Traveling position detecting device and traveling position detection method

Abstract

To provide a novel technique capable of reducing positioning errors when the traveling position of a railway vehicle is detected using the positioning result of a GNSS.SOLUTION: A transmitter 10 is installed in a prescribed on-vehicle installation location of a railway vehicle 3. A user terminal 30 has a positioning function, a reception function capable of measuring a signal propagation state regarding signal reception from the transmitter 10, and a transmission function of transmitting signal propagation state information indicating the signal propagation state to a traveling position detection device 50. The traveling position detection device 50 performs a prescribed statistical arithmetic operation based on the positioning position information and the signal propagation state information of each user terminal 30 and the on-vehicle installation location to obtain a transmitter reference traveling position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location, and calculates a traveling position from the transmitter reference traveling position on the basis of a relative positional relationship between a calculation reference location of the traveling position and the on-vehicle installation location in the railway vehicle 3.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a running position detection device for detecting the running position of a railway vehicle, etc.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a technique for detecting the running position of a railway vehicle by using satellite positioning by GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) has been known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In a method of detecting the running position of a railway vehicle by using the positioning result of GNSS as in Patent Document 1, there is a problem of positioning error because the positioning positions vary. Therefore, measures for reducing the positioning error have been studied. As one of the methods, a method of installing a positioning device at each of a plurality of installation locations defined in a railway vehicle to perform positioning and estimating the running position from the obtained plurality of positioning positions can be considered. However, since it is necessary to install a plurality of positioning devices in the railway vehicle, there are problems such as an increase in installation cost and maintenance cost, and a problem of the space at the installation location.

[0005] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a new technology capable of reducing the positioning error when detecting the running position of a railway vehicle by using the positioning result of GNSS.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] A first invention for solving the above problems is a running position detection device that communicates with N (N≧1) user terminals of passengers to detect the running position of a railway vehicle. In the railway vehicle, a transmitter is installed at a predetermined on-vehicle installation location. The user terminal includes a positioning function, a receiver function capable of measuring a signal propagation situation related to signal reception from the transmitter, and a transmitter function for transmitting positioning position information obtained by the positioning function and signal propagation situation information indicating the signal propagation situation to the running position detection device. Based on the positioning position information and the signal propagation situation information of each user terminal and the on-vehicle installation location, a predetermined statistical calculation process is performed to obtain a transmitter reference running position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location, and based on the relative position relationship between the calculation reference location of the running position in the railway vehicle and the on-vehicle installation location, a calculation unit (for example, the running position calculation unit 550 in FIG. 6) calculates the running position from the transmitter reference running position. It is a running position detection device provided with.

[0007] According to the first invention, by acquiring and using positioning position information and signal propagation situation information from each of the user terminals of passengers to perform statistical calculation processing, the transmitter reference running position of the railway vehicle is calculated, and based on the relative position relationship between the calculation reference location of the running position and the on-vehicle installation location, the running position can be calculated from the transmitter reference running position. According to this, it is possible to realize a new technology that can reduce the positioning error of GNSS positioning by using the user terminal owned by the passenger and detect the running position of the railway vehicle.

[0008] A second invention is the above invention, wherein the statistical calculation process includes calculating a representative positioning position from the positioning position information for each user terminal, calculating a representative distance from the relative distance between the user terminal and the on-vehicle installation location based on the signal propagation situation information for each user terminal, and using the representative positioning position and the representative distance to calculate the transmitter reference running position. It is a running position detection device including.

[0009] According to the second invention, the representative positioning position of each user terminal can be calculated, the representative distance can be calculated from the relative distance between the user terminal and the on-vehicle installation location for each user terminal, and the transmitter reference running position can be calculated using the representative positioning position and the representative distance. Thereby, the positioning error of GNSS positioning can be reduced.

[0010] The third invention is a running position detection device further comprising a calculation reference location setting unit that variably sets the calculation reference location based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle in the above invention.

[0011] According to the third invention, the calculation reference location can be set based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle.

[0012] The fourth invention is a running position detection method by a running position detection device that communicates with N (N≧1) user terminals of passengers to detect the running position of a railway vehicle. In the railway vehicle, a transmitter is installed at a predetermined on-vehicle installation location. The user terminal includes a positioning function, a reception function capable of measuring the signal propagation status related to signal reception from the transmitter, and a transmission function for transmitting the positioning position information by the positioning function and the signal propagation status information indicating the signal propagation status to the running position detection device. Performing a predetermined statistical calculation process based on the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information of each of the user terminals and the on-vehicle installation location to obtain a transmitter reference running position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location, and based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the running position in the railway vehicle and the on-vehicle installation location, calculating the running position from the transmitter reference running position.

