Apparatus for monitoring moving bodies

• US 5,686,906 A
• Filed: 02/05/1996
• Issued: 11/11/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.), Sparks International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Masayuki, Ide, Mikio, Ono, Hidekazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Hofsass, Jeffery
• Assistant Examiner(s): GOINS, DAVETTA WOODS
• Application Number:
  US08/596,561
• Time in Patent Office: 645 Days
• Field of Search: 340/928, 340/933, 340/991, 340/904, 340/905, 340/994, 340/323 R
• US Class Current: 340/928
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/017 identifying vehicles G08G1/015, G08G1/054 take precedence

Abstract

A moving body monitoring apparatus for examining whether a moving body includes communication means or not or examining whether the moving body has particular information or not.

The apparatus includes a moving side communication element held in the moving body 1 capable of moving freely, fixed position side communication element 3 and 7 disposed in a fixed position and having a narrow particular range set as a communication area, the fixed position side communication element communicating with the moving side communication element held in the moving body passing through the area, moving body detecting element 2 and 4 for detecting the moving body entering into the communication area of the fixed position side communication element without contact with the moving body, and element 9 for deciding whether the moving body holds the moving side communication element or not on the basis of a communication result with the moving body by the fixed position side communication element and detection information of the moving body detecting element.

Claims

1. A moving body monitoring apparatus for monitoring a moving body which moves freely in a monitored area, said moving body monitoring apparatus comprising:

moving side communication means adapted for placement in a moving body capable of moving freely through said monitored area;

fixed position side communication means disposed in a fixed position and having at least one antenna arranged to communicate in a narrow communication area defined within said monitored area, said fixed position side communication means being arranged to communicate with said moving side communication means when said moving side communication means is held in said moving body while passing through said narrow communication area;

moving body detecting means for detecting said moving body when entering into said narrow communication area of said at least one antenna, regardless of whether said moving body holds a moving side communication means; and

a decision unit for deciding whether said moving body detected by said moving body detecting means holds a said moving side communication means or not, wherein;

said decision unit is arranged so as to receive information from said fixed position side communication means about an antenna identification number associated with said at least one antenna and a time of communication between said moving side communication means and said at least one antenna,

said decision unit is further arranged so as to receive information from said moving body detecting means about a position of said moving body and time of detection, and

said decision unit being further arranged so as to sort said information into a first group, if occurrences of said time of communication and time of detection coincide with a predetermined sequential order, and to sort said information into a second group if said information about a position of said moving body indicates that said moving body is within said narrow communication area and the time of communication coincides with the time of detection,

wherein said decision unit determines that said moving body has one of said moving side communication means if the number of information in said first group equals the number of information in said second group, regardless of whether said monitored area is divided into separate lanes by barriers.

2. The moving body monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

said moving side communication means comprises a radio communication apparatus;

said moving body detecting means comprises moving body detecting sensors for detecting a position of said moving body and moving body detecting sensor control units for controlling said moving body detecting sensors and for sending outputs to said decision unit;

said fixed position side communication means comprises a plurality of said at least one antenna for communicating with said radio communication apparatus and a radio communication apparatus control unit for controlling said antennas and for sending information obtained using said antennas to said decision unit.

3. A moving body monitoring apparatus for monitoring a moving body which moves freely in a monitored area, said moving body monitoring apparatus comprising:

moving side communication means adapted for placement in a moving body capable of moving freely through said monitored area, said moving side communication means having particular information;

fixed position side communication means disposed in a fixed position and having at least one antenna arranged to communicate in a narrow communication area defined within said monitored area, said fixed position side communication means being arranged to communicate with said moving side communication means when said moving side communication means is held in said moving body while passing through said narrow communication area;

moving body detecting means for detecting said moving body when entering into said narrow communication area of said at least one antenna, regardless of whether said moving body holds a moving side communication means; and

a decision unit for deciding whether said moving side communication means of said moving body detected by said moving body detecting means holds said particular information or not,

said decision unit being arranged so as to receive said particular information from said fixed position side communication means and classify said particular information according to whether said particular information matches data in a database of the decision unit,

said decision unit being further arranged so as to receive information from said fixed position side communication means about an antenna identification number associated with said at least one antenna and about a time of communication between said moving side communication means and said at least one antenna, and to further receive information from said moving body detecting means about a position of said moving body and time of detection,

said decision unit being further arranged to sort said information into a first group, if occurrences of said time of communication and time of detection coincide with a predetermined sequential order, and to sort said information into a second group if said information about a position of said moving body indicates that said moving body is within said narrow communication area and the time of communication coincides with the time of detection,

wherein said decision unit determines that said moving body has one of said moving side communication means with said particular information if the number of information in said first group equals the number of information in said second group, and further the particular information received by said decision unit corresponds to said data in said database, regardless of whether said monitored area is divided into separate lanes by barriers.

4. The moving body monitoring apparatus according to claim 3, wherein:

said moving side communication means comprises a radio communication apparatus in which particular information is stored;

said moving body detecting means comprises moving body detecting sensors for detecting a position of said moving body and moving body detecting sensor control units for controlling said moving body detecting sensors and for sending information to said decision unit;

said fixed position side communication means comprises a plurality of said at least one antenna for communicating with said radio communication apparatus and a radio communication apparatus control unit for controlling said antennas and for sending information obtained using said antennas to said decision unit.