JP7666981B2 - Vehicle speed control system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a system for guiding the speed of automobiles and other vehicles, other moving objects, or pedestrians (hereinafter referred to as "vehicles, etc.") when they are running or moving, and more specifically, to a system in which light-emitting objects are arranged along the running or moving path of the vehicle, etc. so that they can be visually recognized by the vehicle, etc., and the light-emitting objects are sequentially turned on and off to visually guide the speed of the vehicle, etc.

In the prior art, a system for guiding the traveling speed of a vehicle such as an automobile has been proposed in which a number of light-emitting bodies are arranged at intervals along the traveling direction of the vehicle so that they can be seen by the driver of the vehicle, and the light-emitting bodies are sequentially turned on and off in accordance with the desired traveling speed of the vehicle (such as the legal speed limit for the road or the safe speed), and the driver is made to travel the vehicle following the lit light-emitting bodies, thereby attempting to guide the traveling speed of the vehicle. As such a configuration, Patent Document 1 discloses a system in which a number of visual delineator devices are arranged at predetermined intervals along the traveling path on a side wall installed along the traveling path of the vehicle, the visual delineator has a light-emitting part extending in the vertical direction, the light-emitting part is attached to a mounting part at an angle facing the driver when viewed from the front, and is positioned at the height of the driver's line of sight, and the light-emitting part is illuminated at a speed faster than the speed at which congestion occurs according to road conditions, thereby guiding the speed of the vehicle driven by the driver. Such speed guidance systems are said to be capable of adapting to various road conditions, such as preventing slowing in areas where congestion is likely to occur on expressways and limiting speed in areas where speeding is likely to occur, and can be configured to encourage drivers to adjust their speed by appealing to their visual senses, making it possible to safely install them within limited road space.

Patent Publication 2017-151983

In short, the above-mentioned system of guiding the speed by blinking multiple light-emitting bodies uses a phenomenon called the strobe effect or wagon wheel effect to create the illusion that a stationary light-emitting body is moving in the same direction as the direction of travel. Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 3(A), multiple light-emitting bodies E are arranged at a predetermined interval L [m] along the vehicle's travel path, and one light-emitting body is turned on (on) for every N (three in the figure), and the multiple light-emitting bodies are turned on and off (off) in sequence according to the travel speed (target speed) Vt [m/s] to be induced. In this case, one light-emitting body will be lit for ΔT = L/Vt [s]. In the system, the blinking of the light-emitting body row is controlled so that the emitting light-emitting body moves in the travel direction of the vehicle every ΔT, and the vehicle (driver) who visually recognizes this will have the illusion that the light is moving forward at the target speed, so it is expected that the travel speed of the vehicle will be induced to the target speed by driving the vehicle to follow the movement of the light.

