Image recording apparatus, server apparatus, program, and the like

Abstract

To provide a technique capable of efficiently transmitting a necessary image among recorded images while suppressing traffic in data.SOLUTION: An image recording device 11 sequentially records photographed images in a recording medium 23, creates a list composed of serial number data sorted for each time unit in recording, and transmits the created list to a server device 100 via a communication part 25 by radio communication. At this time, the image is not sent. The server device displays the received list, and transmits a transmission request of images of one or a plurality of pieces of serial number data designated from the list to the image recording device. The image recording device transmits the image requested to be transmitted to the server device. As a result, it is possible to reduce the traffic in data by sending necessary images without sending all of the recorded images.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to, for example, an image recording device, a server device, a program, and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an image transmission device for vehicle monitoring that, when a door opening abnormality or the like occurs, transmits camera footage of the vehicle where the abnormality occurred along with driving information over a single two-core shielded cable and displays it on a monitor screen. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-346261 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] One object of the present invention is to provide a technique for transmitting or receiving data related to an image captured by a moving object.

[0005] The above-mentioned problems are stated as independent, and the present invention does not necessarily solve all of the problems stated. The purpose of the present invention is not limited to these, and the applicant intends to obtain rights for configurations that aim to achieve the effects achieved by parts of the configuration disclosed in the specification and drawings, etc., through divisional applications, amendments, etc. For example, this specification discloses a problem in which the phrase "can be" is read as "the problem is...". The problems are stated as independent, and the applicant intends to obtain rights for configurations that solve these problems separately through divisional applications, amendments, etc. Even if the problem is implicitly understood from the description in the specification, the applicant intends to claim part of the configuration described in this specification through amendments or divisional applications. Problems that combine these independent problems are also disclosed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] (1) An image recording device is provided that is installed in a mobile body and communicates with an external device via a predetermined communication line, and that has a control unit that performs the following processes: recording image data representing an image captured by a photographing means installed in the mobile body in the recording means; generating identification information for identifying the image data recorded in the recording means; and transmitting the identification information to the image recording device. This provides technology related to the transmission or reception of data related to images captured by a mobile body. For example, by generating and transmitting identification information for identifying the image data recorded in the recording means, it is possible to reduce the number of times image data that does not need to be transmitted is transmitted. By making the data volume of the identification information smaller than the image data, the increase in the amount of data transmitted over the communication line is suppressed, which is expected to result in a reduction in the increase in communication line usage fees (i.e., communication charges).

[0007] (2) The control unit may transmit the identification information to the device before transmitting the image data stored in the storage unit. Since the identification information is transmitted before transmitting the image data, it is possible to reduce the chance of transmitting image data that does not need to be transmitted based on the identification information.

[0008] (3) When the control unit receives an image transmission request generated based on the identification information from an external device, the control unit may perform processing to transmit the image data identified by the image transmission request recorded in the recording means to the external device. When the control unit receives an image transmission request based on the identification information from the external device that has acquired the identification information, the control unit may transmit the image data recorded in the recording means in response to the image transmission request.

[0009] (4) The image data may be data representing a plurality of images arranged on a predetermined time axis, and the identification information may include information identifying the position of each of the plurality of images on the time axis. When an image transmission request specifying the position on the time axis is received from an external device that has acquired the identification information, the image data corresponding to that position can be transmitted.

[0010] (5) The identification information may include information for identifying at least one of a time period during which the image data is recorded in the recording means and a time period during which the image data is not recorded. An external device that acquires the identification information may be able to identify at least one of a time period during which the image data is recorded in the recording means and a time period during which the image data is not recorded.

[0011] (6) The moving body may be a vehicle traveling along a predetermined route, and the specific information may include identification information assigned to the vehicle. An external device that acquires the specific information may be able to identify the vehicle from which the image data recorded in the recording means was taken.

[0012] (7) The moving body may be a vehicle formed by connecting a plurality of vehicles, and the identification information may include identification information of the vehicle in which the image was taken. An external device that acquires the identification information may be able to identify which vehicle in the vehicle the image data recorded in the recording means represents.

[0013] (8) When a condition indicating that a predetermined event has occurred in the moving object is satisfied, the control unit may perform a process of recording the image data representing images captured during a period including the time point at which the predetermined event has occurred in the recording means. When a predetermined event has occurred in the moving object, the control unit may record image data representing images captured during a period including the time point at which the predetermined event has occurred.

[0014] (9) The conditions may include a condition relating to at least one of the position of the moving object and the state of the moving object. Necessary image data can be recorded based on the position and state of the moving object.

[0015] (10) The conditions may include a condition regarding the vehicle traveling through a curved section of the route. When the vehicle is traveling through a curve, the possibility of an incident that should be photographed, such as an accident, occurring is considered to be relatively high compared to when the vehicle is traveling through other sections, and image data at that time can be recorded.

[0016] (11) The route may include a track on which the vehicle travels, and the conditions may include a condition regarding the vehicle traveling through a railroad crossing on the route. When the vehicle travels through a railroad crossing, the possibility of an incident that should be photographed, such as an accident, occurring is considered to be relatively high compared to when the vehicle travels through other sections, and image data at that time can be recorded.

[0017] (12) A boarding and disembarking area for the vehicle is provided at a predetermined position on the route, The conditions may include a condition regarding the vehicle's approach to, arrival at, or departure from the boarding / alighting location. When the vehicle is approaching, arriving, or departing from the boarding / alighting location, it is considered that there is a relatively high possibility that an event that should be photographed, such as an accident, will occur compared to other cases, and image data at that time can be recorded.

[0018] (13) The condition may include the opening of a door of the vehicle. When a door of the vehicle is opened, people may get on or off, and therefore, it is considered that there is a relatively high possibility that an event that should be photographed, such as an accident or trouble, may occur, and image data at that time can be recorded.

[0019] (14) The conditions may include conditions related to information acquired from a system that controls the driving of the vehicle or a system that detects the driving state of the vehicle. The system that controls the driving of the vehicle or the system that detects the driving state of the vehicle collects and manages information related to the vehicle's status, and by linking with such a system, image data can be recorded at an appropriate timing.

[0020] (15) The control unit may perform a process of recording video data in the recording unit, the video data being composed of a first frame representing an image acquired from the image acquisition unit and a second frame representing an image acquired by the image acquisition unit as a difference from the first frame, and when an image transmission request generated based on the identification information is received, the control unit may perform a process of transmitting image data of the first frame from among the image data specified by the image transmission request. When the image data is video data including a plurality of frames, extracting and transmitting the data of the first frame representing the image data acquired from the image acquisition unit reduces the amount of data transmitted due to the reduced number of frames, and enables an external device to display the image acquired by the image acquisition unit based on the first frame. can.

[0021] (16) The control unit may transmit the image data recorded in the recording means when the vehicle is located within a predetermined section on the route, and may suppress transmission of the image data recorded in the recording means when the vehicle is located outside the predetermined section on the route. The image data may be transmitted when the vehicle is located within the predetermined section on the route.

[0022] (17) The predetermined section may be a section where communication charges are lower or communication speeds are higher than those outside the predetermined section. Image data can be transmitted while the vehicle is traveling in a section where communication charges are lower or communication speeds are higher, thereby suppressing increases in communication charges and enabling efficient transmission of image data.

[0023] (18) The control unit may transmit the identification information even when the vehicle is located outside the predetermined section of the route. Since the identification information usually has a smaller data volume than the image data, the information for identifying the type of image data recorded in the recording means can be transmitted to an external device quickly with a small data volume.

[0024] (19) The photographing means may be a photographing device having a lens that collects light from in front of the vehicle and an image sensor that forms an image circle with the collected light, and the diameter of the image sensor may be set to correspond to the longitudinal length of the image sensor, and the longitudinal direction of the image sensor may be set to face the left and right directions when the photographing device is installed. This allows for wide-ranging photographing and recording of left and right images of the moving object, while, for example, preventing the driver of the vehicle from being photographed.

[0025] (20) Provided is a server device that communicates with any of the image recording devices described above via the communication line, the server device having a control unit that performs the following processes: sending an image transmission request to the image recording device based on the identification information received from the image recording device; and acquiring image data identified by the image transmission request from the image recording device. This provides technology related to the transmission or reception of data related to images captured by a moving object. It is possible to reduce the opportunity to receive image data that does not need to be received. By making the data volume of the identification information smaller than the image data, it is possible to identify what image data is recorded in the image recording device while suppressing an increase in the amount of data received. It is also expected to have the effect of reducing the increase in communication line usage fees (i.e., communication charges).

[0026] (21) The control unit of the server device may perform the following processes based on the specific information received from the image recording device: displaying an instruction input image on a display device; accepting input of instructions using the instruction input image; and transmitting the image transmission request to the image recording device based on the accepted input. Necessary image data can be obtained based on the specific information received from the image recording device.

[0027] (22) The image data may be data representing a plurality of images arranged on a predetermined time axis, and the control unit of the server device may perform processing to display the instruction input image indicating periods on the time axis during which the image data is recorded and periods during which it is not recorded, allowing a user of the server device to visually and easily grasp periods during which the image data is recorded and periods during which it is not recorded.

[0028] (23) The control unit of the server device may transmit the image transmission request in response to the instruction input to the element indicating the period during which the image data has been recorded. This allows the user to easily specify the required image data and obtain the image data from the image recording device.

[0029] (24) When there are a plurality of image recording devices, the control unit of the server device may perform a process of acquiring the specific information from the plurality of image recording devices and a process of displaying an element indicating the period during which the image data has been recorded for each of the plurality of image recording devices, using a common time axis that defines the shooting time. This makes it easier to visually grasp the status of image data recording in the plurality of image recording devices.

[0030] (25) A program for causing a computer to realize the functions of the image recording system according to any one of (1) to (19) is provided.

[0031] (26) A program for causing a computer to realize the functions of the management system according to any one of (20) to (24) is provided.

