JP2024059843A - Device and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a target detection device capable of issuing an alarm even to a novel target on the basis of location information from the very first time.SOLUTION: A target detection device includes: a GPS reception part 12 detecting a position of a self vehicle; an internal nonvolatile memory 17 storing point data including location information of a point identifying an alarm target collected by oneself; and a control part 18 registering with an internal nonvolatile memory point data including the location information received when the location information of the point identifying an alarm object transmitted from another target detection device is received. The control part issues an alarm when a current position and the location information at the point registered with the internal nonvolatile memory are in a set positional relation. When another target detection device exists in the surroundings, the control part transmits location information about a point included in a part or whole of point data stored to the internal nonvolatile memory.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a target detection device and program that detects targets and issues an alarm based on location information.

There is a known target detection device that detects and issues an alarm when microwaves are transmitted from a vehicle speed measuring device. This target detection device has the problem that, even if it receives microwaves transmitted from a malfunction source, such as an automatic door at a convenience store that uses the same frequency as the speed measuring device, it will recognize the microwaves as coming from a vehicle speed measuring device and issue an unnecessary alarm. In consideration of this situation, recent target detection devices store the location information of the malfunction source, recognize the location of the vehicle using GPS, and prevent the issuance of unnecessary alarms by controlling the device so that it does not issue an alarm even if it detects microwaves when the vehicle is located at the malfunction source.

In addition, devices for measuring vehicle speed are not limited to those that use microwaves as described above. For example, there are also devices that detect vehicles traveling on the road using two loop coils embedded under the road and measure vehicles based on the time difference between the detection signals output from the two loop coils. This type of vehicle speed measurement device does not output microwaves, so it cannot be detected by the target detection device that uses microwave detection as described above.

There is a target detection device that stores and holds the position information of such detected objects, and issues an alarm when the position of the vehicle detected by GPS and the position of the detected object meet a specified relationship.

In this type of target detection device based on location information, the freshness and accuracy of the location information of the detection target stored in the memory unit are important factors. In other words, if the stored location information is based on old installation information, an alarm (false alarm) may be issued in a location where the detection target has already been removed, or an alarm may not be issued even if the detection target exists because the location is not registered in the memory means, reducing the reliability of the alarm.
In order to solve this problem, the user needs to update the position information of the object to be detected that is stored even after purchasing the target detection device. Such an update process is performed by updating using an external non-volatile memory such as an SD card, or by downloading the latest position information data from a server online and storing it in the storage unit of the target detection device. In addition, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, there is also a technology that, when receiving radio waves of the object to be detected, stores and holds in a storage unit the position information of the object to be detected that is determined based on the received position.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-27096

If the location information is updated to the latest by using an SD card or by downloading it online from a server, the user must actively perform the update process, which can be cumbersome, and there is also a risk that the user will forget to update and the location information will remain out of date.

The latter technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 solves the above problem by automatically registering the object, but in either case, the first time it is necessary to receive radio waves emitted from the object to be detected, and with that first reception, it is not possible to recognize the presence of the object to be detected in advance based on the location information.

The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and aims to provide a target detection device that can issue an alarm based on location information from the very first time it detects a new target, and can provide the information required for doing so.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the target detection device of the present invention includes (1) a position detection unit that detects the position of the vehicle itself, a database that stores position information of targets, an alarm control means that issues an alarm when the position information detected by the position detection unit and the position information of targets stored in the database are in a set positional relationship, a point data storage unit that stores point data including position information of points that identify targets for alarm collected by the device itself, and a transmission control means that transmits at least the position information of the points included in some or all of the point data stored in the storage unit.

In the embodiment, the database corresponds to the "internal non-volatile memory 17." In the embodiment, the point data storage unit corresponds to the "internal non-volatile memory 17." "Collected by itself" can be collected by various methods, such as by automatic registration as in the inventions (8) and (9), by manual registration as in the inventions (10) and (11), or by acquiring and collecting data registered by another target detection device as in the invention (12).

The transmission control means transmits (wirelessly transmits) the position information of the point at any timing. Then, if another target detection device capable of receiving the transmitted position information is present in the vicinity of the target detection device of the present invention, the other target detection device can incorporate the received position information and thereafter issue an alarm based on the position information for the alarm target (target) corresponding to the position information. In other words, the "other target detection device" can issue an alarm based on the position information from the very first time, even if the target is a new target. The target detection device of the present invention can provide useful information to the other target detection device. As for the timing of transmitting the position information, it may be transmitted periodically or irregularly, but it is preferable to transmit when another target detection device is present in the vicinity, as in the invention of (2) below.

(2) The transmission control means may have a function of transmitting at least the position information of the point included in the point data in response to receiving a notification request signal wirelessly transmitted from another target detection device. In the embodiment, the notification request signal corresponds to "own vehicle position information". In the embodiment, by transmitting the own vehicle position information, the other target detection device that receives the own vehicle position information can recognize the positions of both, and for example, by displaying both on a display device, it is possible to visually confirm that they actually exist (the system is operating). However, if such a function is not provided, a notification request signal such as a predetermined command may be simply used without notifying the position information. When the target detection device receives such a notification request signal, it can confirm that there is another target detection device in its surroundings that can use the point data information stored in itself, so that communication can be performed efficiently by transmitting the position information at that time (there is no waste of transmission). The timing and number of times that the position information of the point is transmitted may be set to transmit only once or N times after receiving the notification request signal, or may be set to transmit at a predetermined interval for a certain period of time after receiving the notification request signal, or may be set to transmit periodically or irregularly while receiving (until reception becomes impossible).

(3) Based on the invention of (2), the transmission control means may have a function to stop transmission of the point data when the notification request signal cannot be received for a certain period of time (one minute in this embodiment). If the notification request signal cannot be received for a certain period of time, it can be determined that the other target detection device has moved away. Even if the other target detection device is nearby, it can be assumed that the other target detection device is in a state where communication is not possible (the other target detection device is also unable to receive the transmitted location information), so unnecessary transmission processing is not required. Even if there are other target detection devices in the vicinity, it may be possible that the notification request signal cannot be received several times due to a busy communication line, etc., so it is preferable to transmit for a certain period of time as in the present invention, rather than stopping transmission immediately when the notification request signal cannot be received.

(4) The transmission control means may extract point data present around the current position and set the extracted point data as the transmission target. The point data to be transmitted may be all the point data held by the device itself, but if the number of point data held is large, it may take a long time to transmit the position information of all the point data, and there is a risk that information required by other target detection devices may not be transmitted. Therefore, by setting the point data present around the current position as the transmission target, information currently required by other target detection devices can be transmitted efficiently.

(5) Based on the invention of (4), when there are multiple pieces of point data to be transmitted, it is preferable to transmit one piece of point data per transmission process, and select each piece as the transmission target one by one in turn. By limiting the transmission target to one, the time that the communication channel is occupied in one transmission process can be shortened. As a result, even if there are multiple (many) target detection devices in the vicinity, each target detection device can communicate, and information can be acquired effectively.

(6) The point data may be accompanied by the date of registration when the point was registered, and the transmission control means, when transmitting a portion of the point data, may prioritize the data with the most recent registration date as the transmission target. If the registration date is old, it is highly likely that the data has already been transmitted and that the other party's target detection device also has it as point data (if the registration date is newer, it is highly likely that the other party does not have it). Also, for example, if the registration date is today, and the detection target is a speed measurement device, there is a possibility that the speed measurement is currently being performed, and information of higher importance and urgency can be transmitted efficiently.

(7) The point data should be added with the date of registration when the point was registered, and if the registration date is older than a set standard, it should be excluded from transmission. As explained in (6), old data may have already been distributed, or there may be no object of warning at the point location and no notification is required. Therefore, by not sending information with an old registration date, it is possible to reduce the load caused by the transmission process. Not sending may mean leaving the data as is and simply not performing the transmission process, or it may mean deleting the data itself so that it cannot be physically sent.

