JP5471319B2 - Power supply and traffic control system equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a power supply device for supplying power to equipment used in a traffic control system such as traffic signs and various sensors, and a traffic control system equipment using the power supply apparatus.

  Traffic signs, display boards, or various detectors such as vehicle detectors and freeze detectors are used as devices constituting traffic control systems including traffic signals. Many of these devices use AC power supplied by a distribution network as power as power. In addition, these devices are often mounted on pillars standing on the roadside or on arms provided so as to protrude from the pillars on the road because of the necessity of visibility from automobiles and measurement of vehicles, road surfaces, etc. . Therefore, in order to supply electric power to these high places, a power line is laid to the arm tip.

  On the other hand, other means for power supply related to traffic are also being studied. Some devices equipped with solar cells have already been put into practical use. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a power generation system that obtains electric power using a vibration generator installed on a road surface. Further, Patent Document 2 discloses that wind vibration is used for a light emitting label. Piezoelectric elements are used for these vibration power generations, but there are other types of vibration power generators such as an electrostatic induction type, and in-vehicle power generation devices that generate power in three directions are also known (Patent Document 3). ).

JP 2006-197704 A JP-A-2005-352298 JP 2009-33809 A

  The conventional power supply method requires power supply wiring to transmit the power from the distribution network to the equipment, so wiring that corresponds to individual equipment such as underground wiring to the pillar and startup wiring to the pillar is required. There is a lot of waste. In addition, the use of solar cells is desired in recent ecological orientations. In this case, wiring can be omitted if it is provided in each device, but it is necessary to increase the area of the solar cell to obtain sufficient power with only the solar battery power source, and the amount of power generation depends on the weather. Because of such problems, it has not been sufficient for wide use as a stable power supply device. In addition, there have been some conventional methods that use ground vibrations on roads, wind power, or vibrations of the car itself for power generation, but there are limited places where ground vibrations can be applied. There is a problem that it is necessary to provide an object and that it is difficult to stably supply power. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new power supply device that does not require power supply from a distribution network and that can stably supply power independently, as a power supply device used in traffic control system equipment.

  The present inventors pay attention to the fact that the vibrations caused by ground vibrations and winds due to traffic flow are large on the pillars and arms where the traffic control system equipment is installed, and the electric power that drives the equipment due to this vibration. The present invention has been conceived in order to obtain the present invention.

1st invention of this application is a power supply device for supplying the electric power to a traffic control system apparatus, Comprising: It attaches on the support | pillar or arm for fixing the said traffic control system apparatus, and vibration of this support | pillar or arm A vibration power generation unit that generates power by the power generation unit, a power storage unit that stores the power generated by the vibration power generation unit, and the power generated by the vibration power generation unit and / or the power stored in the power storage unit, Ru power supply der having a supply power supply to the equipment.

  With such a configuration, the vibration of the column or arm can be used effectively as electric power. Since the amount of generated power due to vibration is not constant, it is possible to store a certain amount of power generated by providing a storage battery and stably supply power to the target device.

The vibration power generation unit generates an electromotive force with respect to vibration in any of the X, Y, and Z directions when the vertical direction of the installation location is the Z direction and the two directions orthogonal to each other in the horizontal plane are the X and Y directions. It has preferably be a three-dimensional vibration power generator with the resulting structure.

  The vibration of the column or arm is the vertical (vertical) vibration caused by the direct vibration of the ground caused by traffic such as automobiles, the horizontal vibration caused by the vibration, and the horizontal or vertical vibration caused by the wind. This includes so-called three-dimensional vibrations in all directions. Therefore, in order to efficiently replace these vibrations with the generated power, it is preferable to configure a three-dimensional vibration power generator.

The three-dimensional vibration power generator includes a movable part that vibrates due to vibration of the support column or arm in either one of a vertical direction or a horizontal direction, and a first power generation unit configured to be capable of generating power by the vibration of the movable part in the one direction. The first power generation unit itself is held so as to be vibrated by vibration of the support column or arm in a direction orthogonal to the one direction, and power is generated by the vibration of the first power generation unit. it is Ru can that can be assumed with a second power generation unit configured.

