Illumination system, control device, lighting fixture, and vehicle

Abstract

To provide an illumination system capable of communicating with an adjacent railroad vehicle or a tail-end railroad vehicle in wireless communications, a control device, a lighting fixture, and a vehicle.SOLUTION: An illumination system comprises: a first lighting fixture provided in a first vehicle for receiving a signal transmitted from a control device; a first relay provided in the first vehicle for receiving the signal transmitted from the control device or the first lighting fixture; and a second lighting fixture provided in a second vehicle connected to the first vehicle. The first relay transmits the received signal to the second vehicle. Thus, communications with an adjacent railroad vehicle or to a tail-end railroad vehicle in wireless communications can be performed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a lighting system, a control device, a lamp, and a vehicle that can be applied to a lighting device for a railway vehicle or the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, the multiple lighting fixtures installed on railway vehicles and the like include interior lights for illuminating the interior of the vehicle and spare lights to be used when the interior lights are not turned on, and it may be necessary to control each of these at a different dimming rate.

[0003] For example, in Patent Document 1, lighting control such as dimming of general lighting light sources and auxiliary lighting light sources arranged on the ceiling side of a passenger compartment of a railway vehicle is performed by various signals output from a control device. These general lighting light sources and auxiliary lighting light sources are connected to the control device so as to be able to transmit and receive various signals.

[0004] In this way, the transmission and reception of signals between the control device, which is the parent device, and the lighting device, which is the child device, may be performed by wire. Similarly, the transmission and reception of signals between the parent device and the child device may be performed wirelessly, in which case the following problems may occur. For example, if a side panel (door) is provided at the connecting portion that connects the vehicles, and the door is made of metal, wireless communication will not be possible. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP2019-169499A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In the case of such wireless communication, for example, simply increasing the radio wave strength may result in interference between the radio waves of trains on the up and down tracks.

[0007] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a lighting system, a control device, a luminaire, and a vehicle that are capable of communicating with adjacent railway cars and up to the rearmost railway car via wireless communication. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a lighting system according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a first luminaire provided in a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from a control device, a first repeater provided in the first vehicle that receives the signal transmitted from the control device or the first luminaire, and a second luminaire provided in a second vehicle connected to the first vehicle. The first repeater transmits the received signal to the second vehicle. The second lamp receives the signal transmitted within the second vehicle.

[0009] The lighting system includes a first lamp provided in a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from a control device, a first repeater provided in the first vehicle that receives the signal transmitted from the control device or the first lamp, and a second lamp provided in a second vehicle connected to the first vehicle, and the first repeater transmits the received signal to the second vehicle. The second lamp receives the signal transmitted into the second vehicle. This enables wireless communication with adjacent railway vehicles and even the last railway vehicle.

[0010] The second vehicle may have a second repeater capable of communicating with the first repeater.

[0011] The first repeater may transmit the received signal to the second lighting fixture or the second repeater.

[0012] A plurality of the first lamps may be provided along a length direction of the first vehicle. In this case, the first repeater may be provided in the first lamp on the second vehicle side.

[0013] The first vehicle may be connected to the second vehicle via a connector including a door. In this case, the door may be made of metal.

[0014] The radio wave intensity of the first repeater and the second repeater may be stronger than the radio wave intensity of the control device, the first lamp, or the second lamp. In this case, the first repeater may transmit the signal to the second vehicle through the connecting portion.

[0015] The first repeater may transmit the received signal to the second repeater. In this case, the second repeater may transmit the received signal to the second lighting fixture.

[0016] The second repeater may be provided on the first vehicle side.

[0017] The first vehicle may have a third repeater provided on an opposite side to the first repeater.

[0018] In order to achieve the above object, a control device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a control device capable of transmitting and receiving signals between a plurality of lighting fixtures, The plurality of lamps includes a first lamp provided on a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from the control device, and a second lamp provided on a second vehicle coupled to the first vehicle. The control device or the first lamp transmits the signal to a first repeater provided in the first vehicle. The first repeater transmits the received signal to the second vehicle. The second lamp receives the signal transmitted within the second vehicle.

[0019] In order to achieve the above object, a lamp according to one embodiment of the present invention is a lamp provided in a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from a control device, The control device or the first lamp transmits the signal to a first repeater provided in the first vehicle. The first repeater transmits the received signal to a second vehicle coupled to the first vehicle.

