Monitoring system, in-vehicle device, and monitoring method

Abstract

This monitoring system comprises an in-vehicle device that is installed in a vehicle, and a terminal device that is carried by a monitoring person who monitors illegal parking, wherein: the in-vehicle device has a light-emitting element that is provided at a position visible from the outside of the vehicle, and a CPU for switching a display pattern of the light-emitting element on the basis of a display instruction received from the outside; and the terminal device has a display instruction unit for transmitting a display instruction for the light-emitting element of the in-vehicle device.

Description

Monitoring system, vehicle-mounted device, and monitoring method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a monitoring system, an in-vehicle device, and a monitoring method.

[0002] For example, on toll roads, a system is used in which tolls are automatically collected by wireless communication with an on-board device mounted on a vehicle using an Electronic Toll Collection System (ETC (registered trademark), also known as an "automatic toll collection system") or the like. The on-board device includes an antenna unit for wireless communication, a main unit that executes the toll collection process, and a coaxial cable that connects the antenna unit and the main unit. Patent Document 1 describes a technology that notifies vehicle occupants of the success or failure of the toll collection process by changing the display pattern of an LED provided on the antenna unit based on the control of the main unit. Furthermore, Patent Documents 2 and 3 describe technologies that can accommodate a wider range of display patterns by increasing the number of LEDs provided on the antenna unit.

[0003] Japanese Patent No. 4234880 Japanese Patent No. 4639780 Japanese Patent No. 4604252

[0004] Furthermore, some roads have time-limited parking zones where parking is permitted only within a limited time. Users of time-limited parking zones present a parking ticket issued by a parking ticket issuing device installed on the road inside their vehicle (in a location visible from outside). An inspector visually checks the information on the parking ticket to determine whether parking is illegal (whether the parking is within the time limit). To reduce the burden on inspectors, it is conceivable to indicate whether the parking is within the time limit using the LED display pattern on the in-vehicle unit instead of the parking ticket. However, in cases where fraud has occurred, such as by attaching a dummy LED to the in-vehicle unit and turning it on to make it appear that the fee has been paid, it may be difficult for the inspector to determine whether the LED is illegal, i.e., whether the parking is illegal.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a monitoring system, an in-vehicle device, and a monitoring method that can easily determine whether or not parking is illegal.

[0006] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a monitoring system includes an on-board device mounted on a vehicle and a terminal device carried by an observer who monitors illegal parking, wherein the on-board device has a light-emitting element provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle and a CPU that switches the display pattern of the light-emitting element based on a display instruction received from outside, and the terminal device has a display instruction unit that transmits a display instruction for the light-emitting element of the on-board device.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the vehicle-mounted device includes a light-emitting element provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle, and a CPU that changes the state of the light-emitting element based on a display instruction received from outside.

[0008] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a monitoring method is a monitoring method using a monitoring system including an on-board device mounted on a vehicle and a terminal device carried by an observer who monitors illegal parking, and includes a step in which the on-board device switches the display pattern of a light-emitting element provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle based on a display instruction received from outside, and a step in which the terminal device transmits a display instruction for the light-emitting element of the on-board device.

[0009] According to the above aspect, it is possible to easily determine whether or not the parking is illegal.

[0010] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a monitoring system according to a first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of an in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an LED display pattern according to the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of a terminal device according to the first embodiment; FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to the first embodiment; FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of an in-vehicle device according to a modified example of the first embodiment; FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of an LED display pattern according to a modified example of the first embodiment; FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of a central device according to a second embodiment; FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to the second embodiment; FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to a third embodiment; FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of a central device according to a fourth embodiment; FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to the fourth embodiment.

[0011] First Embodiment Hereinafter, a first embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

[0012] (Overall Configuration of Monitoring System) Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a monitoring system according to a first embodiment. The monitoring system 100 is a system for monitoring illegal parking of a vehicle V in a predetermined parking section (a time-limited parking section) or a parking lot. The monitoring system 100 includes an in-vehicle device 1, a terminal device 5, and a central device 6.

[0013] The vehicle-mounted device 1 is mounted on a vehicle V. The vehicle-mounted device 1 comprises a main body 2 and an antenna 3. The antenna 3 is installed in a position visible from outside the vehicle V, such as inside the front windshield. The vehicle-mounted device 1 according to this embodiment performs parking time management processing in a predetermined parking section (time-limited parking section) or in a parking lot. Note that the vehicle-mounted device 1 according to this embodiment is a vehicle-mounted device used for toll collection processing using conventional ETC, to which various components for parking time management processing have been added. The specific functional configuration of the vehicle-mounted device 1 will be described later.

[0014] The terminal device 5 is carried by an observer and is a device for detecting illegal parking of a vehicle V. The terminal device 5 wirelessly communicates with the in-vehicle device 1 via short-range wireless communication such as DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communications) or Bluetooth (registered trademark), or via Wi-Fi (registered trademark). The terminal device 5 also wirelessly communicates with the central device 6 via wide area wireless communication (WWAN; Wireless Wide Area Network) or the like. The terminal device 5 is a dedicated terminal for monitoring illegal parking.

[0015] The central device 6 is communicably connected to the in-vehicle device 1 and the terminal device 5 via a wide area wireless communication (WWAN; Wireless Wide Area Network) or the like. In this embodiment, the central device 6 receives a report of illegal parking of the vehicle V from an observer via the terminal device 5.

