Traffic control device and traffic control method

Abstract

To reduce the risk of occurrence of vehicles becoming stranded due to snow accumulation on roads.SOLUTION: A traffic control device according to an embodiment includes: an acquisition unit that acquires a snowfall forecast and predetermined snow-related information for a predetermined section of a road on which vehicles travel; a detection unit that detects signs of impending snowfall based on the predetermined information in the case of no snowfall forecast for the section; and a display control unit that displays snow-related cautionary information on road information boards installed along the road when the detection unit detects the signs of impending snowfall.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD An embodiment of the present invention relates to a traffic control device and a traffic control method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, when vehicles become stranded or abandoned due to snow accumulation on roads on which vehicles travel (hereinafter referred to as "stuck vehicles, etc."), it can be difficult for snow removal vehicles to reach the snow removal target section, making it difficult to carry out snow removal work efficiently. This can lead to further increases in the amount of snow accumulation, which can result in large-scale vehicle backlogs.

[0003] For this reason, for example, when snowfall is forecast for an area that includes a road, road administrators warn drivers of snow by displaying snow-related warning information on road information boards installed on the road. Warning information includes, for example, prohibiting vehicles other than those using snow-resistant tires (studless tires, snow tires, tires with chains, etc.; hereinafter also referred to as "winter tires") from entering a specified section of the road, and warning of the possibility of a road closure due to snow accumulation. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-16282 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2024-4031 [Patent Document 3] Patent No. 6610669 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Incidentally, extreme weather phenomena have long been pointed out as one of the effects of global warming. Winter snowfall and snow accumulation are no exception, and we can expect to see short-term concentrated snowfall and resulting increases in snow accumulation.

[0006] Therefore, the current method of alerting vehicle drivers only after a snowfall forecast is issued is not sufficient in terms of preventing or reducing the occurrence of stranded vehicles, and there is room for improvement.

[0007] Therefore, an embodiment of the present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide a traffic control device and a traffic control method that can reduce the possibility of vehicles becoming stranded on roads due to snow accumulation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The traffic control device of the embodiment includes an acquisition unit that acquires snowfall forecasts and specified information related to snow for a specified section of a road on which a vehicle is traveling, a detection unit that detects signs of snowfall based on the specified information when there is no snowfall forecast for the section, and a display control unit that displays snow-related warning information on a road information board installed on the road when signs of snowfall are detected by the detection unit. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating an expressway according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the overall configuration of the traffic control system according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a table showing display examples for each situation in the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a table showing display examples for each situation in the embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing executed by the traffic control device of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A traffic control system and a traffic control method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following embodiments, a highway will be described as an example of a road.

[0011] First, an expressway R in an embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram that schematically illustrates the expressway R in an embodiment. In FIG. 1, for the sake of simplicity of illustration and explanation, the upper lanes of the expressway R are shown in detail, while the lower lanes are simply described. The upper lanes of the diagram will be described below. The expressway R on which vehicle C (C1 to C3) travels has an A·IC (Interchange) and a B·IC. A road leading to an exit AO for leaving the expressway R and a road leading to an entrance AI for entering the expressway R are connected to the A·IC. Furthermore, a road leading to an exit BO for leaving the expressway R and a road leading to an entrance BI for entering the expressway R are connected to the B·IC.

[0012] Furthermore, for expressway R, sections #1, #2, #3, ... are set as management units. Furthermore, vehicle detectors 1 (details will be described later) are installed in each section. Note that, hereinafter, expressway R may be referred to as "expressway" or "road." Furthermore, details of road information boards 7a and 7b will be described later.

[0013] Next, the overall configuration of a traffic control system S of an embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the overall configuration of the traffic control system S of the embodiment. The traffic control system S includes a vehicle detector 1, a meteorological data management device 2, a CCTV (Closed Circuit Television System) camera 3, a road management server 4, a VICS (registered trademark) (Vehicle Information and Communication System) 5, a large display device 6, a road information board 7, and a traffic control device 8.

[0014] Vehicle detectors 1 (see Figure 1) are installed on the roadside of expressways, in multiple numbers as needed, to collect information (traffic condition data) such as traffic volume (vehicles / hour), average speed (km / h), and occupancy (%). The vehicle detectors 1 transmit the collected traffic condition data to a traffic control device 8.

