Information processor, information processing program, information processing method, and information processing system

Abstract

To provide an information processor capable of identifying even an emergency vehicle with no onboard communication machine mounted thereon, and controlling an apparatus such as a traffic light.SOLUTION: An information processor includes: a sound collection unit that is composed of a microphone array; feature sound detection means that detects a feature sound indicating a behavior of an emergency vehicle on the basis of an input sound acquired by the sound collection unit; emergency vehicle detection means that detects detection information including presence or absence of the emergency vehicle on the basis of information concerning the feature sound detected by the feature sound detection means; azimuth detection means that detects an azimuth of the emergency vehicle on the basis of the input sound; and notification means that outputs to outside the detection information on the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and information concerning the azimuth of the emergency vehicle detected by the azimuth detection means.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing program, an information processing method, and an information processing system, and can be applied to, for example, an intelligent traffic control system that provides driving support for emergency vehicles. [Background technology]

[0002] In intelligent transport systems (ITS) that utilize information and communication technology, there is a control method for controlling traffic lights to enable smooth guidance of emergency vehicles such as ambulances, and this control method is generally called FAST (Fast Emergency Assist System) control (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

[0003] In FAST control, uplink information transmitted from a communication device (on-board communication device) installed in an emergency vehicle is received by a roadside device installed at a predetermined intersection. The roadside device then transmits a control signal to the intersection's signal control device to increase the green light period for the traffic light that is predicted to be in the direction of the emergency vehicle's travel.

[0004] This will reduce the likelihood of traffic congestion occurring ahead of emergency vehicles, and reduce the number of cases where emergency vehicles are blocked due to traffic jams ahead. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-117807 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-110413 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, in the device with the above configuration, an on-board communication device is required in the emergency vehicle in order to identify the emergency vehicle, and there was a problem that FAST control could not be performed on emergency vehicles that do not have an on-board communication device.

[0007] Therefore, there is a demand for an information processing device, information processing program, information processing method, and information processing system that can identify emergency vehicles and control devices such as traffic lights, even for emergency vehicles that do not have an on-board communication device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The information processing device of the first invention is characterized by having (1) a sound collection unit consisting of a microphone array; (2) characteristic sound detection means for detecting characteristic sounds indicative of the behavior of an emergency vehicle based on input sounds acquired by the sound collection unit; (3) emergency vehicle detection means for detecting detection information including the presence or absence of the emergency vehicle based on information about the characteristic sound detected by the characteristic sound detection means; (4) direction detection means for detecting the direction of the emergency vehicle based on the input sound; and (5) notification means for outputting to the outside the detection information of the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and information about the direction of the emergency vehicle detected by the direction detection means.

[0009] The second information processing program of the present invention is characterized in that it causes a computer mounted on an information processing device having a sound collection unit consisting of a microphone array to function as: (1) characteristic sound detection means that detects characteristic sounds indicative of the behavior of an emergency vehicle based on input sounds acquired by the sound collection unit; (2) emergency vehicle detection means that detects detection information including the presence or absence of the emergency vehicle based on information about the characteristic sound detected by the characteristic sound detection means; (3) direction detection means that detects the direction of the emergency vehicle based on the input sound; and (4) notification means that externally output the detection information of the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and information about the direction of the emergency vehicle detected by the direction detection means.

[0010] The third invention is an information processing method used in an information processing device having a sound collection unit consisting of a microphone array, characterized in that (1) a characteristic sound detection means detects a characteristic sound indicative of the behavior of an emergency vehicle based on an input sound acquired by the sound collection unit, (2) an emergency vehicle detection means detects detection information including the presence or absence of the emergency vehicle based on information about the characteristic sound detected by the characteristic sound detection means, (3) a direction detection means detects the direction of the emergency vehicle based on the input sound, and (4) a notification means outputs to the outside the detection information of the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and information about the direction of the emergency vehicle detected by the direction detection means.

