JP2019152904A - Transmitter and communication device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a transmitter and communication device for automatically recognizing a front state of a traveling direction.SOLUTION: A transmitter (12) includes: a piezoelectric circuit (16) for generating electricity on the basis of pressure applied from an object; a charging/discharging circuit (18) for charging electricity generated in the piezoelectric circuit (16) and also discharging charged electricity; and a transmission circuit (22) for generating a signal (26) on the basis of electricity discharged from the charging/discharging circuit (18) and transmitting the signal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a transmitter and a communication device. More specifically, the present invention relates to a transmitter that detects surrounding conditions and informs others of the detection result, and a communication device that uses the transmitter.

  In recent years, there has been an increasing social demand for automatic driving technology that assists the operation of drivers who drive automobiles. If the situation around the vehicle can be automatically recognized by the automatic driving technology, it is possible to compensate for the situation around the vehicle that cannot be grasped by humans.

  However, in the current situation, the vehicle surrounding recognition in the automatic driving technology of the automobile relies on an in-vehicle radar that detects an obstacle or a vehicle ahead and an in-vehicle camera that recognizes the lane.

  When relying on radar or a camera for recognition of the surroundings of the own vehicle, there is a disadvantage that the sensing ability of the radar and the image recognition ability of the camera are lowered when the weather is bad or the visibility is poor, and consequently the surrounding recognition ability of the own vehicle is lowered. Arise. In order to compensate for this disadvantage, an automatic driving system is known in which a magnetic nail is embedded in a road and a sensor for detecting magnetism generated from the magnetic nail is provided in an automobile.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-311717

  However, as in Patent Document 1, when the automatic driving system adopts a configuration for detecting a magnetic nail embedded in the road, the automatic driving system moves the position of the vehicle on the road, that is, the vehicle travels near the center of the lane. However, it cannot detect other moving objects such as an automobile traveling ahead.

  In view of such problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a transmitter and a communication device that can automatically recognize other moving objects traveling ahead.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a piezoelectric circuit that generates electricity based on pressure received from an object, a charge / discharge circuit that charges the electricity generated by the piezoelectric circuit and discharges the charged electricity, A transmission circuit that generates a signal based on the electricity discharged from the discharge circuit and transmits the generated signal.

  The present invention also includes a piezoelectric circuit that generates electricity based on pressure received from an object, a charge / discharge circuit that charges the electricity generated by the piezoelectric circuit and discharges the charged electricity, and is discharged from the charge / discharge circuit. A transmitter including a transmitter circuit that generates a wireless signal based on electricity and transmits the generated wireless signal, and a wireless receiver that receives the wireless signal transmitted from the transmitter circuit.

  According to the present invention, there is a specific effect of automatically recognizing a situation in front of the traveling direction and assisting smooth progress of a moving object without requiring external power source supply.

It is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of a communication apparatus according to the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of installation of the transmitter used for the Example of FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a connection example of a wireless receiver used in the embodiment of FIG. 1. It is a schematic diagram which shows the operation example of the Example shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation example in the case of detecting a radio signal transmitted from the front in the operation example of FIG. 4. It is the schematic which shows the structure of the transmitter used for another Example of the communication apparatus which concerns on this invention. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an operation example of the embodiment shown in FIG. 6. It is a figure which shows the example of installation of the transmitter used for another Example of the communication apparatus which concerns on this invention.

  Next, an embodiment of a communication apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Referring to FIG. 1, an embodiment of a communication device 10 according to the present invention is a wireless communication device that performs communication via radio. A wireless communication device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a transmitter 12 that transmits a signal. The signal transmitted by the transmitter 12 may include a signal that can appeal to the human senses such as light and sound, but is mainly a signal by a wireless system. Therefore, in the following description, unless otherwise specified, each embodiment of the wireless communication device 10 according to the present invention will be described as having a wireless transmitter 12 that transmits a wireless signal.

  Furthermore, the embodiment of the wireless communication device 10 according to the present invention includes a wireless receiver 14 that receives a wireless signal transmitted from the wireless transmitter 12 together with the wireless transmitter 12.

