JP2948613B2 - Traffic light - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a traffic signal, and more particularly, to a vehicle traffic signal used for controlling vehicle traffic on a normal road.

<Conventional Technology> Conventionally, a large number of traffic lights for vehicles are used at intersections of roads and the like in order to automatically control vehicle traffic.

As shown in FIG. 3, the basic configuration is such that a unit 52a for a green signal, a unit 52b for a yellow signal, and a unit 52c for a red signal are mounted side by side in a main body 51. As shown, lamp 61, reflector 62,
It is composed of a prism lens 63 with colors (blue, yellow, red). Most of the lamps 61 employed as light sources are incandescent lamps. In addition, the semicircular reflector 62 on the back of the lamp 61 efficiently collects the light emitted from the lamp in front of the traffic signal, and allows the passengers of the vehicle to clearly recognize which color is lit. It is provided.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> However, the traffic light according to the conventional system has various problems as follows.

(B) Due to the fact that the signal light lens reflects the sunlight strongly when the occupant of the vehicle drives with the sun behind,
It may be difficult to identify which of blue, yellow, and red is lit. This reflection of sunlight is largely due to the action of the reflector provided on the back surface of the lamp as well as the lens. In other words, sunlight rays that have passed through the lens and entered the signal lamp unit are reflected on the lens side by the action of the reflecting mirror, giving an impression as if the colored lens is emitting light (self-color emission phenomenon). It was difficult to see the daylight signal. Conventionally, measures such as mounting a light-shielding hood 53 on the upper part of each signal unit (see FIG. 3) and blackening the inside of the hood have been taken. The above problems have not been solved yet.

(B) The larger the light source unit for each signal is, the easier it is for the occupant of the vehicle to confirm the signal display. The effect becomes large, and it becomes difficult to confirm the signal in the daytime.

(C) At a large intersection, a direction indicator light 54 for indicating a specific traveling direction is attached to the lower part of the traffic light, but this method indicator light is more difficult to see than the above-described blue, yellow, and red lighting signals. This is due to the small display and the incidence of sunlight.

(D) In a conventional type of traffic signal, when the size of the main body is determined, the size of each signal unit is limited accordingly. Therefore, if the overall device is made smaller and lighter, the signal unit must be made smaller, and if the signal unit is made larger for clear display, the weight of the entire signal becomes heavier and the poles that support this become too heavy. Load is applied.

(E) Since the three light source units of blue, yellow, and red, including the direction indicator lamp, are separately provided, the number of lamps is large, and the manufacturing and maintenance costs are high.

(F) In addition to the large number of lamps, the use of incandescent bulbs as light sources results in high power consumption. The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to provide a traffic signal in which lighting and identification of a designated direction are easy and reliable, the light source unit is large, the weight of the entire signal is light, and various costs are low. The purpose is.

<Means for Solving the Problems> In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a first invention according to the present application is to dispose a plurality of neon tubes 41 to 48 in one unit lamp 1, Is characterized in that the front cover 2 is made of non-reflective glass.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the traffic signal having the above configuration,
An arrow-shaped neon tube 46 in which the neon tube extends radially from the center of the lamp, and a ring-shaped neon tube installed on the outer periphery thereof
41 to 45, 47, and 48.

The third invention is characterized in that the arrow-shaped neon tube is a blue light-emitting neon tube, and the multiple ring-shaped neon tubes are blue, yellow and red light-emitting neon tubes.

<Operation> The plurality of neon tubes 41 to 48 in the unit lamp 1 sequentially and periodically emit light of blue, yellow, and red as traffic signals. The control method for causing the light emission to be performed on a regular basis is the same as the conventional control method for a traffic light. Which part of the neon tube emits light of which color is arbitrarily determined by the method of disposing the neon tubes. Further, the arrow-shaped neon tube 46 acts as a direction indicator lamp, but the arrow-shaped part at the tip and the rod-shaped part
It is also conceivable that 49 and 49 are separately installed and the eight arrows are simultaneously lit to be used for purposes other than the direction indication. The traffic light according to the present invention has a structure in which the front cover 2 of the unit lamp 1 is made of non-reflective glass, a plurality of neon tubes are used as a light source, and a color display appears only at the time of light emission.
Except for the light-emitting lamp that is turned on, it is transparent or cloudy as a whole. Therefore, the problem that the colored lenses 52a, 52b, and 52c of the signal light receive self-luminous light by receiving the sunlight and dazzle the passengers and the like, which is seen in the related art, is solved. In addition, since the light-emitting display portion is larger than the conventional signal light, it is easy for passengers to see, the weight of the entire traffic light is light, and the power consumption is small.

<Embodiment> Hereinafter, a traffic signal according to the present invention will be described in detail based on an embodiment shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a front view of an essential part showing an embodiment of a traffic signal according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof. The unit lamp 1 of the traffic signal has an outer surface formed of a front cover 2 and a rear cover 3, and a plurality of neon tubes 41 to 48 as a light source are disposed inside.

The front cover 2 is a disc-shaped cover made of non-reflective glass that covers the front surface of the unit lamp 1, and has a flange at the periphery. The front cover can be buried with a heater wire for snowfall.

The rear cover 3 is a disc-shaped cover made of a light alloy or a hard plastic, which forms the rear surface of the unit lamp 1, and has a flange at the peripheral edge like the front cover 2 described above.

The front cover 2 and the rear cover 3 are joined to each other by inserting or screwing both end edges (not shown) of the flange portion, and the outer surfaces of the hollow unit lamp are formed by the two covers.

