KR100518736B1 - Traffic Signaling Apparatus For Displaying A Remained Lighting Time - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a traffic signal device having a remaining lighting time display function. The traffic signal device of the remaining lighting time display function of the present invention is configured to have a function of turning on / off a traffic light, displaying a remaining lighting time of the traffic light, and resetting an appropriate lighting time of the traffic light by sensing an ambient traffic flow. .

Therefore, when the traffic signal device of the present invention is installed at the intersection or pedestrian crossing, or in the constant traffic congestion area of the highway or high speed road, the driver can know the remaining lighting time accurately when the red light is turned on, so the traffic flow is smooth and the traffic accident is Can be prevented. In addition, when the red light is turned on, starting of the vehicle can be turned off to suppress idling of the vehicle engine, thereby achieving energy saving and improving the atmospheric environment.

Description

Traffic Signaling Apparatus For Displaying A Remained Lighting Time}

The present invention relates to a traffic signal device, and more particularly, to a traffic signal device having a remaining lighting time display function for preventing a traffic accident and suppressing energy waste by displaying the remaining lighting time of the traffic light in Arabic numerals.

Generally, traffic signals are installed at road intersections or pedestrian crossings for smooth communication of vehicles and prevention of traffic accidents. When a traffic light of a vehicle of such a traffic signal, for example, a signal of a specific color among three color lights such as red, yellow and green is turned on, the driver recognizes the color of the light and turns the vehicle straight or left and right. Drive while stopping or near the stop line. In this case, when a traffic light of a certain color among two-color traffic lights such as red and green lights up, the pedestrian recognizes the color of the lit traffic light and crosses a crosswalk or passes the sidewalk. Stop.

The conventional traffic signal 100 is configured as shown in FIG. In FIG. 1, the traffic light indicator 10 includes, for example, three traffic lights (not shown) displaying red, green, and yellow colors, respectively, and the traffic light driver 20 drives the traffic lights to be turned on among the traffic lights. The power of the power supply unit 30 is supplied to the corresponding traffic lights, and the timer unit 40 measures the lighting time of the corresponding traffic lights. The controller 50 operates according to various programs including traffic control data for controlling the traffic light driver 20 to turn on the traffic light. Here, the red traffic light informs the stop of entry of the vehicle, the green traffic light informs the entry of the vehicle, and the yellow traffic light predicts the switching of lighting of the red traffic light or the green traffic light. Of course, in addition to the red, green and yellow traffic lights, the traffic light display unit 10 may further include a traffic light indicating a change in direction of the vehicle, that is, a left turn.

In the case of the traffic signal 100 configured as described above, a state in which a specific color, for example, a red traffic light is turned off and a yellow traffic light is turned on among red, green, and yellow traffic lights (not shown) of the traffic light display unit 10 is shown. The control unit 50 transmits the control signal to the traffic light driver 20 to light the green traffic light. Accordingly, when the traffic light driver 20 starts supplying the driving power from the power supply unit 30 to the green signal in accordance with the control signal of the controller 50, the green signal is switched from the unlit state to the lit state. Here, the traffic light driving method is a mechanical method or an electronic method, these methods may be adopted as necessary.

At this time, the timer 40 measures the lighting time of the green traffic light, and when the predetermined lighting time ends, the timer 40 transmits a signal indicating the end of the lighting time of the green traffic light to the controller 50. In this way, the controller 50 constantly controls the lighting time of the corresponding traffic light.

In addition, when the control unit 50 turns on the green traffic light and transmits the corresponding control signal to the traffic light driver 20 to turn off the yellow traffic light, the traffic light driver 20 causes the driving power from the power supply 30 to be yellow. Shut off the supply of traffic lights. Therefore, the yellow traffic light is switched from the lit state to the unlit state.

As described above, the conventional traffic signal 100 controls the lighting / lighting-off and the lighting time of the traffic lights by a predetermined program, and controls the traffic lights in connection with the surrounding traffic conditions. Therefore, traffic of vehicles and pedestrians can be made safely and smoothly.

By the way, the conventional traffic signal provides only a function for controlling the on / off of the traffic light at the intersection or crosswalk area, but does not provide a function to clearly display the remaining lighting time in the Arabic numerals.