(8) An automatic registration function is provided for automatically registering the point data upon reception of microwaves that meet the set conditions, and the position information of the point that identifies the target of the alarm and that is stored in the point data may be the current position detected by the position detection unit when microwaves that meet the set conditions are received.

(9) The location information of the point is compared with the location information of the target object stored in the database, and if the distance is shorter than a set distance, the point data for that point is not registered by the automatic registration function. If the "distance" is short, it can be assumed that the point to be registered and the target object stored in the database are the same. In such a case, by not registering the point data, it is possible to prevent unnecessary additional processing of information and the associated unnecessary transmissions, etc.

(10) Based on the invention of (9), a manual registration function may be provided for registering the point data in response to a registration instruction from a user, and the position information of the point that identifies the alarm target collected by the device itself and stored in the point data may be the current position detected by the position detection unit when the registration instruction was given. In this way, it is possible to register and provide information on detection targets that do not emit microwaves, or detection targets that emit microwaves and are in preparation (installation) and are not actually emitting microwaves but are likely to emit them later. The registration instruction may be, for example, an instruction using a set switch operation or voice input.

(11) A manual registration function is provided for registering the point data in response to a registration instruction from a user, and the position information of the point that identifies the target of the alarm collected by the device itself and is stored in the point data is the current position detected by the position detection unit at the time the registration instruction is given, and the alarm mode based on the position information registered using the automatic registration function and the alarm mode based on the position information registered using the manual registration function may be different.

(12) Based on the inventions of (10) and (11), if the number of registration processes using the manual registration function within a reference period is equal to or exceeds a threshold value, the transmission control means may suppress transmission of at least point data registered using the manual registration function. In the embodiment, the reference period is set to one day, but may be set to an hour or multiple days. It is possible to suppress the manual registration function from being operated unnecessarily and transmitting unnecessary information to the surroundings. The data to be suppressed from being transmitted may be all data (including data that has been automatically registered). Furthermore, if the above conditions are met, the registration process itself may be invalidated (not performed).

(13) The point data may be acquired from data registered by another target detection device and stored in the target detection device's own point data storage unit. (14) The point data may be registered in association with a unit ID that identifies the target detection device that first registered the point. (15) It is preferable to include a means for periodically transmitting the position of the vehicle (vehicle position information) detected by the position detection unit.

(16) The transmission control means transmits based on a user setting as to whether or not to transmit, and stores an empirical value based on the number of transmissions, and the alarm control means varies the alarm mode based on the empirical value. The alarm mode by the second alarm control means may be varied. Unlike the reliability (degree of reliability), this empirical value is updated so that the more the number of transmissions increases, the larger (higher) the empirical value becomes.

It is desirable for users to be able to set whether or not to transmit information at their own discretion, and as described above, it is possible for users to disable transmission through user settings. However, it is beneficial for users as a whole to exchange as much location information as possible. Therefore, for example, the more information provided, the higher the experience points become and the more advanced the warning state becomes, thereby increasing the number of users who transmit. According to this invention, it is possible to provide an environment in which users are motivated to transmit location information.

(17) It is preferable to include a wireless receiving unit that receives position information of a point that identifies an object to be warned, which is sent from another target detection device; point data registration means that registers point data including the position information received by the wireless receiving unit in a point data storage unit; and second alarm control means that issues an alarm when the position information detected by the position detection unit and the position information of the point registered in the point data storage unit are in a set positional relationship. The second alarm control means may be integrated with the alarm control means or may be independent. In this way, the target detection device can provide information about points that it has collected to other target detection devices and obtain information about points that other target detection devices have collected, thereby enabling the sharing of information about points and efficient data collection.

(18) The vehicle may include a position detection unit that detects the position of the vehicle itself, a database that stores position information of targets, an alarm control means that issues an alarm when the position information detected by the position detection unit and the position information of the target stored in the database are in a set positional relationship, a wireless receiving unit that receives position information of a point that identifies the target of the alarm sent from another target detection device, a point data registration means that registers point data including the position information received by the wireless receiving unit in a point data storage unit, and a second alarm control means that issues an alarm when the position information detected by the position detection unit and the position information of the point registered in the point data storage unit are in a set positional relationship.

This invention allows location information about points collected by other target detection devices to be obtained, and an alert based on the location information can be issued based on that information, so even for new targets, an alert can be issued based on the location information from the very first time.

(19) The point data may be provided with reliability information that specifies the likelihood that the point is a target for an alarm, and if point data for a point that can be considered to be the same as the point that specifies the target for an alarm corresponding to the received position information is already registered in the point data storage unit, and the target detection device that initially registered the registered point data is different from the target detection device that initially registered the currently received point, a reliability update function may be provided to control the reliability information of the point data to be higher. If point data for the same point is registered in multiple different target detection devices, the reliability of the point data increases. Therefore, when issuing an alarm using the second alarm control means, if the alarm mode is changed in accordance with the reliability information (the higher the reliability, the more important the alarm is to draw the driver's attention, or the reliability is also notified so that the driver can be provided with information that allows the driver to judge the likelihood of an alarm based on the point data), an effective alarm can be issued.

Whether point data is for the same point can be determined to be the same, for example, if the location information is close (within a set value). Then, determining whether the target detection devices detected and registered at that point are the same or different can be performed, for example, by the inventions shown in (21) and (22) below.

(20) The point data may also be supplemented with reliability information specifying the likelihood that the point is an alarm target, the transmitting target detection device may transmit its own unit ID and point data, and the receiving target detection device may have point data for a point that can be considered the same as the point specifying the alarm target corresponding to the received position information already registered in the point data storage unit, and may have a reliability update function that controls to increase the reliability when the unit ID of the currently received point differs from the unit ID stored in the storage unit.

(21) When the location information of the point data stored in the point data storage unit differs from the location information currently received, the reliability update function can determine that the two points were originally registered by different target detection devices and perform a reliability information update process.

(22) The unit ID of the target detection device that was first registered may be added to the point data, and the unit ID may be associated with point location information sent from other target detection devices, and the reliability update function may determine whether the point data was registered by a different target detection device by comparing the received unit ID with the unit ID of the point data stored in the point data storage unit.

(23) The point data registration means may be configured not to register point data based on the received location information if the received location information is within a set distance from the location information of point data already registered in the point data storage unit. When such a condition is met, the possibility of the same point is high, and registering multiple pieces of point data based on the same point is not only undesirable as it would result in a waste of memory capacity, but also frequent alarms, so this problem can be solved. Moreover, even if the point is actually a different point, an alarm is issued in the vicinity, so there is no significant practical problem.

(24) The other target detection device is a target detection device as defined in (17), and may be provided with a display control means for, upon receiving the vehicle's position transmitted from the other target detection device, displaying the vehicle's own position and the other target detection device's positions on the display unit based on the received vehicle's position and the vehicle's own position information detected by the position detection unit. In this way, the vehicle's own and other target detection device's positions are displayed on the display unit, allowing a user who sees the display to confirm that the system is operating normally, and in the case where no point-based warning is issued despite the other target detection device being displayed, the user can confirm that there is a higher probability that there is no target for warning in the vicinity.

