JP2024044091A - Train monitoring systems and cameras - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To reduce the workload associated with setting IP addresses etc. for each camera in a train monitoring system. [Solution] A network switch 12 has multiple ports that are individually associated with IP addresses containing information indicating the mounting position of each camera 11 in the train monitoring system, and assigns an IP address corresponding to each port to the camera 11 connected to that port. When an IP address is assigned upon connection to the network switch 12, the camera 11 sets itself according to its own mounting position indicated by the assigned IP address. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a train monitoring system having multiple cameras connected to a network switch.

Ensuring safety when passengers board and disembark trains at station platforms is an important issue for train operations. As part of such safety measures, a train monitoring system has been developed that uses cameras attached to the exterior sides of each train car to capture images of the area around the doors and displays the camera images on a video display device in the driver's cab. In addition, in the event of an emergency, images recorded on a video recorder are used to grasp and analyze the situation.

Conventional techniques in the technical field related to the present invention include the following. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a train monitoring system that divides the screen area of a video display device into a plurality of areas, and allocates and displays a plurality of camera images taken by cameras of each vehicle to each area. There is.

Patent No. 6758203

In conventional train monitoring systems, multiple cameras are installed in each carriage of a train, and various settings such as IP addresses must be configured according to their installation location. This configuration work is performed not only when the train monitoring system is constructed, but also when cameras are replaced later due to malfunctions, etc. However, the configuration work for a large number of cameras is cumbersome, and improvements in this area were needed.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned conventional circumstances, and aims to reduce the workload associated with setting IP addresses and other settings for each camera in a train monitoring system.

In order to achieve the above object, a train monitoring system according to one aspect of the present invention is configured as follows. In other words, in a train monitoring system that has multiple cameras connected to a network switch, the network switch has multiple ports that are individually associated with IP addresses that contain information representing the mounting position of each camera in the train monitoring system. The camera connected to each port is assigned an IP address corresponding to that port, and when the camera is assigned an IP address when connected to a network switch, the camera uses the assigned IP address. Make settings according to the installation position indicated by .

Here, the settings according to the mounting position of the camera may include setting whether or not image reversal is necessary for the camera image.

Further, settings depending on the mounting position of the camera may include setting of a camera name.

In addition, settings based on the camera's installation position may include settings related to the distribution of camera footage.

A camera according to another aspect of the present invention is configured as follows. That is, when a camera used in a train monitoring system is connected to a network switch having multiple ports to which IP addresses each of which is individually associated with information indicating the mounting position of each camera in the train monitoring system, and an IP address corresponding to that port is assigned, the camera performs settings according to its own mounting position indicated by the assigned IP address.

According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the workload associated with setting IP addresses and the like for each camera in the train monitoring system.

1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a train monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention; 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a camera included in the train monitoring system of FIG. 1 . 2 is a diagram showing an example of a device ID table in the train monitoring system of FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of distribution data types in the train monitoring system of FIG. 1. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a distribution source ID table in the train monitoring system of FIG. 1. FIG.

One embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a train monitoring system according to one embodiment of the present invention. The train in FIG. 1 is composed of four cars, namely, car 1 10-1, car 2 10-2, car 3 10-3, and car 4 10-4, which are coupled together. When the train travels to the right in the drawing, car 1 10-1 is the leading car and car 4 10-4 is the trailing car. When the train travels to the left in the drawing, car 4 10-4 is the leading car and car 1 10-1 is the trailing car. The number of cars in a train is arbitrary, and a train may be made up of more or fewer cars.

On the exterior side of car 101, multiple cameras 11 are attached facing the doors of the car to capture images of passengers getting on and off the train. In the example of FIG. 1, based on the train's movement to the right of the drawing, cameras 11(A) installed on the front right side of the car body, camera 11(B) installed on the front left side of the car body, camera 11(C) installed on the rear right side of the car body, and camera 11(D) installed on the rear left side of the car body are installed. Cameras 11(A) and 11(B) are positioned so that they capture images from the front side to the rear side. On the other hand, cameras 11(B) and 11(C) are positioned so that they capture images from the rear side to the front side. In addition, cameras 11(A) to 11(D) are attached to cars 2 10-2 to 4 10-4 in the same arrangement as car 1 10-1. In this example, four cameras are installed per car, but more or fewer cameras may be installed.

