JP2006096226A - On-vehicle system and operation authority control method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an on-vehicle system and an operation authority control method for restraining leaving of operation authority of an apparatus commonly used by a plurality of users independently. <P>SOLUTION: When leaving of a user from a corresponding seat is reported from a vehicle monitoring device 8 for monitoring seat taking and seat leaving of the user in each of the seats, a monitor control part 14 of monitor systems 1 to 4 arranged in accordance with the respective seats set its own monitor system to be in the sleep state, shutting down of a power source is instructed to the apparatus of which operation authority is owned by the self monitor system (a first DVD player 5, a second DVD player 6 or a digital TV broadcasting turner 7), and predetermined timeout time, for example 5 minutes, is waited to pass. When seating of the user to the corresponding seat is reported before passing of the timeout time, the power source of the apparatus is refed, and the sleep state is released. When the timeout time passes as it is, operation authority of the apparatus is released. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle system configured to include devices shared by a plurality of users who board an automobile.

As an in-vehicle system configured to include equipment shared by a plurality of users on a car, a display provided for each seat of the car and a TV or video playback device for outputting video to any display In-vehicle AV systems are known.
In addition, as a power control technique in such an in-vehicle AV system, a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of an occupant in each seat of an automobile is provided. There is known a technique for automatically turning on only a display of a seat where an occupant is present (for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-354087

  Now, the passengers in each seat of the car are independent of the in-vehicle AV system equipped with a display provided for each seat of the vehicle as described above and a TV and video playback device that outputs video to an arbitrary display. In order to make it available for use, it is conceivable to provide an input device for operating the in-vehicle AV system for each seat. When an AV system is configured in this way, the operation of a TV or video playback device that outputs video to a specific display ensures the independence of the user who views the specific display in using the AV system. In order to do this, it is necessary to limit the operation so that it can be performed only from the same seat input device as the specific display.

  On the other hand, when such a restriction is performed, for example, if a user who was watching TV in a certain seat got off the way without ending TV viewing, then the user who remained in another seat Will not be able to operate the TV. As a result, the use of the AV system of the user remaining in the other seats is unnecessarily restricted.

  Therefore, the present invention provides an in-vehicle system configured to include devices shared by a plurality of users who are in a car, while ensuring the independence of each user's use of the device, while preventing the use of the in-vehicle system of each user. It is an object to provide an in-vehicle system that is not limited to necessity.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an in-vehicle system mounted on an automobile, one or a plurality of devices shared by a plurality of users on each seat of the vehicle, and operation input of the devices from the user. A plurality of terminal devices provided corresponding to the respective seats, user boarding state detecting means for detecting the user's boarding state on each seat of the car, and operation of the device in response to the user's operation input When the operation authority that is the authority to perform the operation is not given to any of the terminal devices, the operation authority of the device is assigned to the request source in response to a request for the operation authority of the device from the terminal device. Operating authority control means to be given to the terminal device, and when the user boarding state detecting means detects the user's absence in the operating authority control means, When the operating authority of the device is assigned to the terminal device corresponding to the seat and the seat is obtained by the so revoke the grant of operating authority to the terminal device.

  According to such an in-vehicle system, when a user who has used the device with an operation authority in a certain seat gets off the bus without releasing the operation authority by performing an operation to end the use of the device. Automatically grants the operation authority of the device to the terminal device used by the user, and allows the other terminal device to freely acquire the operation authority of the device. Therefore, users who remain in other seats are not unnecessarily restricted from using this device.

  Here, in such an in-vehicle system, when the user boarding state detecting unit detects the user's leaving in the operation authority control unit, the in-vehicle system is connected to the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left. When the operation authority is granted, the grant of the operation authority to the terminal device is canceled, and the user boarding state detection means detects the seating of the user within the predetermined period from the cancellation, and the seating The terminal device corresponding to the seat on which the user is seated when the operation authority of the device that has been granted to the terminal device corresponding to the seat that the user has left at the time of detection is not granted to any terminal device In addition, the operation authority of the device that has been given to the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left may be given.

In this way, if a user who has used the device with operating authority in a certain seat moves, the other user will not have newly acquired the operating authority for this device during this period. The user can continue to use the device with the new seat in the same manner as when he was in the original seat with the same operating authority as when he was in the original seat.
Alternatively, in such an in-vehicle system, when the user boarding state detecting unit detects the user's leaving in the operation authority control unit, the in-vehicle system operates the device on the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left. When the authority is granted, the granting of the operation authority to the terminal device is canceled, and the user boarding state detecting means detects the seating of the user in the seat where the user has left within the predetermined period from the cancellation. If the operation authority of the device that has been given to the terminal device corresponding to the seat that the user has left at the time of detection of the seating is not given to any of the terminal devices, The terminal device corresponding to the seated seat may be re-granted the operation authority of the device that was given to the terminal device before the user left the seat. There.