[0011] The fourth invention of the present invention is an information processing system having a traffic light, a traffic light control device that controls the lights of the traffic light, a roadside device that instructs the traffic light control device to control the lights of the traffic light, and an information processing device that notifies the roadside device of information regarding an emergency vehicle, wherein the information processing device of the first invention of the present invention is applied to the information processing device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the present invention, even if an emergency vehicle does not have an on-board communication device, it is possible to identify the emergency vehicle and control devices such as traffic lights. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing the overall configuration of a road traffic control system according to an embodiment; [Figure 2] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an environment to which a road traffic control system according to an embodiment is applied; [Figure 3] 3 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the emergency vehicle detection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of an emergency vehicle detection unit according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] (A) Main embodiment Hereinafter, an embodiment of an information processing device, an information processing program, an information processing method, and an information processing system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, an example in which the information processing system of the present invention is applied to a road traffic control system will be described.

[0015] (A-1) Configuration of the embodiment (A-1-1) Overall composition Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a road traffic control system according to an embodiment, and Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an environment to which the road traffic control system according to an embodiment is applied.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 1, the road traffic control system 1 includes an emergency vehicle detection device 10, a roadside device 20, a signal control device 30, and a traffic light 40.

[0017] Figure 2 shows an example in which traffic lights 40-1 to 40-4 are installed at four locations at a road intersection, and an emergency vehicle detection device 10 equipped with a microphone array MA, a roadside unit 20, and a signal control device 30 are installed at one corner of the intersection.

[0018] 2, there are no particular limitations on the locations where devices other than traffic lights 40 are installed. For example, if two microphone arrays MA are provided, the other microphone array MA may be installed near traffic light 40-3, which is diagonally opposite traffic light 40-1. In this case, the microphone array MA and emergency vehicle detection device 10 may transmit and receive data using any wireless communication standard.

[0019] Furthermore, emergency vehicle C is a vehicle that is designated and permitted to have priority passage or use of a road in the event of an emergency, such as an ambulance or a police car.

[0020] The emergency vehicle detection device 10 detects an emergency vehicle C based on the input signal collected from the microphone array MA, and transmits information about the detected emergency vehicle C (such as information indicating the arrival of the emergency vehicle C, the passing of the emergency vehicle C, and the direction of arrival) to the roadside unit 20.

[0021] The roadside unit 20 is installed at an intersection, on the side of a road, or the like, and communicates with the emergency vehicle detection device 10. When the roadside unit 20 receives information about an emergency vehicle from the emergency vehicle detection device 10, it provides the signal control information for controlling each traffic light 40 to the signal control device 30.

[0022] For example, when the roadside device 20 receives information indicating the arrival of an emergency vehicle C, it instructs the signal control device 30 (executes signal control under FAST control) to turn on a green light for the traffic light (traffic light 40-2 in FIG. 2) in the direction of travel of the emergency vehicle C. Furthermore, when the roadside device 20 receives information indicating the passage of the emergency vehicle C, it switches from FAST control to normal signal control.

[0023] The signal control device 30 controls the lighting of each signal light color of each traffic light 40 according to instructions from the roadside device 20 .

[0024] The traffic light 40 determines the time allocation of the green light based on the signal control command information from the signal control device 30, and turns on each signal light color of the traffic light device.

[0025] (A-1-2) Detailed configuration of the emergency vehicle detection device 10 In Figure 1, the emergency vehicle detection device 10 has a microphone array MA, a microphone array interface (I / F) unit 11, a frequency detection unit 12, a pattern detection unit 13, a beamforming (BF) unit 14, an emergency vehicle detection unit 15, a direction detection unit 16, and a notification unit 17.

[0026] The emergency vehicle detection device 10 may be implemented by installing a program on a computer having a processor, memory, etc., but even in this case, the emergency vehicle detection device 10 can be functionally illustrated using Figure 1. Note that the emergency vehicle detection device 10 may be implemented in part or entirely in hardware.

[0027] The microphone array MA is composed of two or more microphones, each of which collects surrounding acoustic signals. The number of microphone arrays MA installed at an intersection is, for example, one, but is not limited to this. The acoustic signals include, for example, sounds (siren sounds) indicating the behavior of an emergency vehicle C.

[0028] The microphone array I / F unit 11 converts the acoustic signal collected by the microphone array MA from an analog signal to a digital signal (input signal), and outputs the converted input signal to each of the frequency detection unit 12, the pattern detection unit 13, and the BF unit 14.

