JP2008195104A - Mirror controller for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mirror controller capable of changing directions of a room mirror and a side mirror to allow a driver to easily and clearly see another traffic lane even when the driver attempts to change the currently running traffic lane for another traffic lane because speed of the other car on the currently running traffic lane is too low. <P>SOLUTION: This mirror controller determines that a direction indication lever for operating a direction indicator is operated to change traffic lanes (S20 indicates the determination of affirmation) and moves the side mirror to change its angle onto an outer side by a predetermined angle to facilitate the change of traffic lanes based on the determination (S50). Since the change of traffic lanes is determined by operation of the direction indication lever, the direction of the side mirror can be changed to allow the driver to easily and clearly see another traffic lane even when the driver attempts to change the currently running traffic lane for another lane because speed of the other car on the currently running traffic lane is too low. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a mirror control device that controls the orientation of a vehicle rearview mirror or side mirror.

  When changing the lane, the driver of the vehicle first notifies the surroundings of the lane to be changed by operating the direction indicator. Then, the lane change is performed by confirming whether or not another vehicle is traveling in the lane to be changed by the vehicle rearview mirror and / or the side mirror. At this time, it is desirable that the rearview mirror or the side mirror is oriented so that the driver can easily see the lane to be changed. Therefore, in the side mirror control device of Patent Document 1, when the direction indicator operates when the speed of the vehicle is equal to or higher than a predetermined speed, the vehicle is regarded as changing the lane, and the lane side where the lane is being changed. The direction of the side mirror is changed outward by a predetermined angle. This makes it easier for the driver to see the lane that is about to change lanes.

Here, when the direction indicator operates when the speed of the vehicle is equal to or higher than the predetermined speed, it is considered that the vehicle is about to change the lane when the vehicle is usually traveling at a somewhat high speed. This is because the lane changes. In other words, in Patent Document 1, when the direction indicator operates when the vehicle is at a predetermined speed or less, it is not considered to change lanes, but is assumed to turn left or right at an intersection or the like.
JP-A-2005-35468

  However, the situation in which the vehicle operates the direction indicator to change lanes is not limited to when the vehicle is traveling at a relatively high speed. For example, when driving on a congested road, when changing lanes or accidentally entering the right turn lane and leaving the right turn lane, the driver will drive when the vehicle is stopped or at a slower speed. The direction indicator may be operated to change the lane of the vehicle even when the vehicle is on.

  However, in the side mirror control device disclosed in Patent Document 1, even if the direction indicator is operated in such a situation, the direction of the side mirror does not change, so it may be difficult to see the lane to be changed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and even when changing the lane when the vehicle speed is low, the direction of the rearview mirror and the side mirror is changed so that the lane to be changed is easy to see. An object of the present invention is to provide a mirror control device that can perform the above-described operation.

  In order to achieve the above object, a mirror control device according to a first aspect of the present invention is a mirror control device provided in a vehicle including a mirror changing mechanism that changes a direction of at least one of a side mirror and a rearview mirror. Based on the fact that the direction indicating lever has been operated by a predetermined lane change operation amount that is different from the operation amount at the time of turning left and right, the vehicle determines the lane that the lane is to be changed, and the side mirror and room of the vehicle Mirror control means is provided for controlling the mirror changing mechanism so that the lane whose lane is to be changed is easily seen by at least one of the mirrors.

  According to this, when the direction indicating lever is operated by the lane change operation amount, the direction of at least one of the side mirror and the rearview mirror changes to make it easier to see the lane to be changed. Therefore, even when the lane is changed when the vehicle speed is low, the direction of the rearview mirror and the side mirror can be changed so that the lane to be changed is easy to see.

  The mirror control device according to claim 2 further includes lane change determination means for determining start and end of lane change based on a steering angle of the vehicle, wherein the mirror control means includes a side mirror and a rear mirror of the vehicle. After the lane change determining means determines that the lane change is finished after the lane change determination means determines that the lane to be changed is easy to see after changing at least one of the lanes, the mirror direction becomes the direction before the lane change. And controlling the mirror variable mechanism. According to this, when the lane change is completed, the direction of the mirror automatically returns to the direction before the lane change, so that the operation burden on the driver can be reduced.

  The mirror control device according to claim 3, wherein the mirror control unit changes the direction of at least one of the side mirror and the rearview mirror of the vehicle to a direction in which the lane to be changed is easy to see, and then the lane during a predetermined period. When the start of lane change is not determined by the change determination means, the mirror changing mechanism is controlled so that the direction of the mirror becomes the direction before the change.

