JP2006317421A - On-vehicle controller - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an on-vehicle controller allowing an occupant on a front passenger seat to perform a usual operation during travel and allowing a driver to see a desired screen. <P>SOLUTION: The on-vehicle controller comprises a displaying means for simultaneously displaying a first screen which the driver can see and a second screen which a person other than the driver can see, an operating means for performing an input operation to alter the display contents of the displaying means, a travel determining means for determining whether the vehicle is travelling, an operation discriminating means for discriminating whether the input operation is performed by the driver, and an operation invalidation control means for changing the display contents of the second screen by invalidating the input operation when the input operation is discriminated to be performed by the driver during the travel of the vehicle and by validating the input operation when the input operation is discriminated to be performed by a person other than the driver during the travel of the vehicle. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle control device that displays a current position of a vehicle on an electronic map and guides the route of the vehicle to a destination.

  As the vehicle travels, the current position is detected by GPS (Global Positioning System), etc., and the current position is displayed on the display device together with the road map, and an appropriate route from the current position to the destination is displayed. A vehicle navigation device that is set and guided by a display device, an audio output device, or the like contributes to the efficient and safe driving of the user.

  The display device of the vehicle navigation device is generally installed on an instrument panel or the like between the driver and the passenger seat so that the driver can easily operate and observe. In addition, for safe driving, except for the minimum input operation necessary for navigation such as expanding the road map, predetermined inputs such as setting the destination are automatically prohibited during driving. Yes.

  However, even when a passenger seat that is not directly involved in driving the vehicle performs a switch operation, a predetermined input such as setting a destination is not accepted. Therefore, when such an input is performed, each time There was a problem that the vehicle had to be paused for input.

  Therefore, while driving, the prohibition of the predetermined input by the driver's switch operation is ensured, while all the inputs can be performed by the passenger's switch operation, and the vehicle driving guidance can be performed reliably and smoothly In addition, an in-vehicle navigation device has been proposed that can ensure safe driving (see Patent Document 1).

  Further, in recent years, a two-screen display has been proposed in which a driver can view map information and a DVD or other playback screen from the passenger seat, and display a completely different image depending on the viewing direction. Non-patent document 1).

JP 09-292261 A ASCII24 News / Topics, April 20, 2005 "" Display 2005 Report Vol.3 "Full-screen display of different images in the driver's seat and front passenger's seat !! Reference exhibit using a two-screen display" April 24, 2005 search Internet <URL: http://ascii24.com/news/i/topi/article/2005/04/20/655512-000.html?geta>

  In the example of Patent Document 1, when the operation is performed from the passenger seat side, the same screen can be seen from the driver seat. For example, when switching to a television screen by a passenger in the passenger seat during route guidance, there is a problem that the driver cannot see the guidance route screen.

  Further, even if the two-screen display of Non-Patent Document 1 is used, the conventional technique prohibits the input of the passenger on the passenger seat, so that the characteristics of the two-screen display cannot be fully utilized.

  Against the background of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle control device that allows a passenger in a passenger seat to perform a normal operation while driving and allows a driver to view a desired screen.

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

  This invention provides the vehicle-mounted control apparatus for solving the said subject. That is, according to claim 1, the display means for simultaneously displaying the first screen that can be seen by the driver and the second screen that can be seen by other than the driver, and the display contents of the display means are changed. Operating means for performing an input operation for performing operation, traveling determining means for determining whether the vehicle is traveling, operation determining means for determining whether the input operation is performed by a driver, and traveling of the vehicle When it is determined that the input operation is performed by the driver, the input operation is invalidated, and it is determined that the input operation is performed by a person other than the driver while the vehicle is traveling. In some cases, the control unit is configured as an in-vehicle control device having operation invalidation control means that enables the input operation to be changed and changes the display content of the second screen.

