JP2010175329A - On-vehicle information device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an on-vehicle information device for actualizing a driver's visual point display that gives a sense of reality. <P>SOLUTION: This on-vehicle information device includes: present position detection means 12, 13, and 14 for detecting a present position of a vehicle; a storage means 20 for therein storing scene image data, road image data, and three-dimensional building image data; a control means 10 for acquiring scene image data, road image data, and three-dimensional building image data corresponding to the present position detected by the detection means from a storage and together combining them, and further combining image data that represent changing events on the vehicle or around the vehicle with an image formed by the combination to generate driver's visual point images which are images acquired by viewing from the driver's visual point; and display means 24 and 25 for displaying the driver's visual point images generated by the control means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle information apparatus that is mounted on a vehicle and presents information for assisting driving to a user, and more particularly to a technique for displaying a front landscape image.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a technique for synthesizing a front landscape from a driver's viewpoint based on map data and a vehicle position and displaying the synthesized scene on a monitor is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). In this specification, the display of the front scenery from the viewpoint of the driver is referred to as “driver viewpoint display”. Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for effectively changing and displaying the driver viewpoint display according to road undulations. Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for displaying a building in front in three dimensions (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “3D”) as driver viewpoint display.

  According to such driver viewpoint display, the driver can compare the actual landscape from his / her viewpoint with the landscape displayed on the monitor, and thus has an advantage that the driver can easily recognize the current location.

JP 2006-208816 A JP-A-10-143066 JP-A-9-319302

  However, during actual driving, the driver can see not only the front scenery but also a part of the vehicle, such as a hood, so there is no sense of reality in the driver viewpoint display where a part of the vehicle is not synthesized, and the driver feels strange. Give rise to In addition, other vehicles are driving on real roads, or the front scenery changes due to changes in weather, etc., but these are not reflected, so the conventional driver viewpoint display differs from reality. This is a cause of unnaturalness and unnaturalness.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide an in-vehicle information device capable of realizing a realistic driver viewpoint display.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an in-vehicle information device according to the present invention includes a current position detection unit that detects a current position of a vehicle, a storage unit that stores landscape image data, road image data, and three-dimensional building image data, The scenery image data, the road image data, and the 3D building image data corresponding to the current position detected by the current position detection means are acquired from the storage device and synthesized, and the vehicle or the surroundings of the vehicle changes to the synthesized image. Control means for generating a driver viewpoint image that is an image viewed from the viewpoint of the driver by further synthesizing image data representing the above, and display means for displaying the driver viewpoint image generated by the control means.

  According to the in-vehicle information device according to the present invention, the image composed of the landscape image, the road image, and the three-dimensional building image is further combined with the image representing the event that changes the vehicle or the surroundings of the vehicle. Realistic driver viewpoint display can be realized.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process which determines the display form of a bonnet at the time of a bonnet image being produced | generated in the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the driver viewpoint image formed in the process of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the driver viewpoint image formed with the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the driver viewpoint image formed with the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the other driver viewpoint image formed with the vehicle-mounted information apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
Embodiment 1 FIG.
1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. This in-vehicle information device includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10, a built-in memory 11, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver 12, a vehicle speed sensor 13, a direction sensor 14, a touch panel 15, a radio receiver 18, and a DTV (Digital TeleVision) reception. Machine 19, HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 20, CD (Compact Disc) / DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) drive 21, mobile phone 22, in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network) interface 23, drawing chip 24, LCD monitor 25, amplifier 26 And a speaker 27.

  The CPU 10 corresponds to a part of the control means of the present invention, and includes a built-in memory 11, a GPS receiver 12, a vehicle speed sensor 13, a direction sensor 14, a touch panel 15, a radio receiver 18, a DTV receiver 19, an HDD 20, and a CD / DVD. The entire in-vehicle information device is controlled by transmitting and receiving data to and from the drive 21, the mobile phone 22, the in-vehicle LAN interface 23, the drawing chip 24, and the amplifier 26 to execute predetermined processing. Details of the processing executed by the CPU 10 will be described later.

  The built-in memory 11 corresponds to another part of the control means of the present invention, and is composed of, for example, a RAM (Random Access Memory). A program read from the HDD 20 is expanded in the internal memory 11. The CPU 10 operates according to a program developed in the built-in memory 11. The built-in memory 11 is used for temporarily storing data being processed by the CPU 10.

  The GPS receiver 12 detects the current position of the vehicle based on a GPS signal received from a GPS satellite via an antenna. Current position data representing the current position of the vehicle detected by the GPS receiver 12 is sent to the CPU 10.