However, in the case of the above configuration, the phenomenon that the light of the multiple sequentially blinking light-emitting bodies appears to move in the traveling direction of the vehicle may not occur depending on the position and speed of the vehicle, and the phenomenon that the light appears to flow in the opposite direction to the traveling direction of the vehicle may occur. For example, since the lit light-emitting body is lit for ΔT, as illustrated in FIG. 3B, from the vehicle traveling at a speed V, the position of the light moves in the opposite direction to the traveling direction by a distance d (=V·τ) in the figure in time τ. In that case, as shown in FIG. 3(i), when the position of the light is appropriately far from the vehicle forward, even if the vehicle moves by the distance d, the change in the visual angle θf of the position of the light is small, and the position of the light appears to be almost stationary. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3(ii), when the position of the light is considerably close to the vehicle, the change in the visual angle θn of the position of the light when the vehicle moves by the distance d is large, and in this case, the position of the light appears to flow in the opposite direction to the traveling direction of the vehicle. Furthermore, in a system such as that shown in Figure 3 (A) above, when the vehicle's traveling speed is approximately N + 1 times the target speed Vt to be induced or approximately k times that (k is an integer), as illustrated in Figure 3 (C), the movement of the vehicle is synchronized not only with the transition of the light (transition of the light-emitting position) to a position a predetermined distance L away, but also with the transition of the light to a position a distance k · (N + 1) L away. Therefore, after the light of one light-emitting element is visually recognized from the vehicle, it may occur that the vehicle's traveling speed is induced to a speed that is k · (N + 1) times the target speed Vt as the vehicle attempts to follow the light of an light-emitting element a distance k · (N + 1) L away, rather than the light a distance of the predetermined distance L. For example, as shown in the upper part of Fig. 3C, when a vehicle a traveling at a vehicle speed V that is approximately the same as the moving speed Vt of light visually recognizes a light-emitting body _αt , when a light-emitting body αt ₊₁ adjacent to the light-emitting body _αt emits light after ΔT has elapsed, as shown in the lower part of Fig. 3C, the vehicle a is expected to visually recognize the light of the light-emitting body αt ₊₁ . However, a vehicle b traveling at a vehicle speed (N+1)V that is approximately (N+1) times (approximately 4 times in the figure) the moving speed Vt of light visually recognizes the light-emitting body _αt , and after ΔT has elapsed, the vehicle b may visually recognize the light of the light-emitting body βt _{+ 1} that is N positions ahead of the light-emitting body αt+1, which may induce the vehicle speed to (N+1)Vt. Similarly, when the vehicle's running speed is about 1/{(N+1)·k} times the target speed Vt to be induced, the vehicle's running speed may be induced to a speed 1/{(N+1)k} times the target speed Vt. It is considered that these phenomena are likely to occur when the target speed is slow (for example, when the target is not the driver of the vehicle but a slow moving object such as a bicycle or a pedestrian) or when the distance between the light-emitting bodies is large. Therefore, in the above-mentioned system that performs speed induction by blinking multiple light-emitting bodies, in order to appropriately guide the vehicle's running speed to the target speed, it is preferable to improve the configuration of the system so that the light appears to move in the traveling direction at the target speed regardless of the position or speed of the vehicle.

In relation to this point, in the course of research and development by the inventors of the present invention, it was discovered that when multiple light-emitting bodies arranged at a predetermined interval along the road are lit, if the light-emitting portion of one light-emitting body is displaced in the direction of travel of the vehicle, it is possible to avoid unintended phenomena such as the light appearing to flow in the opposite direction to the direction of travel of the vehicle depending on the position and speed of the vehicle, or the vehicle speed being induced to k·(N+1) times or 1/{(N+1)k} times the target speed Vt. This knowledge is utilized in the present invention. Note that this knowledge is applicable not only to guiding the travel speed of a vehicle, but also to guiding the moving speed of other moving bodies or pedestrians, etc.

Thus, one objective of the present invention is to provide a system that guides the running or moving speed of a vehicle or the like by sequentially turning on and off a number of light-emitting devices that are arranged at predetermined intervals along the running or moving path of the vehicle or the like so that they are visible from the vehicle or the like, and that is configured to be able to guide the running or moving speed to a desired speed regardless of the position or speed of the vehicle or the like.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a configuration for preventing the illusion that the light used to guide the speed appears to move in the opposite direction to the direction of travel in the above-mentioned system.

Furthermore, another object of the present invention is to provide a configuration in the above-mentioned system that prevents the running speed or movement speed of a vehicle or the like from being induced to an integer multiple of the desired induced speed or a value obtained by dividing the desired induced speed by an integer.