[0029] Frequency detection unit 12 detects the presence or absence of frequency components contained in the siren sound emitted by emergency vehicle C (for example, an ambulance alternately outputs sounds of frequencies of 770 Hz and 960 Hz) from the input signal provided by microphone array I / F unit 11. Frequency detection unit 12 outputs the detection result (the result of whether or not the frequency components contained in the siren sound have been detected) to emergency vehicle detection unit 15.

[0030] One method for detecting frequency components is to pass the input signal through band-pass filters with center frequencies of 770 Hz and 960 Hz, respectively, and detect whether or not the signal is present by checking whether the output level (power) exceeds a detection threshold.

[0031] The pattern detection unit 13 detects whether or not the siren sound emitted by the emergency vehicle C is periodic (in the case of an ambulance, it is output alternately at 0.6 second intervals). The frequency detection unit 12 outputs the detection result (whether or not the periodic pattern matches) to the emergency vehicle detection unit 15.

[0032] A pattern detection method, for example, is to pass the input signal through a low-pass filter with a cutoff frequency of 860 Hz, an intermediate frequency between 770 Hz and 960 Hz, and measure its output level (power). In this case, a power state continues while 770 Hz is being output, and a powerless state continues while 960 Hz is being output, so the pattern detection unit 13 counts the time when this output level is present (for example, counting 0.6 seconds of the power state and 0.6 seconds of the powerless state alternately twice) and determines whether or not there is a match with the periodic pattern.

[0033] The emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines whether an emergency vehicle C is approaching, has passed, or has not been detected based on the detection result (presence or absence of frequency components) of the frequency detection unit 12 and the detection result (presence or absence of periodic pattern match) of the pattern detection unit 13. Further details of the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 will be described in the section on operation.

[0034] The BF unit 14 obtains beamforming outputs (BF outputs) of multiple beam waveforms directed in all directions (or multiple directions designated in advance) from the input signal.

[0035] The direction detection unit 16 identifies (estimates) the direction of the emergency vehicle C from the result of the BF output of the BF unit 14.

[0036] (A-2) Operation of the embodiment Next, the operation of the road traffic control system 1 according to the embodiment having the above configuration will be described. Note that the following description will focus on the operation of the emergency vehicle detection device 10 having the features of this embodiment.

[0037] (A-2-1) Overall movement FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the emergency vehicle detection device according to the embodiment.

[0038] <s101> The microphone array MA collects acoustic signals emitted from a sound source (for example, the siren sound of an emergency vehicle C).

[0039] <s102> The microphone array I / F unit 11 converts the signal collected by the microphone array MA from an analog signal to a digital signal, and outputs the converted input signal to each of the frequency detection unit 12, the pattern detection unit 13, and the BF unit 14.

[0040] <s103> The frequency detection unit 12 detects the presence or absence of a frequency component contained in the siren sound emitted by the emergency vehicle C from the input signal provided from the microphone array I / F unit 11. The frequency detection unit 12 outputs the detection result (presence or absence of the frequency component) to the emergency vehicle detection unit 15.

[0041] <s104> The pattern detection unit 13 detects whether or not there is a match with the periodic pattern of the siren sound emitted by the emergency vehicle C. The frequency detection unit 12 outputs the detection result (whether or not there is a match with the periodic pattern) to the emergency vehicle detection unit 15.

[0042] <s105> The emergency vehicle detection unit 15 performs detection processing of an emergency vehicle C (arrival of an emergency vehicle C, passing of an emergency vehicle C, or non-detection of an emergency vehicle C) based on the detection result of the frequency detection unit 12 and the detection result of the pattern detection unit 13. The emergency vehicle detection unit 15 outputs the detection result (arrival of an emergency vehicle C, passing of an emergency vehicle C, or non-detection of an emergency vehicle C) to the notification unit 17. Details of the emergency vehicle detection processing will be described later.

[0043] <s106> The BF unit 14 performs BF processing in all directions of the microphone array MA. For example, BF processing is performed on all microphone input signals of the microphone array MA, with sensitivity direction designation set at each fixed angle, and each BF output (reception sensitivity) is calculated for 360 degrees.

[0044] <s107> The direction detection unit 16 identifies the direction of the emergency vehicle C from the BF output result of the BF unit 14. For example, the direction detection unit 16 estimates the maximum BF output (angle) from among the BF outputs calculated in step S106 above as the direction of the emergency vehicle C.

