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(11) | EP 3 073 462 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | SYSTEM FOR NOTIFYING ROAD USERS OF TRAFFIC CONDITIONS |
| (57) A system for notifying road users of traffic conditions, the system comprising: a
detection system (40) for roadside installation for detecting traffic conditions in
the vicinity of the detection system (40); and a notification system (50), wherein
the notification system (50) is configured to communicate with the detection system
(40) and to issue a notification to a road user in the vicinity of the notification
system (50) of the detected traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system
(40).
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Field of the Invention
[0001] The present application relates to the field of road safety, and in particular to a system for notifying road users of traffic conditions.
Background to the Invention
[0002] Road traffic accidents commonly occur because road users are not aware of traffic conditions on the road ahead of or around them. For example, a common cause of road traffic accidents involving motorcycles is vehicles pulling out of junctions into the path of oncoming motorcycles. This is a particular problem because motorcycles are generally less visible than larger vehicles, and are also less common than other vehicles, so drivers do not necessarily expect a motorcycle to be approaching as they pull out of the junction. Another common cause of road traffic accidents is stationary vehicles or other hazards. Often the driver of a vehicle is unaware of a stationary vehicle or other hazard on the road ahead, and so may be driving at a speed at which it is impossible to stop in time when the stationary vehicle or other hazard comes into view, leading to a collision with the stationary vehicle or hazard.
Summary of the Invention
[0003] The present application relates to a system for notifying road users of traffic conditions, the system comprising: a detection system for roadside installation for detecting traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system; and a notification system, wherein the notification system is configured to communicate with the detection system and to issue a notification to a road user in the vicinity of the notification system of the detected traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system.
[0004] The system of the present invention can be deployed to detect traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system, e.g. at or near a junction, and to automatically notify road users approaching the detection system of the traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system, e.g. that a motorcycle is approaching the junction. In this way, road users approaching the detection system can be informed of conditions ahead in time to take appropriate action such as reducing their speed or actively looking for motorcycles, thereby reducing the risk or a road traffic accident.
[0005] The notification system may comprise a wireless transmitter for transmitting the notification of the detected traffic conditions to a road user.
[0007] The FM radio transmitter may be configured to broadcast a signal including a Radio Data System (RDS) Traffic Program (TP) flag and to broadcast a signal containing an RDS Traffic Announcement (TA) flag and an audible notification of the detected traffic conditions which, when received by a compatible radio receiver, causes the radio receiver to output the audible notification of the detected traffic conditions.
[0008] Additionally or alternatively, the notification system may comprise a visual display for displaying a notification of the detected traffic conditions to the road user.
[0010] The notification may comprise an indication of the direction from which the vehicle is approaching.
[0011] The notification may comprise an indication of the speed at which the vehicle is approaching or an indication of a time to impact of the approaching vehicle.
[0013] Alternatively, the notification may comprise an indication of a stationary vehicle or other hazard ahead.
[0014] Preferably, the visual display is physically separable from the rest of the notification system.
[0015] The detection system may comprise one or more of: a radar detector; and a camera-based detector.
[0017] The detection system and the notification system preferably each comprise means for recharging their respective on-board batteries.
[0018] The means for recharging the respective on-board batteries may comprise one or more of: a solar cell; and a wind turbine, for example.
[0019] The notification system may further comprise a detector for detecting the presence or approach of a road user in the vicinity of the notification system, and the notification system may be configured to issue a notification only if a road user is detected in the vicinity of the or approaching the notification system.
[0020] The detection system may be configured to calculate a time to impact of a vehicle detected by the detection system, and the notification system may be configured to issue a notification only if it is determined that a collision with the vehicle detected by the detection system is likely.
[0021] According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a detection system for a system according to the first aspect.
[0022] According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a notification system for a system according to the first aspect.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0023] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, strictly by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Figure 1 is a schematic bird's-eye view of a road junction;
Figure 2 is a schematic representation of a system for notifying road users of traffic conditions;
Figure 3 is a schematic representation of a visual display which may be used in the system of Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a representation of the road junction of Figure 1, at which a system for notifying road users of traffic conditions has been installed; and
Figure 5 is a representation of the road junction of Figure 1, at which an alternative system for notifying road users of traffic conditions has been installed.
