JP7543031B2 - Control device and control method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a control device and a control method.

JP 2018-16289 A (hereinafter referred to as Patent Document 1) is a background technology. Patent Document 1 states, "[Problem] To appropriately emit light from a light-emitting unit in order to inform an occupant of the moving direction of an object approaching a vehicle. [Solution] In a vehicle lighting device, the device includes sensors 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d that detect an object approaching the vehicle, a light-emitting unit 5 attached to the vehicle, and a control device 2 that controls the light-emitting unit 5 when the sensors 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d detect an approaching object, and the control device 2 controls the light-emitting unit 5 so that the light-emitting point of the light-emitting unit 5 moves in a direction corresponding to the moving direction of the approaching object."

JP 2018-16289 A

In Patent Document 1, the distance between vehicles and the relative speed can be indicated by the speed of movement of the light-emitting part. For example, when indicating the distance between vehicles, the light-emitting part is controlled so that the shorter the distance between vehicles, the faster the light-emitting part moves, and the longer the distance between vehicles, the slower the light-emitting part moves. When indicating the relative speed, the light-emitting part is controlled so that the faster the light-emitting part moves, the faster the relative speed (approaching speed) increases, and the slower the light-emitting part moves, the slower the relative speed decreases. However, it was difficult to present both the distance between vehicles and the relative speed in Patent Document 1. This is because the two light-emitting parts move at speeds that indicate the distance between vehicles and the relative speed, respectively, making it difficult to distinguish and recognize the distance between vehicles and the relative speed. Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a control device that can accurately and efficiently communicate the situation around the vehicle by more appropriately controlling the light-emitting part.

The control device according to the present invention includes a control unit that controls the light emitting location of a light emitting unit provided on the vehicle based on information about an object detected around the vehicle, and the control unit sets a range in which the light emitting unit emits light in accordance with the distance to the object, and controls the movement of a predetermined visual element within the range at a speed corresponding to the relative speed of the object approaching the vehicle.

The present invention makes it possible to accurately and efficiently communicate the situation around the vehicle.

1 is an explanatory diagram of an in-vehicle information processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a configuration diagram of an in-vehicle information processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the arrangement of interior lights in a vehicle. 4 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the in-vehicle information processing system. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a specific example of light emission control (part 1). FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a specific example of light emission control (part 2). 13 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the case where a warning is output.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is an explanatory diagram of an in-vehicle information processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The in-vehicle information processing system according to the embodiment is mounted on the vehicle C1 in Figure 1, and captures images of the right rear and left rear of the vehicle C1 using cameras. The in-vehicle information processing system detects other vehicles located behind the vehicle C1 by image recognition of the captured images.

Figure 1 shows a state in which another vehicle C2R is traveling to the right rear of vehicle C1, and another vehicle C2L is traveling to the left rear of vehicle C1. The inter-vehicle distance from vehicle C1 to the other vehicle C2R is greater than the inter-vehicle distance from vehicle C1 to the other vehicle C2L. Furthermore, the relative speed between vehicle C1 and the other vehicle C2R is greater than the relative speed between vehicle C1 and the other vehicle C2L.

Vehicle C1 is equipped with interior lights 12 as light-emitting elements on the inside of the left and right doors. The interior lights 12 are, for example, indirect lighting, and are ambient lights used to create a comfortable interior environment. In FIG. 1, the driver's seat is located on the right side, and the interior light 12R is provided on the right door. The passenger seat is located on the left side, and the interior light 12L is provided on the left door.

The in-vehicle information processing system communicates the detection result of another vehicle located behind the vehicle C1 to the occupants by illuminating the interior light 12. First, the in-vehicle information processing system controls the interior light 12R of the right door based on information about the other vehicle C2R to the right rear. Similarly, the in-vehicle information processing system controls the interior light 12L of the left door based on information about the other vehicle C2L to the right rear. Therefore, the occupants can obtain information about the following vehicle on the corresponding side from the illumination state of the left and right interior lights 12.

Specifically, the in-vehicle information processing system indicates the distance between the vehicle and other vehicles using static elements, and indicates the relative speed between the vehicle and other vehicles using dynamic elements. In this way, the in-vehicle information processing system can output the distance between the vehicles and the relative speed simultaneously and in an easily identifiable manner, and can accurately and efficiently communicate the situation around the vehicle.

