performs control to turn off the control target signal lamp.

  The signal generator 15 generates a response signal, an abnormal turn-off signal as a notification signal, an abnormal lighting signal, and a blue abnormal lighting signal. The response signal and the notification signal are sinusoidal signals having a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal.

  The transmission unit 12 transmits the response signal and the notification signal generated by the signal generation unit 15 to the traffic signal controller 50 via the communication lines 31 to 34. Although the transmission part 12 can transmit a sinusoidal response signal and alerting | reporting signal as it is via the communication lines 31-34, it is not limited to this. For example, the transmission unit 12 includes a carrier wave generation unit, a modulation unit, and the like, and modulates a carrier wave of a predetermined frequency (for example, several tens of kHz to several tens of MHz) with a response signal and a broadcast signal (for example, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, etc.) And a modulated carrier wave may be transmitted.

  The storage unit 14 stores information indicating the correspondence between each signal lamp of each lamp to be controlled controlled by the lamp controller 10 and the frequency of the lighting signal for lighting each signal lamp.

  Moreover, the memory | storage part 14 has memorize | stored the information regarding the signal lamp from which simultaneous lighting is prohibited among the signal lamps of a some lamp device. The signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously are, for example, blue (including blue arrows) signal lamps for roads that intersect each other at intersections (for example, main roads and secondary roads). The storage unit 14 stores information related to the frequency of the confirmation signal.

  Next, the operation of the traffic signal control system of this embodiment will be described. First, the frequency of the lighting signal will be described.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the frequency of a lighting signal for lighting each signal lamp of the lamp. As shown in FIG. 5, for example, 765 Hz for each of the blue (1G), yellow (1Y), and red (1R) signal lights of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c for the main road. , 935 Hz and 1105 Hz lighting signals are assigned. In addition, the lighting signals of 1275 Hz, 1445 Hz, and 1615 Hz are provided for the blue lamp color (2G) signal lamp, the yellow lamp color (2Y) signal lamp, and the red lamp color (2R) signal lamp of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d for the secondary road, respectively. Assigned. Furthermore, lighting signals of 425 Hz and 595 Hz are assigned to the blue lamp color (1PG) signal lamp and the red lamp color (1PR) signal lamp of each of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d. In addition, the frequency of the lighting signal shown in FIG. 5 is an example, and is not limited to the example of FIG. The frequency can be, for example, about several hundred Hz to several kHz. Further, a lighting signal with one frequency may correspond to one signal lamp, or lighting signals with a plurality of frequencies may correspond to one signal lamp.

  As illustrated in FIG. 5, the signal generation unit 54 generates the lighting signal so that one of the different frequencies of the lighting signal is not a multiple of the other frequency. Thereby, even when the lighting signals of a plurality of frequencies having different frequencies are superimposed on the communication lines 31 to 34, it is possible to prevent the lighting signal frequencies from interfering with each other to attenuate the intensity (power) of the lighting signal. it can.

  Next, the signal lamp switching timing will be described. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of signal lamp switching timing. The example of FIG. 6 shows the switching timing of each signal lamp of the vehicle lamp 1 and the pedestrian lamp 2 shown in FIGS. Steps 1 to 8 correspond to one signal cycle. In FIG. 6, the single line indicates a blue light color, the vertical line indicates blinking, the double line indicates a red light color, and the wavy line indicates a yellow light color. In addition, the number of steps and the lamp color of each step are examples, and the switching timing of the vehicle lamp 1 and the pedestrian lamp 2 is not limited to the example of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in step 1, the signal lights 1PG (blue) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are turned on, the signal lights 1G (blue) of the vehicle lights 1a and 1c are turned on, and the vehicle lights 1b and 1d are turned on. The signal light 2R (red) is turned on.

  In step 2, the signal lights 1PG (blue) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d flash, the signal lamp 1G (blue) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c is lit, and the signal lamp 2R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d is turned on. Light.

  In step 3, the signal lights 1PR (red) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are turned on, the signal lights 1G (blue) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c are turned on, and the signal lights 2R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d are turned on. Light.

  In step 4, the signal lights 1PR (red) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are lit, the signal lamp 1Y (yellow) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c is lit, and the signal lamp 2R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d is lit. Light.

  In step 5, the signal lights 1PR (red) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are turned on, the signal lights 1R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c are turned on, and the signal lights 2R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d are turned on. Light.