  The radio transmitter 12 is used, for example, by burying at least a part of the transmitter 12 in a road or laying it while firmly fixing on the road. Therefore, the radio transmitter 12, especially the components described later of the radio transmitter 12, have a shape, structure, performance, and other necessary characteristics suitable for fixed installation in or on the road. It is preferable to configure. On the other hand, the wireless receiver 14 is installed on a movable object that can be operated, such as an automobile.

  By installing the wireless transmitter 12 on the road and the wireless receiver 14 on the automobile, the wireless communication device 10 can transmit the wireless transmitter 12 to the moving object on which the wireless receiver 14 is installed and its user. It is possible to recognize information related to the environment around a moving object that travels on a road on which is installed. That is, it can be said that the wireless transmitter 12 is a kind of detector that can also detect the use situation of the road.

  The wireless transmitter 12 includes a piezoelectric circuit 16 that generates electricity by detecting pressure, that is, generates electric power. That is, the piezoelectric circuit 16 is preferably a circuit including a piezoelectric element that converts a force applied to the piezoelectric body into a voltage. Here, the piezoelectric element is composed of, for example, a unimorph type piezoelectric element, a bimorph type piezoelectric element, or a stacked type piezoelectric element. The piezoelectric element may be configured by combining any of a unimorph type piezoelectric element, a bimorph type piezoelectric element, and a laminated type piezoelectric element. The detection of pressure by the piezoelectric circuit 16 is performed, for example, when an automobile tire, which is a moving object, passes immediately above the piezoelectric circuit 16 embedded or laid on a road.

  The radio transmitter 12 further includes a charge / discharge circuit 18 that charges the electric energy generated by the piezoelectric circuit 16 and discharges the charged electric energy as necessary. The charge / discharge circuit 18 is connected to the piezoelectric circuit 16 via a transmission line 20 for transmitting electric power, and is supplied with electric power from the piezoelectric circuit 16. By providing the piezoelectric circuit 16, the wireless communication apparatus 10 according to the present invention including this embodiment does not need to receive energy supply from the outside. In the description of this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, it is assumed that each component of the radio transmitter 12 is connected by a bus type transmission line 20 including a power supply line. However, it is needless to say that any arbitrary configuration may be used as a connection mode between the components of the wireless transmitter 12.

  The transmitter 12 further includes a transmission circuit 22 that generates a signal and transmits the generated signal. As described above, the signal generated and transmitted by the transmitter 12 is mainly based on a wireless system. Therefore, unless otherwise specified in the following description, the radio transmitter 12 generates a radio signal 26 (illustrated by a dotted arrow in FIG. 1), and a radio transmitter circuit 22 for transmitting the generated radio signal 26 is provided. It explains as having. The wireless transmission circuit 22 is connected to the piezoelectric circuit 16 via the transmission line 20, and generates and transmits a wireless signal 26 when supplied with electric power from the piezoelectric circuit 16. The radio signal generated and transmitted by the radio transmission circuit 22 has a signal format that can be received by the radio receiver 14.

  Further, the wireless transmission circuit 22 is configured to be able to receive power supply from the charging / discharging circuit 18 by a connection by an arbitrary design such as a connection by the bus type transmission line 20. When the electric power charged by the charge / discharge circuit 18 is discharged to the radio transmission circuit 22, the radio transmission circuit 22 generates and transmits the radio signal 26 using the electric power supplied from the charge / discharge circuit 18.

  According to the configuration of the wireless transmitter 12, the electric energy charged by the charge / discharge circuit 18 is applied to the wireless transmitter circuit 22 while pressure is applied to the piezoelectric circuit 16 and during pressurization of the piezoelectric circuit 16. The radio transmission circuit 22 continues to transmit the radio signal 26 until the discharge is completed.

  With reference to FIG. 2, an example of embedding the wireless transmitter 12 in a road will be described. The road shown in FIG. 2 is divided into an own lane that runs in the direction of arrow A and an opposite lane that runs in the direction of arrow B by a center line 32 marked on the road. A plurality of radio transmitters 12, more specifically, a plurality of radio transmission circuits 22 are embedded at equal intervals in the center of the lane width of the own lane and the opposite lane.

