JP4071815B2 - Automatic toll collection on-board device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic toll collection in-vehicle device that performs fee settlement by wireless communication between an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle and a roadside device installed at a toll gate on a toll road.

  Conventionally, automatic toll collection in-vehicle devices are used in ETC (Electronic Toll Collection: Automatic Toll Collection) system to pay tolls on toll roads without stopping at the toll booth. The system automatically pays the fee by wireless communication using a high frequency of 5.8 GHz, and is expected as a system that eliminates traffic congestion at the toll gate. Since the payment is made using an IC card inserted in the in-vehicle device, if the user leaves the vehicle with the IC card inserted in the in-vehicle device, the IC card is stolen and illegally used. There is a risk. For this reason, the automatic toll collection in-vehicle device is separated from the antenna that communicates with the roadside machine and the main body that inserts the IC card and calculates the fee so that the main body cannot be seen from the outside. There is known a technique of hiding and arranging inside a glove box or the like in a vehicle (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 8 shows a configuration example of this type of antenna-separated automatic toll collection on-vehicle apparatus. In FIG. 8, the main body 1 and the antenna 2 are connected by a coaxial cable 3 which is a connecting means. The main body 1 includes a signal processing unit 4, an IC card holding unit 5, an audio signal generating unit 6, and a speaker 7. The main body 1 is disposed at a position where the vehicle cannot be seen, and the antenna 2 is disposed near the windshield of the vehicle.

When a vehicle equipped with this in-vehicle device approaches a toll booth that employs an ETC system, it communicates with the roadside machine via the antenna unit 2, and the signal processing unit 4 receives the entrance information from the roadside machine. The data is recorded on an IC card inserted in the card holding unit 5. When the vehicle approaches the exit toll gate, communication is performed again between the roadside machine and the antenna unit 2, the roadside machine calculates the charge based on the entrance passage information, and the bank and credit company pay the charge. In addition, the charge is notified to the in-vehicle device. The in-vehicle device records the charges on the IC card via the IC card holding unit 5 and transmits the contents to the driver by voice through the voice signal generating unit 6 and the speaker 7, so that the driver keeps gazing at the front. You can know the contents of toll collection. Since the toll collection is performed while the vehicle is traveling, it can pass through the toll gate non-stop.
JP 2002-92672 A

  However, in the automatic toll collection in-vehicle device that transmits the contents of toll collection to the occupant by such voice, when the main body of the automatic toll collection in-vehicle device is installed inside a console box or glove box for theft prevention, There was a problem that the voice guidance presented from the main body could not be heard by passengers or was difficult to hear.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a conventional problem, and even when the main body of the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device is installed inside a console box or a glove box, the voice guidance is satisfactorily provided to the occupant. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic toll collection on-board device that can be transmitted.

The automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device of the present invention includes an IC card holding means for reading and writing an IC card and inserting and removing the IC card, a signal processing means for performing billing processing using the IC card, an antenna part, and an audio output means. and output unit section having, a coaxial cable connecting the said body portion and the input unit section, and outputs the results of processing by the signal processing means from the sound output unit via the coaxial cable, said main body The unit includes an audio signal generation unit that outputs a processing result by the signal processing unit as an audio signal, and an audio multiplexing unit that multiplexes the audio signal and the high frequency signal, and the input / output unit unit includes the audio signal It has an audio separation unit for separating a signal and a high-frequency signal.

  With this configuration, even when the main body is installed inside a console box or glove box in the vehicle to prevent theft, the input / output unit provided with the antenna and the sound output means is arranged at a position close to the occupant. Therefore, the voice guidance for automatic toll collection can be transmitted to the passengers satisfactorily.

Further, the input / output unit part of the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device of the present invention is characterized in that a surface facing the audio output means is provided with a plurality of small holes or thinner than the other surface. To do. With this configuration, the voice guidance from the voice output means can be output clearly.

  Moreover, the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the antenna section and the audio output means are arranged substantially in parallel. With this configuration, the input / output unit can be arranged vertically inside the windshield of the vehicle.