  In step 6, the signal lights 1PR (red) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are turned on, the signal lights 1R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c are turned on, and the signal lights 2G (blue) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d are turned on. Light.

  In step 7, the signal lights 1PR (red) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are turned on, the signal lights 1R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c are turned on, and the signal lights 2Y (yellow) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d are turned on. Light.

  In step 8, the signal lights 1PR (red) of the pedestrian lamps 2a to 2d are turned on, the signal lights 1R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c are turned on, and the signal lights 2R (red) of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d are turned on. Light.

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the frequency of the lighting signal that is superimposed on the communication line by the traffic signal controller 50 of the present embodiment. The traffic signal controller 50 transmits lighting signals having different frequencies to the lamp controllers 10a to 10d corresponding to the respective signal lights.

  Each lamp controller 10a to 10d receives the lighting signal and determines whether or not a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled has been acquired. Each lamp controller 10a to 10d controls to turn on the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the lighting signal while determining that the lighting signal is acquired. Moreover, when it determines with each lamp controller 10a-10d not having acquired the lighting signal, it controls to turn off the signal lamp of control object.

  In the example of FIG. 6, in step 1, the traffic signal controller 50 sends lighting signals having frequencies of 425 Hz, 765 Hz, and 1615 Hz in accordance with the example of FIG. 5 in order to turn on only the signal lights 1PG, 1G, and 2R. 34 is transmitted in a state of being superimposed on 34 (simultaneously).

  The lamp controllers 10a and 10c receive lighting signals of frequencies (425 Hz and 765 Hz) corresponding to the signal lamps 1PG and 1G among the signal lights of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c to be controlled and the pedestrian lamps 2a and 2c. During the operation, control is performed to turn on the signal lights 1PG and 1G.

  On the other hand, the lamp controllers 10a and 10c receive lighting signals having frequencies corresponding to the signal lamps 1Y, 1R, and 1PR among the signal lights of the vehicle lamps 1a and 1c to be controlled and the pedestrian lamps 2a and 2c. Therefore, the signal lights 1Y, 1R, 1PR are controlled to be turned off.

  Similarly, the lamp controllers 10b and 10d are turned on at frequencies (425 Hz and 1615 Hz) corresponding to the signal lights 1PG and 2R among the signal lights of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d to be controlled and the pedestrian lamps 2b and 2d. While the signal is being received, control is performed so that the signal lamps 1PG and 2R are turned on.

  On the other hand, the lamp controllers 10b and 10d receive lighting signals having frequencies corresponding to the signal lights 2G, 2Y, and 1PR among the signal lights of the vehicle lamps 1b and 1d to be controlled and the pedestrian lamps 2b and 2d. Therefore, the signal lights 2G, 2Y, 1PR are controlled to be turned off.

  Similarly, in step 2 of FIG. 7, the traffic signal controller 50 causes the signal light 1PG to blink at a cycle of, for example, 500 ms and to turn on only 1G and 2R according to the example of FIG. A state in which lighting signals of 425 Hz, 765 Hz, and 1615 Hz are superimposed on the communication lines 31 to 34 (simultaneously) is transmitted for 250 ms, and a lighting signal having a frequency of 765 Hz and 1615 Hz is superimposed on the communication lines 31 to 34 (simultaneously). )) For 250 ms, and the same operation is repeated thereafter.

  The same applies to steps 3 to 8 in FIG.

  As described above, the frequency of the lighting signal transmitted to the communication lines 31 to 34 between the traffic signal controller 50 and the lamp controllers 10a to 10d is different according to the signal lamp of each lamp. Even if the lighting signal for lighting the signal lamp is simultaneously superimposed on the communication line and transmitted, the lighting signal can be extracted and received for each frequency. As a result, a lighting signal for lighting each signal lamp can be superimposed on a common communication line at the same time, so that the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be connected by a common communication line. Wiring between the machine and the lamp can be reduced. In addition, since the number of wirings can be reduced, the possibility of wiring mistakes and the possibility of failure due to signal line defects can be reduced and the reliability can be improved. In addition, since the wiring can be reduced, the wiring work becomes very easy, and the wiring work can be easily performed regardless of the structure of the intersection.

  Next, a method for detecting an abnormal state by the traffic signal control system of the present embodiment will be described. First, detection of a lighting state in which simultaneous lighting is prohibited will be described.