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle control device having a display that can display screens independently on the left and right sides, for example, in the prior art, a driver that is invalid except for a specific input operation during traveling, The operation is determined by detecting that the vehicle cannot be operated, and the normal operation can be performed when the passenger on the passenger seat side operates the vehicle while traveling. In the above configuration, only the screen visible from the passenger seat side can be operated, and operations such as a vehicle navigation device, a television, and DVD playback can be performed, so that driving can be enjoyed comfortably. On the other hand, since the display screen visible from the driver's seat continues to display, for example, the route guidance screen regardless of the operation of the passenger on the passenger seat, it is possible to concentrate on driving.

  According to claim 2, the operation determining means in the in-vehicle control device of the present invention includes a detecting means for detecting that the driver is holding the steering handle of the vehicle with both hands, and the driver controls the steering handle. A configuration can be adopted in which it is determined that the input operation when it is detected that the hand is held with both hands is performed by a person other than the driver.

  The state where the driver holds the steering wheel with both hands means that the driver cannot operate the on-vehicle control device. With the above configuration, it is possible to determine that the operation of the in-vehicle control device is performed by a person other than the driver such as a passenger on the passenger seat.

  According to claim 3, the detection means in the in-vehicle control device of the present invention includes two sensors disposed on the steering handle. When the two sensors are operating simultaneously, the steering handle is grasped with both hands. It can be configured to be in a state of being.

  When the driver holds the steering wheel with both hands, it is said that if the driver holds the steering wheel at a so-called “ten-time enough” position, a correct driving posture can be maintained and fatigue during driving is reduced. Therefore, if a sensor is arranged at the “ten-time enough” position, the detection means can be configured with the minimum number of sensors, and the cost can be suppressed, and the state where the driver holds the steering wheel with both hands can be accurately determined. Can be detected.

  For example, if the passenger on the passenger's seat wants to change the display screen, the input operation will be invalid if the driver does not hold the “10 o'clock sufficient” position of the steering wheel. Will be urged to hold the position. As a result, the driver will inevitably have to hold the “ten-time enough” position, but since the correct driving posture can be maintained, fatigue during driving is reduced. In addition, since the passenger can freely change the display screen, the atmosphere in the vehicle becomes gentle, and the driver can concentrate on driving.

  According to claim 4, the travel determination means in the in-vehicle control device of the present invention includes vehicle speed detection means for detecting the speed of the vehicle, and the vehicle is traveling when the detected speed exceeds a predetermined value. A configuration for determination can be taken.

  The vehicle speed detection means is necessary for control of an ABS (Anti Lock Brake System), a skid prevention device, an engine control device, and the like, and is therefore attached to almost all vehicles. Therefore, it is possible to accurately determine whether the vehicle is traveling without increasing the cost.

  A first screen that allows the driver to see the purpose of providing an in-vehicle control device that allows the passenger in the passenger seat to perform normal operations while the vehicle is running and allows the driver to view the desired screen; This is realized by a configuration in which a display that simultaneously displays a second screen that can be viewed by other than the driver is provided, and the display of the second screen can be changed even during traveling.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to examples shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration when the in-vehicle control device of the present invention is applied to a vehicle navigation device. Note that the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to a vehicle navigation device, but can also be applied to an in-vehicle audio device or the like.

  A vehicle navigation device (hereinafter abbreviated as a navigation device) 100 includes a position detector 1, a map data input device 6, an operation switch group 7, a remote control (hereinafter referred to as a remote control) sensor 11, voice synthesis for performing voice guidance, and the like. A circuit 24, a speaker 15, a nonvolatile memory 9, a display device 10, a hard disk device (HDD) 21, a control circuit 8 connected thereto, and a remote control terminal 12 are provided.

  The position detector 1 has a known geomagnetic sensor 2, a gyroscope 3, a distance sensor 4, and a GPS receiver 5 for GPS that detects the position of the vehicle based on radio waves from a satellite. Since these sensors 2, 3, 4, and 5 have errors of different properties, they are configured to be used while being complemented by a plurality of sensors. Depending on the accuracy, a part of the sensors described above may be used, and further, a steering rotation sensor, a wheel sensor of each rolling wheel, that is, a vehicle speed sensor 23 may be used.

