Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication – Traffic analysis or control of surface vehicle
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-19
2001-06-12
Cuchlinski, Jr., William A. (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
Traffic analysis or control of surface vehicle
C701S118000, C701S119000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06246955
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to vehicle communications based on zone configuration, and more specifically to a vehicle communication system effectively using a frequency and a method for the same.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Now very active efforts are made for development of (the Intelligent Transport System: ITS) to be put into practical use in the 21-st century. The ITS is a transport system constructed by using the most advanced data communication technology in which roads and vehicles are integrated with each other. Purposes of construction of this system includes improvement of safety and transport efficiency, realization of improved comfort, and contribution to better environmental conditions.
The most advanced technology used for construction of the ITS is (the Automated Highway System: AHS). The AHS enables completely automatic mode of driving by means of automated controls over information transaction between a road and a car as well as over the car, which makes it possible to reduce work load to a driver and to improve safety and smoothness in driving.
The AHS is realized by the “road-to-vehicle communications” executed between information infrastructure on a road and vehicles and the “vehicle-to-vehicle communications” executed between vehicles. The AHS can respond to various situations by controlling running of vehicles by means of bilateral communications between a road and vehicles as well as of bilateral communications between vehicles.
However, it can be anticipated that the following problems would occur in relation to introduction of automatic run of vehicles in the future.
It is anticipated that the AHS will be managed by means of driving controls by way of mobile communications based on zone configuration for effective utilization of channels. In that case, if a traffic jam occurs on a road, a number of vehicles in one radio zone substantially increases. A number of frequency bands available for the AHS is limited, however, so that shortage of communication channels occurs.
In a case of a portable telephone based on the conventional technology, when the situation as described above occurs, the busy state is notified to a user, and the user is required to stand by for a while, but in a case of AHS, real time controls are provided over vehicles actually running, so that generation of the busy state must be prevented by any means. To achieve the object described above, a system for continuously providing control information to vehicles requiring services under limited environmental conditions is required.
Further, explosive increase of communication equipment put in actual use may require a far larger number of channels than an expected one for a period of time in the future. There is the strong needs for development of a method of suppressing the overflow as described above.
OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle communication system capable of preventing shortage of communication channels caused by a traffic jam or for other reasons and a method for the same.
FIG. 1
is a view showing principles of a vehicle communication system according to the present invention. The vehicle communication system shown in
FIG. 1
is a system in which communications for automated driving controls for vehicles is executed according to a zone system, and comprises a monitoring means
1
, a detecting means
2
, and a control means
3
.
In the first principle of the present invention, the monitoring unit
1
is provided in one zone on a road, and monitors an information traffic volume in two or more areas each having a channel number of a time slot number allocated thereto. When an information traffic volume in one of the two or more areas above exceeds a prespecified rate, the control unit
3
provide controls for reallocating channels or time slots allocated to the other areas of the two or more areas to the one area.
In the communications based on a zone system on a road, the road is divided to several communication zones (radio zones) each having a specified range, and a required number of communication channels is allocated to each zone based on the time division system. Each zone is further divided to a plurality of areas according to, for instance, a boundary between lanes, and a specified number of channels or time slots available in each area is allocated thereto.
The monitoring unit
1
monitors, for instance, a number of channels or time slots being used in an area as an information traffic volume in the area, and reports the information traffic volume to the control means
3
.
Then, the control means determines whether the information traffic volume reported from the monitoring unit
1
has exceeded a preset value or not. As this present value, for instance, an arbitrary value smaller than the number of allocated channels or time slots described above is used.
If an area where the information traffic volume may exceeds a preset value to cause overflow is detected, the control means
3
reallocates channels or time slots allocated to other areas in the same zone to the area to prevent occurrence of overflow. With this operation, shortage of communications associated with a traffic jam or the similar situation can be prevented.
In the second principle of the present invention, the monitoring means
1
is provided in a zone on a road, and monitors an information traffic volume in two or more areas each having a specified number of channels or time slots allocated thereto. When an information traffic volume in one of the two or more areas exceeds a prespecified value, the control means
3
provides controls for limiting a communication information volume for a vehicle in the area.
By limiting a communication information volume for one vehicle in an area where an information traffic volume may exceeds a preset value, for instance, a service requiring transmission of a large volume of information such as an image is temporally suspended. With this operation, by reallocated the saved time slots to other channels, shortage of communication channel can be prevented.
In the third principle of the present invention, the detecting means
2
is provided in one zone on a road, and detects a traffic jam in any one of two or more areas each having a specified number of communication channels or time slots allocated thereto. When a traffic jam occurs in one of the two or more areas, the control means
3
provides controls for limiting a communication information volume for a vehicle in the zone.
The detecting means
2
determines whether a traffic jam has been generated or not by checking a number of vehicles, a running speed of the vehicles, and distances between the vehicles in each area. When generation of a traffic jam has been detected in an area, the control means
3
limits a communication information volume for one vehicle in a zone including the area. By reallocating the saved time slots to other channels, shortage of communication channels can be prevented.
For instance, the monitoring means
1
, detecting means
2
, and control means
3
correspond to components of an information processing apparatus provided in a central station
11
shown in
FIG. 2
described later.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4361202 (1982-11-01), Minovitch
patent: 5875183 (1999-02-01), Nitadori
patent: 5887268 (1999-03-01), Furukawa
patent: 5928294 (1999-07-01), Zelinkowsky
Nishikawa Kumiko
Watanabe Jun-ichi
Cuchlinski Jr. William A.
Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.
Marc-Coleman Marthe Y.
Public Works Research Institute
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