Traffic management system

• US 20050209769A1
• Filed: 09/01/2004
• Published: 09/22/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Ogura, Hiroshi, Nomura, Yuji, Nagano, Yuji, Ohashi, Takato, Yamashita, Kiyohide, Nagai, Kazuyoshi, Okamura, Kanna
• Granted Patent: US 7,324,893 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/017 identifying vehicles G08G1/015, G08G1/054 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/164 Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental

Abstract

A traffic management system manages, distributes, and controls various traveling states of vehicles at a high quality level. A vehicle-mounted unit performs an interconnection process for user authentication when entering a predetermined radio-wave zone. A radio unit disposed on a road sends interconnection process completion information to a center device when the interconnection process for connection to the vehicle is completed. If the vehicle does not connect to the radio unit after elapsed of a predicted time at which the vehicle is expected to travel across the radio unit, then the radio unit sends an overtime to the center device. The interconnection process completion information is received, the center device calculates a predicted time at which the vehicle is expected to pass across a radio unit, and sends the predicted time to the radio unit. When the overtime is received, the center device determines whether a fault has occurred or not. When it is judged that the fault has occurred, the center device sends alarm information to vehicles traveling near a site where the fault has occurred on the vehicle.

Claims

1. A traffic management system for managing vehicle traffic, comprising:

a vehicle-mounted unit having a vehicle-mounted communication unit having a function to communicate with a center device, for performing an interconnection process for user authentication when entering a predetermined radio-wave zone, using an individual vehicle ID assigned to each vehicle, and sending fault information in the event of a fault occurring on the vehicle;

a radio unit disposed on a road and having a radio communication unit having a function to provide the radio-wave zone for the vehicle and to relay communications between the center device and the vehicle-mounted unit, for sending interconnection process completion information to the center device when the interconnection process for connection to the vehicle is completed, receiving a predicted time at which the vehicle is expected to travel across the radio unit, and sending an overtime to the center device if the vehicle does not connect to the radio unit after elapse of the predicted time; and

a center device having a traffic information manager for, when the interconnection process completion information is received, calculating the speed of the vehicle from an inter-radio unit distance and an interconnection time at which the vehicle connects to the radio unit, calculating a predicted time at which the vehicle is expected to pass across a next radio unit from the speed of the vehicle and the distance up to the next radio unit, and sending the predicted time to the radio unit, for, when the fault information is received, sending traffic information including alarm information through the radio unit to vehicles traveling near a site where the fault has occurred on the vehicle, for, when the overtime is received, determining whether the fault has occurred or not, and for, when it is judged that the fault has occurred, sending traffic information including alarm information through the radio unit to vehicles traveling near a site where the fault has occurred on the vehicle.

2. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein said radio unit includes a radio unit disposed before a road junction and a radio unit disposed after the road junction, and said center device determines a route of the vehicle based on whether the interconnection process completion information is received from the radio unit disposed before the road junction or the radio unit disposed after the road junction, and, if no interconnection process completion information is received from the radio unit disposed before the road junction or the radio unit disposed after the road junction, but receives an overtime therefrom, judges that a fault has occurred on the vehicle near the road junction and sends alarm information to vehicles traveling near the road junction.

3. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein said radio unit includes radio units disposed at the entrance and exit of a parking area and within the parking area, and said center device manages whether the vehicle which has connected to the radio unit at the entrance of the parking area has entered the parking area or has passed by the parking area without entering the parking area based on which radio unit the vehicle connects to, and sends traffic information including parking information to following vehicles based on information sent from the radio unit disposed in the parking area.

4. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein said radio unit includes radio units disposed at the entrance and exit of a parking area, and if said center device receives interconnection process completion information from the radio unit disposed at the entrance of the parking area and does not receive interconnection process completion information from the radio unit disposed at the exit of the parking area, but receives an overtime therefrom, judges that a fault has occurred on the vehicle near the parking area and sends alarm information to vehicles traveling near the parking area.

5. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein said center device recognizes a risk level of the fault and sets the risk level, and changes a notification ratio of alarm information depending on the magnitude of the risk level.

6. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein said center device sets a notification ratio of alarm information to a higher value for vehicles traveling near said site where the fault has occurred, and sets a notification ratio of alarm information to a lower value for vehicles traveling remotely from said site where the fault has occurred.

7. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein said radio unit is installed at a bus stop, and said center device manages a bus operating service based on interconnection process completion information from the radio unit.

8. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein if the vehicle equipped with said vehicle-mounted unit is stolen, said center device determines a direction in which the stolen vehicle travels through said radio unit to search for the stolen vehicle.

9. A vehicle-mounted unit for being installed on a vehicle for performing radio communications, comprising:

a data communication unit for performing radio data communications with a radio unit disposed on a road;

a vehicle-mounted communication unit for performing an interconnection process for user authentication when entering a predetermined radio-wave zone, using an individual vehicle ID assigned to each vehicle, and sending fault information in the event of a fault occurring on the vehicle; and

a traffic information notifying unit for sending traffic information to the user.

10. A radio unit disposed on a road for providing a radio-wave zone for vehicles and relaying communications between a center device and a vehicle-mounted unit, comprising:

a center-side data communication unit for interfacing the center device for communications therewith;

a vehicle-side data communication unit for interfacing the vehicle-mounted unit for communications therewith; and

a radio communication unit for performing an interconnection process for connection to the vehicle and sending interconnection process completion information to the center device when the interconnection process is completed, receiving a predicted time at which the vehicle is expected to pass from the center device, and, if the vehicle does not connect to the radio unit after elapse of the predicted time, sending an overtime to the center device for enabling the center device to send traffic information to the vehicle.

11. A center device for managing vehicle traffic, comprising:

a data communication unit for performing data communications with a radio unit disposed on a road; and

a traffic information manager for, when interconnection process completion information sent from the radio unit is received, calculating the speed of the vehicle from an inter-radio unit distance and an interconnection time at which the vehicle connects to the radio unit, calculating a predicted time at which the vehicle is expected to pass across a next radio unit from the speed of the vehicle and the distance up to the next radio unit, and sending the predicted time to the radio unit, for, when fault information is received, sending traffic information including alarm information through the radio unit to vehicles traveling near a site where the fault has occurred on the vehicle, for, when an overtime is received, determining whether the fault has occurred or not, and for, when it is judged that a fault has occurred, sending traffic information including alarm information through the radio unit to vehicles traveling near a site where the fault has occurred on the vehicle.

12. A traffic management system for managing vehicle traffic, comprising:

a vehicle-mounted unit for sending individual identification information when entering a radio-wave zone;

a plurality of radio units disposed on a road and providing radio-wave zones for vehicles, for receiving and relaying the individual identification information from said vehicle-mounted unit; and

a center device for calculating predicted times at which the vehicle is expected to pass across a next radio unit based on the time at which the individual identification information is received from said vehicle-mounted unit and the distances between the radio unit which has received the individual identification information and the radio units disposed before and after said radio unit.