As shown in FIG. 1, the static element indicating the distance between the vehicle and another vehicle is the moving range of the visual element. The dynamic element indicating the relative speed between the vehicle and another vehicle is the moving speed of the visual element. The visual element is a partial area that can be identified by controlling the light emission. For example, the visual element located within the moving range can be identified by turning off the moving range and illuminating the part that is the visual element. The visual element located within the moving range can also be identified by illuminating the moving range and turning off the part that is the visual element. It is also possible to form the visual element by different colors and brightness of the light emission. In this embodiment, the light emission is performed by controlling the lighting state of multiple LEDs (light emitting diodes) in the interior light 12. In other words, the light emitting point is the part where the LED is lit, so hereinafter the light emitting point is referred to as the lit point.

In the example of Figure 1, the movement range dR of the lit area of the right door interior light 12R indicates the distance between the vehicle and the other vehicle C2R to the right rear. The speed vR of the lit area of the right door interior light 12R indicates the relative speed between the vehicle and the other vehicle C2R to the right rear. Similarly, the movement range dL of the lit area of the left door interior light 12L indicates the distance between the vehicle and the other vehicle C2L to the left rear. The speed vL of the lit area of the left door interior light 12L indicates the relative speed between the vehicle and the other vehicle C2L to the left rear.

Here, when the distance between vehicle C1 and other vehicle C2 decreases, the movement range of the illuminated area is reduced, and when the distance between vehicle C1 and other vehicle C2 increases, the movement range of the illuminated area is controlled to be increased. In other words, the movement range of the illuminated area statically displays the inter-vehicle distance at that time, and does not prevent the movement range of the illuminated area from being changed in accordance with changes in the inter-vehicle distance. In this way, when the inter-vehicle distance between vehicle C1 and other vehicle C2 decreases, the movement range of the illuminated area becomes smaller, and the illuminated area moves within the range more frequently than when the movement range of the illuminated area is wide. This makes it possible to better alert occupants when the inter-vehicle distance between vehicle C1 and other vehicle C2 is narrow.

The in-vehicle information processing system also aligns the direction of travel of the other vehicle C2 with the direction of movement of the lit area. Since the longitudinal direction of the interior light 12 aligns with the vehicle length direction and the relative speed with respect to the following vehicle is the speed in the vehicle length direction, if the relative speed of the following vehicle is a positive value, i.e., if the following vehicle is faster than the vehicle, the lit area is controlled to move from the rear to the front of the vehicle.

Figure 2 is a configuration diagram of an in-vehicle information processing system according to this embodiment. The in-vehicle information processing system 10 shown in Figure 2 has a detection unit, a display unit, an operation unit, a speaker, and a control device 20.

The detection unit is a unit that detects the situation around the vehicle. In this embodiment, cameras (right rear camera 11R and left rear camera 11L) are exemplified as the detection unit, but any other sensor can be used. The camera 11 is provided, for example, on a door mirror, and the area behind the vehicle is included in the imaging range.

The display unit is a unit that displays information visible to vehicle occupants and can be used as the light-emitting unit in the claims. In this embodiment, the interior lights 12 (the interior light 12R in the right door and the interior light 12L in the left door) are exemplified as the display unit, but other display units such as liquid crystal displays, head-up displays, and transparent displays can also be used. The display unit can be anything that displays information so that left and right can be recognized, and can be provided in the driver's seat or passenger seat other than the door, or it can be a display installed from the driver's seat to the passenger seat.

The operation unit is a unit that accepts vehicle operation by the occupant, particularly operations that require consideration of the location of surrounding objects. In this embodiment, the turn signal lever 13 and the door operating unit 14 are exemplified as the operation unit.

The speaker 15 outputs audio to the vehicle occupants. This audio output can be used to output warnings to the occupants, as will be described in detail later.

The control device 20 has a control unit 30 and a memory unit 40. The memory unit 40 is, for example, a flash memory, and stores a control program 41 and the like. The control unit 30 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and reads and executes the control program 41 to control the display unit based on objects around the vehicle. Note that the detection unit, display unit, operation unit, speaker, etc. are not necessarily used exclusively by the control device 20, but can be shared with other devices and systems.

The control unit 30 executes the control program 41 to realize the functions of the vehicle detection unit 31, the vehicle state determination unit 32, the light emission control unit 33, and the alarm processing unit 34.

The vehicle detection unit 31 detects vehicles located to the left and right rear of the vehicle from the output of the detection unit. Specifically, the vehicle detection unit 31 performs image recognition on the image captured by the camera 11R to detect other vehicles located to the right rear of the vehicle. Similarly, the vehicle detection unit 31 performs image recognition on the image captured by the camera 11L to detect other vehicles located to the left rear of the vehicle.

