JPH0594574A - Parking meter system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a parking meter system especially having a display function for guiding a parking meter user to a vacant parking meter in respect of a parking meter system to be arranged along a road. CONSTITUTION:The existence of a parked vehicle in a parking space is detected by a vacant/occupied state detector 7 and the detected information is sent from a transmission/reception control part 8 to an information processor 2 through a communication line 3. The processor 2 forms road guide information based upon the sent information and sends the formed information to each control part 8 through the line 3. After temporarily storing the guide information in a memory 5, a display control part 6 outputs and displays the guide information to/on a display device 4. Consequently much labor and time consumption for searching a vacant parking meter can be reduced and the using efficiency of parking areas can be improved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a parking meter system installed along a road, and more particularly to a parking meter system having a display function for guiding a parking meter user to an empty parking meter.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventional parking meter systems operate individually, and by detecting the presence or absence of an automobile parked in a designated area immediately before each meter, the parking time is measured, the charge amount is displayed and the charge is stored. Are doing.

[0003]

In this conventional parking meter system, when a user searches for an empty parking meter, the user must travel around the road near the parking area where he or she wants to park to search for an empty parking meter. It took a lot of effort and time. As a result, a user often illegally parks on a road other than the place where the parking meter is installed, which hinders road traffic.

[0004]

A parking meter system of the present invention detects a presence / absence of parking in a parking area and generates parking availability information, and transmits parking availability information from the detection means to a communication line. Transmission / reception control means,
An information processing unit that generates route guidance information to an empty parking area based on parking availability information provided from the transmission / reception control unit via a communication line and transmits the route guidance information to the communication line; and the communication line and the communication line from the information processing unit. Display means for displaying route guidance information given through the transmission / reception control means.

[0005]

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 2, the empty / occupancy detector 7 is
The presence / absence of parking in the parking space in front of the on-road parking meter 1 in FIG. 1 is detected, and the information is sent from the transmission / reception control unit 8 to the information processing device 2 in FIG. 1 via the communication line 3. The information processing device 2 collects information indicating emptiness or occupancy sent from a large number of parking meters 1, and creates route guidance information for reaching an empty parking meter located near each parking meter 1, Transmission / reception control unit 8 of each parking meter via communication line 3
Send to. The display control unit 6 of the parking meter 1 temporarily stores this information in the memory 5 and outputs it to the display 4 for display.

FIG. 3 showing the appearance of the parking meter of the present invention.
2, the display 4 described with reference to FIG. 2 is attached to the side surface in the traveling direction of the vehicle so that the driver of the vehicle can see it. The display 4 is configured by using a light-emitting body such as a light-emitting diode so that it can be easily viewed regardless of day or night.

Referring to FIG. 4, an example is shown in which the parking meters installed along the street are vacant or occupied, and among the parking meters a to k, f, h, j, and
And k indicate an empty state, and the others indicate a parking state. As described above, each parking meter sends information indicating each vacancy / occupancy to the information processing device 2,
The information processing device 2 is connected to each parking meter.
Send the information for the display so that the guidance display like.
That is, the car 11 looking for the parking place cannot directly see that there is an empty parking meter in the vicinity, but the car 11 is driven in the direction indicated by the pattern of FIG. 5 displayed on the parking meters a, b, c, .... If you proceed, you can reach the empty parking meters h, j, k or f. Since the parking meters f, h, j, and k are vacant, nothing is displayed as shown in FIG. In addition, the display method on the display is not limited to the traveling direction for route guidance, and as shown in Fig. 6, when the distance to the empty parking meter is long, it is necessary to display a number indicating the approximate distance together. More convenient for the person. FIG. 6 shows an example thereof, and shows that there is an empty parking meter about 50 m ahead if the vehicle turns left at the next corner and about 80 m ahead if it goes straight ahead.

In FIG. 1, the communication method between each parking meter and the information processing device may be either wired or wireless. In the case of a wired method, a power line that supplies power to each parking meter is used. There is also a method of transmitting and receiving an information signal.

Further, the information processing device 2 may be installed alone, or a main unit and a sub unit may be formed in the parking meter.
It may be installed in the base unit. Further, the information processing device 2 may be installed exclusively for realizing the functions of the present invention, or may be used also as an existing computer that performs traffic signal control or the like.

[0011]

As described above, according to the present invention, when a driver of a vehicle searches for an empty parking meter on the road where the parking meter is installed, even if the driver cannot find it in a range where the line of sight is effective, It is possible to obtain information about which direction to go to find a vacant parking meter without having to search around nearby roads, and it is possible to save wasteful driving and time loss. ..

As a result, it is possible to prevent the act of illegally parking in a place other than the parking meter from the beginning because it is troublesome to search for an empty parking meter. Further, it has the effect of increasing the utilization rate of the parking meter. Also,
Since the parking meter itself displays the guidance on the vacant parking meter, it is not necessary to install a separate guide plate or the like.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a parking meter of the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an example diagram when a parking meter is used.

FIG. 4 is a display pattern diagram of guidance information.

FIG. 5 is a display pattern diagram of guidance information.

FIG. 6 is a display pattern diagram of guidance information.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Roadside parking meter 2 Information processing device 3 Communication line 4 Display device 5 Memory 6 Display control unit 7 Empty / occupancy detector 8 Transmission / reception control unit 9 Unparked area 10 Parking area 11 Parking applicant 12 City block 13 Road 14 Parking area

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A detection means for detecting presence / absence of parking in a parking area and generating parking propriety information, a transmission / reception control means for transmitting the parking propriety information from the detection means to a communication line, and communication from the transmission / reception control means. Information processing means for generating route guidance information to an empty parking area based on parking availability information given via a line and transmitting it to the communication line, and from the information processing means via the communication line and the transmission / reception control means A parking meter system comprising: display means for displaying given route guidance information. 2. The parking meter system according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of parking meters connected to the information processing means via the communication lines, each of the plurality of parking meters being provided with the detection means and the transmission / reception control. A parking meter system comprising means and the display means.