[0016] (Functional Configuration of Vehicle-Mounted Device) Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the vehicle-mounted device according to the first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, the vehicle-mounted device 1 includes a main body 2 and an antenna 3. The main body 2 and the antenna 3 are connected to each other via a coaxial cable 4 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0017] The main body 2 includes a power supply circuit 20 , a CPU 21 , a self-holding circuit 22 , and a switch section 23 .

[0018] The power supply circuit 20 supplies power transformed to a predetermined voltage to each of the CPU 21, the self-holding circuit 22, and the switch unit 23 of the main body unit 2. Each unit of the main body unit 2 is connected via the power supply circuit 20 to a power supply B that can supply power even when the vehicle engine is off. The power supply B is, for example, a battery (constant power source) mounted on the vehicle V. Alternatively, the power supply B may be a battery or a capacitor built into the main body unit 2.

[0019] The CPU 21 is a processor that executes parking time management processing. The parking time management processing determines whether the vehicle V is within the parking zone's time limit (e.g., 60 minutes) based on the elapsed time since parking in the parking zone and notifies the user. For example, when a user (a passenger of the vehicle V) pays the parking fee and starts parking at a roadside device (not shown) installed in the parking zone, a trigger signal for starting parking is transmitted from the central device 6 to the in-vehicle device 1. The CPU 21 counts the elapsed time since receiving this trigger signal as the parking time of the vehicle V. The CPU 21 notifies the user of the processing result by turning on or off the first light-emitting element 32 of the antenna unit 3 by turning on or off the switch unit 23 (first transistor switch circuit 24), which will be described later. Furthermore, the CPU 21 in this embodiment turns on or off the first light-emitting element 32 of the antenna unit 3 in accordance with a display instruction from the terminal device 5.

[0020] The CPU 21 may also determine the state (normal or abnormal) of the in-vehicle device 1 and notify the user. For example, the state of the in-vehicle device 1 is determined to be "normal" when a predetermined condition is met, such as when the ETC card is correctly inserted. Alternatively, the state of the in-vehicle device 1 is determined to be "abnormal" when a predetermined condition is not met, such as when the ETC card is not inserted, or when an error occurs, such as when the toll collection process fails. The CPU 21 notifies the user of the state of the in-vehicle device 1 by turning on or off the second light-emitting element 33 of the antenna unit 3 by turning on or off the switch unit 23 (second transistor switch circuit 25), which will be described later.

[0021] The self-holding circuit 22 maintains the on or off state of the switch section 23 (the first transistor switch circuit 24 and the second transistor switch circuit 25) input from the CPU.

[0022] The switch unit 23 includes a first transistor switch circuit 24 and a second transistor switch circuit 25. The first transistor switch circuit 24 superimposes a first annunciation signal on the signal to be output to the antenna unit 3. The second transistor switch circuit 25 superimposes a second annunciation signal, the voltage level of which is different from that of the first annunciation signal, on the signal to be output to the antenna unit 3. In this embodiment, as an example, it is assumed that the power supplied from the power supply circuit 20 to each transistor switch circuit is transformed so that the first annunciation signal is 3.3 V and the second annunciation signal is 5 V. The voltage levels of each signal may be changed as desired.

[0023] A flashing circuit 27 may be provided on the signal line 26 between the self-holding circuit 22 and the first transistor switch circuit 24. The flashing circuit 27 switches the first transistor switch circuit 24 on and off at a predetermined flashing pitch, thereby flashing a first light-emitting element 32 of the antenna unit 3, which will be described later. The flashing circuit 27 may be omitted.

[0024] The antenna unit 3 includes a voltage level determination unit 31, a first light-emitting element 32, a second light-emitting element 33, and an antenna body .

[0025] The voltage level discriminator 31 turns on (blinks) or turns off each of the first light-emitting element 32 and the second light-emitting element 33 based on the voltage level of the signal input from the main body 2. For example, in this embodiment, the voltage level of the second alert signal (5 V) is higher than that of the first alert signal (3.3 V). Therefore, the voltage level discriminator 31 determines that the second alert signal has been output when the voltage level E of the signal exceeds a predetermined threshold E1, and determines that the first alert signal has been output when the voltage level E of the signal is equal to or lower than the threshold E1. The threshold E1 is set to, for example, an intermediate value between the first alert signal and the second alert signal.

[0026] The first light-emitting element 32 is provided in a position that is visible from outside the vehicle V. For example, a parking zone monitor can easily determine whether the vehicle V is being parked illegally (such as exceeding the time limit) by checking the lighting state of the first light-emitting element 32.

[0027] The second light-emitting element 33 is provided in a position that is visible from inside the vehicle V. For example, a passenger in the vehicle V can easily determine whether the toll collection process has been performed normally by checking the lighting state of the second light-emitting element 33.

[0028] The first light emitting element 32 and the second light emitting element 33 are light emitting elements such as LEDs. In this embodiment, the first light emitting element 32 will be referred to as LED1 and the second light emitting element 33 will be referred to as LED2.

[0029] The antenna unit 3 transmits and receives various data and signals to and from the terminal device 5 via short-range wireless communication such as DSRC using the antenna main body 34. The main body 2 transmits and receives various data and signals to and from the central device 6 via a communication module (not shown) that complies with the WWAN standard. The in-vehicle device 1 and the terminal device 5 may also perform wireless communication via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi instead of DSRC. In this case, the main body 2 transmits and receives various data and signals to and from the terminal device 5 via a communication module (not shown) that complies with the Bluetooth or Wi-Fi standard.

