Information provision system, information provision method and program

Abstract

This information provision system comprises: a retention amount measuring means that measures the pedestrian retention amount in the periphery of an intersection on the basis of images from a camera installed in the periphery of the intersection; a map creation means that, on a map of the intersection, creates a first map in which the pedestrian retention amount in the periphery of the intersection is expressed by markers; and an output means that outputs the first map to a prescribed output destination.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information providing system, an information providing method, and a program recording medium. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an intersection information distribution system that can distribute intersection information only to vehicles traveling toward an intersection. Paragraph 0024 of the document states that the intersection information includes the traffic light status (current display status of the traffic light), congestion status such as traffic congestion length, the running status of vehicles near the intersection, and the presence or absence of pedestrians or bicycles in the intersection.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses an approaching mobile object display device that can detect approaching mobile objects in the blind spot of the vehicle and display the information to the driver. According to the document, this approaching mobile object display device has a function to recognize pedestrians, motorcycles, automobiles, etc. based on images from a camera installed at any location and display the information on a screen inside the vehicle.

[0004] Patent Document 3 discloses an airport surface control system equipped with a display means for displaying the travel path of a moving object in a two-dimensional space with a time axis and an axis representing the position from the start point to the end point of the movement.

[0005] Patent Document 4 discloses an intersection monitoring system that can reduce the effort required to monitor the movement of a moving object passing through an intersection. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2010-146594 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2008-059609 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2006-350445 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2016-206756 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] The following analysis has been given by the inventor: There is a need to know the amount of pedestrians staying on the sidewalk area of ​​an intersection for purposes such as adjusting traffic light control parameters according to the time of day or day of the week.

[0008] In this regard, the inventions in the above-mentioned patent documents can notify the presence or absence of moving objects near an intersection and their approach, but they do not measure the amount of pedestrians present, let alone communicate with them.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide an information providing system, an information providing method, and a program recording medium that can provide the amount of pedestrians staying in the sidewalk area of ​​an intersection. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] According to a first aspect, there is provided an information provision system including: a congestion amount measuring means for measuring the amount of pedestrians around an intersection based on an image from a camera installed around the intersection; a map creation means for creating a first map on a map of the intersection in which the amount of pedestrians around the intersection is represented by markers; and an output means for outputting the first map to a predetermined output destination.

[0011] According to a second aspect, there is provided an information providing method that measures the amount of pedestrians staying around an intersection based on an image from a camera installed around the intersection, creates a first map on a map of the intersection in which the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection is represented by markers, and outputs the first map to a predetermined output destination. This method is linked to a specific machine, that is, a device that measures the amount of pedestrians staying at an intersection using an image acquired from a camera.

[0012] According to a third aspect, there is provided a program for causing a computer capable of acquiring images from a camera installed around an intersection to execute the following processes: measuring the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection based on the images from the camera; creating a first map on a map of the intersection in which the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection is indicated by markers; and outputting the first map to a predetermined output destination. Note that this computer program can be recorded on a computer-readable (non-transitive) storage medium. That is, the present invention can also be embodied as a computer program product. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide the amount of pedestrians staying in the sidewalk area of ​​an intersection. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the operation of one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 2 is a flow chart showing the flow of operations of an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a first embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 5] 2 is a functional block diagram illustrating a configuration of a server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a retention amount measured by a server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation of the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a map created by a server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of a map created by the server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram illustrating a configuration of a server according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a second map created by a server according to the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation of the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the second map created by the server according to the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram illustrating a configuration of a server according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a time-distance diagram created by a server according to the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing the operation of the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram showing an additional operation of the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a map display switching mode by a server according to the third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 21] FIG. 13 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of a server according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 22] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a time-distance diagram created by a server according to the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 23] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a map created by a server according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 24] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a computer that can function as a server of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] First, an overview of one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the reference numerals in the drawings attached to this overview are attached to each element for convenience as an example to aid in understanding, and are not intended to limit the present invention to the illustrated form. Furthermore, the connection lines between blocks in the drawings and the like referred to in the following description include both bidirectional and unidirectional. A unidirectional arrow is a schematic representation of the flow of a main signal (data), and does not exclude bidirectionality. Furthermore, although there are ports or interfaces at the connection points of input and output of each block in the drawings, they are not shown.

[0016] In one embodiment, the present invention can be realized by an information providing system 10 including a retention amount measuring means 11, a map creating means 12, and an output means 13, as shown in FIG.

