Mobile device and method for monitoring of vehicles

• US 8,817,101 B2
• Filed: 10/20/2011
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kapsch TrafficCom AG (Datax Handelsgmbh)
• Original Assignee: Kapsch TrafficCom AG (Datax Handelsgmbh)
• Inventors: Hanisch, Harald, Ratz, Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): Perungavoor, Sath V
• Assistant Examiner(s): LUO, KATE H
• Application Number:
  US13/277,534
• Publication Number:
  US 20120113262A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,041 Days
• Field of Search: 348/149
• US Class Current: 348/149
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0175 by photographing vehicles, e.g. when violating traffic rules
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/054 photographing overspeeding vehicles

Abstract

A mobile monitoring device including a first sensor for measuring the speed of vehicles passing through a first detection range with a first time stamp; a second sensor for measuring the geometry of vehicles passing through a second detection range with a second time stamp; a camera for recording images of vehicles passing through a third detection range with a third time stamp; and an evaluation device, which calculates from the speed measurement value, first time stamp and first detection range, and from the geometry measurement value, second time stamp and second detection range, the place and time in or at which a passage of the vehicle is to be expected in the third detection range, to determine the matching image on the basis of the third time stamp and third detection range therefrom. The invention additionally relates to such a monitoring method.

Claims

1. A mobile monitoring device for monitoring vehicles, comprising:

a first sensor for measuring speed of vehicles, including a vehicle, passing through a first detection range, said first sensor providing a speed measurement value of the vehicle with a first time stamp corresponding to a first time;

a second sensor for measuring a geometry of vehicles, including the vehicle, passing through a second detection range, said second sensor providing a geometry measurement value of the vehicle with a second time stamp corresponding to a second time;

a camera for recording images of vehicles, including the vehicle, passing through a third detection range, said camera providing an image of the vehicle with a third time stamp corresponding to a third time, wherein the first time is a different than the third time; and

an evaluation device electrically coupled to the camera and the first and second sensors, and configured for calculating a place and time at which the vehicle is to be expected in the third detection range from the speed measurement value, the first time stamp and the first detection range, and the geometry measurement value, the second time stamp and the second detection range, to determine a matching image for the vehicle from the recorded images on the basis of a corresponding third time stamp and the third detection range.

2. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicles are equipped with dedicated short-range communication (DSRC) onboard units (OBUs), further comprising:

a DSRC transceiver for DSRC communication with the DSRC OBUs of vehicles passing through a fourth detection range, said DSRC transceiver providing the DSRC communication of each passage of the vehicle with a fourth time stamp,

wherein the evaluation device is additionally configured to determine a matching DSRC communication to the determined matching image on the basis of the fourth time stamp and fourth detection range.

3. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 2, wherein the first and the fourth detection ranges are the same, and the first sensor is formed by the DSRC transceiver.

4. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein said geometry is a length of the vehicle.

5. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the first sensor is formed by a laser scanner.

6. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 2, wherein the second and fourth detection ranges are the same, and the second sensor is formed by the DSRC transceiver, which receives vehicle data from the DSRC OBU as part of a DSRC communication, from which the DSRC transceiver calculates said geometry of the vehicle.

7. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the second sensor is formed by a laser scanner.

8. The mobile monitoring device according to claim 7, wherein the laser scanner is configured to detect a vehicle height or a number of axles, from which the laser scanner determines said geometry of the vehicle on the basis of a table of vehicle heights or number of axles and associated vehicle geometries.

9. A method for monitoring vehicles comprising:

measuring a speed of a vehicle passing through a first detection range and providing a speed measurement value with a first time stamp corresponding to a first time;

measuring a geometry of the vehicle passing through a second detection range and providing a geometry measurement value with a second time stamp corresponding to a second time;

recording images of vehicles passing through a third detection range and providing each image with a third time stamp corresponding to a third time, wherein the first time is different than the third time;

calculating from the speed measurement value, the first time stamp and the first detection range, and from the geometry measurement value, the second time stamp and the second detection range, a place and time at which a passage of the vehicle is to be expected in the third detection range; and

determining a matching image for the vehicle from the recorded images on the basis of a respective third time stamp and third detection range therefrom.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the vehicles are equipped with dedicated short-range communication onboard units (DSRC) on-board units (OBUs), the method further comprising:

performing a DSRC communication with the DSRC OBUs of vehicles passing through a fourth detection range and providing each DSRC communication with a fourth time stamp; and

determining a matching DSRC communication for the determined image on the basis of the fourth time stamp and fourth detection range.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the first and the fourth detection ranges are the same and the speed is measured by Doppler measurement of the DSRC communication.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein the second and fourth detection ranges are the same, and vehicle data from the DSRC OBU are received as part of a DSRC communication, from which said geometry of the vehicle is calculated.

13. The method according to claim 9, wherein the geometry is a length of the vehicle.

14. The method according to claim 9, wherein the speed is measured with a laser scanner or by evaluation of two consecutive images of a camera.

15. The method according to claim 9, wherein the geometry is measured with a laser scanner.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein a height of the vehicle is detected with the laser scanner and said geometry of the vehicle is determined according to the detected height, and on the basis of a table of vehicle heights and associated vehicle geometries.

17. A travelling monitoring vehicle for performing the method of claim 9.