  As the operation switch group 7, for example, a touch panel 22 integrated with the display device 10 or a mechanical switch is used. The touch panel 22 is pressed when an electric circuit is wired on the screen of the display device 10 in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction through a gap called a spacer on a glass substrate and a transparent film, and the user touches the film. Since the voltage value changes due to short-circuiting of the wiring of the part, a so-called resistive film method is widely used in which this is detected as a two-dimensional coordinate value (X, Y). In addition, an infrared sensor that is finely arranged vertically and horizontally, a panel portion that converts contact of a finger or the like detected by the infrared sensor into an electrical signal, a signal processing circuit for sending the electrical signal to an external device, and a controller that controls these For example, when the infrared ray is cut off with a finger or a touch pen, a method in which the cut off position is detected as a two-dimensional coordinate value (X, Y) may be used. Alternatively, a so-called capacitance method may be used in which a substance that receives an electrical signal is applied to a glass surface of a transparent conductive substrate, and a change in capacitance is detected by a sensor as an electrical signal when a finger is brought close to the glass surface. Good.

  In addition to the mechanical switch and the touch panel, a pointing device such as a mouse or a cursor may be used. It is also possible to input various instructions using the microphone 31 and the voice recognition unit 30. In this method, when a voice is input from a microphone 31 connected to the voice recognition unit 30, the voice signal is subjected to voice recognition processing by a known voice recognition technique, and converted into an operation command corresponding to the result. . The voice recognition unit 30 amplifies the voice signal input from the microphone 31 to an appropriate level, A / D-converts the amplified voice signal, and then uses a known voice recognition algorithm such as a hidden Markov model. An audio signal processing device (DSP: Digital Signal Processor) for identifying, a memory or the like in which reference data for identifying audio is stored, and the DSP converts the audio signal into numerical information corresponding to the audio. After being converted, it is sent to the control circuit 8. Various instructions can be input by the operation switch group 7, the remote control terminal 12, and the microphone 31 which are the operation means of the present invention.

  The transceiver 13 is a device for receiving road traffic information from, for example, a VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication System) center 14.

  In addition, by communicating with an ETC (Automatic Toll Collection System, ETC: Electronic Toll Collection) vehicle-mounted device 16, fee information received by the ETC vehicle-mounted device 16 from the ETC road device can be taken into the navigation device 100. Further, the ETC vehicle-mounted device 16 may be connected to an external network and communicate with the VICS center 14.

  The control circuit 8 that is the traveling determination means, the operation determination means, and the operation invalidation control means of the present invention is configured as a normal computer, and is a well-known CPU 81, ROM 82, RAM 83, I / O 84 that is an input / output circuit, and their configurations. Are provided. The CPU 81 controls the navigation program 21p and data stored in the HDD 21. The CPU 81 controls the reading / writing of data to / from the HDD 21. The A / D conversion unit 86 includes a well-known A / D (analog / digital) conversion circuit, and converts analog data input from the position detector 1 or the like to the control circuit 8 into digital data that can be calculated by the CPU 81, for example. It is.

  In addition to the navigation program 21p, the HDD 21 stores so-called map matching data for improving the accuracy of position detection, and map data 21m including road data representing road connections. The map data 21m stores predetermined map image information for display and road network information including link information and node information. The link information is predetermined section information constituting each road, and includes position coordinates, distance, required time, road width, number of lanes, speed limit, and the like. The node information is information that defines an intersection (branch road) and the like, and includes position coordinates, the number of right / left turn lanes, a connection destination road link, and the like. In addition, data indicating whether or not traffic is possible is set in the inter-link connection information.

