JPH0892919A - Traffic sign and confirming method for position - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To confirm its own current position accurately and easily by the driver of an automobile, etc. CONSTITUTION: A traffic sign, which is mounted along a road and in which a place name, etc., are coded and displayed, is read optically, map information recording is retrieved by using a read place-name code, and the current position of a travelling body is confirmed. Since an optical means is used, there is no possibility of interference such as electromagnetic waves, and the optical means can also be utilized in an urban area and a tunnel. A bar code may be employed as the code. Since the density of the installation and place of the installation of the traffic sign can be selected arbitrarily as required, not only the current position but also the destination of an actually necessary branch road and the addresses, etc., of public facilities and a hotel can be displayed. Since the traffice sign can be used jointly with a conventional one, the traffic sign is practical and economical.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is used in a moving body such as an automobile (hereinafter referred to as an automobile) traveling on a road to quickly and definitely confirm its own current position and reach a destination. Regarding road signs and map information recording that can be done.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order for an automobile or the like on a road to reach a destination, it is first necessary to always confirm that the position of the vehicle is on a predetermined route. Conventionally, drivers and passengers of cars, etc., compare the surrounding scenery, road signs, etc. with the place names, route names, road destinations etc. that were previously memorized by surveying maps etc. I was confirming that I was running. However, recently, road conditions have become complicated,
It has become difficult to reach the destination accurately on the planned route only by the visual inspection and memory of the driver. Therefore, various so-called car navigation systems have been developed, and attempts have been put to practical use to help rational traveling of automobiles and the like. For example, in order to detect the current position, a so-called GPS system has been put into practical use, in which an electric wave of an artificial satellite (GPS satellite) is received in an automobile or the like, and the received data is computerized to calculate and display the current position. . further,
In order to improve the position recognition accuracy of the GPS system, a method of modifying the self-contained navigation utilizing geomagnetic data to make it convenient has been proposed and is being used. In addition to this, as a current position detecting means, a method of transmitting radio waves from a plurality of points, receiving the radio waves, synthesizing the directions of the radio waves on a map, determining the current position and correcting the current position (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-41174). Etc.), a method of transmitting a specific radio wave from ground equipment such as an intersection, and receiving the radio wave to identify the current position on a map (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-261980, etc.), Loran C.
A method for receiving a signal and specifying the current position (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-
186172) and the like have been proposed.

[0003]

However, all of the conventionally proposed methods, including the GPS method, use radio waves to identify the current position, so unless special measures are taken, they are used in tunnels or in central Tokyo. It is difficult to recognize the exact position because the radio waves are blocked. In addition, the data transmitted from the GPS satellites are based on the WGS-84 geodetic system, and are different from the maps based on the Japanese geodetic system issued by the Geographical Survey Institute of the Ministry of Construction, which are generally used in Japan, so they are accurate. Correction is required to determine the position. In order to eliminate these drawbacks, many GPS type correction means have been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-91582 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-254).
383, JP-A-5-112756, etc.).
As described above, increasing the accuracy of the conventionally proposed means requires a great deal of cost, fear of mutual interference between radio waves and other radio waves, the problem of securing a usable frequency, and manual input. There are problems such as complexity.

Further, unlike in foreign countries, the indication of place names in Japan is not regularly displayed based on roads, intersections are also displayed with almost proper nouns, and the same name is duplicated or after the town name. The displayed Ding number may not be set in the numerical order along the road, which is a major obstacle for the driver of the automobile or the like to confirm the current position on the map. The present invention provides a road sign and a map for quickly confirming the current position on a road, and a method for confirming the position, and an object so that an automobile or the like can accurately reach a destination through a planned course. It was completed for the purpose of providing a method of setting an access route to the ground.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention firstly displays a place name, a destination, a road identification name, and / or road information in an optically readable coded form. The location of the place name is searchably recorded from the place name code of the road sign code read by using the road sign and the optical reading means mounted on the traveling body. Provide characteristic map information records. There is no limitation on the code display method, but a bar code having a high technical level in terms of hardware and software is preferable. If the road sign is provided along the road and the traveling body is equipped with an optical reading means, the code display of the road sign is read, and the map information record is searched using the read place name code, and the place name is read. It is possible to specify the location of and to express the identified location.