  By doing this, before a user who has used the device with operating authority in a certain seat leaves the seat for a short period of time and another user acquires new operating authority for this device In such a case, after the user returns to the seat, the user can continue to use the device in the same manner as before leaving the seat with the same operation authority as before leaving the seat.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an in-vehicle system mounted on an automobile, one or a plurality of devices shared by a plurality of users mounted on each seat of the vehicle, and operation inputs of the devices. A plurality of terminal devices provided corresponding to each seat, received from the user, user boarding state detecting means for detecting the user's boarding state in each seat of the car, and the device according to the operation input of the user If the operation authority that is the authority to perform the operation is not granted to any terminal device, the request for the operation authority of the device is requested in response to the request for the operation authority of the device from the terminal device. Operating authority control means to be given to the original terminal device. When the user boarding state detecting means detects that the user is away from the operating authority control means, the user authority The user's boarding state detection means detects the user's seating within a predetermined period of time from the detection of the seating, when the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left is granted the device. If detected, the operation authority of the device assigned to the terminal device corresponding to the seat that the user has left is moved to the terminal device corresponding to the seat that the user has been seated from If the user boarding state detection means does not detect the user's seating within a predetermined period, the operation authority of the device granted to the terminal device corresponding to the seat that the user has left is revoked. It is.

  In this way, when a user who has been using the device with operating authority in a certain seat moves, this user is a new seat and is the same as when he was still in the original seat with operating authority. You can continue to use the device. On the other hand, if the user who has left the seat has not left the seat and has just left the seat, the grant of the device operating authority to the terminal device used by the user is automatically cancelled. Thus, the operation authority of this device can be freely acquired by other terminal devices. Therefore, users who remain in other seats are not unnecessarily restricted from using this device.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an in-vehicle system mounted on an automobile, one or a plurality of devices shared by a plurality of users mounted on each seat of the vehicle, and operation inputs of the devices. A plurality of terminal devices provided corresponding to each seat, received from the user, user boarding state detecting means for detecting the user's boarding state in each seat of the car, and the device according to the operation input of the user If the operation authority that is the authority to perform the operation is not granted to any terminal device, the request for the operation authority of the device is requested in response to the request for the operation authority of the device from the terminal device. Operating authority control means to be given to the original terminal device. When the user boarding state detecting means detects that the user is away from the operating authority control means, the user authority When the user is authorized to operate the device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left the seat, the user boarding state detection means detects that the user has left the seat within a predetermined period from the detection of the seat. When the user's re-seat to the seat where the user is detected is not detected, the grant of the operation authority of the device of the terminal device corresponding to the seat where the user has left is cancelled.

  In this way, when a user who has been using the device with operating authority in a certain seat returns for a short time and needs to leave the seat, the user returns to the seat. After that, the user can continue to use the device with the operation authority in the same manner as before leaving. On the other hand, if the user who has left the seat does not return as it is, the device operating authority granted to the terminal device used by this user is automatically revoked, and the operating authority of this device is changed. The terminal device can be freely acquired. Therefore, users who remain in other seats are not unnecessarily restricted from using this device.

  In each of the above-described in-vehicle systems, when the user boarding state detection unit detects that the user has left the seat, the operation authority is given to the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left the seat. When the device state control means for controlling the device to which the operation authority is given to the terminal device is stopped or in the standby state, or when the user boarding state detection means detects the user's absence, the user has left the seat. It is preferable to provide terminal state control means for controlling the terminal device corresponding to the seat to a stopped state or a standby state from the viewpoint of energy saving.

  Further, in the above in-vehicle system, the one or more devices may be AV devices that output at least one of audio and video, and the terminal device is given the operation authority to the terminal device. At least one of a display device that displays video output from the AV device, a sound output device that outputs sound output from the AV device to which the terminal device is authorized to operate, and an operation input of the device. And an input device that receives from the user.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is an in-vehicle system configured to include devices shared by a plurality of users who have boarded an automobile, and each user can ensure the independence of device usage. It is possible to provide an in-vehicle system that does not unnecessarily restrict the use of the in-vehicle system.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of an in-vehicle system according to the present invention will be described taking application to an in-vehicle AV system as an example.
FIG. 1a shows the configuration of an AV system according to this embodiment.
As shown in the figure, this AV system includes a first monitor system 1 that is a monitor system for a passenger on the driver's seat, a second monitor system 2 that is a monitor system for a passenger on the passenger seat, and a monitor for the user on the rear right seat. A third monitor system 3 which is a system, a fourth monitor system 4 which is a monitor system for users on the rear left seat, two DVD players of a first DVD player 5 and a second DVD player 6, a digital TV broadcast tuner 7, and in-vehicle monitoring The apparatus 8 is provided with an in-vehicle network 9 that connects the above components. Here, as shown in FIG. 1b, each monitor system is arranged at a position in front of the corresponding seat. Hereinafter, the first monitor system 1, the second monitor system 2, the third monitor system 3, and the fourth monitor system 4 are collectively referred to as “monitor system”, and the 1 DVD player, the second DVD player 6, and the digital TV broadcast tuner. 7 is collectively referred to as “device”.