[0017] The accumulation amount measuring means 11 measures the amount of pedestrians around an intersection based on images from a camera 14 installed around the intersection. The amount of pedestrians can be found, for example, by counting the number of pedestrians waiting for the traffic light to turn on at a specific position at the intersection. The number of pedestrians can be found from the number of faces or standing figures of pedestrians in the image captured by the camera 14. At this time, for example, walking people may be excluded from the counting.

[0018] The map creation means 12 creates a first map on the map of the intersection, in which the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection is represented by markers. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the first map created by the map creation means 12, which shows the amount of pedestrians staying at the intersection in a graph. As shown in FIG. 2, the amount of pedestrians staying can be represented by using circular markers C1 to C4, which indicate the location of the stay and the amount of the stay by the position and size of the circle. The size of the markers C1 to C4 in FIG. 2 corresponds to the amount of pedestrians staying at the intersection in the lower part of FIG. 1. Specifically, in the example of FIG. 1, two pedestrians are staying at the upper left corner of the lower intersection, four pedestrians are staying at the lower left corner, one pedestrian is staying at the upper right corner, and one pedestrian is staying at the lower right corner. By showing this by the size of the marker as in FIG. 2, it is easy to understand that pedestrians are staying at the right crosswalk of the intersection in FIG. 2. The display form as in FIG. 2 is also called a bubble chart.

[0019] The output means 13 outputs the first map to a predetermined output destination, such as a terminal in a traffic control center that monitors the intersection, a vehicle approaching the intersection, or an electric display board installed in front of the intersection.

[0020] Fig. 3 is a flow chart showing the flow of operations of the information provision system 10. As shown in Fig. 3, the information provision system 10 first measures the amount of pedestrians staying around an intersection based on an image from the camera 14 (step S001).

[0021] Next, the information provision system 10 uses the measured amount of pedestrians staying on a map of the intersection to create a first map in which the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection is represented by markers (step S002).

[0022] Next, the information providing system 10 outputs the first map to a predetermined output destination (step S003).

[0023] According to the information providing system 10 that operates as described above, it is possible to convey the amount of pedestrians present at the intersection in a visually easy-to-understand manner to users viewing the terminals in the control center, vehicles approaching the intersection, and electronic display boards installed in front of the intersection.

[0024] [First embodiment] Next, the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 4, a configuration including a server 100, a base station 200, a terminal 210, and a camera 140 is shown.

[0025] The camera 140 is a camera installed to capture images of vehicles passing through an intersection where a pedestrian crossing is installed. In this embodiment, the camera 140 is used as a camera for detecting the amount of pedestrians staying at the intersection. In the example of FIG. 4, two cameras are arranged diagonally opposite each other at the intersection, but there is no limit to the number of cameras. For example, one or more cameras may be installed on each of the signal poles of the traffic lights at the intersection. Also, if there are buildings or structures near the intersection, these may be used to install a camera at a position that overlooks the intersection, and the camera may be used to measure the amount of pedestrians staying.

[0026] The terminal 210 is a terminal equipped with a function of wirelessly connecting to the base station 200. In this embodiment, the terminal 210 functions as a transmitting device that transmits an image captured by the camera 140 to the server 100 via the base station 200. The terminal 210 may be a terminal for traffic control purposes that transmits an image captured by the camera 140 to a traffic control center, a server, or the like via the base station 200.

[0027] The base station 200 transmits the camera image received from the terminal 210 to the server 100. This base station 200 may be a base station that provides services not only to the terminal 210 but also to an in-vehicle terminal of a vehicle passing near an intersection or a pedestrian terminal. For example, the base station 200 may be a base station of a fifth-generation mobile communication system installed by a telecommunications carrier, or may be a base station of a network called local 5G operated by a party other than the telecommunications carrier.

[0028] The server 100 is a server that creates a map showing the amount of pedestrians staying at an intersection using images captured by the camera 140, and transmits the map to a predetermined output destination. The server 100 may be a server installed on a cloud platform or the Internet, or may be an MEC server that is physically installed in a location close to a base station. Note that "MEC" is an abbreviation for Multi-access Edge Computing or Mobile Edge Computing. In this embodiment, the server 100 is described as transmitting an intersection current status map (first map) showing the amount of pedestrians staying to a traffic control center as a predetermined output destination.

[0029] Fig. 5 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the server 100. Referring to Fig. 5, the server 100 includes a staying amount measuring unit 101, a map creating unit 102, a transmitting unit 103, a staying amount recording unit 104, and a map information storage unit 105.

[0030] The staying amount measuring unit 101 functions as a means for measuring the amount of pedestrians staying on the sidewalk around the intersection based on the image from the camera 140. Furthermore, the staying amount measuring unit 101 of this embodiment groups pedestrians staying in the sidewalk area of ​​the intersection by their respective positions and crossing directions, and measures the staying amount.

