Patent Application
20250006059
The present invention relates to an alert message display device, an alert message display method, and a program recording medium.
When a large passenger vehicle such as a fixed route bus stops at a stop or the like, unsafe overtaking is performed, and an accident with an opposite vehicle or an accident with a pedestrian coming out of the shadow of the large passenger vehicle may occur.
PTL 1 discloses an automobile with an image display device capable of enabling safe overtaking. According to PTL 1, the automobile with the image display device has a camera that captures an image of the front of a large automobile and a function of displaying the image of the front captured by the camera on a display device at the rear of the large automobile.
PTL 2 discloses a bus getting-on/off stoppage time prediction device that predicts when a bus stopped at a stop departs and displays the predicted departure time on a rear display device at the rear of the bus.
PTL 1: JP 2001-043493 A
PTL 2: JP 2019-197268 A
PTL 3: JP 2021-135830 A
In the automobile with the image display device of PTL 1, since the image of the front of the large automobile is projected, there is a possibility that the following vehicle is urged to overtake. As a result, it is conceivable that an accident with an opposite vehicle or a pedestrian coming out of the side is caused. In particular, when the stoppage time for the bus is also displayed as in PTL 2, there is a possibility that the following vehicle is more strongly urged to overtake. PTL 3 discloses a technology of acquiring information around a bus, determining whether it is possible to overtake the bus, and issuing an alert.
An object of the present invention is to provide an alert message display device, an alert message display method, and a program recording medium capable of suppressing an accident that occurs when a large passenger vehicle stops.
According to the first viewpoint, an alert message display device including a stoppage time prediction means that predicts a stoppage time for a large passenger vehicle that is stopped or scheduled to be stopped, a sensing means that senses a surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, and a display control means that displays an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle on a predetermined display device, based on the stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, is provided.
According to the second viewpoint, an alert message display method including predicting a stoppage time for a large passenger vehicle that is stopped or scheduled to be stopped, sensing a surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, and displaying an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle on a predetermined display device, based on the stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, is provided.
According to the third viewpoint, a program for allowing a computer to execute processing of predicting a stoppage time for a large passenger vehicle that is stopped or scheduled to be stopped, processing of sensing a surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, and processing of displaying an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle on a predetermined display device, based on the stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, is provided.
According to the present invention, the alert message display device, the alert message display method, and the program capable of suppressing the accident that occurs when the large passenger vehicle stops are provided.
First, the outline of one example embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The reference numerals in the drawings attached to the outline are attached to each element for convenience as an example for assisting the understanding, and are not intended to limit the present invention to the illustrated aspects. A connection line between blocks in the drawings and the like referred to in the following description includes both bidirectional and unidirectional lines. A unidirectional arrow schematically indicates the flow of a main signal (data), and does not exclude bidirectionality. A program is executed via a computer device, and the computer device includes, for example, a processor, a storage device, an input device, a communication interface, and a display device as necessary. The computer device is configured to be capable of communicating with a device (including a computer) inside or outside the device via the communication interface in a wired or wireless manner. There are a port and an interface at a connection point between input and output of each block in the drawings, but the port and the interface are not illustrated.
In the example embodiment, as illustrated in
More specifically, the stoppage time prediction means 11 predicts a stoppage time for a large passenger vehicle V1 that is stopped or scheduled to be stopped. As a method for predicting the stoppage time, a method for estimating the stoppage time from past information such as statistical information relevant to the behavior of the large passenger vehicle V1 at each stoppage position and statistical information of the number of passengers of the large passenger vehicle V1 at each stoppage position can be used. As another method for predicting the stoppage time, the stoppage time can be calculated by summing the time required for each person to get on and off, based on the number of passengers scheduled to get off among passengers currently boarding on the large passenger vehicle V1 and the number of passengers waiting at the stoppage position.
The sensing means 12 includes one or more sensors that sense the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle V1. As a specific example of the sensing means 12, an in-vehicle camera, light detection and ranging (LiDAR), a millimeter-wave radar, or the like can be used.
