KR101101608B1 - System for informing distance between cars - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system for guiding a distance between vehicles in the event of a fog, comprising: a visibility system for measuring a visibility distance on a road; a light bar for lighting a light source when an adjacent vehicle is detected; And a main control device for receiving the corrected distance from the fog to determine whether the fog is generated, and transmitting the fact of fog to the light bar.

Fog, visibility, road, vehicle, lamp, warning

Description

System for informing distance between cars

The present invention relates to a system for guiding a distance between vehicles when fog occurs.

If the driver knows the road weather information of the road to operate in advance, it is very convenient when driving. This information is especially helpful for safe driving. Weather forecasts in Korea have become very accurate in recent years, and predictions of rainfall and snowfall are almost right. The driver can listen to this in advance and prepare snow chains, etc., to prepare for some road weather.

However, the weather forecasts for these weather forecasts remain at the regional level and do not predict the small-scale weather conditions in certain regions. For example, it is unpredictable whether fog has occurred in a fog area.

In addition, it is not easy to know in advance because the fog is not persistent but occurs and moves quickly. Before entering the fog area, there is a road sign on the road, but most drivers don't care about it. .

In particular, the climate of Korea's climate is hot and humid, and winter is cold and dry, and there are many factors that cause fog, such as roads facing mountain slopes, reservoirs, coastal roads, and tunnels that pass through mountains. It is an aspect.

Therefore, when the fog occurs on the road at present, the driver may not be able to maintain a distance from the vehicle in front of him because the visibility distance is significantly reduced, and the driver may be exposed to a higher risk than usual and the accident occurrence rate may increase rapidly.

Considering the driver's habits and the pattern of fog in Korea, if the fog actually occurs in the fog area rather than a simple warning sign, if the driver of the front car can be notified in real time, the driver's safe driving effectively Will be able to elicit.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and when the fog is generated by displaying the position of the front vehicle through a high-luminance light source installed on the side of the road, the rear vehicle driver to recognize the presence of the front vehicle.

According to the present invention, a visibility meter for measuring a visibility distance on a road, a light bar for lighting a light emitting source when an adjacent vehicle is detected when a fog is generated, and a visibility distance from the visibility system are determined to determine whether fog has occurred. It includes a main control device for transmitting the fact that the fog occurs to the light bar.

The light bar has a plurality of light bars installed on the side of the road at regular intervals, and includes a vehicle detection module detecting a vehicle passing adjacent to each light bar, and a light emitting module including a plurality of light emitting sources.

The main controller determines the fog class indicating the fog concentration according to the visibility distance, and transmits the determined fog class to the light bar, and the light bar varies the brightness of the main light emitting source according to the fog class.

The present invention has the effect that the driver of the rear vehicle can reliably grasp the position of the front vehicle by turning on the high brightness light bar every time the vehicle is detected at the time of fog generation. In addition, even when the fog occurs, the rear vehicle driver to determine the position of the front vehicle to adjust the distance between the vehicle, there is an effect that can prevent the accident caused by the fog in advance.

Hereinafter, a detailed description of embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the reference numerals to the components of the drawings it should be noted that the same reference numerals as possible even if displayed on different drawings.

1 is a view showing the distance between the road guide using a light bar on the road according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The inter-vehicle distance guide system of the present invention informs the rear vehicle of the position of the front vehicle so that the driver of the rear vehicle maintains the distance between the vehicle and the front vehicle, thereby preventing traffic accidents caused by fog.

That is, in general, the distance between the vehicle in front of the vehicle in the heavy fog is not known, the fog is generated by informing the rear vehicle of the presence of the vehicle in front of the vehicle by using the high visibility of the light bar having high brightness installed on the roadside. Can prevent traffic accidents.

To this end, the inter-vehicle distance guidance system of the present invention includes a visibility system 300, a light bar 200, and a main control device 100. The visibility system 300 and the light bar 200 use serial communication, such as RS-422, RS-485, with the main control unit 100.

The visibility system 300 is a device for detecting a visibility distance on a road, and may measure the visibility distance of the atmosphere using an infrared light source. A visibility system can be installed along the side of the road to calculate the visibility distance of the atmosphere and provide that data.

The term 'correction' is a measure of the degree of turbidity of the atmosphere around the surface of the earth, and is defined as a maximum horizontal distance that can visually identify not only the shape but also the presence of a black object (target) against a daytime sky.

Since the visibility 300 can measure the visibility distance of the atmosphere, if the visibility distance is below a certain level, it may generate a fog generation signal. For reference, since the signal is generated by the visibility distance, the fog generation signal may be generated not only by fog but also by yellow dust.