[0031] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a recording form of the amount of pedestrians measured by the amount of pedestrians measuring unit 101. In the example of FIG. 6, the amount of pedestrians staying in the sidewalk areas NW, NE, SW, and SE at the corner of an intersection where roads in the east-west direction and the north-south direction intersect is recorded for each destination (crossing direction). For example, assume that 15 pedestrians are staying in the sidewalk area NW at the corner. If five of them are facing east, the amount of pedestrians staying in the current location NW-destination NE is counted as five people. Similarly, if ten of the 15 people are facing south, the amount of pedestrians staying in the current location NW-destination SW is counted as ten people. The direction of the pedestrians staying can be estimated from the direction of the face and the direction of the line of sight by detecting the face of the pedestrian in the image. Alternatively, the direction of the pedestrians staying can be estimated from the posture and body direction of the pedestrian in the image.

[0032] Also, instead of the direction of the pedestrian, the destination may be determined based on the position of the pedestrian. For example, assume that 15 pedestrians are staying in the sidewalk area NW of the corner. If five of them are located on the east side of the sidewalk area NW, that is, in front of the crosswalk between the corner NW and the corner NE, the amount of people staying in the current location NW-destination NE is counted as five people. Similarly, if ten of the 15 people are located on the south side of the sidewalk area NW, the amount of people staying in the current location NW-destination SW can be counted as ten people. The position of the staying pedestrian can be determined from the position of the pedestrian in the image (for example, the position of the feet of the pedestrian) by storing the correspondence between the area in the image and the area on the map. Alternatively, a method of converting the image into an overhead image and determining the position on the map can be adopted.

[0033] Of course, the destination of the pedestrian may be determined based on both the direction and the position of the pedestrian. Furthermore, pedestrians whose destination cannot be determined from this information may be excluded from the measurement of the amount of stay. For example, a pedestrian operating a smartphone or a pedestrian looking at an information board installed at an intersection may be determined to be unlikely to move immediately, and may be excluded from the measurement of the amount of stay.

[0034] The staying amount recording unit 104 records the staying amount of pedestrians measured as described above, as shown in the table on the left side of FIG. 6. The staying amount recording unit 104 may also hold past data as time-series data for a certain period of time. By using such time-series data, it is possible to create a map that allows the change in the staying amount of pedestrians to be visually read. For example, the change in the staying amount can be represented by using the color or movement (animation) of the marker. In this way, the server 100 can create a current intersection map with more information.

[0035] The map information storage unit 105 stores map information of the intersection to be managed. This map information may be, for example, a plan view of the intersection shown on the right side of FIG.

[0036] The map creation unit 102 creates an intersection current status map in which the amount of pedestrians staying is represented by markers, using map information of the intersection stored in the map information storage unit 105 and data indicating the amount of pedestrians staying recorded in the staying amount recording unit 104. The specific operation of the map creation unit 102 will be described in detail later with reference to the drawings.

[0037] The transmission unit 103 transmits the current intersection status map to the traffic control center. Various modes are possible for the transmission of the current intersection status map to the traffic control center by the transmission unit 103. For example, the transmission unit 103 may transmit the current intersection status map to the traffic control center every time the current intersection status map is created (updated). The transmission unit 103 may also transmit the current intersection status map in response to a request from the traffic control center.

[0038] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 7, the terminal 210 transmits an image received from the camera 140 to the server 100 via the base station 200 (step S101).

[0039] The server 100 that has received the image classifies the pedestrians staying in the sidewalk area of ​​the intersection into groups for each crossing direction based on the received image, and measures the staying amount (step S102).

[0040] Next, the server 100 places markers on the map of the intersections where the congestion amounts have been measured, and creates a current intersection status map by plotting the congestion amounts by crossing direction at each position (step S103).

[0041] Next, the server 100 transmits the created intersection current status map to the traffic control center (step S104).

[0042] Next, the terminal of the traffic control center displays the intersection current status map received from the server 100 (step S105).

[0043] Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an intersection current status map (first map) created by the server 100 of the first embodiment of the present invention. In the example of Fig. 8, markers (triangle markers) showing the amount of pedestrians staying by crossing direction are shown on the map of the intersection. The orientation of the marker (triangle marker) indicates the crossing direction, and the numerical value inside the marker (triangle marker) indicates the amount of pedestrians staying.

[0044] According to this kind of intersection current status map (first map), it is possible to immediately grasp which crosswalks are causing pedestrian congestion. For example, in the example of Fig. 8, it can be seen that there are many pedestrians stuck at the crosswalks in the north-south direction, especially between the corners NW and SW. In this case, if there are no vehicles passing on the road in the east-west direction, or if the road is congested and not moving, the green light in the east-west direction can be turned off early, allowing pedestrians who are planning to cross the road in the east-west direction to cross early.