  Further, auxiliary information for route guidance, entertainment information, and other data can be written by the user in the HDD 21 and stored as user data 21u. The user data 21 u can be rewritten by operating the operation switch group 7, the touch panel 22 and the remote control terminal 12, or by inputting voice from the microphone 31.

  The map data 21m and user data 21u can be added / updated from the storage medium 20 via the map data input device 6. The storage medium 20 is generally a CD-ROM or DVD based on the amount of data, but may be another medium such as a memory card.

  The non-volatile memory 9 is constituted by a rewritable semiconductor memory such as an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable & Programmable Read Only Memory) or a flash memory, and information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100. Is remembered. The nonvolatile memory 9 is configured to retain the stored contents even when the accessory switch of the vehicle is turned off (that is, the navigation device 100 is turned off).

  Further, information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100 may be stored in the HDD 21 instead of the nonvolatile memory 9. Furthermore, information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100 may be stored separately in the nonvolatile memory 9 and the HDD 21. In this case, since the access speed to the nonvolatile memory 9 is faster than that of the HDD 21, it is preferable to store data having a relatively high frequency of reading and writing in the nonvolatile memory 9 and to store data having a relatively low frequency of reading and writing in the HDD 21. The content stored in the nonvolatile memory 9 may be backed up and saved in the HDD 21.

  The display device 10 which is a display means of the present invention is a two-screen display that displays a completely different video from two different directions such as the A direction and the B direction. The display device 10 is composed of a known color liquid crystal display and includes a dot matrix LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and a driver circuit for performing LCD display control. The driver circuit uses, for example, an active matrix driving method in which a transistor is attached to each pixel so that the target pixel can be reliably turned on and off, and is based on a display command and display screen data sent from the control circuit 8. To display. An organic EL (ElectroLuminescence) display or a plasma display may be used as the display.

  Moreover, the display apparatus 10 may arrange | position the mechanical switch of the operation switch groups 7 distribute | arranged around the display screen like FIG. Reference numerals 22 a and 22 b denote touch switches arranged on the touch panel 22.

  The speaker 15 is connected to a known voice synthesis circuit 24 connected to the I / O 34 of the control circuit 8, and the digital voice data stored in the nonvolatile memory 9 or the HDD 21 is converted into an analog voice by the voice synthesis circuit 24 according to a command from the navigation program 21 p. The one converted to is sent. In addition, the speech synthesis method stores the speech waveform as it is or after encoding it, recording and editing methods that connect them as necessary, and analyzes the speech waveform and stores it in the form converted into parameters. There are a parameter editing system for generating speech by connecting speech synthesis circuits by connecting them, a rule synthesis system for generating speech from character strings or phoneme symbol strings based on phonetic and linguistic rules, and the like.

  The vehicle speed sensor 23 which is a vehicle speed detection means of the present invention includes a rotation detection unit such as a known rotary encoder, and is installed near the wheel mounting unit, for example, detects the rotation of the wheel and sends it to the control circuit 8 as a pulse signal. is there. The control circuit 8 converts the rotation speed of the wheel into the speed of the vehicle, calculates the expected arrival time from the current position of the vehicle to a predetermined location, and calculates the average vehicle speed for each travel section of the vehicle.

The external device connection device 26 includes an input / output circuit and a connector for connecting to external devices such as sensors and other control devices so as to be able to transmit data. It has a configuration capable of realizing one or at least two of the following functions.
(1) Connection of a data backup device for backing up the contents stored in the non-volatile memory 9 or the HDD 21 (2) Communication interface circuit (3) in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network) for data transmission with other in-vehicle devices ) External network connection via mobile phone 17 (4) Audio-visual device such as DVD player, TV

  In addition, data acquisition from the vehicle speed sensor 23 or connection to the ETC vehicle-mounted device 16 may be performed via the external device connection device 26.

  With this configuration, when the navigation program 21p is activated by the CPU 81 of the control circuit 8, the navigation device 100 allows the user to operate the operation switch group 7, the touch panel 22, the remote control terminal 12, or the voice from the microphone 31. When the route guidance process for displaying the destination route on the display device 10 is selected from the menu displayed on the display device 10 by the input, the following processing is performed.