Car 1 10-1, located at one end of the train, has a driver's cab, which is equipped with a monitoring video display device 13. Car 4 10-4, located at the other end of the train, also has a driver's cab, which is equipped with a monitoring video display device. The video display device 13 in car 10-1 is used when the train travels to the right in the drawing, and the video display device 13 in car 4 10-4 is used when the train travels to the left in the drawing. In this example, two video display devices 13(A), 13(B) are installed as a set in the driver's cab, but more or fewer video display devices may be installed as a set in the driver's cab.

Car No. 1 10-1 at one end of the train is further equipped with a video recording device 14 that records images distributed from the cameras 11 of each car, and a video display device based on information obtained from host devices and contact inputs. A control device 15 that controls display ON/OFF of the device 13 is provided. Further, a video recording device 14 and a control device 15 are also installed in car No. 4 10-4 at the opposite end of the train.

In this example, one of the video recording device 14 of car No. 1 10-1 and the video recording device 14 of car No. 4 10-4 is operated as a production system, and the other is kept on standby as a standby system, but both are operated in parallel or cooperatively. may be operated. In addition, in this example, one of the control device 15 of car No. 1 10-1 and the control device 15 of car No. 4 10-4 is operated as a production system, and the other is put on standby as a standby system, but both are operated in parallel or cooperatively. may be operated.

Furthermore, each vehicle is equipped with a network switch 12 as a relay device. The relay device 12 of the No. 1 car 10-1 includes devices inside the vehicle, namely cameras 11(A) to 11(D), video display devices 13(A) and 13(B), video recording device 14, and A control device 15 is connected. The relay device 12 of the second car 10-2 is connected to devices within the vehicle, that is, cameras 11(A) to 11(D). The relay device 12 of the third car 10-3 is connected to devices within the vehicle, that is, cameras 11(A) to 11(D). The relay device 12 of the No. 4 car 10-4 includes devices inside the vehicle, namely cameras 11(A) to 11(D), video display devices 13(A) and 13(B), video recording device 14, and A control device 15 is connected. The relay devices 12 of each vehicle are further connected in cascade to the relay devices 12 of adjacent vehicles, thereby constructing an IP network within the train.

Next, we will explain the automation of the configuration work for each camera, which is one of the features of the present invention. The network switch of this system assigns IP addresses to the connected cameras using the DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) function. Here, the IP addresses assigned to each camera of this system are assumed to be predetermined according to the installation position of each camera. In addition, each port of the network switch used for cable connection to the camera is also assumed to be predetermined according to the installation position of the camera. Therefore, when connecting a camera to the network switch, by connecting it to the port corresponding to the installation position of the camera, the IP address corresponding to the installation position of the camera is assigned to the camera. Therefore, the camera identifies its own installation position from the assigned IP address, and completes the automatic configuration by writing the settings according to the installation position to the configuration file for its own operation.

Assigning an IP address using DHCP each time a train starts normal operation will have an effect such as delaying the start-up time of the entire system, so it should be done only when the camera is installed for the first time. Normally, the position of the camera will not be changed after it is installed, so it is sufficient to run it only when the camera is installed for the first time. When the system is activated after the camera is installed (when the train is in operation), the train monitoring system operates using a fixed IP address. Furthermore, when a camera is replaced due to a malfunction, an IP address is assigned by DHCP, but the same IP address as the camera before replacement is assigned.

