JPH0792880B2 - Assembled continuous road marking tape with light and electromagnetic capabilities - Google Patents

Description

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a continuous horizontal road marking tape, and the technology relating thereto will further advance by the present application.

PRIOR ART Applicants have been developing layered road marking tapes for about 20 years, and later have developed the use of electrical and electromagnetic energy in road marking technology.

The following patents have been issued in this latter specific area.

Switzerland 641.585 Belgium 883,208 Spain 491.399 Canada 1,149,491 France 80-10745 UK (UK) 2,050,769 Australia 539,631 Brazil 8030002 Argientin 233,797 No. 8003558-7 in Sweden In fact, the name "road marking tape" is today quite unclear, because the information contains not only optical radiation but also electromagnetic radiation. It is supplied by the company and its name should be changed appropriately. Although we refer to horizontal road marking tapes, it is natural that the road marking effect is an important function, and due to that function, the tapes are retroreflective elements, light emitting diodes. It should have a (LED), a solar cell, a charging pond, and the tape should be located where only the solar energy radiating onto the tape is available.

On the one hand, we can say that we have not yet reached a high level of safety if we are not taking advantage of the action of the electromagnetic energy emitted by the layers below the tape. The following is a specific example that makes full use of the effects of electromagnetic energy.

1) Dangerous places: Humans are not always aware of dangerous places on the road where vehicles need to slow down.

In such a case, an alarming impulse comes from the tape, for example from a gigahertz reflector, held in an adhesive layer and located on the layer below the tape. The warning impulse is generated by the activation of a comparator provided on the vehicle and, consequently, the activation of an optical or acoustic indicator in the vehicle.

2) Presence of ice: This danger is extremely serious because the presence of ice is not visible. Negative Temperer Control (NTC) activates an EPROM (Erase and Programmable Read Only Memory) chip, which in turn activates a MHz transmitter located with its antenna in the lower layer of tape. A message for speed reduction is then generated.

3) Traffic congestion: This danger is even more common today, and drivers are often upset. In this case, the driver of the vehicle presses the emergency microswitch provided under the tape, as will be explained in detail later. EPROMs, megahertz transmitters and their antennas are thus activated, and at the same time unidirectional luminescent tape is activated to eliminate congestion.

From the above examples, it has become clear that as a result both types of radiation are available and essential, optical and electromagnetic radiation.

Object of the invention The purpose or problem of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art and to ensure sufficient safety in terms of road traffic (traffic) so that sufficient conditions regarding traffic (traffic) can be obtained. It is to realize an assembled continuous road marking tape having optical and electromagnetic functions capable of giving information.

Structure of the Invention The above objects and problems are solved by the constituent features of the characteristic items defined in the claims.

The effects of the constituent elements or the objectives will be described below with respect to each of the claims of the present invention.

The invention according to claim 1 realizes a tape-shaped prefabricated road marking body which has abrasion resistance, mechanical strength, and is provided with preventive protection means so as not to be affected by electromagnetic interference (interference). In addition, the road markings are removably arranged so that they can be used in other places or positions without damaging the markings, if necessary. It contributes to avoiding or eliminating traffic jams, and can help the driver to be alerted to road or traffic hazards with a small energy consumption. The required energy source is provided depending on the solar cell specified in claim 1.

The structure of claim 2 is an effective reflection that causes the tape-shaped road marking object that is shielded against noise interference or interference interference caused by road disturbance or disturbance to reflect electromagnetic waves. The device configuration of the container is realized.

Depending on the configuration of claim 3, claim 2
The structure of a transmitter for transmitting an effective antenna and electromagnetic waves in the road marking tape concerned, which is provided with a protective protection function against a (interference) obstacle from the road, as in the case of the above configuration. Can be realized.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the configuration of the reflector on the marking tape can be realized with an excellent ability to receive reflected electromagnetic waves.

According to the configuration of claim 5, a notification or transmission of a notification about a traffic situation or a road situation can be performed for a vehicle that is passing in order to avoid traffic congestion or danger on the road.

According to the structure of claim 6, a low temperature condition such as in an icy road condition is recorded for an oncoming (approaching) driver.

