Driving condition monitoring device

Abstract

To provide a driving status monitoring device enabling a user to review his or her driving method by estimating the details of driving operation corresponding to vehicle positions.SOLUTION: A driving status monitoring device presents a relationship between a vehicle position of a vehicle traveling on a track and driving operation details of the vehicle. The driving status monitoring device includes: an in-vehicle photographing unit capable of photographing a master control handle inside the vehicle; and a notch engagement state estimation unit for estimating the driving operation details based on images of the master control handle photographed by the in-vehicle photographing unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a driving condition monitoring device. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a variability in the driving skills of train drivers when they run on tracks. This causes a variability in the amount of power consumed by trains when running between stations, even when the trains are running between the same stations at the same time, based on the running speed pattern between stations (hereinafter referred to as "running pattern"). By reducing the variation in train driving patterns based on the driver's driving skills and standardizing them to energy-efficient driving patterns, it is possible to make railway operations more energy-efficient.

[0003] In order to reduce variations in driving patterns, drivers are trained to review their driving patterns after each trip. In this driver training, for example, driving patterns during operation can be stored in the device, and the driver can review the visualized results of the driving patterns along with driving operations and power consumption during their free time, which can be used to improve their own driving operations. Here, in order to store the train running patterns, it is necessary to input the vehicle position and vehicle speed.

[0004] Conventionally, to obtain vehicle position and vehicle speed, particularly to obtain highly accurate vehicle position and vehicle speed that can be used for driver training, it was necessary to obtain the information from the train's vehicle information device. However, there is a problem in that it cannot be applied when a vehicle is not equipped with a vehicle information device or when it cannot be equipped with one.

[0005] One method for obtaining this information without obtaining highly accurate vehicle position and vehicle speed from a vehicle information device is to bring a mobile terminal equipped with a GPS receiving function into the vehicle, calculate the vehicle position from the latitude and longitude information obtained by the GPS receiving function, and also utilize the vehicle speed that can be obtained from the GPS receiving function.

[0006] When reviewing driving patterns, it is important to understand driving operations according to vehicle position in addition to information on vehicle speed according to vehicle position, because for the driver, vehicle speed is ultimately the result of driving operations, and the input information that causes changes in vehicle speed is driving operations.

[0007] As a method for estimating the content of driving operations with a configuration independent of the vehicle information device, there is a method in which vehicle acceleration is calculated by differential calculation of the vehicle speed obtained from a GPS receiver, and driving operations are estimated from the estimated driving force required to generate that acceleration. Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for providing driving assistance using a GPS receiver, and describes that the performance of a notch operation, which is one of the driving input devices, is estimated from the vehicle speed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-247247 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0009] However, the accuracy of vehicle speed obtained from a GPS receiver varies depending on the reception status of radio waves from GPS satellites, and therefore the driving operation estimated using the vehicle speed is not necessarily accurate enough for reviewing driving methods. The influence of such dependence on the reception status of radio waves from GPS satellites on a driving condition monitoring device is not considered even in Patent Document 1. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a driving situation monitoring device that enables a driver to review his or her driving method by estimating the content of driving operations corresponding to the vehicle position. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In order to solve the above problems, one representative driving condition monitoring device of the present invention is a driving condition monitoring device that presents the relationship between the vehicle position of a vehicle running on a track and the driving operation content of the vehicle, and is characterized by having an in-vehicle photographing unit that can photograph the master controller handle inside the vehicle, and a notch engagement state estimation unit that estimates the driving operation content based on the image of the master controller handle photographed by the in-vehicle photographing unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a driving situation monitoring device that enables a driver to review his or her driving method by estimating the details of the driving operation corresponding to the vehicle position. Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a driving condition monitoring device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 3A to 3C are diagrams showing an example of a method for estimating a steering wheel position from a captured image in the driving condition monitoring device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of visualization of driving operation history. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart of processing executed by a notch opening state estimating unit. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a table showing the correspondence between the handle position and the notch engagement state used in the notch engagement state estimation process. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a driving condition monitoring device according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to these examples. In addition, in the description of the drawings, the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals. When there are multiple components with the same or similar functions, they may be described using the same reference numeral with different subscripts. When there is no need to distinguish between these multiple components, the subscripts may be omitted. In order to facilitate understanding of the invention, the position, size, shape, range, etc. of each component shown in the drawings may not represent the actual position, size, shape, range, etc. Therefore, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the position, size, shape, range, etc. disclosed in the drawings.

