KR100487711B1 - Method for collecting traffic information - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a traffic information collection method capable of collecting reliable traffic information while reducing channel occupancy time (or bandwidth). According to the present invention, the traffic information collection device measures the traffic information related data. The measured traffic information related data is stored in the storage space in the traffic information collecting device and then analyzed and processed by the traffic information collecting device. In the analysis and processing, the traffic information collecting device may use the measured vehicle state information. Based on the analysis and processing results, the traffic information collecting device generates the traffic information for collection and transmits it to the traffic information control center.

Description

{Method for collecting traffic information}

The present invention relates to a traffic information collection method, and more particularly, to a method for collecting traffic information using a traffic information collection mobile terminal.

The conventional traffic information collection method has a disadvantage in that a large amount of processes to be performed in the traffic information control center in order to generate traffic information to be provided to the service consumer from data collected from a plurality of information sources. In addition, in order to increase the reliability and accuracy of the serviced traffic information, the amount of data to be transmitted from the information source to the traffic information control center becomes large, thereby increasing the bandwidth (that is, communication channel occupancy time) used for collecting traffic information. There is this.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for effectively collecting traffic information while requiring less communication channel occupation time.

In order to achieve the above object, according to an embodiment of the present invention, measuring traffic information-related data in the traffic information collecting device; Storing the measured traffic information related data in a storage space in the traffic information collecting device; Generating traffic information for collection by analyzing and processing the stored traffic information related data in the traffic information collecting device; The traffic information collection method is provided, comprising the step of transmitting the traffic information for collection from the traffic information collecting device to a traffic information control center. In a preferred embodiment, the collecting traffic information includes at least time, road and speed information. In addition, the collecting traffic information may further include vehicle state information, and the analyzing and processing to generate the collecting traffic information may be performed at regular intervals. In addition, the generating of the traffic information for collection by analyzing and processing may be performed once every time the measuring and storing are performed at least twice. The measured traffic information related data includes vehicle state data such as gear state (for example, forward, reverse, etc.), brake state, and the like, and the analysis and processing may be performed by referring to such vehicle state data.

In addition, the generating of the traffic information for collection by analyzing and processing may be triggered to be executed when the position of the traffic information collecting device is changed from one leaf to another (that is, the leaf number is changed). In another embodiment, the location of the traffic information collecting device may be triggered and executed to change from one section to another section. The traffic information-related data in the measuring and storing includes speed data, and the analyzing and processing to generate collecting traffic information includes averaging the speed data to calculate speed information, and calculating Speed information may be inserted into the collecting traffic information.

 According to another embodiment of the invention, the step of measuring the traffic information-related data in the traffic information collecting device; Storing the measured traffic information related data in a first storage space in the traffic information collecting device; Generating traffic information for collection by analyzing and processing the traffic information related data stored in the first storage space in the traffic information collecting device; Storing the collecting traffic information in a second storage space in the traffic information collecting device; A traffic information collection method is provided, including transmitting the traffic information for collection in the second storage space from the traffic information collection device to a traffic information control center.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the step of measuring traffic information-related data in the traffic information collecting device; Generating traffic information for collection by analyzing and processing the measured traffic information related data in the traffic information collecting device; Provided is a traffic information collection method comprising transmitting the traffic information for collection from the traffic information collection device to a traffic information control center.

Next, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows an example of a system for executing a traffic information collection method according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a traffic information collecting device 110, a base station 120, a mobile switching center 130, and a traffic information control center 140, which may be mounted on a vehicle for collecting traffic information according to the present invention, are included. Doing.

In such a system, the traffic information collecting device 110 collects, analyzes, and processes roads on which the vehicle travels and traffic information related data related to the vehicle to generate traffic information for collection. This collecting traffic information is transmitted to the traffic information control center 140 via the base station 120 and the mobile telephone exchange 130. Here, unlike shown in the figure, it may be transmitted directly from the base station 120 to the traffic information control center 140 without passing through the mobile switching center 130. In addition, it may be transmitted to the traffic information control center 140 via another communication network in addition to the base station 120, the mobile switching center 130.