In the present invention, a position detection unit (GPS receiving unit 12) that detects the position of the vehicle, a point data storage unit (internal non-volatile memory 17) that stores point data including the position information of points that identify the alarm target collected by the vehicle itself, and a control unit (control unit 18) that receives the position information of points that identify the alarm target sent from another target detection device and registers the point data including the received position information in the point data storage unit, and the control unit issues an alarm when the current position and the position information of the points registered in the point data storage unit are in a set positional relationship. In addition, if there is another target detection device in the vicinity, the control unit transmits the position information of the points included in some or all of the point data stored in the point data storage unit. In this configuration, point data can be shared between each target detection device, and if a new target (alarm target) can be registered as a point of the alarm target, an alarm based on the position information can be issued before the vehicle itself actually receives microwaves from the target for the first time (first time). In addition, if microwaves are received thereafter, it can be confirmed that the point information was correct. If reliability information is added, the reliability can be updated to increase it based on that information.

The program of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to function as each of the means described in any of (1) to (24) above. That is, in the embodiment, each of the means is realized as a function implemented in the control unit 18. This function can be configured as an application program executed by the computer, and such a program can be distributed via a recording medium or by downloading, etc.

With this invention, even for new targets, it is possible to issue an alarm based on location information from the very first detection, and provide the information required for this.

FIG. 1 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 5 is a flowchart showing a function of transmitting vehicle position information and point data implemented in a control unit 18. 10 is a flowchart showing a receiving function implemented in a control unit 18. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a warning screen using a display unit. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a function of transmitting and receiving vehicle position information and point data. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a function of transmitting and receiving vehicle position information and point data. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a function of transmitting and receiving vehicle position information and point data. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a function of transmitting and receiving vehicle position information and point data. 13 is a flowchart showing a reliability update function implemented in the control unit 18. 13 is a flowchart showing a reliability update function implemented in the control unit 18. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a reliability update function. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a warning based on point data. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating control of transmission timing. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating control of transmission timing.

1 shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The target detection device 10 is a device that acquires the current position information of the vehicle and radio wave information coming from the outside, and issues an alarm or notification when the acquired information matches a set condition. This target detection device 10 includes a microwave receiving unit 11, a GPS receiving unit 12, a wireless transmitting/receiving unit 13, an input unit 14, a display unit 15, a speaker 16, an internal non-volatile memory 17, a control unit 18, and an SD slot 19. Each of these devices and members is packaged in one case or divided appropriately into multiple cases.
The microwave receiving unit 11 receives microwaves in a predetermined frequency band and sends the received signal to the control unit 18. The predetermined frequency band is, for example, a frequency band that includes the frequency of microwaves emitted from a vehicle speed measurement device. The GPS receiving unit 12 receives a GPS signal, determines the current position from the received GPS signal, and sends position information (longitude, latitude) of the determined current position to the control unit 18. In this embodiment, the wireless transmitting/receiving unit 13 transmits and receives data to and from other target detection devices 10 in the vicinity.

The input unit 14 is an interface that allows the user to give various settings and instructions to the control unit 18, and may be an operation unit that the user can directly touch, such as an operation switch or a touch panel, or a remote control receiver that receives instructions by data communication with an external remote control (portable device: child device) (not shown). The input unit 14 is equipped with one or more of these.

The display unit 15 is realized, for example, using an organic EL display or a liquid crystal display. The internal non-volatile memory 17 is composed of an EEPROM or the like. Information about certain targets (position information including longitude and latitude, type information, etc.) is registered in this internal non-volatile memory 17 at the time of shipment. In addition, various types of position information can be registered and updated in the internal non-volatile memory 17 depending on the use.

The SD slot 19 has an insertion port exposed on the surface of the case, allowing an SD memory card 20, an external non-volatile memory, to be removably attached. This SD memory card 20 stores update information such as information about new targets (location information including longitude and latitude, type information, etc.). The update information stored in this SD memory card 20 is stored (downloaded) in the internal non-volatile memory 17 via the control unit 18, and the data is updated.

In this example, the SD slot 19 is implemented inside the case, but instead of incorporating a device for mounting an external non-volatile memory such as the SD slot 19, for example, the case may be provided with a terminal (adapter jack) for connecting a memory card reader, and by connecting the memory card reader to the adapter jack, data stored on a memory card mounted in the memory card reader may be imported into the case.

The control unit 18 is composed of a microcomputer including a CPU, memory, I/O, etc., and can access the SD memory card 20, which is an external recording medium inserted in the SD slot 19, and can read and write data. For example, if the SD memory card 20 stores location information of a target object that needs to be updated, the control unit 18 can read the data to be updated and store it in the internal non-volatile memory 17 to perform the update process.

The control unit 18 executes a predetermined process based on the information input from the various input devices (receiving unit, etc.) described above, and outputs a predetermined alarm/message using the output devices (display unit 15, speaker 16, etc.). The predetermined process for determining the content of the alarm based on the information input from the input devices can basically be the same as that used in the past. In other words, when the current position information acquired from the GPS receiving unit 12 and the position information of the target object to be detected stored in the internal non-volatile memory 17 are in a predetermined positional relationship (within a set distance, etc.), or when a signal satisfying certain conditions is received or acquired, such as when a predetermined microwave is received by the microwave receiving unit 11, a corresponding alarm is output. Note that alarms using the speaker 16 include buzzers and voices. Although not shown, an alarm lamp such as an LED may also be provided as an output device.

In this embodiment, the control unit 18 periodically (for example, every 5 seconds) acquires the current vehicle position information from the GPS receiving unit 12, and periodically updates the vehicle position information stored and held in the memory in the control unit 18 or the internal non-volatile memory 17. When a set event occurs, the control unit 18 creates point data (location information of a target, etc.) from the vehicle position information at that time, and stores it in the internal non-volatile memory 17. The set event may be, for example, a case where a set input is made via the input unit 14 such as a specific switch operation, or a case where a specific microwave is received by the microwave receiving unit 11. The specific microwave is a microwave that is presumed to have been emitted from a vehicle speed measuring device. Note that, if the microwave is simply judged based on the frequency of the received microwave, radio waves from a malfunction source such as an automatic door will also be registered, so that the judgment can be made based on, for example, the reception level of the received microwave. A technique for discriminating whether the radio waves are from a malfunction source or from the vehicle speed measuring device to be detected based on the received microwave can be used, and a detailed explanation thereof will be omitted. In addition, in cases where an instruction to register point data is received manually by operating a switch, for example, a person in a vehicle may operate a specific switch when he or she recognizes that a speed measurement is being performed or is being prepared for it. This allows point data to be registered (manual registration) based on manual recognition of the installation location of the speed measurement device, regardless of whether microwaves are being received or not.

The control unit 18 periodically (for example, every 5 seconds) wirelessly transmits the vehicle position information to the outside (surroundings) using the wireless transceiver unit 13. In this embodiment, the vehicle position information transmission process and the vehicle position information registration process in memory, which are performed periodically, are both performed at 5-second intervals, but the processing intervals for both may be the same or different. Furthermore, if the processing intervals are the same as in this embodiment, the timing of each process may be the same, that is, the vehicle position information may be acquired and stored in memory and transmitted, or each process (storage, transmission) may be performed independently of each other. If another target detection device 10' is present in the vicinity, the vehicle position information transmitted as described above is received by that target detection device 10'.

Furthermore, when the control unit 18 confirms the presence of another target detection device 10' in the vicinity, it transmits the point data it holds. The presence of this other target detection device 10' can be confirmed, for example, by receiving the vehicle position information of the other target detection device 10' transmitted from the other target detection device 10'. This transmitted point data is received by the other target detection device 10' present in the vicinity. The point data received in this manner is stored in the internal non-volatile memory 17 of the other target detection device 10'. In other words, the point data held by the other target detection device 10' is transmitted in the same manner as above, so when the target detection device 10 receives the point data, it stores it in the internal non-volatile memory 17.

In this way, the internal non-volatile memory 17 stores point data that the device itself has registered when an event occurs, as well as point data acquired from other target detection devices 10' and received via the wireless transceiver unit 13.

