JP2008153743A - In-cabin conversation assisting device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an in-cabin conversation assisting device that can easily set a microphone and a speaker in most suitable states and thereby are simplified in processing and constitution. <P>SOLUTION: An engine rotating speed, a vehicle speed, an accelerator opening, and position information are detected as traveling states of an automobile, a noise level in a cabin is estimated by referring to a prepared database based upon the detected traveling states, and sound characteristics of the microphone and the speaker, i.e. microphone sensitivity, microphone directivity, and a speaker sound volume are set according to the estimated noise level. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle conversation assisting device that assists a person's conversation in an automobile using a microphone or a speaker.

While a car is running, noise generated from various noise sources, such as engine noise, wind noise, and frictional noise between the tire and the road surface, enters the vehicle. Often, it is difficult to listen to the content you hear. In order to eliminate such inconvenience, microphones and speakers are attached to each seat in the car, and these devices are used for conversation, so that even if the noise in the car becomes louder, There has been proposed a system that makes it easy to listen to spoken content and facilitates conversation in the vehicle (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-51392 A

  In the above-mentioned patent document 1, the conversation voice signal is separated from the vehicle interior sound collected by the microphone, and then the conversation voice signal gain is corrected according to the sound pressure level of the noise sound included in the vehicle interior sound. ing. However, there is a problem in that it is difficult to separate the conversation voice and the noise sound because complicated voice processing is required. In addition, even if it is possible to separate the conversation voice and the noise sound from the vehicle interior sound, it is difficult to calculate the noise sound level accurately because the vehicle interior sound itself is measured to determine the noise sound level. As a result, it has been impossible to appropriately set the gain correction amount or the sensitivity / volume of the microphone or speaker.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to enable in-vehicle conversation assistance devices that can easily set a microphone and a speaker to an optimal state and that have a simple process and configuration. Is to provide.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and is an in-car conversation assistance device that assists a person's conversation in an automobile using an audio device including a microphone and a speaker, and detects the running state of the automobile Detecting means for estimating, a noise estimating means for estimating a noise level indicating a magnitude of acoustic noise in the vehicle based on the detected running state, and an acoustic for setting an acoustic characteristic of the acoustic device according to the estimated noise level And an in-vehicle conversation assisting device comprising a control means.

  In this invention, the noise level in the vehicle is estimated based on the running state of the automobile, and the acoustic characteristics of the microphone and the speaker are controlled according to the estimated noise level. That is, instead of measuring the noise in the vehicle and obtaining the noise sound as in the past, the noise is estimated using the running state of the car that can be obtained directly from each part of the car (for example, engine, speedometer, etc.). Therefore, it is possible to know the noise sound in the vehicle with a small error without being affected by the measurement error of the noise sound. As a result, the microphone and the speaker can be easily set to the optimum state. Further, since complicated voice processing is not required, the processing and configuration of the in-vehicle conversation assisting device according to the present invention can be simplified.

  The present invention also provides an in-car conversation assistance device that assists a person's conversation in an automobile using an acoustic device including a microphone and a speaker, and a plurality of detection means for detecting a running state of the automobile, and the plurality of detections There is provided an in-vehicle conversation assisting device comprising acoustic control means for setting acoustic characteristics of the acoustic device in accordance with a combination of detection results from the means.

  In the present invention, the running state of the automobile is detected by a plurality of detection means, and the acoustic characteristics of the microphone and the speaker are controlled by a combination of the plurality of detection results. That is, rather than measuring the noise in the vehicle as in the past and obtaining the noise sound, the microphone and speaker are controlled using the driving state of the car that can be obtained directly from each part (engine, speedometer, etc.) of the car. Yes. Therefore, the microphone and the speaker can be easily set to the optimum state without being affected by the measurement error of the noise sound as in the prior art. In addition, since the microphone and the speaker are controlled by a combination of a plurality of detection results relating to the running state, flexible and diverse control according to the combination is possible. Furthermore, since complicated voice processing is unnecessary, the processing and configuration of the in-vehicle conversation assistance device according to the present invention can be simplified.

