Onboard signal recognition system for railway and control method

The onboard signal recognition system for railways addresses the challenge of unstable train operations by using sensors and databases to manage signal detection, ensuring accurate recognition of 'no signal' conditions and preventing false alerts, thus maintaining stable and safe train operations.

WO2024262158A1PCT designated stage expired Publication Date: 2024-12-26HITACHI LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
PCT/JP2024/015895
Authority / Receiving Office
WO · WO
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2023-06-21
Filing Date
2024-04-23
Publication Date
2024-12-26

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Conventional automated train driving systems struggle to recognize railway signals accurately, particularly when all lamps are off or when signals temporarily fall out of the camera's field of view due to train movement or obstructions, leading to unstable train operations.

Method used

An onboard signal recognition system that utilizes an acceleration sensor to determine when the train is temporarily swaying, an illuminance sensor to manage camera exposure changes, and an on-board database to identify excluded sections, allowing the system to suspend and resume signal recognition processes based on determination information, ensuring accurate signal detection without false 'no signal' alerts.

Benefits of technology

This approach enables stable and safe train operation by reliably recognizing 'no signal' conditions only when signals are truly absent from the camera view, preventing unnecessary stops and maintaining safe operation even during turnouts, tunnels, and obstructions.

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Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an onboard signal recognition system for a railway, with which stable train operation can be realized by not recognizing that there are no signals only when a traffic light temporarily cannot be captured in the field of view of a camera, while reliably recognizing that there are no signals due to all lamps of the traffic light being off.　For this purpose, an onboard signal recognition system for a railway according to the present invention is characterized by comprising a determination information output device that outputs determination information indicating that a traffic light to be recognized is outside of the field of view of an imaging device, and a signal aspect recognition device that recognizes a signal aspect of a traffic light in front of a train using the determination information. For example, in recognition of the signal aspect of the traffic light, with reference to an acceleration sensor output value, the aspect recognition process is suspended while a predetermined threshold value is exceeded, and the aspect recognition process is restarted after the acceleration sensor output value returns to a specified value or lower.
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Citation Information

Patent Citations

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    US20190300031A1