Warning device for preventing driving outside a specified area

Abstract

To prevent traveling outside a designated area of an ETC card whose area is specified.SOLUTION: A warning device is configured by: a GPS unit 11 for acquiring own location information; a control unit 12; an audio output unit 13 having an audio speaker; and an internal or external power supply unit. When current position information detected by the GPS unit 11 coincides with any one of one or more detection areas set in a periphery of a preset designated area of a toll road such as an expressway, the control unit 12 issues an audio output command to the audio output unit 13, and the audio speaker of the audio output unit 13 outputs an instruction sound or warning sound based on the audio output command. The detection area is specified by two points of latitude and longitude. The power supply unit can use an internal battery or an external power supply from the traveling vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a warning device for preventing driving outside a designated area that can issue an audio warning when reaching a boundary area near the boundary line of a usable area while driving on a toll road such as a highway using an ETC card with a designated usable area.

Background Art

[0002] As is already well known, an ETC card can be used to charge and receive tolls at the entrance and exit of a toll road such as a highway without manual intervention, and the toll is automatically deducted from the financial institution registered on the ETC card.

[0003] Among these ETC cards, there is a so-called "area-limited ETC card" with a designated usage area. For example, in West Nippon Expressway Company, Limited, there are Kansai Branch, Chugoku Branch, Shikoku Branch, and Kyushu Branch, etc., and the jurisdiction routes (jurisdiction areas) managed and jurisdictioned by each are divided.

[0004] In this way, in each branch, the respective jurisdiction areas are different, and each area is managed and various services are provided. And as described above, in each branch, in order to manage its jurisdiction area and provide services, for each branch of West Nippon Expressway Company, Limited and for each separate company such as Hanshin Expressway Corporation ETC cards with a designated usage area are used.

[0005] When a work vehicle of the branch uses an ETC card with a designated usage area to connect from the area jurisdictioned by the branch to the area jurisdictioned by another branch or a separate company in this way, when an operator who conducts business using an ETC card limited to the former jurisdiction area approaches the area jurisdictioned by the latter other branch or separate company, the operator must exit outside the IC or JCT before entering the latter jurisdiction area. Here, IC means interchange and JCT means junction (the same applies hereinafter).

[0006] However, this area - limited ETC card does not mean that the usage area of the ETC card itself is limited and its use is restricted. Instead, it simply restricts the user to use it within the said usage area, and ultimately, it is only specified that the user should use it in accordance with that restriction.

[0007] Therefore, it is possible to drive in an area outside the specified restricted area by using the said area - limited ETC card. Regarding the use outside this specified area, accounting corrections are complicated and require a great deal of effort for correction operations between branches or with other road management companies.

[0008] Therefore, in order to prevent such use outside the specified area, the device according to the present invention has been developed. This device has been developed as a small - sized unit device that can be easily carried into the vehicle of the work vehicle during operation by the above - mentioned operator and can be easily used. Moreover, this type of unit device has not existed in the market so far.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0009]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0010] As problems to be solved by the present invention, first, it should be small and easy to carry. It is required that it can be easily carried by the driving operator and installed and mounted in the vehicle, and it should also be possible to install it in the work vehicle in advance. In addition, it is possible to issue an attention call or a warning by voice in consideration of understandability. Furthermore, when approaching a non-use area (outside the designated use area), for example, an object is to provide a device that sets a detection area indicating that the use-restricted area has been approached, and a warning is issued when entering this detection area.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0011] In order to solve the above problems, a first aspect of the present invention includes a GPS unit that acquires its own position information, a control unit, an audio output unit including an audio speaker, and an internal or external power supply unit. When the current position information detected by the GPS unit matches any one of one or more detection areas set in the peripheral part of a designated area of a toll road such as a highway set in advance, the control unit issues an audio output command to the audio output unit, and an instruction audio or a warning audio is emitted from the audio speaker of the audio output unit based on the audio output command. It is a warning device for preventing driving outside a designated area.

[0012] A second aspect of the present invention is the warning device for preventing driving outside a designated area according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the detection area is an area specified by two points of latitude and longitude.

[0013] A third aspect of the present invention is the warning device for preventing driving outside a designated area according to the first or second aspect of the present invention, wherein the instruction audio or the warning audio emitted from the audio speaker is an audio guide to the effect of "Since you are approaching outside the designated area, move from the nearest IC or JCT to a general road."