[0006]

Embodiments and Actions The present invention will be described in detail with reference to embodiments. In the following description, unless otherwise noted, a road sign means the road sign of the present invention displayed optically readable by a code.

First, in the road sign of the present invention, information such as a place name in a difficult-to-read character display is coded and displayed without using characters in order to make it surely and efficiently read. The content of the road sign is not limited, and the place name, destination, road identification name, and / or road information is displayed. The place name is
In addition to general place names, this includes intersections, interchanges, bridges, tunnels, rivers, public facilities, and hotel names.
Place names are not always coded directly. For example, if you place a regular place name code that combines numbers and alphabets in ascending or descending order on a road sign at any position along the route and display it on a road sign, it will be easier to decipher the code and make a logical decision, and it will be cheaper. System can be provided. Destinations include roads, especially destinations at branch points, traveling directions of automobiles, and the like. The road identification name includes a road (route) name and a route number. As the road information, it is possible to display curves, railroad crossings, etc., unsteady road information such as road construction, traffic regulations due to accidents and snow, and the like.

These codes are optically displayed on a road sign and are readable. Therefore, it is possible to use coating or lightning that utilizes visible light as in the case of conventionally used road signs, and it is also possible to use infrared rays or the like other than visible light. Instead of always displaying the road sign, the road sign may be displayed according to the trigger signal issued by the mobile body using the road sign of the present invention. Further, blinking light emission equivalent to an optical signal obtained by scanning the barcode from one end and reading the barcode may be performed. Since the road sign of the present invention uses an optical means for reading, since the distance required for transmitting information is relatively short in the present invention, it is not necessary to use an electromagnetic wave that is likely to cause interference and is stable. Because it can be read. However, in order to deal with the case of heavy fog, infrared rays or radio waves may be used together, and of course conventional road signs may be used together.

The code display system used in the present invention is preferably a bar code composed of parallel bars (colors can also be added) of white and black of several widths. There are advantages that remote automatic reading by optical display is easy, there are few erroneous readings, international unification, economical, and abundant information transmission. Furthermore, the bar code processing system and peripheral technology have been developed and implemented at a fairly high level, so they can be used easily. For example, in order to read a barcode that moves at high speed from a long distance, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 22351/1990.
No. 90 discloses a bar code in which a retroreflective material is used for the white bar and a non-reflective material is used for the black bar.

The road sign of the present invention is a place suitable for recognizing the position of an automobile or the like, for example, a road branch point, an interchange, a border of a prefecture or city, a river, a public facility, a hotel, or the like, or before or in the vicinity thereof. Should be installed in It can also be installed side by side with general road signs, signs, and traffic lights.
In order to avoid an oversight, the installation position is preferably installed overhead such as a pedestrian bridge, a tunnel entrance, a traffic light, etc. where the vehicle can be seen easily. Further, for example, a series of serial numbers of the road signs themselves may be added to the code display, or a plurality of road signs having the same display may be provided to take measures to prevent oversight or misreading. On the other hand, for an automobile or the like, an optical reading means of a road sign, a map information record that records the place name displayed on the road sign, and the location of the corresponding place name is specified using the read place name code and the map information record. Means, means for expressing the specified location, etc. are installed. For example, a video camera, a laser scanner or the like can be used as the road sign reading means. Specifically, JP-A-4-92999
And the moving body identification device described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-33447.
The barcode remote reading device described in Japanese Patent No. 5 can be cited.

In the map information recording, the place name is made to correspond one-to-one with the place name code displayed on the road sign. For example, the place name is recorded on a magnetic card or a CD-ROM combined with the map and set in a reader. deep. It is also possible to record the code directly on the map using a print or magnetic recording medium or the like, and retrieve it using magnetic or optical means. The map information record should be divided and recorded for each area or road network of appropriate size in order to speed up the search, avoid duplication of the same place name, and record density. A microcomputer may be used to identify the location of the road sign using the read code of the road sign and the map information record. A similar device is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-
An automatic map search system described in Japanese Patent No. 261,980 (described in FIG. 1 of the same publication) can be given. The map to be used does not necessarily have to be an accurately scaled map, and a map that can follow a road sign such as Sugoroku can be used. In addition to a CRT or a liquid crystal that is visually displayed by a map or a character, the identified current position display means can also display the main points by using voice or the like.