Therefore, it is difficult for a driver to accurately grasp the timing of switching on / off of the traffic light, so that it is difficult to reliably determine whether the vehicle passes or stops even though the vehicle has traveled near an intersection or a crosswalk. In addition, if the green traffic light continues to light even when the driver has traveled near an intersection or a crosswalk, the driver is likely to accelerate the vehicle to quickly cross the intersection or the crosswalk. At this time, when the green light is suddenly turned off and the yellow light is turned on, the driver may easily brake the vehicle or ignore it and may pass through an intersection or a crosswalk. This is not only easy to impede traffic flow at intersections or pedestrian crossings, but also to cause traffic accidents in severe cases.

Furthermore, in the state where the red light is turned on, the driver stops the vehicle near the stop line of the intersection or the crosswalk and waits for the green light to turn on, for example. However, since the conventional traffic signal does not display the remaining lighting time of the lighting signal, the driver cannot predict the lighting time of the green signal at all. This intensifies the driver's impatience and tension, increases fatigue, and causes unnecessary energy waste and air pollution due to idling of the engine of the vehicle.

Similarly, in some areas of highways or high-speed roads where traffic is stagnant at times such as weekends and holidays, if the driver is driving repeatedly while stopping and slowing down to 10 km / h, it is difficult to avoid drowsy driving while feeling bored. Even if you are not drowsy, it is difficult to suppress impatience and tension, which can lead to violent driving or large accidents. Moreover, it is difficult for the driver to know when to start again after stopping the vehicle for a long time, so that the engine of the vehicle continues to idle, which adds unnecessary energy waste and air pollution.

In consideration of this situation, the traffic signal installed at an intersection or pedestrian crossing can be added to display the remaining lighting time of the traffic light, or the traffic can display the remaining lighting time of the traffic light on the highway or high speed road. It is required to install an additional signal.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to achieve a smooth traffic flow and traffic accident prevention of the vehicle by providing a function of displaying the remaining lighting time of the lighting signal to the traffic signal with a number.

Another object of the present invention is to reduce energy waste and air pollution by suppressing engine idle of a vehicle waiting for a traffic signal.

The above and other objects and features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.

The traffic signal device of the remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention for achieving the above object

A display unit having a signal lamp display unit which lights up a predetermined signal lamp among the signal lamps, and a remaining lamp time display unit which displays the remaining lamp time of the lamp lamp which is displayed in arabic numerals; A power supply unit supplying power; A signal light driver for driving the power supply of the power supply to the signal lamp display to display the lighting of the signal lamp, and a power supply of the power supply of the power supply to the remaining lighting time display to display the remaining lighting time of the signal lamp; A driving unit having a remaining lighting time display driving unit for driving; A signal lamp lighting detector for detecting whether the signal lamp displayed on lighting is turned on; Sensing unit for sensing the flow of traffic around; A timer unit for generating a timing signal for counting the lighting time of the lit lamp; And a control unit for calculating the remaining lighting time of the signal lamp by counting the lighting time of the signal lamp by using the timing signal when detecting the lighting of the signal lamp, and controlling the driving unit according to the sensing result of the sensing unit. do.

Preferably, when the sensing unit senses that the vehicle is traveling at a speed of 10 km / h or less, the control unit may control the lighting of the traffic light.

It is also preferred that each of the traffic lights is a red, yellow and green traffic light.

Hereinafter, a traffic signal device having a remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the part of the same structure and the same action as the conventional part.

2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a traffic signal device having a remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 2, the traffic signal device 200 having the remaining lighting time display function of the present invention is largely displayed on the display unit 110, the driving unit 120, the power supply unit 130, the timer unit 140, and the sensing unit 150. And a controller 160. In addition, the display unit 110 includes a traffic light display unit 111 and a remaining lighting time display unit 112. The driver 120 includes a traffic light driver 121 and a remaining lighting time display driver 122.

Here, the traffic light display 111 displays the lighting state of the three signal lights (not shown) displaying red, green, and yellow, respectively, and the remaining lighting time display 112 displays the remaining lighting time of the lighting signal among the traffic lights. Is displayed. For example, the remaining lighting time display unit 112 may be configured of an electronic display panel to which a light emitting diode is applied to display the minutes and seconds of the remaining lighting time using Arabic numerals, or may be configured as a conventional digital segment.

In addition, the traffic light driver 121 supplies the power of the supply power supply 130 to the signal light to be turned on to drive the traffic light display 111, and the remaining lighting time display driver 122 supplies the remaining lighting time display 112. In order to drive, the power of the supply power supply 130 is supplied to the remaining lighting time display unit 112. The timer unit 140 measures the lighting time of the lighting signal lamp. The sensing unit 150 senses a traffic state around the traffic signal device 200. The controller 160 operates according to various programs including traffic control data for controlling the traffic light driver 20 to turn on the traffic light, and controls the driving of the driver 120 according to the sensing result of the sensor 150. Let's do it.