[0032] The inventions described in (1) to (26) above can be combined arbitrarily. For example, a configuration may be created by adding at least a portion of the configuration of at least one of the inventions described in (2) and subsequent items to all or a portion of the configuration of the invention described in (1). In particular, an invention may be created by adding at least a portion of the configuration of at least one of the inventions described in (2) and subsequent items to the invention described in (1). Furthermore, any configuration may be extracted from the inventions described in (1) to (26) and combined. The applicant of this application intends to obtain rights to inventions including these configurations. Furthermore, even if a description is made of "in the case of..." or "when...," it is not intended to describe a configuration limited to that case or time. These are merely examples of better configurations, and the applicant intends to obtain rights to configurations other than these cases or times. Furthermore, any descriptions that specify an order are not limited to this order. Configurations in which some parts are deleted or the order is changed are also disclosed, and the applicant intends to obtain rights to them. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0033] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of application of an image recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention to a train. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image recording device and a server device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the internal configuration of a recording medium according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a continuous recording process according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a continuous recording list according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an event recording process according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7]FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the structure of an event record list according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of a continuous recording process performed by an image recording device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of an event recording process performed by an image recording device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of a list transmission process performed by an image recording device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of an image transmission process performed by an image recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of a server device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display screen displayed on the server device. [Figure 14] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of installation of an image recording device in a train driver's cab. [Figure 15] FIG. [Figure 16] This explains the relationship between the image circle and the imaging range. [Figure 17] This explains the relationship between the image circle and the imaging range. [Figure 18] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0034] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. These drawings are used to explain technical features that may be adopted by the present invention. The configurations and shapes of the described devices are merely illustrative examples, and the present invention should not be construed as being limited thereto. Various changes, modifications, and improvements may be made based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. In the following description, labeling using numbers such as 1, 2, etc. is intended to identify each element and does not define the number of elements. The following embodiment is an example of an embodiment for solving such problems.

[0035] For example, in the configuration of the invention described in Patent Document 1, when image data representing images captured by a camera installed on a train or other moving object is recorded in an image recording device and the recorded image data is then transmitted to a device external to the moving object, it is possible to transmit the images wirelessly instead of using wired communication using a two-core shielded cable. In this case, if all of the recorded image data is to be transmitted, the amount of data to be transmitted may be large, resulting in excessive communication time. For example, transmitting 32 gigabytes or 64 gigabytes of image data may require approximately two to four hours of communication time. Furthermore, if the communication line is a public line provided by a telecommunications carrier, for example, and a communication line usage fee (communication fee) is charged according to the amount of communication, the communication fee may increase. Furthermore, if the communication line is a low-speed line, image data that is highly necessary to be transmitted may not be transmitted to the external device quickly.

[0036] An embodiment of the present invention described below proposes a technique for transmitting or receiving data relating to images captured by a moving object, which can solve this type of problem.

[0037] [1. Configuration] Hereinafter, a case will be described in which a moving body equipped with an image recording device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a train, which is an example of a vehicle. A train is a vehicle consisting of one vehicle or multiple vehicles coupled together. The vehicle is not limited to a train, but may be a linear motor car, a monorail, or any other vehicle consisting of one vehicle or multiple vehicles coupled together. Such vehicles run on a predetermined route according to a schedule (timetable) managed by a vehicle operating company. In this embodiment, this predetermined route is provided with a track (more specifically, a rail) along which the vehicle runs. Furthermore, such vehicles are vehicles on which an unspecified number of people (for example, an unspecified number of people) may ride as passengers.

[0038] Fig. 1(a) shows an external view of a train 1 equipped with an image recording device 11 and the like according to this embodiment. Figs. 1(b) and 1(c) are side views of the interior of one car 2 of the train 1 equipped with the image recording device 11 and the like. Fig. 1(d) is a diagram showing the planar layout of the interior of one car 2.

[0039] In the example of Fig. 1, a plurality of doors (one example of a door) 3 for passengers and other people to enter and exit are provided on both sides of each car 2 constituting a train 1. Of the plurality of cars 2, the leading car and the trailing car are provided with a crew compartment 4 (e.g., a driver's cab, a conductor's compartment, etc.) on one end side. A crew door 5 for crew members to enter and exit is provided on the side of the crew compartment 4.

[0040] A display device 10 (for example, a digital signage for a vehicle) and an image recording device 11 are provided on a wall surface (for example, called a fascia board) above the door 3. The image recording device 11 has a photographing means (a photographing device 27, which will be described later) and records image data representing an image photographed by the photographing means. The image recording device 11 is provided on either the left or right side of the display device 10.

[0041] Each vehicle 2 is provided with three doors 3 on each of its two side surfaces. A display device 10 is attached to the upper panel of each of the doors 3 and displays an image. An image recording device 11 is provided on the upper panel of one of the left and right doors 3 that are located at the same position in the direction of travel. On the right wall (the upper side in FIG. 1(d)), an image recording device 11 is provided above the odd-numbered doors 3, and on the left wall (the lower wall in FIG. 1(d)), an image recording device 11 is provided above the even-numbered doors 3. The image recording devices 11 are arranged to capture images of the interior of the vehicle, and the image recording devices 11 installed above these multiple doors 3 can capture images of almost the entire interior of the vehicle.

[0042] 2. Configuration of Image Recording Device 11 and Server Device 100 FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image recording device 11 and the server device 100. Although only one image recording device 11 is shown in FIG. 2, there are multiple image recording devices 11 that communicate with the server device 100. For example, multiple image recording devices 11 are provided in a train 1. One or multiple image recording devices 11 are provided in each car 2 of the train 1. Image recording devices 11 are also provided in trains other than the train 1 shown in FIG. 1. The image recording devices 11 and the server device 100 are managed and operated by a railway company, a security company, or other business operator.

[0043] The image recording device 11 and the server device 100 are connected to external devices via a predetermined communication line NW so that they can communicate with each other. Unless otherwise specified, the communication line NW may be a public line compatible with LTE, 5G, or other communication methods. In the case of a public line, a communication fee may be charged to the operator managing the image recording device 11 or the train 1 depending on the amount of data transmitted (communication volume). The communication line NW may include Wi-Fi (registered trademark) (e.g., Wi-Fi (registered trademark) with a password) or other LANs (Local Area Networks). Using a LAN may offer advantages over using a public line, such as no or low-cost communication fees based on communication volume, faster communication speeds, and fewer congestion-related problems. The communication line NW may also be a dedicated line physically or logically isolated from the public line.

[0044] The image recording device 11 can also communicate with a system 300. The system 300 is a system that controls the running of a vehicle or a system that detects the running state of a vehicle. Examples of the system 300 include an automatic train stop (ATS) and a centralized traffic control (CTC).

[0045] (2-1) Configuration of the Image Recording Device 11 The image recording device 11 has a control unit 21, a reader / writer 22, a recording medium 23, a data output terminal 24, a communication unit 25, a location information acquisition unit 26, a photographing device 27, a microphone 28, and an internal clock 29. These components may be housed in a single case or may be housed separately in multiple cases. When the image recording device 11 is made up of multiple cases, the multiple cases may be connected together directly or via a predetermined connecting member, or may be separate cases that are arranged separately and allow data to be sent and received via wired or wireless communication.

[0046] The control unit 21 is a computer including, for example, an arithmetic processing circuit and a memory. The arithmetic processing circuit includes, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other arithmetic processing circuits. The memory includes, for example, a random access memory (RAM) or other volatile memory. The arithmetic processing circuit performs various controls by temporarily reading data into the memory and performing arithmetic processing. This data includes programs. The control unit 21 executes various controls, which will be described later, based on these programs. The control unit 21 has, for example, a function to exchange data with the image capture device 27, a function to control the reader / writer 22 to record or read the exchanged data on the recording medium 23, and a function to exchange data with an external server device 100 or the like via the communication unit 25.

[0047] The reader / writer 22 is configured to allow the recording medium 23 to be detachably attached, and reads and writes data from and to the attached recording medium 23. The recording medium 23 is an example of a recording means. In this embodiment, the recording medium 23 is an SD card, but it may also be a recording medium such as a USB memory or a hard disk drive. The recording method and form of the recording medium 23 are not important. Note that the recording medium 23 may also be a recording means built into the image recording device 11 and not detachable from the image recording device 11.

[0048] For example, a cable for communicating with a predetermined external device is connected to the data output terminal 24. The control unit 21 outputs data from the data output terminal 24.

[0049] The communication unit 25 communicates with an external device. The communication unit 25 includes, for example, a communication circuit and an antenna. The communication unit 25 communicates with the server device 100 via a communication line NW. The communication unit 25 may further communicate with the system 300. The server device 100 is, for example, a server device installed in a data center, and collects and manages data related to images captured in each of the multiple cars 2 of the train 1, and receives various notifications.

[0050] The position information acquisition unit 26 acquires position information indicating the current position. Since the position information acquisition unit 26 is provided in the image recording device 11, it is preferable to regard the position information of the image recording device 11 as the position information of the train 1 or the vehicle 2. For example, the position information acquisition unit 26 may acquire the position (latitude and longitude) of the vehicle based on a signal from a GPS (Global Positioning System), which is one of the GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems). The position information acquisition unit 26 may also use Michibiki as a QZSS (Quasi-Zenith Satellite System). The position information acquisition unit 26 may also acquire position information based on a signal from a base station.

[0051] The image capturing device 27 is an example of an image capturing means and includes a camera unit that captures an image of a capture area with a predetermined angle of view. While not specifically illustrated, the camera unit includes a lens, an image capturing element such as a CMOS sensor that captures light collected by the lens, and a circuit unit that processes an output signal from the image capturing element. The lens may be one with a wide angle of view, such as a wide-angle lens, a fisheye lens, or a hemispherical lens. Furthermore, the hemispherical lens is not limited to a lens with an angle of view of 180 degrees, but also includes a lens with an angle of view of 180 degrees or more.

[0052] The camera unit can be simply configured, for example, by being mounted with a fixed angle of view relative to a case constituting the image recording device 11, and by fixing the area captured by the camera unit when the case is attached to a predetermined position on the vehicle 2. Taking into consideration the installation location and other factors, the camera unit can be configured to capture a desired area of ​​view when the case is attached to the vehicle 2. For example, in the case of the image recording device 11 installed above the door 3 as shown in the figure, the central axis of the camera unit's angle of view can be configured to face diagonally downward within the interior of the vehicle 2. Furthermore, in the case of the image recording device 11 installed above the door 3, the camera unit's area of ​​view on the door 3 side can be configured to include the installation area of ​​the door 3 and capture images of the outside of the vehicle 2. In this way, passengers entering and exiting the door 3, as well as people immediately outside the door 3, can be captured, and the situation can be captured in the event of a collision with the vehicle 2 or an accident involving someone being caught in the door 3.

[0053] It is also advisable to provide a support mechanism that allows the orientation of the camera unit relative to the case to be adjustable and maintains the camera unit facing in a predetermined direction. In this way, by changing the orientation of the camera unit while the case is attached to a predetermined installation location on the vehicle 2, the area that can be photographed can be changed to an appropriate position. Therefore, it can be adapted to different angles of the installation surface of the vehicle 2, for example, and is therefore more versatile.