  In order to provide power generation capability in both the vertical and horizontal directions, it is conceivable to use three vibration power generators in combination so as to generate power in orthogonal directions. However, using three generators increases the cost of the equipment. Therefore, the present inventor has devised the above structure as a new generator structure. According to the vibration power generator having such a structure, since the first power generation unit and the second power generation unit are provided in one power generator, three-dimensional vibration power generation can be performed by one vibration power generator. A power supply device can be provided.

  More specifically, as such a three-dimensional vibration power generator, the movable part is a first permanent magnet, and the first power generation part is a vibration of the first permanent magnet and the first permanent magnet. A first coil placed at a position where an electromotive force is generated by the second power generation unit, wherein the second power generation unit vibrates due to vibration of the first power generation unit, and the second permanent magnet And a second coil placed at a position where an electromotive force is generated by the vibration.

Wherein each of the power supply, Ru preferably der be used for vehicle detectors as traffic control system equipment. The vehicle detector is attached so as to be positioned on the lane through which the automobile passes by the arm from the road-side column, and the vibration at the column tip and further the arm tip is large. In addition, the vehicle detector is a device that can be driven by a relatively small power, such as the possibility of being driven by a solar cell, and uses a vibration power generator as an independent power source without requiring power from the distribution network. Is a suitable subject.

Furthermore, the comprising an attached solar cell struts or arms, the power storage unit is not good when configured to store both electric power generated by the solar cells and the electric power generated by the vibration generator unit.

  By combining the solar battery cell and the vibration power generator, it is possible to compensate for temporal variations in the amount of each generated power, and to supply more stable power through stable generated power and storage batteries. Further, the power from the power distribution network can be used as a complementary power supply means by using the complementary power.

The present invention also includes a power supply device described above, that provides a traffic control system equipment that is configured to use electric power supplied as all or part of the drive power source by the power supply.

  As described above, according to the present invention, a power supply that is preferably used for a traffic control system device installed on a pillar or an arm, and that can stably supply power independently without requiring power supply from a distribution network. A device and a traffic control system device using the device can be provided.

It is a schematic diagram which illustrates the composition which applies the power supply device of the present invention to traffic control system equipment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the vibration power generator concerning this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the power supply device of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows another structure of the power supply device of this invention.

  FIG. 1 shows a typical application example of the present invention. The support column 1 is set up substantially vertically on the side of a road (not shown), and an arm 2 is provided so as to protrude on the road substantially horizontally from the upper part thereof. A vehicle detector 20 is fixed to the arm 2 as an example of a traffic control system device, and a vehicle passing on the road can be detected. In this figure, an optical vehicle sensor is shown as a vehicle sensor, but any type of vehicle sensor such as an ultrasonic vehicle sensor, an image type vehicle sensor, an infrared vehicle sensor, or the like may be used. . For the purpose of supplying power to the vehicle sensor 20, the power supply device 10 and the solar cells 30 connected thereto are fixed on the arm 2. Here, the power supply device 10 of the present invention has a built-in vibration power generator.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the power supply apparatus 10. The power supply device 10 includes three main parts: a vibration power generation unit 12, a power supply unit 14, and a power storage unit 16. Of course, common common parts such as a housing are omitted. The vibration power generation unit 12 is a power generator having a mechanism for generating an electromotive force by vibration applied to the power supply device. The power supply unit 14 is an electric circuit that performs supply of power generated by the vibration power generation unit 12 to the traffic control system device 20 and charge / discharge control to the power storage unit 16. The power supply unit 14 is a general power supply circuit having functions for performing rectification, switching, voltage conversion, overcurrent prevention, and the like as needed, and is not particularly limited. The power storage unit 16 is a chargeable / dischargeable secondary battery, and a commonly available secondary battery such as a lead storage battery, a lithium ion secondary battery, or a nickel metal hydride storage battery can be used.