The display control means 13 displays an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle on predetermined display devices 14 and 15, based on the predicted stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle. As the display devices 14 and 15, for example, a display device installed on the outer surface of the large passenger vehicle V1 can be used.
Hereinafter, the operation of the present example embodiment will be described by using an example of the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle and an example of the alert message displayed at this time. For example, as illustrated in
A sensing target of the sensing means 12 is not limited to the vehicle. For example, as illustrated in
A sensing range of the sensing means 12 is not limited to the front side of the vehicle. For example, as illustrated in
In the case of sensing the front side of the vehicle, the sensing target is not also limited to the vehicle. For example, as illustrated in
As described above, the alert message display device 10 displays an appropriate alert message on the display devices 14 and 15 in accordance with the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle V1, in such a way that it is possible to suppress an accident that occurs when the large passenger vehicle stops.
The surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle V1 illustrated in
Next, a first example embodiment of the present invention in which the present invention is applied to a bus equipped with a plurality of sensors will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The camera 102a is a camera that captures an image of the front of the large passenger vehicle (hereinafter, the bus) V1. The camera 102b is a camera that captures an image of the rear of the bus V1. It is not necessary to limit the number of cameras to two, and another camera may be arranged. Such cameras may not be dedicated to the alert message display device 100, and may be, for example, a drive recorder or a camera for driving assistance.
The LiDAR 102c is used to measure the shape and the distance of an obstacle or the like in front of the bus V1. The LiDAR 102d is used to measure the shape and the distance of an obstacle or the like behind the bus V1. The number of LiDARs is not limited to two, and another LiDAR may be arranged. Such LiDARs may not be dedicated to the alert message display device 100, and may be, for example, LiDAR for driving assistance.
The stoppage time prediction means 101 predicts a stoppage time at the next bus stop by summing the time required for each person to get on and off, based on the number of passengers scheduled to get off among passengers currently boarding on the bus V1 and the number of passengers waiting at the next bus stop. As the number of passengers scheduled to get off among passengers boarding on the bus V1, an average value of the past number of passengers getting off in the same time zone on the same day or the like can be used. As the number of passengers waiting at the next bus stop, an average value of the past number of passengers in the same time zone on the same day, the number of passengers appearing in the image of the camera 102a, or the like can be used. As the number of passengers scheduled to get off among passengers boarding on the bus V1, a value estimated from the number of passengers lining up at the exit may be used.
The display control means 103 determines contents to be displayed on the display devices 104 and 105 within the stoppage time predicted by the stoppage time prediction means 101, and performs display control on the display devices 104 and 105. More specifically, the display control means 103 creates an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, based on the predicted stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle. The display control means 103 displays the created alert message on the display devices 104 and 105 installed on the outer surface of the large passenger vehicle V1.
The alert message display device 100 described above may include a dedicated device, but can also be enabled, for example, by installing a computer program for enabling functions associated to the stoppage time prediction means 101 and the display control means 103 in an in-vehicle terminal mounted on the bus V1.
Subsequently, an alert message display method used in the alert message display device 100 of the present example embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
As a result of the determination, in a case where it is determined to start the display control on the display devices 104 and 105 (Yes in step S001), the alert message display device 100 predicts the stoppage time for the bus V1 (step S002).
Next, the alert message display device 100 checks the surrounding condition of the bus V1 based on the sensing data of the cameras 102a and 102b and the LiDARs 102c and 102d (step S003).
Next, the alert message display device 100 creates an alert message to be displayed on the display devices 104 and 105 by using the predicted stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the bus V1 (step S004). For example, as illustrated in
Next, the alert message display device 100 displays the created alert message on the display devices 104 and 105 (step S005). In the example of
The alert message display device 100 continues the operations in steps S003 to S005 until the stoppage time ends (No in step S006). In a case where the stoppage time ends, the alert message display device 100 ends the display on the display devices 104 and 105 (Yes in step S106). When the stoppage time ends, the alert message display device 100 may display, for example, “Departure” on the display devices 104 and 105. The alert message display device 100 may display various advertisements or the like on the display devices 104 and 105 during a period until the next alert message is displayed after the stoppage time ends.