2 is a view showing a traffic information collecting device 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The traffic information collecting device 110 includes a mobile phone 113 such as a cellular phone (typically a PCS phone), a GPS 114, and a traffic information terminal 119. The traffic information terminal 119 is coupled to the mobile phone 113 and the GPS 114. The traffic information terminal 119 also has a digital sensor 115, such as a collision sensor, a collision sensor, a turn signal lever, an input means such as an operation panel 116 for inputting data from a user, a brake 117, a side. It may be selectively coupled to all or part of the brake 118, gyro 114b, and the like. The gyro 114a may be coupled to the GPS 114. Here, the gyro (114a, 114b) may be configured to include only any one of the two. The signal applied from the brake 117 to the traffic information terminal 119 is made through the brake signal line. The brake signal line is already installed in a normal vehicle, and is a signal line used to light a red tail light on which the brake is operated. Thus, this signal line can be coupled to the traffic information terminal 119. Similarly, when the side brake 118 is actuated, a typical vehicle can couple the side brake signal line used to display it to the user to the traffic information terminal 119.

In FIG. 2, the traffic information terminal 119 includes a first memory 111 and a second memory 112. The first memory 111 is a storage space in which traffic information related data collected through the digital sensor 115, the operation panel 116, the brake 117, the side brake 118, and the like are stored together with the measured time. The second memory 112 is a storage space in which the traffic information for collection generated by analyzing and processing the traffic information related data stored in the first memory 111 is stored. According to another embodiment, the second memory 112 that performs such a function may be installed in the PCS 113. That is, the traffic information for collection generated by analyzing and processing the traffic information related data may be transferred from the traffic information terminal 119 to the PCS 113 and stored in a memory in the PCS 113. The traffic information terminal 119 may further include an additional memory in addition to the first memory 111 and the second memory 112. The map may be stored in this additional memory. In a preferred embodiment, the map is an electronic map in which roads are divided into a plurality of sections, each section being represented by one vector data.

In another embodiment, the electronic map may be installed in a storage space accessible by the traffic information terminal 119. For example, it may be stored in a storage space within the GPS 114 or stored in an external memory.

In addition, although the first memory 111 and the second memory 112 are logically illustrated as two components, one memory may be physically divided and used. In addition, the memory for the electronic map may also be embodied as one memory physically with the first memory 111 and the second memory 112.

In a preferred embodiment, the interface between the mobile phone 113 and the traffic information terminal 119 and the interface between the GPS 114 and the traffic information terminal 119 may be implemented by RS232C or other matching device.

3 shows another example of the configuration of a traffic information collecting device according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 3, the traffic information terminal 119 is coupled to an engine control and transmission control unit (ECU / TCU: Engine Control Unit / Transmission Control Unit) 121 to communicate data. Examples of data transmitted from the engine control and transmission control unit 121 to the traffic information terminal 119 include engine speed, vehicle speed, air conditioner operation, transmission position (single stage 2 reverse), and failure of each part of the vehicle. The presence or absence thereof, and the like, and specifically, data related to driving a vehicle, which are not listed here, may be input to the traffic information terminal 119.

In such a configuration, the distance can be known by counting pulses from the wheel sensor, and the number of pulses in unit time means speed. The traffic information terminal 119 may also request the speed data from the ECU / TCU 121.

2 and 3, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that it is possible to manufacture the mobile phone 113, the GPS 114, and the traffic information terminal 119 as one module.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a traffic information collection method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, the traffic information terminal 119 measures traffic information related data in step 201. In more detail, in FIG. 2, the position, the traveling speed, and the vehicle state data of the vehicle from the digital sensor 115, the operation panel 116, the brake 117, the side brake 118, the GPS 114, and the like. Get traffic information related data such as Here, the vehicle state data indicates vehicle state data that may affect traffic information. For example, the vehicle state data indicates whether the gear of the vehicle is forward, backward, stopped or whether side brake is applied. . This measurement of step 201 may be made periodically. For example, measurements may be made every 5 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds or 1 minute. Further, all kinds of traffic information related data may be measured at the same time, or may be measured at different periods for each kind. Here, the shorter the measurement period will increase the accuracy of the data.

In operation 202, the traffic information terminal 119 stores the measured traffic information related data in the first memory 111. The measured traffic information related data is preferably stored together with the measurement time.

In step 203, the traffic information related data stored in the first memory 111 is analyzed and processed. The analysis and processing of the traffic information related data is preferably performed with reference to the vehicle status information. For example, when the gear state of the vehicle is stopped and the side brake is applied, the driver or the like of the vehicle may stop for a while to see business, and thus the measured traffic information related data may be discarded. The analysis and processing of the measured traffic information-related data may, for example, classify the measured traffic information-related data for each section of the road and calculate the traveling speed of the vehicle based on the location data or the measured traveling speed for each section. Can be. Here, the section of the road may be determined based on the measured position data.