  Each monitor system includes a display 11 that is a display device, a speaker system 12 including an audio amplifier, a speaker, and the like, an input device 13, and a monitor control unit 14 that controls each unit. Each DVD player has an operation authority management unit 51 that manages a monitor system having an operation authority for the device itself, and a player function unit 52 that performs video playback of a DVD. The digital TV broadcast tuner 7 includes an operation authority management unit 71 that manages a monitor system having an operation authority for the device itself, and a tuner function unit 72 that receives and outputs digital TV broadcasts. The in-vehicle monitoring device 8 includes an in-vehicle camera 81 that captures the interior of the vehicle, and a monitoring control unit 82 that detects whether a user is seated in each seat in the interior of the in-vehicle image captured by the in-vehicle camera 81. Here, for example, as shown in FIG. 1B, the in-vehicle camera 81 is arranged on the ceiling in front of the vehicle so that the appearance of each seat can be photographed.

  In such a configuration, the monitoring control unit 82 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 performs a predetermined image recognition process on the video imaged by the in-vehicle camera 81 to detect the seating / leaving of the user at each seat. When a seating is detected, a corresponding user seating notice is sent to the monitor system corresponding to the seat where the seating is detected, and when a seating is detected, the corresponding user leaving notice is sent to the seat where the seating is detected. Notify the monitor system. That is, if a user's seating in the driver's seat is detected, a corresponding user seating notification is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the first monitor system 1 via the in-vehicle network 9 to detect the user's leaving from the driver's seat. Then, a corresponding user leaving notice is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the first monitor system 1 via the in-vehicle network 9. If the user's seat in the passenger seat is detected, a corresponding user seat notification is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the second monitor system 2 via the in-vehicle network 9 to detect the user leaving the passenger seat. If so, a corresponding user leaving notice is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the second monitor system 2 via the in-vehicle network 9. Similarly, when the user's seating in the rear right seat is detected, a corresponding user seating notification is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the third monitor system 3 via the in-vehicle network 9 and the user is separated from the rear right seat. If a seat is detected, a corresponding user leaving notification is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the third monitor system 3 via the in-vehicle network 9. If the user's seating in the rear left seat is detected, a corresponding user seating notification is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the fourth monitor system 4 via the in-vehicle network 9 to leave the user from the rear left seat. Is detected, the corresponding user leaving notification is issued to the monitor control unit 14 of the fourth monitor system 4 via the in-vehicle network 9.

  Next, the operation authority management unit 51 of the DVD player manages the state of operation authority for the device itself. In other words, if the operation authority is free, that is, there is no monitor system with the operation authority of the device, if any monitor system requests acquisition of the operation authority, the operation authority is granted to the requesting monitor system. Then, the state of the operation authority is set to the state in which the monitor system to which the operation authority is granted has the operation authority of the own device. Further, when the release of the operation authority is notified from the monitor system having the operation authority of the own device, the operation authority state is set to free. In addition, when the operation authority management unit 51 receives an inquiry about the state of the operation authority managed from an arbitrary monitor system, the operation authority management unit 51 notifies the inquiry.

  Further, the operation authority management unit 51 accepts only the operation commands from the monitor system having the operation authority of the own device for the operation commands related to the operation of the player function unit 52, and transfers them to the player function unit 52. 52 is caused to perform an operation corresponding to the operation command. In the state where the operation authority is free, the operation command of the player function unit 52 from any monitor system is not accepted.

  Similarly, the operation authority management unit 71 of the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 manages the state of the operation authority for the own apparatus. In other words, if the operation authority is free, that is, there is no monitor system with the operation authority of the device, if any monitor system requests acquisition of the operation authority, the operation authority is granted to the requesting monitor system. Then, the state of the operation authority is set to the state in which the monitor system to which the operation authority is granted has the operation authority of the own device. Further, when the release of the operation authority is notified from the monitor system having the operation authority of the own device, the operation authority state is set to free. Further, when the operation authority management unit 71 receives an inquiry about the state of the operation authority managed from an arbitrary monitor system, the operation authority management unit 71 notifies the inquiry.

  Further, the operation authority management unit 71 accepts only the operation commands from the monitor system having the operation authority of its own device and transfers them to the tuner function unit 72 for the operation commands related to the operation of the tuner function unit 72. 72 is caused to perform an operation corresponding to the operation command. When the operation authority is free, an operation command for the tuner function unit 72 from any monitor system is not accepted.

Hereinafter, the operation of the monitor control unit 14 of each monitor system will be described.
FIG. 2 shows a procedure of operation control processing performed by the monitor control unit 14.
As shown in the figure, when the monitor control is activated, first, the state of the own monitor system is set to the sleep state (step 202), and the reception of the corresponding user seating notice from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 is waited (step 204). Here, the sleep state is a mode for saving energy by turning off the power supply to the display 11 and the speaker system 12.

  Next, when the corresponding user seating notice is received from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8, the state of the own monitoring system is set to the active state (normal operating state in which the sleep state is canceled) (step 206). The notification of the absence of the corresponding user (step 208), the user's device operation input via the input device 13 (step 210), and the monitor system power-off operation input via the input device 13 (step 208). 212) is monitored. The user's device operation refers to a user's operation for the first DVD player 5, the second DVD player 6, or the digital TV broadcast tuner 7.