By displaying the alert message as described above, the following vehicle V2 of the bus V1 in
Subsequently, a second example embodiment in which a function of guiding a spot where the overtaking is available is added to the alert message display device 100 of the first example embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The bus bay information storage means 106 stores bus bay information indicating whether there is a bus bay at a bus stop on a traveling route of the bus V1. The form of the bus bay information may be a map form, but may be simply information in which the presence or absence of the bus bay is recorded in a bus stop ID managed on the alert message display device 100a side.
Similarly to the display control means 103 of the first example embodiment, the display control means 113 of the alert message display device 100a creates an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, based on the predicted stoppage time and the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle. The display control means 113 adds information relevant to the presence or absence of the bus bay to the alert message based on the bus bay information retained in the bus bay information storage means 106.
Hereinafter, the operation of the present example embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.
The alert message display device 100a that has checked the bus bay information in step S107 creates an alert message by using the predicted stoppage time, the surrounding condition, and the bus bay information (step S104).
For example, as illustrated in
As described above, by displaying the message M3 “Safe overtaking is available at next stop” on the display device 104, the driver of the following vehicle V2 can wait for the departure of the bus V1 with ease without performing unsafe overtaking. In the example of
In the first and second example embodiments described above, it has been described that the alert message display devices 100 and 100a are installed in the large passenger vehicle (the bus) V1, but the alert message display device may be installed outside the large passenger vehicle (the bus) V1. Next, a third example embodiment in which an external alert message display device displays an alert message on a display device of a large passenger vehicle (hereinafter, a “bus”) V11 will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The bus V11 includes two cameras 102a and 102b, two LiDARs 102c and 102d, the display devices 104 and 105, and a communication terminal 107. The communication terminal 107 transmits data such as the images of the cameras 102a and 102b, the LiDARs 102c and 102d, a vehicle speed, and an operation state of a direction indicator to the alert message display device 200 as sensing information. The cameras 102a and 102b, the LiDARs 102c and 102d, and the display devices 104 and 105 are equivalent to those provided in the bus V1 of the first example embodiment, and thus, the description will be omitted. Such a bus V11 can be enabled by an in-vehicle terminal having a communication function and a vehicle capable of displaying various messages on a display device from the in-vehicle terminal. As a communication form between the communication terminal 107 and the alert message display device 200, various forms such as a form using a mobile communication network and a form using a roadside unit or the like installed around a road can be used.
The communication means 202 receives, as the sensing information, the data such as the images of the cameras 102a and 102b, the LiDARs 102c and 102d, the vehicle speed, and the operation state of the direction indicator from the bus V11, and sends the data to the stoppage time prediction means 201 and the display control means 203. The communication means 202 transmits contents that are created by the display control means 203 and to be displayed on the display devices 104 and 105 to the bus V11.
The stoppage time prediction means 201 predicts a stoppage time at the next bus stop based on the information received from the bus V11. As a method for predicting the stoppage time, as in the first example embodiment, a method for summing the time required for each person to get on and off, based on the number of passengers scheduled to get off among passengers currently boarding on the bus V11 and the number of passengers waiting at the next bust stop is conceivable.
The display control means 203 determines the contents to be displayed on the display devices 104 and 105 within the stoppage time predicted by the stoppage time prediction means 201, and performs the display control on the display devices 104 and 105. More specifically, the display control means 203 creates an alert message based on the surrounding condition of the large passenger vehicle, based on the predicted stoppage time and the sensing information received from the bus V11. The display control means 203 transmits the alert message to be displayed on the display devices 104 and 105 to the bus V11.
The alert message display device 200 described above may include a dedicated device, but can also be enabled, for example, by installing a computer program for enabling functions associated to the stoppage time prediction means 201 and the display control means 203 in a roadside unit that provides various driving assistance or a MEC server that provides a service to the bus V11. “MEC” is an abbreviation for multi-access edge computing or mobile edge computing.