Before performing step 203, step 201 and step 202 may be performed two or more times. In one preferred embodiment, the number of repetitions is determined constantly. In another embodiment, the repetitive execution may be performed until the first memory used in step 202 is filled. That is, the first memory may continuously measure and store traffic information related data until it is full. In another embodiment, the repetitive execution may be performed only for a certain time. In another embodiment, the repetitive execution may be performed only while driving on the road of the same section. That is, it may be triggered that the section is changed to cause step 203 to be executed.

The first memory may be implemented as an external memory or a first-in first-out memory or a stack memory. In addition, if necessary, step 202 may be omitted, and the measured traffic information related data may be immediately analyzed and processed.

Step 204 generates collection traffic information based on the analysis and processing results obtained in step 203. One preferred embodiment of the format of the collection traffic information is shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 5, the traffic information for collection includes a method field 310, a time field 320, a leaf number field 330, a section number field 340, a road direction field 350, a location field 360, Speed field 370, vehicle status field 380, and the like.

The method field 310 indicates what format the collecting traffic information has. Collecting traffic information, as will be described later, may consist of one record or may consist of several records, which is a data field for distinguishing this.

The time field 320 represents a time related to the traffic information for collection. That is, it is a field for indicating at what time the traffic information for collection is traffic information. The leaf number field 330 and the section number field 340 are fields for indicating a road section on which the vehicle on which the traffic information collecting device 110 is mounted is running. In detail, any section of a road in an area where traffic information is collected, for example, Korea, may be specified by the leaf number field 330 and the section number field 340. The leaf number field 330 is a data field for identifying a map including the section, and the section number field 340 is a data field for specifying any section among a plurality of sections included in the map. In a preferred embodiment, the section number field 340 may have a serial number, and image data corresponding to the section may be represented by vector data.

The road direction field 350 is a data field indicating the direction of the road on which the vehicle on which the traffic information collecting device 110 is mounted travels. For example, if the road on which the vehicle is traveling is Teheranro, this field indicates whether the vehicle is traveling from Gangnam Station to Yeoksam Station or from Yeoksam Station to Gangnam Station. In the prior art, the direction of the road on which the vehicle is running (that is, whether the vehicle is traveling or in the opposite direction) is determined by using map matching or the like for location information of the vehicle. However, even in the case of using map matching, there may be a case where it is not possible to know whether the road direction in which the vehicle is driven is the traveling direction or the opposite direction only by using the instantaneous position. In addition, even when a method such as DGPS is used, when a vehicle is near the center line, it may not be known in which direction the vehicle is driving. In order to improve such a problem, it is necessary to transmit data related to the direction in which the vehicle is in progress from the traffic information collecting device 110 to the traffic information control center 140. To this end, the traffic information terminal according to the present invention may calculate a road direction based on location data input from a GPS terminal with a predetermined time difference, and the vehicle is driven using a gyro or a magnet compass (not shown). You can also calculate the direction of the road. In another embodiment, the road direction may be calculated by the GPS 114 and input to the traffic information terminal 119. In one preferred embodiment, the road direction field 350 may be implemented with, for example, 1 bit.

The location field 360 is a data field indicating the location of the traffic information collecting device 110 (that is, the location of the vehicle on which the traffic information collecting device 110 is mounted). You can also display the time from the previous collection period when triggered by a new interval. The method of dividing the position and the time may be divided into on / off, or may be distinguished between when the first bit is larger and when it is not. The position field 360 is a field indicating the position, and may be represented by a relative X-coordinate and a relative Y-coordinate in the leaf. According to another embodiment, the location field 360 may be absolute X- and absolute Y-coordinates.

The section in which the vehicle is driven may be sufficiently grasped by the leaf number field 330 and the section number field 340. However, a section for driving a new section not included in the map, such as a newly constructed road or a backside road, may be used. In this case a location field 360 is required to determine its location. Thus, this location field 360 is optional and may be excluded from the collection traffic information to reduce channel occupancy time.

According to another exemplary embodiment, a map leaf, a section, a relative position value of the vehicle in the section, and the like may be used to indicate the location of the vehicle. For example, the position of the vehicle in a specific section may be expressed as a percentage of the section. Here, since the values required for the leaf number field 330, the section number field 340, and the road direction field 350 are already specified, the position field 360 merely shows the relative position value of the vehicle in the section. Only can be displayed. When the relative position in the interval is expressed as a percentage, the position field 360 may be implemented with 7 bits. Therefore, when the accuracy is lower than this, the number of bits required may be reduced, and when the accuracy is increased, the number of bits of the location field 360 may be increased.