  Further, a plurality of piezoelectric circuits 16 corresponding to the plurality of radio transmitters 12 are embedded in the road. The position where the piezoelectric circuit 16 is embedded in the road is preferably determined in consideration of the possibility of passing a tire of a vehicle traveling on each lane. For example, not only directly under the position where the tires of a car running in a lane on a normal lane should pass, but even if a car running in a lane deviates from the normal lane to some extent, The piezoelectric circuit 16 is embedded so as to extend directly under a position where such a tire may pass. Thus, when the piezoelectric circuit 16 is embedded in the road, the radio transmitter 12 can reliably detect the passage of the automobile and transmit the radio signal 26. As a result, the wireless communication device 10 can continuously assist the driving of the automobile in which the wireless receiver 14 is installed.

  Of course, the radio transmitter 12 may be configured so that the pressure detectable range of the piezoelectric circuit 16 extends only in the vicinity of the center of the lane width where the radio transmission circuit 22 is embedded. When such a configuration is adopted, the radio transmitter 12 can be reduced in size, and the operation of embedding the radio transmitter 12 in the road can be simplified.

  Therefore, the dimensions of the piezoelectric circuit 16 can be arbitrarily determined. Further, it is arbitrarily determined whether the piezoelectric circuit 16 is configured to be integrated with the wireless transmission circuit 22 or configured to be separated from the wireless transmission circuit 22 while being connected to the transmission line 20. obtain.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 3, an example of installation of the wireless receiver 14 in an automobile will be schematically described. The automobile on which the wireless receiver 14 is to be installed need not have a special configuration, and can be installed on a known automobile. Therefore, the description of the configuration of the automobile itself is limited to the minimum necessary for explaining the embodiment of the present invention.

  The wireless receiver 14 is connected to an automobile control unit 42 that controls the operation of each mechanism of the automobile. The control unit 42 is a computer that comprehensively controls these auxiliary devices when, for example, an electric auxiliary device is used to control the driving of the automobile. The wireless receiver 14 is connected to the control unit 42 via a transmission path 44 for transmitting information, and supplies the information carried on the wireless signal 26 received from the wireless transmitter 12 to the control unit 42. The control unit 42 recognizes the environment around the vehicle based on the information carried on the radio signal 26, and generates control signals for controlling various mechanisms of the vehicle.

  The control unit 42 is connected to each mechanism of the automobile via a transmission path 46 that transmits a control signal. For example, the control unit 42 includes a steering mechanism 48 that adjusts the traveling direction of the vehicle, a braking mechanism 50 that decelerates the traveling vehicle, an activation mechanism 52 that generates driving force of the vehicle by an engine or an electric motor, and an activation mechanism 52. It is connected to a power transmission mechanism 54 for adjusting the generated driving force and finally transmitting it to the wheels. The components of these mechanisms 48 to 54 include auxiliary devices that assist the operation of each mechanism.

  In addition, the control unit 42 also generates a transmission path on the display unit 56 that notifies the vehicle occupant of the detection result of the vehicle surrounding information by generating light, sound, and the like, and the execution of vehicle control based on the detected information. It is preferable to be connected through 46.

  The control unit 42 may be built in the automobile or may be integrated with the wireless receiver 14. Further, the wireless receiver 14 can be installed not only on the automobile but also on a moving object other than the automobile or a fixed object installed on the road, for example, but the basic connection relationship is the same as that described above.

  The wireless communication device 10 of the present embodiment preferably has at least two wireless receivers 14. In this case, as shown in FIG. 4, one of the plurality of wireless receivers 14 has one wireless receiver 14 a from the wireless transmitter 12 installed on the road ahead when viewed from the current position of the automobile 58. It is preferably installed in front of the automobile 58 so that the transmitted radio signal 26 can be received.

  In addition, the wireless receiver 14b, which is different from the wireless receiver 14a, can receive the wireless signal 26 transmitted from the wireless transmitter 12 installed on the road below the automobile 58. Moreover, it is preferable to be installed behind the front wheel 62a. More preferably, the wireless receiver 14b is installed at a position behind the front wheel 62a of the automobile 58 and ahead of the rear wheel 62b.