According to the present invention, the above problem is solved by a moving speed guidance system for a vehicle or the like, comprising:
A plurality of light emitting devices are arranged at predetermined intervals along a traveling direction of a path of travel of the vehicle or the like;
a light emission control means for turning on and off each of the light emitting devices in sequence along a traveling direction of the vehicle or the like,
the light emission control means selects a light-emitting device to be turned on such that the light-emitting device to be turned on among the plurality of light-emitting devices transitions at a speed that corresponds to a target value of a moving speed of the vehicle or the like;
This is achieved by a system in which each of the light-emitting devices has an emitting-capable area that extends along the direction of travel of the travel path, in a position visible from the vehicle, etc., and when selected to be lit by the light-emitting control means, the emitting portion that emits light in the emitting-capable area is configured to displace along the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc.

In the above configuration, as already mentioned, the "vehicle, etc." may be a vehicle such as an automobile, other moving body, or a pedestrian. The "moving speed" is the vehicle speed or running speed in the case of a vehicle or other moving body, and the walking speed in the case of a pedestrian. The "moving path" may be a road or a running path in the case of a vehicle or other moving body, and a walking path in the case of a pedestrian. The "light-emitting device" may be a device equipped with any type of light-emitting body such as an LED, a light bulb, or an electric lamp. The "predetermined interval" when multiple light-emitting devices are arranged along the traveling direction of the moving path may be appropriately set taking into consideration the environment in which the system is installed, the type of vehicle, etc. to be guided in the moving speed or the expected moving speed, the cost required for installation, etc. For example, in the case of a vehicle, the predetermined interval may be several meters to several tens of meters on a general road, taking into consideration the expected vehicle speed, and may be 20 meters or more on a highway. In the case of a pedestrian, the predetermined interval may be about 2 to 4 meters, taking into consideration the expected walking speed. The "light emission control means" may be any type of means for controlling the lighting state of the plurality of light-emitting devices arranged along the travel direction of the moving path so that the light-emitting devices are turned on and off in sequence, as described above, and may be configured to control the lighting or turning off of each light-emitting device through a wired or wireless communication network, for example. "Selecting the light-emitting device to be turned on so that the light-emitting device to be turned on is shifted among the plurality of light-emitting devices at a speed that corresponds to the target value of the travel speed of the vehicle, etc." means selecting the light-emitting device to be turned on so that the light-emitting device to be turned on is shifted in sequence in synchronization with the target value of the travel speed. For example, when the light-emitting devices are arranged at a predetermined interval L, when the light-emitting device to be turned on is shifted at a speed that corresponds to the target value Vt of the travel speed, the spaced light-emitting devices are selected to be turned on in sequence along the travel direction of the moving path every time L/Vt (the turned-on light-emitting device may be turned off when the adjacent light-emitting device is selected to be turned on after time L/Vt). Note that the light-emitting device selected to be turned on among the plurality of arranged light-emitting devices may be selected every few units. Furthermore, particularly in the system of the present invention, the "light emitting area" from which the light of each light emitting device is emitted extends along the direction of travel of the path as described above, and is provided at a position visible from a vehicle, etc., and the "position visible from a vehicle, etc." may be any position visible from the driver in the case of a vehicle or other moving body, or from the pedestrian in the case of a pedestrian, and may be, for example, the surface of the side wall of the path, the curb of the path, the road surface of the path, etc.

In a system in which the light-emitting devices that light up in sequence along the travel direction of the travel path are selected as described above, the vehicle or the like basically follows the light from the light-emitting devices that transition in sequence along the travel direction of the travel path, and the travel speed of the vehicle or the like is guided to match the target value. However, as already mentioned, when each light-emitting device is simply turned on, unexpected phenomena occur, such as the light appearing to move in the opposite direction to the travel direction depending on the position and speed of the vehicle or the transition of the light position appearing to be synchronized with an integer multiple or (1/integer) multiple of the travel speed target value, resulting in a situation in which the transition of the light position does not function properly to guide the travel speed of the vehicle or the like to the target value.