[0015] The weather data management device 2 is a computer system that manages weather data (for example, observation data such as temperature, humidity, sunny / cloudy / rainy / snowy, wind direction, etc., or forecast data such as whether or not a low pressure system is developing and ensemble forecasts (details will be described later)) collected by various sensors managed by the road company or obtained from the Japan Meteorological Agency or weather information companies, and transmits the weather data to the traffic control device 8.

[0016] The CCTV camera 3 is installed on the roadside of a highway and captures images of vehicles traveling on the highway. The captured images are transmitted to the traffic control device 8.

[0017] The road management server 4 manages road-related information such as road closure information (including information on target sections, target time periods, etc.) regarding expressways, and transmits this information to the traffic control device 8.

[0018] The VICS 5 communicates information with the vehicle C (for example, a probe vehicle) via a communication device such as a roadside antenna. The vehicle C acquires traffic information about surrounding roads from the traffic control device 8 based on the vehicle's position identified by a GPS (Global Positioning System), for example, via the VICS 5, and transmits vehicle information such as the vehicle's position, speed, tire slip information, etc. to the traffic control device 8 or the automobile company's service center.

[0019] The large display device 6 is installed in the traffic control center and displays traffic information for each section of each of a plurality of routes (roads).

[0020] The road information boards 7 (road information boards 7a and 7b in FIG. 1) are installed on the roadside or the like, and display traffic information mainly in text.

[0021] The traffic control device 8 is a computer system installed in a traffic control center that comprehensively monitors and manages the actual traffic conditions of the roads that are subject to control. The traffic control device 8 is a computer device that includes a processing unit 81, a storage unit 82, an input unit 83, an output unit 84, and a communication unit 85.

[0022] The processing unit 81 includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a read-only memory (ROM), and a random access memory (RAM), and executes various processes.

[0023] The CPU comprehensively controls the operation of the traffic control device 8. The ROM is a storage medium for storing various programs and data. The RAM is a storage medium for temporarily storing various programs and data.

[0024] The CPU uses the RAM as a work area to execute programs stored in the ROM, storage unit 82, etc. Details of the processing unit 81 will be described later.

[0025] The storage unit 82 is a storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD), and stores various types of information. The storage unit 82 stores, for example, the operating program of the processing unit 81, various types of data used in calculations by the processing unit 81, various calculation results by the processing unit 81, etc.

[0026] The input unit 83 is an input device that accepts user operations on the traffic control device 8, and is, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, or the like.

[0027] The output unit 84 is a display device (for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display device, etc.) or an audio output device (for example, a speaker, etc.).

[0028] The communication unit 85 is a communication interface for communicating with an external device (such as the vehicle detector 1).

[0029] The processing unit 81 includes, as functional components, an acquisition unit 811, a detection unit 812, a calculation unit 813, a comparison unit 814, and a control unit 815.

[0030] The acquisition unit 811 acquires various types of information from external devices (such as the vehicle detector 1.) For example, the acquisition unit 811 acquires vehicle traffic condition data from the vehicle detector 1 for each section.

[0031] The acquisition unit 811 also receives weather data from the weather data management device 2. For example, the acquisition unit 811 acquires a snowfall forecast and predetermined information related to snow for a predetermined section of the road on which the vehicle C is traveling. More specifically, for example, the acquisition unit 811 acquires, as the predetermined information for the section, at least one of the following information: temperature, whether or not it is raining, whether or not it is snowing, whether or not it is snowing in the surrounding area, wind direction, and whether or not a low pressure system is developing.

[0032] The acquisition unit 811 also acquires captured images from the CCTV camera 3. The acquisition unit 811 also receives road-related information from the road management server 4. The acquisition unit 811 also acquires vehicle information and traffic information (tire spin information, etc.) from the VICS 5.

[0033] The detection unit 812 performs various detections. For example, when there is no snowfall forecast for a road section, the detection unit 812 detects signs of snowfall based on predetermined information (details will be described later). The detection unit 812 also detects tire spinning of a vehicle or the occurrence of a stuck vehicle based on various information.

[0034] The calculation unit 813 performs various calculations. For example, the calculation unit 813 calculates a section travel time, which is the time it takes for a vehicle to travel a section, based on traffic condition data.

[0035] The comparison unit 814 performs various comparisons. For example, the comparison unit 814 compares the section travel time with a predetermined congestion reference value (hereinafter also referred to as "reference value (congestion)") and a traffic jam reference value (hereinafter also referred to as "reference value (traffic jam)").