  Next, the operation of the embodiment of the wireless communication device 10 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 4, when the automobile 58 travels on a road in which a plurality of wireless transmitters 12 indicated by reference numerals 12a to 12i are embedded, tires of the automobile 58, in particular, front wheel tires 62a are piezoelectric of the wireless oscillator 12c. The circuit 16 will be pressed. At this time, the piezoelectric circuit 16 detects the pressure due to the weight of the automobile and generates electricity, that is, converts the detected pressure into a voltage.

  The piezoelectric circuit 16 supplies the generated power to the wireless transmission circuit 22. The wireless transmission circuit 22 that has received the power supply transmits a wireless signal 26. The piezoelectric circuit 16 further supplies the generated power to the charge / discharge circuit 18. The charge / discharge circuit 18 stores the supplied power.

  When the tire 62a that has pressed the piezoelectric circuit 16 passes immediately above the piezoelectric circuit 16, the power generation by the piezoelectric circuit 16 ends. This is because there is no detection of pressure to be converted into voltage. Accordingly, the power supply from the piezoelectric circuit 16 to the wireless transmission circuit 22 is also terminated.

  However, even when the power generation by the piezoelectric circuit 16 is completed, the electric energy stored by receiving the supply from the piezoelectric circuit 16 remains in the charge / discharge circuit 18. The charge / discharge circuit 18 discharges the stored electrical energy to the radio transmission circuit 22. For this reason, the radio transmitter circuit 22 of the radio transmitters 12d to 12h transmits the radio signal 26 while the power supply from the charge / discharge circuit 18 is continued even after the direct power supply from the piezoelectric circuit 16 is terminated. You can keep sending. When the electric energy stored in the charge / discharge circuit 18 is exhausted, the wireless transmission circuit 22 of the wireless transmitter 12i that has stopped supplying all power ends the transmission of the wireless signal 26. The output of the wireless signal 26 by the wireless transmitter 12 is a short time after the rear end of the automobile 58 passes after the front wheel tire 62a of the automobile 58 presses the piezoelectric circuit 16 of the wireless transmitter 12, that is, the inter-vehicle distance. It is preferable to continue to such an extent that an appropriate distance can be secured.

  Subsequently, the control operation of the automobile provided with the wireless receiver 14 that has received the wireless signal 26 will be described. The radio receiver 14b installed on the lower side of the automobile 58 receives the radio signal 26 transmitted from the radio transmitter 12 embedded in the center of the lane of the road just below the automobile 58. The wireless receiver 14b supplies the information carried in the wireless signal 26 to the control unit 42, and the control unit 42 recognizes the positional relationship between the automobile 58 and the lane based on the received information.

  When the control unit 42 recognizes that the travel line of the automobile 58 is out of the center of the lane, the control unit 42 instructs the steering mechanism 48 to control the steering angle of the automobile 58 to travel in the center of the lane. A control signal is transmitted. The steering mechanism 48 that has received such a control signal adjusts the steering angle of the automobile 58 in accordance with a command from the control unit.

  On the other hand, the radio receiver 14a installed in front of the car 58 can receive the radio signal 26 transmitted from the radio transmitter 12 embedded in the road in front of the car 58. If the wireless receiver 14a detects the wireless signal 26, the control unit 42 of the automobile 58 that has received the detection result determines that the distance between the automobile 58 and the other vehicle 68 ahead is too small.

  The operation of the wireless communication device 10 until the control unit 42 determines that the distance between the car 58 and the front car 68 is too narrow will be described in more detail with reference to the traveling state of each car. When the other vehicle 68 ahead travels on the wireless transmitter 12, the wireless transmitter 12, in FIG. 5, the wireless transmitters 12c to 12h operate as described above to transmit the wireless signal 26. It will be. The fact that the wireless receiver 14a installed in the succeeding automobile 58 has received the wireless signal 26 from the front means that the front wireless that was activated by the weight pressurization of the other vehicle 68 at the time of signal reception by the wireless receiver 14a. This means that the electrical energy accumulated in the charge / discharge circuit 18 of the transmitter 12 has not been completely discharged. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, when the wireless receiver 14a of the automobile 58 receives the wireless signal 26 transmitted from the wireless transmitter 12h that is activated due to the traveling of the other vehicle 68 ahead, the automobile 58 The control unit 42 of the car 58 makes a determination that the car 68 is too close.