[0013] According to the fourth invention, a running position detection method having the same operational effects as the first invention can be realized.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0015] Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described. Note that the present invention is not limited by the embodiments described below, nor is the applicable form of the present invention limited to the following embodiments. Also, in the description of the drawings, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same parts.

[0016] 1. Regarding the overall configuration FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of the traveling position detection system 100 in the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view seen from above the railway vehicle 3 and shows an example of acquiring the position and reception strength from the user terminal 30. As shown in FIG. 1, the traveling position detection system 100 of the present embodiment includes a transmitter 10 installed on a railway vehicle 3 traveling on a track 1, N (N≧1) user terminals 30 of passengers 5 riding on the railway vehicle 3, and a traveling position detection device 50 installed on the ground.

[0017] The transmitter 10 is installed at a predetermined on-vehicle installation location 11 (see FIG. 2) in the railway vehicle 3 and transmits a beacon signal at a predetermined transmission cycle. In this embodiment, the on-vehicle installation location 11 is near the end of the railway vehicle 3 (near the upper end on the left side in FIGS. 1 and 2), and will be described as being at a position near the center in the width direction of the railway vehicle 3 (see FIG. 2).

[0018] The running position of the railway vehicle 3 is basically determined based on the end portion of the vehicle on the traveling direction side. The end portion of the railway vehicle 3 that serves as a reference for calculating this running position is referred to as the "calculation reference location for the running position" or simply the "calculation reference location". Since the calculation reference location for the running position changes according to the traveling direction (uphill / downhill), there are two candidate locations (end portions) for the calculation reference location, one on the uphill side and one on the downhill side. In this embodiment, since the on-vehicle installation location 11 is located near one end (the uphill end) of the railway vehicle 3, the end portion closer to the on-vehicle installation location 11 among the two candidate end portions for the calculation reference location is referred to as the "transmitting side end". As shown in FIG. 2, the relative positional relationship between the on-vehicle installation location 11 and the end portion is fixed, and the distance between the transmitting side end and the on-vehicle installation location 11 (hereinafter referred to as the "distance between the transmitting ends") is Df. The distance between the end on the opposite side of the transmitting side end and the on-vehicle installation location 11 (hereinafter referred to as the "distance between the opposite ends") is De.

[0019] The user terminal 30 is a terminal device owned by the passenger 5 and can take the form of, for example, a smartphone, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wearable computer, etc. The user terminal 30 is equipped with a positioning function, a receiving function, and a transmitting function. Each function can be realized by installing a dedicated application on the user terminal 30.

[0020] The positioning function is a function for positioning the location of the own terminal, and performs positioning by GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) represented by GPS (Global Positioning System). The user terminal 30 acquires the position (latitude and longitude) in the earth surface coordinate system obtained by this positioning function as the positioning longitude and latitude. For example, it can be realized by a GPS module or a GPS receiver that receives signals from GPS satellites 9. It is also possible to use Galileo or the Beidou satellite positioning system (BeiDou) other than GPS.

[0021] The receiving function is a function capable of measuring the signal propagation status related to the reception of signals from the transmitter 10. In the present embodiment, the user terminal 30 receives the beacon signal transmitted from the transmitter 10 at any time by this receiving function, and measures the reception intensity of the received beacon signal as the signal propagation status. In the traveling position calculation process described later, the traveling position detection device 50 converts the reception intensities acquired from each of the user terminals 30 into relative distances D11, D13, D15 (see FIG. 2) from the in-vehicle installation locations 11, and uses them for calculating the traveling position. For example, it can be realized by presetting the correspondence between the reception intensity of the beacon signal and the relative distance.

[0022] The transmitting function is a function for transmitting (1) the positioning position information by the positioning function and (2) the signal propagation status information indicating the signal propagation status to the traveling position detection device 50. The positioning position information is the information of the positioning longitude and latitude acquired by the positioning function, and indicates the position of the own terminal (the position of the passenger 5 who holds the user terminal 30). The signal propagation status information is the information of the signal propagation status measured by the receiving function, and in the present embodiment, indicates the reception intensity of the beacon signal received from the transmitter 10. The user terminal 30 transmits the current position of the own terminal and the reception intensity of the most recently received beacon signal to the traveling position detection device 50 at a predetermined transmission cycle, for example.