[0020] In order to achieve the above object, a vehicle according to one aspect of the present invention is a vehicle including a lamp that receives a signal transmitted from a control device, and a repeater that receives the signal transmitted from the control device or the lamp, The repeater transmits the received signal to other vehicles connected to the vehicle. Effect of the Invention

[0021] As described above, according to the present invention, wireless communication with adjacent railway cars and even the last railway car is possible. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic of a lighting system. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a lighting fixture. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of a railway vehicle, a parent unit, and a lighting fixture. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing another example configuration of the lighting fixture. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0023] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0024] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of a lighting system according to the present invention.

[0025] In FIG. 1, the lighting system 100 comprises a first luminaire (luminaire 2) provided in a first vehicle (railroad car 10) that receives a signal transmitted from a control device (parent unit 1), a first repeater (repeater 3) provided in the railroad car 10 that receives a signal transmitted from the parent unit 1 or the luminaire 2, and a second luminaire (luminaire 22) provided in a second vehicle (railroad car 20) coupled to the railroad car 10.

[0026] As shown in Fig. 1, a railway vehicle 10 has a base unit 1 and a lighting device 2. For example, the railway vehicle 10 is a commuter vehicle or an express vehicle capable of running on a track (not shown), and generally has a bogie 11 and a vehicle body structure 12 supported by the bogie, and the vehicle body structure 12 is configured to form a hexahedron with an underframe 13 forming the floor of the railway vehicle 10, a pair of end bodies 14 (e.g., gable body structures) erected at both ends of the underframe 13 in the track direction to form a coupling portion 5 of the vehicle body structure 12, a pair of end sides 15 erected at both ends of the underframe 13 in the sleeper direction to form side portions of the vehicle body structure 12, and a roof body structure 16 joined to the upper ends of the pair of end bodies 14 and the upper ends of the pair of end sides 15 to form a roof portion of the vehicle body structure 12.

[0027] The interior of the vehicle structure 12 includes a passenger compartment and a crew compartment, and the vehicle structure 12 is provided with a passenger door and windows leading to the passenger compartment, and a crew door leading to the crew compartment. Handrails (not shown) and the like are fixed to the ceiling of the passenger compartment. In addition, the railway vehicle may have an in-car information screen that displays destinations and news, security cameras, communication devices, and other electronic devices.

[0028] In this embodiment, a door (end plate) is provided on the end structure 14. For example, passengers can move to the adjacent railcar 20 by manually or automatically opening the door. In this embodiment, the door is made of metal.

[0029] 1, railway vehicle 10 is connected to railway vehicle 20 via a coupling section 5. Railway vehicle 20 has lighting fixtures 22 and a repeater 23. Similarly, a vehicle connected to railway vehicle 20 via a coupling section 5 also has lighting fixtures and a repeater.

[0030] The master unit 1 is a wireless terminal that communicates with the slave unit (lamp 2). In this embodiment, the master unit 1 uses ZigBee (registered trademark), which is a standard of a multi-hop method. In ZigBee, communication is performed between devices that have a common PAN (Personal area network) ID set. For example, when a signal with a specific PANID is transmitted from the master unit 1, the luminaire 2 with the same PANID set receives the signal and transmits the received signal as is. When another luminaire with the same PANID receives the signal, it transmits the received signal as is. In this way, signals are transmitted and received between devices with the same PANID set, and communication is performed between all devices with the same PANID set.

[0031] The communication method between the parent unit 1 and the luminaire 2 is not limited to ZigBee, and a multi-hop communication method other than ZigBee may be used. For example, a communication method may be used in which a wireless node using a specific low-power radio in a specific frequency band installed in each device searches for nearby nodes, autonomously constructs a network, and collects data using a bucket brigade. This communication method has the advantage that it does not require running costs for communication and is suitable for areas with high residential density. Furthermore, the communication method between the parent unit 1 and the luminaire 2 may be a communication method other than multi-hop communication.

[0032] In this embodiment, the parent unit 1 also functions as a control device capable of controlling the dimming of the luminaire 2. That is, a signal to perform dimming control from the parent unit 1 is received by a nearby luminaire, and the signal is transmitted from that luminaire to the next luminaire.

[0033] In Fig. 1, the parent unit 1 is disposed in the leading car (e.g., the driver's compartment). For example, when the driver controls the dimming rate of the interior light, the dimming rate of each lighting device 2 (child unit) is controlled by operating the control device (parent unit 1). The location where the parent unit 1 is disposed is not limited, and it may be disposed in the leading car or the last car, or in any of the cars coupled between the leading car and the last car.

[0034] The lighting fixtures 2 receive various signals from the parent unit 1, and transmit signals from the parent unit 1 to nearby lighting fixtures. In this embodiment, the lighting fixtures 2 are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body structure 12. Furthermore, in addition to the leading car, the lighting fixtures 2 are also arranged in the same manner from the railcar 20 coupled to the leading car to the rearmost car.