  The vehicle speed sensor 13 detects the moving speed of the vehicle based on the vehicle speed pulse sent from the vehicle on which the in-vehicle information device is mounted. Speed data representing the moving speed of the vehicle detected by the vehicle speed sensor 13 is sent to the CPU 10. The direction sensor 14 detects the traveling direction of the vehicle. Direction data representing the traveling direction of the vehicle detected by the direction sensor 14 is sent to the CPU 10.

  The CPU 10 that has received the speed data from the vehicle speed sensor 13 and the direction data from the direction sensor 14 detects the current position of the vehicle by self-contained navigation based on the speed data and the direction data, and generates current position data. Thus, even if the GPS receiver 12 cannot detect the current position of the vehicle, for example, when entering the valley of a tunnel or a building, the vehicle's current position can be detected by self-contained navigation. The current position can be detected. The current position detecting means of the present invention is composed of the GPS receiver 12, the vehicle speed sensor 13 and the direction sensor 14.

  The touch panel 15 is placed on the screen of the liquid crystal monitor 25, and is used for inputting various instructions to the in-vehicle information device. The touch panel 15 generates a signal corresponding to the touched position and sends it to the CPU 10 as operation data. In response to the operation data, the CPU 10 changes the display mode on the liquid crystal monitor 25 (for example, changes from the two-dimensional map display mode to the driver viewpoint display mode), screen scrolling, facility search, route search, or Processing for realizing guidance guidance and the like is executed.

  The radio receiver 18 receives a radio broadcast, reproduces an audio signal, and sends it to the CPU 10. The CPU 10 sends the audio signal sent from the radio receiver 18 to the amplifier 26. Thereby, as will be described later, radio broadcast sound is output from the speaker 27.

  The DTV receiver 19 receives the digital television broadcast, reproduces the audio signal and the video signal, and sends them to the CPU 10. The CPU 10 sends the video signal sent from the DTV receiver 19 to the drawing chip 24 and sends the audio signal to the amplifier 26. As a result, as will be described later, the digital television broadcast video is displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 25 and the sound of the digital television broadcast is output from the speaker 27.

  In addition, the CPU 10 that has received the video signal from the DTV receiver 19 acquires weather information from the video signal and reflects it in a vehicle image display mode described later. The DTV receiver 19 used when acquiring the weather information corresponds to the weather information acquiring means of the present invention.

  The HDD 20 corresponds to the storage means of the present invention, and stores vehicle image data, a map database, three-dimensional building image data, and a program. The vehicle image data is an image in which a part of the vehicle existing in front of the driver's seat is drawn from the driver viewpoint (hereinafter referred to as “driver viewpoint image”), and the vehicle image data includes a bonnet, a headlight, a mirror. Images such as pillars and meter panels are included. In addition to map data, the map database includes forward three-dimensional landscape image data, three-dimensional road image data, and the like. Data stored in the HDD 20 is read by the CPU 10.

  The CD / DVD drive 21 reproduces the contents recorded on the loaded CD or DVD 21a. The audio signal and the video signal obtained by reproducing with the CD / DVD drive 21 are sent to the CPU 10. The CPU 10 sends the video signal sent from the CD / DVD drive 21 to the drawing chip 24 and sends the audio signal to the amplifier 26. As a result, as will be described later, an image is displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 25 and a sound is output from the speaker 27.

  The mobile phone 22 is used to control communication with the outside. That is, a radio wave transmitted from the outside is received and converted into an electric signal and sent to the CPU 10 as a received signal, and a transmission signal sent from the CPU 10 is converted into a radio wave and transmitted to the outside. The mobile phone 22 is used, for example, for acquiring weather information from an external server. The mobile phone 22 used when acquiring the weather information corresponds to the weather information acquiring means of the present invention.

  The in-vehicle LAN interface 23 controls communication between the in-vehicle LAN and the CPU 10. The CPU 10 transmits vehicle information indicating the operation state of the vehicle generated inside the vehicle via the in-vehicle LAN interface 23, for example, headlight data indicating on / off of the headlight, and a speed indicating the speed indicated by the speed meter. Data, side mirror data indicating opening / closing of the side mirror, winker data indicating whether the winker is operating, and the like are acquired. These pieces of vehicle information are recognized by the CPU 10 as events that change the vehicle. This in-vehicle LAN interface 23 corresponds to the vehicle information acquisition means of this invention.