  When the control unit 42 of the automobile 58 determines that the inter-vehicle distance from the preceding vehicle 68 is too narrow, the control unit 42 transmits a control signal instructing the braking mechanism 50 to perform a deceleration operation. The braking mechanism 50 that has received such a control signal decelerates the automobile 58 in accordance with a command from the control unit. Such deceleration control is continued until the wireless receiver 14a does not receive the wireless signal 26.

  Since the configuration and operation of the embodiment of the present invention have been described so far, the wireless communication apparatus according to the present invention adopts a configuration that wirelessly communicates a relatively short distance between a moving object such as an automobile and a road. There is no need for a camera to recognize the surrounding environment. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to recognize the surrounding environment without being affected by bad weather and poor visibility, and it is possible to automatically travel in the center of the lane based on the recognized surrounding environment information.

  Furthermore, since the piezoelectric circuit is incorporated in the wireless transmitter of the wireless communication device according to the present invention, the wireless communication device can be used without requiring power supply from the outside of the wireless transmitter.

  In particular, according to the present invention, it is possible to recognize other moving objects traveling ahead. This is an advantageous effect that cannot be obtained by an automatic driving system that employs a method of embedding a magnet in a road.

  Next, another embodiment of the wireless communication apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail. In the description of another embodiment, components that are the same as those used in the previous embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 are shown with the same reference numerals. The repeated description in this specification will be omitted.

  In another embodiment of the wireless communication device 10 according to the present invention, the configuration is such that the type of the wireless signal 26 transmitted by the wireless transmitter 12 can be switched so that multi-hop communication between the wireless transmitters 12 can be realized. To do. A configuration example of the wireless transmitter 12 used in the wireless communication apparatus 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the illustration of this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, it is assumed that each component of the radio transmitter 12 is connected by a bus type transmission line 72 including a power supply line and a data communication line. However, it goes without saying that the configuration of connection between the components of the radio transmitter 12 may be any configuration that can transmit power and signals.

  The embodiment of the wireless transmitter 12 shown in FIG. 6 includes a relay circuit 74 that executes processing necessary for multihop communication between the wireless transmitters 12 in addition to the piezoelectric circuit 16, the charge / discharge circuit 18, and the wireless transmitter circuit 22. . More specifically, the relay circuit 74 of the wireless transmitter 12 is different from the wireless signal 26 transmitted from the wireless transmission circuit 22 of another wireless transmitter 12 and is a signal for multi-hop communication between the wireless transmitters 12. Is generated and transmitted, and a signal for multi-hop communication is received from another wireless transmitter. Alternatively, the radio transmitter 12 used in the present embodiment may use the radio signal 26 itself generated by the radio transmitter circuit 22 as a signal for multi-hop communication between the radio transmitters 12, and in that case, relay Circuit 74 receives radio signal 26. The relay circuit 74 is connected to the piezoelectric circuit 16 and the charge / discharge circuit 18 via the transmission line 72, and executes multi-hop communication processing while receiving power from these circuits.

  The embodiment of the radio transmitter 12 shown in FIG. 6 further includes a determination circuit 76 connected to the relay circuit 74 via the transmission path 72. The determination circuit 76 receives a signal for multi-hop communication received from another radio transmitter 12 from the relay circuit 74, and makes a predetermined determination based on information carried on the multi-hop communication signal. More specifically, it is determined which one of the wireless transmitter 12 having the relay circuit 74 that performs the determination and another wireless transmitter 12 that has transmitted the multi-hop communication signal has been activated first. . The determination circuit 76 grasps the moving direction of a moving object such as an automobile traveling on the road by determining the relationship between the activation of the plurality of radio transmitters 12 installed on the road. The determination circuit 76 is connected to the piezoelectric circuit 16 and the charge / discharge circuit 18 via the transmission path 72, and can execute determination processing while receiving power from these circuits.

