JP4305842B2 - Signal information provision system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a signal information providing system that provides signal information to a vehicle occupant.

  In recent years, various systems have been devised to make driving of automobiles and the like comfortable. For example, a navigation system that is installed in a vehicle such as an automobile, displays a current position, and displays a route to a destination is known. As the vehicle travels, the current position is detected by GPS (Global Positioning System), etc., and the current position is displayed on the display device together with the road map, and an appropriate route from the current position to the destination is displayed. A vehicle navigation device that is set and guided by a display device, a voice output device, or the like contributes to an efficient and safe driving of the driver. With this device, there is less chance of getting lost and comfortable driving can be achieved. Further, some navigation systems not only display roads but also display traffic information and traffic information (Patent Document 1).

  In addition, there is a system that automatically controls the engine in consideration of the stop time of the signal when stopping at the intersection by a signal. This system can save fuel. With these devices, it has become possible to enjoy more and more comfortable driving (Patent Documents 2 and 3).

JP 2002-107156 A JP 2000-18059 A JP 2001-207883 A

  However, although the route to the destination can be easily grasped and the comfort is increased, the vehicle must be stopped by many traffic lights until the destination is reached. And when driving a car etc., when you stop at an intersection due to a red light, you do not know how much the signal will change, so it may be annoying or the signal will not change for a while, other things And may not notice changes in the signal. At that time, a horn may be sounded from the car behind you, or you may start off in a hurry.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a system capable of notifying a driver and other passengers that a traffic regulation signal changes while driving an automobile or the like.

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the signal information providing system of the present invention includes:
A signal information transmitting means installed at or connected to a traffic light that regulates vehicle traffic, and transmitting signal information of the traffic light;
A signal information receiving means that is installed in a vehicle whose traffic is restricted by a traffic light and receives signal information;
A display device that is installed in a vehicle and that informs in advance of a change in the restriction state of the signal of the traffic light based on the signal information received by the signal information receiving means, and a guide route from the current location of the vehicle to the destination is displayed A vehicle navigation device for displaying,
Only when the vehicle is being operated on the vehicle navigation device while the vehicle is stopped on the road by a traffic light signal, the display device informs the time until the traffic light changes from the stop restricted state as the restricted state of the traffic light to the travel permitted state. It is characterized by.

A signal information transmitting means is installed on or connected to the traffic light. In this specification, a traffic light is a traffic light that regulates a vehicle such as an automobile installed at an intersection of a road by changing the lighting color, or an alarm that is installed at a railroad crossing that informs a vehicle occupant of an automobile or the like that a railway vehicle is approaching. Means a breaker. The signal information transmitting means transmits information on the restriction state of the signal of the traffic light. For example, in the case of a traffic signal installed at an intersection, the information on the regulation state means information that a stop signal (red signal) is currently changed, but the driving permission signal (green signal) changes in another five seconds. This information is repeatedly transmitted by radio waves or the like. For example, if it changes in another 4 seconds and changes in another 3 seconds, it transmits every second. In addition, at the level crossing, the information on the regulation state means information on how many seconds can be passed through the level crossing. Or you may transmit the information of how many seconds a railroad crossing closes. This signal information can be received by signal information receiving means installed in the vehicle. Based on the received signal information, the signal information can be notified to the vehicle occupant by the vehicle navigation device installed in the vehicle . For example, it notifies that it will turn into a green light in another 5 seconds.

  The signal information transmission means has an identification number unique to the traffic light and transmits signal information including the identification number. The identification number (ID) is a different number assigned to each traffic signal installed on the road or an alarm device (breaker) installed on the railroad crossing. With this identification number, it is possible to specify which traffic signal it is. When the signal information means transmits the signal information including this identification number, the receiving side can identify which signal information it is.

In addition , the vehicle navigation device of the present invention includes:
Detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
Map information storage means for storing map information including an identification number unique to the traffic light;
Based on recognizing the current position of the vehicle on the map information, recognizes the identification number of the traffic signal, the signal information including the identification number, it received via the signal information receiving means.

