Vehicle traffic rule compliance determination system

Abstract

This system provides a vehicle traffic rule compliance determination system that prevents the determination of a vehicle's compliance with traffic rules from being based on the walking pattern of a user who has disembarked from the vehicle. [Solution] The portable information terminal 2 includes a first detection unit 21 capable of detecting its own location information in association with time information, a second detection unit 22 capable of detecting the walking of the user carrying it in association with time information, and a transmission unit 23 capable of transmitting the location information associated with time information as driving information, and the walking information associated with time information as walking information. The determination device 3 includes a determination unit 33 that determines the correspondence of vehicle X to each traffic rule on registered road Y based on the driving information, road location information stored in the storage unit 31, and traffic rules stored in the storage unit 31, and the determination unit 33 at least temporarily suspends subsequent determinations if the walking information indicates the user's walking.

Description

Technical Field

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[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle traffic rule response determination system capable of preventing the determination of the vehicle's response to traffic rules based on the walking of a user who has disembarked from the vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a technique for evaluating the response of a vehicle to traffic rules based on position information acquired by a GPS device mounted on the vehicle has been known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the above technique, an example where a GPS device is mounted on a vehicle is shown, but it is conceivable to use a GPS function mounted on a portable information terminal such as a smartphone instead of the GPS mounted on the vehicle.

[0005] However, since a portable information terminal is often carried even when a user disembarks from a vehicle, using the GPS function mounted on the portable information terminal is expected to have a problem that the response of the vehicle to traffic rules is determined based on the walking of the user who has disembarked from the vehicle.

[0006] Also, a configuration in which a switch for instructing the start of the above determination is provided on the portable information terminal and the determination is made only while the switch is on is conceivable, but in this case, it is also expected that the user forgets to turn off the switch when getting off the vehicle.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a vehicle traffic rule compliance determination system that can prevent the determination of a vehicle's compliance with traffic rules from being based on the walking pattern of a user who has disembarked from the vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] To solve the above problems, the present invention provides a traffic rule compliance determination system comprising a user's portable information terminal and a determination device, wherein the portable information terminal comprises a first detection unit capable of detecting its own location information in association with time information, a second detection unit capable of detecting the walking of the user carrying the terminal in association with time information, and a transmission unit capable of transmitting the location information associated with the time information as driving information and the walking information associated with the time information as walking information, wherein the determination device comprises a storage unit that stores road location information relating to each location of a plurality of registered roads and a plurality of traffic rules defined for vehicles traveling on each registered road, a receiving unit capable of receiving the driving information and the walking information, and a determination unit that determines the vehicle's compliance with each traffic rule on the registered road based on the driving information, the road location information and the traffic rules, wherein the determination unit provides a traffic rule compliance determination system characterized in that, if the walking information indicates the user's walking, it at least temporarily suspends subsequent determinations.

[0009] With this configuration, the judgment process is stopped if the user gets out of the vehicle for personal reasons during driving, thus preventing the vehicle's compliance with traffic rules from being determined based on the user's walking.

[0010] Furthermore, from another perspective of the present invention, a traffic rule compliance determination program and a traffic rule compliance determination method corresponding to the above-mentioned traffic rule compliance determination system are provided. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the traffic rule compliance determination system of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the determination of a vehicle's compliance with traffic rules from being based on the walking of a user who has disembarked from the vehicle. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] Diagram illustrating the determination of a vehicle's compliance with traffic rules according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Block diagram of a traffic rule compliance determination system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] Diagram illustrating the rule application position according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] Flowchart for determining compliance with traffic rules according to an embodiment of the present invention [Figure 5] Block diagram of a traffic rule compliance determination system according to a modified example of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] The following describes a vehicle traffic rule compliance determination system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention with reference to Figures 1-4.

[0014] As shown in Figure 1, the traffic rule compliance determination system 1 is for determining whether vehicle X complies with traffic rules, and as shown in Figure 2, it comprises a portable information terminal 2 and a determination device 3.

[0015] The portable information terminal 2 can be a user-carryable device such as a smartphone, and the portable information terminal 2 comprises a first detection unit 21, a second detection unit 22, a transmission unit 23, and a start switch 24.

[0016] The first detection unit 21 can detect its own location information in association with time information. It is conceivable that a known GPS function could be used as the first detection unit 21.

[0017] In this embodiment, the first detection unit 21 detects the location information of vehicle X when the mobile information terminal 2 is inside vehicle X, and detects the location information of the user when the mobile information terminal 2 is carried by the user and is outside vehicle X.