In general, if the visibility is less than 1km can be seen that the fog phenomenon may occur, the main control unit 100 can calculate the fog class indicating the fog concentration according to the measured visibility distance.

The principle of measuring the concentration of fog emits infrared light into the atmosphere through the infrared light emitting unit in the visibility system. Infrared sprayed in the air is hardly scattered on a clear day, but on a foggy day, infrared scattering is generated by the moisture component of the fog. The scattered infrared rays are input to the infrared receiver to calculate a corrected distance, and transmit them to the main controller.

For reference, the infrared light emitting unit may correct an error inside the light emitting unit in preparation for an external error, and incorporates a heater in preparation for sub-zero temperatures in winter.

In addition, the infrared light receiving unit measures the degree of contamination of the window and if it is determined that maintenance is necessary, take a picture with an infrared camera and transmit it to the main controller.

On the other hand, Figure 1 shows an ascending road consisting of two lanes, the light bar 200 is installed at a predetermined interval (for example, 50m interval) along the roadside guard rail and the center separator, respectively, the visibility system 300 is Although it is shown that the same number as the light bar 200 installed on the side of the roadside guardrail, the light bar is installed between each light bar, the installation position and the installation interval of the visibility 300 may have a variety of ways. For example, one visibility system may be installed for every 10 light bars.

The lightbar 200 transmits such vehicle detection facts to the main controller when the vehicle adjacent to the lightbar is detected, and also changes the brightness of the light source of the lightbar according to the fog level when the vehicle is detected. Lights up.

The light bar 200 is installed at a predetermined interval (for example, 50 m intervals) along the roadside rail and the center separator, and the lightbars installed on the roadside rail detect only vehicles located in two lanes and are installed on the center separator. Detects only vehicles located in the first lane.

The light bar includes a vehicle detection module 230 for detecting a vehicle adjacent to the light bar of the lane and a light emitting module 210 and 220 having a plurality of light emitting sources (LEDs) indicating the presence of the front vehicle.

The vehicle detection module 230 of the light bar is a microwave sensor using the Doppler effect to detect a vehicle adjacent to the light bar. The vehicle detection module is installed inside the light bar so that the vehicle detection module can be made invisible from the outside.

The microwave sensor is a sensor using a Doppler effect for detecting the movement. The Doppler effect is a small sound when the sound source is far away, and a loud sound when the sound source is near. For example, the sound of a train running from a distant place means that the sound gets louder as it gets closer, and the sound gets smaller as it gets farther away.

The microwave sensor's output is not an on / off digital signal output, but an analog signal. These analog signals have a frequency, and the closer the object is to the sensor, the wider the frequency. The presence of the vehicle can be detected using the wavelength generated by the microwave sensor, and the speed of the vehicle can be known.

In the inter-vehicle distance guidance system of the present invention, the presence or absence of a vehicle is determined using the Doppler effect of the microwave sensor, and when the vehicle is adjacent, the vehicle is detected and transmitted to the light emitting modules 210 and 220 and the main controller 100.

The light emitting modules 210 and 220 perform a function of turning on a light emitting source indicating the vehicle detection when the vehicle is detected by the vehicle detection module in a state where fog occurs. Therefore, when the fog occurs, the current vehicle position can be informed to the rear vehicle, so that the driver of the rear vehicle can recognize the position of the vehicle in front of the heavy fog.

2 is a diagram illustrating a light emitting module of the light bar 200, wherein the light emitting module includes an auxiliary light source 220 and a main light source 210. For reference, FIG. 3 shows an example of specifications of the main light source and the auxiliary light source.

The auxiliary light source 220 uses a daytime light source to minimize glare, and then adds a surface light emitting function to serve as a lane induction light. That is, the auxiliary light source is turned on even at night (nighttime) irrespective of whether fog is generated or whether the vehicle is detected so as to serve as a gaze induction light (lane induction light).

The main light emitting source 210 is a lamp that is turned on only when an adjacent vehicle is detected in a fog state, and has a high visibility using a high brightness LED to enable recognition from a distant place. Therefore, when a vehicle adjacent to the light bar is detected when a fog occurs, the main light source of the high-brightness LED is turned on, so that the driver of the rear vehicle can know the presence of the front vehicle located in the light bar even in a dense fog state.

The brightness of these main light sources varies in brightness depending on the fog class representing the fog concentration that is generated. In detail, the light bar 200 receives the fog level currently generated from the main control device 100 and turns on the brightness of the main light emitting source 210 according to the received fog level.

Therefore, when a light fog occurs, the rear vehicle can easily recognize the main light source, so the brightness of the main light source is lowered. As the fog increases, the brightness of the main light source is increased so that the rear vehicle can be surely recognized.