  The current position of the vehicle can be detected by the detection means, and the current position can be displayed on the map information of the map information means by the display means. Further, the map information includes an identification number assigned to each traffic signal, and this vehicle navigation device recognizes the current traffic signal identification number by recognizing the current position on the map. Can do. And since the identification number is included in the signal information transmitted from the signal information transmitting means, it is possible to receive the signal information having the identification number of the current traffic light and inform the passenger of this information.

  The signal information providing system of the present invention can also acquire signal information of a traffic signal when the vehicle is stopped on the road by a signal of the traffic signal. Furthermore, notification may be performed only when the information providing means is being operated or within a predetermined time after the operation. While stopping due to a stop signal (red signal), the user may be looking at other places without looking at the signal or operating the navigation device. In this case, you may not be aware that the signal has changed and you may hear a horn from the car behind you. According to the signal information providing system of the present invention, signal information can be acquired and notified to the passenger during the stop by the signal. In addition, it is possible to notify only when the navigation device is being operated or within a certain time after the operation by setting.

And a vehicle navigation apparatus alert | reports the time until it changes from the stop regulation state of a traffic light to a driving | running | working permission state with a display or a sound , when it is below preset time . A warning may be issued if the time until signal switching in the signal information of the traffic light is shorter than the set time, and a warning may be issued if the set time is reached if the time is longer than the set time. In other words, when the vehicle is stopped, signal information can be acquired and notification can be made when the time for changing to the travel permission signal (green light) is 5 seconds or less. In this case, if there is 10 seconds until the signal changes, notification is not made, but notification is made when it becomes 5 seconds. The notification by display warns, for example, “The signal will change in another 5 seconds” by characters. This is effective during operation of the vehicle navigation device. Further, the notification by sound may be made by notifying that “the signal will change in another 5 seconds” or by generating a specific warning sound (for example, a buzzer sound). Moreover, it can carry out similarly about the alarm device (breaker) of a level crossing as a traffic light.

  In addition, you may make it alert | report that it acquires a signal information while driving | running | working and will change to a stop signal (red light) soon, and that a railroad vehicle approaches at a railroad crossing, so that a warning will be issued soon and a breaker will go down. . If it does in this way, it can drive safely, knowing the change of a signal.

  Furthermore, when traveling on the road, if the vehicle is stopped by a stop signal (red signal), the time it takes to change to a travel permission signal (green signal) and the railroad car pass through the signal information received by the signal information receiving means. The vehicle may be provided with an automatic engine control device that stops the engine when the time until the vehicle can cross is longer than a predetermined time. For example, the engine is automatically stopped if it is stopped for a red light when the time for changing to a green light or the time for the circuit breaker to open at a crossing is 2 minutes or more. This saves fuel costs and protects the environment. For example, the engine is automatically started 10 seconds before the green light changes.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a signal information providing system according to the present invention. The information providing system of the present invention includes a signal information transmitting device 16 as signal information transmitting means, a signal information receiving device 15 as signal information receiving means, and a vehicle navigation apparatus 100 as information providing means. The vehicle navigation apparatus 100 includes a position detector 1 for detecting the current position of the vehicle, a map data input apparatus 6 for inputting geographical information such as roads to the apparatus, and an operation switch for operating the apparatus. Group 7, voice output device 9 for notifying passengers by voice, external memory 10 for recording information, display device 11 for displaying various information, remote control (hereinafter referred to as remote control) sensor 12, voice recognition unit 14, and connection to these The control device 14 is provided.

  The position detector 1 includes a geomagnetic sensor 2, a gyroscope 3, a distance sensor 4, and a GPS receiver 5 that detect geomagnetism in order to detect an absolute azimuth (reference azimuth). The geomagnetic sensor 2 detects geomagnetism. The direction can be measured based on the detection result. That is, by detecting the earth's magnetic field, the absolute azimuth of a moving body (such as an automobile) is measured. The gyroscope 3 detects the azimuth change amount (rotational angular velocity) of the moving body. A GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver 5 detects the position of a vehicle based on radio waves from a satellite. Since these sensors have errors of different properties, they are configured to be used while being complemented by a plurality of sensors. Depending on the accuracy, a part of the sensors described above may be used, and further, a steering rotation sensor, a wheel sensor of each rolling wheel, or the like may be used.

  The map data input device 6 is a device for inputting various data including so-called map matching data and map data for improving the accuracy of position detection. As a medium, a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM is generally used because of the amount of data, but a large-capacity storage medium such as a memory card or a hard disk may be used.