[0018] The second detection unit 22 can detect the walking of the user carrying itself in association with time information. As the second detection unit 22, it is conceivable to use a known pedometer function.

[0019] In the present embodiment, the second detection unit 22 detects walking when the user who has got off the vehicle X is walking while carrying the portable information terminal 2, but does not detect the walking of the user when the portable information terminal 2 is present inside the vehicle X.

[0020] The transmission unit 23 can transmit the position information associated with the detected time information as running information and the walking associated with the detected time information as walking information.

[0021] The start switch 24 is operated by the user to instruct the start of the determination by the determination device 3.

[0022] In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the determination is started when the user turns on the start switch 24 at the start of the operation of the vehicle X, and the determination is ended when the user turns off the start switch 24 at the end of the operation. Further, when the user gets off the vehicle X due to necessity or the like during the operation, the determination is aborted by turning off the start switch 24, and when the operation is resumed, the determination is resumed by turning on the start switch 24 again.

[0023] The determination device 3 includes a storage unit 31, a reception unit 32, and a determination unit 33.

[0024] The storage unit 31 stores road position information regarding each position of a plurality of registered roads Y (see FIG. 1) and a plurality of traffic rules defined for vehicles traveling on each registered road Y.

[0025] It is preferable to store as many roads as possible as registered roads Y, for example, all roads in Japan. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 1, each link is treated as a registered road Y.

[0026] The road location information can be the latitude and longitude of each registered road Y, and it is preferable to store the latitude and longitude of the area that includes each registered road Y in the storage unit 31.

[0027] Traffic rules can be those indicated by road signs (regulatory signs, directional signs, supplementary signs), road markings (regulatory markings, directional markings), etc. The latitude and longitude of the location to which these rules apply can be, for example, those listed in decision-making data issued by public safety commissions, police stations, etc. If the decision-making data is described by address, it is preferable to store in the storage unit 31 information that has been converted in advance to latitude and longitude for the area included in that address.

[0028] These rule application locations do not need to be displayed on a map as they can be handled in the data, but for ease of understanding, if the latitude and longitude of these rule application locations are displayed, it will look like Figure 3. In Figure 3, the latitude and longitude of multiple rule application locations to which a predetermined speed limit applies form point cluster A, the latitude and longitude of multiple rule application locations to which a stop sign applies form point cluster B, and the latitude and longitude of multiple rule application locations to which parking is prohibited apply form point cluster C.

[0029] The receiving unit 32 is capable of receiving driving information and walking information transmitted from the transmitting unit 23. It is preferable to receive the driving information and walking information sequentially in short intervals. In this embodiment, the traffic rule compliance judgment system 1 is installed in a communication center or the like, and communication with the mobile information terminal 2 is performed wirelessly.

[0030] The determination unit 33 determines the correspondence of vehicle X to each traffic rule on registered road Y based on driving information, road location information, and traffic rules. In this embodiment, the determination of the correspondence of vehicle X to each traffic rule on registered road Y is made based on driving information, road location information, and traffic rules after the start of the determination is instructed by the start switch 24.

[0031] In detail, the system determines the registered road Y that vehicle X traveled on based on the road location information stored in the memory unit 31 and the location information included in the driving information. It then extracts the traffic rules applicable to the determined registered road Y from the memory unit 31 and determines whether vehicle X violated any rules based on the extracted traffic rules and the acquired driving information.

[0032] As a method for determining whether a violation has occurred, for example, in the case of a speeding violation, it could be determined if the speed exceeds a predetermined amount in the speed-restricted section (point collection area A in Figure 3), and in the case of a stop sign violation, it could be determined if the vehicle has not stopped for a predetermined amount of time within a few meters before or after the stop sign (point collection area B in Figure 3). The speed of vehicle X can be calculated by dividing the distance between the positional information of the two points in question by the time between them.

[0033] In this way, the traffic rule compliance determination system 1 according to this embodiment determines the compliance of vehicle X with each traffic rule while the start switch 24 is turned on.

[0034] However, it is foreseeable that the user may forget to turn off the start switch 24 when getting out of vehicle X for personal reasons, in which case the vehicle X's compliance with traffic rules will be determined based on the user's walking. Furthermore, it is foreseeable that the user may forget to turn on the start switch 24 when resuming driving, in which case the vehicle X's compliance with traffic rules will not be determined.