  The embodiment of the wireless transmitter 12 shown in FIG. 6 further includes a switching circuit 78 connected to the determination circuit 76 and the wireless transmission circuit 22 via the transmission path 72. The switching circuit 78 receives a signal on which a determination result regarding the moving direction of the moving object is placed from the determination circuit 74, and the radio signal 26 transmitted by the wireless transmission circuit 22 according to the received determination result, that is, the moving direction of the moving object. Change the type. Any known method can be used to switch the type of the radio signal 26. For example, the type of the radio signal 26 may be switched by simply changing the frequency, or the frequency, amplitude, phase, or the like may be modulated by a signal modulation method. Alternatively, the signal type may be switched by changing the duty ratio of the pulse wave of the radio signal 26.

  The radio transmission circuit 22 according to this embodiment transmits at least two types of radio signals 26 in response to a switching command from the switching circuit 74, that is, a radio signal transmitted when a moving object traveling on a road is traveling in an appropriate direction. The signal 26a and the radio signal 26b to be transmitted when traveling in an inappropriate direction are appropriately switched and transmitted.

  The configuration of the wireless receiver 14 and the installation example of the wireless receiver 14 on the moving object in this embodiment may be the same as those shown in FIG. 3 described in the previous embodiment. In this case, the control unit 42 connected to the radio receiver 14 executes different control operations depending on the type of the radio signal 26.

  The operation of the wireless communication device 10 when a vehicle runs on a road in which the wireless transmitter 12 having the configuration example shown in FIG. 6 is embedded will be described. The plurality of radio transmitters 12 shown in FIG. 6 are embedded at equal intervals in the center of the lane width of the lane. As shown in FIG. 7, when the vehicle travels correctly in the lane to be traveled in the direction of arrow A (the illustration of the oncoming lane side is omitted), the piezoelectric circuit 16 of the radio transmitter 12 embedded in the road is shown in FIG. 7 detects the weight of the vehicle in the order of 12d, 12c, 12b, and 12a, and converts the detected pressure into a voltage. Each circuit of the radio transmitter 12 is activated using the electric energy generated in this way.

  The relay circuit 74 of each radio transmitter 12 that receives power supply from the piezoelectric circuit 16 and the charge / discharge circuit 18 that stores the electrical energy generated by the piezoelectric circuit 16 transmits a multi-hop communication signal 82. The order in which the wireless transmitter 12 transmits the multi-hop communication signal 82 is 12d, 12c, 12b, and 12a in the same order as in the passing order of the automobile. Further, the relay circuit 74 receives a multi-hop communication signal 82 transmitted from another wireless transmitter 12, particularly the transmitter 12 embedded adjacently.

  The determination circuit 76 of each wireless transmitter 12 is based on the multi-hop communication signal 82 transmitted from the other wireless transmitter 12, and the wireless transmitter 12 including the determination circuit 76 and the wireless that transmitted the received signal 82 It is determined which of the transmitters 12 was activated first under the pressure of the automobile. In FIG. 7, when the vehicle is traveling correctly in the direction of the arrow A, for example, the determination circuit 76 of the wireless transmitter 12b is more than the wireless transmitter 12b based on the multi-hop communication signal 82c received from the wireless transmitter 12c. It is determined that the wireless transmitter 12c is activated first.

  If the lane is to travel in the direction of arrow A, the radio transmitter 12c located on the front side of the traveling direction is activated before the radio transmitter 12b. The determination circuit 76 can determine that the vehicle is traveling normally. The determination circuit 76 of the radio transmitter 12b supplies a signal carrying information of the determination result to the switching circuit 78. Then, the switching circuit 78 causes the radio transmission circuit 22 to transmit the type of radio signal 26a to be transmitted when the automobile traveling on the road is traveling in an appropriate direction.

  On the other hand, when the automobile is traveling in a direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle should originally travel, for example, the determination circuit 76 of the wireless transmitter 12b performs wireless transmission based on the multi-hop communication signal 82a received from the wireless transmitter 12a. It is determined that the wireless transmitter 12a is activated earlier than the transmitter 12b. The fact that the radio transmitter 12a is activated before the radio transmitter 12b in spite of the lane to be driven in the direction of arrow A means that the car runs backward without following the prescribed direction of travel. The determination circuit 76 can determine that the

  The determination circuit 76 of the radio transmitter 12b supplies a signal carrying information of the determination result to the switching circuit 78. Then, the switching circuit 78 transmits the type of the radio signal 26 to be transmitted to the radio transmission circuit 22 when the vehicle travels abnormally, that is, when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling in an inappropriate direction. Switch to the radio signal 26b.