[0045] The manner in which the amount of pedestrians staying by crossing direction is displayed is not limited to the example in FIG. 8. For example, the amount of staying may be represented by the size of the marker as in FIG. 9. The intersection current status map (first map) as in FIG. 9 also makes it possible to immediately grasp at which crosswalks pedestrians are staying. Furthermore, in addition to the size of the marker, the color and display form of the marker may be changed to represent the amount of staying.

[0046] As described above, according to this embodiment, information on the amount of pedestrians remaining in the sidewalk area of ​​an intersection in each crossing direction can be provided to a traffic control center, which can be used to assist in traffic control.

[0047] [Second embodiment] Next, a second embodiment in which a server detects the positions and movements of pedestrians near an intersection and provides a map showing the positions and movements of the pedestrians will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the second embodiment of the present invention. The difference in configuration from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 4 is that a function for detecting the positions and movements of pedestrians is added to the server 100a. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the description will be omitted and the following description will focus on the differences.

[0048] Fig. 11 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a server 100a according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the server 100 according to the first embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that the server 100a further includes a position and movement detection unit 106 and that the map creation unit 102a is capable of creating a second current situation map showing the positions and movements of pedestrians.

[0049] The position and movement detection unit 106 detects the position and movement of pedestrians passing through the intersection based on the image from the camera 140. For example, the position and movement detection unit 106 detects the position and movement of each pedestrian by assigning predetermined identification information to each pedestrian captured in the image from the camera 140 and tracking the movement of the pedestrian.

[0050] The map creation unit 102a creates a second current situation map that shows the positions and movements of the detected pedestrians on a map. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of an intersection detail map (second map) created by the map creation unit 102a of the server 100a of this embodiment. In the example of FIG. 12, the detected pedestrians are shown with diamond-shaped markers. And, an arrow extending from the diamond-shaped marker indicates the movement direction of the pedestrian. Furthermore, the length of the arrow indicates the movement speed of the pedestrian. By using such an intersection detail map (second map), it is possible to grasp not only the amount of pedestrians staying at each intersection but also the tendency of their movements.

[0051] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 13 is a sequence diagram showing the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention. Steps S101 to S103 in Fig. 13 are similar to steps S101 to S103 in Fig. 7 showing the operation of the first embodiment, so the description will be omitted.

[0052] The server 100a, which has created the intersection current status map (first map) showing the accumulation amount, detects the positions and movements of pedestrians (step S106).

[0053] Next, the server 100a creates a detailed intersection map (second map) showing the positions and movements of pedestrians (step S107).

[0054] Next, the server 100a transmits the intersection current situation map and the second current situation map to the traffic control center (step S108).

[0055] Next, the terminal of the traffic control center displays the intersection current status map (first map) and the intersection detailed map (second map) received from the server 100 (step S109). Note that the display format of the intersection current status map (first map) and the intersection detailed map (second map) on the terminal of the traffic control center can be various formats, such as a format in which the two maps are displayed in parallel, or a format in which the two maps are exclusively switched and displayed.

[0056] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to provide the traffic control center with information on the movement of pedestrians as well as the amount of pedestrians staying at the intersection. In particular, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to analyze the content of the amount of pedestrians staying in detail. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, it is assumed that 12 units of pedestrians staying in the sidewalk area of ​​the corner SW are recognized. In the second embodiment, by providing an intersection detailed map (second map), it is possible to distinguish whether the staying is due to the obstruction of pedestrian movement or simply due to a large inflow of pedestrians. Note that, in the example of FIG. 12, it has been described that an intersection detailed map (second map) is created that shows the position and movement of pedestrians using arrows, but the display mode of the position and movement of pedestrians is not limited to this. For example, a line segment may be drawn from the marker, and the direction and length of the line segment may show the movement direction and speed.

[0057] In the above description, a map showing the positions and movements of pedestrians is provided as the intersection detailed map (second map). However, it is also preferable to have the server 100a detect the positions and movements of vehicles passing through the intersection and display them together with the intersection detailed map (second map). FIG. 14 is a diagram showing another example of an intersection detailed map (second map) created by the server 100a of this embodiment. In the example of FIG. 14, the positions of vehicles passing through the intersection are represented by rectangular markers, and their movements are represented by arrows. By providing such an intersection detailed map (second map), it is possible to grasp the crossing situation of pedestrians and vehicles, the presence of pedestrians obstructing the movement of vehicles, etc.