  That is, when a user selects a point from a given point on the map or facility search, address search, or a registered place set by the user and sets it as a destination, it is based on satellite data obtained from the GPS receiver 5. A current position of the vehicle is obtained, and a process for obtaining an optimum guide route from the current position to the destination is performed. Then, the guidance route is displayed on the road map on the display device 10 so as to guide the user to the appropriate route. As a method for automatically setting an optimum guide route, a method such as the Dijkstra method is known. In addition, at least one of the display device 10 and the speaker 15 provides a notification according to the guidance during operation or the operation state.

  In Dijkstra's method, link evaluation information (route calculation cost) from the current location to each node is calculated using link information, node information, and link connection information, and all route evaluation values to the destination are calculated. At the stage of completion, a link to the smallest total evaluation value is connected and a route to the destination is set. The evaluation value in this case is set according to the road length, road type, road width, number of lanes, right / left turn at the intersection, presence / absence of traffic lights, and the like. For example, the evaluation value is lower as the road width is wider, and the evaluation value is lower as the number of lanes is larger.

  The calculation of the route calculation cost at each link is performed using, for example, the following equation. Route calculation cost = link length × road width coefficient × road type coefficient × congestion level. Here, the road width coefficient is a coefficient set according to the road width, and the road type coefficient is a coefficient set according to the road type such as a toll road. The congestion level is a coefficient set according to the congestion level of the road.

  When the optimum guide route is obtained, the control circuit 8 sets a guide target point such as an intersection that turns right or left on the guide route or a building that serves as a guide mark. Then, a guidance execution point is determined as a point to be guided by voice when the vehicle approaches a certain distance with respect to the set guidance target point. For example, when the guidance target point is an intersection, a plurality of guidance execution points can be set such as 700 m before, 300 m before, 100 m before on a general road, 2 km, 1 km, 500 m before on an expressway.

FIG. 3 shows an example of attachment of the detection means. The detecting means 35a and 35b are disposed at a predetermined position such as a so-called “ten-hour sufficiency” position of the steering handle 36 of the vehicle that is gripped during normal driving. The detection means 35a and 35b are composed of the following sensors. Also, different types of sensors may be used in combination.
(1) Temperature sensor: a known thermistor that converts temperature into voltage, measures the temperature of the gripped portion, and inputs the measurement result to the control circuit 8. The control circuit 8 determines that the steering handle 36 is being grasped with both hands when the temperature or voltage measured by the two sensors exceeds a predetermined value.
(2) Sweating sensor: composed of a well-known polymer film, ceramic, or thermistor that converts humidity into voltage, measures the humidity of the gripped portion, that is, the degree of sweating, and inputs the measurement result to the control circuit 8 . The control circuit 8 determines that the steering handle 36 is grasped with both hands when the humidity, that is, the voltage measured by the two sensors exceeds a predetermined value.
(3) Pressure sensor: It is composed of a known piezoelectric element that converts pressure into voltage, measures the pressure at the gripped part, and inputs the measurement result to the control circuit 8. The control circuit 8 determines that the steering handle 36 is being grasped with both hands when the pressure or voltage measured by the two sensors exceeds a predetermined value.
(4) Contact sensor: A resistance value is measured by passing a weak current, and the measurement result is input to the control circuit 8. The control circuit 8 determines that the steering handle 36 is being held with both hands when the resistance value, that is, the voltage measured by the two sensors exceeds a predetermined value. Further, a contact detection method on the touch panel 22 may be used.

  The above sensor may be disposed on the entire circumference of the steering handle 36, and it may be determined that the steering handle 36 is held with both hands when there are two positions where the measured value exceeds a predetermined value. In this case, a sensor ID that can determine which position of the steering wheel 36 the sensor is in is stored in the sensor unit, and the sensor ID is also sent to the control circuit 8 together with the measured value.