[0014] [First embodiment] First, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a driving condition monitoring device 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The driving status monitoring device 10 visualizes the running pattern between stations in a railway vehicle based on the vehicle position and speed estimated using GPS, allowing the driver to review his driving operations. The railway vehicle whose running pattern is visualized by the driving situation monitoring device 10 is operated by operating a master controller handle, which is a general input device for driving operations on railways. Here, "mascon" is an abbreviation for "master controller," a device installed in the driver's cab of a railway vehicle and operated by the driver to control the speed. The master controller is also called a master controller. The master controller controls the acceleration and deceleration of the railcar. The master controller determines the command state for controlling the acceleration and deceleration of the railcar based on the position of the master controller handle. Although the master controller of this embodiment determines the command state based on the notch engagement state of the master controller handle, it may be determined in other ways. For example, it may be determined based only on the position of the master controller handle. In this embodiment, the driving situation monitoring device 10 is a tablet terminal having a Global Positioning System (GPS) function as satellite positioning information, but other hardware may also be used.

[0015] The driving situation monitoring device 10 mainly includes a GPS receiving unit 101, an in-orbital position estimating unit 102, a vehicle speed estimating unit 103, an operation unit 104, a road information management unit 105, a notch input state estimating unit 106, an in-vehicle imaging unit 107, a steering wheel position detecting unit 108, a master control key state detecting unit 109, a driving operation history accumulating unit 110, and a driving operation history transmitting unit 111.

[0016] <GPS Receiving Unit> Based on the received GPS signals, the GPS receiving unit 101 generates latitude and longitude 151 at a predetermined time period and transmits them to the in-orbital position estimating unit 102. The GPS receiving unit 101 is also referred to as a satellite positioning information receiving unit that receives satellite positioning information. In this embodiment, GPS signals received from the Global Positioning System (GPS) are used as satellite positioning information, but positioning information from other satellite positioning systems may be used as long as the position of the railway vehicle can be measured.

[0017] The time period of the latitude and longitude 151 generated by the GPS receiving unit 101 is set in consideration of the driver's review of driving operations through visualization of the running pattern.

[0018] For example, if the time period is too short, the visualized running pattern may include vibration components that do not exist in the actual vehicle speed due to the influence of position variation due to the accuracy limit of GPS. For example, if the time period is too long, the visualized running pattern will have poor reproducibility of vehicle speed changes, making it difficult for the driver to review their driving operations.

[0019] The time period of the latitude and longitude 151 is set in consideration of a period that is not affected by such influences.

[0020] <Orbital position estimation section> The on-track position estimation unit 102 estimates the on-track position 152 by calculation based on the latitude and longitude 151 received from the GPS receiving unit 101 and the track shape 154 received from the route information management unit 105 . The on-track position estimation unit 102 transmits the estimated on-track position 152 to the vehicle speed estimation unit 103 , the route information management unit 105 , the notch engagement state estimation unit 106 and the driving operation history accumulation unit 110 .

[0021] Here, the track shape 154 is a representation of the shape of the track on which the vehicle is running, expressed as point sequence data. Each point in the sequence of points is associated with a value representing latitude, longitude, and absolute position along the orbit. A typical example of a value representing absolute position along the orbit is kilometers (hereinafter, this parameter will be referred to as "kilometers").

[0022] For example, car navigation systems generally implement technology that maps the position of a moving vehicle along a predetermined route based on the latitude and longitude of the moving vehicle obtained by GPS. On the other hand, the on-track position estimation unit 102 compares the data of the track shape 154 with the latitude and longitude 151 to estimate the on-track position 152 corresponding to the latitude and longitude 151, so that the technology of this car navigation system can be applied.

[0023] <Vehicle speed estimation unit> The vehicle speed estimation unit 103 estimates an estimated speed 153 by calculation based on the on-track position 152 received from the on-track position estimation unit 102 . In this embodiment, the vehicle speed estimation unit 103 calculates the estimated speed 153 by, for example, dividing the difference between the on-track positions 152 of adjacent periods by the time for one period. The vehicle speed estimation unit 103 transmits the estimated speed 153 to the notch engagement state estimation unit 106 and the driving operation history accumulation unit 110 .

[0024] The vehicle speed estimation unit 103 may estimate the estimated speed 153 by a method other than calculation. For example, the estimated speed 153 may be obtained directly from the GPS 101 receiving unit.

[0025] <Operation section> The operation unit 104 receives route information 155 input by the driver's operation. The operation unit 104 transmits the received route information 155 to the route information management unit 105. In this embodiment, the operation unit 104 is a touch panel of the driving situation monitoring device 10, which is a tablet terminal, but may be other hardware as long as it can accept inputs from the driver's operations.

[0026] The route information 155 includes, for example, the current station, the destination station, the train type, and the train number, but other information may be added.