  When the radio receiver 14 installed in the reverse running vehicle receives the radio signal 26b transmitted during abnormal running, the control unit 42 notifies the control unit 42 that the abnormal running detected on the radio signal 26b has been detected. Supply. The control unit 42 recognizes that the traveling direction of the host vehicle is not appropriate based on the received information, and controls signals for controlling various mechanisms and components of the vehicle to ensure the safety of the host vehicle and the surroundings of the host vehicle. Is generated.

  For example, if the control unit 42 of the vehicle operates the display unit 56 to generate a warning light, a warning sound, or the like, the vehicle that the driver is driving does not follow the prescribed direction of travel. Can inform you that you are running. Furthermore, the control unit 42 controls mechanisms such as the steering mechanism 48 and the braking mechanism 50 to guide the vehicle that has recognized the reverse running to a safe place and stop it at a place where safety is ensured. Operations can also be performed. Such automatic operation control can be expected to reduce accidents.

  Furthermore, an object on which the wireless receiver 14 of the wireless communication apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment can be installed is not limited to a moving object such as an automobile. For example, the wireless receiver 14 may be mounted on an alarm device 84 that is installed along a road and informs a driver of a vehicle of danger by light or sound. The configuration for connecting the wireless receiver 14 to the alarm device 84 is essentially the same as the connection example of the wireless receiver 14 shown in FIG. 3 to the automobile, particularly the connection relationship of the wireless receiver 14, the control unit 42, and the display unit 56. Can be used.

  By mounting the wireless receiver 14 on the alarm device 84, the alarm device 84 can be continuously notified of the road condition. More specifically, when the radio receiver 14 of the alarm device 84 receives the radio signal 26b, the control unit of the alarm device 84 can immediately operate the display unit to emit an alarm light, an alarm sound, or the like. . Therefore, not only cars that are running in reverse but also drivers and pedestrians of other cars are notified quickly and reliably that there are cars that run backward on the road without following the prescribed direction of travel. be able to.

  Next, still another embodiment of the wireless communication apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail. In this embodiment, the basic configuration of the wireless transmitter is the same as that of the transmitter 12 shown in FIG. 1, but the piezoelectric circuit 16 and the wireless transmission circuit 22 constituting the wireless transmitter 12 are separated separately. It is a component. With such a configuration, the piezoelectric circuit 16 and the radio transmission circuit 22 can be arranged at positions separated from each other when installed on the road.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, among the wireless transmitters 12a configured to include the piezoelectric circuit 16a and the wireless transmission circuit 22a that are individually separated, the piezoelectric circuit 16a is placed at an arbitrary position on the road, particularly in normal driving. While the tire of the vehicle inside is embedded at a position where there is a high possibility that the vehicle tire will pass directly above the circuit 16a, the radio transmission circuit 22a is located at the center of the lane and the traveling direction A is greater than the piezoelectric circuit 16a by the distance indicated by the arrow L. It is embedded in front of the side (illustration of the opposite lane is omitted in FIG. 8). The radio transmitters 12b, 12c, 12d... Having the same configuration as the radio transmitter 12a are embedded in the same arrangement.

  When pressure is applied to the piezoelectric circuit 16a by the tire of an automobile traveling in the direction A on the road in which the wireless transmitters 12a to 12d used in this embodiment are embedded, the wireless transmission circuit 22a in front of the piezoelectric circuit 16a transmits the wireless signal 26 To send. The control unit 42 of the vehicle in which the wireless receiver 14 is installed has a steering mechanism 48, a braking mechanism 50, etc. of the vehicle so that the vehicle travels in the installation direction of the wireless transmission circuit 22a that transmits the received wireless signal 26. To control. When the automobile continues to travel on the piezoelectric circuits 16b, 16c, 16d,..., The wireless transmission circuits 22b, 22c, 22d,. As a result, the control unit 42 of the automobile continues to control each mechanism of the automobile so that the automobile travels in the installation direction of the wireless transmission circuits 22b, 22c, 22d. Thus, if the Example of this invention is used, a motor vehicle can be guided to a desired direction.