  In this example, the output of the solar battery cell 30 is similarly connected to the power supply unit 14 and used together with the power generated by the vibration power generation unit. By configuring in this way, the power generated by the solar cell supplements the power generated by the vibration that does not always yield stable energy, and conversely the solar cell that cannot generate enough power at night or overcast It is possible to obtain leveled power in a form in which vibration power generation supplements the power generated by On the other hand, the solar battery cell is not essential, and if sufficient generated power can be obtained by vibration, the configuration of only the vibration power generation unit is possible by the configuration shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an example in which only the power supply device including the vibration power generation unit 12, the power supply unit 14, and the power storage unit 16 is configured. Although not shown in any figure, of course, the structure which compensates the unexpected situation of the electric power supply by vibration and sunlight by connecting the electric power from a power distribution network further to an electric power supply part is also possible. In any case, in order to use vibration power generation or power generation by solar cells as main power, the power storage unit 16 is necessary for supplying a stable voltage and current to the load device. In this example, the configuration is shown in which the power supply device 10 is housed in one casing surrounded by a dotted line. However, only the power storage unit 16 is housed in a different housing, or only the vibration power generation unit 12 is susceptible to vibration. It is possible to attach to a separate housing. In addition, it is preferable that the solar battery cell is attached to the casing of the power supply device in that the installation space to the arm or the like is reduced.

  The vibration power generator constituting the vibration power generation unit 12 will be described. As a principle of vibration power generation, a piezoelectric type, an electrostatic induction type, and an electromagnetic induction type are known. As the vibration power generator of the present invention, any system may be used as long as it can generate power by vibration on a pillar. The vibration targeted by the present invention is a relatively low frequency of about several tens of Hz or less, and the amplitude is several mm to several cm, and in some cases up to about several tens of cm. A piezoelectric type or an electromagnetic induction type is preferably used as a method that can easily detect the vibration of a building such as a pillar and can efficiently generate electric power required for a traffic control system device. The electromagnetic induction type constituted by a magnet and a coil is preferable in terms of element life compared to the piezoelectric type, and the electromagnetic induction type can easily obtain larger electric power than the electrostatic induction type.

  The vibration generated on the column, particularly on the arm, occurs in both the vertical (vertical) direction and the horizontal plane direction. Here, this is called three-dimensional vibration, and a generator that generates electromotive force by vibration in any direction is called a three-dimensional vibration generator. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the structure of the three-dimensional vibration power generator according to the present invention. FIG. 4A shows the entire structure of the three-dimensional vibration power generator, and FIG. 4B shows the structure of the horizontal power generation unit 100 included in FIG. In the figure, the vertical direction is the Z direction, and the X and Y directions perpendicular to the horizontal plane are taken.

  The casing 110 of the three-dimensional vibration power generator is simply surrounded by a square in the figure, but is actually a box having an arbitrary shape such as a cylinder or a rectangular parallelepiped. A horizontal power generation unit 100 is provided in the housing 110 so as to be vibrated in the Z direction by a spring 113. The spring 113 is not limited to a coil spring, and an elastic body made of a resin such as a plate spring or rubber is used. A permanent magnet 112 is fixed to the horizontal power generation unit 100. In this figure, ring-shaped magnets are provided on the outer periphery of the casing of the horizontal power generation unit, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, one or more bar-shaped magnets may be arranged on the outer periphery. A coil 111 is provided so as to surround the permanent magnet 112, and both ends of the coil are led out to the outside as lead wires 114. With such a configuration, the permanent magnet 112 vibrates in the Z direction due to the vibration in the Z direction of the horizontal power generation unit 100 and moves in the coil 111, so that the magnetic field penetrating the coil 111 changes to generate an electromotive force in the coil 111. Can occur. The vertical power generation unit is configured as described above.