[0054] The microphone 28 collects, for example, surrounding sounds, such as the voices of people riding in the vehicle 2 and other sounds generated inside the vehicle 2.

[0055] The internal clock 29 is a real-time clock driven by, for example, a quartz oscillator. In this embodiment, since multiple image recording devices 11 are installed on the train 1, it is preferable to provide a function for synchronizing the time of the internal clock 29 of each image recording device 11. Synchronizing the time in this manner makes it easy to collect image data captured and recorded by each image recording device 11 at the same time. Furthermore, the time synchronization process is preferably performed when the control unit 21 is not recording a series of image data currently being captured on the recording medium 23. For example, if the time synchronization is performed while continuously recording image data through an event recording process or a continuous recording process (described later), the time information recorded before and after the time synchronization will be skipped and become discontinuous. Furthermore, before the time synchronization, there will be a discontinuity in the recording timing of the image data recorded by each image recording device 11. Therefore, when the image recording device 11 is powered on and started, the control unit 21 may perform the time synchronization process after performing a predetermined initialization process or as part of the initialization process. The control unit 21 may be able to start recording image data after the time synchronization process is completed. The control unit 21 may perform a time adjustment process when it receives a power-off command, and may turn off the power after the time adjustment process is completed. The control unit 21 may also perform a time adjustment process when it determines that the train 1 is located in a predetermined area, such as a garage, where there is no or little need to record image data. When performing the time adjustment process, the correct time may be determined, for example, from the time information included in the GPS signal received by the location information acquisition unit 26.

[0056] With the above configuration, the control unit 21 has the function of accessing the recording medium 23 and performing continuous recording processing, event recording processing, list transmission processing, and image transmission processing.

[0057] Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating the internal configuration of the recording medium 23. As shown in Fig. 3, the recording medium 23 has a continuous recording area 231 and an event recording area 232. Furthermore, the recording medium 23 stores a continuous recording list L1 and an event record list group L2. The event record list group L2 includes event record lists L21, L22, L23, and L24.

[0058] (2-1-1) Continuous recording processing 4 and 5 are diagrams illustrating the continuous recording process. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a method for recording image data using the continuous recording process. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the continuous recording list L1. In FIG. 4, the image data recorded nth (n is a natural number) from the start of the continuous recording process is assigned the number "n" as sequential data. This image data is represented as "image data Vn." Each square in FIG. 4 corresponds to image data, and the internal numerical value indicates the value of the sequential data. In this embodiment, the image data is video data. The video data is, for example, in MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) format (e.g., MPEG2, MPEG4), but may also be in AVI, MOV, WMV, or other formats.

[0059] The continuous recording process includes a process of recording image data representing an image captured by the image capturing device 27 in the continuous recording area 231, and a process of generating information identifying the recorded image data (specific information, described later). In this embodiment, the process of generating information identifying the image data to be recorded is a process of recording data in the continuous recording list L1. In principle, the continuous recording process is performed constantly (continuously) while the power of the image recording device 11 is on.

[0060] In the continuous recording process, in principle, images are divided into predetermined periods (three minutes in this embodiment), and image data is recorded in the continuous recording area 231. The division method may be a method of dividing the image into separate files for each predetermined period, or a single file corresponding to multiple periods may be logically divided by inserting chapters, etc. In this embodiment, the former method will be described. In FIG. 4, the period from "9:05:30" to "9:20:30" is a "non-recording period T" in which no image data is recorded. In this example, the period between the end time of recording image data V62 and the start time of recording image data V63 is the non-recording period T. Image data is not recorded during the non-recording period T, for example, when the power to the image recording device 11 is turned off. For example, the power to the image recording device 11 is turned off when the train 1 is outside of business hours or when it is located in a depot, making it unlikely or unnecessary to take photographs. Other possible causes include changing the recording medium 23 or a temporary malfunction. It should be noted that this embodiment is not based on the premise that there will be no recording periods, but is configured to operate as if an abnormality occurred if an image recording period occurs.

[0061] 4, the image recording time for each period occurs every three minutes starting from "00 minutes" of each time. Therefore, the recording start time for image data V64 after the non-recording period T is "9:21:00." However, the duration of image data V63 may also be set to three minutes.

[0062] As shown in FIG. 5, the continuous recording list L1 contains identification information for identifying image data recorded on the recording medium 23. One piece of identification information is created for each piece of image data; for example, in FIG. 5, one line of data corresponds to one piece of identification information. A list of this identification information is called a "continuous recording list." The identification information includes at least information for identifying the position on the time axis of the image data recorded on the recording medium 23. In this embodiment, the position on the time axis is identified by the sequential number data and time information described above. In this embodiment, the identification information is data that associates sequential number data assigned to each piece of image data with the recording start time, the recording end time, and location information. The location information is location information acquired by the location information acquisition unit 26. The location information is information indicating the location of the train 1 when the continuous recording process was performed. The location information may be, for example, location information at the start of the continuous recording process or may be determined to be the midpoint of the period during which the continuous recording process was performed. The identification information is text data using character codes. The specific information and the continuous recording list L1, which is a collection of such information, generally have a smaller data volume than the image data recorded by the continuous recording process.

[0063] 5, in the continuous recording list L1, there is a discrepancy between the "recording end time" (9:05:30) corresponding to the serial number data "62" and the "recording start time" (9:20:30) corresponding to the serial number data 63, which indicates the existence of a non-recording period. Therefore, it can be said that the continuous recording list L1 includes information for identifying at least one of the time periods when image data is recorded on the recording medium 23 and the time periods when it is not recorded.

[0064] The information recorded in the continuous recording list L1 further includes a train ID and a vehicle ID. The train ID is identification information assigned to the train 1. In this example, the train ID is "T001". The train ID is different for each train. The vehicle ID is identification information of the vehicle 2 photographed by the photographing device 27. In this example, the vehicle ID is "C0001". The vehicle ID is different for each of the multiple vehicles 2 of the train 1. The train ID and vehicle ID may be used to identify which train 1 and which vehicle 2 the image data represents.

[0065] (2-1-2) Event recording process 6 and 7 are diagrams illustrating the event recording process. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a method for recording image data by the event recording process. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the event recording list group L2. In FIG. 6, image data "VA-n" is image data generated by the event recording process for the nth curve event. Image data "VB-n" is image data generated by the event recording process for the nth railroad crossing event. Image data "VC-n" is image data generated by the event recording process for the nth boarding / alighting event. Image data "VD-n" is image data generated by the event recording process for the nth door event. Details of the types of events will be described later. Each square in FIG. 6 corresponds to image data, and the numbers inside indicate the values ​​of the sequential data.

[0066] The event recording process includes a process of recording image data representing an image captured by the image capture device 27 in the event recording area 232 and a process of generating information identifying the image data to be recorded, which are performed when a condition indicating the occurrence of a predetermined event (an example of a phenomenon) on the train 1 or the vehicle 2 (hereinafter referred to as an "event condition") is satisfied. In this embodiment, the process of generating information identifying the recorded image is a process of recording data in the event record list group L2. The event recording process is performed when the event condition is satisfied while the image recording device 11 is powered on. In this embodiment, the image data is video data, preferably in the same format as in the continuous recording process. The image data recorded in the event recording process is image data representing images captured during a period including the occurrence of the event. The period is preferably a period including both before and after the event (e.g., several minutes before and after), but may also be only one of the periods before and after. The image data recorded in the event recording process may be appropriately obtained from the continuous recording area 231. In the event recording process of this embodiment, a new file is created each time an event occurs, and image data is recorded therein.

[0067] The process of recording data in the event record list group L2 is a process of recording sequential number data, the start time of the event recording process, the end time of the event recording process, and location information in one of the event record lists L21, L22, L23, and L24. Each of the event record lists L21, L22, L23, and L24 corresponds to a different type of event. The event record list L21 corresponds to a curve event related to the train 1 traveling on a curved route. The event record list L22 corresponds to a railroad crossing event related to the train 1 traveling through a railroad crossing. The event record list L23 corresponds to a boarding / alighting event related to the train 1 approaching, arriving at, or departing from a boarding / alighting location. If the vehicle is a train, monorail, linear motor car, or the like, the boarding / alighting location is a station (more specifically, a station platform). If the vehicle is a bus, the boarding / alighting location is a bus stop. Locations where these events occur are relatively likely to have an accident or other incident that should be filmed, and are examples of sections where special care should be taken when operating the train 1. The event record list L24 corresponds to a door event, which is the opening of door 3 of the train 1. When door 3 opens, passengers are getting on and off, so this is based on the idea that there is a relatively high possibility that an accident, trouble, or other incident that should be filmed will occur.

[0068] As shown in FIG. 7, the event record list group L2 includes identification information for identifying image data recorded on the recording medium 23. One piece of identification information is created for one event (in other words, image data corresponding to one event), and in FIG. 7, one line of data corresponds to one piece of identification information. The event record list is a list representation of this identification information. The identification information includes at least information for identifying the position on the time axis of each image recorded on the recording medium 23. The position on the time axis is identified by sequential number data and time information, as in the above-described continuous recording process. In this embodiment, the identification information is data that associates sequential number data corresponding to one piece of image data with the recording start time and the recording end time. The identification information is text data using character codes. The amount of identification information is generally smaller than that of image data recorded by the event recording process.

[0069] The sequential number data is also recorded for each type of event, and is assigned in the order in which the image data is recorded. The location information is information indicating the location of the train 1 when the event occurred. The location information is information indicating the location of any train 1 that was present when the continuous recording process was performed, and may be, for example, location information at the start of the continuous recording process, or may be determined to be the midpoint of the section in which the continuous recording process was performed. The information recorded in the event record list further includes a vehicle ID and a vehicle ID, but the meaning and use of the vehicle ID and vehicle ID are the same as in the case of the continuous recording process.

[0070] Incidentally, in the continuous recording process and the event recording process, instead of or in addition to writing the location information acquired by the control unit 21 from the location information acquisition unit 26 into each list, the control unit 21 may communicate with the system 300 to acquire the location information. This is because the system 300, exemplified as a system for controlling the running of a vehicle or a system for detecting the running state of a vehicle, may collect and manage information related to the vehicle's status. The image recording device 11 may determine whether it is in a predetermined location by linking with the system 300.

[0071] An example of the content of each event will now be described in detail. The event recording process of this embodiment is executed when an event condition based on at least one of the position of the train 1 and the state of the train 1 is satisfied.