[0035] In this embodiment, the lamp 2 closest to the door is described as lamp 2n. Similarly, in the railway car 20, the lamp 22 closest to the door provided at the coupling portion 5 connected to the railway car 10 is described as lamp 22a. Similarly, the repeater 3 arranged near the lamp 2n may be described as repeater 3n, and the repeater 23 arranged near the lamp 22a may be described as repeater 23a.

[0036] The slave unit is not limited to a lamp, and may be an in-car information screen that displays destinations and news, a security camera, a communication device, or other electronic device. In this case, for example, the master unit may be a screen control device that controls the content displayed on the in-car information screen, or a monitoring device that detects abnormalities inside the car from images from a security camera.

[0037] In this embodiment, communication from the luminaire 2n to the luminaire 22a is interrupted by the door, so communication is performed via the repeater 3.

[0038] The repeater 3 transmits the signal transmitted from the lighting fixture 2 to the lighting fixture 22 or repeater 23 of the adjacent railway car 20. In this embodiment, the radio wave strength of the repeater 3 is greater than that of the master unit 1 and the lighting fixture 2 because the wireless signal passes through a door. For example, the radio wave strength of the master unit 1 and the lighting fixture 2 is −65 dBm, and the radio wave strength of the repeater 3 is −55 dBm.

[0039] Moreover, the repeater 3 is placed near the door to facilitate communication with the lamp 22 or the repeater 23 placed in the adjacent railcar 20.

[0040] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the luminaire 2. Fig. 2A is a block diagram showing signal transmission and reception of each luminaire. Fig. 2B is a block diagram showing signal transmission and reception between the luminaire 2 and the repeater 3.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 2, the lighting device 2 includes a power source 30, a light-emitting unit 31, and a communication module 32.

[0042] The power supply 30 supplies power for lighting the light-emitting unit 31 and for operating the communication module 32. When power P is supplied to the power supply 30 from a railway vehicle as shown in FIG.

[0043] The light emitting unit 31 is configured to be capable of emitting a sufficient amount of light to illuminate the passenger compartment. For example, a plurality of light emitting units may be arranged along the longitudinal direction, or any number and arrangement may be used depending on the amount of light emitted from adjacent slave units, advertisements within the railway vehicle, the environment outside the railway vehicle, etc. The light emitting unit 31 mounted on the lamp 2 may be any lighting device such as an LED, a light emitting body, or a light emitting element.

[0044] The communication module 32 receives a signal output from the parent unit 1 and transmits the signal to surrounding child units. In Fig. 2A, the signal S1 from the parent unit 1 is received by the communication module 32 of a nearby lighting fixture 2, which transmits a signal S2. This signal S2 is received by the communication module 32 of another lighting fixture 2b, which also transmits the signal. In this way, the signal is transmitted from the lighting fixture 2 to lighting fixtures in the same railway vehicle 10.

[0045] 2B, a communication module 32n mounted on the luminaire 2n receives a signal S3 from the other luminaires and transmits a signal S4 to the repeater 3. Here, the luminaire 2n is a luminaire disposed at a position closest to a metal door (adjacent railcar 20) provided at the coupling portion 5.

[0046] That is, the radio wave strength of the communication module 32n is not sufficient to pass through the door and wirelessly communicate with the lighting fixture 22a installed in the adjacent railcar 20, so communication is performed via the repeater 3, which has a strong radio wave strength.

[0047] The communication module 3n of the repeater 3 receives the signal S4 from the lamp 2n and transmits a signal S5 to the repeater 23 arranged in the adjacent railway car 20. The communication module 32a of the lamp 22a arranged in the adjacent railway car 20 receives the signal S6 transmitted from the communication module 23a of the repeater 23 to the inside of the vehicle 20. Similarly, the lamp 22a transmits a signal (not shown) to a lamp (not shown) in the same railway car 20.

[0048] In this way, the signal S1 from the master unit 1 is transmitted via each lamp 2 to the lamp 2n located closest to the adjacent railcar 20, then via the repeater 3 to the repeater 23 located on the adjacent railcar 20, and then from the repeater 23 to the lamp 22a. By exchanging each signal in this way, the signal is transmitted to the lamps located on all railcars.

[0049] In this embodiment, repeater 3 corresponds to a first repeater installed in a first vehicle, and repeater 23 corresponds to a second repeater installed in a second vehicle and capable of communicating with the first repeater.