  The driver may not change the lane even if the direction indicator is operated to change the lane. For example, when the driver's mind changes and the lane is not changed, or when another vehicle is traveling in the lane to be changed and the lane cannot be changed. In such a case, if the direction of the mirror remains changed forever, it becomes difficult for the driver to drive. Therefore, in the mirror control device according to the third aspect, when the start of the lane change is not determined within a predetermined period from when the mirror direction is changed, the mirror direction is automatically returned to the direction before the change. Thereby, the situation where it is difficult for the driver to drive can be avoided.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the mirror control device includes a setting device that allows a user to set the direction of at least one of the side mirror and the room mirror when the lane is changed. The direction of mirrors that are easy to drive individually is different. However, if the setting device is provided as in the fourth aspect, each driver can set the direction of the mirror when changing the lane so that the driver can easily drive.

  Embodiments of a mirror control device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a mirror control system including a mirror control device 10 of the present embodiment.

  The steering angle sensor 20 outputs a signal corresponding to the steering angle to the mirror control device 10. Then, the mirror control device 10 calculates the steering angle based on the signal output from the steering angle sensor 20.

  The direction indicating lever 30 is operated by the driver when making a right / left turn and changing lanes, and has the same configuration as a normal direction indicating lever. Accordingly, if the push-up operation amount or the push-down operation amount is equal to or greater than the predetermined amount, the left-turn position or the right-turn position is held, and the initial position is not returned until the steering is operated by a predetermined angle or more. Further, when the direction indicating lever 30 is in the left turn position or the right turn position, the direction indicator 40 on the side corresponding to the position is in a blinking state.

  Similarly to the normal direction indication lever, when the push-up operation amount or the push-down operation amount is a small operation amount equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the hand returns to the initial position when the hand is released. However, even with such an operation amount, the point indicator 40 is in a blinking state, which is the same as that of a normal vehicle.

  Further, the direction indicating lever 30 is provided with a sensor (not shown) for detecting the operation amount of the direction indicating lever 30, and an operation amount signal indicating the operation amount is sequentially output to the mirror control device 10. .

  The mirror changing mechanism 50 includes a motor and the like, and changes the direction of the side mirror 60 by a user's switch operation. The mirror changing mechanism 50 can also be controlled by the mirror control device 10.

  The mirror control device 10 is configured as a normal computer, and includes a well-known CPU, ROM, RAM, I / O, and a bus line (all not shown) for connecting these configurations. A program for controlling the direction indicator 40 and the mirror changing mechanism 50 is written in the ROM, and the CPU executes processing related to side mirror control according to the program.

  The side mirror control determines the start and end of the lane change based on the signal from the steering angle sensor 20, and controls the mirror changing mechanism 50 based on the operation amount of the direction indicating lever 30 to control the direction of the side mirror 60. It is the control which changes. At the same time, the flashing / extinguishing of the direction indicator 40 is also controlled.

  2 and 3 are flowcharts showing the side mirror control processing of the mirror control device 10. The processing shown in this flowchart will be described below. The process shown in this flowchart is executed every predetermined period.

  In step S10, it is determined whether or not the direction indicating lever 30 has been operated. Whether or not the direction indicating lever 30 has been operated is determined based on the operation amount signal output from the direction indicating lever 30, and the amount of operation of the direction indicating lever 30 is then flashed. It is determined whether or not the minimum operation amount is exceeded.

  If it is determined that the direction indicating lever 30 has been operated, an affirmative determination is made, and the process proceeds to step S20. On the other hand, if it is determined that the direction indicating lever 30 has not been operated, a negative determination is made, and this flowchart is exited.

  In step S20, it is determined whether or not the operation of the direction indicating lever 30 is a lane change operation. Specifically, it is determined whether or not the operation amount of the direction indicating lever 30 is smaller than the operation amount held at the left turn position or the right turn position. If the operation of the direction indicating lever 30 is a lane change operation, an affirmative determination is made, and the process proceeds to step S30. On the other hand, if the operation of the direction indicating lever 30 is not a lane change operation, a negative determination is made, and the process proceeds to step S40.

  In step S <b> 30, a signal for blinking the direction indicator 40 corresponding to the operation direction of the direction indication lever 30 is output to the direction indicator 40. Thereby, the direction indicator 40 according to the operation direction of the direction indication lever 30 blinks.

  In the subsequent step S50, a signal for turning the side mirror 60 corresponding to the blinking direction indicator 40 to the outside of a predetermined angle is output to the mirror changing mechanism 50. Note that the predetermined angle at this time is set in advance to an angle that makes it easy to see the lane to be changed.

  In a succeeding step S60, it is determined whether or not the steering is steered. This determination is performed based on a signal output from the steering angle sensor 20. That is, first, the steering angle of the steering is calculated based on the signal output from the steering angle sensor 20, and if the calculated steering angle is equal to or larger than a predetermined steering angle that can be determined to change the lane, the steering Is determined to be steered, and the process proceeds to step S80. On the other hand, if the calculated steering angle is less than the predetermined steering angle, it is determined that the steering is not being steered, and the process proceeds to step S70.

  In step S70, it is determined whether or not a predetermined time (for example, tens of seconds) has elapsed since the direction of the side mirror 60 was changed in step S50. If the predetermined time has elapsed, an affirmative determination is made, and the process proceeds to step S90. On the other hand, if the predetermined time has not yet elapsed, a negative determination is made, and the process returns to step S60. Then, in step S60 again, it is determined whether or not the steering is steered.