As described above, the main light emitting source 210 and the auxiliary light emitting source 220 in the light emitting module have different functions, and there may be examples of various combinations of light emission.

For reference, FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of light emission of the main light source and the auxiliary light source in the light emitting module.

In the case of normal time (for example, the visibility distance 200m or more), the main light source and the auxiliary light source is turned off during the day, and only the auxiliary light source blinks at night to serve as an eye guidance lamp. In addition, the auxiliary light source always lights when fog occurs.

When the fog occurs, the main light source is also lit while the auxiliary light source is continuously turned on, and the brightness of the main light source that is turned on varies according to the generated fog level.

For example, in the case of the first stage fog grade, which is a light fog generation (for example, a visibility distance of 100m to 200m) as shown in FIG. 4, the light is turned on at 50% brightness, and a medium fog generation (for example, a viewing distance of 50m to 100m) In the case of the second stage fog grade, it is lit up to 75% brightness, and in the case of the third stage fog grade in which dense fog occurs (for example, 50 m or less of visibility), it is 100% of brightness and is lit as the maximum brightness. The darker the fog, the brighter the main light source is, so that the driver of the rear vehicle can recognize the lighting of the main light source of the light bar reliably.

The main controller 100 transmits the visibility distance received from the visibility system and the vehicle detection data received from the vehicle detection module of each light bar to each light bar, and also stores the received visibility distance and the vehicle detection data. .

The main control unit 100 analyzes the visibility distance received from the visibility system 300 to determine the current fog grade, and stores the fog grade and transmits it to the road traffic control center and to each light bar 200. Send a fog rating.

 In addition, the main controller 100 may receive the vehicle detection state of the light bar located at the front side and transmit it to the light bar located at the rear side in some cases. The transmission of such a vehicle detection state is necessary in connection with the lighting and turning-off operation of the main light emitting source in the rear light bar, depending on whether the vehicle is detected in the front light bar.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a distance between vehicles for driving a light bar when fog occurs according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The visibility distance is periodically measured by the visibility system 300 (S51), and the visibility distance is transmitted to the main controller (S52).

The main control unit 100 receives and analyzes the viewing distance (S53), and determines whether a current fog has occurred (S54). If the visibility distance is less than the predetermined threshold, it is determined that fog has occurred.

If it is determined that the fog occurs, determine the fog class according to the visibility distance (S55). For example, if the visibility distance is 100m to 200m, the first day of the fog is the first stage fog level, if the visibility distance is 50m to 100m, the middle level 2 fog level and if the visibility distance is 50m or less, the third level fog is the deepest. Determined by grade.

The determined fog class is transmitted to the light bar 200 (S56).

The light bar 200 receives a fog grade (S57) and determines whether a fog is generated (S58). If no fog rating is received, the light bar determines that fog has not occurred, and maintains the main light emitting source used only when the fog state is turned off (S59).

In the state where the main light source is turned off, to determine whether the auxiliary light source is turned on, it is determined whether the current time is daytime (day) or nighttime (night) (S60).

Daytime and nighttime judgment according to the time can be different depending on the season, for example, in the summer season from 20 o'clock to 06 o'clock in the night, and winter season from 18 o'clock to 07 o'clock in the night.

If it is determined to be night, the auxiliary light source blinks to secure visibility (S61), and in the case of daytime other than night, visibility is ensured, so that not only the main light source but also the auxiliary light source is turned off (S62).

On the other hand, when it is determined that fog is generated as a result of fog generation state determination (S58), the auxiliary light emitting source is basically kept in the lit state (S63).

In addition to lighting the auxiliary light source, it is determined whether the main light source is turned on.

To this end, the light bar determines whether there is a vehicle detected near (S64).

As a result of the determination, when the vehicle is not detected, the main light emitting source is kept turned off separately from the auxiliary light source lighting (S65).

However, when the vehicle is detected, the main light source is turned on with the auxiliary light source turned on (S66). In addition, when the vehicle is detected, the main controller 100 notifies that the vehicle is detected.

The main light source (S66) is changed in brightness depending on the fog class received from the main controller.

For example, in the case of the first stage fog level, which is shown as a light fog generation (eg, a visibility distance of 100m to 200m), as shown in FIG. In the case of the second stage fog grade, it is lit up to 75% brightness, and in the case of the third stage fog grade which is thick fog generation (for example, 50m or less of visibility), it is 100% of the brightness and is lit as the maximum brightness. The darker the fog, the brighter the brightness of the main light source is to enable the driver of the rear vehicle to recognize the lighting of the main light source of the light bar.