[0027] <Route information management department> The path information management unit 105 receives the path information 155 from the operation unit 104 and the on-orbit position 152 from the on-orbit position estimation unit 102 . The track information management unit 105 transmits the track shape 154 to the on-track position estimation unit 102. The track information management unit 105 also transmits the running distance between stations 156 to the notch closing state estimation unit 106. The route information management unit 105 stores, as a database, route shape data of the route on which the railroad vehicle runs. Here, the track shape 154 is, as described above, a representation of the shape of the track on which the vehicle is traveling, using point sequence data.

[0028] In order to improve the efficiency of the search process for the on-track position 152 in the on-track position estimation unit 102, the route information management unit 105 transmits the track shape 154 to the on-track position estimation unit 102, limited to data on sections where the vehicle is likely to travel based on the route information 155.

[0029] The running distance 156 is information about the distance between stations where the vehicle is currently traveling. The running distance 156 is determined based on the train number included in the received route information 155, the timetable information stored in advance in the route information management unit 105, the current time, and the received on-track position 152. The reason why the distance between stations 156 includes the received on-track position 152 is to prepare for the case where a delay occurs and the appropriate distance between stations 156 cannot be extracted by comparing the timetable information with the current time.

[0030] <Notch insertion state estimation unit> The notch engagement state estimation unit 106 generates a notch engagement state estimation result 157 and presents the relationship between the vehicle position and the driving operation content. The notch engagement state estimation unit 106 transmits the generated notch engagement state estimation result 157 to the driving operation history accumulation unit 110. The notch opening state estimation result is data that includes a set of time and notch opening state. Details of the processing by the notch opening state estimation unit 106 will be described later. To generate a notch closing state estimation result 157, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 receives an on-track position 152 from the on-track position estimation unit 102. Similarly, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 receives an estimated speed 153 from the vehicle speed estimation unit 103. Similarly, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 receives a running distance between stations 156 from the route information management unit 105. Similarly, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 receives a handlebar position detection result 159 from the handlebar position detection unit 108. Similarly, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 receives a master control state detection result 161 from the master control state detection unit 109.

[0031] <In-car photography section> The vehicle interior photographing unit 107 has a photographing function for photographing the interior of the vehicle. The images photographed by the driving condition monitoring device 10 are taken by the vehicle interior photographing unit 107. The driving situation monitoring device 10 is installed so that at least the master controller handle of the driver's cab is included in the image that can be captured by the in-vehicle photographing unit 107. The vehicle interior photographing unit 107 transmits the photographed vehicle interior photographing result 158 ​​to the steering wheel position detecting unit 108.

[0032] It is desirable that the driving situation monitoring device 10 also includes the vicinity of the master control key insertion port in the captured image. The presence or absence of the master control key can be confirmed by including the vicinity of the master control key insertion slot in the image captured by the in-car image capturing unit 107. The presence or absence of a master control key is useful for determining the necessity of estimating the notch state and for improving the accuracy of estimating the notch state.

[0033] In this embodiment, the in-vehicle photographing unit 107 is a camera attached to the driving situation monitoring device 10, which is a tablet terminal, but may be other hardware as long as it has a photographing function for photographing the inside of the vehicle. For example, it may be an external camera that can be connected to the driving condition monitoring device 10 either wired or wirelessly. In this embodiment, the driving condition monitoring device 10 is installed so that it can capture images at an angle where the steering angle changes as much as possible when the master control handle is operated. In other words, the in-vehicle image capturing unit 107 is installed so that it can capture images from a direction where the change in angle when the master control handle is operated can be captured. This allows the in-vehicle photographing unit 107 to capture the operation of the master controller handle with high accuracy.

[0034] The in-car photographing unit 107 photographs the master controller handle at a photographing cycle of about 1 to 2 times per second based on the general frequency of master controller handle operation by the driver, but may also photograph at other photographing cycles. In either case, it is desirable to determine the photographing cycle in consideration of the review of detailed driving operations, the increase in the amount of data to be handled, and the increase in analysis load.

[0035] <Steering wheel position detection unit> The handle position detection unit 108 detects the master controller handle position by image processing in the image of the vehicle interior photographing result 158 ​​received from the vehicle interior photographing unit 107. The detected master controller handle position is associated with the time and processed as a handle position detection result 159. The steering wheel position detection unit 108 transmits the steering wheel position detection result 159 to the notch engagement state estimation unit 106 . The handle position detection unit 108 defines the angle of inclination of the master controller handle when viewed from the side as the handle position, but other definitions may also be used.

[0036] <Master control status detection unit> The master control key state detection unit 109 determines the presence or absence of the master control key by image processing. Specifically, the master control key state detection unit 109 determines the presence or absence of the master control key by image processing in the image of the vehicle interior photographing result 158 ​​received from the vehicle interior photographing unit 107. The master control key state detection unit 109 transmits the determination result as the master control key state detection result 161 to the notch opening state estimation unit 106. Here, the master control state detection result 161 can take two values, "yes" or "no", along with the time information, and the time of the detection.