The control unit 18 also performs warning control based on this point data. That is, the control unit 18 issues a warning when the current vehicle position obtained from the GPS receiving unit 12 and the position information specified by the point data have a predetermined relationship (within a certain distance). Therefore, since the warning is issued using not only the point data collected by the control unit 18 itself but also the point data collected by other target detection devices 10', even in an area visited for the first time, a warning based on the position information can be issued by acquiring point data in advance from other target detection devices 10' that existed in the area. In other words, if the target detection device 10 has not received point data from other target detection devices 10', it cannot know the presence of the target (microwave emission source) corresponding to the point data until it receives microwaves emitted from the target, but in this case, it can recognize the presence of the detection target in advance based on the position information.

Furthermore, when transmitting point data, all point data stored in the internal non-volatile memory 17 is transmitted, including point data acquired from other target detection devices 10'. This allows point data to be shared between multiple target detection devices, making it possible to efficiently collect point data in various regions, and to issue an alert based on appropriate point data and vehicle position information.

Furthermore, in cases where point data is registered by manually operating a switch, for example, if the operation is performed based on seeing a speed measurement being performed in the opposite lane, the target detection device mounted on the vehicle traveling in the opposite lane can obtain the point data registered based on the switch operation and can know in advance that a speed measurement is being performed at the end of the road on which the vehicle is traveling.

Next, specific processing functions for registering the above-mentioned point data and performing transmission and reception processing will be described. First, the vehicle position information stored and held in the internal non-volatile memory 17 includes a unit ID for specifying (identifying) the target detection device, and latitude and longitude information for specifying the current position of the target detection device. Furthermore, it is preferable for the vehicle position information to include an experience value, which is the number of times point data has been transmitted and received between the vehicle and other target detection devices.

This experience value is, for example, transmitted based on a user setting of whether or not to transmit, and the experience value based on the number of transmissions (simply, the number of transmissions) is stored. When the control unit 18 issues an alarm, it is preferable to vary the alarm mode based on the experience value. By varying the alarm mode, for example, the higher the experience value, the more decorative the alarm is, or the design displayed on the display unit is changed, or more useful information is notified, so that the user is more interested. It is preferable that the user can set whether or not to transmit at their own discretion, so it is also possible to prevent transmission by user setting as described above. In this case, by varying the alarm mode based on the experience value, the user will actively choose to transmit, and the amount of point data shared between users will increase, improving the effectiveness and usefulness of the system.

Meanwhile, point data consists of information associating a unit ID, latitude and longitude information, registration date, registration attributes, and reliability. The unit ID is a code for identifying the target detection device 10 that registered the point data, and the unit ID of the device is registered for point data registered by the device itself, whether manually or automatically. The latitude and longitude information is location information that indicates (specifies) the location of the point data. The registration date is data that specifies the date the point data was registered, and time information may also be included. This registration date information can be obtained by using an internal clock and utilizing the clock information, or by utilizing the GPS signal received by the GPS receiver 12.

The registration attribute is a parameter for identifying the registration factor, and can be "automatic registration", which indicates a point that is automatically registered based on the reception of the desired microwave, or "manual registration", which indicates a point that is manually registered based on user operation. For example, the registration attribute for point data that is registered using an external non-volatile memory such as an SD memory card is also this "manual registration".

In addition, if a point that has been determined to be a malfunction source and has been prohibited from automatic registration is registered, the registration attribute will be "automatic registration prohibited." For example, if a point that has been prohibited from automatic registration subsequently receives microwaves in the same or nearby area, it can determine based on that information that the radio waves are from a malfunction source and take the specified action (not issuing an alarm, lowering the receiving sensitivity, not automatically registering the point data).

The reliability is information on the reliability of the point data (likelihood of the detected object being a target). In this embodiment, the reliability is defined as a numerical value, with the higher the value being the higher the reliability (reliability). At the time of registration, a reference value of "1" is set, and if point data is registered at the same location by a different target detection device, the reliability is updated to be higher. Depending on this reliability value, the display and warning methods can be changed. Based on the configuration premised on the above, the following functions are implemented in the control unit 18.

* Automatic point data registration function When the control unit 18 receives microwaves that meet a predetermined condition, the reception is used as a trigger to register point data. The point data is registered in the internal non-volatile memory 17. The predetermined condition is that the frequency of the received microwaves is within a preset range, is sudden and short (for example, continuous reception time is 3 seconds or less), and has a high reception level. A high reception level means that the reception level is higher than the reception level of microwaves emitted from a measuring device that constantly outputs microwaves, such as an automatic vehicle speed measuring device fixedly installed on the side of the road. The reception level is set to a level that is one or more levels higher than the reception level of microwaves from an automatic vehicle measuring device that constantly outputs microwaves, by dividing the receivable range into multiple stages (for example, six stages).

When the control unit 18 recognizes that it has received microwaves that meet the above conditions, it associates the date of reception (registration date), its own unit ID, the latitude and longitude obtained from the GPS receiver unit 12 at the time of reception, the registration attribute = "automatic registration", and the reliability = "reference value: 1" and registers them as point data.

In addition, in the case of a detection target that constantly outputs microwaves, such as a fixed speed measuring device, the position information is registered in advance in the internal non-volatile memory 17, and an alarm is issued based on the position information. Therefore, even if microwaves are received from such a speed measuring device, there is no need to register point data based on them. Therefore, as with such a fixed speed measuring device, a specified area (for example, an area within a radius of 1 km) centered on a pre-registered target is set as an automatic registration prohibited area, and even if microwaves that meet the conditions for automatic registration are received within that automatic registration prohibited area, point data is not registered based on the reception.

(Handling non-GPS positioning)
Furthermore, when a specific microwave is received, the GPS signal may not be able to be positioned. When the GPS is not positioned, the current position information cannot be recognized, and therefore the point data cannot be registered. However, when the vehicle is traveling in a place where the GPS signal can be received intermittently, such as under an overpass, the current vehicle position based on the GPS positioning may be obtained after the specific microwave is received. Therefore, even if the vehicle is not positioned when the specific microwave is received, if the vehicle can be positioned within a relatively short time (for example, within 5 seconds), the positioning point is registered as latitude and longitude information. Even if the vehicle travels at a speed of 100 km/h, the vehicle moves only about 138.9 m in 5 seconds, so there is no problem in registering the above position as the point position, and the effect of registering the point data is greater. Note that if there is no point where the vehicle can be positioned within 5 seconds, the accuracy of the position information is low, so automatic registration is not performed. This correspondence to the GPS non-positioning may also be performed during manual registration.

*Function to prohibit automatic registration of points When microwaves are received from a malfunction source such as an automatic door, they may happen to meet the above-mentioned predetermined conditions, and may be judged to be microwaves from a target object to be detected and registered as point data. In the case of microwaves that meet the predetermined conditions, it is difficult to distinguish whether they are from a target object to be detected such as a speed measuring device or from a malfunction source in a single reception. Therefore, in this embodiment, when the predetermined conditions are met, the control unit 18 controls to once judge that the microwaves are from a target object to be detected and register them as point data (automatic registration), and when it is judged that the microwaves are from a malfunction source based on the reception conditions thereafter, to change the registration attribute to "automatic registration prohibited."

The condition for changing to "automatic registration prohibited" is when microwaves are received N times (for example, three times) at the same location on different days. In other words, in the case of a malfunction source such as an automatic door, microwaves are emitted at least when the store is open (during business), so the microwaves can be received even if the store passes by on different days. On the other hand, in the case of a mobile speed measurement device, even if the microwaves are received multiple times on the same day, they are not fixed, so there is little possibility of receiving microwaves emitted from the speed measurement device at the same location on multiple different days within a certain period of time. Therefore, when microwaves that meet the specified conditions are received at the same location on different days, specifically on three different days, the control unit 18 determines that the microwaves are from a malfunction source and changes the registration attribute of the corresponding point data to "automatic registration prohibited". Note that even if the microwaves are from the same malfunction source, the location at which they are received is unlikely to be exactly the same. Therefore, in this embodiment, when microwaves that meet the conditions for automatic registration described above are received within a radius of 200 m centered on the position of a point whose point data has already been registered and whose registration attribute is automatic registration, the microwaves are deemed to have been emitted from the same source as the point data.