[0030] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an LED display pattern according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3 , under the control of the CPU 21 of the main body 2, when the engine of the vehicle V is on and the status of the in-vehicle device 1 is "normal," LED 2 is illuminated, and when the status of the in-vehicle device 1 is "abnormal," LED 2 is extinguished. When the engine of the vehicle V is on, LED 1 remains extinguished regardless of the status of the in-vehicle device 1. Passengers of the vehicle V can easily understand the status of the in-vehicle device 1 by checking LED 2. When the engine of the vehicle V is off, LED 2 remains extinguished. On the other hand, when the engine of the vehicle V is off, LED 1 is illuminated (or flashes if a flashing circuit 27 is provided) if the parking time of the vehicle V is within the time limit, and LED 1 is extinguished if the time limit has not been reached. Because LED 1 is located in a position visible from outside the vehicle V, a parking zone supervisor can easily determine that illegal parking (the time limit has been exceeded or the parking start operation has not been performed) has occurred when LED 1 is extinguished.

[0031] Furthermore, while the vehicle V is parked, the LED 1 can be switched to a display pattern (on, blinking, or off) specified by a display instruction from the terminal device 5, which will be described later, in order to check for illegal parking. Depending on whether the LED 1 switches according to the display instruction, an observer can determine whether the LED 1 is genuine or an illegal one such as a dummy LED.

[0032] 2 and 3 show an example in which the LED 1 (first light-emitting element 32) of the antenna unit 3 has two display patterns: on (or flashing) and off; however, this is not limiting. In other embodiments, the LED 1 may have three display patterns: on, flashing, and off. In this case, the signal line 26 is branched into two, and only one of them is provided with a flashing circuit 27. For example, the CPU 21 of the main body unit 2 keeps the LED 1 on at the start of parking the vehicle V, flashes the LED 1 when a predetermined time (e.g., 10 minutes) remains before the parking time limit, and turns off the LED 1 when the time limit is exceeded.

[0033] (Functional Configuration of Terminal Device) Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the terminal device according to embodiment 1. As shown in Fig. 1, the terminal device 5 includes a CPU 51, a memory 52, a storage 53, a short-range wireless communication unit 54, a wide-area wireless communication unit 55, a display unit 56, an operation unit 57, and a camera 58.

[0034] The CPU 51 operates in accordance with a predetermined program to fulfill the functions of a vehicle information acquisition unit 511, a wake-up instruction unit 512, a display instruction unit 513, and a notification unit 514.

[0035] The vehicle information acquisition unit 511 acquires vehicle information that can identify the vehicle V parked in the parking space. The vehicle information is, for example, text information (license plate information) written on the license plate of the vehicle V. The vehicle information acquisition unit 511 may read the license plate information from an image of the license plate captured by the camera 58 using known image processing. The vehicle information acquisition unit 511 may also acquire license plate information input by the monitor via the operation unit 57.

[0036] The wake-up instruction unit 512 transmits a wake-up instruction to wake up the vehicle-mounted device 1 of the vehicle V (to cancel the sleep state).

[0037] The display instruction unit 513 transmits a display instruction including a display pattern indicating whether the LED 1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 of the vehicle V is to be turned on (blinked) or turned off.

[0038] The reporting unit 514 reports the illegal parking of the vehicle V to the central device 6.

[0039] The memory 52 has a memory area necessary for the operation of the CPU 51.

[0040] The storage 53 is a so-called auxiliary storage device, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD). The storage 53 stores data that each part of the CPU 51 acquires, generates, or references during processing.

[0041] The short-range wireless communication unit 54 performs wireless communication with the vehicle-mounted device 1 using DSRC, Bluetooth, or the like.

[0042] The wide area wireless communication unit 55 performs wireless communication with the central device 6 using WWAN or the like.

[0043] The display unit 56 is a display device (such as a liquid crystal display) for displaying various information related to monitoring illegal parking.

[0044] The operation unit 57 is an input device for receiving input operations and instruction operations from the observer. The display unit 56 and the operation unit 57 may be integrated into a touch panel.

[0045] The camera 58 photographs the license plate of the vehicle V and the like.

[0046] (Example of Processing in Monitoring System) Fig. 5 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing in the monitoring system according to the first embodiment. Here, an example of processing in the monitoring system 100 will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 5 .

[0047] The observer approaches the vehicle V parked in the parking space and operates the terminal device 5 in a position where the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1 can be seen. The vehicle V parked in the parking space has its engine off, and the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 is in a sleep state. When the observer presses the start button on the operation unit 57, the wake-up instruction unit 512 of the terminal device 5 transmits a wake-up instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 via the short-range wireless communication unit 54 (step S101). When the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 receives the wake-up instruction, it cancels the sleep state and enters an active state (step S102).

[0048] Next, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction for specifying the display of the LED 1 to the vehicle-mounted device 1 via the short-range wireless communication unit 54 (step S103). Then, the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 switches the display of the LED 1 in accordance with the display instruction received from the terminal device 5 (step S104).

[0049] The display instruction includes a preset display pattern for the LED 1. The display pattern may be any pattern, such as blinking or turning off the lit LED 1 for n seconds, turning on or turning off the blinking LED 1 for n seconds, or repeatedly switching between turning on and off the LED 1 every n seconds several times.