On the other hand, the red traffic light informs the stop of entry of the vehicle, the green traffic light informs the entry of the vehicle, and the yellow traffic light predicts the switching of lighting of the red traffic light or the green traffic light. Of course, in addition to the red, green, and yellow traffic lights, the traffic light display 111 may further include a traffic light indicating a change in direction of the vehicle, that is, a left turn.

The traffic signal device of the remaining lighting time display function of the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of a traffic signal device having a remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, first, when the lighting time of the traffic lights (not shown) installed in the traffic light display 111 of the display 110, for example, the currently lit traffic light among the red, yellow and green traffic lights, ends, step In step S10, the control unit 160 designates a traffic light to be turned on next by a series of signal switching cycles, for example, a red traffic light.

After the red traffic light is designated, the control unit 160 drives the traffic light driver 121 of the driving unit 120 to supply the power of the power supply unit 130 to the red traffic light in step S20. In addition, the control unit 160 drives the traffic light driver 121 to block the supply of the power of the power supply unit 130 to the signal lamp after the lighting time is completed. Accordingly, the red traffic light is newly turned on and the traffic light after the lighting time ends is turned off.

After the red traffic light is turned on, in step S30, the traffic light lighting detection unit 170 detects whether the red traffic light is turned on. At this time, when the red traffic light is actually turned on and the other traffic lights are detected to be turned off, the traffic light lighting detection unit 170 transmits a lighting detection signal of the red traffic light to the controller 160.

After the lighting of the red traffic light is detected, in step S40, the controller 160 controls the timer unit 140 to count the lighting time of the red traffic light. Accordingly, the timer unit 140 provides the timing signal to the controller 160 from the time point at which the red signal lamp is turned on. Therefore, the controller 160 counts the lighting time of the red traffic light based on the timing signal.

After the lighting time of the red traffic light is counted, the control unit 160 calculates the remaining lighting time of the red traffic light in step S50. That is, the controller 160 calculates the remaining lighting time of the red traffic light by subtracting the lighting time currently counted from the preset lighting time of the red traffic light. Meanwhile, the sensing unit 150 senses the surrounding traffic conditions, for example, the driving speed of the vehicle, and the controller 160 appropriately adjusts the preset lighting time of the traffic light according to the sensing result from the sensing unit 150. do.

After the remaining lighting time is calculated, the control unit 160 lights the residual lighting of the driving unit 120 to supply the power of the power supply unit 130 to the remaining lighting time display unit 112 of the display unit 110 in step S60. The time display driver 122 is driven. Therefore, the remaining lighting time display unit 112 displays the minutes and seconds of the remaining lighting time using Arabic numerals. Here, the remaining lighting time display unit 112 may be configured of an electronic board or a conventional digital segment to which a light emitting diode is applied.

Accordingly, the traffic signal 200 according to the present invention displays the remaining lighting time of the lighting signal with Arabic numerals together with the lighting of the traffic light, so that it is easy for the driver to accurately understand the time of switching the lighting light / off of the traffic light. It is possible to reliably determine the passage or stop of an intersection or pedestrian crossing when driving a vehicle. In addition, when the green traffic light continues to be lit when the driver drives the vehicle near the intersection or the crosswalk, it is possible to suppress the driver from accelerating the vehicle to pass through the intersection or the crosswalk. Therefore, even if the green light turns off suddenly and the yellow light turns on immediately before the vehicle enters the intersection or the crosswalk, the driver can be prevented from suddenly braking or disregarding the vehicle and passing the intersection or the crosswalk. As a result, traffic flows smoothly at intersections and crosswalks, and traffic accidents can be prevented.

Further, even when the driver stops the vehicle near the stop line of the intersection or the crosswalk in the state where the red light is turned on, for example, it is possible to predict the lighting time of the green light even if the driver waits for the light to turn on. As a result, impatience and tension of the driver can be alleviated and fatigue can be alleviated. In addition, when the remaining lighting time of the green traffic light is relatively large, the driver can stop the vehicle in consideration of such a situation, thereby maximally suppressing unnecessary energy waste and air pollution due to engine idle of the vehicle.

