ETC system, non-ETC vehicle identification device, and non-ETC vehicle identification method

Abstract

To provide a passage management system that excellently specifies an ETC non-compliant vehicle in a scene in which ETC compliant vehicles and ETC non-compliant vehicles are mixed.SOLUTION: A roadside device 4 includes a first communication unit that receives wireless communication compliant vehicle information from an on-vehicle device 51 through wireless communication between a camera that picks up an image of a lane and outputs a picked-up image and the on-vehicle device 51 of a wireless communication compliant vehicle running on the lane. A passage management device includes a second communication unit that receives the picked-up image and the wireless communication compliant vehicle information, an image vehicle information detection unit that detects license plate information from the picked-up image, a wireless communication compliant vehicle information detection unit that detects wireless compliant vehicle license plate information from the wireless communication compliant vehicle information, a wireless communication non-compliant vehicle specifying unit that compares the license plate information detected from the picked-up image with the wireless compliant vehicle license plate information detected from the wireless communication compliant vehicle information and specifies a wireless communication non-compliant vehicle based on a result of collation, and a passage history output unit that outputs a wireless communication non-compliant vehicle passage history.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a traffic management system, a traffic management method, and a traffic management device. [Background technology]

[0002] Electronic toll collection systems (hereinafter referred to as ETC systems) that use wireless communication are becoming widespread as a toll collection method for toll roads. However, since there are a certain number of vehicles that do not use the ETC system (hereinafter referred to as non-ETC-compatible vehicles), both ETC lanes and lanes for toll collectors are provided at the entrance and exit toll gates of toll roads, and gates that open and close depending on whether or not the vehicle is permitted to pass through are installed in each lane. This makes it possible to process charges for both vehicles equipped with on-board units that support wireless communication for the ETC system (hereinafter referred to as ETC-compatible vehicles) and non-ETC-compatible vehicles.

[0003] Furthermore, toll roads that charge a fixed toll often have a lane for ETC vehicles and a lane for cash collection staffed at the entrance toll gate to collect tolls, and a type of exit called a free-flow exit is sometimes used. Also, on toll roads that charge a fixed amount for cash-collecting vehicles and a distance-based toll system for ETC-compatible vehicles, no gates are installed at free-flow exits, and the information necessary for toll collection is sent and received through communication between the roadside device on the gantry installed at the exit and the on-board unit of the ETC-compatible vehicle, and appropriate charging processing is carried out for ETC-compatible vehicles according to the distance-based system.

[0004] Furthermore, at toll booths that accommodate non-ETC-compatible vehicles, it is necessary to identify the section of use and the vehicle type based on the toll ticket, making it difficult to make them completely unmanned, and so the deployment of toll collectors is essential, which inevitably increases costs.As the penetration rate of ETC has increased, road operators are feeling a growing burden of the costs of dealing with non-ETC vehicles, which have seen a relatively low usage rate. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-36817 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-117519 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-139299 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] As mentioned above, ETC-only toll roads are being considered for reasons such as reducing costs for non-ETC vehicles. When ETC-only toll roads are implemented, it is expected that toll collector lanes will be abolished. In this case, the issue of how to collect tolls from non-ETC vehicles at toll booths for ETC vehicles will become an issue. To do this, it is necessary to identify non-ETC vehicles in situations where ETC-compatible and non-ETC-compatible vehicles are mixed.

[0007] The object of the present invention is to provide a traffic management system, a traffic management method, and a traffic management device that are excellent at identifying the traffic conditions of non-ETC-compatible vehicles in scenes where ETC-compatible vehicles and non-ETC-compatible vehicles are mixed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A traffic management system according to an embodiment includes a roadside device disposed in a lane along which vehicles travel, and a traffic management device that manages vehicle traffic based on information from the roadside device. The roadside device includes a camera that photographs the lane and outputs the photographed image, and a first communication unit that receives wireless communication-enabled vehicle information from an onboard device of a wireless communication-enabled vehicle equipped with the onboard device and traveling along the lane via wireless communication with the onboard device. The traffic management device includes a second communication unit that receives the photographed image and the wireless communication-enabled vehicle information, an image vehicle information detection unit that detects license plate information from the photographed image, a wireless communication-enabled vehicle information detection unit that detects wireless-enabled vehicle license plate information from the wireless communication-enabled vehicle information, a wireless communication-incompatible vehicle identification unit that compares the license plate information detected from the photographed image with the wireless-enabled vehicle license plate information detected from the wireless communication-enabled vehicle information and identifies wireless communication-incompatible vehicles based on the comparison result, and a traffic history output unit that outputs wireless communication-incompatible vehicle traffic history for the wireless communication-incompatible vehicles. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an outline of toll collection by the ETC system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the ETC system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of the central server according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a roadside device provided at an entrance toll booth or an exit toll booth according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of application of the roadside device at the entrance or exit to a lane according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of acquisition of passing vehicle information by a roadside device. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for identifying ETC-compatible vehicles / non-ETC-compatible vehicles by the central server. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a central server and a lane server according to a modified example of the first embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a roadside device provided at a free flow or check barrier on a main lane according to the third embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing an example of application of the roadside device according to the third embodiment to a main road. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a communication area and a photographing area on a toll road. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining an example of detection of a vehicle image included in a communication area on a toll road. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an example of detecting ETC-compatible vehicles and non-ETC-compatible vehicles from vehicle images included in a communication area on a toll road. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an example of a license plate information reading process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a dynamic map management server that improves the accuracy of vehicle position information according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is an image of the mapping process by the mapping processing unit of the dynamic map management server. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an image of the association between a vehicle image detected from a captured image and a vehicle on a road. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of associating vehicle images detected from a captured image with vehicles on a toll road. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating an example of updating a travel history according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 21]FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating an example of travel distance estimation based on traffic volume according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing an example of a travel history search according to the fourth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] First Embodiment An example of an ETC system according to the first embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. The ETC system described here is an example of a vehicle management system.

[0011] [composition] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an outline of toll collection by the ETC system according to the first embodiment. As shown in Figure 1, the ETC system comprises a central toll facility 1 managed by the road operator, a toll facility server 2 that manages all toll facilities, a lane server 3 provided for each lane, and a roadside device 4 that is installed on the roadside along which vehicles 5 travel or at toll facilities. Vehicles 5 traveling on the toll road include ETC vehicles 5a that are compatible with the wireless communication of the ETC system (hereinafter simply referred to as ETC vehicles 5a), and non-ETC vehicles 5b that are not compatible with the wireless communication of the ETC system (hereinafter simply referred to as non-ETC vehicles 5b). In other words, it is assumed that ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b travel together on the toll road.

[0012] First, charging methods can be broadly divided into distance-based methods, in which the toll is determined based on the distance between the entrance and exit toll gates and the vehicle type, and flat-rate methods, in which a fixed amount is charged regardless of whether the toll gate is an entrance or exit toll gate.

[0013] Roadside device 4 refers to all devices that communicate with ETC vehicles, and includes roadside devices installed at entrance and exit toll gates that have control bars that control the passage of passing vehicles, as well as roadside devices installed on main lines called free flows and check barriers, and roadside devices for road-to-vehicle communication devices that detect the driving route of vehicles.

[0014] The installation location of the roadside device 4 varies depending on the toll method, but it is placed in at least one of the lanes at the entrance to the toll road (at each entrance if there are multiple entrances), the lanes at the exit from the toll road (at each exit if there are multiple exits), and the main lane of the toll road (while traveling).

[0015] On routes where tolls are charged according to the travel section determined by the entrance and exit (distance-based charging), the roadside devices 4 are installed at least in the lane at the entrance toll gate and the lane at the exit toll gate. On routes where a fixed toll is charged regardless of the travel section (flat-rate charging), the roadside devices 4 are installed at least at the entrance toll gate, the exit toll gate, or a main line toll gate located along the main line. When the roadside device 4 receives the ETC vehicle information C1 and the like via the communication device, it transmits the information to the lane server.