[0050] The display pattern may be one specified by the observer via the operation unit 57. In this case, in step S103, the display instruction unit 513 transmits the display pattern specified by the observer by operating the ON button, BLINK button, or OFF button on the operation unit 57 as a display instruction to the vehicle-mounted device 1. The observer may perform the operation to switch the display pattern of the LED 1 multiple times. The terminal device 5 and the vehicle-mounted device 1 repeatedly execute steps S103 to S104 each time they receive an operation from the observer. The observer checks whether the LED 1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 has been switched according to their operation.

[0051] Next, if the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1 does not switch as instructed, the observer presses the illegal parking button on the operation unit 57. When the illegal parking button is pressed (step S105; YES), the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 acquires vehicle information about the vehicle V (step S106). For example, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 activates the camera 58 and prompts the observer to photograph the license plate of the vehicle V. The vehicle information acquisition unit 511 also performs known image processing (for example, processing similar to that of an existing license plate reader) on the photographed image to read the license plate information and acquire it as vehicle information about the vehicle V.

[0052] The vehicle information acquisition unit 511 may also prompt the monitor to input vehicle information (license plate information). The monitor visually checks the license plate of the vehicle V and inputs the license plate information via the operation unit 57. The vehicle information acquisition unit 511 acquires the license plate information input by the monitor as vehicle information of the vehicle V.

[0053] Next, the reporting unit 514 transmits the illegal parking information to the central device 6 to report the illegal parking (step S107). This illegal parking information includes the vehicle information acquired in step S106, the date and time when the illegal parking was detected, and information that can identify the parking section (such as a parking section ID). In step S106, the monitor may take images using the camera 58 that include the entire vehicle V and the surrounding scenery (parking section) as evidence of the illegal parking. In this case, these images are also included in the illegal parking information. Based on the illegal parking information, the central device 6 performs processing to impose a penalty, such as a fine, on the vehicle V for illegal parking.

[0054] When the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1 switches as instructed, the monitor ends the work of checking for illegal parking of the vehicle V. For example, if the illegal parking button is not pressed within a certain time period after the display instruction is sent (step S105; NO), the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 ends the process.

[0055] Furthermore, when a predetermined time has elapsed after step S104, the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 transitions to a sleep state (step S108), whereby the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 enters the power-saving mode again.

[0056] (Effects) As described above, the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment includes the in-vehicle device 1 mounted on the vehicle V and the terminal device 5 carried by the monitor. The in-vehicle device 1 includes the LED 1 (first light-emitting element 32) provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle V, and the CPU 21 that switches the LED 1 between lighting, blinking, and extinguishing based on a display instruction. The terminal device 5 includes a display instruction unit 513 that transmits a display instruction for the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1.

[0057] In this way, the monitoring system 100 allows the monitor to easily determine whether the LED 1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 is genuine or not, which makes it possible to crack down on fraudulent acts such as attaching a dummy LED.

[0058] The display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits, via short-range wireless communication, a display instruction including a display pattern that specifies whether to light, blink, or turn off the LED 1 to the vehicle-mounted device 1. The CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 turns on, blinks, or turns off the LED 1 based on the display pattern received from the terminal device 5.

[0059] For example, in an environment where there are structures that block radio waves, such as an underground parking lot, it may be difficult to communicate wirelessly via wide-area wireless communication with the vehicle-mounted device 1. However, in this embodiment, the vehicle-mounted device 1 and the terminal device 5 communicate via short-range wireless communication, so that even in an environment such as an underground parking lot, it is possible to switch the display pattern of the LED 1 from outside the vehicle V and check whether the vehicle is parked illegally.

[0060] The terminal device 5 further includes a wake-up instruction unit 512 that transmits a wake-up instruction to wake up the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 .

[0061] In this way, even if the engine of the parked vehicle V is off and the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 is in a sleep state, the monitoring system 100 can wake up the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 and switch the display pattern of the LED 1.

[0062] <Modification of the First Embodiment> In the first embodiment, the antenna unit 3 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 has only one LED 1 (first light-emitting element 32). However, this is not limited to this. The antenna unit 3 may have multiple LEDs 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 6 , the antenna unit 3 may have two LEDs 1A and 1B (first light-emitting elements 32A and 32B). In this case, the switch unit 23 of the main body 2 has the same number (two) of first transistor switch circuits 24A and 24B as the number of LEDs 1A and 1B. As shown in FIG. 7 , the vehicle-mounted device 1 may switch between illuminating LED 1A or LED 1B depending on the time remaining until the time limit. A flashing circuit 27 may be provided between the self-holding circuit 22 and the first transistor switch circuits 24A and 24B to flash one or both of LEDs 1A and 1B.

[0063] 5, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits to the vehicle-mounted device 1 display instructions including, for example, (1) a display pattern in which LED 1A is turned on and LED 1B is turned off, (2) a display pattern in which LED 1A is turned off and LED 1B is turned on, or (3) a display pattern in which both LED 1A and LED 1B are turned on. The display instruction unit 513 may select one of these display patterns randomly or automatically in a predetermined order, or may have the monitor select one. Note that the display patterns shown in FIG. 7 are merely examples, and other display patterns may be included. Even with this configuration, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be achieved.