The vehicle state determination unit 32 performs a process of determining the distance and relative speed between the vehicle detected by the vehicle detection unit 31 and the host vehicle. The distance and relative speed are determined, for example, using an image captured by the camera 11. If the detection unit includes other sensors, the distance and relative speed may be determined using the output of the sensors.

The light emission control unit 33 controls the light emission of the display unit based on the vehicle distance and relative speed determined by the vehicle state determination unit 32. Specifically, the light emission control unit 33 sets a range in which the interior light 12R emits light in accordance with the vehicle distance to the vehicle on the right rear, and controls the visual element to move within the set range at a speed corresponding to the relative speed. Similarly, the light emission control unit 33 sets a range in which the interior light 12L emits light in accordance with the vehicle distance to the vehicle on the left rear, and controls the visual element to move within the set range at a speed corresponding to the relative speed.

The alarm processor 34 receives a predetermined operation by the vehicle occupant, and outputs an alarm to the occupant if another vehicle is detected behind the vehicle on the side corresponding to the operation. For example, if the turn signal lever 13 receives an operation to turn on the right turn signal, a right turn or lane change to the right lane is suggested. If another vehicle is detected behind the vehicle on the right, the alarm processor 34 outputs an alarm to the occupant using audio output from the speaker 15. Similarly, if an operation such as unlocking the right door is received and another vehicle is detected behind the vehicle on the right, the alarm processor 34 issues an alarm. Note that even if a vehicle is present behind the vehicle on the side corresponding to the operation, the conditions for outputting the alarm can be appropriately set, such as not outputting an alarm if the vehicle distance is equal to or greater than a predetermined value and the relative speed is less than a predetermined value.

Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram of the arrangement of the interior lights 12 in a vehicle. As shown in Figure 3, the interior lights 12 are provided on the right and left sides of the vehicle interior, and the longitudinal direction of the interior lights 12 is the vehicle length direction. Specifically, the interior lights 12R and 12L are provided on the inside of the driver's door and the inside of the passenger's door.

This arrangement allows the distance to the following vehicle to correspond to the range of movement of the visual elements in the interior light 12, and also allows the direction of travel of the following vehicle to coincide with the direction of movement of the visual elements in the interior light 12. This allows the vehicle occupants to intuitively grasp the distance to the following vehicle and the relative speed at the same time.

When a vehicle occupant checks the rear view to the right, for example, they use the right door mirror and look directly to the right rear, and at this time the right interior light 12R comes into view. Similarly, when a vehicle occupant checks the rear view to the left, the left interior light 12L comes into view. Therefore, by using the left and right interior lights 12 to notify of vehicles located on the corresponding side, it is possible to improve the effectiveness of safety checks by occupants without requiring them to perform any special operations.

4 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the in-vehicle information processing system 10. The in-vehicle information processing system 10 repeatedly executes the following steps S101 to S107 while the power is on, regardless of whether the vehicle is running or not.
Step S101
The camera 11 captures an image of the rear view and outputs it to the control device 20. After that, the process proceeds to step S102.
Step S102
The vehicle detection unit 31 of the control device 20 detects a vehicle by performing image recognition on the image captured by the camera 11. After that, the process proceeds to step S103.
Step S103
The vehicle state determination unit 32 determines whether or not a vehicle has been detected by the vehicle detection unit 31. If a vehicle has not been detected (step S103; No), the process returns to step S101. If a vehicle has been detected (step S103; Yes), the process proceeds to step S104.

Step S104
The vehicle state determination unit 32 calculates the inter-vehicle distance and the relative speed between the host vehicle and the following vehicle, and then proceeds to step S105.
Step S105
The light emission control unit 33 sets the movement of the illuminated portion (illumination range) of the interior light 12 in accordance with the following distance. After that, the process proceeds to step S106.
Step S106
The vehicle state determination unit 32 determines whether or not a following vehicle is approaching. For example, the vehicle state determination unit 32 determines whether or not a following vehicle is approaching based on whether the vehicle distance from the following vehicle at a certain time T1 and the vehicle distance from the following vehicle at a time T2 later than the certain time are smaller than a predetermined value. If the vehicle state determination unit 33 determines that the following vehicle is not approaching (step S106; No), the light emission control unit 33 returns to step S101. If the following vehicle is approaching (step S106; Yes), the light emission control unit 33 proceeds to step S107.
Step S107
The light emission control unit 33 moves the visual element in accordance with the relative speed, and then the process proceeds to step S101.