[0037] <Driving operation history storage unit> The driving operation history accumulation unit 110 generates a driving operation history 160 based on the on-track position 152, the estimated speed 153, and the notch closing state estimation result 157. The driving operation history accumulation unit 110 transmits the generated driving operation history 160 to the driving operation history transmission unit 111. The driving operation history 160 includes at least data on the driving pattern and notch engagement history of the vehicle equipped with the driving condition monitoring device. The data on running patterns is time-series data on vehicle positions and speeds, and is information on a unit basis for train operation, such as each station-to-station run or each route. The notch insertion history data is time-series data of vehicle position and notch information, and is information in units of train operation, such as for each station-to-station run or each route.

[0038] The driving operation history 160 may include data other than the driving pattern and notch engagement history data. For example, in this embodiment, the driving operation history 160 includes time-series data of power consumption estimated from the driving pattern and notch engagement history data. This allows the user of the operation status monitoring device to check the running pattern between stations, the notch insertion history, and the resulting relationship with power consumption. Furthermore, for comparison, by preparing in advance the running pattern, notch insertion history, and power consumption data for an ideal running mode from the perspective of energy conservation and including this in the operation operation history 160, the user of the operation status monitoring device can check the differences between the ideal running mode and the current running pattern and notch insertion history, along with the differences in power consumption.

[0039] <Driving operation history transmission unit> The driving operation history transmission unit 111 functions as a display unit that visualizes and outputs the data of the driving operation history 160 to the user of the driving situation monitoring device 10.

[0040] Next, a method for calculating the steering wheel position will be illustrated with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a method for estimating the steering wheel position from a captured image in the driving condition monitoring device 10 according to this embodiment. FIG. 2(A) in the upper part of FIG. 2 is a photographed image 201 in which the master controller handle is photographed obliquely. As shown in FIG. 2(A), the photographed image 201 is often taken from an angle other than directly to the side of the master controller handle, for example, from an oblique angle. At this time, the handle position detection unit 108 first performs image processing to convert the captured image 201 into an image of the master controller handle as seen from the side. The handle position detection unit 108 then converts the converted image 202.

[0041] The handle position detection unit 108 extracts and generates an auxiliary line 203 indicating the angle of the lever portion of the master controller handle when converting the converted image 202. The handle position detection unit 108 may color the lever portion of the master controller handle to make it easier to extract the auxiliary line 203. When converting the converted image 202, the handle position detection unit 108 calculates an angle 204 formed between the lower side of the frame of the converted image 202 and the auxiliary line 203. The handle position detection unit 108 calculates the angle 204 as the handle position.

[0042] The handle position detection unit 108 may detect the handle position using a method other than the auxiliary line 203 and the angle 204. For example, a unique value may be determined according to the master controller handle position, or the handle position may be detected based on a value that monotonically increases or decreases in response to operation of the master controller handle in a certain direction.

[0043] Next, an example of visualization of the driving operation history 160 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of visualization of the driving operation history 160. The graph shown in the upper part of Figure 3 is a visualization example, with the horizontal axis representing vehicle position and the vertical axis representing vehicle speed. The graph shown in the middle part of Figure 3 is a visualization example, with the horizontal axis representing vehicle position and the vertical axis representing the number of notches inserted. The graph shown in the lower part of Figure 3 is a visualization example, with the horizontal axis representing vehicle position and the vertical axis representing power consumption. The table shown in the lower part of Figure 3 is a visualization example, with graphs showing power consumption between stations and running time.

[0044] By visualizing this graph, it is possible to review the detailed driving operation history. For example, by comparing the same vehicle position in the graph shown in the upper part of Figure 3 with the graph shown in the middle part of Figure 3, it is possible to review the notch closing operation at that vehicle position and the speed at that time. Furthermore, if the driving operation history 160 includes driving pattern data and notch engagement history data for comparison, these can be displayed in an overlapping manner to facilitate comparison.

[0045] For example, by comparing the same vehicle position in the graph shown in the upper part of Figure 3 with the graph shown in the lower part of Figure 3, it is possible to review the notch closing operation at that vehicle position and the power consumption in that case. Furthermore, by visualizing the graphs and tables, it becomes easier to understand the relationship between running patterns, notch input history, and power consumption.In addition, it is possible to understand the overall evaluation results across stations.

[0046] Next, an example of processing by the notch opening state estimation unit 106 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart of the process executed by the notch opening state estimating unit 106. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a table showing the correspondence between the handle position and the notch engagement state used in the notch engagement state estimation process. The notch closing state estimation unit 106 performs the process shown in FIG. 4 at a predetermined time interval. Here, it is desirable that the default time period be set taking into consideration the purpose of the driving condition monitoring device, which is to enable the driver to reflect on their driving operations by visualizing the driving pattern.Taking into account the frequency of notch operation by the driver, a period of approximately 0.5 to 1 second is appropriate.