[0064] Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. Components common to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. The terminal device 5 according to this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that it does not communicate directly with the vehicle-mounted device 1. Therefore, the terminal device 5 may be a general portable computer such as a smartphone or tablet, rather than a dedicated terminal for monitoring illegal parking. Furthermore, the short-range wireless communication unit 54 may be omitted from the terminal device 5.

[0065] (Functional Configuration of Central Device) Fig. 8 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the central device according to the second embodiment. As shown in Fig. 8, the central device 6 includes a CPU 61, a memory 62, a storage 63, and a wide-area wireless communication unit 65.

[0066] The CPU 61 operates in accordance with a predetermined program to function as a receiving unit 611 and a transmitting unit 612 .

[0067] The receiving unit 611 receives vehicle information of the vehicle V from the terminal device 5, as well as wake-up instructions and display instructions for the vehicle-mounted device 1 of the vehicle V.

[0068] The transmitting unit 612 identifies the in-vehicle device 1 to be the destination based on the vehicle information received from the terminal device 5, and transmits the wake-up instruction and the display instruction to the identified in-vehicle device 1.

[0069] The memory 62 has a memory area necessary for the operation of the CPU 61.

[0070] The storage 63 is a so-called auxiliary storage device, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD). The storage 63 stores data that each part of the CPU 61 acquires, generates, or references during processing.

[0071] The wide area wireless communication unit 65 performs wireless communication between the vehicle-mounted device 1 and the terminal device 5 using WWAN or the like.

[0072] (Processing Example of Monitoring System) Fig. 9 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to the second embodiment. Here, a processing example of the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 9 .

[0073] The observer approaches vehicle V parked in a parking space and operates the terminal device 5 at a position where the observer can see the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1. When the observer presses the start button on the operation unit 57, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 acquires vehicle information of vehicle V (step S201). This process is the same as step S106 in Fig. 5. That is, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 acquires, as vehicle information of vehicle V, license plate information read by the observer from an image captured by the camera 58 or license plate information input by the observer via the operation unit 57.

[0074] Upon acquiring the vehicle information, the wake-up instruction unit 512 of the terminal device 5 transmits a wake-up instruction to the central device 6 along with the vehicle information of the vehicle V (step S202). When the receiving unit 611 receives the vehicle information and the wake-up instruction, the transmitting unit 612 of the central device 6 transmits the wake-up instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 of the vehicle V identified from the vehicle information (step S203). For example, the transmitting unit 612 of the central device 6 has a destination list that associates the license plate information of each vehicle with the in-vehicle device, and identifies the in-vehicle device 1 that is the destination by referring to this destination list. Upon receiving the wake-up instruction from the central device 6, the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 cancels the sleep state and enters an active state (step S204).

[0075] Next, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction together with the vehicle information of the vehicle V to the central device 6 (step S205). When the receiving unit 611 receives the vehicle information and the display instruction, the transmitting unit 612 of the central device 6 transmits the display instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 of the vehicle V identified from the vehicle information (step S206). Then, the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 switches the display of the LED 1 in accordance with the display instruction (display pattern) received from the central device 6 (step S207).

[0076] In step S205, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction including a preset display pattern for LED1 to the central device 6. The display pattern for LED1 may be set by the monitor via the operation unit 57 of the terminal device 5. The monitor checks whether LED1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 has switched as instructed. The display pattern transmitted to the central device 6 may be displayed on the display unit 56. In this case, the monitor checks whether the display pattern displayed on the display unit 56 matches the display pattern for LED1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1.

[0077] Next, when the illegal parking button is pressed by the monitor (step S208; YES), the reporting unit 514 of the terminal device 5 transmits the illegal parking information to the central device 6 to report the illegal parking (step S209). This process is the same as that of the first embodiment (step S107 in FIG. 5).

[0078] When the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1 switches as instructed, the monitor ends the work of checking for illegal parking of the vehicle V. For example, if the illegal parking button is not pressed within a certain time period after the display instruction is sent (step S208; NO), the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 ends the process.

[0079] After step S207, the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 transitions to a sleep state (step S210) when a predetermined time has elapsed. This process is the same as that of the first embodiment (step S108 in FIG. 5).

[0080] (Effects) As described above, in the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction to the central device 6 along with the vehicle information acquired by the vehicle information acquisition unit 511. The central device 6 has a receiving unit 611 that receives the vehicle information and the display instruction from the terminal device 5, and a transmitting unit 612 that identifies the destination in-vehicle device 1 based on the vehicle information received from the terminal device 5 and transmits a display instruction including a display pattern that specifies turning on, blinking, or extinguishing the LED 1 to the identified in-vehicle device 1 via the WWAN. The CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 turns on, blinks, or extinguishes the LED 1 based on the display pattern received from the central device 6.

[0081] In this manner, the monitoring system 100 can transmit a display instruction for checking for illegal parking from the central device 6 to the in-vehicle device 1. This eliminates the need for the terminal device 5 to communicate directly with the in-vehicle device 1. Therefore, the terminal device 5 does not need to be a dedicated terminal compatible with short-range wireless communication such as DSRC, and can simply be a smartphone or tablet with an application for monitoring illegal parking installed. This reduces the costs required for developing and introducing the terminal device 5. Furthermore, even with this configuration, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[0082] Third Embodiment Next, a third embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 10. Components common to the above-described embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. This embodiment differs from the above-described embodiments in that the terminal device 5 acquires vehicle information from the in-vehicle device 1 via short-range wireless communication (e.g., DSRC).