[0014] A fourth aspect of the present invention is the warning device for preventing driving outside a designated area according to any one of the above aspects, wherein the internal or external power supply unit is a power supply unit such as a dry battery, a rechargeable battery, or a USB connection unit provided in an automobile.

Effects of the Invention

[0015] In the first aspect of the present invention, it comprises a GPS unit for acquiring its own position information, a control unit, an audio output unit having an audio speaker, and an internal or external power supply unit. When the position information detected by the GPS unit matches any one of one or more detection areas set in the vicinity of a designated area of a toll road such as a highway set in advance, the control unit gives an audio output instruction to the audio output unit, and based on this audio output instruction, a guidance audio or a warning audio is emitted from the audio speaker of the audio output unit. Therefore, an operator who installs the device according to the present invention on a work vehicle will be reminded by the guidance audio or the warning audio that the vehicle has approached outside the limited designated area. The operator who hears this audio will be prompted to exit onto a general road at the next IC or JCT, and will be able to perform work within the designated area.

[0016] In the second aspect of the present invention, the detection area is more specific, that is, it is limited that the detection area is an area specified by two points of latitude and longitude. Thereby, it is possible to alert the work driver before the work vehicle equipped with the device drives out of the designated area.

[0017] In the third aspect of the present invention, the specific content of the above guidance audio or warning audio is specified, that is, it is limited that the guidance audio or warning audio emitted from the audio speaker is an audio guidance to the effect of "Since you have approached outside the designated area, please move to a general road from the nearest IC or JCT".

[0018] In the fourth aspect of the present invention, the power supply unit of the device according to the present application is specified, that is, it is limited that the internal or external power supply unit is a power supply unit such as a dry battery, a rechargeable battery, or a USB connection unit provided in an automobile.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0019]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0020] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described together with the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of an embodiment of a warning device for preventing driving outside a designated area (hereinafter simply referred to as "warning device") according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the warning device according to the above embodiment.

[0021] The warning device 10 according to the present invention includes a GPS unit 11 that acquires its own position information, a control unit 12, an audio output unit 13, and a power supply unit 15. A speaker 14 is connected to the audio output unit 13, and it can emit sound.

[0022] The power supply unit 15 may incorporate a dry battery or a rechargeable secondary battery inside the warning device 10, or it is also possible to use an external power supply by connecting to a USB connection port or the like of the vehicle on which the warning device 10 is mounted.

[0023] The operation flow of the above warning device 10 is shown in FIG. 2. When the power supply unit 15 is powered on, the warning device 10 operates, and the GPS unit 11 acquires the current position information of the vehicle on which the warning device 10 is mounted (step 1).

[0024] In the storage unit of the control unit 12, the position information (latitude and longitude) of one or more detection areas is stored in advance, and the control unit 12 determines whether or not the position information of this detection area matches the current position information acquired by the GPS unit 11 (step 2). The detection area is an area of a toll road located at the periphery of the designated area.

[0025] When the current position information does not match the position information of the detection area (NO in the figure), the GPS unit 11 continues to acquire the current position information. When the current position information matches the position information of the detection area (YES in the figure), the control unit 12 issues a command to the voice output unit 13 to emit a voice, and the voice output unit 13 emits a voice guidance to the effect of, for example, "Since you are approaching outside the designated area, move to the general road from the nearest IC (or JCT). " from the speaker 14 (step 3).

[0026] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the flow from the detection area setting to the detection of the detection area. Regarding the warning device according to the present invention, the flow from the setting of the detection area to the detection of the detection area will be described with reference to this figure.

[0027] (1) Obtain the latitude and longitude information of the area to be designated as the detection area from Google Maps. Here, the area to be designated is an area of a highway located at the periphery of the designated area which is the jurisdiction area. (2) Write the latitude and longitude information obtained in (1) above into the program, and use a personal computer to read the program into the Flash ROM. (The area setting is completed above.) (3) Mount the warning device according to the present invention on a vehicle, turn on the power, start the vehicle running, and read the program from the Flash ROM. (4) The GPS unit sends the latitude and longitude information in NMEA format to the CPU 10 times per second by UART communication. (5) Temporarily store the sent latitude and longitude in the RAM from the CPU. (6) The CPU determines whether the latest latitude and longitude belong to the detection area based on the latitude and longitude stored in the RAM. (7) According to the determination result, the CPU issues a command to start voice output to the voice output unit. (8) Return to the above (5) and repeat the operation hereafter.

