JPH06203290A - Image type crossing accident recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide the image type crossing accident recorder which always records an image photographing an entire crossing area at this site and can record only a part corresponding to an accident image in a detachable recording medium when any traffic accident occurs at the crossing. CONSTITUTION:The video signal of the entire crossing area photographed by a TV camera 1 is processed by an image processor 4 and the image of the relevant video signal is recorded and stored by a first image recorder 7. Then, the traffic accident is detected by sensing impulse noise, which is generated when the traffic accident occurs, with an impulse noise sensor 3 or performing the image processing of the video signal and a second image recorder 8 fetches images before and after the accident from the first image recorder 7 while including a prescribed time zone before the traffic accident and records them in the detachable recording medium.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image-type intersection accident recording device installed at an intersection having a traffic light and recording an image of a traffic accident at the intersection.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art At an intersection having a traffic light, when a traffic accident such as a contact accident between vehicles, a collision accident, or a contact accident between a vehicle and a pedestrian occurs, the terms of both parties are different and the color of the traffic light is different. Often becomes a problem. Therefore, there has been a strong demand for development of a device capable of recording an image effective for inspection of the situation of a traffic accident that occurred at an intersection, by a related public organization that investigates the cause of the accident. In order to meet these demands, an image transmission method has been developed, in which a video signal of the entire area of an intersection is transmitted to a remote control center via a transmission cable and the video signal is recorded on a recording tape by an endless VTR at the control center. Have been put to practical use. However, in the above image transfer system, since a transmission cable for transmitting a video signal from the intersection to the control center must be laid, the device configuration becomes large-scaled and requires a large amount of cost. Since the video signal is recorded on the recording tape by the endless VTR, there is a problem that it takes a long time to search a recording portion that records the situation of the traffic accident.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks of the image transmission method, and always records an image of the entire intersection on the spot. An object of the present invention is to provide an image type intersection accident recording device capable of recording only a portion corresponding to an accident image on a removable recording medium when a traffic accident occurs at the intersection.

[0004]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The present invention is an image-type intersection accident recording apparatus installed at an intersection having a traffic light, and a photographing means 1 for photographing the entire area of the intersection and outputting a video signal, and the traffic light. Traffic light information output means 2 for inputting and outputting traffic light information for controlling the lamp color from the traffic light controller SC, and shock for sensing a shock sound generated when a traffic accident occurs at the intersection and outputting a sensing signal Sound sensing means 3
And an image processing means 4 for digitizing the video signal from the photographing means 1 and performing image processing to output image data of the video signal, and determining a traffic accident based on the image data and outputting an accident detection signal. A gate means 5 for outputting a signal in response to a sensing signal from the impact sound sensing means 3 or an accident determination signal from the image processing means 4, and the image data from the image data from the image processing means 4. Corresponding image information at the time of shooting and signal information output means 2
A first image recording section 7 for recording and accumulating combined image data in which the traffic light information is superposed on the image, and a second image recording section 7 for taking in the combined image data from the first image recording means 7 and recording it in a removable recording medium. Image recording means 8, and the second image recording means 8 outputs the composite image data before and after the accident from the first image recording means 7 including a predetermined time zone before the accident detection in response to the signal from the gate means 3. A means of obtaining and recording on the recording medium was adopted.

[0005]

In the image type intersection accident recording apparatus of the present invention, the entire image of the intersection having a traffic light is photographed by the photographing means 1 and the video signal is output to the image processing means 4. Traffic light information output means 2
Inputs the light color of the signal from the signal controller SC and outputs it to the first image recording means 7. The image processing means 4 digitizes the video signal from the photographing means 1 and then performs image processing to output the image data of the video signal to the first image recording means 7. The first image recording means 7 records the composite image data in which the image data from the image processing means 4 is image-wise superposed with the time information at the time of shooting corresponding to the image data and the signal information of the signal information output means 2. accumulate. The gate means 5 inputs the sensing signal from the impact sound sensing means 3 or the accident detection signal from the image processing means 4 and outputs the signal to the second image recording means 8. The second image recording means 8 inputs the signal from the gate means 5 and takes in the composite image data before and after the accident including the predetermined time zone before the accident detection from the first image recording means 7 and removes the composite image data. Record on a possible recording medium.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in more detail based on the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of an image-type intersection accident recording device according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 designates a TV camera which is a photographing means, and reference numeral 2 designates a signal controller SC described later.
A traffic light information output device (traffic light information output means) connected to the reference numeral 3, reference numeral 3 denotes an impact sound detection sensor (impact sound detection means),
Reference numeral 4 is an image processing apparatus (image processing means) connected to the TV camera 1, reference numeral 5 is a gate circuit (gate means) connected to the impact sound detection sensor 3 and the image processing apparatus 4, and reference numeral 6 is the time of day. A timer device for outputting information, reference numeral 7 is a first image recording device (first image recording means) connected to the traffic light information output device 2, the image processing device 4 and the timer device 6, and reference numeral 8 is a gate circuit 5 and a first image recording device. Image recording device 7
Is a second image recording device (second image recording means) connected to.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing an example of an intersection where the apparatus of this embodiment is installed. At this intersection, a vehicle signal S1 is provided above the outflow side of each traveling route R on which the vehicle travels, and a pedestrian signal S2 is provided on both sides of each pedestrian crossing WL where pedestrians cross. ing. The lighting color of these traffic signals S1 and S2 is controlled by traffic signal information (signal display and floor of signal display) supplied from the signal controller SC.