[0016] In addition, the roadside device 4 is equipped with a video camera (hereinafter referred to as camera), which continuously captures the lane (photographing area) throughout the period the toll road is open, and outputs photographing information V to the lane server 3, which includes the captured image, photographing location information, and photographing date and time information.

[0017] The lane server creates a travel record (toll details) R including the received ETC vehicle information C1 and the like, and transmits it together with the vehicle image to the central server of the toll central device 1 via the toll gate server.

[0018] The central server of the toll central device 1 is a server that calculates tolls for passing vehicles. The toll central device 1 is made up of multiple servers that transmit and receive information between each server.

[0019] When the route is charged by distance, the central server of the toll central unit 1 compares the toll details created at the entrance toll gate with the usage details created at the exit toll gate using vehicle information, calculates the basic toll using a toll table determined for each vehicle type, and then applies any applicable discounts to calculate the toll to be charged. In addition, for routes with a flat rate system, the central server determines a predetermined fixed amount for each vehicle type based on the usage details from the entrance or exit toll gate, and applies any applicable discounts to determine the toll.

[0020] The central server then transmits the calculated toll details to a server of the credit card company, etc. The credit card company then bills the user for the toll based on the details.

[0021] Furthermore, the user's communication terminal can inquire about the usage status of the charge central unit 1.

[0022] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the ETC system according to the first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, the ETC system includes a toll central device 1 at the center, and further includes a toll gate server 2, a lane server 3, and a roadside device 4 at the roadside (toll gate). The toll central device 1 is composed of multiple servers including a central server 11. The roadside (toll gate) includes an entrance toll gate and an exit toll gate, as well as free flow and check barriers installed on the main line. The central toll central device 1 and the roadside toll gate server 2, lane server 3, and roadside device 4 are collectively referred to as information processing equipment S.

[0023] The central server 11 is an example of a traffic management device that manages vehicle traffic based on information from roadside devices. The central server 11 is connected to the toll gate servers 2 installed at each toll gate, and exchanges various information with the toll gate servers 2 at each toll gate.

[0024] A toll gate server 2 is provided at each toll gate and functions as a server that manages all toll gates, and the toll gate server 2 at a given toll gate is connected to the lane server 3 at the same given toll gate. The toll gate server 2 exchanges various information with each lane server 3 provided within the toll gate.

[0025] A lane server 3 is provided for each lane of the toll gate, i.e., the lane servers 3 exist for the same number of lanes, and control the roadside devices 4 based on sensor data etc. transmitted from the roadside devices 4 of the lane. The sensor data includes detection of passing vehicles (vehicle presence / absence).

[0026] The roadside device 4 is provided at both the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate. Among these, the roadside device 4 installed in the entrance lane transmits a passage record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and entrance information to the lane server 3. The entrance information includes position information (or identification information) that identifies the entrance, and entry date and time information that indicates the date and time of passing through the entrance (or the date and time of communication).

[0027] The roadside device 4 is also equipped with a camera that captures video. This camera continuously captures the lane (photography area) throughout the period the toll road is open. The roadside device 4 outputs to the lane server 3 photography information V that includes the captured image, photography location information, and photography date and time information.

[0028] The roadside device 4 installed in the exit lane transmits a traffic record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and exit information to the lane server 3. The exit information includes location information (or identification information) that identifies the exit, and exit date and time information that indicates the date and time of passing through the exit (or the date and time of communication). The lane server 3 transmits the received traffic record R to the tollgate server 2, and the tollgate server 2 transmits the received traffic record R to the central server 11.

[0029] Similarly to the roadside device at the entrance toll gate, the roadside device 4 at the exit toll gate is also equipped with a camera that captures video. This camera also continuously captures the lanes (photographing area) throughout the toll road's open period. It then transmits a traffic record R containing ETC vehicle information C1 and exit information to the lane server 3. It also outputs photography information V containing the captured image, photography location information, and photography date and time information.

[0030] The ETC vehicle 5a is a vehicle equipped with an on-board unit 51. The on-board unit 51 accepts an ETC card 52, which is a type of IC (integrated circuit) card for paying tolls, and reads data from and writes data to the ETC card 52. The on-board unit 51 communicates wirelessly with a communication device of the roadside device 4 to send and receive various information.

[0031] The on-board unit 51 of the ETC vehicle 5a stores on-board unit specific information. The ETC card 52 stores card information including card specific information. For example, when the ETC vehicle 5a passes through a roadside device 4, the on-board unit 51 of the ETC vehicle 5a communicates with a communication device of the roadside device 4 via wireless communication and transmits ETC vehicle information C1 including the on-board unit specific information, card information, etc.

[0032] For example, when an ETC vehicle 5a passes through a roadside device 4, the on-board unit 51 of the ETC vehicle 5a communicates with the communication device of the roadside device 4 via wireless communication and transmits ETC vehicle information C1 including on-board unit identification information (hereinafter referred to as on-board unit ID), card information, etc. The ETC vehicle information C1 may also include license plate information, vehicle model, vehicle classification, GPS (Global Positioning System) location information, and communication date and time information.

[0033] For example, while traveling between the entrance, main lane, and exit of a toll road, an ETC vehicle 5a communicates with a roadside device 4 at the entrance toll gate, a roadside device 4 on the main lane, and a roadside device 4 at the exit toll gate.

[0034] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of the central server according to the first embodiment. The central server 11 is one or more computers, and includes an information processing unit 111, a storage unit 112, and a communication unit 113.

[0035] The information processing unit 111 corresponds to the core of the computer. The information processing unit 111 has a processor such as a CPU, a memory, an interface, etc. The CPU is a processor that realizes various processing functions by executing programs. The CPU is connected to each component that constitutes the central server 11 via an interface, etc. The memory includes a non-volatile memory that stores the programs executed by the CPU, and a volatile memory that temporarily stores data, etc.

[0036] The information processing unit 111 includes an image vehicle information detection unit 1111 , a wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit 1112 , a wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113 , a wireless communication incompatible vehicle identification unit 1114 , and a travel history output unit 1115 .

[0037] The storage unit 112 includes a storage medium capable of high-speed reading and writing, such as a main memory, and also includes a large-capacity storage device, such as an HDD or SSD. The storage unit 112 stores programs executed by the CPU of the information processing unit 111. The storage unit 112 stores a fare table that varies depending on the travel section and vehicle type, or a fare table that varies depending on the vehicle type.

[0038] The storage unit 112 also stores ETC registration information for the ETC vehicle 5a. The ETC registration information includes information relating to the vehicle-mounted unit specific information, license plate information, vehicle type (standard-sized vehicle / medium-sized vehicle / large vehicle / extra-large vehicle, etc.), and vehicle classification (standard-sized vehicle / bus / truck, etc.). The license plate information includes a land transport bureau code, classification number, usage code, and a serial number (four digits).

[0039] The communication unit 113 is a communication interface that communicates with the toll gate server 2 etc. via a network. The communication unit 113 functions as a second communication unit and receives the photographic information V including the photographed image etc., and the ETC vehicle information C1. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a roadside device provided at an entrance toll booth or an exit toll booth according to the first embodiment. Among the roadside devices 4, the roadside device 41 installed at the entrance or exit will be described.

[0040] As shown in Figure 4, the roadside device 41 installed at the entrance or exit includes an interface aggregation unit 4101, a first antenna 4111, a second antenna 4112, a recovery antenna 4113, vehicle detectors 4121, 4122, 4123, cameras 4131, 4135, a roadside indicator 4132, a lane sign 4133, and a gantry 4136.

[0041] Among these, the roadside device 4 installed in the entrance lane transmits a passage record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and entrance information to the lane server 3. The entrance information includes position information (or identification information) that identifies the entrance, and entry date and time information that indicates the date and time of passing through the entrance (or the date and time of communication).