  The traffic signal controller 50 detects the frequency of the lighting signal that appears on the communication lines 31 to 34 between the lamp controllers 10a to 10d. The traffic signal controller 50 determines whether or not the combination of the signal lights corresponding to the detected frequency matches the combination of the signal lights for which simultaneous lighting is prohibited. For example, it is determined whether or not a combination of signal lights corresponding to the detected frequency matches a combination of a blue signal light corresponding to the main road and a blue signal light corresponding to the secondary road. When the traffic signal controller 50 determines that the combinations of the signal lights match, the traffic signal controller 50 controls the signal lights of the plurality of lamps to be in a predetermined state.

  The predetermined state is, for example, a state during a flash operation, and when the main road and the secondary road intersect, the signal lamp of the vehicle lamp for the main road blinks in yellow and the vehicle lamp for the secondary road Make the signal light blink red. Alternatively, the signal light corresponding to the main road and the signal light corresponding to the secondary road may be extinguished. As a result, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp, the signal lamp is brought into a safe state. can do.

  More specifically, the traffic signal controller 50 controls to intermittently transmit a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal light, or to stop transmission so that the signal light is in a predetermined state. For example, the yellow signal lamp can be blinked by intermittently transmitting a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the yellow signal lamp for the main road. Similarly, the red signal lamp can be blinked by intermittently transmitting a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the red signal lamp for the secondary road. Further, by stopping the transmission of the lighting signal of the frequency corresponding to each signal lamp for the main road and the secondary road, all the signal lamps can be extinguished.

  In addition, when a lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs, after the lighting signal is transmitted to control the lamp controller so as to be in the state of the flash operation, the simultaneous lighting is prohibited even if a predetermined time elapses. When the lighting state of the pattern continues, the power supplied to the signal lamp can be stopped to extinguish the signal lamp. Further, when the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs, a failure monitor (not shown) of the traffic signal controller 50 may be turned on or blinked, and failure history information is recorded or sent to a control center or the like. Abnormal information may be transmitted.

  As a result, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp, the signal lamp is brought into a safe state. can do.

  Moreover, the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern can also be detected by each of the lamp controllers 10a to 10d. As described above, the storage unit 14 of the lamp controller 10 stores information regarding a plurality of signal lamps that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously among the signal lamps of the plurality of lamp apparatuses. The lamp controller 10 receives the lighting signal appearing on the communication lines 31 to 34 and detects the frequency of the received lighting signal. The lamp controller 10 determines whether or not the combination of the signal lamps corresponding to the detected frequency matches the combination of the signal lamps for which simultaneous lighting is prohibited. For example, it is determined whether or not a combination of a blue signal lamp corresponding to the main road and a blue signal lamp corresponding to the secondary road matches. When the lamp controller 10 determines that the combination of the signal lamps matches, the lamp controller 10 controls the signal lamp to be controlled to be in a predetermined state (for example, a state during the flash operation).

  More specifically, the lamp controller 10 controls the signal light to be controlled to be in a blinking state or a extinguished state. For example, a yellow signal light for the main road can be blinked, and a red signal light for the secondary road can be blinked. Further, the signal lights for the main road and the secondary road can be extinguished. As a result, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, even if the lighting state of the simultaneous lighting prohibition pattern occurs due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp, the signal lamp is brought into a safe state. can do.

  The lamp controller 10 can determine whether or not simultaneous lighting is prohibited, including signal lights to be controlled by other lamp controllers 10. However, the lamp controller 10 can control only the signal lamps to be controlled by itself, and cannot control the signal lamps to be controlled by other lamp controller.

  In the traffic signal controller 50 or the lamp controller 10, when it is determined that the plurality of signal lights that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously are in the blue color (including the blue arrow signal lights), the traffic signal controller 50 or The lamp controller 10 controls to open the open / close switch of the open / close switch unit 18 and stops the power supply from the power supply unit 17. As a result, the blue signal light can be reliably turned off, and a situation in which the vehicle enters the intersection by mistake can be prevented to ensure safety.

  Next, a method for detecting abnormality of the vehicle lamp 1, the pedestrian lamp 2, and each signal lamp will be described.

  The current sensor unit 19 of the lamp controller 10 detects lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled. That is, drive lines are connected between the lamp controller 10 and the signal lights of the vehicle lamp 1 and the pedestrian lamp 2 to be controlled. The signal lamp can be turned on by applying a required voltage to the drive lines from the drive units 171 to 175 of the power supply unit 17.