Hereinafter, the operation of the present example embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.
As a result of the determination, in a case where it is determined to start the display control on the display devices 104 and 105 (Yes in step S201), the alert message display device 200 predicts the stoppage time for the bus V11 (step S202).
Next, the alert message display device 200 checks the surrounding condition of the bus V11 based on the sensing data of the cameras 102a and 102b and the LiDARs 102c and 102d received from the communication terminal 107 of the bus V11 (step S203).
The alert message display device 200 creates an alert message to be displayed on display devices 104 and 105 by using the predicted stoppage time and the surrounding condition of bus V1 (step S204). For example, as illustrated in
Next, the alert message display device 200 transmits data for displaying the created alert message to the communication terminal 107 of the bus V11 (step S205). When receiving the data, the communication terminal 107 of the bus V11 displays the alert message on the display devices 104 and 105.
The alert message display device 200 continues the operations in steps S203 to S205 until the stoppage time ends (No in step S206). When the stoppage time ends, the alert message display device 200 may instruct the communication terminal 107 of the bus V11 to perform a display such as “Departure”. In addition, the alert message display device 200 may instruct the communication terminal 107 of the bus V11 to display various advertisements and the like during a period until the next alert message is displayed after the stoppage time ends.
As described above, according to the present example embodiment, the following vehicle of the bus V11 recognizes that there is an opposite vehicle and refrains from overtaking the bus V11. In this case, since the display device 104 displays that the time to wait is 30 seconds, the driver of the following vehicle can wait for departure of the bus V11 with ease without performing unsafe overtaking. It is obvious that the alert message display device 200 of the present example embodiment is also capable of displaying an alert message including the bus bay information by adding the bus bay information storage means 106.
According to the configuration of the present example embodiment, the configuration on the bus V11 side can be simplified. According to the configuration of the present example embodiment, there is also an advantage that the alert message display device 200 is capable of controlling display devices of a plurality of buses. According to the configuration of the present example embodiment, there is also an advantage that the alert message display device 200 is capable of controlling a display device of the following vehicle of the bus or a vehicle traveling in the opposite lane.
In the first and second example embodiments described above, the alert message is displayed on the display device of the large passenger vehicle (the bus) V1, but a display destination of the alert message is not limited to the display device of the large passenger vehicle (the bus) V1. For example, as illustrated in
According to the present example embodiment, it is possible to appropriately issue an alert even in a case where the display devices 104 and 105 of the large passenger vehicle V1 are difficult to watch due to the afternoon sun or the like. According to the present example embodiment, it is also possible to cope with a case where the display devices 104 and 105 are not mounted on the large passenger vehicle V1.
Similarly, in the third example embodiment, the display destination of the alert message can also be the display device of the following vehicle or the vehicle (not illustrated) traveling in the opposite lane. For example, as illustrated in
Similarly to the fourth example embodiment of the present example embodiment, it is possible to appropriately issue an alert even in a case where the display devices 104 and 105 of the large passenger vehicle V11 are difficult to watch due to the afternoon sun or the like. According to the present example embodiment, it is possible to cope with a case where the display devices 104 and 105 are not mounted on the large passenger vehicle V11.
Each example embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described example embodiments, and further modifications, substitutions, and adjustments can be made without departing from the basic technical idea of the present invention. For example, the network configuration, the configuration of each element, and the representation form of the data illustrated in each of the drawings are an example for assisting the understanding of the present invention, and are not limited to the configurations illustrated in the drawings.
For example, in each of the above-described example embodiments, an example in which the present invention is applied to a fixed route bus as an example of the large passenger vehicle has been described, but the present invention is also applicable to a bus tram (a light rail system) or the like.
In the fourth and fifth example embodiments, the alert message display device transmits the alert message to the following vehicle V2 or the vehicle (not illustrated) traveling in the opposite lane, but the alert message may be displayed on another terminal. For example, the alert message display device may transmit a message associated to the alert message to a mobile terminal of a pedestrian or the like positioned around the large passenger vehicles V1 and V11 to notify a danger that may occur due to the stoppage of the large passenger vehicles V1 and V11.