[0042] The images captured by the cameras 4131 and 4135 contain image information in addition to the images themselves. The image capture location information may be any information that identifies the location, and may be identification information unique to each roadside device 4 or GPS (Global Positioning System) location information.

[0043] When an ETC vehicle 5a passes through the photographing area, the photographed image includes a vehicle image of the ETC vehicle 5a, and when a non-ETC vehicle 5b passes through the photographing area, the photographed image includes a vehicle image of the non-ETC vehicle 5b. When the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b pass through the photographing area at the same time, the photographed image includes vehicle images of the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b.

[0044] The roadside device 4 installed on the main road transmits a traffic record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and passage information to the lane server 3. The passage information includes location information (or identification information) that identifies the passing point, and passage date and time information that indicates the passage date and time (or communication date and time).

[0045] The roadside device 4 installed in the exit lane transmits a traffic record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and exit information to the lane server 3. The exit information includes location information (or identification information) that identifies the exit, and exit date and time information that indicates the date and time of passing through the exit (or the date and time of communication). The lane server 3 transmits the received traffic record R to the tollgate server 2, and the tollgate server 2 transmits the received traffic record R to the central server 11.

[0046] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of application of the roadside device at the entrance or exit to a lane according to the first embodiment.

[0047] As shown in Fig. 5, two islands 80 are provided, a lane 81 is formed between these two islands 80, and a gantry 4136 is provided to straddle the lane 81. An ETC vehicle 5a travels on the lane 81 in the direction of arrow a. A non-ETC vehicle 5b travels in the same way.

[0048] Here, assuming lane 81 at the entrance toll gate, the downstream side of arrow a is outside the toll road, and the upstream side of arrow a is inside the toll road. Also, assuming lane 81 at the exit, the downstream side of arrow a is inside the toll road, and the upstream side of arrow a is outside the toll road.

[0049] 5, an interface aggregation unit 4101 is provided on the island 80. The interface aggregation unit 4101 aggregates information from each unit and outputs it to the lane server 3. As for sensors, for example, vehicle detectors 4121, 4122, and 4123 are provided on the island 80 in this order from upstream to downstream.

[0050] The sensors of these vehicle detectors 4121 , 4122 , and 4123 detect a passing ETC vehicle 5 a and output a vehicle detection signal to the interface aggregation unit 4101 .

[0051] The interface aggregation unit 4101 outputs a vehicle detection signal to the lane server 3. The lane server 3 detects the position of the ETC vehicle 5a on the lane 81 based on the vehicle detection signal, and controls the operation of each device of the roadside device 4. The same applies when a non-ETC vehicle 5b enters the lane 81.

[0052] Next, a first antenna 4111, a recovery antenna 4112, and a second antenna 4113 are provided as antennas on the island 80 in this order from upstream to downstream. The first antenna 4111 and the recovery antenna 4113 communicate with the on-board unit 51 of the ETC vehicle 5a and receive various pieces of information transmitted from the on-board unit 51. The second antenna 4112 also transmits to the on-board unit 51 various pieces of information that need to be written to the ETC card inserted in the on-board unit.

[0053] For example, in the roadside device 41 at the entrance, the first antenna 4111, the second antenna 4112, and the recovery antenna 4113 function as a first communication unit, receive ETC vehicle information C1 transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device 51, and transmit the ETC vehicle information C1 to the interface aggregation unit 4101. The roadside device 41 may also transmit entrance information to the vehicle-mounted device 51, and the vehicle-mounted device 51 may store the entrance information. The roadside device 41 transmits a passage record R including the ETC vehicle information C1 and the entrance information to the lane server 3, and also transmits photographic information V to the lane server 3.

[0054] In addition, in the roadside device 41 at the exit, the first antenna 4111, the second antenna 4112, and the recovery antenna 4113 function as a first communication unit, receive ETC vehicle information C1 transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device 51, and transmit the ETC vehicle information C1 to the interface aggregation unit 4101. In addition, the roadside device 41 may transmit exit information to the vehicle-mounted device 51, and the vehicle-mounted device 51 may store the exit information. The roadside device 41 transmits a passage record R including the ETC vehicle information C1 and the exit information to the lane server 3, and also transmits photographic information V to the lane server 3.

[0055] When the non-ETC vehicle 5b enters the lane 81, the first antenna 4111, the second antenna 4112, and the recovery antenna 4113 do not receive information from the vehicle 5b.

[0056] Also, on the island 80, an ETC lane sign board 4133, a roadside indicator 4132, a start control device 4124, and a camera 4135 are provided in this order from upstream to downstream.

[0057] The ETC lane display board 4133 is installed above the lane so that the driver of the ETC vehicle 5a approaching the toll gate can check the displayed information, and displays the lane operation status (passable / not passable, etc.).

[0058] The roadside display 4132 outputs (displays) driving guidance such as slowing down, stopping, and starting to the driver of the ETC vehicle 5a.

[0059] The start controller 4124 controls the opening and closing of the start control bar 4124a based on start control information from the interface aggregation unit 4101. When the start control bar 4124a is closed, it physically blocks the passage of a vehicle (exiting from a lane), and when it is open, it allows the vehicle to pass. For example, when a vehicle is detected by the vehicle detector 4121 or 4122 and ETC vehicle information C1 is received by the first antenna 4111, it is determined that the ETC vehicle 5a is passing, and the closed start control bar 4124a is opened to allow the vehicle to pass.

[0060] If a vehicle is detected by the vehicle detector 4121 or 4122 and ETC vehicle information C1 is not received by the first antenna 4111, it is determined that a non-ETC vehicle 5b is passing, and the closed start control bar 4124a is opened to allow the vehicle to pass.

[0061] By visually encouraging the ETC vehicle 5a or non-ETC vehicle 5b to slow down by closing the start control bar 4124a before the vehicle enters, it is possible to reliably capture an image (including the license plate) of the ETC vehicle 5a or non-ETC vehicle 5b with the camera 4131, etc. The start control device 4124 may be omitted.

[0062] Furthermore, the roadside display 4132 outputs (displays) information such as toll information to the driver of the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b.

[0063] The camera 4135 photographs the lane when the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b enters or exits, and outputs photographic information V including the photographed image, the photographed date and time, and photographed position information to the interface aggregation unit 4101. The photographed image photographed when the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b passes includes the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b.

[0064] Furthermore, a camera 4131 is provided on the island 80, and the camera 4131 photographs the traveling lane and outputs photographing information V including the photographed image, the photographing date and time, and photographing location information to the interface aggregation unit 4101. The photographed image photographed when the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b is passing includes the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b.

[0065] The interface aggregation unit 4101 transmits the passage record R and the photographing information V to the lane server 3. The lane server 3 transmits the passage record R and the photographing information V to the toll gate server 2. The toll gate server 2 transmits the passage record R and the photographing information V to the central server 11.

[0066] 6 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first embodiment. The vehicle-mounted device 51 includes a device communication unit 511, a control unit 512, a storage unit 513, and a card processing unit 514. The vehicle-mounted device 51 also includes a display and a speaker that output various types of information.

[0067] The device communication unit 511 is a communication interface that wirelessly communicates with the roadside device 4. The device communication unit 511 transmits ETC vehicle information C1 including on-board device identification information (hereinafter referred to as on-board device ID) and card information to the roadside device 4, and receives entrance information from the roadside device 4 installed at the entrance, passing information from the roadside device 4 installed on the main line, and exit information from the roadside device 4 installed at the exit.

[0068] The control unit 512 is a control unit that controls communication and also controls processing of the ETC card 52. The control unit 512 has a processor such as a CPU, a memory, an interface, etc. The CPU is a processor that realizes various processing functions by executing programs. The CPU is connected to each unit that constitutes the in-vehicle device 51 via an interface, etc. The memory includes a non-volatile memory that stores programs executed by the CPU, and a volatile memory that temporarily stores data, etc. In other words, the control unit 512 performs data processing by the CPU executing programs stored in the memory.