  Moreover, the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the antenna unit and the audio output means are arranged at an angle. With this configuration, the input / output unit can be placed horizontally on the dashboard of the vehicle.

  In addition, the present invention is a vehicle characterized in that any one of the above-described automatic toll collection in-vehicle devices is arranged with the antenna portion facing forward in the traveling direction of the vehicle. With this configuration, even when the main body of the automatic toll collection in-vehicle device is installed inside a console box or a glove box in the vehicle for theft prevention, the input / output unit portion including the antenna portion and the sound output means is provided. By disposing the antenna portion toward the front in the traveling direction of the vehicle, communication with the roadside machine can be easily performed, and voice guidance for automatic toll collection can be well transmitted to the occupant.

  In addition, the present invention is a vehicle characterized in that any one of the above-described automatic toll collection in-vehicle devices is arranged with the sound output means facing rearward in the traveling direction of the vehicle. With this configuration, even when the main body of the automatic toll collection in-vehicle device is installed inside a console box or a glove box in the vehicle to prevent theft, the input / output unit portion provided with the antenna portion and the sound output means, By arranging the voice output means toward the rear in the traveling direction of the vehicle, communication with the roadside machine can be easily performed, and voice guidance for automatic toll collection can be well transmitted to the occupant.

Further, the present invention is a vehicle characterized in that the coaxial cable of the input / output unit section is led out forward in the traveling direction of the vehicle. With this configuration, the appearance can be improved and the connection means can be prevented from interfering with the passenger.

As described above, the present invention separates the main body portion from the antenna portion, and the input / output unit portion is provided with the antenna portion and the audio output means so as to be connected to the main body portion by the coaxial cable. Or, even when installed in a glove box or the like, the voice guidance can be satisfactorily transmitted to the occupant from the input / output unit.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows a block configuration of an automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the main body 11 and the input / output unit 12 are connected by a coaxial cable 13 which is a connecting means. The main body 11 includes a signal processing unit 14, an IC card holding unit 15, an audio signal generation unit 16, and an audio multiplexing unit 17, which are integrally formed on a wiring board. The input / output unit unit 12 includes an audio separation unit 18, an antenna unit 19, and a speaker 20, and the audio separation unit 18 is provided on a wiring board provided on the back surface of the antenna unit 19.

  The operation of the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. When a vehicle equipped with this in-vehicle device approaches a toll gate on a toll road that employs an ETC system, the signal processing unit 14 communicates with a roadside device via an antenna unit 19 and enters the entrance from the roadside device. The signal processing unit 14 that has received the information records the contents on the IC card inserted in the IC card holding unit 15. When the vehicle approaches the exit toll gate, the signal processing unit 14 communicates with the roadside device again via the antenna unit 19, and the roadside device calculates the fee based on the entrance passage information received from the in-vehicle device. And paying the fees to the bank or credit company and notifying the in-vehicle device of the fee information. The fee information received via the antenna unit 19 is recorded on the IC card by the signal processing unit 14 via the IC card holding unit 15 and a predetermined message such as “fee is XX”. "It is a circle." The audio signal output from the audio signal generator 16 is multiplexed with the high frequency signal by the audio multiplexer 17, output to the input / output unit 12 through the coaxial cable 13, and output by the audio separator 18 of the input / output unit 12. The sound is separated and output from the speaker 20 as sound. As a result, the charge contents can be transmitted to the passenger by voice.

  FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus in the present embodiment. An IC card insertion slot 22 is provided on the front surface of the main body casing 21 in which the main body 11 is accommodated, and the IC card inserted from the IC card insertion slot 22 is the IC card holding part shown in FIG. 15 is read and written. The resin input / output unit case 31 in which the input / output unit section 12 is housed has a large number of small holes 32 on the surface facing the speaker 20 disposed inside. An antenna unit 19 is disposed behind the speaker 20. The input / output unit case 31 is arranged with the speaker 20 facing the vehicle interior and the antenna unit 19 facing the front of the vehicle.

  FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing an apparatus configuration of the input / output unit section 12, and FIG. 4 is an assembly sectional view thereof. 3 and 4, a support piece 33 is erected inside a mouse-shaped input / output unit case 31 having a small hole 32 on the surface, and the speaker 20 is fixed to the support piece 33 via a fixing bracket 34. The antenna unit 19 is supported by a boss 37 erected on the base 36 with the wiring board 35 facing upward, and a mounting screw 39 is screwed to the boss 40 of the input / output unit case 31 from the mounting hole 38 of the base 36. , And is sandwiched between the speaker 20 and the base 36. The coaxial cable 13 is connected to a wiring board 35, and the wiring board 35 and the speaker 20 are connected by lead wires. By providing a space between the base 36 and the antenna unit 19, it is possible to prevent a decrease in gain of the antenna unit due to the windshield when the base 36 is attached to the windshield of the vehicle.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of a state in which the input / output unit 12 in Embodiment 1 is attached to a vehicle. The input / output unit 12 is attached to the upper part of the vehicle windshield 41 with a double-sided adhesive tape with the antenna unit 19 facing forward in the vehicle traveling direction. The main body 11 is installed in the glove box 43 or the console box 42 of the vehicle. The coaxial cable 13 from the input / output unit 12 is connected to the main body 11 with a connector such that the upper edge of the windshield 41 and the side edge of the front pillar 44 are arranged. At this time, the coaxial cable 13 from the input / output unit 12 is drawn from the front in the vehicle traveling direction, so that the appearance is improved and it is possible to avoid obstructing the occupant's view.

  As described above, the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus according to the first embodiment connects the main body unit 11 and the input / output unit unit 12 having the antenna unit 19 and the speaker 20 arranged in parallel to each other by the coaxial cable 13. Since the part 11 is installed inside the glove box 43 or the console box 42 in the vehicle and the input / output unit part 12 is stuck on the windshield of the vehicle, the speaker 20 can be arranged at a position close to the occupant. Voice guidance for automatic toll collection can be transmitted well to the passengers.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 6 shows another configuration of the input / output unit section 12 in the second embodiment of the present invention, and the circuit configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, the resin input / output unit case 41 is formed in a mountain shape having a high central portion, and its peripheral edge portion is fitted into the base 42. One hypotenuse 41a of the input / output unit case 41 has an angle of about 30 degrees with respect to the base 42, and a large number of small holes 43 are formed. By tilting in this way, the sound emission direction is directed toward the occupant side, and the occupant can easily hear the sound. The other hypotenuse 41 b of the input / output unit case 41 has an angle of about 23 degrees with respect to the base 42. By tilting in this way, the transmission / reception direction of radio waves is directed to the roadside machine, and transmission / reception of radio waves is performed well. The angle of the hypotenuse 41a can be arbitrarily set according to the structure of the vehicle. A support piece 44 for supporting the speaker 20 and a support piece 45 for supporting the antenna unit 19 are erected on the base 42. The coaxial cable 13 is connected to a wiring board 46 provided on the back surface of the antenna unit 19 and led out to the outside, and the wiring board 46 and the speaker 20 are connected by lead wires. When the speaker 20 is supported by the support piece 44, the antenna unit 19 is supported by the support piece 45, and the input / output unit case 41 is fitted into the base 42, a boss 46 erected on the back surface of the input / output unit case 41, The speaker 20 and the antenna unit 19 are pressed and fixed by 47 respectively.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of a state in which the input / output unit 12 in Embodiment 2 is attached to a vehicle. The input / output unit 12 is mounted horizontally on the dashboard 45 of the vehicle with a double-sided adhesive tape with the antenna unit 19 facing forward in the vehicle traveling direction. The main body 11 is installed in the glove box 43 or the console box 42 of the vehicle. The coaxial cable 13 from the input / output unit 12 is connected to the main body 11 by a connector with the lower edge of the windshield 41, the lower edge of the front pillar 44, and the like. At that time, the coaxial cable 13 from the input / output unit 12 is pulled out from the front in the vehicle traveling direction, so that the appearance is improved and the passenger can be prevented from getting in the way.