  Note that the current sensor unit 19 as the lighting detection unit detects a current flowing through the drive line, but is not limited thereto, and may detect a voltage applied to the drive line.

  The control unit 11 of the lamp controller 10 has a function as an abnormality determination unit. The control unit 11 determines that the signal lamp is abnormally turned off when the current sensor unit 19 detects that the signal lamp is turned off when a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled is received. . That is, when the traffic signal controller 50 sends a command to turn on an arbitrary signal lamp of the lamp, but the signal lamp is not turned on, an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp is determined. be able to.

  In addition, when the control unit 11 does not receive a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled, and the current sensor unit 19 detects the lighting of the signal lamp, the control unit 11 detects abnormal lighting of the signal lamp. judge. That is, the traffic signal controller 50 determines whether a lamp or signal lamp is abnormal when the signal lamp is lit even though a command to turn on an arbitrary signal lamp of the lamp is not sent. be able to.

  Moreover, the control part 11 determines with it being blue abnormal lighting, when the signal light determined to be abnormal lighting is a blue light color (a blue arrow is also included).

  When the lamp controller 10 determines that the signal lamp is abnormally extinguished, abnormally lit, or blue abnormally lit, the lamp controller 10 corresponds to the signal lamp and has a notification signal (abnormally extinguished signal, abnormal lit signal, blue An abnormal lighting signal or the like) is transmitted to the traffic signal controller 50.

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of frequencies of the notification signal, the confirmation signal, and the response signal. As shown in FIG. 8, a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal illustrated in FIG. 5 is assigned to the abnormal turn-off signal, the abnormal lighting signal, and the blue abnormal lighting signal. For example, the abnormal turn-off signal has a frequency of 2125 Hz, the abnormal lighting signal has a frequency of 2295 Hz, and the blue abnormal lighting signal has a frequency of 2465 Hz. The confirmation signal and the response signal will be described later.

  Thereby, even when the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp is reduced, it is possible to reliably detect the occurrence of abnormal turn-off or abnormal lighting of the signal lamp due to an abnormality of the lamp or the signal lamp.

  Next, a method for determining whether the lamp controller 10 is normal or abnormal will be described. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a method for determining normality or abnormality of the lamp controller 10 of the traffic signal control system of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 9, the traffic signal controller 50 transmits a sinusoidal confirmation signal having a predetermined frequency to each of the lamp controllers 10a to 10d. The predetermined frequency is a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal as illustrated in FIG. 8, for example, 2635 Hz.

  Each lamp controller 10a-10d receives the confirmation signal.

  The transmission unit 12 as the response signal transmission unit of each lamp controller 10a to 10d is an elapsed time when the inherent delay time of each lamp controller has elapsed from the reception time (acquisition time) at which the confirmation signal is received (acquired). A sine wave-like response signal having a frequency different from that of the confirmation signal is transmitted to the traffic signal controller. The frequency of the response signal is 2805 Hz, for example, as illustrated in FIG.

  It is assumed that each of the lamp controllers 10a to 10d has a unique delay time Δt1, Δt2, Δt3, Δt4. Assuming that the time point when each lamp controller 10a to 10d receives the confirmation signal is t0, each lamp controller 10a to 10d transmits a response signal at time points t0 + Δt1, t0 + Δt2, t0 + Δt3, t0 + Δt4.

  The filter unit 56 as a response signal detection unit of the traffic signal controller 50 detects the frequency of the response signal. Since each lamp controller 10a-10d transmits a response signal after the elapse of a specific delay time, the response signals from the plurality of lamp controllers 10a-10d are not superimposed on the communication lines 31-34, The response signal can be reliably detected.

  The detection unit 59 of the traffic signal controller 50 detects normality or abnormality of each lamp controller 10a to 10d according to whether or not the frequency of the response signal is detected by the filter unit 56. For example, if the frequency of the response signal can be detected at time t0 + Δt1, it can be detected that the lamp controller 10a is normal. In addition, when the frequency of the response signal cannot be detected at the time of t0 + Δt1, it can be detected that the lamp controller 10a is abnormal. The same applies to the other lamp controllers 10b to 10d. Even when an abnormality of the lamp controller is detected, a failure monitor (not shown) of the traffic signal controller 50 may be turned on or blinked, and the history information of the abnormality of the lamp controller is recorded or controlled. Abnormal information may be transmitted to the center or the like. Thereby, even if it is a case where the wiring between a traffic signal controller and a lamp is reduced, the operation state of a lamp controller can be detected reliably.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the number of cables (signal lines, etc.) between the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be reduced, the workability of cable work is improved, and the signal connection is improved. The possibility of troublesome wiring and miswiring can be reduced.

  FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an installation example at an intersection as a comparative example, and FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a cable wiring example between the traffic signal controller 200 and the lamp as a comparative example. As shown in FIG. 10, a conventional traffic signal controller 200 as a comparative example includes lighting of vehicle lamps 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d and pedestrian lamps 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d installed at intersections. Controls turning off. In this case, cables 41, 43, 45, and 47 are wired between the traffic signal controller 200 and the vehicle lamps 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d, respectively. Cables 42, 44, 46 and 48 are wired between the traffic signal controller 200 and the pedestrian lamps 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d, respectively.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 11, the cables 41, 43, 45, 47 are each composed of four electric wires, and the cables 42, 44, 46, 48 are each composed of three electric wires. . As can be seen from FIG. 11, in the conventional traffic signal control system, for example, 4 × 4 + 3 × 4 = 28 separate and independent wires are wired between the traffic signal controller and each lamp. There was a need.

  On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a total of four separate electric wires, that is, two power lines and two communication lines are sufficient. The number can be greatly reduced. Furthermore, when the number of lamps is increased, in the conventional example, the number of necessary wires increases according to the number of lamps, whereas in the present embodiment, two necessary wires are required. The total number of power lines and the two communication lines is 4, so that the number of lines can be further reduced as compared with the conventional case.

  Further, in the conventional example illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11, since the traffic signal controller 200 controls each lamp separately, cables are individually wired from the traffic signal controller 200 to each lamp. There was a need to do. On the other hand, in this embodiment, since the communication lines 31 to 34 can be used in common, the lamp controller 10b and the lamp controller 10c are connected to the communication line 33 as illustrated in FIG. By connecting with each other, the traffic signal controller 50 can transmit and receive signals to and from the lamp controller 10c via the communication lines 32 and 33. The traffic signal controller 50 can control each lamp. There is no need to wire separately to the machine. For this reason, even if the wiring from the traffic signal controller may be difficult due to the installation position of the lamp, etc., according to the present embodiment, the wiring can be easily wired because the degree of freedom of wiring is large.

  Moreover, according to this Embodiment, since the lighting signal whose frequency is several hundred Hz-several kHz is used, the influence of the noise from the outside can be reduced. Hereinafter, this point will be described.

  FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing the relationship between the lighting signal of the traffic signal control system of this embodiment and the lighting state of the signal lamp. FIG. 12A shows a case where there is no external noise, and FIG. 12B schematically shows an example where noise enters from the outside. As shown in FIG. 12A, when there is no noise, a lighting signal of a predetermined frequency (for example, several hundred Hz to several kHz) appears on the communication lines 31 to 34, and a signal lamp corresponding to the lighting signal is turned on. It becomes a state.

  On the other hand, when noise enters from the outside, the noise frequency is generally very large, and there is an impulse characteristic and a surge characteristic. As shown in FIG. 12B, a part of the lighting signal is lost due to the noise. The signal lamp is turned off at the moment when the lighting signal is lost due to noise, but is turned on after the lighting signal returns to the original state. Thus, in this embodiment, even if there is noise intrusion, the frequency of the noise is much larger than the frequency of the lighting signal. Return to. For this reason, even if a person is looking at a signal light, he does not notice.

  FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example when a lighting command is transmitted using a transmission cable as a comparative example. In the comparative example, as shown in FIG. 13, the lamp control information (for example, lamp 1, lamp 2,...) Indicating which lamp is lit by the signal control device, each lamp Information such as a lighting command for switching on / off of the signal lamp is converted into, for example, one packet format, and the converted data is transmitted to the transmission cable.

  In the case of the comparative example shown in FIG. 13, the data to be transmitted on the transmission cable is binarized digital data and has a high frequency, and thus is easily affected by noise. For example, if noise enters and packet information for the lamp 2 is lost, for example, the lamp 2 cannot be turned on until the packet information for the lamp 2 is transmitted in the next cycle. The signal lamp of the lamp device 2 is extinguished or extinguished for a relatively long time. On the other hand, as described in FIG. 12, according to the present embodiment, the lighting signal having a frequency of several hundred Hz to several kHz is used, and the lighting and extinguishing of the signal lamp are controlled depending on the presence or absence of the lighting signal. Therefore, the noise resistance is high, and the influence of noise can be reduced.