[0069] The storage unit 513 stores the vehicle-mounted device ID and the program executed by the CPU of the control unit 512. The card processing unit 514 accepts an ETC card and reads card information from the ETC card to be transmitted to the roadside units 4 at the entrance, main line, and exit. The card processing unit 514 also writes entrance information transmitted from the roadside unit 4 at the entrance into the ETC card.

[0070] [Get information on ETC-compatible / non-ETC-compatible vehicles] The operation of the first embodiment will be described below. The toll road in question allows a mixture of ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b to travel on it. In the first embodiment, an example of acquiring passing vehicle information by the roadside device 4 at the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate will be described. The entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate are divided into lanes, and a start control bar 4124a is placed for each lane. When passing through the entrance toll gate or the exit toll gate, the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b is slowed down by opening and closing the start control bar 4124a. This allows the license plate of the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b to be read with high accuracy.

[0071] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of acquisition of passing vehicle information by a roadside device. As shown in FIG. 7, in ST101, when the roadside device 4 detects the intrusion of a vehicle, it outputs photographic information V obtained by continuously photographing the lane (photographing area), and also outputs a passage record R obtained by wireless communication with the on-board device 51 of the ETC vehicle 5a.

[0072] The photographing information V includes a photographed image, photographing location information, and photographing date and time information.

[0073] Next, in ST102, when an ETC vehicle 5a enters, it is detected, and the antenna and the on-board device 51 communicate to obtain ETC vehicle information C1 of the passing ETC vehicle 5a. Furthermore, when an ETC vehicle 5a passes, photographic information V including an image of the passing ETC vehicle 5a can be obtained. A passage record R is created based on this obtained ETC vehicle information C1. In this way, the passage record R output from the roadside device 4 installed in the lane of the entrance toll gate includes the ETC vehicle information C1 and entrance information.

[0074] Furthermore, the traffic record R output from the roadside device 4 installed in the lane of the exit toll gate includes ETC vehicle information C1 and exit information.

[0075] On the other hand, in ST103, when a non-ETC vehicle 5b passes, communication with the antenna of the roadside device 4 does not occur because the vehicle does not have an on-board device 51. Therefore, ETC vehicle information C1 cannot be obtained. However, photographic information V including an image of the passing non-ETC vehicle 5b is obtained.

[0076] That is, the photograph information V includes information relating to the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b, and the traffic record R includes information relating only to the ETC vehicle 5a.

[0077] [Identifying ETC-compatible / non-ETC-compatible vehicles] Next, the identification of ETC-compatible vehicles / non-ETC-compatible vehicles will be explained. In this embodiment, the process of identifying ETC-compatible vehicles / non-ETC-compatible vehicles will be explained as being performed by a central server, but this function may also be provided on the toll gate side. A configuration in which the process of identifying ETC-compatible vehicles / non-ETC-compatible vehicles is performed on the toll gate side will be described later as another embodiment.

[0078] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for identifying ETC vehicles / non-ETC vehicles by the central server.

[0079] In ST201, the communication unit 113 of the central server 11 receives the photographic information V and the passage record R output from the roadside device 4 via the lane server 3 and the tollgate server 2. Here, the passage record R includes ETC vehicle information C1 and entrance information, or ETC vehicle information C1 and exit information, acquired from the on-board device 51 of the ETC vehicle. In contrast, the photographic information V is photographic information related to both ETC vehicles and non-ETC vehicles. The photographic information V includes the photographed image, photographic location information, and photographic date and time information.

[0080] In ST202, the information processing unit 111 of the central server 11 identifies the ETC vehicle 5a based on the photographing information V and the passage record R. Since the photographing information V includes information about the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b, and the passage record R is information about only the ETC vehicle 5a, the information processing unit 111 identifies the information about the ETC vehicle 5a included in the photographing information V based on the information about the ETC vehicle 5a identified from the passage record R.

[0081] The information processing unit 111 functions as a license plate extraction unit 1111, detects a vehicle image from the captured image included in the shooting information V, detects a rectangular license plate image from the vehicle image, and detects at least a part of the license plate information from the license plate image.

[0082] Furthermore, the information processing unit 111 determines at least some of the vehicle type, vehicle classification, vehicle name (name designated by the vehicle manufacturer), and vehicle body color from the vehicle image.

[0083] The information processing unit 111 generates image-extracted vehicle information C2 based on the captured image. The image-extracted vehicle information C2 includes a vehicle image, license plate information, vehicle model, vehicle classification, vehicle name, vehicle color, photographing position information, and photographing date and time.

[0084] Note that the image-extracted vehicle information C2 may not be complete, and some information may be missing or incorrect, depending on the information detection results and discrimination results by the information processing unit 111. Note that the image-extracted vehicle information C2 generated here includes information on ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b.

[0085] Next, a method for identifying the ETC vehicle information C2a of the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle information C2b of the non-ETC vehicle 5b from the image-extracted vehicle information C2 will be described.

[0086] The passage record R includes ETC vehicle information C1, location information, and passage date and time. The ETC vehicle information C1 included in the passage record R is information about the ETC vehicle 5a. The ETC vehicle information C1 is information transmitted from the on-board unit 51 and includes at least on-board unit specific information. The information processing unit 111 uses the on-board unit specific information as a search key to search for license plate information, vehicle type, and vehicle classification based on the ETC registration information stored in the memory unit 112, and generates ETC vehicle information C1 including license plate information, vehicle type, and vehicle classification. If the ETC vehicle information C1 included in the passage record R includes license plate information, vehicle type, and vehicle classification, the ETC vehicle information C1 included in the passage record R is used as is.

[0087] The information processing unit 111 functions as a wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit 1112, and detects the license plate information, vehicle type, vehicle classification, location information, and passing date and time of the ETC vehicle 5a based on the passage record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and the like.

[0088] In this way, in ST202, the information processing unit 111 functions as a wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113, and uses information about the ETC vehicle 5a based on the passage record R to identify the ETC vehicle information C2a of the ETC vehicle 5a from the image extracted vehicle information C2.

[0089] Next, in ST203, the information processing unit 111 functions as the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114, and identifies the non-ETC vehicle information C2b of the non-ETC vehicle 5b from the image-extracted vehicle information C2.

[0090] In other words, the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 excludes the ETC vehicle information C2a of the ETC vehicle 5a from the image extracted vehicle information C2 and identifies the non-ETC vehicle information C2b of the non-ETC vehicle 5b. For example, when the image extracted license plate information detected from the captured image does not match any of the wireless compatible vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information C1, the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 identifies the vehicle corresponding to the image extracted license plate information as a non-ETC compatible vehicle.

[0091] Furthermore, the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 may identify a vehicle based on the image capture date and time information and the passing date and time information. The communication area of ​​the roadside device 4 includes the image capture area of ​​the camera 4231. In this case, the information processing unit 111 compares the license plate information detected from the image captured in the first image capture time period with the license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information C1 in the first communication time period corresponding to the first image capture time period. The first image capture time period and the first communication time period may be the same time period, or there may be a slight difference. In this way, by narrowing down the information by time period, the computational load for vehicle identification can be reduced, and vehicle identification can be speeded up.

[0092] In ST204, the information processing unit 111 functions as a travel history output unit 1115 and generates travel histories H of the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b based on the results of identifying the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b. The wireless communication compatible vehicle travel history Ha of the ETC vehicle 5a (hereinafter referred to as ETC travel history Ha) includes the vehicle image, license plate information, vehicle type, vehicle classification, vehicle name, body color, location information, and passage date and time of the ETC vehicle 5a. The wireless communication non-compatible vehicle travel history Hb of the non-ETC vehicle 5b (hereinafter referred to as non-ETC travel history Hb) includes the vehicle image, license plate information, vehicle type, vehicle classification, vehicle name, body color, location information, and passage date and time of the non-ETC vehicle 5b.