[0023] The traveling position detection device 50 acquires, from each of the user terminals 30 of the passengers 5 riding on the railway vehicle 3 traveling on the track 1, positioning position information indicating the position of the user terminal 30 and signal propagation status information indicating the reception intensity of the beacon signal in the user terminal 30, by means of the positioning function, reception function, and transmission function of the user terminal 30 described above. The traveling position detection device 50 performs a traveling position calculation process using the acquired positions and reception intensities of the respective user terminals 30, and calculates the traveling position of the railway vehicle 3.

[0024] 2. Regarding the traveling position calculation process FIGS. 3 to 5 are diagrams for explaining the traveling position calculation process in the present embodiment. As an example, FIGS. 3 and the like show an example in which there are six passengers in the railway vehicle 3, and the positions of the respective user terminals 30 of each passenger are indicated by circles. Further, FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram regarding the traveling position calculation process when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the upward direction, and FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram regarding the traveling position calculation process when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the downward direction. In FIGS. 4 and 5, the outer shape of the railway vehicle 3 is indicated by a dashed line.

[0025] In the traveling position calculation process, the traveling position detection device 50 performs a predetermined statistical calculation process based on the positions of the respective user terminals 30 and the reception intensities of the beacon signals in the respective user terminals 30 acquired from each of the user terminals 30, and the on-vehicle installation location 11, to obtain the transmitter reference traveling position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location 11. Then, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the traveling position from the transmitter reference traveling position based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the traveling position in the railway vehicle 3 and the on-vehicle installation location 11.

[0026] In the statistical calculation process of the present embodiment, the traveling position detection device 50 first calculates a representative positioning position from the positions of the respective user terminals 30. The representative positioning position can be, for example, the centroid position of the positions of the respective user terminals 30. In the example of FIGS. 3 and the like, from the positions of the six user terminals 30, the centroid position of the positions indicated by asterisks in FIGS. 4 and 5 is calculated as the representative positioning position P3.

[0027] Subsequently, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the relative distance between each user terminal 30 and the in-vehicle installation location 11 from the reception intensity of the beacon signal at each user terminal 30. For example, focusing on the position P31 in FIG. 3, the relative distance between the user terminal 30 at the position P31 and the in-vehicle installation location 11 is calculated from the reception intensity of the beacon signal at the user terminal 30 at the position P31. Similarly, the relative distance is calculated for the other user terminals 30. Then, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates a representative distance from the relative distances for each user terminal 30. The representative distance can be, for example, the average distance of the relative distances for each user terminal 30. In FIG. 4, the distance D4 shows an example of the average distance of the relative distances calculated for each user terminal 30, and the average distance is calculated as the representative distance D4. Also, in FIG. 5, the distance D5 shows an example of the average distance of the relative distances calculated for each user terminal 30, and the average distance is calculated as the representative distance D5.

[0028] Subsequently, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates a transmitter reference traveling position using the representative positioning position and the representative distance. In the present embodiment, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the uphill direction, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates, as the transmitter reference traveling position, the position obtained by moving the representative positioning position by the length of the representative distance in the "traveling direction" of the railway vehicle 3. The "traveling direction" here is not the traveling direction such as uphill / downhill, but the direction of the movement vector of the moving railway vehicle 3. For example, it is separately calculated each time the traveling position is calculated by the traveling position calculation process of the present embodiment, and the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the direction of the displacement vector from the previous traveling position to the current traveling position as the traveling direction. On the other hand, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the downhill direction, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates, as the transmitter reference traveling position, the position obtained by moving the representative positioning position by the length of the representative distance in the direction opposite to the "traveling direction" of the railway vehicle 3. By the processing here, the absolute position (position in the earth surface coordinate system) corresponding to the in-vehicle installation location 11 of the railway vehicle 3 is obtained as the transmitter reference traveling position.

[0029] For example, in the example of FIG. 4, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates a position P41 obtained by shifting the representative positioning position P3 by a representative distance D4 in the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 as the transmitter reference traveling position. In the case of FIG. 5, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates a position P51 obtained by shifting the representative positioning position P3 by a representative distance D5 in the direction opposite to the traveling direction as the transmitter reference traveling position.