[0047] The specifications of the master controller targeted in this example are assumed to be capable of generating notch application states with 5 levels for powering and 8 levels for braking (7 levels for normal braking and emergency braking). The notches on the powering side are abbreviated as "Powering," with the maximum notch for powering being P5, for example. The notches on the braking side are abbreviated as "Braking," with the maximum notch for normal braking being B7, for example. Emergency braking is abbreviated as "EB," which stands for "Emergency Brake." The specifications of the master controller are not limited to those mentioned above.

[0048] In STEP 401, it is determined whether or not the vehicle on which the driving situation monitoring device 10 is mounted is on a main line. Specifically, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 determines whether the departure and arrival stations of the running distance between stations 156 are both valid, based on the information on the running distance between stations 156. If the departure and arrival stations of the running distance between stations 156 are both valid values, it is determined that the vehicle is on the main line. If the departure and arrival stations of the running distance between stations 156 are both other than valid values, it is determined that the vehicle is not on the main line. If the vehicle is on the main line, the process proceeds to STEP 402, and if the vehicle is not on the main line, the process is terminated since the vehicle can be considered to be out of service.

[0049] In STEP 402, it is determined whether or not the master control key has been removed in the driver's cab of the vehicle in which the driving situation monitoring device 10 is installed. Specifically, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 determines whether the master control key has been removed based on the master control key state detection result 161. If the master control key is not present, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 determines that the master control key has been removed, and proceeds to STEP 405. If the master control key is present, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 determines that the master control key has not been removed, and proceeds to STEP 403.

[0050] In STEP 403, it is determined whether or not acceleration equal to or greater than a threshold value has been continuously observed in the vehicle in which the driving condition monitoring device 10 is installed. Specifically, the notch closing state estimation unit 106 calculates the acceleration obtained by differentiating the estimated speed 153. The notch application state estimation unit 106 determines whether the calculated acceleration is equal to or greater than a threshold and continues for a specified time or longer. If the calculated acceleration is equal to or greater than the threshold and continues for a specified time or longer, the process proceeds to STEP 404; otherwise, the process ends.

[0051] At this time, the threshold value is set to a value that is slightly lower than the acceleration when the vehicle accelerates at maximum power running, for example, an intermediate value between the planned acceleration of P5 and the planned acceleration of P4. This makes it possible to know that the notch closed state is maximum powering. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the threshold value is set to a reduced value rather than the actual acceleration that can be output at P5 in order to take into account the effects of gradients, occupancy rates, and variations between vehicles, but it may also be set to the actual acceleration that can be output at P5.

[0052] In this embodiment, the predetermined time is set to, for example, about 3 seconds, which makes it possible to exclude cases where large acceleration is observed due to momentary vehicle vibration while driving or an impact applied to the driving condition monitoring device 10. Another method for efficiently performing this determination is to limit the timing of the determination to a section where acceleration typically occurs immediately after departure from the departure station, by referring to the track position 152. This is because acceleration under maximum powering, that is, acceleration at maximum acceleration performance or an acceleration approximating that, is often observed immediately after departure from the departure station. This allows the processing load to be reduced by limiting the timing of the determination.

[0053] In STEP 404, the handle position corresponding to the state where the notch is in the maximum powering position is determined. Specifically, the notch engagement state estimation unit 106 acquires the angle 204 shown in Fig. 2. The notch engagement state estimation unit 106 regards the angle 204 as the handle position. The notch engagement state estimation unit 106 is managed by a table such as that shown in FIG. 5 based on the relationship between the notch engagement state and the handle position managed by the table shown in FIG. First, before operation, all of the steering wheel position values ​​in the table in Figure 5 are blank. Next, in STEP 404, notch closing state estimator 106 determines the value of steering wheel position 501 corresponding to P5. That is, when the process advances to STEP 404, the steering wheel position value of steering wheel position detection result 159 is set as Θ_P5.

[0054] In STEP 405, the handle position corresponding to the state where the notch is in the emergency brake position is determined. In railway operations, removing the master control key marks the end of a train operation and the driver is changed. When changing drivers, there is a rule that the master control handle must be placed in the emergency brake position. In other words, if the master control key is removed, it is assumed that the operation is for emergency braking. Based on this rule, the notch engagement state estimation unit 106 sets the value of the steering wheel position of the steering wheel position detection result 159 as Θ_EB (503 in FIG. 5) corresponding to the notch engagement state EB. At this time, the steering wheel position within the range of data 502 is still blank.