[0093] In addition, the traffic history output unit 1115 may identify the traffic section of the non-ETC vehicle 5b (the traffic section determined by the entrance and exit) based on information from the roadside devices 41 installed at the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and create the non-ETC vehicle traffic history Hb of the non-ETC vehicle 5b, or may identify the traffic section of the non-ETC vehicle 5b (the traffic section determined by the entrance or the exit) based on information from the roadside devices 41 installed at at least one of the roadside devices 41 at the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and create the traffic history of the non-ETC vehicle 5b.

[0094] Next, in ST205, the storage unit 112 stores the generated ETC traffic history Ha and non-ETC traffic history Hb. Also, in ST205, the travel history output unit 1115 outputs the ETC travel history Ha and the non-ETC travel history Hb, and the communication unit 113 transmits the ETC travel history Ha and the non-ETC travel history Hb to an external server or the like. <Modifications of the first embodiment> A modified example of the first embodiment will be described below. In the first embodiment, an example has been described in which the functions of the image vehicle information detection unit 1111 and the like are implemented in the information processing unit 111 of the central server 11. However, it is also possible to implement them on the lane server side.

[0095] In a variation of the first embodiment, part of the functions of the image vehicle information detection unit 1111 and the like is implemented in the lane server 3 on the toll gate side.

[0096] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a central server and a lane server according to a modified example of the first embodiment.

[0097] In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the information processing unit 111 of the central server 11 includes an image vehicle information detection unit 1111, a wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit 1112, a wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113, a wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114, and a traffic history output unit 1115.

[0098] In contrast, in a modified sequence of the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the information processing unit 111 of the central server 11 includes a passage history output unit 1115, and the information processing unit 311 of the lane server 3 provided for each lane of the toll gate includes an image vehicle information detection unit 3111, a wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit 3112, a wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 3113, and a wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 3114.

[0099] The lane server at the toll gate compares vehicle information and image information for each lane to identify non-ETC vehicles. Then, separate toll details for ETC vehicles and non-ETC vehicles are created. The toll gate server then aggregates the toll details from each lane and transmits them to the central server 11. This reduces the processing load on the central server 11.

[0100] This function may also be provided by the tollgate server rather than the lane server. In this case, the tollgate server compares the vehicle information and image information of ETC vehicles from each lane server, identifies non-ETC vehicles, and creates usage details divided into ETC and non-ETC vehicles. This is then sent to the central server.

[0101] In this way, as in the first embodiment, functions such as the image vehicle information detection unit 1111 may be consolidated in the central server 11, or as in a modified example of the first embodiment, they may be distributed to lane servers 3 provided for each lane on the toll gate side, or to the toll gate servers of each toll gate.

[0102] <Second embodiment> The second embodiment will be described below. In the second embodiment, at least one of the roadside devices 4 at the entrance or exit is a free-flow type. This embodiment is common on urban expressways in urban areas, and is intended for application to routes where non-ETC vehicles are charged a flat rate and ETC vehicles are charged according to distance.

[0103] In the first embodiment, an example of obtaining passing vehicle information by roadside devices 4 at entrance and exit toll gates was described, but in the second embodiment, the roadside device 4 at the exit (or entrance) is a free-flow type, and the other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment.

[0104] The free-flow type roadside device 4 does not have a start control device or start control bar, and ETC vehicles 5a or non-ETC vehicles 5b pass through the exit freely. Therefore, the cameras 4131, 4135 of the roadside device 4 continuously take photos to obtain images (including license plates) of the ETC vehicles 5a or non-ETC vehicles 5b. The continuously taken images are compared with the vehicle information of ETC vehicles to identify non-ETC vehicles.

[0105] Here, the control to identify non-ETC vehicles may be performed by a central server as in the first embodiment, or may be performed by a toll booth server installed in the free flow area as in a modified example of the first embodiment.

[0106] This makes it possible to identify ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b, similarly to the first embodiment.

[0107] <Third embodiment> The third embodiment will be described below. In this embodiment, roadside devices are provided on the main line in addition to the entrance and exit points in order to realize route-specific charging.

[0108] Tolls are charged based on distance, with the toll determined based on the section between the entrance and exit toll gates, but some routes use a toll system that varies the toll depending on the route along the way. In sections with such a toll system, in order to understand the driving route, roadside equipment 4 is required to have main line toll gates installed in addition to the entrance and exit toll gates, or in addition to main line toll gates installed along the main line.

[0109] In the third embodiment, an embodiment will be described in which, in addition to the roadside device 4 at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, a roadside device 4 on the free-flow main line is used to obtain information for identifying a vehicle.

[0110] The travel history output unit 1115 adds information from the roadside device 4 installed at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate to information from the roadside device 4 on the main line to determine the travel route of the non-ETC vehicle 5b and outputs a travel history including the travel route.

[0111] By using the roadside device 4 on the main line, it is possible to obtain the travel route, and it is expected that the detection accuracy of the non-ETC vehicle 5b will be improved.

[0112] Furthermore, when an entrance or exit is free-flowing, vehicles passing through the entrance or exit may not be slowing down sufficiently, and license plate information may not be correctly obtained from an image of such a vehicle. In such cases, images acquired by roadside equipment 4 on the main line can be used to supplement the information needed to identify the vehicle.

[0113] The roadside device 4 on the main line that is applied in the third embodiment will be described below.

[0114] The roadside device 4 installed on the main road transmits a traffic record R including ETC vehicle information C1 and passage information to the lane server 3. The passage information includes location information (or identification information) that identifies the passing point, and passage date and time information that indicates the passage date and time (or communication date and time).

[0115] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a roadside device provided at a free flow or check barrier on a main lane according to the third embodiment. 10, the roadside device 42 installed on the main road includes an interface aggregation unit 4201, an antenna 4211, and a plurality of cameras 4231. For example, the roadside device 42 installed across three lanes includes three cameras 4231 corresponding to the three lanes.

[0116] 11 is a perspective view showing an example of application of the roadside device according to the third embodiment to a main road. As shown in FIG. 11, the roadside device 42 is provided with a gantry 4233, an antenna 4211, and three cameras 4231.

[0117] The antenna 4211 is an antenna that communicates with the on-board device 51 of the ETC vehicle 5a traveling on the main line. The antenna 4211 functions as a first communication unit, receives ETC vehicle information C1 from the on-board device 51, and outputs the ETC vehicle information C1 to the interface aggregation unit 4201.

[0118] The three cameras 4231 capture images of the capture areas on the respective lanes, and output to the interface aggregation unit 4101 image information V including the captured image, the image capture position, and the image capture date and time.

[0119] The interface aggregation unit 4201 transmits the ETC vehicle information C1 transmitted from the on-board device 51 and the passage record R including the passage information to the lane server 3, and also transmits the photographic information V output from the three cameras 4231 to the lane server 3. The lane server 3 transmits the passage record R and the photographic information V to the toll gate server 2, and the toll gate server 2 transmits the passage record R and the photographic information V to the central server 11.

[0120] The photograph information V includes a photographed image, photographing position information, and photographing date and time information. The traffic record R output from the roadside device 42 installed on the main road includes ETC vehicle information C1 and passing information.

[0121] With reference to FIGS. 12 to 14, a supplementary explanation will be given of the identification of ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b based on images taken on the main line. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a communication area and a photographing area on a toll road. As shown in Fig. 12, the antenna 4211 of the roadside device 42 communicates with the on-board device 51 of an ETC vehicle 5a traveling through a communication area E of an inbound or outbound lane of a toll road. The communication area E includes all inbound or outbound lanes, and an ETC vehicle 5a traveling through the inbound or outbound lane passes through the communication area E. A non-ETC vehicle 5b traveling through the inbound or outbound lane also passes through the communication area E, but the antenna 4211 does not communicate with the non-ETC vehicle 5b. The communication area E includes the image capturing area of ​​the camera 4231.