[0030] After calculating the transmitter reference traveling position, subsequently, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the traveling position from the transmitter reference traveling position based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the traveling position in the railway vehicle 3 and the on-vehicle installation location 11.

[0031] As described above, the calculation reference location varies according to the traveling direction. Therefore, the traveling position detection device 50 variably sets the calculation reference location based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3. That is, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the uphill direction, the traveling position detection device 50 sets the calculation reference location as the transmitting side end. When the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the downhill direction, the traveling position detection device 50 sets the calculation reference location as the end on the opposite side of the transmitting side end.

[0032] And when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the uphill direction, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates a position obtained by moving the transmitter reference traveling position by the length of the transmission end-to-end distance Df in the traveling direction with reference to FIG. 2. In the example of FIG. 4, a position P43 obtained by shifting the transmitter reference traveling position P41 by the transmission end-to-end distance Df in the traveling direction is calculated.

[0033] After that, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the traveling position of the railway vehicle 3 from the obtained position (position P43 in FIG. 4). In the present embodiment, the position information of the track 1 (track position information 561; refer to FIG. 6) is stored in the traveling position detection device 50 in advance. Then, the traveling position detection device 50 refers to the track position information 561 and calculates the position on the track 1 corresponding to the obtained position as the traveling position of the railway vehicle 3. For example, approximate calculation such as the least squares method is performed to set the position on the track 1 closest to the obtained position (position P43 in FIG. 4) as the traveling position.

[0034] On the other hand, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the downward direction, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the position where the transmitter reference traveling position is moved in the direction opposite to the traveling direction by the length of the distance De between the opposite ends described with reference to FIG. 2. In the example of FIG. 5, a position P53 is calculated by shifting the transmitter reference traveling position P51 by the distance De between the opposite ends in the direction opposite to the traveling direction. Then, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the position on the track 1 corresponding to the obtained position (position P53 in FIG. 5) as the traveling position of the railway vehicle 3 in the above-described manner.

[0035] 3. Regarding the functional configuration FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the traveling position detection device 50. As shown in FIG. 6, the traveling position detection device 50 includes an operation unit 510, a display unit 520, a communication unit 530, a processing unit 540, and a storage unit 560, and is configured as a kind of computer system.

[0036] The operation unit 510 is realized by an input device such as a button switch or a touch panel, for example, and outputs an operation signal corresponding to the operation input to the processing unit 540. The display unit 520 is realized by a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or a touch panel, for example, and performs various displays according to the display signal from the processing unit 540. The communication unit 530 is realized by a wired or wireless communication device, and communicates with a given external device (for example, the user terminal 30).

[0037] The processing unit 540 is realized by an arithmetic circuit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a control board including the arithmetic circuit, for example, and performs various arithmetic processes based on the programs and data stored in the storage unit 560, and controls the operation of the traveling position detection device 50.

[0038] In this embodiment, the processing unit 540 includes a traveling position calculation unit 550. The functional units constituting the processing unit 540 may be arithmetic processing blocks realized software-wise by executing a program, or may be circuit blocks realized hardware-wise by a signal processing circuit. In this embodiment, it will be described as an arithmetic processing block realized software-wise by the processing unit 540 executing a predetermined program.

[0039] The traveling position calculation unit 550 calculates the traveling position of the railway vehicle 3 traveling on the track 1 by using the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information acquired from each of the user terminals 30 of the passengers riding on the railway vehicle 3. The traveling position calculation unit 550 includes a statistical calculation processing unit 551 that performs statistical calculation processing, a calculation reference location setting unit 553, a traveling vector calculation unit 555, and a traveling direction determination unit 557.

[0040] The statistical calculation processing unit 551 performs statistical calculation processing based on the positioning position information, the signal propagation status information, and the on-vehicle installation location to obtain the transmitter reference traveling position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location. Then, the traveling position calculation unit 550 calculates the traveling position from the transmitter reference traveling position based on the relative position relationship between the calculation reference location of the traveling position in the railway vehicle 3 and the on-vehicle installation location. The calculated traveling position is stored in the storage unit 560 as traveling position information 565.