  If there is a user operation on the input device 13 (step 210), the device (the first DVD player 5 or the second DVD player 6 or the digital TV broadcast tuner 7) targeted by the user operation is selected as the operation target device. (Step 230), and it is determined whether or not the own monitor system has the authority to operate the operation target device (Step 232). Whether or not the own monitoring system has the operation authority of the operation target device is operated as a response to the inquiry by inquiring the operation authority management unit 51/71 of the operation target device about the operation authority state of the operation target device. This is performed by acquiring the operation authority status of the target device and determining whether the own monitoring system has the operation authority of the operation target device according to the acquired operation authority status.

  Next, when it is determined that the own monitor system has the operation authority for the operation target device (step 232), an operation command corresponding to the user operation generated in step 210 is issued to the operation target device (step 232). 234). Then, reception of the corresponding user leaving notification from the in-car monitoring device 8 (step 208), input of the user's device operation to the input device 13 (step 210), and power-off of the monitor system via the input device 13 Returning to operation input and monitoring of occurrence of (step 212).

  Here, in the operation command according to the user operation, if the operation target device is the first DVD player 5 or the second DVD player 6, the DVD playback operation of the player function unit 52 is controlled (reproduction start, pause, fast forward, etc.). ) Command. Here, the player function unit 52 of the first DVD player 5 or the second DVD player 6 plays the video / audio reproduced by performing the operation according to the operation command via the in-vehicle network 9 to the monitor system from which the operation command is issued. Output. If the operation target device is the digital TV broadcast tuner 7, the operation command corresponding to the user operation includes control of reception operation of the tuner function unit 72 (change of reception band, reception channel, etc.). Here, the tuner function unit 72 of the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 outputs the video / audio received by performing the operation according to the operation command to the monitor system that issued the operation command via the in-vehicle network 9.

The monitor control unit 14 of the monitor system that has received the video / audio via the in-vehicle network 9 displays the video on the display 11 and outputs the audio from the speaker system 12.
Now, returning to step 232, if the own monitor system does not have the authority to operate the operation target device, it is checked whether or not it has the operation authority to the device other than the operation target device (step 248). The devices for which the own monitor system has the operation authority may be identified by inquiring each device about the operation authority state, or the monitor control unit 14 obtains the operation authority by issuing an operation authority acquisition request. Such a device may be identified as a device having the operation authority of the self-monitoring system by managing until the operation authority is released by a notification of the operation authority release.

  If the user does not have the authority to operate a device other than the operation target device, the process proceeds directly to step 250. On the other hand, if the user has an operation authority for a device other than the operation target device, an operation command for instructing to turn off the power is issued to the device having the operation authority and set to a standby state (step 256). An operation authority release notification is issued to the device, the operation authority of the device is released (step 258), and the process proceeds to step 250.

  Here, the power states of the first DVD player 5, the second DVD player 6, and the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 include a power-off state and a power-on state. The power-on state indicates a normal operating state. Further, if the power-off state is the first DVD player 5 and the second DVD player 6, the player function unit 52 is operating in a standby state (power supply to each unit is performed in accordance with an operation command instructing power-on. If the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 is in a state where power is supplied only to the function unit to be started, the tuner function unit 72 is operating in a standby state.

  In step 250, based on the state of the operation authority acquired from the operation target device, it is determined whether the operation authority of the operation target device is in a free state. If the operation authority is free, the operation authority acquisition request is issued to the operation object device via the in-vehicle network 9 to acquire the operation authority of the operation object device (step 252). In addition, an operation command for instructing power-on is issued to the operation target device, and the operation target device is set in a power-on state (step 254). Then, an operation command corresponding to the user operation generated in step 210 is transmitted to the operation target device. Issue (step 234). Then, reception of the corresponding user leaving notification from the in-car monitoring device 8 (step 208), input of the user's device operation to the input device 13 (step 210), and power-off of the monitor system via the input device 13 Returning to operation input and monitoring of occurrence of (step 212).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 250 that the operation target device is not in a state where the operation authority is free, the user operation generated in step 210 cannot be performed because another user has the operation authority for the operation target device. Is displayed on the display 11 (step 260), reception of the corresponding user leaving notification from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 (step 208), input of the user's device operation to the input device 13 (step 210), Returning to the input of the power-off operation of the monitor system via the input device 13 and the monitoring of the occurrence of (step 212).

  Now, the reception of the corresponding user leaving notification from the in-car monitoring device 8 (step 208), the input of the user's device operation to the input device 13 (step 210), and the power supply of the monitor system via the input device 13 is turned off. If a corresponding user leaving notification is received from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 during operation monitoring and occurrence of (step 212) (step 208), the self-monitoring system is set to sleep (step 208). 226), it is checked whether or not there is a device for which the own monitor system has an operation authority (step 228).

If there is no device for which the own monitor system has an operation authority (step 228), the process returns to step 204 to wait for reception of a corresponding user seating notice from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8.
On the other hand, if there is a device for which the own monitor system has the operation authority, an operation command for instructing the device to turn off the power is issued and set to a standby state (step 236). Then, a timer having a predetermined timeout time (for example, 5 minutes) is started (step 238), reception of the corresponding user seating notification (step 240), and occurrence of timeout (step 242) are monitored. If the corresponding user seating notification is received before the time-out occurs (step 238), the self-monitoring system issues an operation command for instructing power-on to a device having the operation authority, and sets the operation target device to the power-on state. Then (step 246), the process proceeds to step 206 to activate the own monitor system, receive the corresponding user leaving notice from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 (step 208), and the user's device to the input device 13 Return to the input of the operation (step 210), the input of the power-off operation of the monitor system via the input device 13, and the monitoring of the occurrence of (step 212).