Then, for such management, the date of reception may be stored in the same table in association with the point data, or a separate storage area may be provided to register the date of detection. Since it is necessary to recognize that the data has been received three times on different days, for example, an area may be provided in the point data to store the date of detection detected after the registration date, along with the date of registration. When the control unit 18 receives microwaves that meet the above-mentioned predetermined conditions, it searches the registration area of the point data in the internal non-volatile memory 17 using the detected position as a key, calculates the distance between the latitude and longitude information in each point data and the current position, and judges whether the calculation result is 200 m or less. If it is 200 m or less, it compares the registration date stored in the point data with the current date of detection, and if the two are different, it registers the current date as the detection date. If the detection date has already been registered, if the current date is different from both the registration date and the detection date, it means that microwaves emitted from the same source on three different days have been received, and rewrites the registration attribute of the point data to "prohibit automatic registration".

If the registration attribute of the point data is "automatic registration prohibited," the area within 200 m of the point's location (latitude and longitude) will be designated as an automatic registration prohibited area, and even if microwaves that meet the conditions for automatic registration are received within the automatic registration prohibited area, the point data will not be registered based on that reception, and no alarm will be issued based on the point data.

Even if the above-mentioned registration attribute is "automatic registration prohibited" or the object is within an automatic registration prohibited area that is set based on the location of the object registered as a legitimate target, if there is a manual registration instruction or a registration instruction using an external non-volatile memory (SD memory card 20), the control unit 18 will register point data based on that instruction (registration attribute is "manual").

*Limits on manual registration In cases where speed measurements are performed without using microwaves or where the microwave output time is extremely short, the above-mentioned automatic registration cannot be performed. However, drivers who pass by a site where speed measurements are being performed can confirm the site visually, etc. Therefore, it is desirable to make it possible to perform manual registration by a simple operation such as pressing a specified switch. This point has been described above.

On the other hand, there is a possibility that someone may randomly register points (including pranks), which would result in a large number of points being added to other target detection devices, causing frequent alarms and complication, which is undesirable. Therefore, if manual registration operations are performed more than a set number of times within a set period, such as one day, the control unit 18 performs processing to restrict transmission, making it impossible to send data, or to delete point data manually registered during that time. This makes it possible to prevent the above-mentioned nuisance behavior, and to register point data based on appropriate manual registration and to notify other target detection devices.

*Point data transmission function As described above, each target detection device transmits its own vehicle position information periodically (every 5 seconds). Therefore, when the control unit 18 receives vehicle position information from another target detection device via the wireless transmission/reception unit 13, this means that there is another target detection device in the vicinity, so it transmits its own point data. The point data transmitted at this time includes not only point data created and registered by the control unit 18 itself, but also point data received from other target detection devices.

The items of point data are at least a distinction that it is point data, location information, and a unit ID. If reliability is included as an item of point data as in this embodiment, the reliability may be transmitted as well, or may not be transmitted in order to reduce communication time. Even if it is transmitted, it may not be transmitted for those with a reference value of 1, and may be transmitted only when the reliability has been updated. The unit ID is the unit ID registered as point data, that is, the ID of the target detection device that initially registered the point data. For example, in the case of point data that has been automatically or manually registered by the device itself, the unit ID is the device's own unit ID, but in the case of point data that has been received and registered from another target detection device, the unit ID is the unit ID of the other target detection device.

Furthermore, the point data to be transmitted may be all point data possessed by the device itself, or only a portion of the point data may be selected and transmitted. When a portion of the point data is transmitted, the point data to be transmitted may be selected randomly or according to a predetermined rule. In this embodiment, data communication using the wireless transmission/reception unit 13 is at least 2400 bps. Therefore, it is not possible to transmit a large amount of data all at once. Therefore, the control unit 18 selects the point data to be transmitted at one time according to a predetermined rule. In this embodiment, this predetermined rule is set to give priority to selecting data that exists near the current vehicle position information. As a result, other target detection devices that receive the transmitted point data can receive point data near the vehicle at that time with priority, so that timely information can be obtained efficiently.

Specifically, the vehicle position information stored and held in the memory in the control unit 18 or the internal non-volatile memory 17 is acquired, point data present in a predetermined area (for example, a radius of 2 km) is extracted from the acquired vehicle position information, and the extracted point data is transmitted. The number of point data transmitted at one time can be set arbitrarily, and may be one or a predetermined number. In this embodiment, one is transmitted. This shortens the wireless band usage time occupied by one target detection device 10 to transmit point data, and increases the number of units (target detection devices) present in the vicinity that participate in the communication. The more units that participate, the wider the network becomes, allowing information to be collected in a more diverse manner, and the more reliable the information becomes, which is preferable.

In addition, if one point data is sent in one transmission process, and multiple point data exist within an area of 2 km, the control unit 18 compares the "registration date" of each point data and transmits the point data with the most recent "registration date" in rotation. This is because point data with an older registration date is more likely to have already been sent and distributed (registered) to other target detection devices, so by sending the newer point data first, data can be sent and received efficiently with less update time. In other words, even if it is not possible to send all the relevant point data, point data that is likely not yet registered in other target detection devices can be sent preferentially, and each target detection device can efficiently obtain and store new point data. In addition, data with a newer registration date is more likely to be more useful information, such as information from a vehicle speed measurement device currently performing a speed measurement process, so from that point of view, it is preferable to send the most recent point data first based on the registration date.

Furthermore, once transmission of all the relevant point data has been completed, transmission may be started again from the beginning, or the area to be transmitted may be expanded (such as an area outside 2 km from the current location, or 2-5 km from the current location) and point data belonging to the expanded area may be transmitted. Furthermore, if there is no point data within the above-mentioned area within 2 km, the transmission process may not be performed, the area may be expanded and the relevant point data may be extracted again, or all point data may be transmitted. In this case, there are often multiple point data, and various methods can be used to prioritize the point data to be transmitted, such as in order of most recent registration date or in order of closestness to the current location, as described above. In this embodiment, the relevant point data is repeatedly transmitted without expanding the area within 2 km.

Furthermore, the point data may be transmitted alone or together with the vehicle position information. In this embodiment, the point data is transmitted together with the vehicle position information. In other words, the point data is transmitted to the surrounding area at regular intervals, just like the vehicle position information. Of course, when vehicle position information is received from another target detection device, the device may immediately start the process of transmitting the point data it holds.

In this embodiment, the period for transmitting point data is the period while other target detection devices are present in the vicinity. Specifically, if the control unit 18 is unable to receive vehicle position information from other target detection devices for a certain period of time (e.g., one minute), it stops transmitting point data. In this embodiment, the point data and vehicle position information are transmitted in pairs, so that if vehicle position information from other target detection devices cannot be received for a certain period of time as described above, it will switch to transmitting only vehicle position information.

Figure 2 shows an example of an algorithm for implementing a transmission function that includes the above-mentioned point data transmission function and vehicle position information transmission function. In this example, the point data is transmitted in pairs with the vehicle position information. If the vehicle position information is transmitted at a predetermined timing (S1), a first timer (built into the control unit 18) for recognizing the transmission period is restarted (S2). Then, the control unit 18 waits for the vehicle position information transmitted from another target detection device to be received (S3, S4). If the vehicle position information has not been received even after the first timer has timed out (5 seconds have passed), the process returns to step S1 and the control unit 18 transmits the vehicle position information. In practice, the control unit 18 passes the vehicle position information together with a transmission request to the wireless transmission/reception unit 13, and the wireless transmission/reception unit 13 transmits the information wirelessly.