The speed field 370 is a field indicating the speed at which the vehicle on which the traffic information collecting device 110 is mounted is traveling, and the vehicle state field 380 is a field indicating the state of the vehicle.

The vehicle status field 380 is a data field related to the vehicle status which helps in analyzing traffic information. The vehicle status field 380 may be omitted as necessary to reduce the channel occupancy time. This is because it may be performed based on the vehicle condition in the analyzing and processing the traffic information related data in step 203.

The unusual traffic situation field 390 is a data field representing information related to the unusual traffic situation, for example, a collision, a collision, a vehicle overturning, or a traffic jam. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the configuration of the fields in FIG. 5 may be reversed.

Referring back to FIG. 4, in step 205, the traffic information for collection is transmitted from the traffic information terminal 119 to the traffic information control center 140. Such transmission may be performed whenever a transmission request is made by the base station 120. To this end, the collecting traffic information generated in step 204 may be temporarily buffered. In addition, in transmitting the traffic information for collection from the traffic information terminal 119 to the traffic information control center 140, as shown in FIG. 1, it may be transmitted through the base station 120 and the mobile switching center 130, It may be transmitted only through the base station 120, or may be transmitted through other communication networks. That is, transmission of traffic information for collection may be performed through, for example, a PCS network, a cellular network, a digital data communication network, a TRS network, or the like.

6 is a flowchart showing a traffic information collection method according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, step 403 in step 401 is substantially the same as step 203 in step 201, and thus description thereof will be omitted.

In step 404, collecting traffic information for each section is generated. The collection traffic information generated here may have a format as described with reference to FIG. 5.

Step 405 stores the collecting traffic information generated in step 404 in the second memory 112 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). Here, the collecting traffic information may be stored for each section.

Prior to executing step 406 in FIG. 6, step 401 to step 405 may be repeated two or more times. In step 406, the traffic information for collection is transmitted from the traffic information terminal 119 to the traffic information control center 140.

7A and 7B illustrate an example of a format of collection traffic information that may be transmitted in step 406. 7A and 7B, the same fields as in FIG. 5 are given the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

First, referring to FIG. 7A, the number field 300 indicates the number of records to be transmitted. Here, the record field is a unit representing the collection traffic information for the section, the section number field 340, road direction field 350, location field 360, speed field 370, vehicle status field 380 in FIG. ), It refers to a specific traffic situation field 390. In this record, other fields besides the section number field 340 may be included in part or in whole according to a selection. The embodiment shown in FIG. 7A is a format in which three records are collectively transmitted, and the data written in the number field 300 is “3”.

7B further includes a status flag field 335 in the collecting traffic information format. The state flag field 335 is a field for indicating a case in which the vehicle travels a portion of the leaf that is not a section. Specifically, all roads are assigned section numbers when forming an electronic map and each section is stored as a vector. However, roads may always be newly constructed, and there may be a back road where no section number is assigned when making an electronic map. In this case, when the vehicle is traveling at a position where the section is not allocated, this is a field for indicating the position of the vehicle (that is, the position of the traffic information collecting device). In one embodiment, if the status flag field 335 is "0", it indicates that the section number has been collected from the assigned location, and if the status flag field 335 is "1", traffic information is obtained from the location where the section number is not assigned. Indicates that it was collected.

When the status flag field 335 is "0" (ie, when the vehicle is on a road to which a segment is assigned), the method of indicating a position may, as mentioned above, the section number 340 and the road direction 350. ) Can be specified. Here, in a case where the position is to be indicated in more detail, the section may further include an intra-region relative position field indicating a relative position within the interval. In addition, unlike FIG. 7B, the location field 360 may further include the road direction field 350 in FIG. 7B.

If the status flag field 335 is "1" (that is, the vehicle is in a location to which no segment is assigned), the relative position field in the leaf instead of the section number field 340 and the road direction field 350 ( 365). The in-leaf relative position field 365 is a field indicating a relative position in the leaf, and includes a relative X-coordinate value and a relative Y-coordinate value in the leaf.

8A and 8B illustrate another example of a format of collection traffic information used in the traffic information collection method according to the present invention. In FIGS. 8A and 8B, the same reference numerals are given to the same data fields as in FIGS. 5, 7A, and 7B, and description thereof will be omitted.