  On the other hand, when the timer has timed out without receiving the corresponding user seating notice (step 242), the self-monitoring system notifies the device with the operation authority to release the operation authority via the in-vehicle network 9, and After releasing the operation authority (step 244), the process returns to step 204 and waits for reception of the corresponding user seating notice from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8.

  Next, the reception of the corresponding user leaving notification from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 (step 208), the input of the user's device operation to the input device 13 (step 210), and the power supply of the monitor system via the input device 13 If an input of a power-off operation of the monitor system via the input device 13 occurs during the monitoring of the input of the off operation and the occurrence of (step 212), first, the own monitor system is put into the sleep state. It is set (step 214), and it is checked whether or not there is a device for which the own monitor system has an operation authority (step 216). If it does not exist, the process proceeds to step 222. An operation command for instructing power-off is issued and set to a standby state (step 218), and the operation right is given to the device via the in-vehicle network 9. Released notified, on releasing the operating authority of the device (step 220), the process proceeds to step 222.

  When the routine proceeds to step 222, an input of a power-on operation of the monitor system via the input device 13 (step 222), reception of a corresponding user leaving notification from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8, and occurrence of (step 224) If there is an input of the power-on operation of the monitor system via the input device 13 (step 222), the process proceeds to step 206 to activate the own monitor system, and the corresponding user leaving notification from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 (Step 208), input of the user's device operation to the input device 13 (step 210), input of the power-off operation of the monitor system via the input device 13, and monitoring of occurrence of (step 212) Return. On the other hand, if a corresponding user leaving notification is received (step 224), the process proceeds to step 204 to wait for reception of a corresponding user seating notification from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8.

The operation of the monitor control unit 14 of each monitor system has been described above.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a user who has used a device with an operation authority at a certain seat gets off halfway without performing an operation to end the use of the device, After the timeout period of the timer starting at 232 has elapsed, the grant of the device operation authority to the monitor system used by this user is automatically revoked, and other monitor systems can freely acquire the operation authority of this device. It will be ready. Therefore, users who remain in other seats are not unnecessarily restricted from using this device. On the other hand, if a user who has used the device with operating authority at a certain seat returns for a short time within the time-out period of the timer and returns for the purpose, this user is placed in the seat. After returning, the user can continue to use the device with operating authority as before leaving.

  Note that the time-out time of the timer started in step 232 may be set to 0, and the operation authority held by the monitor system for the seat where the user leaves the seat may be released immediately after leaving the seat. Even in this case, when a user who has used the device with the operating authority in a certain seat gets off halfway without performing the operation to end the use of the device, the user remaining in the other seat Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the unnecessary restriction of the use of this device.

  Further, in the above embodiment, in each monitor system, the monitor control unit 14 receives an operation authority maintenance setting from the user via the input device 13, and when the operation authority maintenance setting is performed, step 232 is performed. The time-out time of the timer that starts at may be set to a larger time (for example, 30 minutes). Also, in this case, only when the user has not been set to maintain the operation authority, the time-out time of the timer started in step 232 is set to 0, and the operation authority held by the monitor system of the seat from which the user has left is retained. It may be released immediately after leaving. Alternatively, when the operation authority maintenance setting is performed, even if the corresponding user leaving notice is received, it may be handled in step 208 as not having received the corresponding user leaving notice.

  In this way, if a user who plans to return to the car leaves the seat after setting the operation authority maintenance, even if it takes a long time to return, After returning, the user can continue to use the device with the operating authority as before leaving.

  In the above embodiment, the operation authority and the power-off control of the first DVD player 5, the second player, and the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 are distributed in each monitor device. This is separately shown in FIG. As shown, the control device 100 may be provided in a form connected to the in-vehicle network 9, and the control device 100 may perform the above operation authority and power-off control as a whole.

In this case, the above operation authority and power-off control may be performed as follows.
That is, as a state of operation authority of the 1 DVD player, the second player, and the digital TV broadcast tuner 7, in addition to a state in which a specific monitor system has operation authority and a free state in which no monitor system has operation authority, Three states are used, that is, the granting of operation authority is suspended. Further, the control device 100 includes a device management table for managing the operation authority of the first DVD player 5, the second player, and the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 as shown in FIG.

  Then, the operation authority management unit 51/71 of the first DVD player 5, the second player, or the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 receives and sets its own operation authority from the control device 100. Further, the operation authority management unit 51/71 accepts only an operation command from the monitor system having the operation authority of the own device, transfers it to the player function unit 52 and the tuner function unit 72, and operates according to the operation command. In addition to controlling the power supply, for the power-off / power-on operation command, the power-off / power-on operation command sent from the control device 100 is received and the power-off / power-on state of the device is controlled.