[0083] (Processing Example of Monitoring System) Fig. 10 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to the third embodiment. Here, a processing example of the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 10 .

[0084] The observer approaches the vehicle V parked in the parking space and operates the terminal device 5 in a position where the observer can see the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1. When the observer presses the start button on the operation unit 57, the wake-up instruction unit 512 of the terminal device 5 transmits a wake-up instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 (step S301). When the wake-up instruction is received, the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 cancels the sleep state and enters an active state (step S302).

[0085] After transmitting the wake-up instruction, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 acquires vehicle information of the vehicle V (step S303). In this embodiment, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 acquires vehicle information from the in-vehicle device 1 by DSRC or the like through the short-range wireless communication unit 54. Vehicle information including license plate information, an in-vehicle device ID, and the like is pre-recorded in the in-vehicle device 1. The process of acquiring the vehicle information recorded in the in-vehicle device 1 can be performed in the same manner as the process performed in, for example, conventional ETC toll collection processing.

[0086] Next, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction together with the vehicle information of the vehicle V to the central device 6 (step S304). When the receiving unit 611 receives the vehicle information and the display instruction, the transmitting unit 612 of the central device 6 transmits the display instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 of the vehicle V identified from the vehicle information (step S305). Then, the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 switches the display of the LED 1 in accordance with the display instruction received from the central device 6 (step S306). The processing of steps S304 to S306 is the same as that of the second embodiment (S205 to S207 in FIG. 9).

[0087] Next, when the illegal parking button is pressed by the monitor (step S307; YES), the reporting unit 514 of the terminal device 5 transmits illegal parking information to the central device 6 to report the illegal parking (step S308). On the other hand, if the illegal parking button is not pressed after a certain period of time has elapsed (step S307; NO), the process ends. Furthermore, the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 transitions to a sleep state after a certain period of time has elapsed after step S306 (step S309). These processes are the same as those in the second embodiment (steps S208 to S210 in FIG. 9).

[0088] 10 shows an example in which the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction to the central device 6, and the transmission unit 612 of the central device 6 transmits the display instruction, but the present invention is not limited to this. The display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 may transmit a display instruction directly to the in-vehicle device 1, similar to the first embodiment (step S103 in FIG. 5).

[0089] (Effects) As described above, in the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 performs short-range wireless communication with the vehicle-mounted device 1 to acquire vehicle information pre-recorded in the vehicle-mounted device 1.

[0090] In this way, the monitoring system 100 can automatically acquire vehicle information through wireless communication with the in-vehicle device 1, eliminating the need for monitors to take photos of license plates or manually input vehicle information. This reduces the burden on monitors. Furthermore, the camera 58 of the terminal device 5 can be omitted, making the terminal device 5 more compact and inexpensive.

[0091] <Fourth embodiment> Next, a fourth embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Figures 11 and 12. Components common to the above-mentioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. This embodiment differs from the above-mentioned embodiments in that the central device 6 sets the display pattern of the LED 1.

[0092] 11 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the central device according to the fourth embodiment. As shown in FIG. 11, the CPU 61 of the central device 6 according to this embodiment further includes a setting unit 613. The setting unit 613 receives an operation from, for example, an administrator of the monitoring system 100, and sets the display pattern of the LED 1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1.

[0093] (Example of processing of monitoring system) Fig. 12 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing of the monitoring system according to the fourth embodiment. Here, an example of processing of the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 12. It is assumed here that the setting unit 613 of the central device 6 has set the display pattern of the LED 1 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 in advance.

[0094] The observer approaches the vehicle V parked in the parking space and operates the terminal device 5 in a position where the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1 can be seen. When the observer presses the start button on the operation unit 57, the wake-up instruction unit 512 of the terminal device 5 transmits a wake-up instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 (step S401). When the wake-up instruction is received, the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 cancels the sleep state and enters an active state (step S402). After transmitting the wake-up instruction, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 acquires vehicle information of the vehicle V (step S403). These processes are the same as those in the third embodiment (steps S301 to S303 in FIG. 10 ).

[0095] Next, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction together with the vehicle information of the vehicle V to the central device 6 (step S304). This display instruction does not include a display pattern.

[0096] When the receiving unit 611 receives the vehicle information and the display instruction, the transmitting unit 612 of the central device 6 reads out the display pattern recorded in the storage 63 and notifies the terminal device 5 of this display pattern (step S405). The display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 then displays the display pattern received from the central device 6 on the display unit 56 (step S406). The transmitting unit 612 of the central device 6 also transmits a display instruction including the read display pattern to the in-vehicle device 1 (step S406). The CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 then switches the display of the LED 1 in accordance with the display instruction received from the central device 6 (step S407).

[0097] The observer checks whether the display pattern displayed on the display unit 56 matches the display pattern of the LED 1 of the in-vehicle device 1. If they do not match, the observer presses the illegal parking button on the operation unit 57 of the terminal device 5. When the observer presses the illegal parking button (step S409; YES), the reporting unit 514 of the terminal device 5 transmits illegal parking information to the central device 6 and reports the illegal parking (step S410). On the other hand, if the illegal parking button is not pressed after a certain period of time has passed (step S409; NO), the process ends. Furthermore, the CPU 21 of the in-vehicle device 1 transitions to a sleep state after a certain period of time has passed after step S408 (step S411). These processes are the same as those in the second embodiment (steps S208 to S210 in FIG. 9).