[0045] <s108> The notification unit 17 notifies the roadside device 20 of the passage (or arrival) of the emergency vehicle C and the direction of the emergency vehicle C based on the detection result of the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 and the detection result of the direction detection unit 16.

[0046] (A-2-2) Details of Emergency Vehicle Detection Processing (Step S105) FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the emergency vehicle detection unit according to the embodiment.

[0047] <s105-1> Upon receiving the detection result from the frequency detection unit 12 and the detection result from the pattern detection unit 13, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines whether or not the emergency vehicle C has been detected. If the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 has not detected the emergency vehicle C, the process proceeds to step S105-2. On the other hand, if the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 has detected the emergency vehicle C, the process proceeds to step S105-5.

[0048] <s105-2> If it is determined in step S105-1 above that emergency vehicle C has not been detected, emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines whether the frequency power detected by frequency detection unit 12 is equal to or greater than the detection threshold. If the detected frequency power is equal to or greater than the detection threshold, emergency vehicle detection unit 15 proceeds to step S105-3.

[0049] On the other hand, if the detected frequency power is less than the detection threshold, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 terminates the process, determining that the emergency vehicle C has not been detected. The emergency vehicle detection unit 15 may or may not provide the notification unit 17 with information that the emergency vehicle C has not been detected.

[0050] <s105-3> If it is determined in step S105-2 above that the frequency power is equal to or greater than the detection threshold, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines whether or not there is a match with the periodic pattern of the siren sound emitted by the emergency vehicle C. If a match with the periodic pattern is confirmed, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 proceeds to step S105-4.

[0051] On the other hand, if the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 does not confirm a match between the periodic patterns, it determines that the emergency vehicle C has not been detected and ends the process.

[0052] <s105-4> If a match between the periodic patterns is confirmed in the above-mentioned step S105-3, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines that an emergency vehicle C has arrived at the intersection (near the intersection) and provides information indicating the arrival of this emergency vehicle C to the notification unit 17.

[0053] <s105-5> Furthermore, when it is determined in step S105-1 that emergency vehicle C has been detected, emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines whether the frequency power detected by frequency detection unit 12 is equal to or greater than the detection cancellation threshold. If the detected frequency power is less than the detection cancellation threshold, emergency vehicle detection unit 15 proceeds to step S105-6.

[0054] On the other hand, if the detected frequency power is greater than or equal to the detection cancellation threshold, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines that emergency vehicle C is being detected (a state in which emergency vehicle C has arrived at the intersection but it cannot yet be determined that it has passed the intersection), and terminates the processing.

[0055] The value set for the detection cancellation threshold is not particularly limited, but may be set to a value smaller than the detection threshold, for example.

[0056] <s105-6> If the frequency power detected in the above-mentioned step S105-5 is less than the detection cancellation threshold, the emergency vehicle detection unit 15 determines that emergency vehicle C has passed through the intersection (near the intersection) (emergency vehicle C (siren) has disappeared), and provides information indicating that emergency vehicle C has passed to the notification unit 17.

[0057] (A-3) Effects of the embodiment According to this embodiment, the following effects are achieved.

[0058] For example, in the traffic signal control of emergency vehicles in an intelligent road traffic control system, the emergency vehicle detection device 10 can be used to identify an emergency vehicle C based on the sound source (siren sound) alone. In other words, it becomes possible to control the traffic signal 40 even for an emergency vehicle C that is not equipped with an on-board communication device.

[0059] (B) Although various modified embodiments have been mentioned in the above-described embodiment, the following modified embodiments can also be applied.

[0060] (B-1) In the above-described embodiment, an example was shown in which the emergency vehicle detection device 10 can use a single microphone array MA to pick up the siren sound of an emergency vehicle C and determine whether or not an emergency vehicle C is present. However, as a variant, the presence or absence of an emergency vehicle C may be determined using area sound collection technology that uses multiple microphone arrays MA.

[0061] For example, in the intersection example in Figure 4, multiple microphone arrays MA would be installed to collect sound from the four road areas before the intersection. The advantage of using area sound collection technology is that it can pick up only the sound from the targeted area, eliminating surrounding noise.