Figures 5 and 6 are explanatory diagrams of a specific example of light emission control. In these figures, one interior light 12 has nine LEDs, and each LED is represented by a circle. The white circles represent LEDs that are off. The black circles represent LEDs that are lit as visual elements, i.e., lit locations. The arrows below the black circles indicate the direction in which the lit locations move. Additionally, the right side of the paper represents the front side of the vehicle, and the left side represents the rear side of the vehicle.

In Figures 5 and 6, the movement range of the illuminated area is changed in response to changes in the distance between the vehicles. Specifically, when the distance between the vehicles at time T2, which is later than time T1, is greater than the distance between the vehicles at time T1, the movement range of the illuminated area is expanded. When the distance between the vehicles at time T2 is smaller than the distance between the vehicles at time T1, the movement range of the illuminated area is narrowed.

For example, in FIG. 5, when the distance between the vehicles is 5 m, the movement range of the illuminated area is set to three LEDs. When the distance between the vehicles is 25 m, the movement range of the illuminated area is set to five LEDs. When the distance between the vehicles is 45 m, the movement range of the illuminated area is set to nine LEDs. In FIG. 5, the movement range is set based on the center of the interior light 12.

Furthermore, if the following vehicle is slow and the relative speed is a negative value, the light emission control unit 33 moves the illuminated area from the front to the rear. The moving speed corresponds to the relative speed. The movement is also repeated in the same direction within a set range. On the other hand, if the following vehicle is fast and approaches the vehicle, the light emission control unit 33 moves the illuminated area from the rear to the front. The moving speed corresponds to the relative speed. The movement is also repeated in the same direction within a set range.

When the relative speed is near 0, for example, the LEDs are lit within the range set as the movement range, but the lit area does not move. In this case, if the lit area and the rest are set to different brightnesses or colors, the lit area becomes clearer.

6, the movement range is arranged so as to be based on the end of the interior light 12. Setting the reference of the movement range to the end corresponding to the front of the vehicle makes it easier for the occupant to recognize that the inter-vehicle distance is narrow.
Comparing the example shown in Fig. 6 with Fig. 5, it is different in that the movement range is set from the front side of the interior light 12. In other words, the number of LEDs included in the movement range according to the inter-vehicle distance and the change in the number are the same as those in the specific example shown in Fig. 5.

The movement control of the illuminated part when the relative speed is a positive or negative value is also the same as in FIG. 5. However, when the relative speed is near 0, the LED at the rearmost part of the movement range is controlled to be illuminated. Since one end of the range is the frontmost LED, by fixing and lighting the LED at the other end, it is possible to make the occupant aware of the range indicating the distance between the vehicles and that the expected distance is near 0.

Figure 7 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure when the process goes as far as outputting an alarm. For example, while the power is on, the in-vehicle information processing system 10 repeatedly executes the following steps S201 to S210, regardless of whether the vehicle is moving or not. Note that steps S201 to S206 are the same as steps S101 to S106 shown in Figure 4, so their explanation will be omitted and the explanation will start from step S207.

Step S207
The light emission control unit 33 moves the visual element in accordance with the relative speed, and then proceeds to step S208.
Step S208
The alarm processor 34 acquires the operation received by the operation unit 32. Then, the process proceeds to step S209.
Step S209
The warning processor 34 judges whether an operation related to the side where the vehicle is approaching, i.e., the corresponding direction, has been received. For example, turning on the right turn signal when a vehicle is approaching from the right rear, unlocking the right door, etc., are operations related to the corresponding direction. If an operation related to the corresponding direction has not been received (step S209; No), the process returns to step S201. If an operation related to the corresponding direction has been received (step S209; Yes), the process proceeds to step S210.
Step S210
The warning processor 34 outputs a warning to the occupant by using audio output from the speaker 15. After that, the process proceeds to step S201.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the control device 20 includes a control unit 30 that controls the light emitting location of the interior light 12, which is a light emitting unit provided in the vehicle, based on information about objects detected around the vehicle, and the control unit 30 sets the range in which the light emitting unit emits light in accordance with the distance to the object, and controls the movement of a predetermined visual element within the range at a speed corresponding to the relative speed of the object approaching the vehicle. By appropriately controlling the light emitting unit in this way, the control device 20 can accurately and efficiently communicate the situation around the vehicle.