[0050] As described above, even if a metal door is placed at the coupling 5 between railway cars, by adding a repeater 3 with enhanced radio wave strength, wireless communication with the adjacent railway car 20 and even the last railway car is possible.

[0051] In the present embodiment, the parent unit 1 is disposed in the leading car (railroad car 10), but this is not limited thereto. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the parent unit may be provided in a railroad car 40 connected between the leading car and the last car. In FIG. 1, since the railroad car 10 is the leading car, only one repeater is provided, but this is not limited thereto, and two repeaters may be provided as shown in FIG. 3. That is, a repeater 3 provided in the railroad car 20 and a repeater 3b provided on the opposite side of the repeater 3 may be provided. That is, in FIG. 3, the railroad car 40 corresponds to the first car, the repeater 3 corresponds to the first repeater, and the repeater 3b corresponds to the third repeater provided on the opposite side of the first repeater.

[0052] In addition, in this embodiment, the repeater 3 is provided independently of the lighting fixture 2, but this is not limited thereto. For example, the lighting fixture 2n disposed closest to the adjacent railcar 20 may function as the repeater 3. For example, the radio wave intensity of the communication module 32n may be strong. Similarly, two lighting fixtures disposed at both ends (closest to the door) of the railcar 40 may function as repeaters.

[0053] In the present embodiment, communication is performed from the repeater 3 to the repeater 23 of the adjacent railcar 20, but this is not limited thereto. For example, as shown in Fig. 4, communication (e.g., signal S5) may be performed from the repeater 3 to a lamp (e.g., the lamp 22a closest to the door) of the adjacent railcar 20. In this case, the communication module 32a of the lamp 22a receives the signal S5 transmitted from the communication module 3n of the repeater 3 to the inside of the railcar 20.

[0054] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications can be made, and the configurations of the respective embodiments and modified examples can be combined. For example, in the present embodiment, a lighting system for controlling lighting fixtures installed in a railway vehicle has been described, but the lighting system may also be used for controlling lighting fixtures in each booth where objects that obstruct communication, such as metal walls or partitions, are installed in each predetermined section. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 1. Parent unit 2, 22…Lighting equipment 3, 23…Repeater 5...Connection part 10, 20…Railway cars 100…Lighting system

Claims

1. A lighting system comprising: a first lamp provided in a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from a control device; a first repeater provided in the first vehicle that receives the signal transmitted from the control device or the first lamp; and a second lamp provided in a second vehicle connected to the first vehicle, The first repeater transmits the received signal to the second vehicle; The second lamp receives the signal transmitted within the second vehicle. Lighting system.

2. 2. A lighting system according to claim 1, The second vehicle has a second repeater capable of communicating with the first repeater. Lighting system.

3. 3. A lighting system according to claim 2, The first repeater transmits the received signal to the second lighting fixture or the second repeater. Lighting system.

4. 2. A lighting system according to claim 1, The first lamp is provided in a plurality of positions along a longitudinal direction of the first vehicle, The first relay is provided in the first lamp of the second vehicle. Lighting system.

5. 4. A lighting system according to claim 3, The first car is connected to the second car via a connection portion including a door, The door is made of metal Lighting system.

6. 6. A lighting system according to claim 5, The radio wave intensity of the first repeater and the second repeater is stronger than the radio wave intensity of the control device, the first lighting device, or the second lighting device; The first repeater transmits the signal through the connection to the second vehicle. Lighting system.

7. 4. A lighting system according to claim 3, The first repeater transmits the received signal to the second repeater; The second repeater transmits the received signal to the second lighting fixture. Lighting system.

8. 4. A lighting system according to claim 3, The second repeater is provided on the first vehicle side. Lighting system.

9. 5. A lighting system according to claim 4, The first vehicle has a third repeater provided on the opposite side to the first repeater. Lighting system.

10. A control device capable of transmitting and receiving signals between a plurality of lighting fixtures, the plurality of lamps include a first lamp provided in a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from the control device, and a second lamp provided in a second vehicle coupled to the first vehicle; The control device or the first lamp transmits the signal to a first repeater provided in the first vehicle, The first repeater transmits the received signal to the second vehicle; The second lamp receives the signal transmitted within the second vehicle. Control device.

11. A lamp provided in a first vehicle that receives a signal transmitted from a control device, The control device or the first lamp transmits the signal to a first repeater provided in the first vehicle, The first repeater transmits the received signal to a second vehicle coupled to the first vehicle. Light equipment.

12. A vehicle including a lamp that receives a signal transmitted from a control device, and a repeater that receives the signal transmitted from the control device or the lamp, The repeater transmits the received signal to another vehicle connected to the vehicle. vehicle.

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