[0062] (B-2) In the above-described embodiment, the output destination of the notification unit 17 is the roadside device 20, but the usage is not particularly limited. That is, by connecting the output destination of the notification unit 17 to alarm devices (such as an electronic bulletin board, speaker, or flashing device), it is also possible to operate it as an alarm device for warning of the arrival of an emergency vehicle.

[0063] (B-3) In the above-described embodiment, the signal control is described as using FAST control in an intelligent road transport system, but it does not require an intelligent road transport system and may be applied independently. In other words, the configuration of this embodiment can be applied to traffic lights that have not previously adopted an intelligent road transport system or FAST control. [Explanation of symbols]

[0064] 1...road traffic control system, 10...emergency vehicle detection device, 11...microphone array I / F section, 12...frequency detection section, 13...pattern detection section, 14...BF section, 15...emergency vehicle detection section, 16...direction detection section, 17...notification section, 20...roadside unit, 30...signal control device, 40 (40-1 to 40-n)...traffic light, C...emergency vehicle, MA...microphone array.

Claims

1. a sound pickup unit consisting of a microphone array; a characteristic sound detection means for detecting a characteristic sound indicative of the behavior of an emergency vehicle based on the input sound acquired by the sound collection unit; emergency vehicle detection means for detecting detection information including the presence or absence of the emergency vehicle based on information about the characteristic sound detected by the characteristic sound detection means; a direction detection means for detecting a direction of the emergency vehicle based on the input sound; a notification means for outputting to the outside the detection information of the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and the information on the direction of the emergency vehicle detected by the direction detection means; An information processing device comprising:

2. The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the detection information includes information relating to the arrival and passage of the emergency vehicle.

3. The characteristic sound detection means a frequency detection unit that detects a frequency component of the characteristic sound from the input sound; a pattern detection unit that detects a periodic pattern of the characteristic sound from the input sound; 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

4. 4. The information processing device according to claim 3, wherein the emergency vehicle detection means determines that the emergency vehicle is approaching when, in a state where the emergency vehicle has not been detected, the power of the frequency component of the characteristic sound in the input sound detected by the frequency detection unit is equal to or greater than a detection threshold and a match is confirmed between the periodic pattern of the characteristic sound in the input sound detected by the pattern detection unit.

5. 4. The information processing device according to claim 3, wherein the emergency vehicle detection means determines that the emergency vehicle is passing when, after the emergency vehicle has been detected, the power of the frequency component of the characteristic sound in the input sound detected by the frequency detection unit is less than a detection cancellation threshold.

6. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the notification means transmits the detection information of the emergency vehicle and information regarding the direction of the emergency vehicle to an external device that instructs the control of traffic light lights.

7. 7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the characteristic sound is a siren sound.

8. A computer installed in an information processing device having a sound collection unit consisting of a microphone array, a characteristic sound detection means for detecting a characteristic sound indicative of the behavior of an emergency vehicle based on the input sound acquired by the sound collection unit; emergency vehicle detection means for detecting detection information including the presence or absence of the emergency vehicle based on information about the characteristic sound detected by the characteristic sound detection means; a direction detection means for detecting a direction of the emergency vehicle based on the input sound; a notification means for outputting to the outside the detection information of the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and the information on the direction of the emergency vehicle detected by the direction detection means; An information processing program characterized by causing the program to function as follows.

9. An information processing method used in an information processing device having a sound collection unit consisting of a microphone array, the characteristic sound detection means detects a characteristic sound indicative of the behavior of an emergency vehicle based on the input sound acquired by the sound collection unit; the emergency vehicle detection means detects detection information including the presence or absence of the emergency vehicle based on information about the characteristic sound detected by the characteristic sound detection means; the direction detection means detects the direction of the emergency vehicle based on the input sound; The notification means outputs to the outside the detection information of the emergency vehicle detected by the emergency vehicle detection means and the information on the direction of the emergency vehicle detected by the direction detection means.

1. An information processing method comprising:

10. An information processing system having a traffic light, a traffic light control device that controls a light of the traffic light, a roadside device that instructs the traffic light control device to control the light of the traffic light, and an information processing device that notifies the roadside device of information regarding an emergency vehicle, The information processing device according to claim 1 is applied to the information processing device. An information processing system comprising:

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