The TV camera 1 of the apparatus of this embodiment is arranged at a place where the entire intersection can be overlooked, such as a pedestrian bridge at the intersection shown in FIG. 2 or the roof of a building (not shown). The TV camera 1
Is equipped with a fisheye lens so that one camera can photograph the entire area of the intersection, and outputs a video signal obtained by photographing the entire area of the intersection to the image processing device 4.

The traffic light information output device 2 inputs the traffic light information of the traffic light S1 for vehicles and the traffic light S2 for pedestrians from the traffic light controller SC, and outputs the traffic light information of the respective traffic lights S1, S2 to the first image recording device 7. Output to. The signal information output device 2 includes an image processing device 4, a gate circuit 5, a timer device 6, a first image recording device 7, and a first image recording device 7 in a storage box B (see FIG. 2) arranged at a predetermined location at an intersection. Two
It is stored together with the image recording device 8.

The impact sound sensor 3 senses an impact sound (collision sound) generated when a traffic accident (contact accident or collision accident between vehicles or between a vehicle and a motorcycle) occurs at the intersection, and the gate circuit 5 is detected. It outputs a sensing signal to. The impact sound detection sensor 3 is arranged on, for example, a column of the vehicle signal S1 and the pedestrian signal S2.
Impact sound can be detected from multiple directions.

The image processing apparatus 4 comprises an image processing section 41 and an accident determination section 42. The image processing unit 41 digitizes the video signal from the TV camera 1 and then performs image processing to obtain image data of the video signal from the accident determination unit 42 and the first data.
Output to the image recording device 7. The accident determination unit 42 inputs the image data from the image processing unit 41, and based on the image data, a traffic accident (contact between vehicles, contact between vehicle and motorcycle,
A collision circuit or a collision between a vehicle and a pedestrian, or a contact accident between a motorcycle and a pedestrian) is discriminated.
The accident detection signal is output to. The image processing of the video signal by the image processing device 4 and the determination of the traffic accident based on the image data may be performed according to the dangerous traffic event detection method previously proposed by the applicant (Japanese Patent Application No. 4-220625). it can.

The gate circuit 5 is substantially an OR circuit, and outputs a signal to the second image recording device 8 in response to the input of the detection signal from the impact sound detection sensor 3 or the accident detection signal from the image processing device 4. Is output.

The first image recording device 7 superimposes the image signal input from the image processing device 4 on the signal information supplied from the signal information output device 2 and the time information supplied from the timer device 6 to combine them. Image synthesizer 71
An image recording section 72 for digitally recording the combined image data combined by the image combining section 71; and an image combining section 71.
And a control unit 73 for controlling the image recording unit 72. Every time image data is input from the image processing device 4, the image synthesizing unit 71 outputs the traffic light information input from the traffic light information output device 2 and the time information input from the timer device 6 in association with the image data. The composite image data is superimposed on the data in a visual manner, and the combined image data is sequentially output to the image recording unit 72. The image recording unit 72 sequentially records and accumulates the combined image data from the image combining unit 71, and when receiving a data output command from the control unit 82 of the second image recording device 8 described later, a predetermined time before the accident detection. The composite image data before and after the accident including the band is output to the recording unit 81 of the second image recording device 8.

The second image recording device 8 operates the image recording part 81 in response to a removable recording part 81 for recording the composite image data from the first image recording device 7 and a signal output from the gate circuit 5. And a control unit 82. The control unit 82 issues a data output command to the image recording unit 72 of the first image recording device 7 by inputting the output signal from the gate circuit 5, and at the same time issues a writing command to the image recording unit 81. The recording unit 81 has a recording medium (not shown) such as a magneto-optical disk therein, and the control unit 8
In response to the write command from 2, the composite image data supplied from the first image recording device 7 is recorded on the recording medium. Further, the second image recording device 8 has a start switch S connected to the control section 82, and inputs a signal when the start switch S is depressed by a person who witnessed a traffic accident or a police officer who rushed to the accident scene. By doing so, the control section 82 outputs a data output command to the image recording section 72 of the first image recording apparatus 7 and a write command to the recording section 81, respectively.