Inside the outer unit lamp, a plurality of neon tubes 41 to 48 are provided as light sources. Neon tubes have characteristics that they consume less power and have a longer life than incandescent lamps, so they are suitable for use as light sources for traffic signals that are always used. In this embodiment, the neon tube is composed of an arrow 46 extending radially from the center of the unit lamp, and rings 41 to 45, 47 and 48. In FIG. 1, a slight gap 5 is provided between the five ring-shaped neon tubes on the outer periphery, but it is also possible to arrange the gap without any gap.

In this embodiment, among the ring-shaped neon tubes, the first and fourth ones 41 and 44 from the outside are red light-emitting neon tubes, and the second and fifth ones 42 and 45 are yellow light-emitting neon tubes. . The third ring-shaped neon tube 43 from the outside, the ring-shaped neon tubes 47 and 48 at the center of the unit lamp, and the radially extending arrow-shaped neon tubes 46a to 46h are blue light-emitting neon tubes. When displaying a red signal, the red light-emitting neon tubes 41 and 44 emit light in a double circular shape, and when displaying a yellow signal, the yellow light-emitting neon tubes 42 and 45 emit light in a double circular shape. In the case of a caution signal, it is also possible to control the blinking to be repeated. Also, red and yellow can be blinked alternately. When displaying a green light, among the green light-emitting neon tubes, those other than the arrow-shaped neon tube 46, that is, the blue light-emitting neon tubes 43, 47, and 48 emit light. An arrow-shaped neon tube 46 extending radially from the center portion functions as a direction indicator lamp (in the example of the drawing, it is a configuration capable of indicating eight directions). For example, in the case of displaying "only a right turn is possible", in addition to the red light-emitting neon tubes 41 and 44, a ring-shaped blue light-emitting neon tube 47 at the center and an arrow-shaped blue light-emitting neon tube 46a extending rightward are simultaneously displayed. Emits light. The method of disposing the neon tube, the method of lighting, the method of emitting light, and the like are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be considered from various configurations. Further, changes such as enlarging the outer ring and enlarging the arrow at the center are also possible.

Also, the neon tube forming the arrow is connected to the arrow portion 46 at the tip.
a to 46h and the rod-like portion 49 can be separated and formed separately. If you want to display blue color, you can add a star-shaped blue sign in the middle separately from the blue 47 and 48 in the center and the blue 43 in the outer periphery by turning on all the eight arrows at the same time when you want to display blue. it can.

Although a neon tube having a circular cross section is used, the use of a neon tube having a flat cross section increases the illuminance and is very effective. The effect is synergistically greater because the illuminance is higher and the power consumption is lower than when using a conventional incandescent lamp.

In addition, the display becomes bright by controlling the flashing so that the ring-shaped neon tube appears to rotate or expand or contract when emitting light. This is particularly effective in heavy fog, snowfall, and the like.

The traffic light of the present invention is controlled in the same manner as a conventional traffic light.

In the traffic light of the present invention, non-reflective glass is used as the front cover, and a neon tube is used as the light source. Therefore,
Signals can be reliably identified even in daylight without causing so-called self-color emission due to the reflection of sunlight.

In addition, the neon tube used as a light source in the traffic light of the present invention consumes less power and has a longer life than an incandescent light bulb, which is a light source of a conventional traffic light. Can save a lot. By using the unit lamps of the present invention joined back-to-back, the number of traffic lights installed at the intersection can be reduced, and the effect of saving the above various costs becomes even greater. When the unit lamps are joined back-to-back and installed, an opaque black-gray plate may be interposed between the joints so that the emission color of the signal can be seen and identification can be easily performed.

It goes without saying that the traffic light of the present invention can be used not only for road traffic as described above, but also for rail traffic.

<Effects of the Invention> According to the traffic signal of the present invention configured as described above, the following various effects can be obtained.

(A) Since the front cover of the unit lamp is made of non-reflective glass and does not use a reflecting mirror, it does not reflect the light of the sun, and is a so-called colored prism lens which has been conventionally used. No self-color emission is performed. Therefore, the lighting color of the traffic light can be recognized with certainty even in daylight.

(B) Since the light source is larger than the light source unit in the conventional traffic light, it is possible to easily and reliably identify the signal by color and confirm the signal of the direction indicator.

(C) Since the three color signals of blue, yellow and red and the direction indicator lamp are stored in one unit lamp, the overall weight can be reduced as compared with the conventional traffic light.

(D) Since a neon tube is used as a light source, the power consumption is small and the life is long. As a result, the maintenance cost, repair cost, and the like of the traffic light can be significantly reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 and 2 are a front view and a side view of a main part of a traffic signal according to the present invention, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are a perspective view and a sectional view showing a conventional signal. <Explanation of symbols> 1: Unit lamp, 2: Front cover 3: Back cover 41 to 45, 47, 48: Ring neon tube 46: Arrow neon tube 49: Rod neon tube

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A traffic light in which a plurality of neon tubes are provided in one unit lamp and a front cover of the unit lamp is made of non-reflective glass, wherein the neon tubes extend radially from the center of the lamp. A traffic signal, comprising: an arrow-shaped neon pipe, and a plurality of ring-shaped neon pipes disposed around the outer periphery of the arrow-shaped neon pipe. 2. The traffic signal as claimed in claim 1, wherein the arrow-shaped neon tube is a blue light-emitting neon tube, and the multiple ring-shaped neon tubes are blue, yellow and red light-emitting neon tubes. A traffic light according to claim 1.