[0058] In the above embodiment, the server 100a measures the amount of pedestrians staying and creates an intersection current status map, and then detects the positions and movements of pedestrians and creates an intersection detailed map (second map). However, the order of these steps can be changed as appropriate. The intersection current status map (first map) and the intersection detailed map (second map) can be created and updated independently. For example, if the intersection current status map and the second current status map are updated at different frequencies, it is also possible to omit the map creation process for the map with the longer creation interval.

[0059] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the server 100a may create a third current status map showing the positions of pedestrians in real time in addition to the second current status map, and provide the third current status map to the traffic control center. Similarly, the display form of the third current status map on the terminal of the traffic control center may be in various forms, such as a form in which three maps are displayed in parallel, or a form in which the maps are exclusively switched and displayed.

[0060] [Third embodiment] Next, a third embodiment in which a server creates and provides a time-distance map of pedestrians crossing a crosswalk near an intersection will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the third embodiment of the present invention. The difference in configuration from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 4 is that a function for creating a time-distance map is added to the server 100a. The other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, so explanations will be omitted and the following description will focus on the differences.

[0061] Fig. 16 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a server 100b according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the server 100 according to the first embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that the server 100b further includes a position and movement detection unit 106 and a time-distance map creation unit 109, and that the map creation unit 102b and the transmission unit 103b are capable of providing a time-distance map of a specific pedestrian crossing in response to a request from the traffic control center.

[0062] The position and movement detection unit 106 detects the position and movement of pedestrians crossing the crosswalk at the intersection based on the image from the camera 140. For example, the position and movement detection unit 106 detects the position and movement of each pedestrian by assigning predetermined identification information to each pedestrian captured in the image from the camera 140 and tracking their movement.

[0063] The time-distance diagram creation unit 109 uses the detected pedestrian's position and movement to create a time-distance diagram that chronologically represents the movement status of pedestrians crossing each crosswalk at the intersection during a predetermined period in the past. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a time-distance diagram created by the time-distance diagram creation unit 109. The vertical axis of FIG. 17 indicates the position of a pedestrian crossing the crosswalk at the intersection, and the horizontal axis indicates time. For example, it can be seen that pedestrian A in FIG. 17 starts moving from the corner SW to the sidewalk area at the corner NW using the crosswalk at the same time as the pedestrian signal starts to turn green. It can also be seen from the time-distance diagram in FIG. 17 that pedestrian D started crossing a while after the signal switched to green, and then increased his speed to cross because the signal switched to flashing green. It can also be seen that pedestrian F started crossing after the signal turned flashing green. In this way, it is possible to more easily grasp the movement of pedestrians by showing the light state of the signal on the time axis of the time-distance diagram.

[0064] In the example of Fig. 17, the display range is from before the pedestrian signal turns green to a predetermined period after the signal turns red, but the time axis may be set longer to display the past movements of pedestrians. In this way, it is possible to grasp the tendency of the behavior of pedestrians crossing the crosswalk at the intersection. The time axis may be freely changed by the user.

[0065] The map creation unit 102b creates an intersection current status map (first map) in which the amount of pedestrians staying is represented by markers. Specifically, the map creation unit 102b creates the intersection current status map (first map) to which additional information for acquiring a time-distance map corresponding to the positions of the markers is added. When the transmission unit 103b receives a request to transmit a time-distance map based on the additional information from the terminal of the traffic control center, the transmission unit 103b selects and transmits the corresponding time-distance map to the terminal of the traffic control center.

[0066] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 13 is a sequence diagram showing the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention. Steps S101 to S105 in Fig. 13 are similar to steps S101 to S105 in Fig. 7 showing the operation of the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. In this embodiment, step S110 for detecting the position and movement of a pedestrian crossing the crosswalk is added between steps S103 and S104.

[0067] Furthermore, in this embodiment, a step of creating a time-distance diagram based on the detected positions and movements of pedestrians is added (step S111).

[0068] 19 is a sequence diagram showing the additional operation of this embodiment. When a marker indicating the amount of congestion is selected on the terminal of the traffic control center displaying the intersection current status map (first map), the terminal of the traffic control center transmits a request for a time-distance diagram including the selection information of the marker to the server 100b (step S201).

[0069] Upon receiving the request, the server 100b selects a time-distance map starting from the position of the marker and transmits it to the terminal of the traffic control center (step S202). For example, if a south-facing marker indicating a congestion amount of 10 in the sidewalk area of ​​the corner NW in Fig. 20 is selected, the server 100b selects a time-distance map of the crosswalk between the corner NW and the corner SW and transmits it to the terminal of the traffic control center.