In addition, if the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 detects the seating / leaving of the user at each seat, the in-car monitoring device 8 notifies the user seating / leaving notification with the identification of the seat that the user has seated / seated through the in-vehicle network 9. 100 is notified.
The monitor control unit 14 of each monitor system receives the user's device operation for the devices such as the first DVD player 5, the second player, and the digital TV broadcast tuner 7 by the input device 13. If the device does not have the operation authority for the device to be operated, the operation authority for the device is acquired from the control device 100 by issuing an operation authority acquisition request for the device to the control device 100. . On the other hand, when the user has the operation authority for the device to be operated, an operation command corresponding to the user's device operation is issued to the device via the in-vehicle network 9.
In addition, the monitor control unit 14 has a function of switching the sleep / active state of the own monitor system according to control from the control device 100 via the in-vehicle network 9. When a power-off operation of the monitor system is received from the user via the input device 13, the own monitor system is set in the sleep state and an operation authority release request is issued to the control device 100 via the in-vehicle network 9. . Further, when a power-on operation of the monitor system is received from the user via the input device 13, the own monitor system is set in an active state. In addition, as a terminal of the control device 100, it has a function of providing the control device 100 with an interface using the display device and the input device 13 between the user of the own monitor system and the control device 100.

And the control apparatus 100 performs an apparatus state control process as shown in FIG.
That is, when the control device 100 starts processing, it receives an operation authority acquisition request from one of the monitor systems (step 402), receives an operation authority release request from the monitor system (step 404), and the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 And the reception of the user seat notification from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 (step 408). Hereinafter, the state in which the monitoring in steps 402 to 408 is performed is referred to as an event monitoring state.

  If an operation authority acquisition request is received from any of the monitor systems (step 402), the device (first DVD) for which the issuer of the operation authority acquisition request has the operation authority with reference to the device management table. The player 5 or the second DVD player 6 or the digital TV broadcast tuner 7) is extracted, and by issuing an operation command for instructing to turn off the power to the extracted device, the device is set in a standby state (step 410), and the operation authority is given. The operation authority of the device of the acquisition request source monitor system is released (step 412). This release of operation authority instructs the device to set the operation authority state to free, sets the operation authority state of the device in the device management table to free, and monitors the operation authority acquisition request issuer. This is done by notifying the system of the release of operating authority for the device.

  Then, it is checked whether or not the state of the operation authority of the device for which the operation authority is requested by the received operation authority acquisition request is free with reference to the device management table (step 414). The power of the device for which the operation authority is requested by the authority acquisition request is turned on by issuing an operation command for instructing to turn on the power (step 416), and the operation authority of the device is assigned to the monitor system from which the operation authority acquisition request is issued. (Step 418). And it returns to the event monitoring state of step 402-408.

  Here, the granting of the operation authority instructs the device to set the operation authority state to a state in which the monitor system of the operation authority acquisition request source has the operation authority, and the operation authority of the device in the device management table. The operation authority acquisition request source monitor system is registered in the state, and the operation authority acquisition request issuer monitor system is notified of the operation authority grant of the device. Here, the monitor control unit 14 of each monitor system holds the operation authority of the device from the time when the operation authority is given to a certain device until the release of the operation authority is notified. Manage as you are.

  Next, when it is determined in step 414 that the operation authority state of the device for which the operation authority is requested is not free according to the received operation authority acquisition request, the operation of the device is referred to by referring to the device management table. A check is made to see if the authorization state is pending (step 420). If the operation authority state is not pending, a request rejection is notified to the monitor system of the operation authority acquisition request source (step 426), and the process returns to the event monitoring state of steps 402-408. Note that the device operating authority is put on hold, as will be described later, when the seat monitoring system in which the user who has recently left the seat holds the operating authority for the device until the user leaves the seat. It becomes.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 420 that the operation authority state of the device whose operation authority is requested by the operation authority acquisition request is pending, the monitor control unit 14 of the monitor system of the operation authority acquisition request source An inquiry as to whether or not to acquire the operation authority of a device whose operation authority is on hold is displayed on the display 11, an instruction for whether to acquire it is received by the input device 13, and the received instruction is reported (step 422). ). If there is a report indicating that it is not acquired (step 424), the process returns to the event monitoring state of steps 402-408 as it is.

  On the other hand, if there is a report of acquisition (step 424), the power supply of the device for which the operation authority is requested by the received operation authority acquisition request is turned on (step 416), and the operation authority of the device is requested to acquire the operation authority. This is given to the issuing monitor system (step 418). And it returns to the event monitoring state of step 402-408.

  Next, when an operation authority release request is received from the monitor system during the event monitoring state in steps 402 to 408 (step 404), the operation authority acquisition request issuer operates the operation authority with reference to the device management table. By extracting an authorized device and issuing an operation command that instructs the extracted device to turn off the power, the device is put into a standby state (step 428), and the monitor system of the operation authority acquisition request source The operation authority of the device is released by notifying the release of the operation authority of the device (step 430). And it returns to the event monitoring state of step 402-408.

  Next, when the user leaving notification is received from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 during the event monitoring state in steps 402-408 (step 406), the monitoring system for the seat from which the user has left is controlled to the sleep state. (Step 432). Then, the monitor system of the seat where the user has left the seat checks whether there is a device having the operation authority with reference to the device management table (step 434). If there is no device, the event monitoring state in steps 402-408 is continued. Return to.