  Further, the in-vehicle conversation assisting device includes noise analysis means for collecting noise in the automobile and analyzing the noise level, and detecting the position information of the automobile and analyzing the noise level, A database used for estimating the noise level in which position information is associated with a noise level in an automobile is updated.

  In the present invention, an actual noise sound is measured while the automobile is running, and the result is recorded in a database. When the same place is passed again, the actual noise level measured in the past is read from the database based on the position information (running state), and the microphone and the speaker are controlled. As described above, since the database in which the position information and the noise level are associated is updated with the actual measurement data, the noise level estimation accuracy is improved, and the microphone and the speaker can be easily set to the optimum state.

  In the in-vehicle conversation assisting apparatus, at least one of an engine speed, a vehicle speed, an accelerator opening degree, and vehicle position information is used as the running state.

  The engine speed, vehicle speed, and accelerator opening are parameters that express driving conditions closely related to noise, such as engine noise, wind noise, and friction noise between the tire and the road surface. The parameter value can be acquired. In addition, the location information of a car is a parameter that expresses the driving state closely related to the noise noise in the car, such as whether it is driving on a noisy road such as an urban area or a noisy road such as the countryside. , GPS (Global Positioning System) can be used. As described above, since the microphone and the speaker are controlled by using the running state of the engine speed, the vehicle speed, the accelerator opening, and the vehicle position information based on information from each sensor and GPS in the vehicle, In addition, the microphone and the speaker can be easily set to the optimum state without being affected by the measurement error of the noise sound. Further, since complicated voice processing is not required, the processing and configuration of the in-vehicle conversation assisting device can be simplified.

  In the in-vehicle conversation assisting device, the acoustic characteristics include at least one of microphone sensitivity, microphone directivity, and speaker volume.

  According to the present invention, since the acoustic characteristics of the microphone and the speaker in the in-car conversation assist device are set based on the running state of the automobile, the microphone and the speaker can be easily set to an optimum state. In addition, since complicated audio processing is not performed, processing and configuration can be simplified.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a configuration diagram of an in-vehicle conversation assisting device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The in-vehicle conversation assisting apparatus 1 includes a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, an engine speed sensor 14, a vehicle speed sensor 15, an accelerator opening sensor 16, a GPS function unit 17, microphones 18a to 18d, and speakers 19a to 19a. 19 d, a display unit 20, and an operation unit 21, and these units are connected by a bus line 22.

The CPU 11 is a central processing unit that controls each unit of the in-car conversation assistance device 1, and reads a predetermined program from the ROM 12 and executes it.
The ROM 12 is a read-only memory and stores a predetermined program executed by the CPU 11.
The RAM 13 is a read / write memory as needed, and holds a noise estimation database 103 and a microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104, which will be described later, and is used to store temporary data during program execution.

The engine speed sensor 14 detects and measures the engine speed of the automobile and outputs engine speed information.
The vehicle speed sensor 15 detects and measures the traveling speed of the automobile and outputs vehicle speed information.
The accelerator opening sensor 16 detects and measures the accelerator opening, that is, the degree of depression of the accelerator, and outputs accelerator opening information. Normally, the fuel injection amount to the engine is controlled by the accelerator opening, and this fuel injection amount may be used as the accelerator opening information.

The GPS function unit 17 calculates and outputs the current position information of the automobile based on the received GPS signal. The GPS signal is transmitted from a GPS satellite and received by a GPS antenna attached to the automobile. The GPS antenna is not shown.
The display unit 20 is a display device that is used for the purpose of the user confirming the setting status of the in-car conversation assisting apparatus 1 and uses, for example, a liquid crystal display.
The operation unit 21 is an input device used by the user to change the setting of the in-car conversation assisting apparatus 1 and includes a predetermined input key, a liquid crystal touch panel, and the like.
The GPS function unit 17, the display unit 20, and the operation unit 21 may constitute a general car navigation system.