In FIG. 8A, the map change identification character 340a (eg, “-1”) may be inserted into the section number field 340 as shown in the second record. This is a format used when sections associated with a plurality of records to be transmitted collectively do not belong to the same map, but belong to several maps. When the map change identification character is inserted into the section number field 340 as shown in the second record of FIG. 8A, the next field is recognized as the leaf number field 330a, and the new leaf number field 330a contains a new map. The leaf number for identification may be indicated. Subsequent records are recognized as collecting traffic information about the sections belonging to the changed leaf number. 8B illustrates a case in which the state flag field 335 is further included. In addition, unlike FIG. 8B, the collecting traffic information format may further include a location field 360 between the road direction field 350 and the speed field 370.

When the traffic information for collection as described above is transmitted from the traffic information terminal 119 to the traffic information control center 140, the traffic information control center 140 is provided from the traffic information terminals 119 mounted on the plurality of vehicles. Collected traffic information for collection is stored, and traffic information for service is generated by analyzing and processing the traffic information for collection at regular intervals. In a preferred embodiment, the analysis and processing in the traffic information control center 140 may be performed every 10 minutes, the traffic information for collection to be analyzed and processed from 10 minutes ago to the time when analysis and processing is started It may be an accumulation.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and many variations are possible by those skilled in the art within the spirit of the present invention.

As described above, the traffic information collection method according to the present invention has an advantage of reducing the required channel occupancy time. In addition, since the traffic information related data is primarily analyzed and processed by the traffic information terminal 119 mounted in the vehicle, the traffic information for collection is generated and transmitted, and thus, the accuracy of the traffic information is increased.

1 is a view showing an example of a system for executing a traffic information collection method according to the present invention.

2 is a view showing a traffic information collecting device 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention

3 is a view showing another example of the configuration of a traffic information collecting device according to the present invention.

4 is a flow chart showing a traffic information collection method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a collection traffic information format used in the traffic information collection method according to the present invention;

6 is a flow chart showing a traffic information collection method according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention.

7A and 7B are diagrams showing other examples of the format of collecting traffic information used in the traffic information collecting method according to the present invention;

8A and 8B are diagrams showing still another example of a format of collecting traffic information used in the traffic information collecting method according to the present invention;

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

110... Traffic information collection device

111, 112... Memory

113... Mobile phone

114... GPS

115... Digital sensor

116... Operation panel

117.. brake

118... Side brake

120... Base station

121... Engine control and transmission control unit (ECU / TCU)

130... Mobile telephone exchange

140... Traffic Information Control Center

Claims (12)

In the traffic information collection method, (a) measuring traffic information related data in a traffic information collecting device mounted in a vehicle and repeating the storing of the measured traffic information related data in a storage space in the traffic information collecting device by a predetermined reference; (b) the traffic information collecting device generates field information to analyze and process the stored traffic information related data to generate collecting traffic information, wherein the field information indicates whether the vehicle is traveling in a predetermined section; Generating field information to include a status plug field for determining; (c) a map for identifying a map corresponding to the section, in order to identify a road and a section in which the traffic information collecting device is operated when the status plug field is on a road to which the vehicle is preset a section; Number field; Generating a section number field for identifying the section among a plurality of sections included in the map; (d) generating a relative position field in the leaf to identify the position of the vehicle when the vehicle is driving at a position to which the section is not allocated; (e) generating collecting traffic information including the field information; (f) transmitting the collecting traffic information from the traffic information collecting device to a traffic information control center; Traffic information collection method comprising a. The method of claim 1, The criteria set in advance in (a) Traffic information collection method characterized in that at least one of a trigger signal generated when a predetermined number of repetitions, the capacity of the storage space or the running section of the traffic information collection device is changed The method of claim 1, And the section number field comprises a serial number, and image data corresponding to the section number is represented by vector data. The method of claim 1, The section number field is And a map change identification character for identifying map information when map information corresponding to a plurality of records is different. The method of claim 1, The relative position field in the leaf A traffic information collection method comprising a relative X-coordinate value and a relative Y-coordinate value in a map. The method of claim 1, The field information, A time field for indicating a collection time of the collecting traffic information; A road direction field for indicating a direction of the road on which the traffic information collecting device is traveling; The speed field may include a speed field for indicating a driving speed of the vehicle; And A vehicle status field for indicating a status of the vehicle; Traffic information collection method further comprises at least one of. The method of claim 6, The velocity field is Traffic information collection method characterized in that the generated by averaging a plurality of speed information included in the traffic information related data. The method of claim 1, The field information further includes a number field for identifying the number of records included in the collection traffic information. In step (c), And collecting the traffic information for collection for a predetermined period of time by using the number field, and transmitting the collectively. delete delete delete delete