[0036] The control unit 815 executes various controls. For example, when the detection unit 812 detects a sign of snowfall, the control unit 815 (display control unit) causes the road information board 7 to display warning information related to snow. Furthermore, the control unit 815 causes the road information board 7 to display warning information in stages according to the level of the sign of snowfall detected by the detection unit 812. Furthermore, when the control unit 815 causes the road information board 7 to display warning information according to the comparison result by the comparison unit 814.

[0037] 3 and 4 are tables showing examples of displays for each situation in the embodiment. In this display example, from the left, there are provided items such as alert level (Lv), status, whether snow is forecast, road closure, temperature, whether rain is falling, whether snow is falling, whether snow is falling in the surrounding area, tire spin, stuck vehicles, congestion criteria, time criteria, an example of an IC exit (on the main line) display, and an example of an IC entrance display.

[0038] The alert level (Lv) indicates the level of alert on a scale of 1 to 5, with the higher the number, the higher the level of alert.

[0039] The condition indicates the overall condition or characteristic state.

[0040] The snow forecast status indicates whether or not snow is forecast.

[0041] The road closure indicates whether the road closure is pending, ongoing, has tire restrictions, or has been lifted.

[0042] Temperature indicates whether the temperature is low, very low, or other.

[0043] Presence or absence of rain indicates whether or not there is actual rain.

[0044] Snowfall indicates whether or not there is actual snowfall. Note that there may be actual snowfall even if there is no snow forecast.

[0045] The presence or absence of snowfall in the vicinity indicates whether or not there is actual snowfall in the vicinity.

[0046] Tire spin indicates whether or not there are vehicles with spinning tires.

[0047] Stuck vehicles indicates whether or not there are any vehicles whose tires are stuck in snow or other debris and unable to move.

[0048] The congestion standard indicates the comparison result between the section travel time and the standard value (congestion) or standard value (congestion).

[0049] The time criteria indicate, for a target section, whether a vehicle currently entering the section will be able to pass through the section by the start time of the preventive road closure, based on the current time, the required time for the section, and the start time of the preventive road closure.

[0050] The IC exit (on the main line) display example shows an example of information displayed on the road information board 7a in FIG.

[0051] The IC entrance display example shows an example of information displayed on the road information board 7b in FIG.

[0052] For example, in row (1), there is no snowfall forecast, but there is rainfall, the temperature is low, and there is a possibility (sign) that it will change to snow later, so the road information board 7a and road information board 7b in Figure 1 will display a message saying, "Rainfall to △△ IC. Drive carefully, paying attention to road conditions."

[0053] Also, for example, in row (5), there is no snowfall forecast, but the temperature is extremely low and there is a possibility (sign) that it will later change to snowfall, and the required time for the section is greater than the reference value (congestion), so the road information board 7a and road information board 7b in Figure 1 will display the message "There is a risk of road surface freezing (congestion) up to △△ IC. Install winter tires and review your travel plans."

[0054] Also, for example, in row (9), although there is no snowfall forecast, there is snowfall in the surrounding area and there is a possibility (sign) that it will later change to snowfall, and the required time for the section is greater than the reference value (traffic congestion), so the road information board 7a and road information board 7b in Figure 1 will display the message "Snowfall is likely up to △△ IC (traffic congestion 〇 km) Install winter tires and review your travel plans."

[0055] Also, for example, in row (10), although there is no snowfall forecast, snow is falling, so the road information board 7a and road information board 7b in FIG. 1 display "Snowing up to △△ IC. Install winter tires."

[0056] Also, for example, in row (13), there is no snowfall, but snowfall is forecast, so the road information board 7a and road information board 7b in Figure 1 display a message saying, "Due to snowfall forecast, preventative road closures may be implemented. Please reconsider your travel plans."

[0057] Also, for example, in row (15), although the road closure has not been decided, snow is forecast, snow is falling, and tires are spinning, so the road information board 7a and the road information board 7b in Figure 1 display a message saying, "Due to snowfall, road closures may be implemented. Please install winter tires and reconsider your travel plans."

[0058] For example, in row (18), snow is forecast and a road closure is scheduled, and the time reference indicates that a vehicle currently entering the section will not be able to pass through the section by the start time of the preventive road closure, so the road information board 7a in Figure 1 displays the message "Due to snowfall, preventive road closure from XX to XX IC. All vehicles except those with winter tires must exit at XX IC." Also, the road information board 7b in Figure 1 displays the message "Due to snowfall, preventive road closure from XX to XX IC. All vehicles except those with winter tires are prohibited from entering."