[0055] In STEP 406, the handle position within the range of data 502 is calculated. Specifically, the notch application state estimation unit 106 determines the relationship between the handle position and the notch application state based on the already determined Θ_P5 and Θ_EB and the specifications of the master controller. Here, the master controller specifications are a database that records the angles of the master controller handle corresponding to the notch engagement state (hereinafter, this will be referred to as the specification angle database to distinguish it from the handle position of the handle position detection result 159).

[0056] The operating condition monitoring device 10 has a specification angle database stored therein that corresponds to each notch engagement state. Since the contents of the specification angle database differ depending on the model of the master controller, it may be possible to make it easily changeable depending on the model of the master controller of the vehicle in which the driving condition monitoring device 10 is installed. For example, the contents of the specification angle database may be manually input via the operation unit 104. For example, the recorded contents of the specification angle database may be registered in the driving condition monitoring device 10 via an external storage medium.

[0057] To calculate the steering wheel position in the range 502 in Figure 5, first the master controller steering wheel angle corresponding to P5 and EB in the specification angle database is compared with the steering wheel positions (Θ_P5 and Θ_EB) of 501 and 503 in Figure 5. This derives a relational expression between the specification angle database and the steering wheel position in the steering wheel position detection result 159. Here, the equation of a line passing through two points (Equation 1) is used. (x2-x1)(y-y1)=(y2-y1)(x-x1)...Formula (1) In Equation 1, x is the master controller handle angle in the specification angle database, and y is the handle position in the handle position detection result 159. Also, x1, x2, y1, and y2 are defined as follows: x1: Mascon angle corresponding to P5 in the specification angle database x2: Mascon angle corresponding to EB in the specification angle database y1:Θ_P5 y2:Θ_EB This allows the relational expression between the master controller handle angle in the specification angle database and the handle position in the handle position detection result 159 to be derived. In Equation 1, by substituting the master controller handle angle for each of P4 to B7 in the specification angle database into x, it is possible to calculate each handle position in the range 502 in Fig. 5. This allows the notch engagement state estimation unit 106 to fill in the blanks in the table in Fig. 5.

[0058] In STEP 407, the current notch application state is estimated. Here, the operation in question refers to the period from the time the master control key was last removed until the time the master control key is removed this time. The notch closing state is estimated using the handle position detection result 159 and the table in Figure 5. Specifically, the notch engagement state corresponding to the steering wheel position at each time in steering wheel position detection result 159 is estimated with reference to the table in Fig. 5. In this estimation, depending on the accuracy of image processing, the steering wheel position at each time in steering wheel position detection result 159 may not completely match the steering wheel position in the table in Fig. 5, but the notch engagement state is estimated by matching it with the closest steering wheel position in the table in Fig. 5.

[0059] In STEP 408, the notch application state estimated in STEP 407 is output to the driving operation history accumulation unit 110 as a notch application state estimation result 157 together with time information.

[0060] In operation of the driving status monitoring device 10, the start and end of estimation of the notch engagement state can be triggered by a manual operation by the driver on the operation unit 104. In this case, a function for inputting the start and end is required in the operation unit 104. Furthermore, if this part is to be automated, there are other methods, such as determining that the train is traveling on the main line from route map data and the position and speed acquired by GPS, determining by inserting and removing the master control key in the driver's cab, or determining by the start / end of master control operation, and these methods may be used alone or in combination.

[0061] As described above, the driving condition monitoring device 10 of this embodiment can visualize the running pattern between stations based on the vehicle position and speed estimated using GPS in a railway vehicle. This can be used to help the driver review his or her driving operation. In other words, by reducing the variation in running patterns and aligning them to energy-efficient running patterns, energy savings in railway operation can be achieved.

[0062] [Second embodiment] Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the driving condition monitoring device 20 according to this embodiment. The driving condition monitoring device 20 of the second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the railway vehicle is provided with an outside-vehicle image capturing device that captures images of the outside of the vehicle, without relying on a GPS function. In the following description, the same or equivalent components as those in the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be simplified or omitted. Furthermore, the railway vehicle whose running pattern is visualized by the driving situation monitoring device 20 is also operated by operating the master controller handle.

[0063] The driving condition monitoring device 20 mainly includes an exterior vehicle photography unit 601, an on-track position estimation unit 602, a vehicle speed estimation unit 103, an operation unit 104, a route information management unit 105, a notch engagement state estimation unit 106, an interior vehicle photography unit 107, a steering wheel position detection unit 108, a master control key state detection unit 109, a driving operation history accumulation unit 110, and a driving operation history transmission unit 111.