Therefore, in the present invention, in order to enable the transition of the lighting state of the light-emitting devices along the travel direction of the path to guide the travel speed of the vehicle, etc. to a target value regardless of the position or speed of the vehicle, etc., each light-emitting device has a light-emitting area that extends along the travel direction of the path and is visible from the vehicle, etc., as described above, and is configured so that when selected to be lit by the light-emitting control means, the light-emitting part that emits light in the light-emitting area displaces along the travel direction of the vehicle, etc. In other words, in the system of the present invention, when each light-emitting device is selected to be lit, the entire light-emitting area is not simply lit at once, but the light-emitting position is changed so that the light appears to move from the rear to the front in the travel direction of the path in the light-emitting area (so that the light moves like an animation). In this way, if light is configured to move from rear to front in the direction of travel within each light-emitting device, the inventors of the present invention have found, through their research, that the vehicle or other object will recognize the movement of the light along the direction of travel, and that the above-mentioned unintended phenomenon will be largely eliminated, which is expected to effectively guide the travel speed of the vehicle or other object to a target value.

In the above-mentioned system configuration of the present invention, specifically, the light-emitting area of each light-emitting device is preferably configured so that the movement of light in the light-emitting area is visible from a vehicle or the like when the light-emitting device is selected to be in the lit state. Therefore, the length of the moving path of the light-emitting part that moves along the moving direction of the vehicle or the like in the light-emitting area of each light-emitting device may be a length that can be seen at once from the vehicle or the like. This is expected to more reliably observe the light moving from the rear to the front in the moving direction of the moving path in the light-emitting area from the vehicle or the like. The length of the light-emitting area and the length of the light-emitting part of each light-emitting device may be appropriately set in consideration of the environment in which the system is installed, the type of vehicle or the like that is the target of the moving speed guidance or the expected moving speed, the cost required for installation, etc. In the case of a vehicle such as an automobile, such a length may be appropriately determined in the range of several tens of centimeters to several meters depending on the expected vehicle speed, and in the case of a pedestrian, it may be several centimeters, etc. Then, the length of the part that actually emits light at one time within the light-emitting area may be appropriately set so that it is sufficiently visible from the vehicle or the like.

In the light-emitting region of each of the above-mentioned light-emitting devices, the configuration in which the light-emitting portion is displaced along the traveling direction of the vehicle or the like so that the light moves may be realized in any form. In one embodiment, in the light-emitting region of each of the light-emitting devices, a plurality of light-emitting bodies (which may be light-emitting elements such as LEDs) are arranged in parallel along the traveling direction of the moving path, and the light-emitting body that emits light among the plurality of light-emitting bodies is changed in sequence along the traveling direction of the vehicle or the like, so that the light-emitting portion is displaced along the traveling direction of the vehicle or the like. In another embodiment, the position of one or several light-emitting bodies may be moved while being turned on, or the propagation direction of light from one light-emitting body may be changed using a deflection mirror or the like. In addition, when each of the light-emitting devices is selected to be turned on by the light-emitting control means, it is preferable that the size and light emission amount of the light-emitting portion that displaces along the traveling direction of the vehicle or the like in the light-emitting region are adjusted so as to be visible from the vehicle or the like, so that the light of the light-emitting portion is reliably or appropriately recognized from the vehicle or the like when it is selected to be turned on by the light-emitting control means. As shown in the following embodiment, when multiple light emitters are arranged in a light emitting area, some of the multiple light emitters may be turned on in sequence at one time (the state in which two or more light emitters are turned on at one time may be changed in sequence). The speed at which the light emitting portion moves along the traveling direction of the vehicle, etc. in the light emitting area may be set appropriately so that the light of the light emitting portion is recognized by the vehicle, etc. reliably or with an appropriate brightness, and may be variably controllable. For example, the speed of movement of the light emitting portion may be set so that the light emitting portion moves from the rear end to the front end of the light emitting area at least once during the time that each light emitting device is selected to be in the lighted state, but is not limited to this (the speed of movement of the light emitting portion does not have to match the target value of the moving speed of the vehicle, etc.).

