Emissive road marker system

Abstract

A roadside marker comprises a light-emitting element, an electronic circuit connected to the light-emitting element, a battery connected to the electronic circuit, a photovoltaic cell electrically connected to the battery, and an actuator for causing the electronic circuit to transmit a signal to a remote location. A traffic alert system that includes the roadside marker, and a method of remote signals using the roadside marker, are also provided.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 786,205, filed Mar. 27, 2006, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to road marker systems and automated emergency services notification. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Current highway markers are of the retro-reflective type. Active or emissive markers have been proposed. For example, Published U.S. Patent Application No. 2004 / 0175232 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,816 disclose emissive highway markers. Those markers use traditional light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that degrade over time and lose power efficiency. As LEDs degrade, the wavelength of the light emitted by the LED will change, causing a shift in the color of the light produced. They also include traditional solar panels, which are typically made of glass, which is non-flexible, brittle, and measure somewhere betwee...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009] In another aspect, the invention provides a traffic alert system comprising a plurality of roadside markers each including a light-emitting element, an electronic circuit connected to the light-emitting element, a battery connected

Problems solved by technology

Those markers use traditional light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that degrade over time and lose power efficiency.

Traditional solar panels are expensive to construct and may not be durable when subjected to the vibration induced by road traffic.

Various traffic information and alerting systems have been described as in U.S. Pat. No. 6,785,606 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,728,629, but most require vehicles to be equipped with a monitoring system and include expensive roadside installations.

Warning systems in vehicles can distract a driver's attention from the road at the worst possible moment.

Proposed camera and night vision systems are limited to line of sight and are not capable of perceiving incidents around corners, particularly on rural roads.

Even when in-vehicle guidance systems, for example U.S. Pat. No. 6,370,475, become more common, reckless driving and accidents will continue.

In addition, multiple vehicle accidents occur because of a lack of warning of impending danger ahead from accidents or stopped traffic.

There are traffic monitoring systems deployed in and around a few large cities, but there are none in place on highways or rural roads that can immediately and automatically notify traffic emergency authorities of traffic incidents.

This is an even bigger problem in remote areas or hours of the night when traffic volume is light and when vehicle occupants might be incapacitated and unable to call for help.

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