  On the other hand, if there is a device for which the monitor system of the seat where the user leaves the seat has an operation authority (step 434), an operation command to instruct the device to turn off the power is issued to enter a standby state (step 436). ) Releases the operation authority of the monitor system for the seat where the user has left, sets the operation authority state of the device to “pending”, and activates the hold operation authority monitoring process for monitoring the operation authority state of this device ( Step 438). And it returns to the event monitoring state of step 402-408.

  Here, the setting of the device operation authority status to “pending” sets the operation authority state of the device in the device management table to “pending”, and sets the device operation authority control unit to “pending” as the operation authority state. To do. Further, in the hold operation authority monitoring process activated in step 438, if the operation authority state of the monitoring target device obtained by referring to the device management table has been held for a certain time (for example, 10 minutes) or more, Set the operation authority state of the device in the device management table to free, and set the operation authority control unit of the device to free as the operation authority state, thereby changing the operation authority state of the device to free. This is a process to end.

Next, if a user seating notice is received from the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 during the event monitoring state in steps 402-408 (step 408), the sleep state of the monitor system of the seat where the user seated is removed is released. The active state is set (step 440).
Then, referring to the device management table, it is checked whether or not there is a device whose operation authority is on hold (step 442). If there is no device, the process returns to the event monitoring state in steps 402-408.
On the other hand, when there is a device whose operation authority is on hold (step 442), the operation authority of the device whose operation authority is on hold is acquired in the monitor control unit 14 of the monitor system of the seat where the user is seated. Inquiry about whether or not an inquiry is made is displayed on the display 11, an instruction on whether or not to acquire is received by the input device 13, and the received instruction is reported (step 444). If there is a report indicating that it is not acquired (step 446), the process returns to the event monitoring state of steps 402-408 as it is.

  On the other hand, if there is a report to the effect of acquisition (step 446), the power of the device whose operation authority state is on hold is turned on (step 448), and the operation authority of the device is given to the seat monitoring system where the user is seated. (Step 450). And it returns to the event monitoring state of step 402-408.

The apparatus state control process of the control device 100 has been described above.
According to the device state control process of the control device 100 as described above, when a user who has used the device with an operation authority in a certain seat gets off the bus without performing the operation to end the use of the device. Automatically grants the device operating authority to the monitor system used by the user, and sets the device operating authority to free after being held for a certain period of time. The operation authority of the device that is on hold can be acquired by another monitor system on the premise of an explicit instruction from the user, and the operation authority of the device that is free can be freely obtained by the other monitor system. Can be acquired. Therefore, users who remain in other seats are not unnecessarily restricted from using this device.
In addition, since the user's explicit instruction is required to acquire the pending operation authority, when the user who has left the seat returns to the seat in a short time or just moves away, The other user acquires the operation authority of the device without knowing that it is a device used by the user who has left and will be used again after returning to the car. Can be suppressed. On the other hand, a user who is seated when there is a device whose operation authority is on hold can immediately acquire the operation authority of this device. Therefore, when a user who has left the seat returns to the original seat or moves to another seat in a short time, he / she can restore the same operating authority as before leaving and continue to use the device as before leaving. Can help make it possible.

By the way, the above-described device state control process omits Steps 420-426, and if the state of the operation authority of the device for which the operation authority is requested in Step 412 is not free, the Step 402- You may make it return to the event monitoring state of 408.
In this way, after a user who has been using the device with operating authority at a certain seat leaves the seat, before returning to the original seat or moving to another seat, It is possible to prevent other remaining users from acquiring the operation authority of the device.
Further, in the device state control process, in step 442, there is a device whose operation authority is on hold, and the user seating notification notified in step 408 is sent to the seat to which the operation authority on hold was given immediately before. Only when the user is seated, the process proceeds to step 444. In other cases, the process may return to the event monitoring state of steps 402-408. In this case, step 446 may be omitted, and the process may proceed to step 448 as it is after step 444 is executed.

In this way, the user who has left the seat can continue to use the device in the same manner as before leaving the seat only when another user returns to the original seat before acquiring the operation authority of the device. Can be able to.
In each of the above embodiments, the in-vehicle monitoring device 8 uses the in-vehicle camera 81 to detect the seating / leaving of the user of each seat in the vehicle. Any sensor that can detect the user's seating / leaving of each seat in the vehicle, such as a load sensor that detects a load applied by the user, may be used.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration and arrangement of an AV system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation control process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the other structural example of the AV system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the apparatus state control process which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... 1st monitor system, 2 ... 2nd monitor system, 3 ... 3rd monitor system, 4 ... 4th monitor system, 5 ... 1st DVD player, 6 ... 2nd DVD player, 7 ... Digital TV broadcast tuner, 8 ... Inside the car Monitoring device, 9 ... In-vehicle network, 11 ... Display, 12 ... Speaker system, 13 ... Input device, 14 ... Monitor control unit, 51 ... Operation authority management unit, 52 ... Player function unit, 71 ... Operation authority management unit, 72 ... Tuner function unit, 81 ... in-vehicle camera, 82 ... monitoring control unit, 100 ... control device.