[0098] As described above, in the monitoring system 100 according to this embodiment, the central device 6 further includes the setting unit 613 that sets a display pattern. The transmission unit 612 of the central device 6 transmits the display pattern set by the setting unit 613 to the terminal device 5, and also transmits a display instruction including the display pattern set by the setting unit 613 to the in-vehicle device 1.

[0099] In this way, for example, an administrator of the monitoring system 100 can change the display pattern for monitoring illegal parking periodically or irregularly, which makes it possible to more effectively prevent illegal acts such as installing illegal LEDs that imitate the display pattern for monitoring illegal parking.

[0100] 12 shows an example in which the wake-up instruction unit 512 of the terminal device 5 transmits a wake-up instruction to the in-vehicle device 1 (step S401), and the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 acquires vehicle information from the in-vehicle device 1 via short-range wireless communication (step S403), but the present invention is not limited to this. Similarly to the second embodiment, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 may acquire vehicle information through image processing or manual input by an observer (step S201 in FIG. 9), and the wake-up instruction unit 512 may transmit a wake-up instruction together with the vehicle information to the central device (step S202 in FIG. 9). In this way, similar to the second embodiment, a smartphone, a tablet, or the like may be used as the terminal device 5 instead of a dedicated terminal for monitoring illegal parking.

[0101] <Other Embodiments> Although one embodiment has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to the above, and various design modifications are possible. That is, in other embodiments, the order of the above-described processes may be changed as appropriate. Furthermore, some processes may be executed in parallel.

[0102] <Additional Notes> The monitoring system, the vehicle-mounted device, and the monitoring method described in the above-described embodiments can be understood, for example, as follows.

[0103] (1) According to the first aspect, the monitoring system 100 comprises an on-board device 1 mounted on a vehicle V and a terminal device 5 carried by an observer who monitors illegal parking, wherein the on-board device 1 has a light-emitting element 32 provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle V and a CPU 21 that switches the display pattern of the light-emitting element 32 based on a display instruction received from outside, and the terminal device 5 has a display instruction unit 513 that transmits a display instruction to the light-emitting element 32 of the on-board device 1.

[0104] In this way, the monitoring system 100 allows the monitor to easily determine whether the LED 1 (light-emitting element 32) of the vehicle-mounted device 1 is genuine or not, which makes it possible to crack down on fraudulent acts such as attaching a dummy LED.

[0105] (2) According to the second aspect, in the monitoring system 100 relating to the first aspect, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction including a display pattern specifying whether the light-emitting element 32 is to be turned on, blink, or extinguished to the vehicle-mounted device 1 via short-range wireless communication, and the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 turns on, blinks, or extinguishes the light-emitting element 32 based on the display pattern received from the terminal device 5.

[0106] For example, in an environment where there are structures that block radio waves, such as an underground parking lot, it may be difficult to communicate wirelessly via wide-area wireless communication with the vehicle-mounted device 1. However, in this embodiment, the vehicle-mounted device 1 and the terminal device 5 communicate via short-range wireless communication, so that even in an environment such as an underground parking lot, it is possible to switch the display pattern of the LED 1 (light-emitting element 32) from outside the vehicle V and check whether the vehicle is parked illegally.

[0107] (3) According to the third aspect, the monitoring system 100 according to the first aspect further includes a central device 6 communicatively connected to the vehicle-mounted device 1 and the terminal device 5 via wide-area wireless communication, the terminal device 5 further includes a vehicle information acquisition unit 511 that acquires vehicle information that can identify the vehicle V, the display instruction unit 513 of the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction together with the vehicle information to the central device 6, the central device 6 includes a receiving unit 611 that receives the vehicle information and the display instruction from the terminal device 5, and a transmitting unit 612 that identifies the destination vehicle-mounted device 1 based on the vehicle information received from the terminal device 5 and transmits a display instruction to the identified vehicle-mounted device 1, the display instruction including a display pattern that specifies turning on, blinking, or turning off the light-emitting element 32, and the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 turns on, off, or blinks the light-emitting element 32 based on the display pattern received from the central device 6.

[0108] In this manner, the monitoring system 100 can transmit a display instruction for checking for illegal parking from the central device 6 to the in-vehicle device 1. This eliminates the need for the terminal device 5 to communicate directly with the in-vehicle device 1. Therefore, the terminal device 5 does not need to be a dedicated terminal compatible with short-range wireless communication such as DSRC, and can simply be a smartphone or tablet with an application for monitoring illegal parking installed. This reduces the costs required for developing and introducing the terminal device 5. Furthermore, even with this configuration, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[0109] (4) According to the fourth aspect, in the monitoring system 100 relating to any one of the first to third aspects, the vehicle information acquisition unit 511 of the terminal device 5 performs short-range wireless communication with the vehicle-mounted device 1 and acquires vehicle information pre-recorded in the vehicle-mounted device 1.

[0110] In this way, the monitoring system 100 can automatically acquire vehicle information through wireless communication with the in-vehicle device 1, eliminating the need for monitors to take photos of license plates or manually input vehicle information. This reduces the burden on monitors. Furthermore, the camera 58 of the terminal device 5 can be omitted, making the terminal device 5 more compact and inexpensive.