[0122] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining an example of detection of a vehicle image included in a communication area on a toll road. As described above, the image vehicle information detection unit 1111 detects a vehicle image from a captured image, detects a rectangular license plate image from the vehicle image, and detects license plate information from the license plate image. The image vehicle information detection unit 1111 also determines the vehicle type, vehicle classification, vehicle name, and vehicle color from the vehicle image.

[0123] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an example of detecting ETC-compatible vehicles and non-ETC-compatible vehicles from vehicle images included in a communication area on a toll road. Since ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b travel together without distinction on the toll road, the captured image includes ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b.

[0124] As explained above, the wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113 identifies the ETC vehicle 5a (license plate information, etc.) based on the passage record R obtained by wireless communication. The image vehicle information detection unit 1111 detects the license plate information of the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b from the captured image, and the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 uses the identification result of the ETC vehicle 5a (license plate information, etc.) based on the passage record R to identify the ETC vehicle 5a and the non-ETC vehicle 5b included in the captured image.

[0125] 15 is a flowchart showing an example of a license plate information reading process. Here, an example will be described in which, in addition to directly reading the license plate information based on a captured image, the reading of the license plate information is supplemented based on the ETC traffic history Ha and non-ETC traffic history Hb stored in the storage unit 112. The ETC traffic history Ha and non-ETC traffic history Hb are as described in ST204 of FIG. 8.

[0126] In ST301, the image vehicle information detection unit 1111 detects a vehicle image from the captured image included in the image capture information V, and determines the vehicle type based on the vehicle image.

[0127] Also, in ST302, the image vehicle information detection unit 1111 detects a rectangular license plate image from the vehicle image, and reads the letters and numbers that make up the license plate from the license plate image.

[0128] In ST303, depending on the image quality of the license plate image, the accuracy of reading the license plate information may be reduced. Therefore, the wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113 and the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 identify the corresponding vehicle from the image capture location information and image capture date and time information included in the image capture information V and the position information and date and time information included in the travel history H.

[0129] Then, in ST304, the wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113 and the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 identify the license plate information.

[0130] For example, the wireless communication compatible vehicle identification unit 1113 and the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit 1114 may predict the vehicle's travel time, identify the corresponding vehicle, and identify the license plate information based on the shooting location information and shooting date and time information contained in the shooting information V, the location information and date and time information contained in the traffic history H, and traffic volume.

[0131] <Fourth embodiment> The fourth embodiment will be described below. The hardware configuration of the ETC system is the same as that of the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. In the first to third embodiments, a case where a non-ETC vehicle 5b is identified based on a captured image is described, but a decrease in detection accuracy or a detection miss may occur depending on the image quality. Therefore, the decrease in detection accuracy or a detection miss is compensated for by using vehicle position information.

[0132] [Improved accuracy of vehicle location information] The following describes how to improve the accuracy of vehicle position information. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a dynamic map management server that improves the accuracy of vehicle position information according to the fourth embodiment. The dynamic map management server 6 communicates with the roadside device 42 and receives information from the roadside device 42. The roadside device 42 includes an interface aggregation unit 4201, an antenna 4211, and multiple cameras 4231, as well as a road-to-vehicle communication device (Dedicated Short Range Communications) 4241. A plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices 4241 are placed along the main lane, communicate with the car navigation systems of ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b traveling on the main lane, and receive GPS position information transmitted from the car navigation systems.

[0133] The dynamic map management server 6 includes an information processing unit 61, a storage unit 62, and a communication unit 63, and the information processing unit 61 further includes a mapping processing unit 611. The communication unit 61 receives images captured by a camera 4231 and GPS position information acquired by a road-to-vehicle communication device 4241. The storage unit 62 stores a dynamic map (digital map).

[0134] The mapping processing unit 611 maps the position of the vehicle contained in the image captured by the camera 4231 and the GPS position information acquired by the road-vehicle communication device 4241 onto a digital map, identifies the position of the vehicle with high accuracy, and provides the identified vehicle position information.

[0135] The toll central device 1 receives the location information of the identified vehicle, and the traffic history output unit 1115 identifies the travel route of the non-ETC vehicle 5b based on the vehicle's location and outputs the traffic history of the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle including the travel route.

[0136] The dynamic map management server 6 provides highly accurate position information for vehicle images included in captured images using the following three elements.

[0137] FIG. 17 is an image of the mapping process by the mapping processing unit of the dynamic map management server 6.

[0138] (1) Fixed camera (Local coordinates) The mapping processing unit 611 detects vehicle images from the captured image and generates position information (local coordinates) of the vehicle images. The mapping processing unit 611 maps the position information of the detected vehicle images onto a digital map. The mapping processing unit 611 obtains highly accurate position information for vehicle images corresponding to points on the digital map. The mapping processing unit 611 associates vehicle images with vehicles traveling on toll roads.

[0139] (2) Moving vehicle (Local coordinates) The mapping processing unit 611 maps the GPS position information from the car navigation system of the ETC vehicle 5a or the non-ETC vehicle 5b on a digital map. For the ETC vehicle 5a, the GPS position information received by the on-board device 51 may be used.

[0140] (3) Digital map (World coordinates) The digital map is composed of highly accurate position information (World coordinates). The mapping processing unit 611 maps the position information of the vehicle image and the GPS position information on the digital map, thereby associating and managing the position information of the vehicle image and the GPS position information.

[0141] FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an image of the association between a vehicle image detected from a captured image and a vehicle on a road.

[0142] By improving the accuracy of the vehicle position information described above, highly accurate position information of the vehicle image can be obtained. On the other hand, GPS position information with a certain degree of error is obtained from vehicles traveling on toll roads. The mapping processing unit 611 associates the vehicle image with the vehicle on the toll road based on two types of position information related to vehicles traveling on the toll road.

[0143] For example, FIG. 18(a) is an example of a captured image output from the camera 4131.

[0144] As shown in FIG. 18(a), the mapping processing unit 611 detects a vehicle image from a captured image.

[0145] 18(b) shows an example of a rectangular display of the detected vehicle image. The mapping processing unit 611 identifies the position information of the vehicle image.

[0146] 18(c) is a diagram showing an example of the center of the vehicle image. The mapping processing unit 611 detects the intersection of the diagonal lines of a rectangle surrounding the vehicle image as the center of the vehicle image, and sets the center coordinates as position information of the vehicle image.

[0147] FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of associating vehicle images detected from a captured image with vehicles on a toll road. In ST501, the mapping processing unit 611 associates the vehicle image with the vehicle on the toll road based on the position information in the map coordinate system (latitude, longitude). Here, the difficulty of the association varies depending on conditions such as poor accuracy of the GPS position information from the vehicle or the presence of multiple vehicles within a certain range.

[0148] Therefore, in ST502, the mapping processing unit 611 generates attribute information (traveling direction / speed / existence range, etc.) of each vehicle based on the time-series position information.

[0149] Next, in ST503, the mapping processing unit 611 detects the target vehicle from the captured image using the position information and attribute information of the traveling vehicle as a search key.

[0150] [Traffic history update] The travel history update will be explained. In the above explanation, we have described a case where images taken by a camera of a roadside device 4 installed at at least one of the entrance, main road, and exit are used, but in order to increase the amount of information and improve the accuracy of the travel history H, roadside devices 4 may be installed at JCTs (junctions), SAs (service areas), and PAs (parking areas), and the travel history H may be updated based on images taken by the camera of the roadside device 4.

[0151] FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating an example of updating a travel history according to the fourth embodiment. The information processing unit 111 associates and updates the travel history H of the corresponding vehicle based on the multiple travel histories H. For example, the information processing unit 111 associates these two travel histories H as travel histories H of the same vehicle when conditions are met based on the license plate information, location information (P1 and P2), and passage date and time included in the two travel histories H.