[0041] The calculation reference location setting unit 553 variably sets the calculation reference location based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3. In this embodiment, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the uphill direction, the calculation reference location setting unit 553 sets the calculation reference location as the transmitting side end, which is the end on the side of the on-vehicle installation location 11 of the railway vehicle 3, and when the traveling direction is the downhill direction, it sets the calculation reference location as the end on the opposite side of the transmitting side end.

[0042] The traveling vector calculation unit 555 calculates the displacement vector of the traveling position calculated by the traveling position calculation unit 550, and calculates the direction of the displacement vector as the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3.

[0043] The traveling direction determination unit 557 tracks the traveling position calculated by the traveling position calculation unit 550, and determines whether the traveling position is moving in the upward direction or the downward direction on track 1. Note that the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 may be determined by receiving an external input of information indicating whether it is in the upward direction or the downward direction, or the traveling direction may be set in the railway vehicle 3 in advance before operation.

[0044] The storage unit 560 is realized by a storage medium such as an IC memory or a hard disk. The storage unit 560 stores in advance a program for operating the traveling position detection device 50 and realizing various functions of the traveling position detection device 50, data used during the execution of the program, etc., or temporarily stores them each time processing is performed. In the present embodiment, the storage unit 560 stores the position information (track position information) 561 of track 1 on which the railway vehicle 3 travels, the acquired data 563 from the user terminal 30, and the traveling position information 565.

[0045] The acquired data 563 is generated each time the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information are received from the user terminal 30 of the passengers of the railway vehicle 3, and accumulates and stores a set of the received positioning position information and signal propagation status information (in the present embodiment, the position of the user terminal 30 and the reception intensity of the beacon signal at the user terminal 30). Specifically, one acquired data 563 includes the positioning position information and signal propagation status information related to the set, the reception time, and the terminal ID of the user terminal 30 that is the transmission source.

[0046] 4. Regarding the processing flow FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the flow of the traveling position calculation process. The traveling position detection device 50 receives and acquires at any time the positioning position information indicating the position of the user terminal 30 of N (N≧1) passengers of the railway vehicle 3 and the signal propagation status information indicating the reception intensity of the beacon signal at the user terminal 30 from each of the user terminals 30. Then, the traveling position calculation unit 550 performs the traveling position calculation process shown in FIG. 7 using the positions and reception intensities acquired from each of the user terminals 30 at the same time as the processing targets, and repeats this to calculate and track the traveling position of the railway vehicle 3.

[0047] That is, in one run position calculation process, the run position calculation unit 550 first calculates a representative positioning position from the positions of each user terminal 30 to be processed as a statistical calculation process (step S1). Subsequently, the run position calculation unit 550 calculates the relative distance between each user terminal 30 and the on-vehicle installation location from the reception intensity to be processed (step S3). Subsequently, the run position calculation unit 550 calculates a representative distance from the relative distances for each user terminal 30 (step S5). Subsequently, the run position calculation unit 550 calculates the transmitter reference run position in the manner described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5 using the representative positioning position calculated in step S1 and the representative distance calculated in step S5 (step S7).

[0048] Then, the run position calculation unit 550 calculates the run position from the transmitter reference run position calculated in step S7 in the manner described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5 based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the run position set based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 and the on-vehicle installation location (step S9).

[0049] As described above, according to the present embodiment, from each of the N (N≧1) user terminals 30 of the passengers riding on the railway vehicle 3, the positioning position in the user terminal 30 and the reception intensity of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmitter 10 in the railway vehicle 3 in the user terminal 30 are acquired, and the relative distance between the user terminal 30 and the on-vehicle installation location of the transmitter 10 is calculated from the reception intensity and used to calculate the run position of the railway vehicle 3. According to this, it is possible to reduce the positioning error of GNSS positioning by using the user terminals owned by the passengers and realize a new technology capable of detecting the run position of the railway vehicle.

[0050] Note that the applicable forms of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and components can be added, omitted, or changed as appropriate.

[0051] [Modification Example 1] FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 are diagrams for explaining the running position calculation process in this modified example. As an example, FIGS. 8 and 9 show an example where there are six passengers in the railway vehicle 3, and the positions of the respective user terminals 30 of each passenger are indicated by circles. Further, FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram regarding the running position calculation process when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the upward direction, and FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram regarding the running position calculation process when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the downward direction. In FIGS. 8 and 9, the outer shape of the railway vehicle 3 is shown by a dashed line. The on-vehicle installation location of the transmitter 10 installed in the railway vehicle 3 is set to the same position as in the above-described embodiment.