  Referring to FIG. 4B, the horizontal power generation unit 100 includes a permanent magnet 102, a coil 101, a bearing 103, and a lead wire 104 housed in a cylindrical box as main components. The permanent magnet 102 is placed on the bearing 103 so as to be freely movable in the XY direction within the housing. A coil 101 is provided above the permanent magnet 102, and an electromotive force is generated by a magnetic field change accompanying movement of the permanent magnet in the XY plane. The generated electric power is extracted to the outside through the lead wire 104. In the drawing, the bearing is simply shown in a ball shape, but the shape is not particularly limited, and the bearing can be replaced with a configuration that supports the permanent magnet so that it can move smoothly in the horizontal plane direction. A permanent magnet may be sandwiched from above and below so as not to vibrate in the Z direction, and conversely, it may be supported by a spring from above and below so as to be free to vibrate in the up and down direction. By supporting in the vertical direction with a spring, it is possible to generate an electromotive force in the coil 101 with respect to vibration in the Z direction in addition to the XY direction.

  By configuring as described above, the vibration power generator functions as a three-dimensional vibration power generator that generates an electromotive force with respect to vibration in any of the X-Y and Z directions. Here, by replacing the electromagnetic induction type configuration with the permanent magnet and coil configuration with a piezoelectric type with some mass and piezoelectric elements, or with an electrostatic induction type with charged substances and electrodes, other three-dimensional vibration power generation Can be configured.

  A traffic control system device provided with the above-described power supply device as a power supply device does not necessarily require a power supply wiring from a power distribution network, such as the vehicle sensor shown in FIG. 1, and is used as an environmentally friendly device. be able to. The power that can be supplied can be designed by the configuration of the vibration power generator, the number, the combined use with other power generators such as solar cells and power supply sources. The target of application depends on the installation location and required power, but it is used in traffic control systems such as light-emitting traffic signs, various detectors, communication equipment, traffic lights, etc., and provided as equipment installed outdoors, especially on high places such as on pillars. be able to.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. For example, the power supply device shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 is configured to be housed in a separate housing from the vehicle detector that is a traffic control system device, but can also be incorporated in the same housing. Further, it can be built in a support or arm, and is included in the scope of the present invention regardless of a specific configuration. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Support | pillar 2 Arm 10 Power supply device 12 Vibration power generation part 14 Electric power supply part 16 Power storage part 20 Traffic control system apparatus (vehicle detector)
30 Solar Cell 100 Horizontal Power Generation Unit 101 Coil 102 Permanent Magnet 103 Bearing 104 Lead Wire 111 Coil 112 Permanent Magnet 113 Spring 114 Lead Wire

Claims (4)

A power supply device for supplying power to traffic control system equipment,
A vibration power generation unit that is mounted on a column or arm for fixing the traffic control system device and generates power by vibration of the column or arm;
A power storage unit that stores electric power generated by the vibration power generation unit;
A power supply unit that supplies the power generated by the vibration power generation unit and / or the power stored in the power storage unit to the traffic control system device ;
The vibration power generation unit
When the vertical direction of the installation location is the Z direction and the two directions orthogonal to each other in the horizontal plane are the X and Y directions, an electromotive force is generated with respect to vibrations in any of the X, Y, and Z directions. A three-dimensional vibration generator,
The three-dimensional vibration power generator
A movable part that vibrates by vibration of the column or arm in one direction, either vertical or horizontal;
A first power generation unit configured to be capable of generating power by vibration in the one direction of the movable unit,
Furthermore, the first power generation unit itself is held so as to be able to vibrate by vibration of the support column or arm in a direction orthogonal to the one direction,
A power supply apparatus comprising a second power generation unit configured to be capable of generating power by vibration of the first power generation unit . The power supply device according to claim 1, wherein the traffic control system device is a vehicle detector. Furthermore, the solar cell attached to the column or arm,
The power storage device according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the power storage unit is configured to store both the power generated by the vibration power generation unit and the power generated by the solar battery cell. A traffic control system device comprising the power supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and configured to use electric power supplied by the power supply device as all or part of a drive power supply.

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