The following is a specific explanation of automating the configuration work for each camera, using the train monitoring system in Figure 1 as an example. The network switch 12 in this example has multiple ports used to connect to the cameras 11, and each port is assigned an IP address in advance to be given to the camera 11 connected to that port. The network switch 12 assigns the assigned IP address of each port to the camera 11 connected to that port.

When the camera 11 in this example is assigned an IP address upon connection to the network switch 12, it automatically performs processing to apply the settings corresponding to that IP address to its own operation. As shown in the configuration example in FIG. 2, the camera 11 includes an imaging unit 21, a processing/control unit 22, a setting file 23, a communication unit 24, and an automatic setting unit 25.

The imaging unit 21 outputs video data obtained by imaging a predetermined field of view (for example, near a door). The processing/control unit 22 performs processing/control based on the video data output from the imaging unit 21 according to a setting file 23 that holds various settings regarding the camera 11. The processing/control unit 22 in this example includes an image processing unit that performs predetermined image processing such as image reversal (flip), a distribution processing unit that provides a stream for distribution to the image display device 13 and the video recording device 14, and the like. are doing. The communication unit 24 communicates with other devices in the system (such as the image display device 13 and the video recording device 14) via the network switch 12. Based on the IP address given by the network switch 12, the automatic setting section 25 writes settings corresponding to its own mounting position into the setting file 23.

When a camera 11 configured in this way is mounted at a predetermined position in each vehicle and connected to a port of the network switch 12 corresponding to that position, an IP address corresponding to the mounting position of the camera 11 is assigned. When an IP address is assigned by the network switch 12, the automatic setting unit 25 of the camera 11 writes the settings corresponding to the mounting position represented by the IP address into the setting file 23. This allows the camera 11 to operate with settings corresponding to its own mounting position. Note that if the camera 11 needs to be restarted to apply the updated setting file 23, it will be automatically restarted. Note that if a restart is necessary, it may be restarted manually.

Next, the IP addresses assigned to each camera in the train monitoring system will be explained. The IP address includes vehicle information (ID) for identifying the train car, such as information on the train formation and car number, and device information (ID) that identifies the installation position of the camera in the car. Therefore, the camera 11 can configure itself according to its installation position based on the IP address assigned when the camera 11 is connected to an appropriate port of the network switch 12 via cable. Below, several examples of settings according to the camera's installation position will be explained.

(1) Setting whether or not to flip the image Figure 3 shows an example of an equipment ID table. In the figure, based on the train's progress to the right of the drawing, "1st place" indicates the position of the front right side of the car body, "2nd place" indicates the front left side of the car body, "3rd place" indicates the rear right side of the car body, and "4th place" indicates the rear left side of the car body. That is, camera 11(A) in Figure 1 is the 1st place camera, camera 11(B) is the 2nd place camera, camera 11(C) is the 3rd place camera, and camera 11(D) is the 4th place camera.

Here, suppose that when a camera is attached to the first position or the fourth position of each vehicle, the camera image will be upside down due to the structure of the camera. In this case, image inversion processing is required for camera images taken by cameras at these positions (that is, camera 11 (A) or camera 11 (D). Therefore, for example, if IP address = 172. The camera assigned xx. 23. Also, it is determined that the camera assigned the IP address = 172.xx. A message indicating that no processing is necessary is written in its own configuration file 23.In this way, each camera can automatically set whether image reversal is necessary for the camera image based on the IP address representing its mounting position. Can be done.

(2) Setting of camera name It is assumed that the specification is such that a character string combining "Cam" with the car number and the device ID is given as a name (camera name) representing each camera. The camera name is displayed, for example, when the camera image is displayed on the image display device 13 so that the user can recognize the source of the camera image. For example, a camera given an IP address = 172.xx.x.1 determines that it is installed in the first position of the first car of the train formation ID = 1, and writes "Cam11" as the camera name in its own setting file 23. Also, a camera given an IP address = 172.xx.x.2 determines that it is installed in the second position of the first car of the train formation ID = 1, and writes "Cam12" as the camera name in its own setting file 23. In this way, each camera can automatically set the camera name based on the IP address representing its own installation position.