[0070] The terminal of the traffic control center that has received the time-distance map displays the received time-distance map (step S203). The display mode of the time-distance map on the terminal of the traffic control center is not particularly limited. For example, as shown in Fig. 20, the time-distance map may be displayed in a form superimposed on the intersection current status map or in a separate window. Of course, a mode in which the intersection current status map and the time-distance map are exclusively switched to be displayed can also be adopted.

[0071] As described above, according to the present embodiment, which displays a time-distance diagram in addition to a current intersection map, it is possible to grasp the movement of pedestrians at each crosswalk at an intersection in more detail. For example, in the case of a crosswalk at an intersection on a route to a facility for elderly people, the time-distance diagram reveals that many users walk slowly. In this case, it is possible to analyze whether it would be better to increase the green light time (split) for pedestrians based on the information obtained from the time-distance diagram, in addition to the amount of congestion.

[0072] [Fourth embodiment] Next, a fourth embodiment in which a pedestrian attribute analysis function is added to the server of the third embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 21 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a server 100c of the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the server 100b of the third embodiment shown in FIG. 16 is that the position and movement detection unit 106a of the server 100c is added with a function of determining attributes in addition to the position and movement of a pedestrian, and the time-distance diagram creation unit 109a is capable of creating a time-distance diagram by attribute. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the third embodiment, the description will be omitted and the differences will be mainly described below.

[0073] The position and movement detection unit 106a determines attributes of a pedestrian, such as whether or not the pedestrian is using a mobility aid such as an electric cart or a walking stick, whether or not the pedestrian is elderly, etc. These attributes can be determined from the image of the pedestrian in the image obtained by the camera 140 and characteristic information.

[0074] Fig. 22 is a diagram showing an example of a time-distance diagram created by the time-distance diagram creation unit 109a. The difference from the time-distance diagram shown in Fig. 17 is that the attributes of pedestrians can be identified by the line type. For example, if it is decided that electric cart users are to be represented by dashed lines, it is clear from the time-distance diagram in Fig. 22 that pedestrian B is an electric cart user. Also, if it is decided that elderly people are to be represented by dashed lines, it is clear from the time-distance diagram in Fig. 22 that pedestrian C is an elderly person.

[0075] According to the present embodiment, which displays a time-distance diagram that allows pedestrian attributes to be identified as described above, it is possible to grasp not only the movement of pedestrians at each crosswalk at an intersection, but also the crossing tendency by attribute. This embodiment can also be suitably combined with the second embodiment. For example, the server 100c can be added with a function for creating an intersection detailed map (second map) and pedestrian attributes can be displayed on the intersection detailed map (second map). Also, for example, the server 100c can be made to create an intersection detailed map (second map) in which pedestrians are displayed with markers of different shapes and colors according to the pedestrian attributes.

[0076] [Fifth embodiment] Next, a fifth embodiment in which a function for measuring the amount of vehicles staying in the vehicle is added to the servers of the first to fourth embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the above first to fourth embodiments, the servers 100 to 100c are described as measuring the amount of pedestrians staying in the vehicle, but a similar mechanism can be used to measure both the amount of pedestrians staying in the vehicle and the amount of vehicles staying in each lane, and provide the results to a traffic control center.

[0077] The servers 100 to 100d of this embodiment create an intersection current status map that displays the amount of pedestrians staying in the sidewalk area as well as the amount of vehicles staying in each lane of the road. FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an example of an intersection current status map created by the servers 100 to 100d of the fifth embodiment of the present invention. In the example of FIG. 23, in addition to the triangular marker M indicating the amount of pedestrians staying, the amount of vehicles staying is displayed with circular markers C1 to C3. In addition, in the example of FIG. 23, the size of the triangular marker and the circular marker represents the amount of staying. As described in the first embodiment, various modifications can be made to the form of the marker and the display form of the amount of staying. In the example of FIG. 23, the amount of vehicles staying in each lane of the road is displayed, but the amount of vehicles staying in each lane may be aggregated and displayed.

[0078] Users of the traffic control center terminals can view such intersection current status maps to understand the state of vehicles and pedestrians at the intersection, and can consider and devise solutions as necessary. For example, in Figure 23, vehicles are stuck in the right-turn lane on the right side of the road entering the intersection from the road on the north side (marker C1), and vehicles are stuck in the left-hand lane on the road entering the intersection from the road on the south side (marker C3). On the other hand, it can be seen that pedestrians are stuck at the crosswalk between the corners NW and SW, where these right-turning vehicles turn right. From these facts, it is possible to analyze that there are many pedestrians crossing the crosswalk between the corners NW and SW, and that this is hindering right-turning and left-turning vehicles from turning right or left.