  In the in-vehicle information device according to the first embodiment, the vehicle information is configured to be captured by the CPU 10 via the in-vehicle LAN interface 23. However, the vehicle information may be directly captured by the CPU 10. .

  The drawing chip 24 draws an image based on the display data sent from the CPU 10 and sends it to the liquid crystal monitor 25 as a video signal. The liquid crystal monitor 25 displays an image based on the video signal sent from the drawing chip 24. The drawing chip 24 and the liquid crystal monitor 25 correspond to the display means of the present invention.

  The amplifier 26 generates and amplifies an audio signal based on the audio data sent from the CPU 10 and sends it to the speaker 27. The speaker 27 outputs sound corresponding to the amplified sound signal sent from the amplifier 26.

  Next, the operation of the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  When the display mode on the liquid crystal monitor 25 is changed from the other display mode to the driver viewpoint display mode by operating the touch panel 15, first, the current position is calculated (step ST11). That is, the CPU 10 calculates the current position from the current position data received from the GPS receiver 12 or determines the current position by autonomous navigation based on the vehicle speed data received from the vehicle speed sensor 13 and the direction data received from the direction sensor 14. calculate.

  Next, a landscape image is generated (step ST12). That is, the CPU 10 acquires landscape image data from the map database of the HDD 20 and stores it in the image generation area provided in the built-in memory 11.

  Next, road images are generated and overlaid (step ST13). That is, the CPU 10 acquires road image data from the map database of the HDD 20 and develops it overlaid on the image generation area in which the landscape image described above is stored.

  Next, a three-dimensional building image is generated and superimposed from a distance (step ST14). That is, the CPU 10 acquires 3D building image data from the HDD 20, sequentially generates images from distant images, and superimposes them on the image generation area in which the above-described landscape image and road image are stored. As a result, a driver viewpoint image composed of a distant scenery image, a road image, and a three-dimensional building image is formed as shown in FIG.

  Next, a bonnet image is generated and overlaid (step ST15). That is, the CPU 10 acquires bonnet image data stored as vehicle image data in the HDD 20 and superimposes it on the image generation area in which the driver viewpoint image generated in step ST14 is stored. A headlight image is added to the bonnet image. As a result, a bonnet image is superimposed on an image obtained by combining a distant landscape image, a road image, and a three-dimensional building image as shown in FIG. 5 to form a driver viewpoint image.

  When superimposing the bonnet image, the display mode of the bonnet image is changed according to time and weather. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing processing for changing the display mode of the bonnet image. In this process, first, the current time zone is examined (step ST21). That is, the CPU 10 acquires time from a clock mechanism (not shown) (corresponding to the time acquisition means of the present invention), and checks the time zone. If it is determined in step ST21 that the time zone is “night”, the bonnet image is changed to a dark color (step ST22). That is, the CPU 10 executes processing for reducing the brightness of the bonnet image. Thereafter, the sequence proceeds to step ST24.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step ST21 that the time zone is “daytime”, the bonnet image is changed to a light color (step ST23). That is, the CPU 10 executes a process for increasing the brightness of the bonnet image. Thereafter, the sequence proceeds to step ST24. Whether it is “night” or “daytime” can be determined by obtaining a calendar held in the clock mechanism and according to this calendar.

  In step ST24, the weather is checked. That is, the CPU 10 acquires weather information from the DTV receiver 19 or a server (not shown) via the mobile phone 22, and is “sunny”, “rainy” or “cloudy” based on the acquired weather information. Find out. If it is determined in this step ST24 that it is “clear”, the saturation of the bonnet image is increased (step ST25). That is, the CPU 10 executes a process for increasing the saturation of the bonnet image. Thereafter, the process returns to the process shown in the flowchart of FIG.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step ST24 that it is “rainy” or “cloudy”, the saturation of the bonnet image is lowered (step ST26). That is, the CPU 10 executes a process for reducing the saturation of the bonnet image. Thereafter, the process returns to the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. In the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3, the case where the display form of the bonnet image is changed according to the time and weather has been described. Further, the bonnet according to the vehicle information sent via the in-vehicle LAN interface 23 is described. The display form of the image can be changed. For example, when the headlight data indicates that the headlight is on, the bonnet image is changed to a dark color, and when the headlight data indicates that the headlight is off, the bonnet image can be changed to a light color.

  In step ST16 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, it is checked whether or not the headlamp is on. That is, the CPU 10 checks whether the headlight data acquired via the in-vehicle LAN interface 23 indicates that the headlight is on.