(3) Settings related to distribution of camera images Next, the IP address of the distribution destination of camera images will be explained. The IP address of the camera video distribution destination includes information representing the data format of the distributed video, information for identifying the train vehicle, and a distribution source device ID that is identification information of the video distribution source camera.

FIG. 4 shows examples of distribution data types. In the figure, distribution data type=0 indicates the "JPEG" format, and distribution data type=1 indicates the "H.264" format. Further, FIG. 5 shows an example of a distribution source ID table. In this figure, based on the train moving toward the right in the drawing, "1st position" represents the right front position of the car body, "2nd position" represents the left front position of the car body, and "3rd position" represents the right side position of the car body. Represents the rear, and "4th position" represents the rear left side of the vehicle. That is, camera 11(A) in FIG. 1 is the first-ranked camera, camera 11(B) is the second-ranked camera, camera 11(C) is the third-ranked camera, and camera 11(D) is the second-ranked camera. This is the 4th place camera.

As mentioned above, when an IP address is assigned by the network switch 12, the multicast distribution IP address and codec are automatically set by writing settings corresponding to the assigned IP address to the configuration file 23. Ru.

As described above, in the train monitoring system of this example, the network switch 12 has multiple ports that are individually associated with IP addresses containing information indicating the installation location of each camera 11 in the train monitoring system, and the camera 11 connected to each port is assigned an IP address corresponding to that port. When the camera 11 is assigned an IP address upon connection to the network switch 12, it configures itself according to its own installation location indicated by the assigned IP address.

With this configuration, simply by connecting the camera to the appropriate port on the network switch, the camera itself can identify the installation location from the assigned IP address and automatically configure settings to match the installation location. . Therefore, the workload associated with setting IP addresses and the like for each camera in the train monitoring system is reduced. Furthermore, even when replacing a camera due to a malfunction, simply reconnecting it to the same port as the original camera will set the same IP address and other settings as the original camera. This not only prevents setting errors but also reduces setting time, improving efficiency and reliability.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are merely illustrative and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. The present invention can take various other embodiments, and various modifications such as omissions and substitutions can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and gist of the invention described in this specification, etc., and are also included within the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents.

The present invention can be provided not only as the devices described above or as systems composed of these devices, but also as methods executed by these devices, programs for implementing the functions of these devices using a processor, and storage media for storing such programs in a computer-readable format.

The present invention can be used in a train monitoring system having multiple cameras connected to a network switch.

10-1, 10-2, 10-3, 10-4: Vehicle, 11(A) to 11(D): Camera, 12: Relay device, 13(A), 13(B): Video display device, 14 : Video recording device, 15: Control device, 21: Imaging section, 22: Processing/control section, 23: Setting file, 24: Communication section, 25: Automatic setting section

Claims (5)

In a train monitoring system having a plurality of cameras connected to a network switch,
the network switch has a plurality of ports each associated with an IP address including information indicating the installation position of each camera in the train monitoring system, and assigns an IP address corresponding to each port to a camera connected to the port;
A train monitoring system characterized in that when an IP address is assigned to the camera upon connection to the network switch, the camera configures itself according to its installation location, which is represented by the assigned IP address. The train monitoring system according to claim 1,
A train monitoring system characterized in that the settings according to the mounting position of the camera include a setting as to whether or not image reversal is required for the camera image. The train monitoring system according to claim 1,
A train monitoring system characterized in that the settings according to the mounting position of the camera include setting a camera name. The train monitoring system according to claim 1,
A train monitoring system characterized in that the settings according to the mounting position of the camera include settings regarding distribution of camera images. In cameras used in train monitoring systems,
A camera characterized in that when the camera is connected to a network switch having multiple ports each associated with an IP address containing information indicating the installation location of each camera in the train monitoring system, and an IP address corresponding to that port is assigned, the camera configures itself according to its own installation location represented by the assigned IP address.

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