  The microphones 18a to 18d and the speakers 19a to 19d are installed in the respective seats in the vehicle or in the vicinity of the seats, and are used when a person riding in the car has a conversation in the vehicle. That is, the talker speaks into the microphone, and the voice is transmitted from the speaker to another talker. Microphones and speakers are prepared for the number of persons. Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the microphone 18a and the speaker 19a are for the driver's seat, the microphone 18b and the speaker 19b are for the passenger seat, and the microphone 18c and the speaker 19c are It is for the rear right seat, and the microphone 18d and the speaker 19d are for the rear left seat.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the in-vehicle conversation assisting apparatus 1 having the above configuration.
In FIG. 2, information indicating the running state of the vehicle, that is, engine speed information from the engine speed sensor 14, vehicle speed information from the vehicle speed sensor 15, accelerator position information from the accelerator position sensor 16, GPS function unit 17. Current position information is input to the noise estimation module 101.

  The noise estimation module 101 is a function realized by a program that is read and executed by the CPU 11, and is based on each of the input information (engine speed information, vehicle speed information, accelerator opening information, current position information). Then, by referring to the noise estimation database 103, the noise amount of acoustic noise other than the conversation voice in the vehicle is estimated, and the estimated noise amount (noise estimation level) is output to the voice controller 102.

  The voice controller 102 sets the acoustic characteristics of the microphones 18a to 18d and the speakers 19a to 19d with reference to the microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104 according to the input noise estimation level. Here, the acoustic characteristics include the sensitivity and directivity of the microphone, the volume of the speaker, etc., but the present invention is not limited to these, and other characteristics may be set.

Next, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show an example of data stored as the noise estimation database 103.
FIG. 3A is an example of a database in which the engine speed and the amount of noise in the vehicle are associated with each other based on the assumption that noise generated from the engine generally increases as the engine speed increases. Is set. For example, when the engine speed is 3000 rpm, the noise amount is set to “6”. When the engine speed information is given, the noise estimation module 101 reads the noise amount corresponding to the engine speed from the database of FIG. Hereinafter, this noise amount (noise amount obtained from the engine speed) is represented by N1.

  FIG. 3B is an example of a database in which the vehicle speed is associated with the amount of noise in the vehicle. Based on the premise that noise due to wind noise and road friction noise generally increases as the vehicle speed increases. It is set. For example, when the traveling speed of the automobile is 60 km / h, the noise amount is set to “4”. When the vehicle speed information is given, the noise estimation module 101 reads the noise amount corresponding to the vehicle speed from the database of FIG. Hereinafter, this noise amount (noise amount obtained from the vehicle speed) is represented by N2.

  FIG. 3C is an example of a database in which the accelerator opening is associated with the amount of noise in the vehicle. For example, when the accelerator opening is 2, the noise amount is set to “5”. When the accelerator opening information is given, the noise estimation module 101 reads the noise amount corresponding to the accelerator opening from the database of FIG. Hereinafter, this noise amount (noise amount obtained from the accelerator opening) is represented by N3.

  FIG. 4 is an example of a database in which the current position information of the car and the amount of noise in the car are associated with each other, and data is set by reflecting the noise caused by the surrounding environment of the car. For example, when the position information is 138 degrees 3:30 east longitude and 36 degrees 02:00 pm north latitude, the noise amount is set to “3”. When the current position information is given, the noise estimation module 101 reads the noise amount corresponding to the position information from the database of FIG. Hereinafter, this noise amount (noise amount obtained from the current position) is represented by N4.

  Here, it is considered that the total amount of noise in the vehicle is determined by a combination of engine noise, wind noise, friction noise between the tire and the road surface, noise caused by the surrounding environment, and the like. Based on this, the sum of the noise amounts N1, N2, N3, and N4 is defined as the amount of noise in the vehicle. The noise estimation module 101 outputs the noise amount thus obtained as a noise estimation level.

  For example, according to the above example, since N1 = 6, N2 = 4, N3 = 5, and N4 = 3, the noise estimation level is “18”.