[0052] In the running position calculation process of this modified example, similar to the above-described embodiment, the running position detection device 50 performs a predetermined statistical calculation process based on the position of each user terminal 30 acquired from each of the user terminals 30, the reception intensity of the beacon signal at each user terminal 30, and the on-vehicle installation location, to obtain the transmitter reference running position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location. Then, the running position detection device 50 calculates the running position from the transmitter reference running position based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the running position in the railway vehicle 3 and the on-vehicle installation location. In this modified example, the calculation procedure of the transmitter reference running position is different from that of the above-described embodiment.

[0053] In the statistical calculation process of this modified example, the running position detection device 50 first calculates the relative distance between each user terminal 30 and the on-vehicle installation location for each user terminal 30 from the reception intensity of the beacon signal at each user terminal 30.

[0054] Subsequently, the running position detection device 50 calculates the displacement position for each terminal obtained by moving the position of each user terminal 30 in a given direction based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 by the length of the relative distance obtained for that user terminal 30.

[0055] Specifically, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the uphill direction, as shown in FIG. 8, the positions of each of the six user terminals 30 are shifted in the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 by the length of each relative distance, and the displacement position for each terminal of each user terminal 30 is calculated. In FIG. 8, the displacement position for each terminal is indicated by a dashed circle. For example, focusing on the position P61 in FIG. 8, the relative distance between the user terminal 30 at the position P61 and the on-vehicle installation location 11 is calculated from the reception intensity of the beacon signal in the user terminal 30 at the position P61. Then, the position P63 obtained by shifting the position P61 by the calculated relative distance in the traveling direction is set as the displacement position for each terminal. Similarly, the displacement position for each terminal is calculated for the other user terminals 30.

[0056] On the other hand, when the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 is the downhill direction, as shown in FIG. 9, the positions of each of the six user terminals 30 are shifted in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the railway vehicle 3 by the length of each relative distance, and the displacement position for each terminal of each user terminal 30 is calculated. In FIG. 9, the displacement position for each terminal is indicated by a dashed circle. For example, focusing on the position P81 in FIG. 9, the relative distance between the user terminal 30 at the position P81 and the on-vehicle installation location 11 is calculated from the reception intensity of the beacon signal in the user terminal 30 at the position P81. Then, the position P83 obtained by shifting the position P81 by the calculated relative distance in the traveling direction is set as the displacement position for each terminal. Similarly, the displacement position for each terminal is calculated for the other user terminals 30.

[0057] Subsequently, the traveling position detection device 50 calculates the transmitter reference traveling position based on the displacement position for each terminal of each user terminal 30. In this modified example, the center of gravity position of the displacement position for each terminal of each user terminal 30 is calculated and set as the transmitter reference traveling position. In the example of FIG. 8, from the displacement position for each terminal indicated by the dashed line, the center of gravity position P71 of the displacement position for each terminal indicated by the star mark in FIG. 8 is calculated as the transmitter reference traveling position. The same applies to the case of FIG. 9, and the center of gravity position P91 indicated by the star mark is calculated from the displacement position for each terminal indicated by the dashed line and set as the transmitter reference traveling position.

[0058] Once the transmitter reference running position has been calculated, the running position detection device 50 calculates the running position from the transmitter reference running position based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference point of the running position in the railway vehicle 3 and the on-vehicle installation position. The processing here can be performed in the same manner as in the above-described embodiment. That is, in the example of FIG. 8, a position P73 obtained by shifting the center-of-gravity position P71, which is the transmitter reference running position, by the beacon end distance Df in the running direction is calculated, and the position on the track 1 corresponding to the position P73 is calculated as the running position. In the example of FIG. 9, a position P93 obtained by shifting the center-of-gravity position P91, which is the transmitter reference running position, by the opposite end distance De in the direction opposite to the running direction is calculated, and the position on the track 1 corresponding to the position P93 is calculated as the running position.

[0059] [Modification Example 2] Further, in the above-described embodiment, the reception intensity of the beacon signal from the transmitter 10 is exemplified as the signal propagation state. In contrast, the propagation time from the transmission of the signal by the transmitter to the reception of the signal by the user terminal 30 may be used as the signal propagation state. In this modification example, it is assumed that all of the transmitter and the user terminal 30 of the passenger accurately display the time.