On the other hand, if vehicle position information is received from another target detection device (Yes in S3), the control unit 18 starts a second timer and accesses the internal non-volatile memory 17 to determine whether point data exists in the vicinity of the current position (for example, within 2 km) (S6). If so, the point data to be transmitted is read from that (S7). That is, the point data to be transmitted at one time is set to 1, and if there is multiple nearby point data, they are read one by one in order starting with the most recent registration date. The point data items to be read here are at least the unit ID and position information.

Next, the system waits for the timing to transmit the vehicle position information (the first timer times out), and transmits the vehicle position information and the read point data as a pair (S8). On the other hand, if there is no point data in the vicinity of the current position (No in S6), the system waits for the timing to transmit the vehicle position information (the first timer times out), and transmits only the vehicle position information (S8).

After executing these processing steps S8/S9, the system waits to receive vehicle position information (which may also have point data attached) from another target detection device (S10, S11). If it has been received (Yes in S10), the system returns to processing step S5, restarts the second timer, and executes the transmission process of point data, etc. from S6 onwards. If the second timer times out (for example, after one minute has passed), it can be determined that there are no other target detection devices in the vicinity, and the system returns to processing step S1 and resumes normal transmission of only the vehicle's own position information.

*Point data reception function When the control unit 18 receives point data sent from another target detection device, it registers it in the point data storage area of the internal non-volatile memory 17. At this time, it is easily expected that point data based on the same generating cause (microwave emission source) will be notified from multiple different target detection devices, and it is also expected that point data about the same target (microwave emission source) as point data that has already been automatically or manually registered by the control unit 18 and point data registered based on reception from another target detection device will be received. At this time, it is expected that the latitude and longitude information of each point data will rarely be exactly the same, and will often be slightly different positions.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the control unit 18 is equipped with a point data receiving function that performs the process shown in FIG. 3. That is, the control unit 18 waits to receive point data from another target detection device (S15). Then, when point data is received, the control unit 18 searches for existing point data registered in the internal non-volatile memory 17 using the latitude and longitude information of the received point data as a key, and judges whether or not there is point data that is estimated to be the same target (occurrence cause) (S16). The condition for estimating the same target is that all points within a radius of 500 m from the latitude and longitude information of the already registered point data are considered to be the same. Therefore, the distance between the position specified by the latitude and longitude information of the received point data and the registered position is calculated, and if the calculated value is 500 m or less, it is considered to be the same, that is, the branch judgment in S16 is Yes. Note that the condition for assuming the same in the branch judgment in this processing step S16 is within a radius of 500 m in this embodiment, but the value can be changed arbitrarily.

If any point data has already been registered (S16 = Yes), the currently received point data is not registered, and the process returns to step S15 to wait for the next point data to be received. Note that the point data is not registered as new point data, but it is preferable to update the reliability as described below. If no point data has already been registered (S16 = No), the control unit 18 registers the currently received point data in the internal non-volatile memory 17 (S17). At this time, if reliability is included as a transmission item of the point data, the received reliability is registered, and if reliability is not included, the reliability is set to a reference value of 1.

In this way, by not registering point data that is considered to be the same, it is possible to prevent more points than necessary from being added, which could result in frequent alarms or an excessive number of points being displayed on the display, making it difficult to see.

In addition, in this embodiment, if the point data is deemed to be the same, it is discarded without being registered. However, for example, the position information may be associated with already registered point data and added and stored. This results in multiple pieces of position information for one target object to be detected. When an alarm is issued, the alarm is issued when the position of the point data and the current position of the vehicle have a specified positional relationship, and the position of the point data at this time can be set as a representative position determined from the multiple pieces of position information registered in the point data. This representative position can be calculated geometrically, for example, by determining the center of gravity or central position of the multiple pieces of position information and setting this position as the representative position, or by determining the representative position from the bias of the positions.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the position information of the point data is registered, and an alarm is issued when the vehicle is located within a specified distance (area) centered on that position information. In other words, the alarm area is within a specified radius. However, this is not limited to this, and the alarm area may be defined as an ellipse, a rectangle, or other specified geometric representation format, and an alarm may be issued if the vehicle is within the alarm area.

*Point display function As described above, the control unit 18 issues an alarm when the position information of point data stored in the internal non-volatile memory 17 based on its own automatic/manual registration, as well as notifications from other target detection devices, and the vehicle's position information reach a predetermined positional relationship. The form of this alarm can be an auditory alert such as a voice (sound) using the speaker 16, or a visual alert using the display unit 15.

That is, one example of a display mode using the display unit 15 is shown in FIG. 4. This display area is mainly for showing the positional relationship between a target and the vehicle, and is capable of displaying multiple targets. Both the vehicle and the target are shown as icons (marks). The vehicle is shown as a vehicle progress icon In formed by adding an arrow to a circle. Targets that exist within a circle of a specified radius (switchable) centered on the vehicle progress icon A are displayed at their location as target icons Tn.

The target icon Tn is displayed in a specific shape such as a circle, a square, a star, etc. The color and size can be changed according to the type of target. The more important the target, the larger it is, and the more conspicuous the color such as red is. Among the target icons Tn, there are warning target icons that indicate targets that are warning targets based on their positional relationship with the vehicle, and warning non-target icons that indicate targets that are not warning targets. A warning target here is a target that is in front of the vehicle's traveling direction (±90° from the traveling direction), and for targets that have a warning angle such as a speed measuring device that emits microwaves, it also meets the condition of being within the warning target angle (the target's warning angle ±40°). For warning non-target icons, the shape is a small circle, and the display color is gray.

The display screen in the display area also displays the vehicle's traveling direction as viewed from above. This is achieved by the control unit 18 determining the vehicle's traveling direction based on the vehicle's position information provided by the GPS receiver 12, determining the position of each target object when the traveling direction is facing upwards, and displaying targets that exist within the circular display area in the corresponding positions.

In the illustrated example, the entire circle centered on the vehicle progress icon I0 is displayed in the display area of the display unit 15, but it is also possible to display only a portion of the circle by, for example, positioning the vehicle progress icon I0 lower on the screen or expanding the radius.

Then, the point registered as the above-mentioned point data is added to one of these target icons. In other words, the control unit 18 acquires the vehicle position information and the position information of the point data, and if the point data exists within a circular area within a predetermined radius centered on the vehicle position, it displays a target icon corresponding to the point data at the relevant position.

*Other vehicle position display function As described above, in this embodiment, each target detection device periodically transmits its own vehicle position information, and by receiving vehicle position information transmitted from other target detection devices, it recognizes the presence of other target detection devices in the vicinity.

The control unit 18 therefore adds other target detection devices as one of the items (elements) to be displayed on the display unit 15. As a result, when the display mode of the display unit 15 is set to display targets present around the vehicle as marks, and another target detection device is present within the display area, a target icon (mark) indicating a "vehicle equipped with a target detection device" is displayed at the corresponding position.

By doing this, marks indicating the own vehicle and other vehicles are displayed on the same display screen, and the relative positions of each vehicle can be confirmed on the display screen. As a result, the user can experience that the system is operating normally. Furthermore, if a target icon indicating a point is displayed while a mark indicating another vehicle is displayed, this means that no point data has been registered for either the own vehicle or other vehicles, and therefore it can be seen that there is a high probability that there are no factors in the vicinity that would cause point data to be registered.

