Road traffic information providing system, road traffic information providing device, road traffic information providing method, and program

• US 8,432,295 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2008
• Issued: 04/30/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JVC Kenwood Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kenwood
• Inventors: Ueno, Masahiro, Nagatomo, Hideyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): PHAM, TOAN NGOC
• Application Number:
  US12/808,448
• Publication Number:
  US 20100265099A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,594 Days
• Field of Search: 340/905, 340/995.1, 340/995.12, 340/995.13, 340/996, 340/901, 701/201, 701/400, 701/428, 701/441
• US Class Current: 340/905
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09675 where a selection from the received information takes place in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096783 where the origin of the information is a roadside individual element
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information

Abstract

A utterance type road traffic information providing system comprises a roadside apparatus (100) installed along a road where vehicles travel, in a parking lot, or near a parking lot and adapted for transmitting alarm information by wireless communication, a utterance type vehicle-mounted device (200) adapted for receiving the alarm information by wireless communication from the roadside apparatus (100) and outputting the alarm information and mounted in the vehicle, and a administration server (300) for communicating various information with the roadside apparatus (100). The utterance type vehicle-mounted device (200) has a predetermined operating unit and a control unit. The control unit provides again a utterance type output from the beginning by sound according to the alarm information supplied from the roadside apparatus (100) when a predetermined operation of the operating unit is made. By a simple method, the alarm information is again confirmed (re-outputted).

Claims

1. A road traffic information providing device which receives alarm information from a roadside apparatus installed on or near a road with a vehicle traveling or a parking lot through wireless communication and which outputs the alarm information,

the road traffic information providing device comprising:

a predetermined operation unit; and

a control unit,

wherein the control unit outputs the alarm information supplied by the roadside apparatus in utterance again from a top by speech based on a predetermined operation of the operation unit if other alarm information is not outputted in utterance.

2. A road traffic information providing device which receives alarm information from a roadside apparatus installed on or near a road with a vehicle traveling or a parking lot through wireless communication and which outputs the alarm information, the road traffic information providing device comprising:

a communication unit for receiving the alarm information from the roadside apparatus at timing at which a link is set up with the roadside apparatus;

a storage unit for storing the alarm information;

an audio processing unit for converting the alarm information into speech information to output the speech information in utterance;

an operation unit for controlling the utterance output as needed; and

alarm information transfer means for reading out the alarm information stored in the storage unit according to priority to transfer the alarm information to the audio processing unit if an operation of the operation unit is not performed and for transferring the alarm information again to the audio processing unit from a first portion of the alarm information which has been outputted in utterance when the operation is performed if the operation of the operation unit is performed.

3. A road traffic information providing device which receives alarm information from a roadside apparatus installed on or near a road with a vehicle traveling or a parking lot through wireless communication and which outputs the alarm information, the road traffic information providing device comprising:

a communication unit for receiving the alarm information from the roadside apparatus at timing at which a link is set up with the roadside apparatus;

a storage unit for storing the alarm information;

an audio processing unit for converting the alarm information into speech information to output the speech information in utterance;

an operation unit for controlling the utterance output as needed; and

alarm information transfer means for reading out the alarm information stored in the storage unit according to priority to transfer the alarm information to the audio processing unit if an operation of the operation unit is not performed and for transmitting the utterance output stop signal to the audio processing unit and then transferring the alarm information again to the audio processing unit from a first portion of the alarm information which has been outputted in utterance when the operation is performed if the operation of the operation unit is performed.

4. The road traffic information providing device according to claim 3, wherein

if the communication unit does not receive disaster information as one of the alarm information from another roadside apparatus when a predetermined operation is performed by the operation unit, the alarm information transfer means transmits the utterance output stop signal to the audio processing unit and then transfers the alarm information again to the audio processing unit from the first portion of the alarm information which has been outputted in utterance when the operation is performed.

5. The road traffic information providing device according to claim 3, wherein

if a predetermined operation is performed in the operation unit after a predetermined time has passed after the termination of the utterance output of all the alarm information stored in the storage unit, the alarm information transfer means reads out the alarm information excluding safe driving support information as one of the alarm information from all the alarm information stored in the storage unit according to the priority and transfers the alarm information to the audio processing unit.

6. The road traffic information providing device according to claim 3, wherein

if safe driving support information not outputted in utterance is stored in the storage unit when a predetermined operation is performed in the operation unit while predetermined alarm information is being outputted in utterance according to the priority, the alarm information transfer means transmits the utterance output stop signal to the audio processing unit, transfers the safe driving support information to the audio processing unit, and then transfers interrupted alarm information to the audio processing unit from the top.

7. The road traffic information providing device according to claim 3, wherein

if disaster information and/or safe driving support information is received from another roadside apparatus when a predetermined operation is performed in the operation unit while predetermined alarm information is being outputted in utterance according to the priority, the alarm information transfer means transmits the utterance output stop signal to the audio processing unit, transfers the disaster information and/or the safe driving support information to the audio processing unit, and then transfers interrupted alarm information to the audio processing unit from the top.

8. A road traffic information providing system comprising:

a roadside apparatus, installed on or near a road with a vehicle traveling or a parking lot, for transmitting alarm information through wireless communication;

a vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle for receiving the alarm information from the roadside apparatus through the wireless communication and for outputting the alarm information; and

an administration server for communicating various information with the roadside apparatus,

wherein the vehicle-mounted device comprises;

a predetermined operation unit; and

a control unit, and

wherein the control unit outputs the alarm information supplied by the roadside apparatus in utterance again from a top by speech based on a predetermined operation of the operation unit.

9. A road traffic information providing method of receiving, by a road traffic information providing device, alarm information from a roadside apparatus installed on or near a road with a vehicle traveling or a parking lot through wireless communication and of outputting the alarm information, the road traffic information providing method comprising the steps of:

receiving the alarm information from the roadside apparatus at timing at which a link is set up between the road traffic information providing device and the roadside apparatus;

storing the alarm information;

converting the alarm information into speech information to output the speech information in utterance;

controlling the utterance output as needed; and

transferring alarm information by reading out the stored alarm information according to priority of the alarm information and outputting the alarm information in utterance if an operation is not performed and outputting the alarm information in utterance again from a first portion of the alarm information which has been outputted in utterance when the operation is performed if the operation is performed.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium which stores a program to cause a computer to function as:

a communication unit for receiving alarm information from a roadside apparatus at timing at which a link is set up between a road traffic information providing device and the roadside apparatus;

a storage unit for storing the alarm information;

an audio processing unit for converting the alarm information into speech information to output the speech information in utterance;

an operation unit for controlling the utterance output as needed; and

alarm information transfer means for reading out the alarm information stored in the storage unit according to priority of the alarm information to transfer the alarm information to the audio processing unit if an operation of the operation unit is not performed and for transmitting an utterance output stop signal to the audio processing unit to transfer the alarm information again to the audio processing unit from first portion of the alarm information which has been outputted in utterance when the operation is performed if the operation of the operation unit is performed.