[0072] (A) Curve Event In curved sections, travelling above a certain speed may lead to derailment, so it may be stipulated that travelling must be below a specified speed. Rather than performing event recording processing every time a vehicle travels through a curved section, it is preferable to perform event recording processing when the vehicle is traveling above a threshold, and not perform event recording processing when the vehicle is traveling below the threshold. In this way, regardless of whether an actual accident has occurred, dangerous driving can be photographed based on the recorded data, and the photograph can be used for reflection and verification. When traveling below the threshold, event recording processing is not performed, which can reduce memory capacity, etc. The threshold may be changed depending on the section.

[0073] (B) Railroad crossing event Since there is a possibility of people and vehicles entering a railroad crossing section, it can be said that the possibility of an accident is relatively high. Therefore, it is advisable to record at least one of approaching a railroad crossing and traveling through a railroad crossing as an event.

[0074] (C) Boarding and disembarking events The event condition may be at least one of the vehicle's approach to, arrival at, or departure from a boarding / alighting location. When a vehicle approaches, arrives at, or departs from a boarding / alighting location, the likelihood of an incident requiring filming, such as an accident, occurring is relatively high compared to other situations. Recording can be performed at such timing. For example, as described above, when a person or other entity makes contact with or collides with the front of vehicle 2, the person may not only be in front of the vehicle, such as a person entering the tracks at a railroad crossing, but may also enter from the side of the vehicle, such as a person standing on a platform. Therefore, when image recording device 11 is installed in cab 6, the area photographed by camera 27 should preferably cover areas beyond the sides of vehicle 2 and have a wide angle of view in the lateral direction. For example, a wide-angle camera may be used as camera 27.

[0075] (D) Door Event Furthermore, for example, the image recording function may use the opening of door 3 on train 1 as an event condition. For example, rather than determining the occurrence of an event based on the location of train 1 as described above, the event may be determined based on the state of the vehicle, for example, the state of door 3 being open, and image data captured during a predetermined period including the time when door 3 is open may be recorded. In this way, the state of passengers getting on and off train 2 can be captured and recorded. If door 3 is closed, passengers cannot get on or off the vehicle, and the image data necessary to investigate accidents, etc., occurring when getting on or off can be recorded in the exact amount. Furthermore, when door 3 on train 2 opens, people are getting on or off the moving object, and there is a relatively high possibility that an event, such as a problem, that should be captured will occur. Event recording processing can be performed at such timing.

[0076] Whether the door 3 is open or closed may be determined, for example, by providing a separate sensor in the image recording device 11 or by receiving a signal from the vehicle. Also, if the vehicle is being driven dangerously, such as when the driving speed or acceleration exceeds a predetermined value, the time or period during which the speed or acceleration exceeds the predetermined value may be determined as an event occurring. The driving speed and acceleration may be detected using a sensor or the like, but may also be determined based on a change in the current position acquired from the position information acquisition unit 26.

[0077] In this embodiment, the event record list is divided by event type, but specific information for multiple types of events may be listed for a common event in the list. In this case, it is desirable to include information indicating the event type in the specific information. It is advisable to calculate this based on the change in the current position obtained from 26.

[0078] (2-1-3) List sending process The list transmission process is a process of transmitting the lists generated by the image recording device 11, that is, the continuous recording list L1 and the event recording list group L2, to the server device 100.

[0079] (2-1-4) Image transmission process The image transmission process is a process of transmitting image data recorded by the image recording device 11 on the recording medium 23, i.e., image data recorded by the continuous recording process and image data recorded by the event recording process, to the server device 100.

[0080] (2-2) Configuration of the Server Device 100 As shown in FIG. 2, the server device 100 includes a control unit 101, a storage unit 102, a communication unit 103, an input device 104, and a display device 105. The server device 100 is an example of a device that communicates with the image recording device 11 via a communication line NW to transmit or receive image-related data. The control unit 101 controls each unit of the server device 100. The server device 100 is, for example, a computer including a processing circuit and a memory. The processing circuit includes, for example, a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, or other processing circuit. The memory includes, for example, RAM or other volatile memory. The processing circuit performs various controls by temporarily reading data into the memory and performing processing. This data includes a program. The control unit 101 executes various controls, which will be described later, based on the program. The storage unit 102 stores data. The storage unit 102 is a hardware disk or other auxiliary storage device. The communication unit 103 communicates with the image recording device 11 via the communication line. The communication unit 103 has, for example, a modem or other communication circuit. The input device 104 is a device for a user to input instructions. The input device 104 is a device for inputting information, such as a keyboard, a mouse, a touch sensor, a microphone, or other devices. The display device 105 displays images. The display device 105 is a liquid crystal display or other type of display device.

[0081] With the above configuration, the control unit 101 of the server device 100 performs a process of sending an image transmission request to the image recording device 11 based on the list received from the image recording device 11, and a process of acquiring image data specified by the image transmission request from the image recording device 11. The process of acquiring from the image recording device 11 preferably includes a process of displaying an instruction input image on the display device based on the list received from the image recording device 11, a process of accepting instruction input using the instruction input image, and a process of sending an image transmission request to the image recording device based on the accepted instruction.

[0082] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. 3. Operation of image recording device 11 The processes described below are executed in parallel by multitasking while the image recording device 11 is powered on.

[0083] <3-1. Continuous Recording Processing> 8 is a flowchart showing the continuous recording process performed by the image recording device 11. While the power supply of the image recording device 11 is on, the control unit 21 repeatedly executes the process of FIG.

[0084] First, the control unit 21 writes the serial number data and the recording start time into the continuous recording list L1 (step S11). The control unit 21 creates a new record next to an existing record (row) in the continuous recording list L1, and writes the serial number data and the recording start time into it. If the serial number data of the latest existing record is "n", the serial number data to be issued next will be "n+1". The recording start time should be the current time measured by the internal clock 29.

[0085] Next, the control unit 21 writes image data representing an image captured by the photographing device 27 to the continuous recording area 231 (step S12). Next, the control unit 21 determines whether the power of the image recording device 11 has been turned off (step S13). If the determination in step S13 is "NO," the control unit 21 determines whether a predetermined period has elapsed (step S4). The predetermined period refers to the time elapsed since the recording start time recorded in the immediately preceding step S11, and is three minutes in this embodiment. If the determination in step S14 is "NO," the control unit 21 returns to step S12 and continues recording image data for the current sequentially numbered data. If the determination in step S14 is "YES," the control unit 21 writes the recording end time and location information to the continuous recording list L1 (step S15). In step S15, the recording end time and location information are written in association with the sequentially numbered data and recording start time written in the immediately preceding step S11. Then, the control unit 21 returns the process to step S11. In step S11, the control unit 21 creates a new record in the constant recording list L1, writes the serial number data and the recording start time, and performs the processes from step S12 onwards.

[0086] If the determination in step S13 is "YES," the control unit 21 ends the continuous recording process before the predetermined period has elapsed. In this case, the control unit 21 writes the recording end time in the continuous recording list L1 (step S16). In step S16, the control unit 21 writes the recording end time in association with the serial number data and recording start time written in the immediately preceding step S11. Then, the operation of the image recording device 11 ends.

[0087] <3-2. Event Recording Processing> 9 is a flowchart showing the event recording process performed by the image recording device 11. While the power supply of the image recording device 11 is on, the control unit 21 repeatedly executes the process of FIG.

[0088] The control unit 21 determines whether an event condition has been met (step S21). Here, the control unit 21 determines whether any one of a curve event, a railroad crossing event, a boarding / alighting event, and a door event has occurred. The control unit 21 waits until any one of the event conditions has been met (step S21; NO), and if it is determined that the event condition has been met, it writes the sequence number data and the recording start time into an event record list corresponding to the event that has occurred, among the event record list group L2 (step S22). The control unit 21 creates a new record next to an existing record in the event record list, and writes the sequence number data and the recording start time into the event record list.

[0089] Next, the control unit 21 writes image data representing an image captured by the photographing device 27 to the event recording area 232 (step S23). Next, the control unit 21 determines whether the power of the image recording device 11 has been turned off (step S24). If the determination in step S24 is "NO," the control unit 21 determines whether the event condition has ended (step S25). In step S25, the control unit 21 determines whether the situation in which the event occurred has disappeared. If the determination in step S25 is "NO," the control unit 21 returns the process to step S12 and continues recording image data for the current sequentially numbered data. If the determination in step S25 is "YES," the control unit 21 writes the recording end time and location information in the event record list (step S26). In step S26, the recording end time and location information are written in association with the sequentially numbered data and recording start time written in the immediately preceding step S22. Then, the control unit 21 returns the process to step S21.

[0090] If the determination in step S24 is "YES," the control unit 21 ends the processing even though an event is occurring. In this case, the control unit 21 writes the recording end time in the event record list (step S27). In step S27, the control unit 21 writes the recording end time in association with the serial number data and recording start time written in the immediately preceding step S22. Then, the operation of the image recording device 11 ends.

[0091] <3-3. List sending process> 10 is a flowchart showing the list transmission process performed by the image recording device 11. While the power supply of the image recording device 11 is on, the control unit 21 repeatedly executes the process of FIG.

[0092] The control unit 21 determines whether to transmit any of the lists to the server device 100 (step S31). The list referred to here is at least one of the continuous recording list L1 and the event record list group L2. If the control unit 21 determines that the predetermined transmission timing has been met, it determines "YES" in step S31. The control unit 21 determines to transmit the current continuous recording list L1 and the event record list group L2 periodically, for example, every time a predetermined period has elapsed. For example, with regard to the event record list group L2, the control unit 21 determines to transmit the event record list group L2 when a corresponding event occurs and the event recording process is completed. In this way, the control unit 21 may transmit the list by push at the predetermined transmission timing, or may determine to transmit a list in response to a list transmission request from the server device 100. If the control unit 21 determines "YES" in step S21, the control unit 21 transmits the list to the server device 100 using the communication unit 25 (step S32).

[0093] <3-4. Image transmission process> 11 is a flowchart showing the image transmission process performed by the image recording device 11. While the power supply of the image recording device 11 is on, the control unit 21 repeatedly executes the process of FIG.

[0094] Next, the control unit 21 determines whether to transmit the image data (step S41). If the control unit 21 determines that the predetermined transmission timing has been met, the control unit 21 determines "YES" in step S41 and transmits the image data stored in the recording medium 23 to the server device 100 using the communication unit 25 (step S42).