It is determined whether or not the fog generation state is maintained (S67), and the process continues until the fog generation state is maintained, and in addition to the continuous lighting of the auxiliary light source, the processes of turning on the main light source are repeated every time the vehicle is detected (S63). , S64, S55, S66).

If the fog generation ends, the lighting of the main light source is turned off and turned off, and whether or not the auxiliary light source blinks according to whether it is night (night) has steps S59, S60, S61, and S62. .

Meanwhile, as described above, when the vehicle is detected through the light bar in the fog state, the main light emitting source of the light bar is turned on. After the light is turned on, the time point at which the light bar is turned off may be performed by various exemplary methods.

These various example schemes will be explained with reference to the figure of FIG.

First, when the B vehicle 400b passes through the B light bar 200b, the B light bar 200b detects the B vehicle 400b and turns on the main light source 210b of the B light bar 200b. By the lighting of the main light emitting source 210b of the B light bar 210, the driver of the C vehicle 400c located at the rear may know that the vehicle is in front, and may drive safely.

Thereafter, after the vehicle B passes through the main light emitting source 210b of the lit B light bar, the B light bar may be turned off in various embodiments as follows.

As an example, if the vehicle B 400b passes through the B light bar 210b and the vehicle B is not detected in the light bar B, the light bar automatically automatically after a predetermined time (for example, 1.5 seconds) has elapsed from the undetected moment. The main light emitting source 210b is turned off.

As another embodiment, even after a predetermined time has passed after the vehicle B passes through the B light bar 200b, the lighting state of the main light emitting source 210b of the B light bar may be continuously maintained. That is, even if vehicle B passes through the B light bar 200b, the main light emitting source 210b of the B light bar keeps on and receives a message that the vehicle B has been detected by the front A light bar 200a. When the main light source 210b of the B light bar is turned off.

As a result, the main light emitting source 210b of the B light bar continues to be turned on until the A light bar 200a receives the message that the vehicle B has been detected. This is because the B light bar is continuously turned on in the case where the vehicle B is stopped due to a traffic accident or the like in the section between the A light bar 200a and the B light bar 200b.

The information on whether the light B passes through the A light bar can be understood by the B light bar by transmitting the vehicle detection information sent from the A light bar to the main controller by the main controller again to the B light bar.

As another embodiment, when the vehicle speed is maintained at a predetermined speed or more in the fog state, the main light emitting sources of the respective light bars 200a, 200b, and 200c continue to be turned on regardless of the presence or absence of the front vehicle.

In the above description of the present invention, specific embodiments have been described, but various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the scope of the patent of the present invention is not limited by the above-described embodiments, and it will be obvious that the patent scope covers not only the claims but also the equivalents.

1 is a view showing the distance between the road guide using a light bar on the road according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a view showing a light emitting module of a light bar according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a diagram illustrating an example of specifications of a main light source and an auxiliary light source according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a diagram illustrating an example of light emission of a main light source and an auxiliary light source in a light emitting module according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a distance between vehicles for driving a light bar when fog occurs according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating various exemplary lights in which a light bar is turned off according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (9)

delete delete delete delete A visibility meter for measuring the visibility distance on the road; A plurality of light bars installed on the side of the road at predetermined intervals to light up a light emitting source when an adjacent vehicle is detected when fog occurs; It is provided with a main control device that receives the visibility distance from the visibility system and determines that the fog occurs when the visibility distance is less than the predetermined threshold, and transmits the fact that the fog occurs to the light bar, The light bar includes a vehicle detection module detecting a vehicle passing adjacent to each light bar, and a light emitting module having a plurality of light emitting sources. The light emitting module includes an auxiliary light source serving as a gaze guidance lamp regardless of a fog generation state, and a main light source that is turned on only when fog occurs. The light bar maintains the main light source as extinguished when fog is not generated, and turns off the auxiliary light source during daylight and blinks only at night, and maintains the auxiliary light source as lit when fog occurs. An inter-vehicle distance guidance system for lighting the main light emitting source when a vehicle to be detected is detected. 6. The inter-vehicle distance guidance system according to claim 5, wherein after a predetermined time elapses after the vehicle passing adjacently is detected and the main light source is turned on, the main light source is automatically turned off. The method of claim 5, The vehicle detection module transmits a message indicating that the vehicle has been detected to the main controller when a vehicle passing adjacent to the vehicle is detected. When the main controller receives a message indicating that the vehicle has been detected, the main controller transmits the message to another light bar at the rear, The light bar is an inter-vehicle distance guide system to turn off the main light emitting source when a message passing through the adjacent light bar is detected and the vehicle is detected by another light bar in front of the vehicle after the light is detected. delete delete

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