In the above system, the light emission control means may further be capable of variably controlling the transition speed of the lit light-emitting device, thereby making it possible to arbitrarily change the target value of the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. For example, the transition speed of the lit light-emitting device may be changed depending on the environment of the moving route or the time of day. Specifically, in a section where the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. is likely to decrease, the target value of the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. may be set higher than the average moving speed of the vehicle, etc., and in a section where the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. is likely to increase, the target value of the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. may be set lower than the average moving speed of the vehicle, etc., and the transition speed of the lit light-emitting device may be changed accordingly.

Thus, in the above-mentioned system of the present invention, the light-emitting devices are arranged so as to be visually recognizable from the vehicle, etc., and are sequentially turned on and off to visually guide the moving speed of the vehicle, etc., by making the light of each light-emitting device appear to the vehicle, etc., to move in the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc., as in an animation, thereby suppressing the occurrence of phenomena in which the light appears to move in the opposite direction to the direction of travel, and in which the transition of the light position appears to be synchronized with an integer multiple or (1/integer) multiple of the target moving speed, and it is expected to be possible to guide the moving speed of the vehicle, etc., to a desired speed. The system of the present invention may be advantageously used to adjust the speed of vehicles on roads on which vehicles such as automobiles travel. It may also be used when it is desired to adjust the walking speed of pedestrians.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments of the present invention.

Fig. 1A is a schematic diagram showing the general configuration of a moving speed guidance system for a vehicle or the like according to the present embodiment, and Fig. 1B is a diagram showing the general configuration of one light emitting device of the system according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2(A) is a diagram showing a typical selection (over time) of a light-emitting device to be turned on among a plurality of light-emitting devices arranged along a moving path in a moving speed guidance system for vehicles, etc. according to this embodiment. In the diagram, black (on) is a light-emitting device that is turned on, and white (off) is a light-emitting device that is turned off. FIG. 2(B) is a diagram showing a typical displacement of a light-emitting portion in a light-emitting possible region when each light-emitting device is selected to be turned on in a moving speed guidance system for vehicles, etc. according to this embodiment. t0 to t9 represent each time point of time elapsed in the turned-on state, and the corresponding diagrams show the light-emitting portion at each time point. In the diagram, ● represents a portion that is emitting light (light-emitting element), and ○ represents a portion that is not emitting light (light-emitting element). Fig. 3(A) is a diagram for explaining an outline of the operation of a conventional system (vehicle speed induction system) in which light-emitting bodies are arranged along a travel path or a moving path of a vehicle, etc. so as to be visually recognizable from the vehicle, etc., and are sequentially turned on and off to visually induce the speed of the vehicle, etc. Fig. 3(B) is a diagram for explaining a phenomenon in which light appears to flow in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the vehicle, etc., in the conventional vehicle speed induction system Fig. 3(C) is a diagram for explaining a phenomenon in which the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. is induced to an integer multiple of the transition speed of the light-emitting position, in the conventional vehicle speed induction system.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 vehicle 12 light emitting device 14 light emitting area 16 light emitting element 20 system controller