  Note that the noise estimation database 103 in FIGS. 3 and 4 may be set and stored in advance as preset data when the automobile or the in-vehicle conversation assisting apparatus 1 is manufactured, for example. For example, since the relationship between the engine speed and the amount of noise in FIG. 3 (a) differs depending on the engine characteristics of the automobile, the manufacturer measures the relationship between the engine speed and the noise amount in advance, It is preferable to create a database based on this. Note that the database in which the position information and the noise amount are associated may be stored as a database on the car navigation system side.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of the microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104 used by the audio controller 102 for setting the acoustic characteristics of the microphone and the speaker. The voice controller 102 sets microphone sensitivity, microphone directivity, and speaker volume according to the input noise estimation level based on the microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104.

  For example, when the noise estimation level is high, the microphone sensitivity is set to be high, the microphone directivity is set to be narrow, and the speaker volume is set to be high. Conversely, when the noise estimation level is low, the microphone sensitivity is set to be low, the microphone directivity is set to be wide, and the speaker volume is set to be low.

  In FIG. 5, description is made using expressions such as “high”, “low”, “narrow”, “large” and “small”, but in the actual microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104, data can be determined using specific numerical values. Of course.

  The microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104 also sets and stores preset data at the time of manufacture. Further, the microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104 can be changed by the user according to his / her preference. That is, it is assumed that the contents of the microphone / speaker characteristic setting database 104 are displayed on the display unit 20 and the setting can be freely changed by an input operation using the operation unit 21 of the user.

Next, the operation of the in-car conversation assisting apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
While the in-vehicle conversation assisting apparatus 1 is in operation, the engine speed sensor 14, the vehicle speed sensor 15, and the accelerator opening sensor 16 are constantly performing sensor detection operations, thereby detecting the running state of the automobile. (Step S1). Further, the GPS function unit 17 detects the position information of the automobile (step S2).

  Information on the running state detected in steps S <b> 1 and S <b> 2 is input to the noise estimation module 101. By referring to the noise estimation database 103, the noise estimation module 101 corresponds to the noise amount N1 corresponding to the engine speed, the noise amount N2 corresponding to the vehicle speed, the noise amount N3 corresponding to the accelerator opening, and the position information. The noise amount N4 thus calculated is calculated (estimated) (step S3). Then, the noise estimation level is determined by adding the calculated noise amounts N1, N2, N3, and N4 (step S4).

  The noise estimation level determined in step S4 is input to the voice controller 102, and the voice controller 102 sets the acoustic characteristics of the microphones 18a to 18d and the speakers 19a to 19d according to the noise estimation level (step S5). Thereby, the microphone sensitivity, the microphone directivity, and the speaker volume are adjusted according to the noise level in the vehicle, and the acoustic state of the microphone and the speaker is maintained in an optimum state.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the operation of the in-vehicle conversation assisting apparatus 1 is to be terminated (step S6). When the operation is continued, the operation from step S1 is repeated again.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the engine speed, the vehicle speed, the accelerator opening, and the position information are detected as the traveling state of the automobile, and the database prepared in advance is referred to based on the detected traveling state. Thus, the noise level in the vehicle is estimated, and the acoustic characteristics of the microphone and the speaker, that is, the microphone sensitivity, the microphone directivity, and the speaker volume are set according to the estimated noise level. Therefore, since the noise level in the vehicle is estimated from the detected running state without measuring the vehicle interior sound, the noise sound in the vehicle can be known with a small error without being affected by the measurement error of the noise sound, Thereby, a microphone and a speaker can be easily set to an optimal state. Further, since complicated audio processing is not performed, the apparatus configuration and processing are simple.

  As described above, the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to the above, and various design changes and the like can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. It is possible to

  For example, as the traveling state used for noise estimation, the engine speed, the vehicle speed, the accelerator opening, and the current position information have been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and information indicating other traveling states may be used. Moreover, it is not necessary to use all of the above-described traveling states, and only necessary traveling states may be used as appropriate. For example, only the engine speed can be used for noise estimation. Furthermore, the method of calculating the noise estimation level from the noise amounts N1, N2, N3, and N4 is not limited to summing N1 to N4, and other calculation methods can be used as appropriate.