According to claim 7 (the second invention), signaling (signalization) of traffic congestion or a dangerous situation of a road by an easy operation method, for example, such a traffic (traffic) to a subsequent driver. Congestion or such road hazards (conditions)
It is useful as a guidance (index) to call attention to prevent danger so as not to become a victim of.

EXAMPLES Before describing the electromagnetic radiation, the structure of the tape which can guarantee good results will be described in detail.

It should be noted that the tape referenced in FIG. 1 does not show all of its layers, only the layers that are essential to the tape.

Cross-sectional and plan views are shown for each layer. The upper layer 2 is covered with a resistant film made of polyurethane resin, which film is for years to ensure good results. The upper layer 2 is colored in order to ensure good visibility during the day and retroreflective element 14 is added on top of it, and as 16,
Although one of the transparent protrusions is depicted, it contains a plurality of light emitting diodes, a plurality of solar cells, a plurality of charging cells and the like.

The next intermediate layer 4 consists of a nonwoven fabric strongly impregnated with a polyurethane prepolymer, which provides the tape with mechanical properties.

The third layer 6 has a plurality of antennas and a plurality of reflectors 18, and the layer is coated with an adhesive material as shown in the schematic view of FIG. These will be described in detail later. The fourth layer 8 consists of circuits to which electrical and electromagnetic components are coupled, which circuits are fixed by means of conductive strips coated with an adhesive material. The fifth layer 10 is an EMI (electromagnetic interference) sheeted layer,
It has the function of protecting the electromagnetic element from disturbance disturbances coming from the ground.

Layer 10 comprises a dispersion of electrically conductive particles or metallization material, as indicated generally by 22.
Good results have been obtained in acrylic prepolymers, such as Nikkel Spray produced at the Metal Galvano Sotchi plant of Robero Polo (Italy) or Acrylic Coating 3M110 produced at Minnesota Mining and Manifactia. It is obtained by using the Nickel distribution of high barcentage.

Even if the tape described so far is not very expensive, it comes at a certain cost, so it is necessary to consider the possibility of moving this tape to another place.

For this purpose, the sixth layer 12 adheres well to the road surface, but at the same time has a strong extensibility, with strong adhesive penetration, so that it can be removed without damaging the tape. With a woven fabric, said layer being depicted in plan view as 24.

Returning to the function of the tape, the gigahertz reflector 6 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 provided in the lower layer of the tape to reflect the electromagnetic energy emitted by the vehicle.
Is basically necessary for speed control of the vehicle. The Gigahertz reflector 6 is embodied by a number of conductive strips dipped in an adhesive material, as depicted in FIG. 2, which strips are at an angle to the direction of travel of the vehicle. It is located in the direction-usually 15 degrees.

This angular shape ensures good reception of reflected waves on the sides of the tape within a sufficiently wide lateral lane.

As shown in FIG. 2, the reflector 6 has several groups of equidistant metal strips 26 adhered to the tape, for example 1 mm wide metal flakes, each group being Are marked at different distances between the strips, for example 28 and 30 in FIG.
There are two groups indicated by where the metal flakes have different spacing distances. The gigahertz reflector 6 has a diffuse reflection characteristic in the vertical direction, and the position of the vehicle on the road is considered to change within a predetermined space interval of several meters in the direction perpendicular to the traffic direction. The maximum amount of reflection should fall within the reflection diagram.

For good results, it is necessary to choose a group of 4 strips, for a space of 0-4 meters, the first group being separated by a distance of 2 cm between each strip. , The second group is 1.3 cm apart and the third group is 1.6 cm apart,
And in the fourth group, they are 1.4 cm apart.

Five or more strips 26 are used in each group, and the length of each strip 26 is at least 50 cm, but it is usually long.

In FIG. 3, a shield layer embodied as described.
10 is shown and its shield is somewhat wider than the group of reflectors, to get the best possible shielding effectiveness.

In FIG. 4, the transmitting and receiving techniques are shown schematically. These are carried out at frequencies in the GHz range, conveniently 24 GHz for example. The transmitter 32 on the vehicle has a frequency stable oscillator, which is connected through a coupling 34 to a horn antenna 33, which has an angle of 45 degrees to the road surface, and is schematically shown in this figure. Emits towards the reflector 36 only shown.