[0095] The control unit 21 may transmit image data at a frequency lower than the frequency of transmitting the list. This is because the volume of image data is usually larger than the volume of the list, and this is done from the perspective of suppressing increases in communication volume and associated communication charges. The control unit 21 does not transmit image data immediately (e.g., in real time) after generation, but stores the image data in the recording medium 23 and transmits it at a predetermined timing. In this embodiment, this timing is when an image transmission request is received from the server device 100. The image transmission request specifies the image data to be transmitted based on sequential number data, time, etc., based on the transmitted list. Therefore, the control unit 21 reads image data specified by the sequential number data and time included in the image transmission request from the recording medium 23 and transmits the image data to the server device 100. When transmission of image data is requested based on sequential number data, the control unit 21 transmits the image data specified by the sequential number data. When transmission of image data is requested based on a time (time zone), the control unit 21 transmits image data captured at that time (time zone). In this way, the control unit 21 transmits the list prior to the image data, and when an image transmission request generated based on the list is received from the server device 100, the control unit 21 performs processing to transmit the image data.

[0096] For example, using the examples of FIGS. 4 and 5, if the image transmission request specifies serial number data "1" to "3," the control unit 21 reads image data V11, V2, and V3 from the recording medium 23 and transmits them to the server device 100. If the image transmission request specifies a time period from "6:00:00" to "6:10:00," the control unit 21 reads image data V1, V2, and V3 from the recording medium and transmits them to the server device 100. Image data V3 includes image data up to "6:12:00," but the control unit 21 may transmit image data V3 as is, or may transmit images from the period from "06:09:00" to "06:10:00." Note that no image data is recorded for the time period from "9:05:00" to "9:20:30," but if this period is specified in the image transmission request, the control unit 21 may transmit to the server device 100 a message that no image data exists for that time period. The server device 100 is preferably configured in advance based on the list so as not to transmit image transmission requests during this period, and this configuration will be described later.

[0097] 4. Operation of Server Device 100 FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the operation of the server device 100. While the server device 100 is powered on, the control unit 101 repeatedly executes the process of FIG. 12. The control unit 101 determines whether a list has been received from the image recording device 11 (step S51). In step S51, the control unit 101 receives the list transmitted from the image recording device 11 in step S32 via the communication unit 103. The control unit 101 then records the list in the storage unit 102 (step S52). The control unit 101 may receive and store the list transmitted by the image recording device 11 via a push command, or may use the input device 104 to request the image recording device 11 to transmit the list at a timing instructed by a user of the server device 100 (e.g., an administrator of the server device 100; hereinafter referred to as the "administrator"), and may receive and store the list transmitted in response to the request. If the determination in step S51 is "NO," the control unit 101 proceeds to step S53.

[0098] Next, the control unit 101 determines whether to display an instruction input image on the display device 105 based on the instruction input to the input device 104 (step S53). If the determination in step S53 is "YES," the control unit 101 calls up a predetermined list stored in the storage unit 102 and causes the display device 105 to display an instruction input image based on the called up list (step S54). The administrator, for example, designates a train ID to instruct which train 1 the instruction input image for should be displayed. The control unit 101 reads out the list including that train ID and displays the instruction input image. If the determination in step S53 is "NO," the control unit 101 ends the processing of FIG. 12.

[0099] The instruction input image will be described. The instruction input image represents a user interface displayed based on a list. The control unit 101 of the server device 100 causes the display unit 105a of the display device 105 to display the instruction input image in a manner that clearly shows the portion where recorded image data exists. The instruction input image is displayed on the display unit 105a of the display device 105 in a manner that makes it easy to understand and specify the portion where image data exists. The control unit 101 may, for example, generate and display a table or graph based on the serial number data of the acquired list, the recording start time, and the recording end time.

[0100] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an instruction input image displayed based on the continuous recording list L1. In this example, the instruction input image is an image in the form of a horizontal bar graph, with the horizontal axis being the time axis and bar-shaped images (hereinafter simply referred to as "bars") 111 displayed in the portion where image data is recorded. The time axis is a time axis that specifies the time of shooting. In this example, the portion where image data is recorded allows visual understanding of the train 1, car 2 ("car A," "car B," "car C," etc. shown in FIG. 13) in which the image data is recorded, and the time.

[0101] In the example of FIG. 13 , for each vehicle 2, a bar 111 is displayed corresponding to the period during which image data was recorded. The bar 111 is interrupted and discontinuous in the region G corresponding to the non-recording period. Furthermore, for example, if the occurrence status of an event differs for each vehicle 2, the time period during which the bar 111 containing image data is displayed will also differ. Therefore, the administrator can visually grasp the period during which image data was recorded and the non-recording period. The bars 111 corresponding to each vehicle 2, such as "Vehicle A," "Vehicle B," "Vehicle C," etc., shown in FIG. 13 are displayed with a common time axis. Therefore, it is easy to visually grasp the status of image data recording for multiple vehicles 2. Note that although bars 111 are used here, the element for indicating the period during which image data was recorded for each of the multiple image recording devices 11 is not limited to this. For example, a different type of graph, such as a pie chart, may be used. Furthermore, a bar graph may be displayed for each image recording device 11.

[0102] In this embodiment, a single vehicle 2 may be provided with a plurality of image recording devices 11. Therefore, some of the plurality of image recording devices 11 may be recording image data, or none of the image recording devices 11 may have image data. In such a case, if image data is recorded in at least one image recording device 11 at each time, the control unit 101 may display a bar 111 in that portion. Furthermore, the control unit 101 may change the display mode, such as the color or shading, of each position on the time axis depending on the number of image recording devices 11 in which image data is recorded.

[0103] The administrator may specify a time (or a date and time) and a train ID. Trains generally operate according to a timetable, and therefore, when trains are running according to the timetable, the location of each train at a certain time is uniquely identified. Therefore, for example, if an event such as an accident or incident occurs on a certain train, the administrator may specify the train and the time of the event, and the control unit 101 may display an instruction input image according to the instruction. The administrator may specify a train ID and a vehicle ID, and in this case, the control unit 101 may display an instruction input image for vehicle 2 of train 1 specified by the train ID and vehicle ID.

[0104] Returning to FIG. The control unit 101 determines whether an instruction input has been received using the instruction input image (step S55). The control unit 101 determines, for example, whether an input specifying sequentially numbered data or a time has been received as information specifying the image data to be acquired from the image recording device 11. While the specific operation of the administrator is not particularly limited, for example, the administrator may specify a predetermined position on a bar 111 of the displayed graph according to input information from a pointing device such as a mouse constituting the input device 104. The specification may be performed, for example, by pinpointing a point by clicking a single point or by specifying a range from start to end (see the bidirectional arrow 115 in FIG. 13(b)). In the case of pinpoint specification, for example, sequentially numbered data or a time specified by a pointing device or the like may be selected. Alternatively, a predetermined number of sequentially numbered data including the specified sequentially numbered data may be selected at once, or the start and end times of a predetermined time period including the specified time may be selected at once. FIG. 13(b) illustrates an image of selecting sequentially numbered data within a circle 113 centered on the specified sequentially numbered data.

[0105] 13(b), when the instruction is received, the control unit 101 displays a confirmation button 114 such as "Receive via communication, OK?" in a predetermined area at the bottom of the display screen of the display device 105, or activates the originally displayed button. Furthermore, until the confirmation button 114 is operated by clicking or the like, it is preferable to allow multiple locations to be selected from those displayed in the instruction input image.

[0106] If an operation to select the confirmation button 114 (for example, a click operation) is performed, the control unit 101 determines "YES" in step S55. Next, the control unit 101 transmits an image transmission request to the target image recording device 11 (step S56). Specifically, the control unit 101 generates an image transmission request (for example, a transmission command) to the image recording device 11 that records the image data to be acquired based on the selected serial number data or time, and transmits the image transmission request to the target image recording device 11 using the communication unit 103. Because multiple image recording devices 11 are provided in one vehicle, the control unit 101 may request all image recording devices 11 in the vehicle to transmit images from the same time period.

[0107] The control unit 21 of the image recording device 11 receives (acquires) the image data sent from the server device 100 as a response to the image transmission request using the communication unit 103 (step S57). This image data is the image data sent by the image recording device 11 in response to the image transmission request in step S42.

[0108] The control unit 101 displays the image represented by the received image data on the display unit 105a (step S58). The control unit 101 may display the image represented by the image data in association with information identifying the image recording device 11, serial number data, shooting time, etc., which identify in which vehicle 2 and when the image data was recorded.

[0109] For example, the administrator specifies the image data to be acquired based on the displayed mark 112, information obtained from a separate traffic management system, or other sources. At this time, if the time of the incident is clear, pinpointing the time will reduce the volume of image data to be sent and received. Also, if the specific time of the incident is unclear and vague, such as around noon, it is a good idea to select a relatively wide, fixed time period by specifying the range and acquire as much image data as possible. This concludes the description of the operation of the server device 100.

[0110] In the server device 100, the control unit 101 may also acquire and display image data recorded by the event recording process from the image recording device 11 using an event record list in the same manner as in the continuous recording process described above. In this case, the instruction input image is displayed based on the event record list. The instruction input image may be divided by event type, or a single instruction input image may be used to accept input of instructions for multiple types of events. The control unit 101 may also display information indicating the presence of image data stored by the event recording process on the instruction input screen corresponding to the continuous recording process described in FIG. 13 . For example, the control unit 101 may display an image (landmark image) serving as a landmark, such as a predetermined mark, at a position on the instruction input image corresponding to the event occurrence time of the vehicle 2 where the event occurred. When this landmark image is selected by the administrator, the control unit 101 may acquire and display image data of the corresponding event recording process from the image recording device 11. Displaying the landmark image in a manner that allows the administrator to visually recognize the type of event allows the administrator to visually recognize what type of event has occurred.

[0111] As described above, in this embodiment, before transmitting image data captured and recorded on the recording medium 23, the image recording device 11 transmits a list for identifying the recorded image data to the server device 100, and then transmits the image data. This reduces the opportunity to transmit image data that does not need to be transmitted based on the list, thereby reducing communication volume and communication time. Furthermore, even if the communication line NW charges communication fees according to the communication volume, increases in communication fees can be suppressed. Furthermore, even if the communication line NW is a low-speed line, the list can be transmitted quickly so that the administrator of the server device 100 can understand what image data is recorded, and the server device 100 can quickly obtain image data that is highly necessary to transmit.

[0112] 4. Other Embodiments The present invention can be implemented in forms different from the above-described embodiment. For example, the present invention can be implemented in the following forms. The forms described below may be combined as appropriate.

