WO2000010151A1

WO2000010151A1 - Method for improving the visibility of traffic signs and traffic sign

Info

Publication number: WO2000010151A1
Application number: PCT/FI1999/000681
Authority: WO
Inventors: Arto Ranta-Ylitalo
Original assignee: A. Ranta-Ylitalo Ky
Priority date: 1998-08-17
Filing date: 1999-08-17
Publication date: 2000-02-24
Also published as: AU5424399A

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for enlarging the angle of visibility of a traffic sign to an angle of more than 180 degrees. In the embodiments of the method, the angle of visibility is enlarged by providing the traffic sign with additional signs, by providing symbols on the support pillar of the traffic sign or by providing the traffic sign on the surface of a three-dimensional body.

Description

Method for improving the visibility of traffic signs and traffic sign

The invention relates to a method for improving the visiblity of traffic signs. The invention also relates to a traffic sign made of metal, plastic or the like for traffic control.

Traffic is controlled by several means: traffic regulations, traffic lights and traffic signs. They are intended to control/determine the movements in various traffic situations in order to avoid accidents. Traffic signs are the most common means of traffic control. Their nature varies: they can be warning, control, guidance or stop signs. Regardless of their purpose, the signs are placed along a traffic route so as to allow a driver following the route to notice relevant instructions/prohibitions in time. Studies have shown that vehicle drivers notice only a fraction of the traffic signs that they pass by. However, once vehicle drivers have passed by a sign, it is difficult for them to conclude the purpose of the sign they have passed by. Thus, for instance, in busy city traffic, drivers may miss parking signs on the sides of the streets. By the same token, it is vital that traffic signs are clearly visible to drivers at crossroads. For the traffic to run smoothly, vehicle drivers approaching a crossroad from any direction need to know the driving arrangements of the crossroad and its different rights of way.

To reduce problematic situations, there have been various attempts to improve the visibility of the information transmitted by traffic signs. Utility Model 1573 discloses techniques allowing the information of traffic signs to be mechanically adapted to varying requirements of the traffic and environmental conditions in different seasons, for instance. It is also known that the visibility of a traffic sign can be improved if it is equipped with a separate, blinking yellow roading light, as described in Utility Model 2036. Signs equipped with electric means showing an instruction/prohibition which can be varied in accordance with the situation are also previously known. One such embodiment has been described in Utility Model 2359.

Exceptional traffic arrangements which differ from normal traffic situations, such as roadworks for instance, require traffic signs which are clearly visible. DE patent specification 32 43 842 A 1 and GB patent specification 2 218 843 A disclose solutions in which bodies of different shapes, either painted with safety colours or equipped with reflective faces, are placed on the driveway as a sign of exceptional driving conditions. The visibility of a traffic sign in other directions than the one chiefly intended for it can be improved by bending the edges of the sign so that part of the information on the sign is visible also to those who approach the sign from the lateral direction.

The conventional traffic signs described above have the shortcoming of poor visibility in directions other than the one mainly intended. Conventional traffic signs are for instance planar, so that they are clearly visible only in the main visibility direction. The detectability of signs at intersections can be further impeded by natural obstacles, such as bushes, trees, snow and ice. Figure 1 shows an example of a conventional sign indicating obligation to give way, an upturned triangle, which is poorly visible to the driver of a vehicle having right of way at a crossroad. Of this sign, only its narrow edge and perhaps part of its gray background are visible in the incoming direction of the intersection. The visibility of the sign can be further hampered by any natural obstacles. For this reason, the driver of a vehicle miming in the direction having right of way has to take unnecessary safety actions with respect to those who come from the crossing direction, these actions being susceptible of causing a risk of rear-end collisions or irritation among others who move on the road.

Signs for exceptional driving conditions placed on the road surface are not suitable to be solidly fixed, because they may be dislocated unintentionally or intentionally, thus causing danger situations. Various electrically driven solutions require an energy source for each sign, involving higher costs and a complex structure.

The purpose of the present invention is to reduce the drawbacks relating to the prior art mentioned above. The method and the sign of the invention are characterised in that the information provided on the sign is visible at a larger angle than 180 degrees. A number of preferred embodiments of the invention are described in the dependent claims.

The basic idea of the invention is as follows. In conventional traffic signs, a third dimension is adopted instead of the conventional plane shape. This third dimension of the sign is achieved by adding one or more additional signs to the sign or by designing the sign or its pillar as a three-dimensional body, preferably as a body of revolution, such as a cone, a cylinder, an ellipsoid, a sphere or a combination of the parts of the bodies mentioned above. The advantage of the invention is that the message of the claimed three-dimensional sign is detectable from any direction from which it may be approached. The invention has the additional advantage of increased road safety provided by a more visible traffic sign. The invention has the further advantage of more flexible traffic, since there will be a decrease in unnecessary speed limits and controls caused by poorly visible signs. In addition, the traffic sign of the invention has low production costs, conventional traffic signs being complemented with these if necessary, or replaced with new signs of the invention.