  As the operation switch group 7, for example, a touch switch or a mechanical switch integrated with the display device 11 is used. The touch switch is composed of infrared sensors that are finely arranged in the vertical and horizontal directions on the screen of the display device 11. For example, when the infrared ray is cut off with a finger or a touch pen, the cut-off position becomes a two-dimensional coordinate value (X, Y). With these operation switch groups 7, various instructions can be input.

  The external memory 10 stores information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100. Note that the external memory 10 is configured to retain the stored contents even when the accessory switch of the vehicle is turned off (that is, the navigation device 100 is turned off).

  The display device 11 is configured by a color CRT or a color liquid crystal display. The vehicle current position mark input from the position detector 1 and the map data input from the map data input device 6 are displayed on the screen of the display device 11. Further, additional data such as a guidance route to be displayed on the map is displayed in an overlapping manner, and buttons for setting route guidance, guidance during route guidance, and switching operation of the screen are displayed on this screen.

  The voice recognition unit 14 is a device that allows the user to instruct a destination or the like by operating the operation switch group 7 or the remote controller 13 by inputting voice.

  The control circuit 8 is configured as a normal computer, and as shown in FIG. 2, a known CPU 81, ROM 82, RAM 83, I / O 84 as an input / output circuit, and a bus line 85 for connecting these configurations are provided. ing. The CPU 81 controls the program and data stored in the ROM 82 and RAM 83. The ROM 82 has a program storage area 82a and a data storage area 82b. A navigation program (hereinafter referred to as a navigation program) is stored in the program storage area 82a. Data necessary for the operation of the navigation program is stored in the data storage area 82b. In addition, the navigation program operates on the RAM 83 with the work memory 83w as a work area. When an HDD is used for the map data input device 6, the functions of the ROM 82 and RAM 83 may be implemented by the HDD.

  The signal information receiving device 15 is a device for receiving information provided from the outside. Signal information transmitted from the signal information transmitter 16 is received by the signal information receiver 15, and information received from the outside is processed in the control circuit 8.

  By having such a configuration, the navigation device 100 has a menu displayed on the display device 11 when the driver operates the operation switch group 7 when the navigation program is activated by the CPU 81 of the control circuit 8. When the route guidance processing for displaying the destination route on the display device 11 is selected, the following processing is performed. That is, when the driver inputs a destination based on the map on the display device 11, the current location of the vehicle is obtained based on satellite data obtained from the GPS receiver 5, and an optimum route from the current location to the destination is obtained. Processing is performed. Then, the guidance route is superimposed on the road map on the display device 11, and an appropriate route is guided to the driver. Further, the speaker of the display device 11 and the audio output device 9 performs guidance at the time of operation, transmission of a message according to the operation state, notification of signal information, and the like.

  FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the signal information transmitting apparatus. As shown in FIG. 3A, each traffic signal installed at an intersection has a unique ID (identification number). The traffic light is provided with a signal information transmission device that manages the lighting color and lighting time of a signal, the time until the next color is changed, and transmits the signal information as signal information. The signal information transmitting device is installed in the lighting unit 92 and, as shown in (b), always transmits the waiting time information 42 when the signal is red.

  A car 41 traveling on a road has a signal information receiving device 15 connected to a navigation device 100 as information providing means. In the navigation apparatus 100, traffic signal ID data is stored together with map information.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, when the car 41 is traveling on the road and approaches the intersection and stops due to a red light ahead, the navigation device 100 determines the ID of the traffic light ahead. The map information recorded in the navigation device 100 also records the ID of each traffic light, detects the current position of the car, and recognizes the current traffic light ID. In the case of the figure, the current signal is 1234a. For example, in the case of the figure, the vehicle navigation apparatus 100 detects the current position of the car 41 and compares it with the stored map information, so that the immediately preceding traffic light determines that the ID is 1234a, and the signal information of this ID 42 is received. There are other traffic signals in the vicinity of this traffic light, and signal information is transmitted. However, since the ID is different, the information is not acquired. For example, when the front traffic light (ID: 2234a) is also red, the traffic information is emitted, but the navigation device 100 compares the current position with the map information and determines that it is not the previous traffic light. The signal information emitted by is not acquired. The acquired signal information is displayed on the display unit 11 of the navigation device 100 in a form that can be seen by the user and how many seconds later the signal information changes to a green signal. Or you may make it alert | report with a sound.

  FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of the signal information transmitting devices 16a and 16b installed on or connected to a traffic signal for a vehicle. The signal information transmitters 16a and 16b transmit information on the lighting color of the signal together with a unique ID of the signal by radio waves or the like. (A) shows the case where the signal information transmission apparatus 16a is installed adjacent to the lighting part 92 of the traffic light 90. FIG. Or you may install in the lighting part 92. FIG. (B) shows the case where the signal information transmitter 16b is installed adjacent to the traffic signal 91. The place where the signal information transmitting apparatus is installed is not limited to these embodiments. The signal information transmitting device may be installed in the lighting unit 92, or the signal information may include an ID of each signal device, and may be installed away from the signal device.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of user settings in the vehicle navigation apparatus 100 of the present invention. The figure shows a display screen of the display unit 11 of the navigation device 100, which is a user setting screen. On this screen, set the traffic light change warning. A is a setting for whether or not to perform a change warning, B is a warning time setting, C is a warning timing setting, and D is a warning type setting. After the user selects each of them, the setting is completed by pressing “Finish”.

  For example, when “Yes” is selected in A, a warning is given before the signal changes to blue (running permission signal). If “No” is selected, no warning is given. When warning is performed, warning time is set in B. This is the number of seconds before the warning is issued when the signal turns blue. For example, if “5 seconds” is set, a warning is issued 5 seconds before the signal turns blue. In C, the warning timing is set. When “always” is set, if the set time is 5 seconds, a warning is issued when 5 seconds ago. However, if “only at the time of operation” is selected, a warning is issued only when five seconds ago and when the user is operating the navigation device 100. When “screen display” is selected as the type of warning of D, the waiting time until the signal turns blue is displayed on the display unit 11 of the navigation device 100. When “Voice” is selected, a signal change is notified by voice. When “both” is selected, a signal change is notified by both display and sound.

  FIG. 6 shows a flowchart of the determination process of the present invention. While the vehicle is traveling on the road, it stops at the intersection by a stop signal (red light). When the vehicle speed becomes 0, the navigation device 100 acquires the signal waiting time from the signal information transmitting device 16 (S1). At this time, it is determined from the ID information of the signal stored in the navigation device 100 which ID signal is currently used to stop. And the signal information which the traffic signal of the ID has emitted is acquired. When the acquired waiting time is shorter than the preset time, for example, when the set time is 5 seconds and the waiting time is 5 seconds or less, the warning determination of S4 is immediately performed. In S2, if the waiting time is longer than the set time, the process waits until the set time is reached in S3, and the process proceeds to S4. In the case of the set time (5 seconds) described above, if the waiting time is 10 seconds, the process waits until it reaches 5 seconds, and proceeds to S4. In S4, it is determined how the user sets the warning timing. That is, if the warning timing is set to “always”, the process proceeds to S6, and a warning is given that the signal has changed by screen display or sound generation. Alternatively, if the warning timing is set to “during operation”, it is determined in S5 whether the user is operating, and if it is being operated, a signal change warning is issued in S6 by screen display or sound generation. If it is not in operation, the process ends without issuing a warning.

  An embodiment based on the setting conditions shown in FIG. 5 will be described. First, when the vehicle stops due to a red light at the intersection, the waiting time of the red light is acquired from the signal information device. Here, for example, it is assumed that the acquired time is 20 seconds. In this case, since the warning time is set to 5 seconds before by the user, the warning timing determination process is performed after 15 seconds. After 15 seconds, since the warning timing of the user setting C is set to “during operation”, it is determined whether the user is operating. If the operation is in progress, the user is notified that the signal changes by voice according to the user setting D. For example, “the signal will turn blue soon” “will turn blue in 5 seconds”.