[0113] (4-1) Display of instruction input image (4-1-1) Disclosure of incident information The control unit 101 may display the instruction input image in a manner that clearly indicates the presence of image data required by the administrator (e.g., makes the presence of image data clear). In this manner, the administrator can quickly select the required portion from the displayed instruction input image. The control unit 101 may, for example, display the time when an accident, incident, or other event (hereinafter referred to as an "incident, etc.") occurred. In addition to the time of occurrence, the control unit 101 may also display, for example, which train 1 and which car 2 the incident occurred in. For example, when a message such as "There was a pickpocket in car C around 12 o'clock" is displayed, the administrator can easily select sequential data around 12 o'clock from the list sent from the image recording device 11 installed in car C.

[0114] To implement this function, for example, the storage unit 102 of the server device 100 may store incident information relating to the occurrence of crimes, troubles, etc., such as molestation, fights, and pickpocketing, in the vehicle 2. The incident information may include information on the date and time of the incident, information identifying the train and vehicle on which the incident occurred, details of the incident, etc. This incident information may be known by a railway company or the like that manages the operation of the train 1, so the incident information may be registered in the memory of the server device 100. Furthermore, if the incident information is managed by another server or the like, the control unit 101 of the server device 100 may access the other server or the like to acquire the incident information.

[0115] If an incident or the like has occurred in the displayed vehicle 2 based on the incident or the like information, the control unit 101 may display an instruction input image in a manner that clearly indicates this. For example, the control unit 101 may display a message indicating the occurrence of the incident or the like, or display an image serving as a landmark at a position corresponding to the time of the incident or the like on the vehicle 2.

[0116] (4-1-2) Display of instruction input image for each image recording device 11 The control unit 101 may display an instruction input image for each individual image recording device 11. For example, if the list includes identification information for the image recording devices 11, the control unit 101 may display an instruction input image for each image recording device 11 based on the identification information. This is expected to have the effect of making it easier to visually grasp the status of image data recording for each image recording device 11. For example, when an incident such as pickpocketing or molestation occurs, it is often difficult to determine where the victim was within the vehicle 2 or which image recording device 11 recorded the incident, even if it is known which vehicle 2 the victim was in. Therefore, it is advisable to specify a vehicle and issue an image transmission request to multiple image recording devices 11 installed in the vehicle, and have the multiple image recording devices 11 transmit image data. The control unit 101 may perform processing to acquire and display image data for each image recording device 11.

[0117] The server device 100 may also be configured to allow selection between displaying the instruction input image for each vehicle 2 and displaying the instruction input image for each image recording device 11. For example, if the instruction input image is displayed for each image recording device 11, even if limited to a certain train, there may be a large number of image recording devices 11 installed there, and the displayed instruction input image may become cluttered and difficult to see. Therefore, for example, the control unit 101 may first display the instruction input image for each vehicle 2, and then, upon receiving a switch instruction by specifying one or a predetermined number (but less than the total number of vehicles) of vehicles 2, display the instruction input image for the image recording device 11 installed in the specified vehicle 2. The specification of the vehicle 2 to be switched and displayed may be, for example, an operation performed by the administrator when generating an image transmission request, i.e., a click on a vehicle 2 (in the illustrated example, "Vehicle A," "Vehicle B," "Vehicle C," etc.) or an operation performed by specifying sequentially numbered data for the bar 111 displayed in the graph. The different operation may be, for example, a single click (spot selection of sequentially numbered data) and a double click (display switching), etc.

[0118] By providing a function for switching from vehicle units to image recording device units in this way, if a specific location in vehicle D is known, such as a certain time and a certain part of the vehicle (for example, near the exit at the front of the vehicle, the center of the passenger compartment, etc.), it is possible to specify one or more image recording devices 11 that will record image data of that area and send an image transmission request. In this way, the number of image recording devices to which image transmission requests are sent can be reduced, and the number and volume of image data to be transmitted can also be reduced.

[0119] (4-2) Thinning transmission processing The image transmission process may include a "thinning-out transmission process" in which some image data specified by the image transmission request is thinned out and transmitted. The control unit 21 of the image recording device 11 records, for example, image data representing a moving image, including a first frame and a second frame representing an image captured by the photographing device 27 as a difference from the first frame, on the recording medium 23. The control unit 21 may then select the first frame from the image data specified by the image transmission request and transmit it to the server device 100. By selecting and transmitting the first frame, the control unit 21 can reduce the amount of communication traffic compared to when the second frame is also transmitted, and can display a relatively clear image (moving image) on the server device 100 side based on the first frame.

[0120] A specific example of operation will be described. For example, if the video data is in MPEG format, the first frame corresponds to an I frame and the second frame corresponds to a P frame. In this case, when transmitting image data Vn, the control unit 21 of the image recording device 11 extracts and transmits the I frames constituting the image data Vn, but does not transmit the P frames. While all image data specified in the image transmission request may be transmitted in this manner, it is preferable to perform appropriate thinning processing, read a portion of the image data from the recording medium 23, and transmit it to the server device 100. By transmitting a portion of the image data in this manner, it is possible to reduce communication traffic, communication time, and communication charges. For example, if the frame rate is 30 frames per second, I frames are inserted at a rate of 3 to 4 frames. All I frames per predetermined period (every 3 minutes) or only a portion of the I frames may be transmitted. In the latter case, it is preferable to transmit the first I frame of the predetermined period (divide). This is because it is possible to transmit sufficient image data necessary to understand the content of the captured image while reducing communication traffic. Alternatively, the administrator may select either the former or latter method using the input device 104.

[0121] (4-3) Installing an image recording device 11 in the driver's seat In the above-described embodiment, the image recording device 11 is installed near the door 3 of the vehicle 2. However, the installation location of the image recording device 11 is not limited thereto, and the image recording device 11 may be installed, for example, in the driver's cab 4. As shown in FIG. 14 , the driver's cab 4 includes a driver's cab 6, and the image recording device 11 may be installed, for example, on top of the driver's cab 6. When installed on the driver's cab 6, the image recording device 11 mainly captures the scenery outside the train 1 in the direction of travel. The direction of travel is the front of the train 1 in the case of the image recording device 11 installed in the driver's cab 4 of the lead car, and the rear of the train in the case of the image recording device 11 installed in the driver's cab 4 of the rear car. In the case of the image recording device 11 installed on the driver's cab 6 of the driver's cab 4, the central axis of the angle of view of the camera unit should be oriented toward the outside of the train in the direction of travel of the train.

[0122] In this way, for example, the image recording device 11 installed in the driver's cab 6 photographs the scenery outside in front of the vehicle in the direction of travel, and therefore, when a collision accident with a person or other object occurs in the lead vehicle, the image data recorded at that time can be obtained and used to investigate the accident. For example, in the case of a personal injury accident, this information is useful for analyzing and identifying the cause of the accident, such as whether the person ran into the vehicle themselves, for example, by jumping into the vehicle with force, or whether they were pushed by people around them, or whether an umbrella or other belongings got caught in the vehicle and the vehicle hit the person.

[0123] As described above, when a person or the like comes into contact with or collides with the front of vehicle 2, for example, the person may be in front of the vehicle, such as a person entering the tracks at a railroad crossing, or may enter from the side of the vehicle, such as a person on a platform. Therefore, with image recording device 11 installed in the cab 6, it is preferable that the photographing area of ​​imaging device 27 covers the area outside the side of vehicle 2, and that the angle of view in the left and right directions is wide. For example, a wide-angle camera may be used as imaging device 27.

[0124] Furthermore, if the height of the driver's cab 6 on which the image recording device 11 is installed is low, it is preferable to place a predetermined mounting base 8 on the top surface of the driver's cab 6 and mount the image recording device 11 on the mounting base 8. In this way, it is possible to appropriately adjust the vertical range of the angle of view of the camera 27 of the image recording device 11. It is preferable to use the mounting base 8 as a power supply box.

[0125] Furthermore, for example, the image capture device 27 includes a hemispherical lens (an example of a lens) with a 180-degree angle of view and an image capture element such as a CMOS sensor, and light passing through the hemispherical lens is converted into an electrical signal by the image capture element. With the image recording device 11 installed, the central axis of the angle of view of the image capture device 27 should preferably face horizontally forward. For example, some automobile drive recorders include a hemispherical lens, and such automobile drive recorders are mounted, for example, on the ceiling or above the windshield of the vehicle so that the central axis of the angle of view of the image capture device 27 faces directly downward.

[0126] By installing the image recording device in this manner and adjusting the length of the short side of the imaging range 200 of an imaging element such as a CMOS sensor to correspond to the diameter of the image circle 201 of light passing through the lens, as shown in FIG. 15(a), the light entering from the hemispherical lens can be captured over a wide area, enabling the entire 360-degree circumference in a horizontal plane to be captured. In this case, the center of the imaging range 200 is the area capturing the interior of the vehicle, and the right side of the image circle 201 of the imaging range 200 is the front imaging area 202 capturing the view ahead of the vehicle. If the image recording device is installed in the driver's cab of a train 1 in the same way, the interior of the cab will be captured along with the view outside in front of the vehicle. In this case, the area 180 degrees behind the image recording device 11 in the direction of travel of the vehicle will be the driver's cab, and the driver and the interior of the passenger car will be captured through the wall behind the cab or a glass window on that wall. Since the front imaging area 202 is based on light from a peripheral area offset from the center of the hemispherical lens, there is a risk of distortion, making it difficult to obtain the information necessary for verifying and analyzing the cause of the accident described above.

[0127] In contrast, when the hemispherical lens is arranged parallel to the horizontal direction and facing forward, as in this embodiment, the vehicle's front imaging area 202 is arranged in the center of the imaging range 200 as shown in Figure 15(b), allowing for accurate imaging. Furthermore, images of the interior of the driver's cab, which are not very important for investigating the cause of an accident, are not recorded, and necessary information about the outside of the vehicle can be appropriately recorded. Furthermore, privacy can be protected because the interior of the vehicle, including the driver, is not recorded.

[0128] (4-4) Relationship between image circle and imaging range of image sensor 15 and 16(a), if the length of the short side of the imaging range 200 is set to the diameter of the image circle (left diagram), the light entering from the lens can capture a wide range. However, the area that is not used for imaging on the imaging element becomes large (roughly half), so the imaging element cannot be used effectively, the image is captured small, and the quality of the imaging area in front that corresponds to the area that you actually want to see deteriorates.

[0129] 16(c), if the image circle 201 is placed outside the imaging range 200 of the image sensor, a wide range of light enters the image sensor. However, the light from the wide-angle lens that extends beyond the imaging range 200 cannot be captured, and the surrounding image cannot be confirmed.