Next, a series of processing sequences of the apparatus of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. When the TV camera 1 outputs the video signal of the entire intersection to the image processing device 4 (S1), the image processing unit 41 of the image processing device 4 performs the image processing (S2) on the video signal and outputs the image data of the video signal to the first image data. One image is output to the image recording device 7, and the accident determination unit 42 determines a traffic accident based on the image data (S3). The image data input to the first image recording device 7 is image-combined (superposed) with the time information and the traffic signal information from the timer device 6 corresponding to the time of photographing in the image composition part 71 (S4), and the image recording part 72. Is recorded and stored in (S5). Then, when the gate circuit 5 receives an accident detection signal from the accident determination unit 42 of the image processing device 4, a detection signal from the impact sound detection sensor 3 or an input of a start switch (S6), the second image recording device 8 Is the composite image data supplied from the image recording section 71 of the first image recording device 7, that is, the composite image data before and after the accident including a predetermined time period before the accident is detected (S
7) The recording unit 81 starts the recording operation (S8), and as a result, the combined image data is recorded on the recording medium (S8).
9).

In this way, the recording section 81 of the second image recording device 8 in which the composite image data corresponding to the accident image is recorded,
It is taken out from the second image recording device 8 after the accident. Then, the recording unit 81 is loaded into an image reproducing device (not shown), and the accident image recorded in the recording unit 81 is reproduced and used for inspection of the accident situation. In this embodiment, as the composite image data corresponding to the accident image, the composite image data before and after the accident including the predetermined time zone before the accident detection is recorded in the recording unit 81 of the second image recording device 8. Although the example has been described, it may be configured to record the composite image data from the time before the accident including the predetermined time period before the accident is detected in the recording unit 81.

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the image of the video signal of the entire area of the intersection photographed by the photographing means is recorded on the spot by the first image recording means, the conventional image can be recorded. Unlike the transmission method, there is no need to lay a transmission cable, which is cheaper in cost, and the impact sound generated when a traffic accident occurs is detected by the impact sound sensor or the image signal is processed. Since a traffic accident is determined by using the above method, it is possible to reliably detect a collision accident between vehicles, a collision accident, or a collision accident between a vehicle and a pedestrian. Since the images before and after the accident are recorded on a removable recording medium, it is possible to obtain only the image of the part necessary for inspection of the accident situation, and it is easy to search for the accident image. Taken for recorded images Since also contain signal information of the time information and the traffic of the time, there are many practical advantages such as a long way to verify the accident inspection of after the accident.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of an image type intersection accident recording device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing an example of an intersection where the apparatus of this embodiment is installed.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a series of processing sequences of the apparatus of this embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 TV camera (imaging means) 2 Traffic light information output device (traffic light information output means) 3 Attack sound detection sensor (impact sound detection means) 4 Image processing device (image processing means) 5 Gate circuit (gate means) 7 First image recording Device (first image recording means) 8 Second image recording device (second image recording means) SC signal controller

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An image-type intersection accident recording device installed at an intersection having a traffic light, comprising: a photographing means 1 for photographing the entire area of the intersection and outputting a video signal; and a signal control for controlling a light color of the traffic light. Signal information output means 2 for inputting and outputting signal information from the machine SC, impact sound sensing means 3 for sensing an impact sound generated when a traffic accident occurs at the intersection and outputting a sensing signal, and the photographing Image processing means 4 for digitizing the video signal from the means 1 and then performing image processing to output image data of the video signal, and also for identifying a traffic accident based on the image data and outputting an accident detection signal; The gate means 5 which outputs a signal in response to the sensing signal from the sound sensing means 3 or the accident determination signal from the image processing means 4, and the image data from the image processing means 4 is used as the image data. The first image recording unit 7 which records and stores the composite image data in which the photographing time information corresponding to the data and the signal information of the signal information output means 2 are image-wise superimposed.
And a second image recording means 8 which takes in the composite image data from the first image recording means 7 and records it on a removable recording medium, and the second image recording means 8 receives the signal from the gate means 5. According to the first image recording means 7, the composite image data before and after the accident including a predetermined time period before the accident is detected.
An image type intersection accident recording device, which is obtained from the above and recorded in the recording medium.