[0079] In addition, the features of the second to fourth embodiments can be combined with this embodiment. Specifically, as in the second embodiment, a function for creating a second current situation map may be added to the server. In this case, in addition to the markers representing the positions and movements of pedestrians, markers representing the positions and movements of vehicles may be displayed on the second current situation map (see FIG. 16). Also, as in the third and fourth embodiments, a function for creating a time-distance diagram may be added to the server. In this case, the server may be caused to detect the positions and movements of vehicles for each lane and create a time-distance diagram for each lane. Furthermore, a vehicle attribute determination function may be added to the server to create a time-distance diagram that allows vehicle attributes to be identified.

[0080] Although each embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and further modifications, substitutions, and adjustments can be made without departing from the basic technical idea of ​​the present invention. For example, the system configuration, the configuration of each element, and the representation form of data, etc. shown in each drawing are examples to help understand the present invention, and are not limited to the configurations shown in these drawings. For example, the first to fifth embodiments described above are described as handling the amount of pedestrians staying, but they can also be modified to measure and display the amount of bicycles staying in addition to pedestrians.

[0081] In addition, in each of the above-mentioned embodiments, the server is described as providing services to the traffic control center, but the server may provide services for general vehicles. For example, the server may transmit an intersection current status map or a second current status map to a vehicle approaching an intersection. A vehicle that receives the intersection current status map or the second current status map displays the intersection current status map or the second current status map on a display device or the like of its in-vehicle terminal. The driver can refer to the information shown in the intersection current status map or the second current status map, pay attention to pedestrians, and select a lane with fewer pedestrians and fewer traffic jams.

[0082] Moreover, the procedures shown in each of the above-mentioned embodiments can be realized by a computer that functions as a device constituting the information providing system. Specifically, they can be realized by a program that causes a computer (9000 in FIG. 19) to realize the functions of these devices. Such a computer is exemplified by a configuration including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 9010, a communication interface 9020, a memory 9030, and an auxiliary storage device 9040 in FIG. 19. That is, a retention amount measuring program and a map creation program can be executed by the CPU 9010 in FIG. 19.

[0083] In other words, each part (processing means, function) of the above-mentioned server etc. can be realized by a computer program that causes a processor mounted on these devices to execute each of the above-mentioned processes using its hardware.

[0084] A part or all of the above-described embodiments can be described as, but is not limited to, the following supplementary notes. [Appendix 1] (See the information provision system from the first perspective above) [Appendix 2] In the above information providing system, The accumulation amount measuring means measures an amount of pedestrians accumulated in each crossing direction, The map creating means may be configured to create, as the first map, a map on a map of the intersection, in which the amount of pedestrians staying in each crossing direction is represented by the size of the markers. [Appendix 3] In the above information providing system, The congestion amount measurement means may be configured to estimate a direction of the pedestrian based on an image from the camera, and to measure the amount of congestion of the pedestrian in each crossing direction based on the estimated direction of the pedestrian. [Appendix 4] The congestion amount measurement means can be configured to estimate the positions of pedestrians in the sidewalk area of ​​the intersection based on images from the camera, and to measure the amount of congestion of the pedestrians in each crossing direction based on the estimated positions of the pedestrians in the sidewalk area. [Appendix 5] The information providing system further includes a recording means for recording the measurement result of the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection as time-series data, The map creating means may be configured to create a map that enables a change in the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection to be read, using the time-series data. [Appendix 6] The information providing system further includes a means for detecting a position and a movement of a pedestrian passing through the intersection based on an image from a camera installed around the intersection; The map creation means may be configured to create a second map in which, for each of the detected pedestrians, an arrow or a line segment indicating the position and movement of the pedestrian is depicted on a map of the intersection. [Appendix 7] The information providing system further includes means for detecting the position and movement of pedestrians passing through the intersection based on images from cameras installed around the intersection; a time-distance diagram creation means for creating a time-distance diagram that represents a chronological state of pedestrian movement at the crosswalk at the intersection for a predetermined period of time in the past, When the marker on the first map is selected and a specified operation is performed, the output means can be configured to output a time-distance diagram of the crosswalk at the location indicated by the marker to the specified output destination. [Appendix 8] The information provision system further includes a means for determining attributes of pedestrians passing through the intersection based on images from cameras installed around the intersection; The time-distance map creating means may be configured to create a time-distance map capable of identifying attributes of the pedestrians. [Appendix 9] (See the second point of view above.) [Appendix 10] (See the program for the third perspective above) The ninth and tenth embodiments can be expanded to the embodiments of Supplementary Notes 2 to 8 in the same manner as Supplementary Note 1.