The energy returning from the reflector 36 is received by another horn antenna 35, which is also provided on the vehicle, and is guided to the mixer 38, from which the frequency f _D is obtained, which frequency Is the frequency of the difference between the frequency emitted by the antenna 33 and the frequency received by the antenna 35.

In fact, when the reflector 36 is swept at a certain speed, the transmit and receive frequencies are not equal due to the Doppler effect. The signal from mixer 38 goes to a high pass filter and an 80 dB amplifier 40, and then a low pass filter 42.
And finally a comparator and pulse shaper
44.

There are two ways to activate the indicators on the vehicle. The first method is based on the impulses emanating from the metal strip 26 by the sweep of the waves transmitted on the tape.
A way of knowing the frequency of a wave, where the frequency of the wave is simply dependent on the speed of the vehicle.

The impulses form an impulse train which is activated when the impulse train exceeds the threshold of comparator 44.

The second method is sure to have. The comparator 44 of FIG. 4 has a generator of tuning tones (symbols) matching the selected speed, which generator produces impulses of a given shape and frequency. The display surface of the vehicle is activated when the reflected wave matches the impulse set in relation to the selected speed.

The technique described is well known.
Controlling the speed of a vehicle in a hazardous area is extremely important and it is also possible to make "black box" type forecasts for those dangerous areas in order to force the driver of the vehicle to slow down and speed up. it can. As pointed out above, the composite road marking tape which is the subject of the present invention has a small radio transmitter 52 (Fig. 5) which emits a message recorded in EPROM, which transmitter is in the megahertz range. Operates in the (MHz) range. The transmitter 32, which has an extremely low energy consumption of, for example, about 8 mW.
Is to be supplied by a small charging pond which is supplied by a solar cell provided on the tape, which has already been described in connection with the transparent protrusion 16 in FIG. Has been done.

The messages recorded in the EPROM and transmitted under the action of appropriate control may be of different types, of which two of the most important are described here.

FIG. 5 shows a mode for warning the vehicle driver of the presence of ice. It utilizes a negative temperature control-NTC 46 with a sensor 48 and a calibrator 50, an EPROM 51 with an integrator 47, a memory 49 and an amplifier 53, and a transmitter 52 with a dipole antenna 54. When the temperature falls below the previously set limit value, these devices send a recorded message.

Another very serious danger is traffic congestion. FIG. 6 shows how traffic jams are signaled and how the indicators are activated to clear the traffic jams. There are depicted two signal tapes 56, 62 placed in parallel and connected by electrical cables (not shown). Tape 56 is a general marking tape and tape 62 is an emergency tape. Shown on the tape 56 is a transparent protrusion 60 having a plurality of LEDs, a plurality of solar cells, and a plurality of charging ponds therein, as in the transparent protrusion 16 of FIG. ing.

Further, a compressible portion 61 is provided at a predetermined position, and a micro switch is accommodated in the compressible portion 61. See Applicant's European Patent 0100524 and US Pat. No. 4,685,824 for such compressible tapes.

In the case of traffic congestion, the driver of the vehicle in control, or a traffic police officer, activates the microswitch by placing his vehicle on the compressible portion 61. This activates an alarm system similar to the alarm system described above for signaling the presence of ice. On one side a message "traffic jam" was sent and on the other hand a tape 62 was activated, on which a red, transverse pulse light 66 and a green, longitudinal alignment were provided. A pulse light 64 is provided. The light 64 guides a passing vehicle in a direction opposite to the normal direction toward the exit. The light 64 pulse is extremely fast. Traffic in the opposite direction is to the extent possible in that particular situation,
It could be done with an overtaking lane or with an emergency lane.

At the same time, it is necessary to prevent further vehicles from entering the relevant point on the highway, for which purpose a red light (not drawn) is illuminated at the beginning of the traffic jam. Moreover, one or more pairs of sensors are installed at the start of the traffic jam, and if the vehicle enters the prohibited direction, ignoring the red traffic lights, the plate will be on the camera. It will be recognized all the time. The circuits required to implement the ones described so far can be realized by known techniques.

There are many other hazards that analog information devices can utilize, such as fog hazards. Traffic jam road marking tapes are also used to guide traffic towards the city center or in other directions.