  The acoustic characteristics of the microphone and speaker to be controlled may be other than microphone sensitivity, microphone directivity, and speaker volume. Further, the control target may be limited such as only microphone sensitivity or only microphone directivity and speaker volume. For example, if microphone sensitivity and speaker volume are controlled at the same time, there is a possibility that howling will occur depending on the setting, so that only one of them may be controlled.

  Further, while the vehicle is running, the actual noise level in the vehicle is measured from the microphone 19, the position information is acquired from the GPS function unit 17, and the noise level and position information are stored in the noise estimation database 103 in FIG. 4. It is also possible to memorize it at any time. In this case, the noise estimation database 103 may be updated only when noise of a predetermined level or higher is input to the microphone 19. By doing so, the noise estimation database 103 is always up-to-date and actual, and noise estimation accuracy can be improved.

  In addition, the noise estimation database 103 (database in which position information and noise are associated) in FIG. 4 sets latitude and longitude as position information, whether it is an urban area, and is set for each prefecture / city / town / village. May be performed. Further, for example, in an urban area, noise is loud during the day but noise is small during the night. Therefore, the noise estimation database 103 in FIG. 4 is switched between reference and non-reference according to the time zone, or the noise estimation database 103 according to time zone. Can also be used.

  In recent years, tolls using ETC (Electronic Toll Collection System) are becoming popular on expressways. When check-in is detected by ETC, it is determined that the expressway has been entered, and that information is used as location information. It is also possible to use it as

  In addition, the acoustic characteristics of the microphone and the speaker are set in accordance with the combination of the respective running states detected from the engine speed sensor 14, the vehicle speed sensor 15, the accelerator opening sensor 16, and the GPS function unit 17. May be. That is, for each combination of engine speed, vehicle speed, accelerator opening, and position information, a table with acoustic characteristics is prepared, and the engine speed, vehicle speed, accelerator opening, and position information are given. If so, the acoustic characteristics may be set with reference to the table.

It is a block diagram of the in-vehicle conversation assistance apparatus by one Embodiment of this invention. It is a functional block diagram of the in-vehicle conversation assistance apparatus of FIG. It is an example of the database for noise estimation. It is an example of the database for noise estimation. It is an example of the database for microphone / speaker characteristic setting. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the in-vehicle conversation assistance apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Car conversation assistance apparatus 11 ... CPU 12 ... ROM 13 ... RAM 14 ... Engine speed sensor 15 ... Vehicle speed sensor 16 ... Accelerator opening degree sensor 17 ... GPS function part 18 ... Microphone 19 ... Speaker 20 ... Display part 21 ... Operation part DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 22 ... Bus line 101 ... Noise estimation module 102 ... Voice controller 103 ... Noise estimation database 104 ... Microphone / speaker characteristic setting database

Claims (5)

An in-car conversation assistance device for assisting a person's conversation in an automobile using an acoustic device including a microphone and a speaker,
Detection means for detecting the running state of the vehicle;
Noise estimation means for estimating a noise level indicating the magnitude of acoustic noise in the vehicle based on the detected running state;
Acoustic control means for setting acoustic characteristics of the acoustic device according to the estimated noise level;
An in-vehicle conversation assisting device comprising: An in-car conversation assistance device for assisting a person's conversation in an automobile using an acoustic device including a microphone and a speaker,
A plurality of detection means for detecting the running state of the vehicle;
Acoustic control means for setting acoustic characteristics of the acoustic device according to a combination of detection results from the plurality of detection means;
An in-vehicle conversation assisting device comprising: It has a noise analysis means that collects the sound in the car and analyzes the noise level,
The database used for the estimation of the noise level in which the position information of the automobile is associated with the noise level in the automobile is updated by detecting the position information of the automobile and analyzing the noise level. Item 2. The in-vehicle conversation assisting device according to item 1.   The in-vehicle conversation according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least one of an engine speed, a vehicle speed, an accelerator opening degree, and an automobile position information is used as the traveling state. Auxiliary device.   The in-vehicle conversation assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the acoustic characteristics include at least one of microphone sensitivity, microphone directivity, and speaker volume.

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