  In the description so far of the embodiments of the wireless communication device 10 according to the present invention, the automobile has been mainly assumed as a moving object on which the wireless receiver 14 is to be installed. However, the target for installing the wireless receiver 14 is not limited to an automobile, and may be, for example, a motorcycle or any other vehicle.

  Moreover, what the transmitter 12 transmits is not limited to the radio signal 26, but may be configured to transmit a signal such as sound or light instead of the radio signal 26 or together with the radio signal 26. For example, if the transmitter 12 that transmits sound is embedded in the sidewalk in the arrangement shown in FIG. 8, power is generated by the weight of the pedestrian when the pedestrian steps on the ground directly above the piezoelectric circuit 16. A sound is emitted from the transmission circuit 22 located in front of the piezoelectric circuit. Then, a visually handicapped person can recognize the direction of sound generation as a direction to travel and can walk in an appropriate direction. In this way, the present invention can be used for guiding visually impaired persons. That is, in the embodiments of the present invention described in this specification, the object that activates the transmitter 12 by applying a pressure that can be detected by the piezoelectric circuit 16 is not only an automobile or other operable moving object, but also a human or other Can also be included in the concept of objects.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described so far, specific methods for implementing the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments. As long as the present invention can be implemented, the design, operation procedure, and the like can be changed as appropriate. For example, a circuit or other equipment used for assisting the function of the components used in the present invention can be added and omitted as appropriate.

10 Communication equipment
12 Transmitter
14 Wireless receiver
16 Piezoelectric circuit
18 Charge / discharge circuit
22 Transmitter circuit
74 Relay circuit
76 Judgment circuit
78 Switching circuit

Claims (10)

A piezoelectric circuit that generates electricity based on pressure received from an object;
Charging and discharging the electricity generated by the piezoelectric circuit and discharging the charged electricity;
A transmitter comprising: a transmitter circuit that generates a signal based on electricity discharged from the charge / discharge circuit and transmits the generated signal.   2. The transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the signal generated by the transmitter circuit is a radio signal. The transmitter according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising:
A relay circuit that communicates with other transmitters;
A determination circuit for determining a moving direction of the object based on a result of communication with the other transmitter by the relay circuit;
A transmitter comprising: a switching circuit that switches a type of a signal transmitted by the transmission circuit in accordance with a determination result by the determination circuit.   The transmitter according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the piezoelectric circuit and the transmitter circuit are individually separated.   5. The transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the piezoelectric circuit, the charge / discharge circuit, and the transmitter are configured to be installed on a road. A piezoelectric circuit that generates electricity based on pressure received from an object;
Charging and discharging the electricity generated by the piezoelectric circuit and discharging the charged electricity;
A transmitter including a transmitter circuit that generates a radio signal based on electricity discharged from the charge / discharge circuit and transmits the generated radio signal, and a radio receiver that receives the radio signal transmitted from the transmitter circuit A communication device comprising a device. The communication device according to claim 6, wherein the wireless receiver includes first and second wireless receivers configured to be installed on the object,
A first wireless receiver configured to receive the wireless signal transmitted from the transmitter installed below the object;
The second wireless receiver is configured to receive a wireless signal transmitted from the transmitter installed in front of the object. The communication device according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the transmitter further includes:
A relay circuit that communicates with other transmitters;
A determination circuit for determining a moving direction of the object based on a result of communication with the other transmitter by the relay circuit;
A communication device comprising: a switching circuit that switches a type of a radio signal transmitted by the transmission circuit according to a determination result by the determination circuit.   9. The communication device according to claim 6, wherein the piezoelectric circuit and the transmission circuit are separately separated.   10. The communication device according to claim 6, wherein the piezoelectric circuit, the charge / discharge circuit, and the transmitter are configured to be installed on a road.

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