Effect of the Invention The present invention can provide an improved road marking tape that utilizes light and electromagnetic radiation.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows several layers of a tape structure according to the invention,
FIG. 2 is a fragmentary schematic view in exploded form, shown in elevation from the side and plan view from above, FIG. 2 containing different groups of equidistant metal strips adhered to tape. 3 is a fragmentary top view of the third tape layer 6, FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top view of the shield layer 10 of the tape, and FIG. 4 is a gigahertz transmitter. FIG. 5 is a schematic circuit diagram showing a receiver and a receiver, and FIG. 5 is a schematic circuit diagram of a mode in which a negative temperature control (NTC) is used to warn a vehicle driver of the presence of ice on the road surface. Figure 6 shows parallel signal tape for activating traffic lights to signal traffic jams and guide vehicles away from traffic jams.
FIG. 53 is a fragmentary top plan view showing the use of 56, 52. 2 to 12 ... Each layer of tape, 14 ... Reflective element, 16 ... Protrusion, 18
… Reflectors, 22… conductive particles, 24… woven cloth, 26… metal strips, 28,30… groups of strips, 32… transmitters, 33…
Antenna, 34 ... Coupling, 35 ... Antenna, 36 ... Reflector, 38 ... Mixer, 40 ... Amplifier, 42 ... Low pass filter, 44 ... Pulse shaper, 46 ... NTC, 47 ... Integrator, 48 ... Sensor, 49 ... Memory , 50 ... Calibration equipment, 51 ... ROM, 52 ...
Transmitter, 53 ... Amplifier, 54 ... Antenna, 56 ... Tape, 60 ...
Protrusion, 61 ... Compressible, 62 ... Tape, 64 ... Green light, 66
… Red light.

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. To be utilized by incoming traffic,
A continuous assembled multi-layer road marking tape fixed on a road surface, wherein the tape has the following constituent requirements (a) to
(F), that is, (a) having a wear resistant upper surface layer with a permeable protrusion,
The upper surface layer (a) further comprises the following constituent elements (i) to
With (v), ie (i) retroreflector, (ii) solar cell, (iii) small rechargeable battery, (iv) multiple light emitting diodes (LEDs), (V) low operating in the MHz frequency range An energy consuming transmitter unit; (b) an intermediate layer consisting of an impregnated non-woven layer; (c) an antenna consisting of a conductive wire connected to said transmitter unit; (d) from the road surface Electromagnetic interference shield provided on the lower surface of the tape as a protection against incoming electromagnetic disturbances, (e) consisting of a strong extensible web that allows the tape to be removed from the road surface A continuous type preassembled multilayer road marking tape, comprising: (f) each constituent element of the electric circuit for connecting the solar cell, the rechargeable battery, the light emitting diode, the transmitting unit and the antenna. 2. The transmitted electromagnetic wave is transmitted from a conductive strip adhered to a lower layer of the tape forming a reflector, the reflector operating in the gigahertz frequency range. The tape according to claim 1, which is protected and protected by the electromagnetic interference shield against disturbances from the road surface. 3. The transmitted electromagnetic wave is transmitted from an antenna operating in the frequency range of megahertz connected to a transmitter located on the tape, the antenna being a disturbance from a road surface. The tape according to claim 1, wherein the tape is protected and protected by the electromagnetic interference shield. 4. A conductive strip as claimed in claim 1, which is a multiple strip and is positioned with a dipping adhesive at a predetermined angle with respect to the direction of travel. The listed tape. 5. A tape according to claim 3, wherein said glasses hertz transmitter is arranged to transmit a message recorded in EPROM for use by an oncoming vehicle. 6. A tape as claimed in claim 5, wherein the message recorded in the EPROM indicates an excessively low temperature condition on the road surface. 7. (a) having a microswitch located in the compressible portion of the tape in question, said microswitch being operable by compression of said tape; and (b) megahertz transmission. And an EPROM connected to the microswitch and configured to send a traffic jam notification, (c) a series of directional light emitting diodes operated by the microswitch. A continuous type preassembled multi-layer road marking tape fixed on a road surface, which has a structure to give guidance so as to avoid the traffic congestion situation.