In each example embodiment of the present disclosure, each constituent of each device indicates a block of functional unit. A part or all of each constituent of each device is enabled by, for example, any combination between an information processing device 900 and a program as illustrated in
Each constituent of each device in each example embodiment is enabled by the CPU 901 acquiring and executing the program 904 for enabling these functions. That is, the CPU 901 of
The program 904 is capable of displaying a processing result including an intermediate state for each stage via the display device as necessary, or communicating with the outside via the communication interface. The program 904 can be recorded in a computer-readable (non-transitory) storage medium.
There are various modification examples of a method for enabling each device. For example, each device may be enabled by any combination between the information processing device 900 separate for each constituent and the program. A plurality of constituents included in each device may be enabled by any combination between one information processing device 900 and the program. That is, the present invention can be enabled by a computer program that causes the communication terminal or the network control device described in the first to third example embodiments, and the processor mounted in such devices to execute each of the above-described processing pieces by using the hardware.
A part or all of each constituent of each device is enabled by another general-purpose or dedicated circuit, processor, and the like, or a combination between the circuit, the processor, and the like. Such constituents may be configured by a single chip or may be configured by a plurality of chips connected via a bus.
A part or all of each constituent of each device may be enabled by a combination between the above-described circuit or the like and the program.
In a case where a part or all of each constituent of each device is enabled by a plurality of information processing devices, circuits, and the like, the plurality of information processing devices, circuits, and the like may be arranged in a centralized manner or in a distributed manner. For example, the information processing device, the circuit, and the like may be enabled as a form in which each of the information processing device, the circuit, and the like is connected via the communication network, such as a client and server system or a cloud computing system.
Each of the above-described example embodiments is a preferred example embodiment of the present disclosure, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited only to each of the above-described example embodiments. That is, it is possible for a person skilled in the art to make modifications and substitutions of the above-described example embodiments without departing from the gist of the present disclosure, and to construct a mode in which various modifications are made.
The whole or part of the example embodiments disclosed above can be described as, but not limited to, the following supplementary notes.
An alert message display device, including:
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration in which the message is displayed on the display device installed on the outer surface of the large passenger vehicle as the predetermined display device.
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration in which the stoppage time prediction means predicts the stoppage time based on the number of passengers scheduled to get on and off at a next stoppage position.
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration further including a transmission means configured to transmit the alert message to a following vehicle of the large passenger vehicle or a vehicle traveling in an opposite lane.
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration in which
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration in which
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration in which
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration in which
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration further including
The alert message display device is capable of adopting a configuration further including
An alert message display method, including:
A program recording medium recording a program for allowing a computer to execute:
The forms of Supplementary Notes 9 and 10 described above can be expanded to the forms of Supplementary Notes 2 to 8, as with Supplementary Note 1.
It is to be noted that each disclosure of the above patent documents is incorporated herein by reference, and can be used as a basis or a part of the present invention as necessary. Within the frame of the entire disclosure (including claims) of the present invention, it is possible to change and adjust the example embodiments or examples further based on the basic technical idea. Various combinations or selections (including partial deletions) of various disclosed elements (including each element of each claim, each element of each example embodiment or example, each element of each drawing, and the like) can be made within the frame of the disclosure of the present invention. That is, it is obvious that the present invention includes various modifications and corrections that can be made by a person skilled in the art in accordance with the entire disclosure including the claims and the technical idea. In particular, for numerical ranges set forth herein, any numerical value or sub-range included within the range should be construed as being specifically described, even when not stated otherwise. It is also considered that each respect disclosed in the cited documents described above is included in the respects disclosed in the present application to use a part or all of the respects disclosed in the cited documents in combination with the respects described in the present specification, as part of the disclosure of the present invention, in accordance with the gist of the present invention as necessary.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2022/013969 | 3/24/2022 | WO |