The map information record is similar to a general road map.
It is convenient for the search to classify the rank into 5 or 6 depending on the scale and the type of the road. In other words, those that mainly describe national-based highways and major national roads that correspond to national maps are the first rank, and those that mainly describe highways, national roads, and major road networks that correspond to regional block diagrams are listed below. , Expressways, national roads and local roads by prefectures, state roads and main roads and main city roads of major cities are listed, and national roads and prefectural roads that mainly access city roads are added In this case, the rank is divided into 6 stages in the form of emphasis on the details of the city road, but the number of ranks can be arbitrarily determined depending on the use of the map information.

In the map information record used in the present invention, in order to conveniently associate the code of one road intersecting the code of the other road at the intersection with the code of the other road, both codes are searched for each other. It is good to add a key. At the same time, the intersection code is recorded with the intersection (hereinafter, referred to as MIC) closest to the road sign of interest among the intersections on the roads with the highest road rank in one map information. In addition, the distance between adjacent signs on the same route and the required travel time are always added to the sign record on one sign side, for example, the ascending order good side. further,
For each route within the same map, rank in descending order from national highways to major national roads, major roads, prefectural roads, municipal roads, and city roads, and for each intersection code, from that intersection By adding the intersection code of the highest ranked road on the map closest to the map, the convenience is greatly increased as follows.

That is, by setting the map information record in the reading device and inputting the code of the destination neighborhood sign (hereinafter referred to as "destination sign") into the computer linked with this,
While driving, the distance from the code sign read just before (hereinafter referred to as the current position sign) to the destination sign or the time required,
Since it is easy to calculate and store the route for minimizing, that is, the sign group to be traced and the passing order thereof by using a computer as follows, the route was attached to the running body during running. The code of the road sign read by using the optical reading means is compared with the stored road sign code and confirmed, and if necessary, the place name to be passed next and the destination to be followed at the road branch point are identified. You can display and access the destination correctly.

The calculation procedure for calculating and storing the route from the current position sign to the target sign is as follows. First, of the maps including both signs, the one with the lowest map rank is called from the map information record, and (1) both signs are on the same route. If there is, the order and the total time of the sign groups to be traced between them are calculated and stored, and (2) when on different routes and (1), similarly,
Select the roads intersecting the MIC of both signs (hereinafter referred to as secondary roads) in descending order of road rank, and for each intersection, the intersecting road (hereinafter referred to as tertiary road) name code added to the intersection code record or Search for intersections that are common to each other by sequentially shifting the intersections to find each other, find the same common route code or the same intersection code, and find the total distance and the total distance along the order of the routes that follow the intersections found. Calculate and store total time. (3) If the same common line code or intersection code cannot be found, lower the rank of the road code to be searched, or the same common line for the fourth road intersecting the third road. You can find directions by repeating the code or intersection code.

[0016]

Industrial Applicability According to the present invention, in an automobile or the like, a road sign provided along a road can be read locally, and the current position can be confirmed from the read place name by recording map information without causing an error. Also, because the optical means is used to read the road signs, there is no risk of interference unlike navigation systems that use electromagnetic waves, and the current position can be easily confirmed even in tunnels or valleys of buildings. . As for road signs, installation density and installation place can be arbitrarily selected as needed, so not only the current position,
It is possible to easily and beforehand display the detailed information corresponding to the information actually required, for example, the passing direction at the branch road, the location of the public facility or the hotel, and the like.

Further, if the bar code is used, there is a possibility that the high quality technology related to the bar code can be economically used. In addition, the coded information can be easily restored to voice or a foreign language, so there is no worry of overlooking the road sign or fear of driving aside, and foreigners who do not understand Japanese road signs and road information Can also be used,
Driving safety can be improved. Moreover, the road sign of the present invention can be added to a conventional road sign or signal.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A road sign characterized by displaying a place name, a destination, a road identification name, and / or road information in an optically readable code. 2. The road sign according to claim 1, wherein the code is a bar code. 3. A map information record, wherein the location of the place name is recorded in a searchable manner from the place name code of the road sign codes of claim 1 or 2. 4. The road sign according to claim 1 or 2 is provided along the road, the traveling body is equipped with an optical reading means to read the code display of the road sign, and the read place name code is used. A method for confirming a position in a road vehicle, characterized by searching a map information record, identifying the location of the place name, and mounting a means for expressing the identified location.