[0060] That is, for example, the transmitter is set to transmit a signal every exact second. On the other hand, the user terminal 30 measures the time from the transmission to the reception of the signal as the propagation time based on the reception time of the signal from the transmitter. Then, the user terminal 30 transmits the signal propagation state information indicating the measured propagation time to the running position detection device 50 together with the positioning position information.

[0061] Further, the transmitter may be configured to transmit a signal including information on the transmission time. In that case, the user terminal 30 measures the propagation time from the transmission to the reception of the signal from the transmission time included in the received signal and the reception time of the signal.

[0062] Also, the signal propagation status may be the relative distance instead of the reception intensity. That is, it can be realized by measuring the reception intensity of the beacon signal received by the user terminal 30 from the transmitter 10 and further calculating the relative distance from the reception intensity. It can be realized by presetting the correspondence relationship between the reception intensity of the beacon signal and the relative distance.

[0063] [Modification Example 3] Also, in the above embodiment, the configuration in which the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information from the user terminal 30 are transmitted to the ground-side travel position detection device 50 and the travel position is calculated by the travel position detection device 50 has been described. In contrast, it is also possible to install a travel position detection device (on-vehicle device) on the vehicle and calculate the travel position on the vehicle. It can be realized by the user terminal 30 transmitting the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information to the travel position detection device (on-vehicle device) installed on the vehicle, and the on-vehicle device performing travel position calculation processing.

[0064] [Other Modification Examples] Also, in the above embodiment, an example of calculating the travel position of a railway vehicle operating in a single-car formation has been described, but it can be similarly applied when the formation consists of two or more cars.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0065] 100 Travel position detection system, 10 Transmitter, 11 On-vehicle installation location, 30 User terminal, 50 Travel position detection device, 510 Operation unit, 520 Display unit, 530 Communication unit, 540 Processing unit, 550 Travel position calculation unit, 551 Statistical calculation processing unit, 553 Calculation reference location setting unit, 555 Travel vector calculation unit, 557 Travel direction determination unit, 560 Storage unit, 561 Track position information, 563 Acquired data, 565 Travel position information, 1 Track, 3 Railway vehicle, 5 Passenger, 9 GPS satellite

Claims

1. A running position detection device that communicates with N (N≥1) user terminals of passengers to detect the running position of a railway vehicle, wherein a transmitter is installed at a predetermined on-vehicle installation location on the railway vehicle, the user terminal includes a positioning function, a receiving function capable of measuring a signal propagation status related to signal reception from the transmitter, and a transmitting function for transmitting positioning position information obtained by the positioning function and signal propagation status information indicating the signal propagation status to the running position detection device, a calculation unit that performs predetermined statistical calculation processing based on the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information of each of the user terminals and the on-vehicle installation location to obtain a transmitter reference running position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location, and calculates the running position from the transmitter reference running position based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the running position in the railway vehicle and the on-vehicle installation location, A running position detection device comprising the above.

2. The statistical calculation processing includes: calculating a representative positioning position from the positioning position information of each user terminal; calculating a representative distance from the relative distance between each user terminal and the on-vehicle installation location based on the signal propagation status information of each user terminal; calculating the transmitter reference running position using the representative positioning position and the representative distance. The running position detection device according to claim 1, including the above.

3. A calculation reference location setting unit that variably sets the calculation reference location based on the traveling direction of the railway vehicle. The running position detection device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising the above.

4. A running position detection method using a running position detection device that communicates with N (N≥1) user terminals of passengers to detect the running position of a railway vehicle, wherein a transmitter is installed at a predetermined on-vehicle installation location on the railway vehicle, the user terminal includes a positioning function, a receiving function capable of measuring a signal propagation status related to signal reception from the transmitter, and a transmitting function for transmitting positioning position information obtained by the positioning function and signal propagation status information indicating the signal propagation status to the running position detection device, performing predetermined statistical calculation processing based on the positioning position information and the signal propagation status information of each of the user terminals and the on-vehicle installation location to obtain a transmitter reference running position corresponding to the on-vehicle installation location; calculating the running position from the transmitter reference running position based on the relative positional relationship between the calculation reference location of the running position in the railway vehicle and the on-vehicle installation location. A traveling position detection method including

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