[0028] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the current position of the work vehicle belongs to the detection area 20 in front of Nibo JCT (Hiroshima City) with respect to the warning device according to the present invention. The determination logic for whether it belongs to the detection area will be described with reference to this figure. In this figure, the north side and the west side of Nibo JCT are the jurisdiction areas of the Hiroshima Expressway Public Corporation, and when a work vehicle of the Chugoku Branch of West Nippon Expressway Company approaches the above Nibo JCT from the south side, a guiding voice or a warning voice is set to be emitted.

[0029] Points 1 and 2 are latitude and longitude information pre-entered in the program. The detection area is set in advance based on the latitude and longitude information of these two points. When the four conditions that the latitude of the current position of the work vehicle is greater than point 2, less than point 1, the longitude of the current position is greater than point 1, and less than point 2 are satisfied, it is determined that it belongs to the detection area 20. "Greater" and "less" refer to the magnitude of the absolute value of the number.

[0030] In FIG. 4, the current position information of the work vehicle is 34°N latitude, 134°E longitude, point 1 is 35°N latitude, 133°E longitude, point 2 is 33°N latitude, 135°E longitude, and point 2 < current latitude < point 1 and point 1 < current longitude < point 2, so it is determined that it belongs to the detection area.

[0031] In this way, when it is determined that the work vehicle belongs to the detection area set in front of the specified area, the control unit issues a voice emission command to the voice output unit, and a guiding voice or a warning voice is emitted from the speaker. The driver of the work vehicle can move from the next IC to the general road after hearing this warning.

[0032] The above describes one embodiment of the present invention. However, in the present invention, design changes can be made as follows. First, the warning device according to the present invention is a compact box type, and its external shape can be designed completely freely. In short, it suffices as long as it has the functions shown in FIG. 1.

[0033] The detection area may be an area at the periphery of the designated area and in front of an IC or JCT that leads outside the designated area, and may be an area defined by two points of latitude and longitude. Also, this detection area can be set at at least one location or a plurality of locations. That is, a plurality of these detection areas may be provided on the front side of the expressway that connects to an area under the jurisdiction of another expressway office at the periphery of the usable area of the designated ETC.

[0034] The specific content of the instruction voice or warning voice can be changed as appropriate. In short, any voice guidance with the gist of "Since you are approaching outside the designated area, move from the nearest or next IC / JCT to a general road" may be used.

[0035] As described above, in the present invention, it is possible to provide an audio warning device that prohibits the use of an ETC card with a specified usage range outside the specified area.

Explanation of Signs

[0036] 10 Warning device for preventing driving outside the designated area 11 GPS unit 12 Control unit 13 Audio output unit 14 Speaker 15 Power supply unit 20 Detection area

Claims

1. An out-of-designated-area driving prevention warning device for warning when driving outside a designated area specified for the use area of an ETC card, comprising a GPS unit for acquiring its own position information, a control unit, an audio output unit having an audio speaker, and an internal or external power supply unit, wherein a detection area, which is an area of a toll road located at the peripheral part of the designated area, is stored in the storage unit of the control unit, and when the current position information detected by the GPS unit matches any one of one or more of the detection areas located at the peripheral part of the designated area of a toll road such as an expressway set in advance, the control unit issues an audio output command to the audio output unit, and an instruction audio or a warning audio is emitted from the audio speaker of the audio output unit based on the audio output command. The out-of-designated-area driving prevention warning device is characterized by this.

2. The detection area is an area specified by the latitude and longitude of two points, point 1 and point 2, and it is determined to belong to the detection area when four conditions are satisfied: the latitude of the current position is greater than that of point 2 and less than that of point 1, and the longitude of the current position is greater than that of point 1 and less than that of point 2. The out-of-designated-area driving prevention warning device according to Claim 1 is characterized by this.

3. The out-of-designated-area driving prevention warning device according to Claim 2, having a portable box-shaped external appearance.

4. The out-of-designated-area driving prevention warning device according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, installed in a work vehicle used by a worker working in a predetermined jurisdiction area. ​

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