  In the case of the comparative example shown in FIG. 13, since the lighting command is transmitted for each lamp, there is a possibility that the timing of lighting and extinguishing between lamps may be shifted. On the other hand, in this embodiment, since lighting signals having different frequencies can be simultaneously superimposed, it is possible to instruct a plurality of lamp controllers to be turned on or off at the same time.

  In the case of the comparative example shown in FIG. 13, since the lighting command is transmitted and received as data such as a packet, if data cannot be received on the lamp side due to a communication error or the like, It is necessary to perform recovery processing at the time of abnormality (for example, processing for turning on or off the signal lamp). On the other hand, in this embodiment, since the signal lamp is turned on and off according to the presence or absence of the lighting signal, it is not necessary to provide a special recovery process on the lamp controller side.

  In the present embodiment, a sine wave lighting signal having a different frequency is sent to the communication line, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a lighting signal, a notification signal, a confirmation signal, or a response signal can be transmitted by wireless communication. When transmitting a lighting signal, a notification signal, a confirmation signal, or a response signal by wireless communication, a predetermined carrier wave (for example, several tens of kHz to several MHz) is modulated using the lighting signal, the notification signal, the confirmation signal, or the response signal. (For example, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, etc.) may be performed. Thereby, a communication line or a signal line becomes unnecessary, and the wiring between a traffic signal controller and a lamp can be reduced. In addition, the possibility of circuit failure due to lightning strikes can be reduced. Furthermore, in order to improve noise resistance, the modulated carrier wave can be subjected to frequency spread (spectrum ram spread) processing to spread the band for communication.

  In addition, when transmitting a lighting signal, a notification signal, a confirmation signal, or a response signal by wireless communication or wired communication, for example, two types of lighting signals of a lighting signal with a frequency of 425 Hz and a lighting signal with 3145 Hz are provided for one signal lamp. Can be assigned. By making lighting signals of multiple frequencies correspond to one signal lamp, even if one lighting signal cannot be acquired correctly due to noise or the like, if the other lighting signal can be acquired, the control of the signal lamp is correctly performed. Therefore, the noise resistance of the system can be improved. The frequency to be assigned is not limited to two, and may be three or more. The same applies to the notification signal or the response signal.

  FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of the power line superposition method. As shown in FIG. 14, a signal (a lighting signal, a notification signal, a confirmation signal, or a response signal) output from the transmission unit 55 via the transformer 61 and the filter 62 is transmitted to the power line in a non-contact manner. Further, the receiving unit 57 receives the signal on the power line via the transformer 63 in a non-contact manner. As described above, the lighting signal, the notification signal, the confirmation signal, or the response signal can be superimposed on the power line connected between the traffic signal controller and the lamp controller and transmitted by electromagnetic induction. A high-frequency transformer (transformer) or the like can be used for electromagnetic induction. When a lighting signal, a notification signal, a confirmation signal, or a response signal is transmitted while being superimposed on a power line, a predetermined carrier wave (for example, several tens of kHz to several MHz) is used as the lighting signal, the notification signal, the confirmation signal, or the response signal. Modulation (for example, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, etc.), and the modulated signal may be superimposed on the power line by electromagnetic induction. This eliminates the need for communication lines or signal lines, and only two power lines need be connected between the traffic signal controller and the lamp controller, reducing the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp. be able to. In addition, since signals can be transmitted and received by non-contact using electromagnetic induction, the possibility of circuit failure due to lightning strikes can be reduced.

  In the above-described embodiment, the lamp controller 10 is configured to determine the frequency detected by the filter unit 16 using the control unit 11, but is not limited thereto. For example, a signal of a required frequency detected by the filter unit 16 is amplified by an amplifier or the like, or the AC signal is rectified and converted into a DC signal, and then the direct power supply unit 17 and the open / close are opened and closed depending on whether the DC voltage is high or low The switch unit 18 may be controlled.

(Embodiment 2)
In the first embodiment, the control unit 11 is configured by hardware using an analog circuit, a digital circuit, or a combination of both. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It can also be configured to perform processing by software.

  In this case, the filter unit 16 analyzes the frequency of the lighting signal and the confirmation signal received by the receiving unit 13 using, for example, Fourier analysis, and the frequency level (signal magnitude) included in the lighting signal and the confirmation signal. ).