[0059] For example, in row (20), a stuck vehicle is stuck and the road is closed, so the road information board 7a in Figure 1 displays "Road closed to △△ IC due to vehicle backlog caused by snowfall. Exit at □□ IC." Also, the road information board 7b in Figure 1 displays "Road closed to △△ IC due to vehicle backlog caused by snowfall. Closed."

[0060] Also, for example, in row (22), the winter tire restriction has been lifted, so the message "Restriction lifted. Drive carefully, paying attention to road conditions" is displayed on the road information boards 7a and 7b in FIG.

[0061] 5 is a flowchart showing the processing executed by the traffic control device 8 of the embodiment. In step S1, the acquisition unit 811 acquires various data such as weather forecasts.

[0062] Next, in step S2, the processing unit 81 determines whether the criteria for a preventive road closure are met, and if Yes, proceeds to step S7, and if No, proceeds to step S3. The criteria for a preventive road closure are, for example, that the predicted amount of snowfall per hour is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount for three consecutive hours.

[0063] In step S3, the control unit 815 executes display control on the road information board 7 based on various information. That is, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, if the conditions for alert level 1 are met, the control unit 815 causes the road information board 7 to display information as shown in each display example (display examples in rows (1) to (14) and (22)).

[0064] Next, in step S4, the acquisition unit 811 collects traffic condition data from the vehicle detector 1 and vehicle information from the VICS 5.

[0065] Next, in step S5, the detection unit 812 determines whether or not it has detected a vehicle's tires spinning or a stuck vehicle based on the information collected in step S4, and if the answer is Yes, it proceeds to step S7, and if the answer is No, it proceeds to step S6.

[0066] In step S6, the processing unit 81 determines whether or not the cancellation criteria for each alert level are met, and if Yes, the alert is cancelled, and if No, the alert is continued (the alert level is maintained).

[0067] In step S7, the control unit 815 executes display control on the road information board 7 based on various information. That is, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, if the conditions for alert levels 2 and 3 are met, the control unit 815 causes the road information board 7 to display information as shown in each display example (display examples in rows (15) to (18) and (21)).

[0068] Next, in step S8, the acquisition unit 811 collects traffic condition data from the vehicle detector 1 and vehicle information from the VICS 5.

[0069] Next, in step S9, the detection unit 812 determines whether or not to start a road closure based on the information collected in step S8, and if Yes, proceeds to step S11, and if No, proceeds to step S10.

[0070] In step S10, the processing unit 81 determines whether the cancellation criteria for each alert level are met, and if Yes, the alert is cancelled (or downgraded), and if No, the alert is continued (the alert level is maintained).

[0071] In step S11, the control unit 815 executes display control on the road information board 7 based on various information. That is, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, if the conditions for alert levels 4 and 5 are met, the control unit 815 causes the road information board 7 to display information as shown in each display example (display examples in rows (19) and (20)).

[0072] Next, in step S12, the acquisition unit 811 collects traffic condition data from the vehicle detector 1 and collects vehicle information from the VICS 5.

[0073] Next, in step S13, the processing unit 81 determines whether the cancellation criteria for each alert level are met, and if Yes, cancels (or downgrades) the alert, and if No, continues the alert (maintains the alert level).

[0074] In this way, according to the traffic control system S of the embodiment, even if there is no snowfall forecast for a predetermined section of the road on which the vehicle is traveling, if a sign of snowfall is detected, snow-related warning information is displayed on the road information board 7. This makes it possible to reduce the possibility of vehicles becoming stranded due to snow accumulation on the road.

[0075] Furthermore, by displaying step-by-step warning information according to the degree of snowfall on the road information board 7 (FIGS. 3 and 4), it is possible to display appropriate information according to the situation.

[0076] Furthermore, by displaying warning information based on the comparison of the required time for the section with the standard value (congestion) or standard value (jam) on the road information board 7 (Figs. 3 and 4), it is possible to display appropriate information according to the situation. For example, as shown in line (18) in Fig. 4, if a vehicle currently entering the section cannot pass through the section by the start time of the preventive road closure, the road information board 7a in Fig. 1 will display "Due to snowfall, preventive road closure from XX to XX IC. Vehicles with winter tires must exit at XX IC," and the road information board 7b in Fig. 1 will display "Due to snowfall, preventive road closure from XX to XX IC. Vehicles with winter tires must not enter." This will help reduce the number of vehicles entering the section. In other words, if the start time of the preventive road closure is determined, the required time for the section can be taken into account and vehicles can be encouraged to exit before the start time.