[0035] Therefore, in the traffic rule compliance determination system 1 according to this embodiment, if the detected walking information indicates that the user is walking, the determination unit 33 will at least temporarily suspend subsequent determinations. In this embodiment, in particular, even after the start of determination has been instructed, that is, even if the start switch 24 remains ON, if the detected walking information indicates that the user is walking, subsequent determinations will at least temporarily suspend them.

[0036] This means that the detected pedestrian information indicates the user's pedestrian movement, leading to the inference that "the user has disembarked from vehicle X."

[0037] This prevents the system from determining whether vehicle X complies with traffic rules based on the user's walking, even if the user forgets to turn off the start switch 24 when getting out of vehicle X for personal reasons during driving.

[0038] Furthermore, even when the portable information terminal 2 is inside the vehicle X, the second detection unit 22 may mistakenly detect walking due to vibrations of the vehicle X, etc. Therefore, it is preferable that the determination unit 33 "at least temporarily suspends subsequent determinations if walking information indicates the user walking continuously or intermittently over a predetermined period of time." It is preferable to set the predetermined period to a value such that walking is not mistakenly detected due to vibrations of the vehicle X, etc.

[0039] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the determination unit 33 resumes the determination if, after discontinuing the determination, the walking information does not indicate the user's walking for a predetermined period of time.

[0040] This means that because the walking data did not indicate the user walking for a predetermined period of time, it is presumed that "the user re-boarded vehicle X."

[0041] It is preferable to set an appropriate time for the predetermined period such that the assessment is not restarted even if the user does not walk for a short period of time.

[0042] This allows the system to resume determining whether the user has re-boarded vehicle X, thus preventing the system from failing to determine vehicle X's compliance with traffic rules. Furthermore, since the system only needs to turn the start switch 24 on or off at the start and end of driving, there is no need to turn the start switch 24 on or off when getting off the vehicle midway through driving, thus reducing the user's workload.

[0043] Next, the control flow in the traffic rule compliance determination system 1 of this embodiment will be explained using the flowchart in Figure 4. In Figure 4, the explanation assumes that the user has turned on the start switch 24 at the start of driving and is in the process of determination, and that the start switch 24 has not been turned off since then.

[0044] First, if the walking information indicates that the user is walking (S1: YES), the subsequent determination is temporarily suspended (S2).

[0045] Next, if the walking information does not indicate the user's walking for a predetermined period of time (S3:NO), the determination process is restarted (S4).

[0046] As described above, in the traffic rule compliance determination system 1 according to this embodiment, even after the start of the determination has been instructed, if the detected walking information indicates that the user is walking, the subsequent determination will be suspended at least temporarily.

[0047] With this configuration, even if the user forgets to turn off the start switch 24 when getting out of vehicle X for personal reasons during driving, the determination will be stopped as if the user had gotten out of vehicle X, thus preventing the vehicle X's compliance with traffic rules from being determined based on the user's walking.

[0048] Furthermore, in the traffic rule compliance determination system 1 according to this embodiment, if the determination is suspended and no walking information indicates the user walking for a predetermined period of time, the determination is resumed.

[0049] With this configuration, the determination process resumes as if the user has re-boarded vehicle X, thus preventing the system from failing to determine vehicle X's compliance with traffic rules. Furthermore, since the start switch 24 only needs to be turned on or off at the start and end of driving, there is no need to turn the start switch 24 on or off when alighting during driving, thus reducing the user's workload.

[0050] Furthermore, the traffic rule compliance determination system of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and improvements are possible within the scope described in the claims.

[0051] For example, in the above embodiment, "the determination is resumed if, after the determination is stopped, walking information does not indicate the user walking for a predetermined period of time." However, in cases such as long meetings at a client's location, it is conceivable that no walking will be detected for a predetermined period of time. In such cases, the determination may be resumed even though the user has not re-boarded vehicle X.

[0052] In such cases, it might be possible to set the predetermined time longer to account for cases where no walking is detected for an extended period. However, if the predetermined time is set too long, there is a possibility that even if the driver re-boards vehicle X and driving resumes, the determination will not be made until the predetermined time has elapsed.

[0053] Therefore, the determination unit 33 may be configured to "restart the determination if the driving information indicates a speed above a predetermined level after the determination has been stopped."

[0054] This means that the system is inferring that "the user has re-boarded vehicle X" because the driving information indicates a speed above a certain threshold.

[0055] A speed exceeding a certain limit could be set at around 30 km / h, which is difficult for an average person to achieve even while running.

[0056] With this configuration, it becomes possible to estimate that the user has re-boarded vehicle X and resume the determination process, even though it is a simple method.