[0064] <Exterior photography section> The vehicle exterior photographing unit 601 has a function of photographing the scenery outside the vehicle as an image. The outside-vehicle photographing unit 601 is installed so that the photographed image includes the scenery outside the vehicle, whether inside or outside the vehicle, so that the photographed image includes changes in the photographed image as the vehicle moves and features that indicate the position on the track. The outside-vehicle photographing result 651 by the outside-vehicle photographing unit 601 is transmitted to the on-track position estimating unit 602 .

[0065] In this embodiment, the driving situation monitoring device 20 is a tablet terminal that the driver brings into the cab, and the outside-vehicle photographing unit 601 is a camera attached to the tablet terminal, but it may also be other hardware. For example, it may be an external camera that is connected to the tablet terminal either wired or wirelessly.

[0066] The outside-vehicle photographing unit 601 is installed so that the scenery outside the vehicle is captured in the image captured by the camera attached to the driving condition monitoring device 20, but it may be installed in another location as long as it can capture images used to estimate the vehicle position on the track.

[0067] In this embodiment, the photographing period of the scenery outside the vehicle by the outside photographing unit 601 is about 1 to 2 times per second based on the general frequency of master controller handle operation by the driver, but other photographing periods may also be used. In either case, the decision is made based on the balance between the need for a review of driving operations, the increase in the amount of data to be handled, and the suppression of an increase in the analysis load in subsequent processing units.

[0068] The on-track position estimation unit 602 receives the outside-vehicle photographing result 651 from the outside-vehicle photographing unit 601 and The on-track position 152 is estimated based on the running distance between stations 156 received from the route information management unit 105. The on-track position estimation unit 602 transmits the estimated on-track position 152 to the vehicle speed estimation unit 103, the route information management unit 105, the notch engagement state estimation unit 106, and the driving operation history accumulation unit 110.

[0069] In this embodiment, the on-orbit position estimation unit 602 accumulates scenery images for each on-orbit position that have been acquired in advance using a different method, and estimates the on-orbit position 152 using a position detection technique that uses scenery image recognition. For example, by conducting a test run in which a vehicle information device that recognizes the absolute position on the track is linked with an outside-vehicle photography function, the on-track position 152 is estimated by detecting the position using landscape image recognition based on publicly known technology (for example, Shintaro Ono, Ryota Matsuhisa, Hiroshi Kawasaki, Katsufumi Ikeuchi, "In-house position estimation by spatiotemporal matching of on-board camera images," Production Research, Vol. 63, No. 2, pp. 93-99 (2011)). In this embodiment, the on-track position estimation unit 602 is for a railway whose running route is fixed, so the image matching process can be kept relatively small. Also, by using the running station interval 156 received from the route information management unit 105, it is possible to limit the number of scenery images to be matched, which leads to a reduction in the processing load. Furthermore, the on-orbit position estimation unit 602 may estimate the on-orbit position 152 using a method other than this.

[0070] As described above, the driving situation monitoring device 20 of this embodiment visualizes the running pattern between stations based on the estimated vehicle position and vehicle speed using the image capture results from the external image capture device of a railway vehicle, thereby enabling the driver to review his driving operation. This allows the function to be realized in a system that does not have a GPS function, and also plays a complementary role when the GPS function does not function effectively even if the system is equipped with a GPS function. In other words, the vehicle position and vehicle speed can be estimated by means other than the GPS function and used to review the driving operation.

[0071] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the present invention.

[0072] For example, the driving condition monitoring device 20 of the second embodiment may be provided with a GPS receiving unit 101 and an on-track position estimating unit 102 in addition to the outside-vehicle photographing unit 601 and the on-track position estimating unit 602. This allows the vehicle position estimation using outside-vehicle photographing and the vehicle position estimation using GPS to complement each other's weaknesses, thereby expanding the range of applications for the driving condition monitoring device.