On the other hand, if the traffic lights of the traffic signal of the present invention is installed in a part of the highway or high speed road that is constantly congested at the time of weekends or holidays, the vehicle will be at a low speed below the reference speed, for example, 10 km / h. When driving slowly, the sensing unit 150 senses the traffic flow of surrounding vehicles and transmits the result to the control unit 160. The control unit 160 displays three colors, for example, red, yellow, and green, respectively. Controls traffic lights (not shown) to operate at any cycle. Here, the red traffic light is set for 5 minutes, the yellow traffic light and the green traffic light are set to light for 3 minutes, which means that the distance the vehicle has traveled at a speed of 10 km / h for 5 minutes when the red traffic light is turned on, that is, the 3.5 km is the green traffic light. This is because the vehicle traveled at a speed of 70 km / h during the lit 3 minutes.

Therefore, while the red light is turned on for 5 minutes when the traffic light starts to operate in the stagnant traffic area, the driver turns off the vehicle and waits for the next signal to be turned on, and exercises such as bare hand gymnastics in or inside the vehicle. You can try to change your mood. As a result, the driver can avoid boredom and suppress impatience and tension, thus preventing violent driving or large accidents. In addition, since idling of the vehicle engine can be suppressed during this time, waste of unnecessary energy due to idling of the vehicle engine can be suppressed and air pollution can be prevented.

When the vehicle is turned off during the lighting time of the red traffic light, there is an energy saving effect of 39 won per vehicle. In more detail, assuming that the vehicle travels at a distance of 10000m per liter of gasoline and travels for at least 300m by driving for 5 minutes while the engine is started, the 300m is assumed to be 1300 won per liter of gasoline. The gasoline fee (X) used to drive the street is given as 39 won per vehicle by Equation 1 below.

10000m / 1ℓ: 1300won / 1ℓ = 300m: X

After the remaining lighting time is displayed, in step S70, the controller 160 determines whether the remaining lighting time is present. At this time, if it is determined that there is the remaining lighting time, the flow returns to step S40 to continue counting the lighting time. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is no remaining lighting time, that is, when the lighting time of the red traffic light is determined to be ended, the control unit 160 turns off the traffic light driver 121 to turn off the red traffic light of the traffic light display unit 111. Drive it. Therefore, since the traffic light driver 121 blocks the power of the power supply 130 from being supplied to the red traffic light, the red traffic light is turned off. Thereafter, the control unit 160 returns to step S10 to light up the next traffic light.

As described above, the traffic signal device having the remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention resets the proper lighting time of the traffic light by sensing the light on / off function of the traffic light, the function of displaying the remaining lighting time of the traffic light, and the surrounding traffic flow. It is configured to have a function.

Therefore, when the traffic signal device of the present invention is installed at the intersection or pedestrian crossing, or in the constant traffic congestion area of the highway or high speed road, the driver can know the remaining lighting time accurately when the red light is turned on, so the traffic flow is smooth and the traffic accident is Can be prevented. In addition, when the red light is turned on, starting of the vehicle can be turned off to suppress idling of the vehicle engine, thereby achieving energy saving and improving the atmospheric environment.

On the other hand, the present invention has been described by showing one specific embodiment, it is obvious that the present invention may be variously modified and implemented by those skilled in the art. Such modified embodiments should not be understood individually from the technical spirit or point of view of the present invention and these modified embodiments should fall within the scope of the appended claims of the present invention.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a traffic signal according to the prior art.

Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a traffic signal device of the remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention.

Figure 3 is a flow chart showing the operation sequence of the traffic signal device of the remaining lighting time display function according to the present invention.

Claims (3)

A display unit including a signal lamp display unit which lights up a predetermined signal lamp among the signal lamps, and a remaining lamp time display unit which displays the remaining lamp hours of the lamp lamps which are lit by the numeral; A power supply unit supplying power to the display unit; A signal light driver for driving the power supply of the power supply to the signal lamp display to display the lighting of the signal lamp, and a power supply of the power supply of the power supply to the remaining lighting time display to display the remaining lighting time of the signal lamp; A driving unit including a remaining lighting time display driving unit; A signal lamp lighting detector for detecting whether the signal lamp displayed on lighting is turned on; Sensing unit for sensing the flow of traffic around; A timer unit for generating a timing signal for counting the lighting time of the lit lamp; And And a control unit for calculating the remaining lighting time of the lit signal lamp by counting the lighting time of the signal lamp by using the timing signal when detecting the lighting of the lit signal lamp and controlling the driving unit according to a sensing result of the sensing unit. Traffic signal device with remaining lighting time display function. The traffic signal device of claim 1, wherein the controller controls the lighting of the traffic light when the sensing unit senses that the vehicle travels at a speed of 10 km / h or less. The traffic signal device of claim 1, wherein each of the traffic lights is red, yellow, and green.