[0085] The disclosures of the above patent documents are incorporated herein by reference. Within the framework of the entire disclosure of the present invention (including the scope of claims), modifications and adjustments of the embodiments and examples are possible based on the basic technical ideas. Furthermore, within the framework of the disclosure of the present invention, various combinations or selections (including partial deletions) of various disclosed elements (including each element of each claim, each element of each embodiment or example, each element of each drawing, etc.) are possible. In other words, the present invention naturally includes various modifications and corrections that a person skilled in the art would be able to make in accordance with the entire disclosure including the scope of claims and the technical ideas. In particular, with regard to the numerical ranges described in this specification, any numerical value or subrange included in the range should be interpreted as being specifically described even if not otherwise specified. [Explanation of symbols]

[0086] 10 Information provision system 11. Method of measuring retention volume 12 Map Creation Methods 13 Output Method 14, 140 Camera 100, 100a-100c servers 101 Accumulation volume measurement unit 102, 102a, 102b Map Creation Department 103, 103b Transmitter 104 Retention volume recording unit 105 Map information storage unit 106, 106a Position and movement detection unit 109, 109a Time-distance diagram creation section 200 base stations 210 Terminals 9000 Computers 9010 CPU 9020 Communication Interface 9030 Memory 9040 Auxiliary storage device C1-C4, M, P markers

Claims

1. a congestion amount measuring means for measuring the amount of pedestrians staying around an intersection based on an image taken by a camera installed around the intersection; a first map creation means for creating a first map on a map of the intersection, the first map representing the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection with markers; an output means for outputting the first map to a predetermined output destination; Equipped with The retention amount measuring means measures the retention amount indicating the number of pedestrians who remain stationary for a certain period of time or more. Information provision system.

2. The accumulation amount measuring means measures an amount of pedestrians accumulated in each crossing direction, 2. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the map creating means creates, as the first map, a map on a map of the intersection, in which the amount of pedestrians staying in each crossing direction is represented by the size of the markers.

3. The accumulation amount measuring means estimates a direction of the pedestrian based on the image from the camera, 3. The information providing system according to claim 2, further comprising: measuring an amount of pedestrians staying in each crossing direction based on the estimated direction of the pedestrians.

4. 4. The information provision system of claim 2 or 3, wherein the congestion amount measurement means estimates positions of pedestrians in the sidewalk area of ​​the intersection based on the image from the camera, and measures the amount of pedestrians confined in each crossing direction based on the estimated positions of the pedestrians in the sidewalk area.

5. Further, a recording means is provided for recording the measurement result of the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection as time series data, 5. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the map creating means creates, as the first map, a map that enables a change in the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection to be read using the time series data.

6. The system further includes a means for detecting the position and movement of a pedestrian passing through the intersection based on an image captured by a camera installed around the intersection, 6. The information provision system according to claim 1, wherein the map creation means creates a second map in which, for each of the detected pedestrians, an arrow or a line segment indicating the position and movement of the pedestrian is displayed on a map of the intersection.

7. The system further includes a means for detecting the position and movement of a pedestrian passing through the intersection based on an image captured by a camera installed around the intersection, a time-distance diagram creation means for creating a time-distance diagram showing a time series of pedestrian movement conditions at the crosswalk at the intersection for a predetermined period of time in the past, 7. The information provision system according to claim 1, wherein when a marker on the first map is selected and a specified operation is performed, the output means outputs a time-distance diagram of the crosswalk at the location indicated by the marker to the specified output destination.

8. a means for determining attributes of pedestrians passing through the intersection based on images from cameras installed around the intersection; 8. The information providing system according to claim 7, wherein said time-distance diagram creating means creates a time-distance diagram capable of identifying attributes of said pedestrians.

9. The present invention further comprises a second map creation means for creating a second map on a map of the intersection based on the image, the second map representing positions and movements of vehicles around the intersection with the markers; The output means outputs the second map to the predetermined output destination.

9. An information providing system according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. Measure the amount of pedestrians around an intersection based on images from a camera installed around the intersection; creating a first map on a map of the intersection, the first map representing the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection with markers; Outputting the first map to a predetermined output destination; Measure the retention amount, which indicates the number of pedestrians who remain stationary for a certain period of time or more. Information provision method.

11. A computer that can acquire images from cameras installed around the intersection A process of measuring an amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection based on an image from the camera; creating a first map on a map of the intersection, the first map representing the amount of pedestrians staying around the intersection with markers; outputting the first map to a predetermined output destination; A process of measuring the retention amount indicating the number of pedestrians who remain stationary for a certain period of time or more; A program that executes the following.

Images