[0152] FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating an example of travel distance estimation based on traffic volume according to the fourth embodiment. Vehicle detectors (ultrasonic, imaging, etc.) are installed at regular intervals on toll roads, and the road management server calculates traffic volume for each road section and detects road congestion / congestion. The information processing unit 111 estimates the travel distance (travel time) of a given vehicle based on traffic engineering theory and the road congestion / congestion situation. Based on this travel distance estimation, the information processing unit 111 associates a travel history H that satisfies the conditions.

[0153] [Traffic history search] The traffic history search will now be explained. 22 is a flowchart showing an example of a travel history search according to the fourth embodiment. In ST601, the information processing unit 111 searches for travel histories H that satisfy conditions from the travel histories H of ETC vehicles 5a and non-ETC vehicles 5b based on a search key input by an operator, etc. The search key is a combination of several travel date and time ranges, travel sections, vehicle body colors, vehicle models, and vehicle names.

[0154] Next, in ST602, the information processing section 111 outputs the travel history H that satisfies the conditions. By using this search function, it is possible to find a specific vehicle and charge a toll.

[0155] According to the first to fourth embodiments described above, it is possible to provide a traffic management system, a traffic management method, and a traffic management device that are excellent at identifying the traffic status of non-ETC-compatible vehicles in a scene where ETC-compatible vehicles and non-ETC-compatible vehicles are mixed. As a result, according to this system, it is possible to generate a traffic history H of non-ETC-compatible vehicles, and after reliably identifying non-ETC-compatible vehicles, it is possible to charge tolls to non-ETC-compatible vehicles.

[0156] Furthermore, this system can identify vehicles not only directly from the photographic information V and traffic history R from the roadside device 4, but also indirectly by using travel distance estimation based on the direction of travel and traffic volume, and by combining these, it is possible to identify vehicles without omission.

[0157] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, and are also included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents as defined in the claims. The following is a summary of the inventions described in the claims of the original application of this application (Patent Application No. 2021-077118) as originally filed. [C1] A traffic management system including a roadside device disposed in a lane on which a vehicle travels, and a traffic management device that manages the traffic of vehicles based on information from the roadside device, The roadside device a camera that captures an image of the lane and outputs the captured image; a first communication unit that receives wireless communication compatible vehicle information from an on-board device of a wireless communication compatible vehicle that is equipped with an on-board device and traveling on the lane via wireless communication with the on-board device; The traffic management device a second communication unit that receives the captured image and the wireless communication compatible vehicle information; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects license plate information from the captured image; a wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit that detects wireless communication compatible vehicle license plate information from the wireless communication compatible vehicle information; a wireless communication incompatible vehicle identification unit that compares license plate information detected from the captured image with wireless communication compatible vehicle license plate information detected from the wireless communication compatible vehicle information, and identifies wireless communication incompatible vehicles based on the comparison result; a travel history output unit that outputs a travel history of the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle regarding the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle; A traffic management system equipped with the above. [C2] the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit, when the image extracted license plate information detected by the image vehicle information detection unit does not match the wireless compatible vehicle license plate information detected by the wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit, identifies the vehicle corresponding to the image extracted license plate information as the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle; [C1] The traffic management system described. [C3] a communication area of ​​the first communication unit includes a photographing area of ​​the camera; The traffic management system described in [C2], wherein the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle identification unit compares image-extracted license plate information detected from the captured image during a first shooting time period with wireless communication compatible license plate information detected from the wireless communication compatible vehicle information during a first communication time period corresponding to the first shooting time period. [C4] A traffic management system according to [C2] or [C3], wherein the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle traffic history includes the image-extracted license plate information of the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle. [C5] the image vehicle information detection unit detects an image of the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle from the captured image, The wireless communication non-compatible vehicle travel history includes at least one of an image of the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle, a photographing date and time of the image of the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle, and a photographing location of the image of the wireless communication non-compatible vehicle. [C4] The traffic management system described. [C6] The roadside device is a roadside device installed at an entrance toll booth and an exit toll booth, the travel history output unit specifies a travel section of the vehicle that does not support wireless communication based on information from both or at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and creates a travel history of the vehicle that does not support wireless communication; [C1] The traffic management system described. [C7] The roadside device is a roadside device provided at at least one of an entrance toll booth and an exit toll booth, and a roadside device on a free-flow main line, the travel history output unit adds information from a roadside device on the main line to information from a roadside device installed at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, determines a travel route of the vehicle that does not support wireless communication, and outputs a travel history including the travel route; [C1] The traffic management system described. [C8] Furthermore, it is equipped with a map management server, the map management server has a digital map, and identifies the position of a vehicle included in the captured image output from the roadside device based on the digital map; the travel history output unit identifies a travel route of the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle based on the vehicle position, and outputs the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle travel history including the travel route. [C1] The traffic management system described. [C9] a second communication unit that receives captured images of the lane output from a camera disposed along the lane on which the vehicle is traveling, and wireless communication-enabled vehicle information transmitted from a first communication unit that is equipped with an on-board device and communicates with the on-board device of a wireless communication-enabled vehicle traveling along the lane; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects license plate information from the captured image; a wireless communication compatible vehicle information detection unit that detects wireless communication compatible vehicle license plate information from the wireless communication compatible vehicle information; a wireless communication incompatible vehicle identification unit that compares license plate information detected from the captured image with wireless communication compatible vehicle license plate information detected from the wireless communication compatible vehicle information, and identifies wireless communication incompatible vehicles based on the comparison result; a travel history output unit that outputs a travel history of the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle regarding the non-wireless communication compatible vehicle; A traffic management device comprising: [C10] Roadside devices placed along lanes on which vehicles travel are a traffic management device that photographs the lane, outputs the photographed image, receives wireless communication compatible vehicle information from an on-board device of a wireless communication compatible vehicle that is equipped with an on-board device and travels on the lane by wireless communication with the on-board device, and manages the passage of vehicles based on the information from the roadside device; receiving the captured image and the wireless communication compatible vehicle information; Detecting license plate information from the captured image; detecting license plate information from the wireless communication compatible vehicle information; comparing the license plate information detected from the captured image with the license plate information for wireless communication enabled vehicles detected from the wireless communication enabled vehicle information, and identifying vehicles that do not support wireless communication based on the comparison result; outputting a vehicle travel history of the vehicle that is not compatible with wireless communication; Traffic management method. [Explanation of symbols]

[0158] 1...Central server, 2...Toll booth server, 3...Lane server, 4...Roadside device, 5, ...vehicle, 5a...ETC vehicle, 5b...non-ETC vehicle 111...information processing unit, 112...storage unit, 113...communication unit, 41, 42...roadside equipment, 51...In-vehicle unit, 52...ETC card, 80...Island, 81...Lane, 511...device communication unit, 512...control unit, 513...storage unit, 514...card processing unit, 4101...Interface aggregation unit, 4111...First antenna, 4112...second antenna, 4113...Recovery antenna, 4121...Vehicle detector, 4122...Vehicle detector, 4123...Vehicle detector, 4124...Launch control unit 4131...camera, 4132...Roadside indicator, 4133...Lane sign, 4135...camera, 4136...Gantry, 4201...Interface aggregation unit, 4211...antenna, 4231...camera, 4233...Gantry.