The invention will be described in detail below. The description refers to the accompanying drawings, of which

figure 1 shows a conventional triangular sign indicating obligation to give way and its pillar, figure 2 shows a sign indicating obligation to give way, equipped with a planar additional sign, in accordance with the invention, figure 3 shows a sign indicating obligation to give way, equipped with a semi- conical additional sign, in accordance with the invention, figure 4 shows a sign of the invention indicating obligation to give way, with its pillar equipped with additional symbols, figure 5 shows a conical sign of the invention indicating obligation to give way.

Figure 1 illustrates a conventional statutory sign indicating obligation to give way. It has a triangular basic shape, and its outer edge is surrounded by a red periphery 11. The base colour of the sign is yellow 12. The material of the sign is thin, and thus it is not visible in the lateral direction. Also, the back 13 of the sign is plain gray, and it does not indicate the purpose of the sign. The sign is preferably fixed to a support pillar 14 or to the wall of a building.

Figure 2 illustrates a sign of one embodiment of the invention indicating obligation to give way and equipped with an additional sign. The sign is produced by adding an additional sign 2 carrying the same information as the main sign to a conventional sign 21. The size of the additional sign may vary as a function of the visibility requirements in each individual case. In the case exemplified in the figure, an additional sign 22 has been fixed behind a conventional main sign 21 at a 90 ° angle. Thus, the sign shown in the figure is better visible than the statutory traffic sign also to drivers of vehicles moving on the route having right of way. Figure 3 shows a sign of one embodiment of the invention indicating obligation to give way and equipped with an additional sign. The sign is produced by adding to a conventional sign 31 a preferably semi-conical part 32, in which the base colour is yellow 33 and the upper and lower edge are red 34. The information on the sign illustrated in the figure is clearly visible in any direction from which it may be approached.

Figure 4 shows a sign of one embodiment of the invention indicating obligation to give way. Here the pillar 42 of a conventional sign has been equipped with symbols visible in all directions and preferably corresponding to the colours of the main sign 41. In the illustrated example, the symbols are a yellow circle 45 and red upper and lower circles 44. These symbols may painted on the sign pillar or marked on the surface of a separate tubular body fixed to the support tube of the sign. The sign pillar of the invention is detectable in any direction from which it may be approached, even if the actual traffic sign would not be visible. Under these circumstances, the vehicle driver can anticipate the information to be transmitted by means of the sign.

Figure 5 shows a sign of one embodiment of the invention indicating obligation to give way. The base colour of the sign is yellow and both the upper circle and the lower circle are red 53. The sign is fixed to the pillar in the same way as conventional signs. The information of the sign is clearly visible in all the directions from which it is approached. This provision gives a vehicle driver moving on the road having right of way better chances to decide how to pass the intersection.

A number of preferred embodiments of the invention have been described above. The invention is not confined to the embodiments described above. According to the basic idea of the invention, some signs can be shaped for instance as spherical sign embodiments, whereas other can be shaped as cylindrical embodiments. Thus the inventive idea can be implemented in many ways without departing from the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for improving the visibility of traffic signs, characterised in that the sign is manufactured so as to carry information in a three-dimensional shape, thus allowing the information provided by the sign to be visible at a 360 ┬░ angle in any direction from which it is approached.

2. A traffic sign made of metal, plastic or any similar material for traffic control, characterised in that the sign has been made of a combination of planar or curved bodies or of a three-dimensional body, such as a cone, cylinder, ellipsoid, sphere, cube or any known polyhedron, on the surface of which the sign has been provided in order to make its information visible at a 360 ┬░ angle in any direction from which it is approached.

3. A traffic sign as defined in claim 2, characterised in that the angle of visibility of a traffic sign has been enlarged by equipping a planar sign (21) with one or more additional signs (22) or axially symmetrical parts (32) in order to enlarge the angle of visibility to 360 ┬░.

4. A traffic sign as defined in claim 2, characterised in that the angle of visibility of the sign (41) has been enlarged by providing the support pillar (42) of the traffic sign with symbols (44, 45) or other constructions carrying information.

5. A traffic sign as defined in claim 2, characterised in that the sign has been made on an upturned truncated cone with a yellow base colour (52) and a red periphery (51, 53) around its surface at both ends.