[0057] However, as mentioned above, if the speed is set to a high speed of around 30 km / h, the judgment will not resume for a while after vehicle X resumes operation. On the other hand, if the speed is set to a low speed, the judgment will resume even with just a light jog by the user.

[0058] Therefore, the determination unit 33 may be configured to "resume determination if, after discontinuing determination, walking information does not indicate the user walking for a predetermined period of time, and running information indicates a speed above a predetermined level." In this case, it is preferable to set the predetermined period to a short time and the speed above a predetermined level to a low speed.

[0059] In this case, when the user resumes driving vehicle X, the pedestrian information will not indicate the user walking, so the determination will resume when the vehicle reaches the speed set to low. On the other hand, if the user is not driving vehicle X (has gotten out of vehicle X), even if the user runs at a speed above the predetermined speed, the pedestrian information will indicate the user walking, so the determination will not resume.

[0060] By the way, in the above embodiment and modified examples, if a user gets out of their own vehicle X (vehicle X that they were driving that day) and then gets into someone else's vehicle, the judgment process will be restarted.

[0061] Therefore, the determination unit 33 may be configured to "resume determination if the location information moves outside a predetermined range from the position where determination was stopped or the position where walking information indicated the user was walking, and then returns to the predetermined range, and walking information does not indicate the user was walking for a predetermined period of time, or / or if the running information indicates a speed of a predetermined level or higher."

[0062] With this configuration, it is possible to estimate when the user has returned to the vicinity of their vehicle X, making it possible to more reliably determine whether vehicle X is complying with traffic rules.

[0063] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, we assumed that the user would alight from vehicle X during driving, and therefore described the control including the user re-boarding vehicle X. However, control including the user re-boarding vehicle X is not essential. For example, if the user ends driving vehicle X, it is sufficient to simply "stop subsequent determinations if the walking information indicates the user is walking," and control including the user re-boarding vehicle X is not essential. Thus, even when control including the user re-boarding vehicle X is not performed, the present invention's provision of "stopping subsequent determinations at least temporarily if the walking information indicates the user is walking" is still included.

[0064] Furthermore, although the above embodiment included a start switch 24, as shown in Figure 5, the configuration may be such that the start switch 24 is omitted and the determination starts / stops automatically.

[0065] In this case, it is conceivable to configure the determination unit 33 to "determine the vehicle X's compliance with each traffic rule on registered road Y based on the driving information, road location information, and traffic rules when the driving information indicates a speed above a predetermined level."

[0066] In this case, in order to prevent the determination from starting when the user gets into someone else's vehicle, it is preferable to register the location of the user's vehicle X, such as a parking lot, in the portable information terminal 2 or determination device 3, and to configure the determination unit 33 to "determine the vehicle X's compliance with each traffic rule on the registered road Y based on the driving information, road location information, and traffic rules when the location detected by the first detection unit 21 is within a predetermined range from the registered location and the driving information indicates a speed of a predetermined level or higher."

[0067] Subsequently, when discontinuing the determination, it is conceivable to configure the determination unit 33 to "at least temporarily discontinue the subsequent determination if the detected walking information indicates the user's walking," similar to the embodiment described above.

[0068] Furthermore, when resuming the determination, it is conceivable to configure the determination unit 33 to "resume the determination if, after discontinuing the determination, walking information does not indicate the user's walking for a predetermined period of time" or / or "resume the determination if, after discontinuing the determination, driving information indicates a speed above a predetermined level," similar to the above-described embodiment or modification. In this case as well, in order to prevent the determination from being resumed when the user gets into someone else's vehicle, it is more preferable to configure the determination unit 33 to "resume the determination if, after the location information has moved outside a predetermined range from the position where the determination was discontinued or the position where walking information indicated the user's walking, and then returned to the predetermined range, walking information does not indicate the user's walking for a predetermined period of time, or / or driving information indicates a speed above a predetermined level," similar to the above-described modification.

[0069] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the "latitude and longitude of the rule application location to which the predetermined traffic rule applies" of the present invention was determined using data issued by the Public Safety Commission, police station, etc., but data obtained from other sources may also be used.

[0070] Furthermore, the present invention can also be applied to programs corresponding to the processing performed by the traffic rule compliance judgment system, and to recording media that store such programs. In the case of recording media, the program will be installed on a computer or the like. Here, the recording media that stores the program may be a non-transient recording media. Examples of non-transient recording media include CD-ROMs, but the invention is not limited to them.