[0111] (5) According to the fifth aspect, in the monitoring system 100 relating to the third aspect, the central device 6 further has a setting unit 613 that sets a display pattern, and the transmission unit 612 of the central device 6 transmits the display pattern set by the setting unit 613 to the terminal device 5 and transmits a display instruction including the display pattern set by the setting unit 613 to the vehicle-mounted device 1.

[0112] In this way, for example, an administrator of the monitoring system 100 can change the display pattern for monitoring illegal parking periodically or irregularly, which makes it possible to more effectively prevent illegal acts such as installing illegal LEDs that imitate the display pattern for monitoring illegal parking.

[0113] (6) According to the sixth aspect, in the monitoring system 100 relating to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the terminal device 5 further has a wake-up instruction unit 512 that transmits a wake-up instruction to wake up the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1.

[0114] In this way, even if the engine of the parked vehicle V is off and the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 is in a sleep state, the monitoring system 100 can wake up the CPU 21 of the vehicle-mounted device 1 and switch the display pattern of the LED 1.

[0115] (7) According to the seventh aspect, the vehicle-mounted device 1 includes a light-emitting element 32 provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle V, and a CPU 21 that changes the state of the light-emitting element 32 based on a display instruction received from outside.

[0116] In this way, the vehicle-mounted device 1 enables an observer to check from outside the vehicle V whether the vehicle V is illegally parked or not.

[0117] (8) According to the eighth aspect, the monitoring method is a monitoring method using a monitoring system 100 including an on-board device 1 mounted on a vehicle V and a terminal device 5 carried by an observer who monitors illegal parking, and includes a step in which the on-board device 1 switches the display pattern of a light-emitting element 32 provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle V based on a display instruction received from the outside, and a step in which the terminal device 5 transmits a display instruction to the light-emitting element 32 of the on-board device 1.

[0118] According to the above aspect, it is possible to easily determine whether or not the parking is illegal.

[0119] 100 Monitoring system 1 Vehicle-mounted device 2 Main body 20 Power supply circuit 21 CPU 22 Self-holding circuit 23 Switch section 24, 24A, 24B First transistor switch circuit 25 Second transistor switch circuit 26 Signal line 27 Flashing circuit 3 Antenna section 31 Voltage level determination section 32, 32A, 32B First light-emitting element (LED1) 33 Second light-emitting element (LED2) 4 Coaxial cable 5 Terminal device 51 CPU 511 Vehicle information acquisition section 512 Wake-up instruction section 513 Display instruction section 514 Reporting section 52 Memory 53 Storage 54 Short-range wireless communication section 55 Wide-area wireless communication section 56 Display section 57 Operation section 58 Camera 6 Central device 61 CPU 611 Receiving section 612 Transmitting section 613 Setting section 62 Memory 63 Storage 65 Wide area wireless communication unit V Vehicle

Claims

1. A monitoring system comprising an on-board device mounted on a vehicle and a terminal device carried by an observer who monitors illegal parking, wherein the on-board device has a light-emitting element provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle, and a CPU that switches the display pattern of the light-emitting element based on a display instruction received from outside, and the terminal device has a display instruction unit that transmits a display instruction for the light-emitting element of the on-board device.

2. The monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the display instruction unit of the terminal device transmits the display instruction, including a display pattern specifying whether the light-emitting element is to be turned on, blink, or extinguish, to the vehicle-mounted device via short-range wireless communication, and the CPU of the vehicle-mounted device turns on, blinks, or extinguishes the light-emitting element based on the display pattern received from the terminal device.

3. The monitoring system of claim 1, further comprising a central device communicably connected to the in-vehicle device and the terminal device via wide-area wireless communication, wherein the terminal device further has a vehicle information acquisition unit that acquires vehicle information that can identify the vehicle, wherein the display instruction unit of the terminal device transmits the display instruction to the central device along with the vehicle information, and wherein the central device has a receiving unit that receives the vehicle information and the display instruction from the terminal device, and a transmitting unit that identifies the in-vehicle device that is the destination based on the vehicle information received from the terminal device and transmits the display instruction to the identified in-vehicle device, the display instruction including a display pattern that specifies whether the light-emitting element is to be turned on, flash, or off, and wherein the CPU of the in-vehicle device turns on, off, or flashes the light-emitting element based on the display pattern received from the central device.

4. The monitoring system according to claim 3, wherein the vehicle information acquisition unit of the terminal device performs short-range wireless communication with the vehicle-mounted device to acquire the vehicle information pre-recorded in the vehicle-mounted device.

5. The monitoring system described in claim 3, wherein the central device further has a setting unit that sets the display pattern, and the transmission unit of the central device transmits the display pattern set by the setting unit to the terminal device and transmits a display instruction including the display pattern set by the setting unit to the vehicle-mounted device.

6. The monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the terminal device further comprises a wake-up instruction unit that transmits a wake-up instruction to wake up the CPU of the vehicle-mounted device.

7. An in-vehicle device comprising: a light-emitting element provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle; and a CPU that changes the state of the light-emitting element based on a display instruction received from outside.

8. A monitoring method using a monitoring system comprising an on-board device mounted on a vehicle and a terminal device carried by an observer who monitors illegal parking, the monitoring method comprising the steps of: the on-board device switching the display pattern of a light-emitting element provided in a position visible from outside the vehicle based on a display instruction received from outside; and the terminal device transmitting a display instruction for the light-emitting element of the on-board device.

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