Detailed Description of the Invention
[0024] Figure 1 is a schematic bird's eye view of a typical road junction. In the situation illustrated generally at 10 in Figure 1, a vehicle 12 such as a car is travelling on a minor road 14, approaching a junction 16 with a major road 18 with the intention of turning right onto the major road 18 (as indicated by the dashed arrow 20). At the same time another vehicle 22 such as a motorcycle is travelling on the major road 18, approaching the junction 16 (as indicated by the dashed arrow 24). As will be appreciated, if the car 12 pulls out of the junction 16 it will cross the path of the motorcycle 22, potentially leading to a collision between the car 12 and the motorcycle 22.
[0025] Figure 2 is a schematic representation of a system for notifying road users of traffic conditions that can be installed at locations where there is a high risk of traffic collisions, such as the junction illustrated in Figure 1.
[0026] The system, shown generally at 30 in Figure 2, comprises a detection system 40 for detecting traffic conditions and a notification system 50 which communicates with the detection system 40, for notifying road users of the detected traffic conditions. The detection system 40 is configured to communicate directly with the notification system 50, i.e. the detection system 40 transmits data directly to the notification system 50, rather than transmitting data to, for example, a central data centre before the data is relayed to the notification system 50.
[0027] The detection system 40 is configured for installation at the roadside, and may comprise, for example, a radar-based detector 42 and/or a camera-based detector 44. The detection system 40 may include processing hardware 46 such as a suitably programmed general purpose computer which receives data from the detector(s) 42, 44 and processes the received data to generate data relating to detected traffic conditions such as the speed of an oncoming vehicle, the direction of the oncoming vehicle, the size or type of the oncoming vehicle and the time that it will take the detected vehicle to reach a particular point (e.g. the junction 16) if it continues to travel at its current speed (also referred to as "time to impact").
[0028] The processing hardware 46 outputs a signal containing the data related to the detected traffic conditions to the notification system 50, via a wired or wireless link 48.
[0029] The notification system 50 is also configured for installation at the roadside, and comprises processing hardware 52 which receives the signal output by the processing hardware 46 of the detection system 40 and outputs a signal to a wireless sub-system 54 of the notification system 50.
[0030] The wireless transmission sub-system 54 receives the signal output by the processing hardware 52 and generates a signal for wireless transmission to a road user in a vehicle approaching the notification system. The signal includes information reflecting the traffic conditions detected by the detection system 40. For example, the signal generated by the wireless transmission sub-system 54 may be an encoded signal containing the speed of an oncoming vehicle, the direction of the oncoming vehicle, the size or type of the oncoming vehicle detected by the detection system 40 or the time to impact.
[0031] In one embodiment, the wireless transmission sub-system 54 comprises an FM (frequency modulation) radio transmitter which is configured to transmit a short range radio signal that can be detected and decoded by a radio receiver of a vehicle approaching the notification system. For example, the FM radio transmitter may be configured to generate and broadcast a localised short range frequency modulated signal that can be detected by radio receivers equipped with Radio Data System (RDS) functionality, by including within the broadcast signal an RDS Traffic Program (TP) flag. This FM signal could carry an audible notification of the traffic conditions detected by the detection system 40 and an RDS Traffic Announcement (TA) flag, to cause the vehicle's audio system to output the audible notification for the driver to hear, or else could cause the radio to tune automatically to a frequency at which such an audible notification and TA flag are broadcast by the wireless transmission sub-system 54.
[0032] The notification system 50 may optionally also comprise a visual display 56 for displaying a notification of the traffic conditions detected by the detection system 40 to a road user approaching the visual display 56. The visual display 56 may be physically separable from the rest of the notification system 50, such that it can be positioned at a location where it will be easily noticed by a road user. To this end, the visual display may include a wireless receiver that is capable of receiving a signal from the wireless transmission sub-system 54 containing data to be displayed on the visual display 56.
[0033] Figure 3 is a schematic representation of the visual display 56. As can be seen from Figure 3, the visual display 56 may be generally triangular in shape, for consistency with the shape of warning signs used in many countries. To minimise the extent to which the display 54 obscures a road user's view of the road, the display 54 may be substantially transparent or translucent in areas where the message is not displayed, thereby permitting road users to see through the display. The visual display may be, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), an LED (light-emitting diode) based display or a matrix display, capable of displaying a message representing the traffic conditions detected by the detection system 40.