Claims (9)

An in-vehicle system installed in an automobile,
One or more devices shared by a plurality of users on each seat of the car;
A plurality of terminal devices each corresponding to each seat, which accepts operation input of the device from the user;
User boarding state detecting means for detecting the user's boarding state in each seat of the automobile;
If no operation authority is granted to any of the terminal devices, the operation of the device can be performed in response to a request from the terminal device. Operation authority control means for granting authority to the requesting terminal device,
When the user boarding state detection unit detects that the user has left the seat, the operation authority control unit is configured such that when the terminal has a right to operate the device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left the seat, An in-vehicle system characterized by canceling the granting of operation authority to a terminal device. The in-vehicle system according to claim 1,
When the user boarding state detection unit detects that the user has left the seat, the operation authority control unit is configured such that when the terminal has a right to operate the device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left the seat, Canceling the granting of operation authority to the terminal device, and when the user boarding state detecting means detects the seating of the user within a predetermined period from the cancellation, and the user leaves the seat at the time of the seating detection When the operation authority of the device assigned to the terminal device corresponding to the seat is not given to any terminal device, the terminal device corresponding to the seat where the user is seated is set to the seat where the user leaves the seat. An in-vehicle system characterized by granting the operation authority of the device that has been given to the corresponding terminal device. The in-vehicle system according to claim 1,
When the user boarding state detection unit detects that the user has left the seat, the operation authority control unit is configured such that when the terminal has a right to operate the device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left the seat, Canceling the granting of the operation authority to the terminal device, and when the user boarding state detecting means detects the seating of the user in the seat where the user has left within the predetermined period from the cancellation, When the operation authority of the device, which has been given to the terminal device corresponding to the seat where the user leaves the seat at the time of detection, is not given to any terminal device, the terminal device corresponding to the seat where the user is seated An in-vehicle system that re-assigns the operation authority of the device that has been given to the terminal device before the user leaves. An in-vehicle system installed in an automobile,
One or more devices shared by a plurality of users on each seat of the car;
A plurality of terminal devices each corresponding to each seat, which accepts operation input of the device from the user;
User boarding state detecting means for detecting the user's boarding state in each seat of the automobile;
In response to a request for operation authority of the device from the terminal device when no operation authority is granted to any of the terminal devices, which is the authority to operate the device according to the operation input of the user Operation authority control means for granting the operation authority of the device to the requesting terminal device,
When the user boarding state detection unit detects that the user has left the seat, the operation authority control unit is configured such that when the user is given the operation authority of the device to the terminal device corresponding to the seat that the user has left. Then, when the user boarding state detection means detects the user's seating within a predetermined period from the detection of the seat separation, the user leaves the terminal device corresponding to the seat on which the user is seated. When the user's operation authority of the device assigned to the terminal device corresponding to the seat is moved, and the user boarding state detection means does not detect the user's seating within a predetermined period from the detection of the absence, the user An in-vehicle system that cancels the granting of the authority to operate the device of the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left. An in-vehicle system installed in an automobile,
One or more devices shared by a plurality of users on each seat of the car;
A plurality of terminal devices each corresponding to each seat, which accepts operation input of the device from the user;
User boarding state detecting means for detecting the user's boarding state in each seat of the automobile;
In response to a request for operation authority of the device from the terminal device when no operation authority is granted to any of the terminal devices, which is the authority to operate the device according to the operation input of the user Operation authority control means for granting the operation authority of the device to the requesting terminal device,
The operation authority control means is when the operation authority of the device is given to the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left when the user boarding state detection means detects the user's absence. If the user boarding state detecting means does not detect the user's re-seating to the seat where the user's leaving is detected within a predetermined period from the detection of the leaving, the user's leaving seat An in-vehicle system, wherein the operation authority of the corresponding terminal device is revoked. The in-vehicle system according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5,
When the user boarding state detecting means detects that the user has left the seat, if the user is given an operation authority to the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left, the operation authority is given to the terminal device. A vehicle-mounted system comprising device state control means for controlling the device to a stopped state or a standby state. The in-vehicle system according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6,
When the user boarding state detecting means detects that the user has left the seat, the vehicle includes in-vehicle state control means for controlling the terminal device corresponding to the seat from which the user has left the seat to a stop state or a standby state. system. The in-vehicle system according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7,
The one or more devices are AV devices that output at least one of audio and video,
The terminal device outputs a display device that displays a video output from the AV device to which the terminal device is authorized to operate and a sound that is output from the AV device to which the terminal device is authorized to operate. An in-vehicle system comprising: at least one of an audio output device; and an input device that receives an operation input of the device from the user. One or a plurality of devices shared by a plurality of users boarding each seat of the automobile, and a plurality of terminal devices provided corresponding to each seat, each receiving an operation input of the devices from the user In an in-vehicle system, an operation authority control method for controlling an operation authority, which is an authority capable of operating the device according to an operation input of the user,
When the operation authority of the device is not given to any terminal device, the operation authority of the device is granted to the requesting terminal device in response to the request for the operation authority of the device from the terminal device. Steps,
When detecting the user's boarding state in each seat of the automobile and when the user's leaving is detected, when the operation authority of the device is given to the terminal device corresponding to the seat where the user has left, And a step of canceling the granting of the operation authority to the terminal device.