[0130] 16(b), it is advisable to make the length of the longitudinal side of imaging range 200 correspond to the diameter of image circle 201. This allows imaging device 27 to capture a wider area in the longitudinal direction compared to when light passing through a hemispherical lens forms an image circle whose diameter is the width direction of the imaging element, and to capture most of the light entering from the hemispherical lens while reducing unused portions of the imaging element.

[0131] When capturing images using a hemispherical lens installed facing downward, if the imaging element is positioned so that the longitudinal direction of the imaging range 200 of the imaging element is parallel to the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle, as shown in FIG. 17(a), the longitudinal direction of the imaging range 200 corresponds to the front and rear of the vehicle, allowing for efficient capture of the forward view. The imaging range is narrower on the left and right sides of the vehicle. In the case of an automobile, for example, narrower imaging ranges on the left and right sides compared to the front and rear do not pose much of a problem. However, when implemented in the driver's cab of a train as in this embodiment, it may be undesirable to capture situations such as people jumping into the train from the left and right sides. Therefore, when capturing images using a hemispherical lens installed facing forward, it is recommended that the imaging element be positioned so that the longitudinal direction of the imaging range 200 of the imaging element is parallel to the left-to-right direction of the vehicle 2. In this way, as shown in FIG. 17(b), for example, the front imaging area 202 of the vehicle is located in the center of the imaging range 200, allowing for clear capture, and light entering through the hemispherical lens can also be captured in the left and right directions. For example, even if a person jumps into the train from the left or right, the situation at that time can be captured and recorded appropriately. In addition, by doing this, it may be impossible to capture the vertical edges, but there are tracks below, the sky above, and the position of the traffic lights installed beside the tracks is not very high so that the driver does not have to look up. In this way, the vertical edges are not very important information, so even if they are cut, there is little impact on analysis of the cause of the accident, etc.

[0132] In this embodiment, the case where the invention is applied to a train has been described, but this relationship between the image circle and the imaging range can also be applied to automobiles and other vehicles. For example, collisions from the left and right can be clearly captured, and the front can also be clearly captured, and privacy can be protected because the interior, including the driver, is not recorded. This is suitable when such effects are expected.

[0133] (4-5) LED traffic light compatible The image recording device 11, which is attached directly or indirectly to the driver's cab 6 and is equipped with a camera 27 for taking pictures of the area ahead of the vehicle, also takes pictures of traffic lights installed along the tracks and records the pictures on the recording medium 23. If the traffic lights installed along the tracks are LED traffic lights, the light source blinks, so if the light is photographed when it is off, the emitted light color will not be captured. If the timing of photographing coincides with the timing when the blinking light source goes off for a long period of time, all of the LEDs on the traffic lights will remain off, making it impossible to properly carry out various inspections, etc.

[0134] To solve this problem, for example, it is a good idea to shift the shooting timing by 1 to 2 Hz compared to the LED blinking cycle. In this way, if you shoot 30 frames per second, for example, some frames will show the LED and others will not. If the LED is lit in some frames, when you play it back continuously, it will flash and you will know that it is there.

[0135] Furthermore, for example, if only one or a predetermined number of I frames are sent in response to a request to send image data based on sequential data as described above, the image data for one frame becomes important, and if the I frame being sent was captured when the LED was turned off, it will be inappropriate for various verifications, etc. Therefore, since there is no point in having even one frame of data captured when the LED was turned off, the method of slightly shifting the cycle described above cannot be said to be a sufficient LED countermeasure.

[0136] Therefore, in this embodiment, while a typical imaging device 27 has one sensor per pixel, this imaging device is configured to have a first sensor and a second sensor per pixel. The first sensor has a second light-receiving portion that is larger than the second sensor. The imaging element then captures images at a first cycle using the first light-receiving portion and at a cycle longer than the first cycle using the second light-receiving portion. This is because the second light-receiving portion has a smaller light-receiving portion (e.g., light-receiving surface) than the first light-receiving portion, allowing it to capture more light. Therefore, the first light-receiving portion and the second light-receiving portion have different light-receiving periods (also referred to as exposure periods).

[0137] The first sensor, which has a small first light receiving unit, is designed to achieve a certain level of sensitivity, similar to that implemented in a typical imaging device 27, and the exposure time for one image cannot be very long, for example, on the order of several milliseconds. For example, if an LED traffic light operates at 60 Hz from a commercial power source, the LED blinks at 16.6 milliseconds. This can result in an image being captured when the LED is off. Meanwhile, the second light receiving unit can receive light from the lit LED and capture an image by lengthening the exposure time so that the lit state of the blinking LED is always present within the exposure time for one image capture.

[0138] In the image sensor, the first and second light receiving sections are configured, for example, so that the shutters are open during periods when light is received and closed during periods when light is not received, but the mechanism for switching between receiving and not receiving light is not limited to this. The image sensor combines and outputs a signal indicating the light reception result of the first light receiving section and a signal indicating the light reception result of the second light receiving section for each pixel. This combined signal reflects the amount of light received by the first and second light receiving sections, allowing the control unit 21 to generate and store images that are less affected by flashing LED traffic lights, etc. With this image sensor, the second light receiving section receives light even during periods when the first light receiving section does not receive light, thereby reducing the possibility of flashing LED traffic lights, etc. being captured compared to a configuration in which a single light receiving section is provided for each pixel. Furthermore, using an image sensor with this pixel structure and exposure method is expected to enable the capture of high-quality images with a wide dynamic range, even in scenes with large differences in brightness, such as entrances and exits.

[0139] (4-6) Event type The event may be any other event. For example, the event may be the detection of a predetermined sound by the microphone 28. In the case of the image recording device 11 installed above the door 3, for example, the image recording device 11 collects the voices of people on the platform near the door 3 while the train 1 is stopped at the station platform. The control unit 21 may be provided with a function to record the sound data collected by the microphone 28 in the recording medium 23 in association with image data, or to start event recording processing in response to the generation of a predetermined sound. For example, by performing event recording processing that records image data for a period including the moment when yelling occurs, it is possible to record as images an incident such as a fight or some other problem. In this case, the information is written to an event record list separate from the event record lists L21 to L24.

[0140] (4-7) Type of data to be recorded (recording of historical information) For a moving object, such as a train, traveling along a fixed route according to a timetable, the location of the moving object can be determined based on the time. Furthermore, the location of the moving object can be identified from images captured by the camera device 27. Because time information is important for trains and other moving objects, in the above-described embodiment, the recorded image data is stored in association with the time information. The control unit 21 may be equipped with a function for recording historical information other than time information in association with the image data. The historical information indicates the history of the traveling of the train 1 or vehicle 2, and may be, for example, information related to traveling, such as speed and acceleration calculated based on location information acquired from the location information acquisition unit 26 and the history of changes in the location information. This information may be recorded as text data. The historical information may be recorded in the continuous record list L1 or each event record list. The historical records can be used, for example, to verify whether the train is running on schedule, identify the exact location in the event of a delay, determine the distance traveled by the train, verify the discrepancy between the speed in the historical information acquired by the location information acquisition unit 26 and the speed indicated on the train's indicators, and investigate the cause of an accident.

[0141] The history information may also include information about the vehicle status, such as the open / closed state of the door 3. This allows for confirmation of, for example, the relationship between the timing of the vehicle's running / stopping and the opening / closing of the door 3, such as the time from when the vehicle 2 stops until the door 3 opens, the situation of the vehicle running with the door 3 open, and the status of passengers and others at that time based on image data. If the image recording device 11 is installed in a recessed location, such as the center of the ceiling of the vehicle 2, where reception of GPS signals is poor, the position information acquisition unit 26, such as a GPS module, may be a separate type that is separated from the main body, and the position information acquisition unit 26 may be located near a window or outside the vehicle. Additionally, if the image recording device 11 is capable of acquiring information about the history of driving operations such as the accelerator and brake, this information may be included in the history information. The history information may be transmitted to the server device 100 by being included in a list or by other methods.

[0142] (4-8) Image transmission request using history information The server device 100 may transmit an image transmission request using the history information described in (4-7) to the image recording device 11. The server device 100 can obtain information for appropriate operation management by requesting the selection and transmission of image data captured while driving at a specific location or section, for example, or by requesting the selection and transmission of image data captured while driving dangerously, such as at high speed.

[0143] The image recording device 11 may transmit history information as follows. When the image recording device 11 transmits history information in real time, if an accident such as a derailment is unlikely to occur, the server device 100 can issue an alarm in advance from, for example, the image recording device 11 installed in the driver's seat, thereby notifying the driver. By using text data for the history information, like the list, the communication load can be reduced even when transmitted in real time. The transmission timing of the history information can also be set, for example, at railroad crossings, places where personal injury accidents are frequent, sharp curves, and other dangerous driving sections. In this specification, transmitting information in real time means transmitting distribution information at the same time as the information is acquired, or at least at a level at which no reception delay is noticeable.

[0144] (4-9) List sending process and image sending process The control unit 21 may transmit image data recorded on the recording medium 23 when connected to a radio whose communication area is a predetermined section on the route of the train 1. This embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 18. Consider a case where the train 1 travels along route R with the right direction in FIG. 18 as its direction of travel (the forward direction of the train 1). In section R1, communication is possible via wireless LAN within the communication area Ar1 of the radio device AP1. Section R2, which is downstream of section R1 in the direction of travel, is outside the communication area Ar1, and is connected to a base station BS for wireless communication via a public line. In section R3, which is downstream of section R2 in the direction of travel, communication is possible via wireless LAN within the communication area Ar2 of the radio device AP2.

[0145] In this case, the control unit 21 transmits the generated list regardless of whether the train 1 is located in any of the sections R1 to R3, i.e., regardless of whether the image recording device 11 is connected to the wireless device AP1, AP2, or base station BS. Regarding image data, the control unit 21 connects to the wireless devices AP1 and AP2 and transmits the image data when the train 1 is located in section R1 or R3, but suppresses the transmission when the train 1 is located in section R2 and connected to the base station BS. Suppressing transmission means reducing the amount of image data transmitted, at least compared to when the transmission is not suppressed, by not transmitting or reducing the frequency of transmission. When the train 1 enters the communication area Ar1 and connects to the wireless device AP1, the control unit 21 receives an image transmission request and transmits image data in response to the image transmission request via the wireless device AP1. If the image data could not be transmitted while connected to the wireless device AP1, the control unit 21 may connect the image recording device 11 to the base station BS and transmit the image data. Alternatively, the control unit 21 may postpone the transmission until the train 1 enters the communication area Ar2 and connects to the wireless device AP2, and then transmit the image data after connecting to the wireless device AP2. The former is advantageous in that image data can be transmitted to the server device 100 quickly, and the latter is advantageous in that increases in communication charges are suppressed. For example, the latter is used when image data does not need to be transmitted in real time. The control unit 21 may use the latter for continuous recording and the former for event recording processing.