Referring to FIG. 1(A) showing the configuration of the system , in the vehicle speed guidance system of the present embodiment, the light-emitting devices 12 are arranged at predetermined intervals L along the path R of the vehicle 10, i.e., the road on which the vehicle such as an automobile or other moving body runs, the path, or the walkway on which pedestrians walk, at positions visible from the driver of the vehicle 10 or other moving body or from pedestrians. In short, in order to guide the moving speed of the vehicle to a desired speed (target speed), the light-emitting devices 12 to be turned on (and the light-emitting devices 12 to be turned off) are sequentially shifted according to the target speed. Note that the figure illustrates an example of the light-emitting devices 12 of the system of the present embodiment arranged on a road on which the vehicle runs, but it should be understood that the light-emitting devices 12 may be arranged on a path on which other moving bodies pass or a path on which pedestrians walk, and such cases also fall within the scope of the present embodiment. Specifically, the location where the light-emitting devices 12 are arranged may be the surface of the side wall of the path R, the curb of the path, the road surface of the path, or the like. The predetermined interval L at which the light-emitting devices 12 are arranged may be appropriately set in consideration of the environment in which the system is installed, the type of vehicle or the like to be guided in terms of the travel speed or the expected travel speed, the cost required for installation, and the like. For example, in the case of a vehicle, the predetermined interval may be several meters to several tens of meters on a general road, and 20 meters or more on a highway, taking into consideration the expected vehicle speed. In the case of a pedestrian, the predetermined interval may be about 2 to 4 meters. The control of turning on and off the light-emitting devices 12 may be performed by a control command given from the system controller (light-emitting control means) 20 via a wired or wireless communication network means. The system controller 20 may be configured by a computer device including a computer and a drive circuit having a CPU, ROM, RAM, and input/output port devices interconnected by a normal type of bidirectional common bus, and its operation may be realized by the operation of the computer device according to a program.

Each of the light-emitting devices 12 arranged along the above-mentioned moving path has a light-emitting region 14 capable of emitting light, and a light-emitting part control unit that controls the light-emitting part in the light-emitting region 14, as shown in FIG. 1B. The light-emitting region 14 is formed in a shape extending along the moving direction of the moving path, arranged so as to be visible from a vehicle, etc., and configured so that the light-emitting part that emits light can be displaced along the moving direction of the moving path within the light-emitting region 14. Typically, as shown in the figure, the light-emitting region 14 may be formed by aligning light-emitting elements 16 such as LEDs, light bulbs, and electric lights along the moving direction of the moving path. The light-emitting part control unit may be configured by a computer device including a computer and a drive circuit, and its operation may be realized by the operation of an electronic circuit device or a computer device according to a program. Specifically, when the light-emitting portion control unit is selected to be in the on state in response to a control command from the system controller 20, it controls the light-emitting portion that emits light in the light-emitting region 14 to be displaced along the moving direction of the moving path, as will be described later in detail. When the light-emitting region 14 is formed by arranging a plurality of light-emitting elements 16 as shown in the figure, the light-emitting portion control unit functions to control the state of each light-emitting element 16 so that the light-emitting elements 16 are turned on in order from the rear to the front in the moving direction of the moving path, and then turned off. In addition, for the light-emitting region 14, the width W in the moving direction of the moving path of the light-emitting region 14, the dimensions of the emitting light-emitting portion, and the amount of light emitted may be suitably set in consideration of the environment in which the system is installed, the type of vehicle or the like to be guided in terms of the moving speed or the expected moving speed, the cost required for installation, etc., so that the movement of light in the light-emitting region 14, i.e., the displacement of the light-emitting portion, can be visually recognized from a moving vehicle or the like. Typically, the dimensions of the light-emitting portion may be a length that can be seen at one time by a vehicle or the like (driver or pedestrian), for example, a visual angle range that can be recognized at one time by a vehicle or the like. Specifically, the length of the light-emitting region 14 may be appropriately determined in the range of several tens of centimeters to several meters depending on the expected vehicle speed in the case of a vehicle such as an automobile, and may be several centimeters in the case of a pedestrian, and the length of the light-emitting portion that is emitting light may be, for example, about 20% to 80% of the length of the light-emitting region 14.