  Based on the analysis result in the filter unit 16, the control unit 11 receives the lighting signal and the confirmation signal of the frequency when the level of the frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled is equal to or higher than a certain value. Is determined. Moreover, the control part 11 is controlled to light the signal lamp corresponding to the said frequency, while receiving the signal of the frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of control object. Moreover, when it determines with the control part 11 not having received the signal of the frequency corresponding to the signal lamp of control object, it controls to turn off the signal lamp corresponding to the said frequency. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.

  In the above-described first and second embodiments, the lamp controller 10 can also control lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp included in a plurality of lamps installed at a plurality of intersections. That is, the traffic signal controller 50 can control signal lights at a plurality of intersections as well as at one intersection via the lamp controller 10. In the conventional technology, since it was necessary to use a separate signal line for each signal light between the traffic signal controller and each signal light, it is not possible to wire a signal line over a long distance to a signal light at a distant intersection. It was not realistic and practically impossible. However, according to the present invention, since the wiring between the traffic signal controller and the lamp can be reduced, it becomes possible to control the signal lights at intersections far away.

  In the above-described embodiment, the presence / absence of a carrier wave can be simply determined when controlling the lighting or extinguishing of the signal lamp to be controlled. The carrier wave is also called a carrier and has a sinusoidal waveform. For example, the transmission unit 55 transmits a carrier wave having a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp to the lamp controller 10. The lamp controller 10 includes a carrier wave determination unit, and the carrier wave determination unit determines whether or not there is a carrier wave having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled. Since the presence / absence of a carrier wave having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is determined, for example, a process of demodulating the carrier wave to extract a required signal from the carrier wave and logically interpreting or calculating the extracted signal becomes unnecessary. The control unit 51 controls to turn on the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the carrier wave while the carrier wave determination unit determines that there is a carrier wave. Accordingly, it is possible to control the lighting of the control target signal lamp only by determining the presence or absence of a carrier wave. Note that a carrier wave having a predetermined frequency can be used for the notification signal, the confirmation signal, or the response signal.

  The disclosed embodiments are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

1, 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d Vehicle lamp 2, 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d Pedestrian lamp 10, 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d Lamp controller 11 Controller 12 Transmitter 13 Receiver 14 Storage section DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15 Signal production | generation part 16 Filter part 17 Electric power supply part 171, 172, 173, 174, 175 Drive part 18 Open / close switch part 181, 182, 183, 184, 185 Open / close switch 19 Current sensor part 191, 192, 193, 194, 195 Current sensor 31, 32, 33, 34 Wiring (power line, communication line)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 50 Traffic signal controller 51 Control part 52 Memory | storage part 53 Determination part 54 Signal generation part 55 Transmission part 56 Filter part 57 Reception part 58 Power supply part 59 Detection part

Claims (19)