[0034] In the illustrated example the message reads "MOTORCYCLE APPROACHING FROM RIGHT AT 60 mph", but it will be appreciated that the display 54 will be capable of displaying any other relevant message relating, for example, to the size or type of vehicle, the direction from which it is approaching and its speed. It will be noted that the most important information, i.e. the vehicle type (MOTORCYCLE), direction of approach (RIGHT) and speed (60) are displayed at a larger size than the remainder of the message in the exemplary display of Figure 3, as this may help a road user approaching the display to comprehend the most important information more quickly. However, it will be appreciated that a shorter message that may be even simpler to comprehend (e.g. simply "MOTORCYCLE APPROACHING") may equally be displayed by the visual display 56.
[0035] Figure 4 is a schematic bird's-eye view of the road junction shown in Figure 1, at which the system 30 illustrated in Figure 2 has been installed. In this example the visual display is not used.
[0036] As can be seen from Figure 4, the detection system 40 is installed at side of the major road 18, to detect traffic travelling towards the junction 14. The notification system 50 is installed at the side of the minor road 14, on the approach to the junction 14.
[0037] The detection system 40 detects that a vehicle (the motorcycle 22) is approaching, and determines the size or type of the vehicle, it speed and its direction of approach. The processing hardware 46 outputs a signal containing these data the notification system 50, via the wired or wireless link 48.
[0038] The notification system 50 generates a wireless signal such as an RDS signal which can be detected by a radio installed in the car 12. If the car radio is operating and configured to respond to traffic announcements, the wireless signal will be detected by the radio and an audible message notifying the driver of the car 12 of the approaching motorcycle will be output through the car's audio system, to encourage the driver to look for a motorcycle approaching from the right before pulling out of the junction 14 onto the main road.
[0039] It will be appreciated that the installation illustrated in Figure 4 will be ineffective in vehicles where there is no radio, or in vehicles in which the radio is not switched on or does not have the required functionality. Accordingly, it is envisaged that in most circumstances the visual display 56 will also be deployed, as will now be described with reference to Figure 5.
[0040] Figure 5 is identical to Figure 4, with the exception that the visual display 56 is deployed, to provide a visual warning to road users of the oncoming vehicle on the major road 18. The visual display 56 should be deployed at a position at which it will be readily noticeable by the driver of the vehicle 12 approaching the junction 16, but at which it does not adversely affect the driver's view of the major road 18 and any oncoming traffic. For example, the visual display 56 may be deployed at position A, directly opposite the junction 16, such that it is visible to the driver as the vehicle 12 approaches the junction 16. Alternatively, the visual display 56 may be deployed at position B, on the right-hand side of the minor road 14, such that the driver of the vehicle 12 will see it when he looks to his right before pulling out of the junction 16 onto the major road. Alternatively, visual displays 54 may be provided at both position A and position B. Thus, in addition to the audible notification received by the driver of the vehicle 12 through the vehicle's radio, the driver will also receive one or more visual notifications of the oncoming motorcycle 22 on the major road 18.
[0041] Although the system 30 has been described in the context of vehicles turning right onto a major road at a junction 16 between major and minor roads 18, 14, it will be appreciated that it is equally applicable to other road situations. For example, the system 30 may equally be deployed to warn drivers of oncoming motorcycles or other vehicles, or of motorcycles or other vehicles approaching from behind, in situations in which a vehicle is turning right from one road (e.g. major road 18) into another (e.g. minor road 14). As a further example, the detection system 40 could be deployed at a location known to suffer from stationary vehicles to detect stationary vehicles, and the notification system could be deployed "upstream" of the detection system 40, to warn the drivers of vehicles approaching the stationary vehicle of the presence of the stationary vehicle, to encourage those drivers to reduce their speed, thereby reducing the risk of a collision with the stationary vehicle. Similarly, the detection system 40 could be deployed at a location known to suffer from other hazards such as stationary or slow moving animals, debris or the like, and the notification system could be deployed "upstream" of the detection system 40, to warn the drivers of vehicles approaching the hazard of the presence of the hazard, to encourage those drivers to reduce their speed, thereby reducing the risk of a collision with the hazard.
[0042] As indicated above, both the detection system 40 and the notification system 50 are configured for installation by the roadside. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, mains power is not available in all roadside locations, so it would be advantageous for the detection system 40 and the notification system 50 to be self-powered. Thus, the detection system 40 and the notification system 50 may be powered by on-board rechargeable batteries, and may be provided with recharging systems which are operative to recharge the on-board rechargeable batteries. For example, the detection system 40 and the notification system 50 may each be provided with one or more solar cells which convert sunlight into electricity to recharge the on-board batteries. Additionally or alternatively, the detection system 40 and the notification system 50 may each be provided with one or more wind turbines, to generate electricity to recharge their on-board batteries from wind. Similarly, the visual display 56 may be powered by one or more on-board rechargeable batteries, and may be provided with one or more solar cells or wind turbines, to generate electricity to recharge the on-board rechargeable battery.