Next, each of the above functions will be explained using a specific example. As shown in FIG. 5, a vehicle equipped with unit A (ID=A) which is a target detection device, and another vehicle equipped with unit B (ID=B) which is another target detection device, are traveling on a predetermined trajectory and gradually approaching each other. As shown in FIG. 6, the vehicle equipped with a target detection device with ID=A changes its current position information as it travels, so the vehicle position information is updated periodically (at 5-second intervals) and the vehicle position information is transmitted. If there are no other target detection devices in the vicinity, the control unit 18 does not receive vehicle position information from the other target detection devices, so the control unit 18 updates the vehicle position information stored in memory and periodically repeats the process of transmitting the updated vehicle position information.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, when the target detection device with ID=A and the target detection device with ID=B approach each other and the distance between them becomes equal to or less than a certain distance, the target detection device with ID=A can receive the vehicle position information transmitted from the target detection device with ID=B. Then, the control unit 18 displays a target icon (symbol B in FIG. 7) corresponding to the target detection device with ID=B based on the received vehicle position information of ID=B.

In addition, when the control unit 18 recognizes the presence of a device that receives the vehicle position information of another target detection device (ID=B), it accesses the internal non-volatile memory 17 and extracts any points ("Point X" in the example shown in the figure) that are within 2 km of the current position based on the vehicle position information stored in itself, and transmits the point data for Point X paired with the vehicle position information at the timing of transmitting the vehicle position information, as shown in FIG. 8.

Although not shown in the figure, when the target detection device with ID=B receives this transmitted data of point X, it determines whether it is new or has already been registered, and if it is new, it registers it in its internal non-volatile memory. If the point data for point X has not been registered, the target detection device with ID=B registers new point data for that point X in its internal non-volatile memory, and when the current position information and the position information of point X have a specified relationship, it can issue an alarm based on the position information. In other words, for the target detection device with ID=B, point X can issue an alarm based on its position information in advance, without ever receiving microwaves from it.

In addition, as the target detection device with ID=A moves, the range within 2 km changes, and the points that belong to that range also change, so the content of the points to be transmitted changes as the device moves. If there are multiple points, for example, the multiple point data are stored in a temporary memory such as a buffer and associated with a transmitted flag, and as described above, the data is transmitted one by one starting with the data with the most recent registration date, and once transmitted, the transmitted flag is set. Then, at the next transmission time, the data with the most recent registration date is selected from those that do not have the transmitted flag set and transmitted. In addition, if the range within 2 km changes at this time and point data needs to be added or deleted from the temporary memory, the relevant addition/deletion update process is performed.

Once the control unit 18 has received vehicle position information from another target detection device and started transmitting its own point data, it will continue transmitting the point data even if it is temporarily unable to receive the vehicle position information from the other target detection device. This is because there is a risk that the vehicle position information of the other target detection device may not be received even if there is another target detection device in the vicinity due to a communication error or a busy state in which communication is not possible. If the vehicle position information cannot be received for a certain period of time (for example, one minute), it is determined that the other target detection device has left, and the control unit 18 switches to transmitting only the vehicle position information (terminating the transmission of point data). In addition, in conjunction with this, the target icon indicating the target detection device with ID=B is erased (not displayed) from the display area of the display unit 15.

*Point data reliability update function As mentioned above, at least when registering point data automatically or manually, the reliability is set to a reference value of 1 as the initial value. In this way, point data that is considered to be the same point as the already registered point data may be transmitted from one or more other target detection devices. When point data is received for the same point from different target detection devices, the reliability of that point data can be said to be high.

Therefore, it is advisable to add a reliability update function as shown in FIG. 9 to the control unit 18. The flowchart shown in FIG. 9 is based on the receiving function in FIG. 3, with processing steps S18 and S19 added. These processing steps S18 and S19 can also be called the reliability update function, and the flowchart shown in FIG. 9 can be considered a receiving function with a reliability update function.

Specifically, the control unit 18 waits to receive point data (S15), and judges whether point data that is estimated to be the same target (cause of occurrence) as the received point data has already been registered (S16). If the point data has been registered (S16=Yes), the control unit 18 judges whether the point data is from a new target detection device (S18), and if it is new, increments the reliability stored in the point data that is deemed to be the same by 1, and adds the location information or unit ID included in the received point data as additional information (S19). Whether the point data is from a new target detection device can be determined using the additional information. In other words, if the unit ID is registered as additional information, it can be determined that the point data is new if the unit ID of the current point data is not registered as additional information. Also, if the location information is registered as additional information, it can be determined that the data is new if the exact same location information is not registered. This is because there is little possibility that the location information registered by different target detection devices will be exactly the same.

Also, if there is no registered point data (S16 = No), the control unit 18 registers the currently received point data in the internal non-volatile memory 17 (S17). At this time, if reliability is included as a transmission item of the point data, the received reliability is registered, and if reliability is not included, the reliability is set to a reference value of 1.

In this way, the result of S16 becomes No when neither automatic nor manual registration is performed (point data is not registered in the target detection device itself) and a notification of point data is received from another target detection device. The point data registered in response to a notification from another target detection device in this way also becomes registered point data that is compared when making the branching decision in processing step S16 after registration. Therefore, if new point data that seems to be the same target is received from another target detection device after this registration, the branching decision in processing step S16 becomes Yes, and the branching decision in S18 is whether the target detection device that registered the newly received point data is different from the target detection device that initially registered the already registered point data. If this decision is Yes, point data registered by different target detection devices for the same target (point) is received, which can be said to be more reliable than when it is received from only one target detection device, and the reliability is increased.

In other words, if the point data registered automatically or manually and the point data registered by another target detection device are point data about the same target, or if the point data received from multiple different target detection devices are about the same target (created by different sources), the target corresponding to that point data is highly likely to be the object to be detected, so the reliability is increased each time as described above.

Figure 10 shows the reliability update function in the case where point data is registered by receiving from another target detection device first, and then the device itself automatically or manually registers the point data. When the control unit 18 detects microwaves that meet a predetermined condition (Yes in S21), it attempts to register the point data, but at this time, it judges whether the point data has already been registered (S22). This judgment is made by comparing the position registered as point data with the current position, as in the case of the various functions described above, and if the two are within a certain distance, it is judged to be the same target and has already been registered. If the point data is registered, the control unit 18 checks the unit ID stored in the point data and judges whether it is its own unit ID (S23). When the point data is registered by receiving from another target detection device (No in S23), the unit ID is stored as an ID other than its own, so it can be judged that the device itself is the first point detection, and the reliability is updated (increment by +1). On the other hand, when the device itself is its own unit ID (Yes in S23), the reliability that was previously registered by the control unit 18 is not updated. If the branch decision at S22 is No, the point data is new and registration processing is performed (S25).

Furthermore, as another reliability update function, reliability information may be added to the point data, the transmitting target detection device transmits its own unit ID and point data, and the receiving target detection device has point data already registered in the point data storage unit for a point that can be considered the same as the point that identifies the alarm target corresponding to the received location information, and if the unit ID of the currently received point differs from the unit ID stored in the storage unit, the reliability may be increased.

In other words, when location information of points that can be considered the same is received from multiple target detection devices, the reliability is higher than when notification is received from only one target detection device, and even when "multiple" is used, the reliability increases as the number increases. Therefore, the reliability may be increased (incremented by +1) each time point data of points that can be considered the same is received from different unit IDs. Of course, there may be cases where the same point data is received multiple times from the same target detection device, but in that case, if the unit ID associated with the point data received in the past is compared and it is recognized that they are the same, the reliability of the point data received this time will not be increased (updated).