Claims

1. An ETC system comprising a toll central device, a roadside device provided at at least one of an entrance toll gate and an exit toll gate, and a non-ETC vehicle identification device that identifies non-ETC vehicles that are not compatible with wireless communication based on information from the roadside device, The roadside device A camera that captures images of lanes and outputs the captured images; a first communication unit that receives ETC vehicle information from an on-board device that is compatible with wireless communication of the ETC system and that is traveling on the lane via wireless communication with the on-board device; The non-ETC vehicle identification device a second communication unit that receives the captured image and the ETC vehicle information; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects image license plate information from the captured image; an ETC vehicle information detection unit that detects ETC vehicle license plate information from the ETC vehicle information; a non-ETC vehicle identification unit that compares the image license plate information detected from the captured image with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information, excludes the ETC vehicle license plate information from the image license plate information detected from the captured image, and identifies a vehicle corresponding to the image license plate information from which the ETC vehicle license plate information has been excluded as the non-ETC vehicle; and a traffic history output unit that determines a travel route of a non-ETC vehicle based on information from a roadside device installed at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and outputs non-ETC vehicle traffic history information including the travel route; An ETC system comprising:

2. a communication area of ​​the first communication unit of the roadside device includes a photographing area of ​​the camera, the non-ETC vehicle identification unit compares the image license plate information detected from the captured image in a first imaging time period with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information in a first communication time period corresponding to the first imaging time period; The ETC system according to claim 1.

3. The non-ETC vehicle travel history information output by the travel history output unit is the non-ETC vehicle travel history information that includes the image license plate information of the non-ETC vehicle. The ETC system according to claim 1.

4. The non-ETC vehicle travel history information output by the travel history output unit is the non-ETC vehicle travel history information including at least one of an image of the non-ETC vehicle, a photographing date and time of the image of the non-ETC vehicle, and a photographing position of the image of the non-ETC vehicle. The ETC system according to claim 3.

5. The ETC system is a system in which a toll central device is connected to the roadside device via a toll gate server and a lane server, The non-ETC vehicle identification device is provided in the toll central device. The ETC system according to claim 1.

6. The ETC system is a system in which a toll central device is connected to the roadside device via a toll gate server and a lane server, The image vehicle information detection unit of the non-ETC vehicle identification device is provided in the lane server. The ETC system according to claim 1.

7. The roadside device is a free-flow roadside device at least one of an entrance toll booth and an exit toll booth, the travel history output unit of the non-ETC vehicle identification device identifies a travel section of the non-ETC vehicle based on information from both or at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and creates a travel history of the non-ETC vehicle; The ETC system according to claim 1.

8. An ETC system comprising a toll central device, a roadside device that is installed on a main line and configured to be free-flowing, and a non-ETC vehicle identification device that identifies non-ETC vehicles that are not compatible with wireless communication based on information from the roadside device, The roadside device A camera that captures images of lanes and outputs the captured images; a first communication unit that receives ETC vehicle information from an on-board device of an ETC vehicle that is equipped with an on-board device compatible with wireless communication of the ETC system and that is traveling on the lane via wireless communication with the on-board device; The non-ETC vehicle identification device a second communication unit that receives the captured image and the ETC vehicle information; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects image license plate information from the captured image; an ETC vehicle information detection unit that detects ETC vehicle license plate information from the ETC vehicle information; a non-ETC vehicle identification unit that compares the image license plate information detected from the captured image with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information, excludes the ETC vehicle license plate information from the image license plate information detected from the captured image, and identifies a vehicle corresponding to the image license plate information from which the ETC vehicle license plate information has been excluded as the non-ETC vehicle; and a travel history output unit that determines a travel route of a non-ETC vehicle based on information from a roadside device that is installed on the main line and configured to be free flow, and outputs a non-ETC vehicle travel history including the travel route; An ETC system comprising:

9. a second communication unit that receives images of the lane output from a camera disposed along the lane on which the vehicle travels, the images being roadside equipment installed at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and ETC vehicle information received by communication with an on-board unit of an ETC vehicle equipped with an ETC system and traveling along the lane; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects image license plate information from the captured image; an ETC vehicle information detection unit that detects ETC vehicle license plate information from the ETC vehicle information; a non-ETC vehicle identification unit that compares the image license plate information detected from the captured image with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information, excludes the ETC vehicle license plate information from the image license plate information detected from the captured image, and identifies a vehicle corresponding to the image license plate information from which the ETC vehicle license plate information has been excluded as a non-ETC vehicle that is not compatible with wireless communication; and a travel history output unit that outputs a non-ETC vehicle travel history relating to the non-ETC vehicle; A non-ETC vehicle identification device comprising:

10. a process in which a roadside device photographs a lane on which a vehicle is traveling and outputs the photographed image; a step of receiving ETC vehicle information from an on-board unit of an ETC vehicle equipped with an on-board unit and traveling on the lane by wireless communication with the on-board unit by the roadside device; a step in which a non-ETC vehicle identification device that identifies a non-ETC vehicle receives the captured image and the ETC vehicle information from the roadside device; a step of detecting image license plate information from the captured image by a non-ETC vehicle identification device; a step of detecting ETC vehicle license plate information from the ETC vehicle information by a non-ETC vehicle identification device; a step in which a non-ETC vehicle identification device compares the image license plate information detected from the photographed image with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information, excludes the ETC vehicle license plate information from the image license plate information detected from the photographed image, and identifies a vehicle corresponding to the image license plate information from which the ETC vehicle license plate information has been excluded as a non-ETC vehicle; a step in which a non-ETC vehicle identification device outputs a non-ETC vehicle travel history relating to the non-ETC vehicle; A non-ETC vehicle identification method comprising:

11. An ETC system comprising a central toll device, a roadside device provided at at least one of an entrance toll booth and an exit toll booth, and a non-ETC vehicle identification device that identifies non-ETC vehicles that are not compatible with wireless communication based on information from the roadside device, The roadside device A camera that captures images of lanes and outputs the captured images; a first communication unit that receives ETC vehicle information from an on-board device that is compatible with wireless communication of the ETC system and that is traveling on the lane via wireless communication with the on-board device; The non-ETC vehicle identification device a second communication unit that receives the captured image and the ETC vehicle information; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects image license plate information from the captured image; an ETC vehicle information detection unit that detects ETC vehicle license plate information from the ETC vehicle information; a non-ETC vehicle identification unit that compares the image license plate information detected from the captured image with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information, and if the image license plate information does not match the ETC vehicle license plate information, identifies the vehicle corresponding to the image license plate information as the non-ETC vehicle; a traffic history output unit that determines a travel route of a non-ETC vehicle based on information from a roadside device installed at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and outputs non-ETC vehicle traffic history information including the travel route; Equipped with The ETC system is a system in which a toll central device is connected to the roadside device via a toll gate server and a lane server, The non-ETC vehicle identification device is provided in the toll central device. ETC system.

12. An ETC system comprising a central toll device, a roadside device provided at at least one of an entrance toll booth and an exit toll booth, and a non-ETC vehicle identification device that identifies non-ETC vehicles that are not compatible with wireless communication based on information from the roadside device, The roadside device A camera that captures images of lanes and outputs the captured images; a first communication unit that receives ETC vehicle information from an on-board device that is compatible with wireless communication of the ETC system and that is traveling on the lane via wireless communication with the on-board device; The non-ETC vehicle identification device a second communication unit that receives the captured image and the ETC vehicle information; an image vehicle information detection unit that detects image license plate information from the captured image; an ETC vehicle information detection unit that detects ETC vehicle license plate information from the ETC vehicle information; a non-ETC vehicle identification unit that compares the image license plate information detected from the captured image with the ETC vehicle license plate information detected from the ETC vehicle information, and if the image license plate information does not match the ETC vehicle license plate information, identifies the vehicle corresponding to the image license plate information as the non-ETC vehicle; a traffic history output unit that determines a travel route of a non-ETC vehicle based on information from a roadside device installed at at least one of the entrance toll gate and the exit toll gate, and outputs non-ETC vehicle traffic history information including the travel route; Equipped with The ETC system is a system in which a toll central device is connected to the roadside device via a toll gate server and a lane server, The image vehicle information detection unit of the non-ETC vehicle identification device is provided in the lane server. ETC system.

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