[0043] In order to conserve power, the notification system 50 may be configured to generate the wireless notification signal and/or to actuate the visual display 56 only if a vehicle is present in the vicinity of the notification system 50, or is approaching the notification system 50. To this end, the notification system 50 may include detection hardware of the kind included in the detection system 40, for example a camera-based detector and/or a radar-based detector, to detect a vehicle that is present in the vicinity of the notification system 50, or is approaching the notification system 50. The processing hardware 52 may then be configured to activate the wireless sub-system 54 and/or the visual display 56 only if this detection hardware outputs a signal indicating that a vehicle is present at or approaching the notification system 50. As a further refinement, the processing hardware 52 may be configured to activate the wireless sub-system 54 and/or the visual display 56 only if this detection hardware outputs a signal indicating that a vehicle is present at or approaching the notification system 50 and the time to impact data received from the detection system 40 indicates that a collision between the turning vehicle 12 and the oncoming vehicle 22 is likely if the vehicle 12 proceeds to move off from the junction 16.
[0044] In addition to the visual display 56 and the audible warning via the vehicle radio, the notification system 50 may be provided with further means for notifying a road user of an approaching vehicle. For example, the notification system 50 may include a loudspeaker which may be configured for installation at the roadside, e.g. at the approach to a junction 16, and to emit an audible warning to a road user approaching the junction 16 when a vehicle 22 is detected. For example, the loudspeaker may emit an audible message such as "Motorcycle approaching from right at 60 miles per hour". It will be appreciated however that the use of a loudspeaker in this manner is not appropriate for all locations, due to noise restrictions that may be in place, e.g. in residential areas.
[0045] It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the system described herein can be deployed to greatly improve road safety, by alerting road users to hazards that they may be approaching, thereby encouraging the road users to take appropriate action such as reducing speed or actively looking for oncoming vehicles such as motorcycles.
1. A system for notifying road users of traffic conditions, the system comprising:
a detection system for roadside installation for detecting traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system; and
a notification system, wherein the notification system is configured to communicate with the detection system and to issue a notification to a road user in the vicinity of the notification system of the detected traffic conditions in the vicinity of the detection system.
2. A system according to claim 1 wherein the notification system comprises a wireless
transmitter for transmitting the notification of the detected traffic conditions to
a road user.
3. A system according to claim 2 wherein the wireless transmitter comprises an FM radio
transmitter.
4. A system according to claim 3 wherein the FM transmitter is configured to broadcast
a signal including a Radio Data System (RDS) Traffic Program (TP) flag and to broadcast
a signal containing an RDS Traffic Announcement (TA) flag and an audible notification
of the detected traffic conditions which, when received by a compatible radio receiver,
causes the radio receiver to output the audible notification of the detected traffic
conditions.
5. A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the notification system
comprises a visual display for displaying a notification of the detected traffic conditions
to the road user.
6. A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the notification comprises
one or more of:
an indication that a vehicle is approaching;
an indication of a direction from which a vehicle is approaching;
an indication of a speed at which a vehicle is approaching;
an indication of a time to impact of an approaching vehicle;
an indication of a type of vehicle that is approaching and
an indication of a stationary vehicle or other hazard ahead.
7. A system according to any one of claims 5 or 6 wherein the visual display is physically
separable from the rest of the notification system.
8. A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the detector comprises
one or more of: a radar detector; and a camera-based detector.
9. A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the detection system
and the notification system are each powered by an on-board battery.
10. A system according to claim 9 wherein the detection system and the notification system
each comprise means for recharging their respective on-board batteries.
11. A system according to claim 10 wherein the means for recharging the respective on-board
batteries comprises one or more of: a solar cell; and a wind turbine.
12. A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the notification system
further comprises a detector for detecting the presence or approach of a road user
in the vicinity of the notification system, and wherein the notification system is
configured to issue a notification only if a road user is detected in the vicinity
of the or approaching the notification system.
13. A system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the detection system
is configured to calculate a time to impact of the a vehicle detected by the detection
system and wherein the notification system is configured to issue a notification only
if it is determined that a collision with the vehicle detected by the detection system
is likely.
14. A detector for a system according to any one of the preceding claims.
15. A notification system for a system according to any one of the preceding claims.