  The operation invalidation control process will be described with reference to FIG. This process is included in the navigation program 21p and is repeatedly executed together with other processes of the navigation program 21p. First, it is determined based on the vehicle speed data acquired from the vehicle speed sensor 23 whether the vehicle is traveling. For example, when the vehicle speed exceeds 5 km / h, it is determined that the vehicle is traveling. When the vehicle is not running (S1: No), all the input operations by the operation of the operation switch group 7, the touch panel 22, the remote control terminal 12 or the voice input from the microphone 31 are validated (S6).

  When the vehicle is traveling (S1: Yes), it is detected whether there is an operation of the operation switch group 7, touch switches 22a and 22b on the touch panel 22, operation of the remote control terminal 12, or input operation by voice input from the microphone 31. To do. When there is an input operation (S2: Yes), it is checked whether the input operation is an input operation other than a driver such as a passenger on the passenger seat. As described above, the input operation when the state measured by the detection means 35a and 35b is a state where the driver is holding the steering handle 36 with both hands is determined as an input operation other than the driver.

  Even when the driver is holding the steering handle 36 with both hands, the driver can perform voice input. In this case, while the vehicle is running, a method of invalidating an operation by voice input from the microphone 31 or a voice of the driver and other passengers is registered in the voice recognition unit 30 or the like in advance, and the voice recognition unit 30 performs the operation. A method of determining whether the voice is a driver's voice by a method of performing well-known speaker recognition together with command recognition, and in the case of the driver's voice, a method of invalidating the input operation may be used. In addition, voice input by the driver may be possible during traveling.

  For example, when it is determined that the input operation is a non-driver operation such as the operation of the passenger on the passenger seat (S3: Yes), the display content of the screen that can be viewed from the B direction is performed according to the input operation Is changed (S4). On the other hand, when it is determined that the input operation is not for the driver (S3: No), the input operation is invalidated (S5).

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and the knowledge of those skilled in the art can be used without departing from the spirit of the claims. Various modifications based on this are possible.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus for vehicles. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a display device. The figure which shows an example of the attachment position of a detection means. The flowchart for demonstrating operation invalidity control processing.

Explanation of symbols

1 Position detector 7 Operation switch group (operation means)
8 Control circuit (running determination means, operation determination means, operation invalidation control means)
9 Non-volatile memory 10 Display device (display means, first screen, second screen)
12 Remote control terminal (operation means)
20 Storage medium 21 Hard disk device 22 Touch panel (operation means)
23 Vehicle speed sensor (vehicle speed detection means)
31 Microphone (operation means)
35a, 35b detection means (sensor)
36 Steering handle 100 Vehicle navigation device

Claims (4)

Display means for simultaneously displaying a first screen that can be viewed by the driver and a second screen that can be viewed by other than the driver;
Operation means for performing an input operation for changing the display content of the display means;
Traveling determination means for determining whether the vehicle is traveling;
Operation determining means for determining whether the input operation is performed by a driver;
If it is determined that the input operation is performed by the driver while the vehicle is traveling, the input operation is invalidated, and the input operation is performed by a person other than the driver while the vehicle is traveling. An operation invalidation control means for enabling the input operation to change the display content of the second screen when it is determined that
A vehicle-mounted control device comprising:   The operation determination means includes detection means for detecting that the driver is holding the steering handle of the vehicle with both hands, and detects that the driver is holding the steering handle with both hands. The in-vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the input operation is determined to be performed by a person other than the driver.   The detection means includes two sensors disposed on the steering handle, and when the two sensors are simultaneously operated, the steering handle is in a state of being gripped with both hands. The vehicle-mounted control apparatus of 2. The vehicle travel determination means includes vehicle speed detection means for detecting the speed of the vehicle, and determines that the vehicle is traveling when the detected speed exceeds a predetermined value. The vehicle-mounted control apparatus as described in a term.

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