[0071] A computer consists of a CPU, memory, and a hard disk. The program is stored on the hard disk, loaded into memory at runtime, and processed by the CPU. The computer's CPU may be capable of parallel processing, and the computer itself may be configured for distributed processing. The processing results can be displayed on any display via a network. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0072] 1. Traffic Rule Compliance Determination System 2. Mobile information terminals 3 Judgment device 21 First detection unit 22 Second detection unit 23 Transmitter 24 Start switch 31 Storage section 32 Receiver 33 Judgment section X Vehicle Y Registered Road

Claims

1. The user's mobile device and A judgment device, Equipped with, The aforementioned mobile information terminal is A first detection unit capable of detecting its own location information in association with time information, A second detection unit capable of detecting the walking of the user carrying itself in association with time information, A transmitting unit capable of transmitting location information associated with the aforementioned time information as driving information, and walking information associated with the aforementioned time information as walking information, Equipped with, The determination device is A storage unit that stores road location information for each location on multiple registered roads, and multiple traffic rules established for vehicles traveling on each registered road. A receiving unit capable of receiving the aforementioned driving information and the aforementioned walking information, A determination unit that determines the vehicle's compliance with each traffic rule on the registered road based on the aforementioned driving information, the aforementioned road location information, and the aforementioned traffic rules, Equipped with, The traffic rule-compliant determination system is characterized in that the determination unit temporarily suspends subsequent determinations if the walking information indicates the walking of the user.

2. The traffic rule compliance determination system according to claim 1, characterized in that the determination unit resumes the determination if, after discontinuing the determination, the walking information does not indicate the user's walking for a predetermined period of time.

3. The traffic rule compliance determination system according to claim 1, characterized in that the determination unit resumes the determination after discontinuing the determination if the driving information indicates a speed of a predetermined level or higher.

4. The traffic rule compliance determination system according to claim 1, characterized in that the determination unit resumes the determination if, after discontinuing the determination, the walking information does not indicate the user walking for a predetermined period of time, and the driving information indicates a speed of a predetermined level or higher.

5. The traffic rule compliance determination system according to claim 1, characterized in that the determination unit resumes the determination when the position information moves outside a predetermined range from the position where the determination was discontinued or the position where the walking information indicated the user's walking, and then returns to the predetermined range, and the walking information does not indicate the user's walking for a predetermined period of time, or / or the driving information indicates a speed of a predetermined level or higher.

6. The portable information terminal further includes a start switch operated by the user to instruct the start of the determination by the determination device, The determination unit determines the vehicle's compliance with each traffic rule on the registered road based on the driving information, road location information, and traffic rules after the start of the determination has been instructed, but even after the start of the determination has been instructed, if the walking information indicates the user walking, the subsequent determination is suspended at least temporarily, as described in claim 1.

7. A program that can communicate with a portable information terminal having a first detection unit capable of detecting its own location information in association with time information, a second detection unit capable of detecting the walking of the user carrying it in association with time information, and a transmission unit capable of transmitting the location information associated with the time information as driving information and the walking information associated with the time information as walking information, and a program that runs on a computer having a storage unit that stores road location information for each location on a plurality of registered roads and a plurality of traffic rules defined for vehicles traveling on each registered road, The steps include receiving the aforementioned driving information and the aforementioned walking information, A step of determining the vehicle's compliance with each traffic rule on the registered road based on the aforementioned driving information, the aforementioned road location information, and the aforementioned traffic rules, Equipped with, A traffic rule compliance determination program characterized in that, in the determination step, if the walking information indicates the walking of the user, the subsequent determination is temporarily suspended at least temporarily.

8. A method executed on a computer having a portable information terminal that can communicate with a portable information terminal having a first detection unit capable of detecting its own location information in association with time information, a second detection unit capable of detecting the walking of the user carrying the terminal in association with time information, and a transmission unit capable of transmitting the location information associated with the time information as driving information and the walking information associated with the time information as walking information, and having a storage unit that stores road location information for each location on a plurality of registered roads and a plurality of traffic rules defined for vehicles traveling on each registered road, The steps include receiving the aforementioned driving information and the aforementioned walking information, A step of determining the vehicle's compliance with each traffic rule on the registered road based on the aforementioned driving information, the aforementioned road location information, and the aforementioned traffic rules, Equipped with, A traffic rule compliance determination method characterized in that, in the determination step, if the walking information indicates the walking of the user, the subsequent determination is temporarily suspended at least.

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