System Operation (1) Overview In the operation of the vehicle speed guidance system of this embodiment, the system controller 20 selects at least one light-emitting device 12 for every predetermined number N, which may be set appropriately, of the multiple light-emitting devices 12 arranged along the path of travel to be in a lit state, and selects the other light-emitting devices 12 to be in an unlit state, and operates to transition the light-emitting devices 12 selected to be in a lit state in order, for example, one by one, along the path of travel in accordance with the speed (target speed) to be guided of the vehicle, etc. More specifically, as illustrated in Fig. 2(A), the light-emitting device 12 selected to be in a lit state (on) may be transitioned to the adjacent light-emitting device 12 along the traveling direction of the path of travel every time L/Vt [s] using the target speed Vt [m/s] and the arrangement interval L [m] of the light-emitting devices 12. Then, the system controller 20 transmits corresponding control commands to the light-emitting devices 12 selected for the lit state and the light-emitting devices 12 selected for the extinguished state, and when each light-emitting device 12 receives a control command indicating that it has been selected for the lit state, it emits light in the light-emission-enabled region 14 so as to be visible to a vehicle, etc. In this operation, the light-emitting devices 12 that are lit will transition in the traveling direction every time L/Vt [s], so that the vehicle, etc. will move so as to follow the light from the light-emission-enabled region 14, and it is expected that the moving speed of the vehicle, etc. will be guided to a target speed.

However, when the light-emitting device 12 is selected to be in the lit state, if the light-emitting body is simply left lit, as explained in the "Problems to be Solved by the Invention" section in relation to FIG. 3, depending on the position or speed of the vehicle, the light may appear to flow in the opposite direction to the traveling direction, or the vehicle may be guided to an integer multiple of the desired speed or a value obtained by dividing the desired speed by an integer. Regarding this point, as already explained, according to research by the inventors of the present invention, it has been found that if the light-emitting position of the light that is visible at one time from the vehicle is actually moved by displacing the light-emitting position in the traveling direction, the vehicle recognizes the movement of the light actually moving along the traveling direction as in an animation, and the occurrence of such unexpected phenomena is suppressed. Therefore, in this embodiment, as explained below, when each light-emitting device 12 is selected to be in the lit state, the light-emitting portion is displaced within the light-emitting region 14 so that the light moves along the traveling direction.

(2) Direction of movement of light in the light-emitting region 14 In the system of this embodiment, when each light-emitting device 12 is selected to be in a light-on state, the state of the light-emitting region 14 is controlled so that the position of the part that actually emits light moves along the traveling direction within the light-emitting region 14. Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 2B, after the selection of the light-on state of each light-emitting device 12, the state of the light-emitting region 14 may be controlled so that the light-emitting elements 16 are turned on in order from the rear to the front in the traveling direction in the light-emitting region 14. In the illustrated example, two light-emitting elements 16 are turned on in sequence, and a maximum of eight light-emitting elements are turned on simultaneously, but this is not limited thereto, and the number of light-emitting elements 16 turned on at one time may be appropriately adjusted depending on the visibility of the light as viewed from a vehicle, etc. In addition, in the figure, the displacement speed of the light-emitting portion in the light-emitting region 14, for example, the number of light-emitting elements 16 that start to light up per unit time, may be appropriately adjusted according to the visibility of the light from a vehicle, etc. In the illustrated example, the light-emitting portion is depicted as displacing from the rear end to the front end in the traveling direction of the light-emitting region 14 once during the time that one light-emitting device 12 is selected to be in the lighted state, but it may be slower or faster than this, or the light-emitting portion may move two or more times in the time ΔT. With this configuration, it is possible to produce a scene in which the light-emitting position moves at an arbitrary speed in each light-emitting device 12, and the moving speed of a vehicle, etc. can be guided to a desired speed regardless of its position or speed, even under conditions where a strobe effect is unlikely to occur.