[0146] Furthermore, when the control unit 21 receives an image transmission request after the train 1 has left the communication area Ar1 and connected to the base station BS, the control unit 21 may suspend transmission of image data at that time and transmit the image data after the train 1 enters the communication area Ar2 and connects to the wireless device AP2. In this way, an increase in communication charges can be suppressed. The control unit 21 may suspend transmission of the event recording process until the train 1 connects to the wireless device AP2, and may transmit the image data after connecting to the base station BS.

[0147] Wireless devices for LAN communication such as wireless devices AP1 and AP2 may be installed anywhere, but it is preferable to install them so that their communication area includes sections on the route where there is a high need to transmit image data, such as the curves, railroad crossings, boarding and disembarking areas, etc. In this way, when the train 1 is traveling through a section where image data needs to be transmitted quickly, the transmission can be achieved with a simple configuration.

[0148] Regarding the image data to be transmitted by the image recording device 11, all unsent image data may be transmitted, but it is also possible to adopt a method in which not all image data is transmitted, such as transmitting image data being captured by the photographing device 27 in real time.

[0149] Even when the image recording device 11 is connected to the base station BS, the control unit 21 may transmit image data captured by the image capturing device 27 in real time while the vehicle is traveling in the specific section Se. The specific section Se may be a section where there are circumstances that require the immediate transmission of image data, such as curves, railroad crossings, and boarding and disembarking areas where accidents are likely to occur. In this way, images captured in the specific section Se can be viewed promptly on the server device 100 side.

[0150] (4-9) Linkage with System 300 The control unit 21 of the image recording device 11 may perform processing to output information according to the status of the train 1 identified by the location information acquired by the location information acquisition unit 26 and the status of the train 1 identified by the information acquired from the system 300. The output information may be display data for displaying these in a comparable manner, or information indicating the reliability of the status of the train 1 identified by the location information acquired by the location information acquisition unit 26. By using both the location information measured by the train 1 and the information acquired from the system 300, the reliability of the status of the train 1 indicated by the information is improved compared to when information from only one source is used.

[0151] (4-10) Image data recording and processing The image recording device 11 may have only one of the event recording mode and the continuous recording mode. Even if the image recording device 11 has both modes, it may operate in only one mode depending on the settings of an administrator or other person.

[0152] (4-11) Mobile Vehicles to which the present invention can be applied are not limited to those described in the above-described embodiments. Vehicles may also be vehicles such as taxis, rental cars, and hire cars. Vehicles may also be vehicles other than automobiles, such as ships and airplanes. In the case of these vehicles, the route along which the vehicle travels may not be provided with a track such as a rail, but it is preferable that a specific route along which the vehicle travels is determined, such as a specific path. However, the present invention may also be applied to passenger cars and other vehicles or moving bodies that do not have such a specific route determined.

[0153] The scope of the present invention is not limited to the structures explicitly described in the specification, but also includes combinations of various aspects of the present invention disclosed herein. The structures of the present invention that are sought to be patented are specified in the appended claims, but it is the intention of the present inventors to claim structures disclosed in this specification in the future, even if they are not currently specified in the claims.

[0154] The present invention is not limited to the configurations described in the above-described embodiments. The components of each of the above-described embodiments and variations may be arbitrarily selected and combined. Furthermore, any component of each embodiment or variation may be arbitrarily combined with any component described in the Summary of the Invention or any component embodying any component described in the Summary of the Invention. The present invention also intends to obtain rights to these configurations through amendments or divisional applications of the present application. Even if a description is made of "in the case of..." or "when...," it is not intended to describe a configuration limited to that case or time. Configurations that are not limited to those cases or times are also disclosed, and the present invention intends to obtain rights to them. Furthermore, any descriptions that specify an order are not limited to this order. Configurations in which some parts are deleted or the order is changed are also disclosed, and the present invention intends to obtain rights to them.

[0155] Furthermore, we intend to obtain rights to the overall design or partial design by converting the application to a design registration. The drawings depict the entire device using solid lines, but they also include partial designs claimed for parts of the device. For example, a partial design can be a partial design for a part of the device, or a part of that part. A partial design can be a part of the device, or a part of that part. We intend to obtain rights not only for the overall design, but also for partial designs in which any part of the solid line portion of the drawing is drawn as a broken line. Furthermore, the modules, components, parts, images, etc. inside the device's casing, all of which are shown in the drawings, are subject to independent commerce, and we intend to similarly obtain rights by converting the application to a design registration. [Explanation of symbols]

[0156] 1: Train 2: Vehicle 3: Door 4: Crew cabin 5: Crew door 6: Driver's cab 8: Mounting base 10:Display device 11: Image recording device 20: Train 21: Control unit 22: Reader / writer 23: Recording media 24: Data output terminal 25: Communications Department 26: Location information acquisition section 27: Imaging device 28:Mike 29: Internal clock 100: Server device 101: Control unit 102: Storage section 103: Communications Department 104: Input device 105:Display device 105a:Display screen 111: Bar 112: Mark 113 yen 114: Confirm button 200: Image capture range 201: Image Circle 202: Forward imaging area 300: System

Claims

1. An image recording device that is installed in a mobile body and communicates with an external device via a predetermined communication line, a process of recording image data representing an image captured by an imaging means provided on the moving body in a recording means; a process of generating identification information for identifying the image data recorded in the recording means; a process of transmitting the specific information to the device; An image recording device having a control unit that performs the above.

2. The control unit Prior to transmitting the image data recorded in the recording means, a process of transmitting the specific information to the device is performed.

2. The image recording device according to claim 1.

3. The control unit When an image transmission request generated based on the specified information is received from an external device, the image data specified by the image transmission request recorded in the recording means is transmitted to the device.

3. The image recording device according to claim 1.

4. the image data is data representing a plurality of images arranged on a predetermined time axis, The identification information includes information that identifies the position of each of the plurality of images on the time axis.

4. The image recording device according to claim 1.

5. The identification information includes information for identifying at least one of a time period during which the image data is recorded in the recording means and a time period during which the image data is not recorded.

5. The image recording device according to claim 1.

6. the moving body is a vehicle that travels along a predetermined route, The identifying information includes an identification assigned to the vehicle.

6. The image recording device according to claim 1.

7. the moving body is a vehicle configured by connecting a plurality of vehicles, The specific information includes identification information of the vehicle in which the image was taken.

7. The image recording device according to claim 1.

8. The control unit When a condition indicating that a predetermined event has occurred in the moving body is satisfied, the image data showing images captured during a period including the time point at which the event occurred is recorded in the recording means.

8. The image recording device according to claim 6 or 7.

9. The conditions include a condition regarding at least one of a position of the moving object and a state of the moving object.

9. The image recording device according to claim 8.

10. The conditions include a condition regarding the vehicle traveling through a curved section of the route.

10. The image recording device according to claim 8 or 9.

11. A track on which the vehicle travels is installed on the route, The conditions include a condition regarding the vehicle traveling through a railroad crossing on the route.

11. The image recording device according to claim 8.

12. A boarding and disembarking location for the vehicle is provided at a predetermined position on the route, The conditions include conditions regarding the vehicle's approach to, arrival at, and departure from the boarding and alighting location.

12. The image recording device according to claim 8 or 11.

13. The condition includes that a door provided in the moving object is opened.

13. The image recording device according to claim 8 or 12.

14. The conditions include conditions related to information acquired from a system that controls the running of the vehicle or a system that detects the running state of the vehicle.

14. The image recording device according to claim 8.

15. The control unit performing a process of recording, in the recording means, moving image data composed of a first frame representing an image acquired from the photographing means and a second frame representing an image photographed by the photographing means as a difference from the first frame; When an image transmission request generated based on the specified information is received, a process of transmitting image data of the first frame among the image data specified by the image transmission request is performed.

15. The image recording device according to claim 1.

16. The control unit When the vehicle is located within a predetermined section on the route, a process of transmitting the image data recorded in the recording means is performed, and when the vehicle is located outside the predetermined section on the route, the transmission of the image data recorded in the recording means is suppressed.

16. The image recording device according to claim 1.

17. The predetermined section is a section where communication charges are lower or communication speeds are higher than those outside the predetermined section.

17. The image recording device according to claim 16.

18. The control unit performs a process of transmitting the specific information even when the vehicle is located outside a predetermined section on the route.

18. The image recording device according to claim 16 or 17.

19. The photographing means includes a photographing device having a lens that collects light from ahead of the vehicle and an image sensor that forms an image circle by the collected light, The diameter of the image circle is set to correspond to the length of the imaging element in the longitudinal direction, When the photographing device is installed, the longitudinal direction of the image sensor faces the left-right direction.

19. An image recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 18.

20. A server device that communicates with the image recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 19 via the communication line, a process of transmitting an image transmission request to the image recording device based on the specific information received from the image recording device; a control unit that performs a process of acquiring image data specified by the image transmission request from the image recording device; A server device having the above configuration.

21. The control unit of the server device a process of displaying an instruction input image on a display device based on the identification information received from the image recording device; a process of receiving an instruction input using the instruction input image; a process of transmitting the image transmission request to the image recording device based on the received input instruction; The server device according to claim 20,

22. the image data is data representing a plurality of images arranged on a predetermined time axis, The control unit of the server device performs processing to display the instruction input image that clearly indicates periods on the time axis during which the image data is recorded and periods during which the image data is not recorded.

22. The server device according to claim 21.

23. The control unit of the server device performs processing to transmit the image transmission request in response to the instruction input to the element that specifies the period during which the image data is recorded.

23. The server device according to claim 21 or 22.

24. There are a plurality of the image recording devices, The control unit of the server device A process of acquiring the specific information from a plurality of the image recording devices; A time axis defining the photographing time is used as a common time axis, and processing is performed to display elements that clearly indicate the period during which the image data was recorded for each of the plurality of image recording devices.

24. The server device according to any one of claims 21 to 23.

25. A program for causing a computer to function as a control unit of the image recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

26. A program for causing a computer to function as a control unit of the server device according to any one of claims 20 to 24.

Images