[0073] The present invention can also take the following forms. (Aspect 1) A driving situation monitoring device that displays a relationship between a vehicle position of a vehicle traveling on a track and a driving operation content of the vehicle, an in-vehicle photographing unit capable of photographing a master controller handle in the vehicle; a notch engagement state estimation unit that estimates the driving operation content based on the image of the master controller handle captured by the in-vehicle photographing unit; A driving condition monitoring device comprising: (Aspect 2) The driving condition monitoring device according to aspect 1, a satellite positioning information receiving unit for receiving satellite positioning information; an on-orbit position estimation unit that estimates the vehicle position based on the satellite positioning information; A driving condition monitoring device comprising: (Aspect 3) The driving condition monitoring device according to aspect 1 or 2, an exterior photographing unit capable of photographing scenery outside the vehicle; an on-track position estimation unit that estimates the vehicle position based on the vehicle exterior scenery photographed by the vehicle exterior photographing unit; A driving condition monitoring device comprising: (Aspect 4) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 1 to 3, The vehicle is equipped with a handle position detection unit that detects and digitizes the position of the master controller handle in an image taken by the in-vehicle photographing unit, and a driving operation content estimation unit that estimates the driving operation content based on the master controller handle position digitized by the handle position detection unit. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 5) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 1 to 4, The in-vehicle photographing unit is installed so that it can photograph from a direction that can capture the change in angle when the master controller handle is operated. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 6) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 1 to 5, The driving operation content is a command state for controlling acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 7) A driving situation monitoring device according to aspect 6, A command state for controlling the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle is based on the position of the master controller handle. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 8) A driving situation monitoring device according to aspect 7, The command state for controlling the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle is a notch-in state. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 9) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 4 to 8, The driving operation content estimation unit estimates that the driving operation content corresponding to the master control handle position is emergency braking when the master control key is removed. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 10) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 4 to 9, The driving operation content estimation unit estimates that the driving operation content corresponding to the master controller handle position is maximum powering when acceleration approximating the maximum acceleration performance of the vehicle is continuously observed at a threshold value or more. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 11) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 1 to 10, a display unit that displays a relationship between the vehicle position and the driving operation content, and a relationship between the vehicle position and the vehicle speed; A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 12) A driving condition monitoring device according to aspect 11, The display unit visualizes and outputs the relationship between the vehicle position and the driving operation content, and the relationship between the vehicle position and the vehicle speed. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: (Aspect 13) A driving condition monitoring device according to any one of aspects 1 to 12, the display unit estimates the amount of power consumption while the vehicle is traveling and visualizes a history of the amount of power consumption. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by: [Explanation of symbols]

[0074] 10, 20 Operation status monitoring device 101 GPS receiver 102 Orbital position estimation section 103 Vehicle speed estimation unit 104 Operation section 105 Route Information Management Department 106 Notch insertion state estimation unit 107 In-car photography section 108 Steering wheel position detection unit 109 Master control status detector 110 Driving operation history storage unit 111 Driving operation history transmission unit 151 Latitude and Longitude 152 Orbital position 153 Estimated speed 154 Track Shape 155 Route information 156 Stations 157 Notch insertion state estimation results 158 In-car photo results 159 Steering wheel position detection result 160 Driving operation history 161 Mass Conkey State Detection Results 601 Outside Photography Section 602 Orbital position estimation part 651 Outside the car shooting results

Claims

1. A driving situation monitoring device that displays a relationship between a vehicle position of a vehicle traveling on a track and a driving operation content of the vehicle, an in-vehicle photographing unit capable of photographing a master controller handle in the vehicle; a notch engagement state estimation unit that estimates the driving operation content based on the image of the master controller handle captured by the in-vehicle photographing unit; A driving condition monitoring device comprising:

2. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, a satellite positioning information receiving unit for receiving satellite positioning information; an on-orbit position estimation unit that estimates the vehicle position based on the satellite positioning information; A driving condition monitoring device comprising:

3. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, an exterior photographing unit capable of photographing scenery outside the vehicle; an on-track position estimation unit that estimates the vehicle position based on the vehicle exterior scenery photographed by the vehicle exterior photographing unit; A driving condition monitoring device comprising:

4. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, A handle position detection unit is provided which detects and digitizes the position of the master controller handle in the image taken by the in-vehicle photographing unit, The notch engagement state estimation unit estimates the driving operation content based on the master controller handle position digitized by the handle position detection unit. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

5. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, The in-vehicle photographing unit is installed so that it can photograph from a direction that can capture the change in angle when the master controller handle is operated. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

6. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, The driving operation content is a command state for controlling acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

7. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 6, A command state for controlling the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle is based on the position of the master controller handle. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

8. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 7, The command state for controlling the acceleration / deceleration of the vehicle is a notch-in state. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

9. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 4, The notch engagement state estimation unit estimates that the driving operation corresponding to the master control handle position is emergency braking when the master control key is removed. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

10. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 4, The notch engagement state estimation unit estimates that the driving operation corresponding to the master controller handle position is maximum powering when acceleration approximating the maximum acceleration performance of the vehicle is continuously observed at a threshold value or more. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

11. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, a display unit that displays a relationship between the vehicle position and the driving operation content, and a relationship between the vehicle position and the vehicle speed; A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

12. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 11, The display unit visualizes and outputs the relationship between the vehicle position and the driving operation content, and the relationship between the vehicle position and the vehicle speed. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

13. The driving condition monitoring device according to claim 1, a display unit that estimates the amount of power consumed while the vehicle is running and displays a history of the amount of power consumed; the display unit estimates the amount of power consumption while the vehicle is traveling and visualizes a history of the amount of power consumption. A driving condition monitoring device characterized by:

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