In a traffic signal control system comprising a plurality of lamps having a plurality of different lamp color signal lights, and a traffic signal controller for controlling the signal lights,
Comprising one or more lamp controllers for controlling each signal light to be controlled;
The traffic signal controller is
A transmission unit that transmits a lighting signal of a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp to the lamp controller,
The lamp controller is
A first determination unit for determining whether or not a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to a signal lamp to be controlled has been acquired;
While determining that the first determination unit has acquired, turn on the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency,
A traffic signal control system comprising: a first control unit that controls to turn off a signal lamp to be controlled when it is determined that the first determination unit has not acquired the signal. The traffic signal controller is
A detection unit for detecting a frequency of a lighting signal transmitted to the lamp controller;
A storage unit that stores information on signal lights that are prohibited to be turned on simultaneously among signal lights of a plurality of lamps;
A second determination unit that determines whether a combination of signal lights corresponding to the frequency detected by the detection unit matches a combination of signal lights that are prohibited from being simultaneously lit;
2. The second control unit according to claim 1, further comprising: a second control unit configured to control the signal lamps of the plurality of lamps to be in a predetermined state when the second determination unit determines that the combination of the signal lights matches. Traffic signal control system. The second controller is
The traffic signal according to claim 2, wherein a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to a signal lamp of the plurality of lamps is intermittently transmitted from the transmission unit or controlled to stop transmission. Control system. The lamp controller is
A storage unit that stores information on a plurality of signal lights that are prohibited to be turned on simultaneously among the signal lights of the plurality of lamps,
The first determination unit includes:
It is designed to determine whether or not the combination of signal lights corresponding to the frequency of the acquired lighting signal matches the combination of signal lights that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously,
The first controller is
4. The control device according to claim 1, wherein when the first determination unit determines that the combination of the signal lamps matches, the signal lamp to be controlled is controlled to be in a predetermined state. 5. The traffic signal control system described in. The first controller is
5. The traffic signal control system according to claim 4, wherein the control signal light is controlled so as to be in a blinking state or a light-off state. The lamp controller is
A lighting detection unit for detecting the lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled;
When a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to a signal lamp to be controlled is acquired, and when the lighting detection section detects that the signal lamp is extinguished, an abnormality determining section that determines that the signal lamp is abnormally extinguished is provided. The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The lamp controller is
A lighting detection unit for detecting the lighting or extinguishing of each signal lamp of the lamp to be controlled;
When a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled is not acquired, and when the lighting detection section detects lighting of the signal lamp, an abnormality determining section that determines that the signal lamp is abnormally lit is provided. The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The lamp controller is
When the abnormality determination unit determines that the signal lamp is abnormally extinguished or abnormally lit, a lamp transmission unit corresponding to the signal lamp and transmitting a notification signal having a frequency different from the frequency of the lighting signal to the traffic signal controller is provided. The traffic signal control system according to claim 6 or 7, characterized by the above. The lamp controller is
A power supply unit that supplies power to the lamp to be controlled is provided.
The first controller is
The control unit is configured to control power supply from the power supply unit to be stopped when a plurality of signal lights that are prohibited from being turned on simultaneously among the signal lights of the plurality of lamps are blue. The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 8. The traffic signal controller is
A transmission signal of a predetermined frequency is transmitted from the transmitter to each lamp controller,
Each lamp controller is
A response signal transmission unit configured to transmit a response signal having a frequency different from the predetermined frequency to the traffic signal controller when an elapse of a specific delay time of each lamp controller from the acquisition time of acquiring the confirmation signal; ,
The traffic signal controller is
A response signal detector for detecting the frequency of the response signal;
10. A detection unit that detects normality or abnormality of each lamp controller according to whether or not the response signal is acquired by the response signal detection unit. The traffic signal control system according to item 1. The lamp controller is
A filter unit that transmits a lighting signal of a predetermined frequency;
The traffic signal control system according to claim 1, further comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires a lighting signal that has passed through the filter unit.   12. The generator according to claim 1, further comprising: a generation unit that generates the lighting signal so that one of the different frequencies of the lighting signal is not a multiple of the other frequency. Traffic signal control system. The transmitter, lamp transmitter or response signal transmitter is
The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal is transmitted by wireless communication. The transmitter, lamp transmitter or response signal transmitter is
The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the lighting signal, notification signal, or response signal to which a plurality of frequencies are assigned is transmitted. A power line is connected between the traffic signal controller and the lamp controller,
The transmitter, lamp transmitter or response signal transmitter is
The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the lighting signal, the notification signal, or the response signal is transmitted by being superimposed on the power line by electromagnetic induction. The traffic signal controller is
The traffic signal control system according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein each signal lamp of a plurality of lamps installed at a plurality of intersections is controlled. The transmitter is
A carrier wave having a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp is transmitted to the lamp controller.
The lamp controller is
A carrier determination unit that determines the presence or absence of a carrier having a frequency corresponding to the signal light to be controlled,
The first controller is
The control unit is configured to control to turn on a signal lamp corresponding to the frequency of the carrier wave while the carrier wave determination unit determines that the carrier wave is present. The traffic signal control system described in. In a traffic signal controller for controlling a plurality of signal lights of different lamp colors possessed by a plurality of lamps,
A traffic signal controller comprising: a transmission unit that transmits a lighting signal having a different frequency corresponding to each signal lamp to one or a plurality of lamp controllers that control each signal lamp of the lamp. A lamp controller that controls each signal lamp of a plurality of lamps having a plurality of signal lights of different lamp colors,
A determination unit for determining whether or not a lighting signal having a frequency corresponding to the signal lamp to be controlled has been acquired;
While determining that the determination unit has acquired, turn on the signal lamp corresponding to the frequency,
And a control unit that controls to turn off the signal lamp to be controlled when it is determined that the determination unit does not acquire the lamp.

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