In addition, the point data received from another target detection device is not necessarily registered automatically or manually by the target detection device that sent it, but may be point data that was received and registered from yet another target detection device, or may be point data that the device itself sent in the past. Therefore, if the reliability is determined simply based on the difference in the unit ID of the sender as described above, the target detection device (creator) that initially registered the data may all be the same. In such a case, even if the point data is received from multiple target detection devices, it can be determined that the reliability is lower than when all of the creators are different. Therefore, even if the unit IDs are different, if the latitude and longitude are exactly the same, it is better to presume that the creators are the same and not perform an update process to increase the reliability. At this time, it is more preferable to further take into account the registration date information and presume that the creators are the same and not perform an update process if the latitude, longitude, and registration date are exactly the same. This is because even if point data is registered using different target detection devices, there is still a possibility that the latitude and longitude will be exactly the same by chance. Of course, to perform reliability update processing with simple processing, as described above, it is also possible to make a judgment based on the unit ID of the sender (without using latitude, longitude, etc.).

By using these reliability update functions, for example, as shown in FIG. 11(a), if point X has already been registered as point data, and point Y (FIG. 11(b)) is received from another target detection device, Y is not within 500 m of X, so it is recognized as a different item and added as point data, and is displayed as a target icon Tn. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11(c), if point Z is received from another target detection device, Z is within 500 m of X, so it is determined to be the same item, and new point data is not registered based on Z, but the reliability of the originally registered point data for X increases.

*Point data lifespan management function When considering the use of point data received from other target detection devices, the point data is often temporary speed measurements using a mobile speed measurement device, and it can be said that the possibility of performing the same speed measurement in the same place on a day other than the registration date is not very high. Places where measurements are regularly performed using a mobile speed measurement device become somewhat well-known, so it is possible to deal with this by registering it separately as basic data in advance.

On the other hand, if speed measurements happen to be taken at a certain location and point data is registered at that time, the number of registered point data will increase, and frequent alarms will be generated based on that point data. Furthermore, if the frequent alarms are often unrelated to the actual situation (there is no target to be detected), this may distract attention and result in undesirable results.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the control unit 18 compares the registration date, which is one of the parameters of the point data, with the current date and time (which can be obtained from a GPS signal), and gives the point data a lifespan as shown below, thereby changing the content of the warning.
If the current date and time is the date of registration: Alert for today's point. If within the last two weeks since registration: Alert for recent point. If within the last month since registration: Alert for points within the last month. If within the last two months since registration: Alert for points within the last two months. If within the last three months since registration: Alert for points within the last three months. If more than three months have passed since registration: No alert.

The above alarms can be notified by sound, and when output to the display unit, they can be output as messages or displayed in different colors or sizes, among other things.

*Function for adding additional information to existing targets In the internal non-volatile memory 17, areas where speed measurements are performed regularly and frequently using a mobile speed measurement device based on sightings, etc., are registered, and the control unit 18 may have a function to issue a predetermined alarm when the area is approached. When such a function is provided, when a request for adding new point data occurs following a notification from the user or another person, if it is recognized from the location information of the point data that the point data corresponds to the above-mentioned area, the detection record is added to the area as additional information. When this detection record is added, an alarm can be issued with a more reliable response (such as adding additional information by voice and announcing it). This allows an alarm with added reliability to be issued without additionally registering point data.

*Point warning function In the case of point data, it is difficult to add directional information (such as the direction of microwave emission). Therefore, the warning range is made wider than usual. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, if the vehicle enters within 1100 m of the point data position (approaching the central position), a 1 km warning is issued, and if the vehicle enters within 600 m, a 500 m warning is issued. Once the vehicle enters within 500 m (approaching the central position), a departure notice is issued when the vehicle leaves the 1100 m range.

*Communication specifications Incidentally, the target detection device 10 is designed to periodically transmit its own vehicle position information (some with point data). If the transmission interval of each target detection device 10 is set to exactly the same value (5 seconds), as shown in Fig. 13(a), when multiple target detection devices (two in the figure) start carrier sense at almost the same timing, there is a possibility that there will be no carrier because no vehicle position information is being transmitted from the other target detection devices at that time, and the process of simultaneously starting transmission will be repeated endlessly. If this happens, there will be a problem that the transmission of data between the target detection devices 10 will not be established due to the simultaneous transmission.

Therefore, the transmission interval (transmission cycle) of each target detection device 10 is spread by random numbers within a certain range based on a reference value (for example, 5 seconds). This prevents the transmission cycles of each target detection device 10 from being the same over and over again, and as shown in FIG. 13(b), even if the carrier sense and transmission timing is the same at one point in time, the carrier sense timing will be shifted at another point in time, making it possible to receive vehicle position information and the like transmitted from the other target detection device.

In addition, the wireless transmission/reception unit 13 is constantly receiving for frame synchronization search except during transmission. Then, the control unit 18 sends a transmission request to the wireless transmission/reception unit 13 when the transmission period is reached. When the wireless transmission/reception unit 13 receives the transmission request, it judges whether transmission is currently possible (no carrier), and if transmission is possible without a carrier, it accepts the transmission request and performs transmission processing, and if it is during reception, etc., it cannot transmit, so the transmission request is rejected. If there are multiple (many) target detection devices in the vicinity, they may start transmitting all at once the moment there is no carrier, which may result in a communication error. Therefore, it is preferable to set the waiting time (offset) from the end of reception to the start of the next transmission to a different value for each target detection device, so that transmission is made from one of the target detection devices. One method of making this offset different is to change it each time using a random number, etc. In this way, it is possible to suppress the possibility that the offsets of multiple target detection devices in the vicinity will match each time. Also, the last one or two digits of the serial number are used to group them, and a different offset is set for each group. Doing this also reduces the likelihood that multiple target detection devices in the vicinity will belong to the same group.

10, 10' Target detection device 11 Microwave receiving unit 12 GPS receiving unit (position detection unit)
13 Radio transmission/reception unit (radio reception unit)
14 Input unit 15 Display unit 16 Speaker 17 Internal non-volatile memory (database, point data storage unit)
18 Control unit 19 SD slot 20 SD memory card

Claims (6)

A device for controlling the issuance of an alarm based on vehicle speed measurement device position information stored in a storage unit that stores vehicle speed measurement device position information collected from a plurality of vehicles, the device comprising:
A function to detect the vehicle's position,
a function of controlling to issue an alarm when position information indicating the position of the vehicle and position information of any one of the vehicle speed measuring devices stored in the storage unit are in a predetermined positional relationship;
having
The vehicle speed measuring device emits microwaves that meet predetermined conditions,
the location information of the vehicle speed measuring device stored in the storage unit is registered based on a location where a microwave that meets the predetermined condition is received by any one of the plurality of vehicles;
A device that performs a specified processing when it is determined that the microwaves are from a malfunction source based on the microwave reception conditions and when the location information indicating the vehicle's position is in the specified positional relationship. A device for registering location information of a vehicle speed measuring device that emits microwaves that meet a predetermined condition in a storage unit,
A device having a function of registering location information of the vehicle speed measuring device in the memory unit based on the location of the vehicle when microwaves that meet the specified conditions are received by one or more vehicles, and registering location information of the speed measuring device that has been determined to be microwaves from a malfunction source based on the microwave reception conditions at one or more vehicles, in association with parameters for identifying whether or not specified processing will be performed in the case where it is determined to be radio waves from the source of the malfunction. The device described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the location information of the speed measuring device manually indicated in the vehicle is registered in the memory unit even if the vehicle is within a specified area corresponding to the location identified by the location information of the speed measuring device that is determined to be microwaves from the source of the malfunction. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein if no position information of the vehicle is determined within a predetermined time after microwaves that meet the specified conditions are received, the position information of the vehicle speed measuring device is not automatically registered in the memory unit. 5. The device according to claim 4, wherein even if there is no position information of the vehicle determined within the predetermined time period, if there is manually registered position information of the speed measurement device, the position information is registered in the storage unit. A program for causing a computer to realize the functions of the device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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