  The following may be considered as a method of using the signal information. An engine control device connected to the signal information receiving device is installed in the vehicle. The signal information from the signal information transmitting means is acquired by the signal information receiving means, and when the stop time due to the red signal is long, the engine is automatically turned off. That is, for example, when there is more than 2 minutes until the light turns green, the engine is automatically stopped. The engine is automatically started before changing to a green light, for example, 10 seconds before. Thus, by obtaining the signal switching information, the engine can be controlled automatically.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the stop signal (red signal) is used to notify the time to change to the travel permission signal (blue signal) when the vehicle is stopped is shown. Notification can also be made. In this way, a change in the signal can be known during traveling, so that driving with a margin can be performed.

  Furthermore, the Example of the alarm device installed in the crossing as a traffic signal is shown in FIG. The figure shows a level crossing, and an alarm 95 is installed at the level crossing. Since a railway vehicle (not shown) passes through the track 97, there is a breaker and the automobile 41 is stopped. A unique number is assigned to the alarm device 95 in the same manner as described above, and a signal information transmission device that manages the time until a vehicle or the like can pass through a railroad crossing after passing through a railway vehicle and transmits it as signal information. Is provided.

  A car 41 traveling on a road has a signal information receiving device 15 connected to a navigation device 100 as information providing means. In the navigation apparatus 100, traffic signal ID data is stored together with map information.

  As shown in FIG. 7, when the car 41 reaches the railroad crossing while traveling on the road and stops due to an alarm or a breaker, the navigation device 100 determines the ID of the alarm device (signal device) 95. The map information recorded in the navigation device 100 also records the ID of each alarm device, detects the current position of the vehicle, and recognizes the ID of the current alarm device. In the figure, the alarm device in front of the car 41 is 3234a. For example, in the case of the figure, the vehicle navigation apparatus 100 detects the current position of the car 41 and compares it with the stored map information to determine that the ID of the immediately preceding alarm device is 3234a. The signal information emitted by the alarm device is received. The acquired signal information is displayed on the display unit 11 of the navigation device 100 so that it can be seen by the user and how many seconds later the breaker will open. Or you may make it alert | report with a sound.

  As described above, the present invention can also be applied to a crossing alarm device for a road that crosses a railroad track. The state where the level crossing is closed corresponds to a red light at a road intersection, and the state where the level crossing is open corresponds to a green light. Then, the time until the railroad crossing is opened and the time until the railroad crossing is taken into the vehicle navigation system in the same manner as the signal lighting information at the intersection, so that the driver can drive safely with a margin.

1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a signal information providing system as an embodiment of the present invention. The figure for demonstrating the structure of a control circuit. The figure explaining the signal information provision system in a road. The figure explaining a signal information transmitter. The figure explaining the setting screen of a navigation apparatus. The flowchart for demonstrating one Example of this invention. The figure explaining the signal information provision system in a level crossing.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Position detector 8 Control apparatus 11 Display apparatus 15 Signal information receiving apparatus 16 Signal information transmission apparatus 42 Signal information 100 Navigation apparatus

Claims (6)

A signal information transmitting means installed at or connected to a traffic light that regulates vehicle traffic, and transmitting signal information of the traffic light;
Installed in a vehicle whose traffic is restricted by the traffic light, signal information receiving means for receiving the signal information;
A display device that is installed in the vehicle and that informs in advance of a change in the regulation state of the signal of the traffic light based on the signal information received by the signal information receiving means, and guides the vehicle from the current location to the destination A vehicle navigation device for displaying a route on the display device,
Only when the vehicle navigation device is being operated while the vehicle is stopped on the road by the signal from the traffic light, the time until the vehicle is changed from the stop restricted state as the restricted state of the traffic light to the travel permission state is displayed. A signal information providing system which is notified by a device .   2. The signal information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the signal information transmission unit has an identification number unique to the traffic light and transmits signal information including the identification number. The vehicle navigation device includes:
Detecting means for detecting a current position of the vehicle;
Map information storage means for storing map information including the identification number unique to the traffic light;
Claims based on recognizing the current position of the vehicle on the map information, recognizes the identification number of the traffic signal, the signal information including the identification number, received via the signal information receiving means 2. The signal information providing system according to 2. The signal information providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the time until the travel permission state notified by the vehicle navigation device is changed to a predetermined time or less is notified. . The signal information providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the notification is performed only when the vehicle navigation device is within a predetermined time after the operation. The signal information providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the vehicle navigation device notifies the time until the traffic signal changes from a stop restriction state to a travel permission state by sound .

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