[0077] Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, by setting alert levels and further subdividing them to manage the status, the information displayed on the road information board 7 can be appropriately classified into cases.

[0078] It has long been said that predicting the transition from snowfall to snow accumulation is particularly difficult. Even in past cases of large-scale traffic jams, the weather forecasts up until the moment they occurred did not meet the criteria for road closures, but weather changes such as shifts in wind direction and drops in temperature led to an increase in snow accumulation.

[0079] For example, generally, when temperatures are around 4-10°C, it rains rather than snows, but cold air can flow in and change to snow. Also, even if snowfall is observed in surrounding areas, depending on the wind direction, no snowfall may be observed at all. Conversely, the risk (uncertainty) of a worsening of current weather conditions can be predicted empirically.

[0080] In this embodiment, the purpose is to reduce the number of vehicles entering the section in question in order to prevent stranded vehicles, so early information will be provided to users even if there is no snowfall forecast.

[0081] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the information provided uses gradual terminology such as "Be careful of road conditions," "Put on winter tires," "Reconsider your travel plans," "No entry except for vehicles with winter tires," and "Road closed."

[0082] In addition, to detect signs of snowfall, the results of an ensemble forecast may be used, for example. Ensemble forecasts are made using multiple weather forecasts with slightly different initial values ​​for certain parameters, and the results are statistically processed to enable probabilistic predictions that take uncertainty into account.

[0083] The program executed by the CPU of the traffic control device 8 of this embodiment may be configured to be provided by being recorded in an installable or executable file format on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk).

[0084] Furthermore, the program may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. Also, the program executed in this embodiment may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

[0085] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are merely examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The embodiments can be implemented in various forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. The above embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, and are also included in the inventions and their equivalents as set forth in the claims.

[0086] For example, the target roads are not limited to expressways, but may also be toll roads other than expressways or free general roads.

[0087] Furthermore, the means for providing information to the driver of the vehicle C traveling on the road is not limited to the road information board 7, but may also be a highway telephone, a highway information terminal, or the like.

[0088] Highway telephones are a means of providing voice information via public lines. Highway telephones provide traffic information as voice information by calling mobile phones carried by road users, or public or dedicated telephones installed in service areas (SAs) and parking areas (PAs), for example.

[0089] Highway information terminals are information providing devices installed at SAs, PAs, etc., and display a wide range of traffic information, for example, centered on SAs and PAs, in accordance with the operations of road users, and provide related audio information. [Explanation of symbols]

[0090] 1...vehicle detector, 2...weather data management device, 3...CCTV camera, 4...road management server, 5...VICS, 6...large display device, 7...road information board, 8...traffic control device, 81...processing unit, 82...storage unit, 83...input unit, 84...output unit, 85...communication unit, C...vehicle, R...expressway, S...traffic control system

Claims

1. an acquisition unit that acquires a snowfall forecast and predetermined information related to snow for a predetermined section of a road on which a vehicle is traveling; a detection unit that detects a sign of snowfall based on the predetermined information when there is no snowfall forecast for the section; A traffic control device comprising: a display control unit that, when the detection unit detects signs of snowfall, displays snow-related warning information on a road information board installed on the road.

2. The traffic control device according to claim 1 , wherein the display control unit causes the road information board to display the warning information in stages according to the degree of the snowfall sign detected by the detection unit.

3. The traffic control device according to claim 1, wherein the acquisition unit acquires, as the predetermined information for the section, at least one of information on temperature, whether or not it is raining, whether or not it is snowing, whether or not it is snowing in the surrounding area, wind direction, and whether or not a low pressure system is developing.

4. the acquisition unit acquires vehicle traffic condition data for the section; The traffic control device a calculation unit that calculates a section travel time, which is a time required for a vehicle to travel the section, based on the traffic condition data; a comparison unit that compares the section travel time with a predetermined congestion reference value and a predetermined traffic jam reference value, The traffic control device according to claim 1, wherein when the display control unit causes the road information board to display the warning information, the display control unit causes the road information board to display the warning information according to a comparison result by the comparison unit.

5. an acquisition step in which an acquisition unit acquires a snowfall forecast and predetermined information related to snow for a predetermined section of a road on which the vehicle is traveling; a detection step in which a detection unit detects a sign of snowfall based on the predetermined information when there is no snowfall forecast for the section; A traffic control method including a display control step in which, when signs of snowfall are detected by the detection step, a display control unit displays warning information regarding snow on a road information board installed on the road.

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