(3) System Processing Process In the operation of the system of this embodiment, first, the system controller 20, which is the light emission control means, determines a target speed (Vt) on the travel path that is the target of speed guidance of the vehicle, etc. Such a target speed may be set appropriately depending on the legal or safe speed of the travel path, the environment of the travel path, the time of day, etc. Specifically, the target speed may be set higher than the average travel speed of the vehicle, etc. in sections where the travel speed of the vehicle, etc. is likely to decrease, and may be set lower than the average travel speed of the vehicle, etc. in sections where the travel speed of the vehicle, etc. is likely to increase (this is expected to contribute to preventing or eliminating congestion on the travel path). Then, once the target speed has been determined, at least one light-emitting device 12 for every predetermined number N of light-emitting devices 12 arranged along the path of travel (one for every three light-emitting devices in the case of Figure 2) is selected to be turned on, and the light-emitting devices 12 to be turned on are selected so that the light-emitting devices 12 selected to be turned on transition sequentially in the direction of travel along the path of travel every time ΔT = L/Vt, and a control command is sent to the light-emitting device 12 to be turned on to light up its light-emitting area 14.

In the light-emitting device 12 that has received a control command to turn on the light-emitting state, the light-emitting state of the light-emitting element 16 is controlled by the operation of the light-emitting portion control unit in the manner described above so that the light-emitting portion is displaced from the rear end to the front end of the light-emitting region 14 in the direction of travel. Note that since the time width ΔT selected for the light-emitting state of each light-emitting device 12 varies depending on the target speed, information on the time ΔT may be sent from the system controller 20 to the light-emitting portion control unit, and the displacement speed of the light-emitting portion in the light-emitting region 14 may be adjusted based on that information.

Thus, according to the system of this embodiment described above, when a vehicle or the like moves to follow the light of the light-emitting areas 14 of the light-emitting devices 12, the light is made to move within each light-emitting area 14, so that it is expected that the moving speed of the vehicle or the like can be appropriately guided to a target speed that corresponds to the transition speed of the light-emitting devices 12 that are turned on.

The above description is given in relation to an embodiment of the present invention, but many modifications and changes are easily possible for those skilled in the art, and it is clear that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment exemplified above, but can be applied to various devices without departing from the concept of the present invention.

Claims (7)

A moving speed guidance system for a vehicle or the like,
A plurality of light emitting devices are arranged at predetermined intervals along a traveling direction of a path of travel of the vehicle or the like;
a light emission control means for turning on and off each of the light emitting devices in sequence along a traveling direction of the vehicle or the like,
the light emission control means selects every few light-emitting devices to be turned on such that the light-emitting devices to be turned on are shifted among the plurality of light-emitting devices at a speed that corresponds to a target value of the moving speed of the vehicle or the like;
The system is configured such that each of the light-emitting devices has an light-emitting area capable of emitting light that extends along the direction of travel of the path of travel at a position visible from the vehicle, etc., the length of the light-emitting portion in the light-emitting area that displaces along the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc. is a length that is visible from the vehicle, etc. at one time, and when selected to be turned on by the light-emitting control means, the light-emitting portion that emits light in the light-emitting area displaces along the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc., and light can be observed moving from rear to front in the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc. on the path of travel . A system according to claim 1 , wherein a plurality of light-emitting elements are arranged in the light-emitting area of each of the light-emitting devices in a juxtaposed manner along the direction of travel of the path of travel, and the light-emitting element that emits light among the plurality of light-emitting elements is changed in sequence along the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc., thereby displacing the light-emitting portion along the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc. 3. A system according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein when each of the light-emitting devices is selected to be turned on by the light-emitting control means, the size and amount of light emitted of the light-emitting portion in the light-emitting area that displaces along the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc., is adjusted so as to be visible from the vehicle, etc. 4. A system according to claim 1 , wherein a speed at which said light emitting portion moves in said light emitting region along a traveling direction of said vehicle or the like is variably controllable. A system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, in which the light emission control means is capable of variably controlling the transition speed of the lit light emitting device. 6. The system according to claim 5 , wherein in a section where the moving speed of the vehicle or the like is likely to decrease, the target value of the moving speed of the vehicle or the like is set higher than an average moving speed of the vehicle or the like. 6. The system according to claim 5 , wherein in a section where the moving speed of the vehicle or the like is likely to increase, the target value of the moving speed of the vehicle or the like is set lower than an average moving speed of the vehicle or the like.

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