  If it is determined in step ST16 that the headlamp is not on, the sequence proceeds to step ST18. On the other hand, if it is determined in step ST16 that the headlamp is on, a process of shining the headlight image is performed (step ST17). That is, the CPU 10 changes the headlight image in the bonnet image generated and superimposed in step ST15 to a bright color. Thereafter, the sequence proceeds to step ST18.

  In step ST18, display processing is executed. That is, the CPU 10 sends the contents stored in the image generation area of the built-in memory 11 to the drawing chip 24 as display data. The drawing chip 24 draws an image based on the display data sent from the CPU 10 and sends it to the liquid crystal monitor 25 as a video signal. The liquid crystal monitor 25 displays an image based on the video signal sent from the drawing chip 24. Thereby, for example, an image as shown in FIG. 5 is displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 25.

  Thereafter, the sequence returns to step ST11 and the above-described processing is repeated. This repetition is performed every 1/30 seconds, for example.

  In the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 1 described above, the case where a bonnet image having a headlight is displayed as a vehicle image has been described. However, the vehicle information apparatus is configured to display a side mirror, a pillar, a meter panel, and the like. You can also. When displaying the meter panel, the display content of the meter panel can be changed according to the speed data sent from the in-vehicle LAN interface 23.

  Further, it is also possible to display a building and road darkly at night and generate a screen in which the headlight illuminates the road when the headlight is on.

  In addition, the bonnet image may be configured to be shaded or glossy by taking into account the sun position calculated from the calendar included in the timepiece mechanism and the azimuth of the host vehicle obtained from the azimuth sensor 14. Further, it is possible to add a shadow to the building image or change the landscape according to the weather information.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. This in-vehicle information device is configured by adding a camera 16 and an image recognition device 17 to the in-vehicle information device shown in FIG.

  Although not shown, the camera 16 includes a front camera that captures the front of the vehicle, a rear camera that captures the rear, and a side camera that captures the side. An image signal obtained by photographing with the camera 16 is sent to the image recognition device 17.

  The image recognition device 17 analyzes the image indicated by the image signal sent from the camera 16, thereby changing events around the vehicle, such as the presence or absence of a moving vehicle, the color of the vehicle, and the distance to the vehicle. Alternatively, the moving speed of the vehicle is detected. Data indicating a changing event detected by the image recognition device 17 is sent to the CPU 10. The forward vehicle detection means of the present invention includes a front camera included in the camera 16 and an image recognition device 17. The rear vehicle detection means of the present invention includes a rear camera included in the camera 16 and an image recognition device 17.

  The front vehicle detection means and the rear vehicle detection means of the present invention can also be configured by a laser radar device. In this case, the laser radar device detects the presence / absence of the vehicle, the distance to the vehicle, or the moving speed of the vehicle by irradiating the laser beam forward, sideward or backward and receiving the reflected light. Can do.

  In the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 2 configured as described above, an image signal obtained by photographing with the front camera included in the camera 16 is sent to the image recognition device 17. The image recognition device 17 analyzes the image indicated by the image signal sent from the camera 16, thereby changing events around the vehicle, such as the presence or absence of a moving vehicle, the color of the vehicle, and the distance to the vehicle. Alternatively, the moving speed of the vehicle is detected. Data obtained by detection in the image recognition device 17 is sent to the CPU 10.

  Based on the data sent from the image recognition device 17, the CPU 10 determines whether the vehicle is moving based on the moving speed of the vehicle detected by the image recognition device 17. In some cases, an image representing the vehicle is generated and further combined with the driver viewpoint image generated by the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 1. In more detail, the process which produces | generates and overlaps the image showing a vehicle is performed between step ST15 and step ST16 of the flowchart shown in FIG. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, a bonnet image is superimposed on an image obtained by combining a distant landscape image, a road image, and a three-dimensional building image, and further, a driver viewpoint image in which an image representing a vehicle is superimposed is formed. Is done.

  Note that as the image representing the vehicle, a deformed image or an image corresponding to the vehicle type specified based on the shape recognized by the image recognition device 17 can be used. As the color of the image representing the vehicle, the color of the vehicle detected by the image recognition device 17 can be used. Further, the size of the image representing the vehicle can be determined based on the distance to the vehicle detected by the image recognition device 17. Furthermore, as an image representing the vehicle, an image taken by a front camera included in the camera 16 can be used as it is.