  Thus, the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device in the present embodiment 2 connects the main body portion 11 and the input / output unit portion 12 having the antenna portion 19 and the speaker 20 arranged at an angle with each other by the coaxial cable 13. Since the main body 11 is installed inside a console box or a glove box in the vehicle, and the input / output unit 12 is stuck on the dashboard of the vehicle, the speaker 20 can be arranged at a position close to the occupant, Voice guidance for automatic toll collection can be transmitted well to the passengers.

  In the above embodiment, a round small hole for a speaker is provided on the front surface of the input / output unit case. However, the shape of the small hole may be a lattice-shaped small hole, and the front surface of the input / output unit case may be replaced with a small hole. You may make it cover with material thinner than other surfaces, such as cloth.

  In the above embodiment, the audio signal is transmitted by being superimposed on the coaxial cable with the high-frequency signal. However, a code dedicated to the audio signal may be used. In this case, the superimposition audio multiplexing unit and the separation audio separation unit are not necessary.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the input / output unit part shown in Embodiment 1 was attached to the windshield, you may make it fix this on a dashboard. At that time, the mounting angle of the antenna portion with respect to the horizontal plane is optimally around 23 degrees, and thus a mounting jig may be used so as to have such an angle.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the speaker was used as an audio | voice output means, you may use other audio | voice output apparatuses, such as a buzzer and an electronic chime.

As described above, the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device according to the present invention separates the main body portion and the antenna portion, and provides the input / output unit portion with the antenna portion and the audio output means, and is connected to the main body portion by the coaxial cable. Therefore, even when the main unit is installed in a console box or glove box, etc., it has the effect that voice guidance can be satisfactorily transmitted to the occupant. It is useful as an automatic toll collection in-vehicle device that performs fee settlement by wireless communication with an installed roadside device.

The block diagram which shows the circuit structure of the automatic toll collection vehicle-mounted apparatus in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the apparatus structure of the automatic toll collection vehicle-mounted apparatus in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The disassembled perspective view which shows the apparatus structure of the input-output unit part of the automatic toll collection vehicle-mounted apparatus in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. Assembly sectional view showing the device configuration of the input / output unit portion of the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device in the first embodiment of the present invention Explanatory drawing which shows the attachment state to the vehicle of the human output unit part of the automatic toll collection vehicle-mounted apparatus in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. Assembly sectional drawing which shows the apparatus structure of the input-output unit part of the automatic toll collection vehicle-mounted apparatus in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention Explanatory drawing which shows the attachment state to the vehicle of the input-output unit part of the automatic toll collection vehicle-mounted apparatus in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. Block diagram showing the circuit configuration of the automatic toll collection in-vehicle device in the conventional example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Main-body part 12 Input / output unit part 13 Coaxial cable 14 Signal processing part 15 IC card holding | maintenance part 16 Audio | voice signal generation part 17 Audio | voice multiplexing part 18 Audio | voice separation part 19 Antenna part 20 Speaker 21 Main-body part housing | casing 22 IC card insertion slot

Claims (6)

An IC card holding means for reading and writing an IC card, and a main body having a signal processing means for performing billing using the IC card;
An input / output unit having an antenna and an audio output means;
A coaxial cable connecting the main body and the input / output unit;
The processing result by the signal processing means is output from the audio output means via the coaxial cable ,
The main body includes an audio signal generation unit that outputs a processing result by the signal processing unit as an audio signal, and an audio multiplexing unit that multiplexes the audio signal and the high frequency signal,
2. The automatic toll collecting on-vehicle apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the input / output unit has an audio separation unit that separates the audio signal and the high-frequency signal. 2. The automatic toll collecting on-vehicle device according to claim 1 , wherein the input / output unit portion has a surface facing the sound output means provided with a plurality of small holes or thinner than the other surface. apparatus. The automatic toll collecting in-vehicle apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the antenna unit and the audio output means are arranged substantially in parallel. 3. The automatic toll collecting on-vehicle apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the antenna unit and the audio output unit are arranged at an angle. A vehicle characterized in that the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is arranged with the antenna portion facing forward in the traveling direction of the vehicle. A vehicle characterized in that the automatic toll collecting in-vehicle device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is arranged with the sound output means facing rearward in the traveling direction of the vehicle.

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