For example, the control unit 30 can intuitively indicate the relative speed by using the illuminated area as a visual element and repeatedly moving the range. Alternatively, the unlit area can be used as a visual element and the area other than the unlit area can be used as the illuminated area.

The control unit 30 also detects other vehicles located to the right rear of the vehicle and to the left rear of the vehicle as objects. The light-emitting units are provided on the right and left sides of the vehicle's interior, respectively, with the longitudinal direction of the light-emitting units being the vehicle length direction. The control unit 30 controls the right light-emitting unit based on the detection result of the other vehicle to the right rear, and controls the left light-emitting unit based on the detection result of the other vehicle to the left rear. Furthermore, the control unit 30 aligns the traveling direction of the other vehicle with the moving direction of the light-emitting point. These configurations and operations allow the vehicle occupants to intuitively grasp the distance and relative speed between the vehicle and the other vehicle at the same time.

Furthermore, the control unit 30 can receive a predetermined operation by a vehicle occupant, and when another vehicle is detected behind the vehicle on the side corresponding to the operation, output a warning to the occupant.
In addition, the control device 20 may include a camera whose imaging range includes the rear of the vehicle as part of its own configuration, and may detect objects from the imaging results of the camera.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the configuration and operation can be modified as appropriate. For example, the present embodiment illustrates a configuration for detecting other vehicles as objects, but it is also possible to detect motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians, etc.

The illuminated range and visual elements can be modified as appropriate. For example, the visual elements can be lit up, and the range in which the visual elements are moved can be turned off, with areas outside the range being illuminated. The number of illuminated LEDs can also be changed (the size of the visual element can change) as the visual elements move. The illuminated range, other ranges, and visual elements can also be indicated by differences in color or brightness.

In addition, in the above embodiment, an example was given in which the range over which the LEDs are moved is set to be smaller as the distance between the vehicle and the other vehicle decreases, but when illuminating areas outside the range over which the LEDs are moved, the range over which the LEDs are moved may be set to be larger as the distance between the vehicle and the other vehicle decreases. In this way, the number of LEDs that are illuminated increases as the distance between the vehicle and the other vehicle decreases, making it possible to alert the occupants.

As for the display unit, any type of display device installed at any location can be used as long as its position relative to the vehicle is clear.

10: In-vehicle information processing system, 11: Camera, 12: Interior light, 13: Turn signal lever, 14: Door operation unit, 15: Speaker, 20: Control device, 30: Control unit, 31: Vehicle detection unit, 32: Vehicle state determination unit, 33: Light emission control unit, 34: Alarm processing unit, 40: Memory unit, 41: Control program

Claims (8)

a control unit that controls a light emitting portion of a light emitting unit provided in the vehicle based on information about an object detected in the vicinity of the vehicle;
the control unit narrows the range in which the light-emitting unit emits light based on whether the distance to the object at a specified time is smaller than the distance to the object at a time prior to the specified time, and controls the light-emitting unit to move a specified visual element within the range at a speed corresponding to the relative speed of the object approaching the vehicle. The control device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit sets the light-emitting location as the visual element and repeatedly moves the range. The control device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit determines the unlit area as the visual element and the area other than the unlit area as the light-emitting area. The control device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit detects another vehicle located to the right rear of the vehicle and another vehicle located to the left rear of the vehicle as the object. The light emitting units are provided on the right and left sides of a vehicle interior of the vehicle, and a longitudinal direction of the light emitting units is a vehicle length direction of the vehicle,
The control device according to claim 4 , wherein the control unit controls the right light-emitting unit based on a detection result of another vehicle to the right rear, and controls the left light-emitting unit based on a detection result of another vehicle to the left rear. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit expands the range in which the light-emitting unit emits light when the distance to the object at the specified time is greater than the distance to the object at a time prior to the specified time, and narrows the range in which the light-emitting unit emits light when the distance to the object at the specified time is smaller than the distance to the object at a time prior to the specified time. 7. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit widens an area in which the light-emitting unit emits light, or narrows an area in which the light-emitting unit emits light, with a center of the light-emitting unit as a reference . The control device installed in the vehicle
a detection step of detecting an object around the vehicle;
narrowing a range in which a light emitting unit provided on the vehicle emits light based on whether a distance to the object at a predetermined time is smaller than a distance to the object at a time prior to the predetermined time ;
and controlling the movement of a predetermined visual element at a speed corresponding to a relative speed between the vehicle and an object approaching the vehicle within the range.

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