  Further, the rearview mirror image data is stored in the vehicle image data of the HDD 20, and the CPU 10 synthesizes the rearview mirror image acquired from the vehicle image of the HDD 20 with the driver viewpoint image generated as described above, and the camera. When a vehicle is detected by the image recognition device 17 based on an image signal from a rear camera included in the image, the image of the rearview mirror is used as an image representing a changing event. Can be configured to synthesize. As a result, the bonnet image and the image representing the vehicle ahead are superimposed on the image obtained by combining the distant landscape image, the road image, and the three-dimensional building image as shown in FIG. A driver viewpoint image in which a rearview mirror image including an image representing the image is superimposed is formed. In addition, when a vehicle is not detected by the image recognition device 17 based on an image signal from a rear camera included in the camera 16, as shown in FIG. Image representing an event to be performed) is not included.

  Similarly, the image data of the side mirror is stored in the vehicle image data of the HDD 20, and the CPU 10 combines the image of the side mirror acquired from the vehicle image of the HDD 20 with the driver viewpoint image generated as described above. When a vehicle is detected by the image recognition device 17 based on an image signal from a side camera included in the camera 16, an image representing the detected rear side vehicle is used as an image representing a changing event. It can also be configured to be combined with a mirror image.

  Note that the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2 described above is configured to combine a bonnet image or an image representing a vehicle with an image obtained by combining a landscape image, a road image, and a three-dimensional building image. However, a bonnet image or an image representing a vehicle may be combined and displayed on a real image photographed by a front camera included in the camera 16.

  In the in-vehicle information device according to Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2 described above, an example in which the image of the hood is displayed on the left lane (see FIGS. 5, 7, and 8) is shown. The image recognition device 17 that receives the image signal sent from the vehicle detects the lane, and when a plurality of lanes are detected, the bonnet image is displayed on the lane in which the host vehicle is traveling. be able to.

  10 CPU (control means), 11 built-in memory (control means), 12 GPS receiver (current position detection means), 13 vehicle speed sensor (current position detection means), 14 direction sensor (current position detection means), 15 touch panel, 16 Camera (front vehicle detection means, rear vehicle detection means), 17 image recognition device (front vehicle detection means, rear vehicle detection means), 18 radio receiver, 19 DTV receiver (weather information acquisition means), 20 HDD (storage means) ), 21 CD / DVD drive, 22 mobile phone (weather information acquisition means), 23 in-vehicle LAN interface (vehicle information acquisition means), 24 drawing chip (display means), 25 liquid crystal monitor (display means), 26 amplifier, 27 speaker .

Claims (6)

Current position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
Storage means for storing landscape image data, road image data, and three-dimensional building image data;
Landscape image data, road image data, and three-dimensional building image data corresponding to the current position detected by the current position detection means are acquired from the storage device and synthesized, and a change in the vehicle or around the vehicle is combined with the synthesized image. Control means for generating a driver viewpoint image viewed from the viewpoint of the driver by further combining image data representing an event to be performed;
A vehicle-mounted information device comprising display means for displaying a driver viewpoint image generated by the control means. The storage means stores vehicle image data representing a part of the vehicle ahead of the driver's seat,
The in-vehicle information device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit generates a driver viewpoint image obtained by combining the generated driver viewpoint image with the vehicle image data acquired from the storage device. Vehicle information acquisition means for acquiring vehicle information representing an operation state of the vehicle;
Time acquisition means for acquiring time information;
Weather information acquisition means for acquiring weather information,
The control unit is configured to display a vehicle image based on at least one of the vehicle information acquired by the vehicle information acquisition unit, the time information acquired by the time acquisition unit, and the weather information acquired by the weather information acquisition unit. The in-vehicle information device according to claim 2, wherein: It has a forward vehicle detection means for detecting a forward vehicle,
2. The on-vehicle information device according to claim 1, wherein when a vehicle is detected by the forward vehicle detection unit, the control unit uses an image representing the detected vehicle as an image representing a changing event. . The vehicle image data stored in the storage means includes bonnet image data,
3. The in-vehicle information device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit generates a driver viewpoint image obtained by synthesizing the generated driver viewpoint image with bonnet image data acquired from the storage device. A rear vehicle detection means for detecting a rear vehicle;
The vehicle image data stored in the storage means includes image data of the rearview mirror,
The control unit synthesizes the image data of the rearview mirror acquired from the storage device with the generated driver viewpoint image, and changes the image representing the detected vehicle when the vehicle is detected by the rear vehicle detection unit. The in-vehicle information device according to claim 2, wherein a driver viewpoint image synthesized with the image data of the rearview mirror is generated as an image representing an event to be performed.

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