  In step S90, blinking of the blinking direction indicator 40 is stopped, and the side mirror 60 driven in step S50 is returned to the position before driving, and this flowchart is exited. This is because the driver may not change the lane even if the driver operates the direction indicator 40 to change the lane. For example, when the driver's mind changes and the lane is not changed, or when another vehicle is traveling in the lane to be changed and the lane cannot be changed. In such a case, if the direction of the side mirror 60 remains changed forever, it becomes difficult for the driver to drive. Therefore, the process of step S90 is performed.

  On the other hand, in step S80, it is determined whether or not the steering of the steering is finished. Specifically, when the steering angle calculated based on the signal output from the steering angle sensor 20 is within a predetermined steering angle range indicating the straight traveling of the vehicle, it is determined that the steering of the steering is finished. Here, if it is determined that the steering of the steering is completed, the process proceeds to step S90. Then, in step S90, assuming that the lane change is completed, the blinking of the blinking direction indicator 40 is stopped, and the side mirror 60 driven in step S50 is returned to the position before driving, and this flowchart is exited. .

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the steering of the steering is not completed, the determination in step S80 is executed again. That is, until the steering of the steering is finished, it is considered that the lane is being changed, and the blinking of the direction indicator 40 blinked in step S30 is maintained and the side mirror 60 driven in step S50 is driven. Keep in a later orientation.

  If it is determined in step S20 that the operation of the direction indicating lever 30 is not a lane change operation, the process proceeds to step S40. In step S40, normal direction indicator operation processing is executed. Specifically, the process is executed according to the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, the process of FIG. 4 will be described. First, in step S41, the direction indicator 40 on the side corresponding to the operation direction of the direction indicating lever 30 is blinked.

  In a succeeding step S42, it is determined whether or not an instruction to turn off the direction indicator 40 has been issued. Specifically, the determination of this step is performed based on whether or not the operation amount of the direction indicating lever 30 has returned to zero. Here, when it is determined that an instruction to turn off the direction indicator 40 has been given, an affirmative determination is made, and the blinking direction indicator 40 is turned off in step S43, and this flowchart is exited. On the other hand, when it determines with the instruction | indication which turns off the direction indicator 40 not being carried out, it makes negative determination and returns a process to step S41. That is, the direction indicator 40 is kept blinking until an instruction to turn off the direction indicator 40 is given.

  As described above, according to the mirror control device 100 of the present embodiment, when the driver operates the direction indicating lever 30 by the lane change operation amount, the direction of the side mirror 60 is automatically set in a direction that makes it easy to see the lane to be changed. Change. Therefore, even when the vehicle is stopped or traveling at a low speed, the direction of the side mirror 60 can be changed so that the lane to be changed is easy to see.

  Further, when the lane change is completed, the side mirror 60 automatically returns to the direction before the lane change, so that the operation burden on the driver can be reduced.

  In addition, after the side mirror 60 is driven outward by a predetermined angle based on the directional change lever 30 being operated by the lane change operation amount, when the start of the lane change is not determined even after a predetermined time has elapsed, The side mirror 60 is automatically returned to the original angle. For this reason, it is possible to avoid a situation in which it is difficult for the driver who has canceled the lane change to continue driving because the side mirror 60 remains at the angle for changing the lane, and the operation burden on the driver can be reduced.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Based on the meaning of this invention, it can implement with a various form.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the mirror that changes the direction when changing the lane is the side mirror 60. However, instead of the side mirror 60, or in addition to the side mirror 60, the lane that is to change the lane of the room mirror is used. May be changed to a predetermined angle that makes it easy to see.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, the angle which changes the direction of the side mirror 60 when changing a lane was decided beforehand. However, a setting device is provided for the user to set an angle for changing the direction of the side mirror 60 when changing the lane, and the user sets the angle of the side mirror 60 when changing the lane by operating the setting device. You may be able to do it.

  The execution / stop of mirror angle change control linked to the operation amount of the direction indicating lever 30 may be switched by the user.

It is the block diagram which showed schematic structure of the mirror control apparatus 100 of this embodiment. 5 is a flowchart showing a side mirror control process of the mirror control device 10. It is a flowchart which shows the process of FIG.2 S40 in detail.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Mirror control apparatus, 20 ... Steering angle sensor, 30 ... Direction indication lever, 40 ... Direction indicator, 50 ... Mirror variable mechanism, 60 ... Side mirror

Claims (4)

A mirror control device provided in a vehicle provided with a mirror variable mechanism that changes the direction of at least one of a side mirror and a room mirror,
Based on the fact that the direction indicator lever of the vehicle has been operated by a predetermined lane change operation amount that is different from the operation amount at the time of turning left and right, the vehicle determines a lane to change lanes, and A mirror control device comprising mirror control means for controlling the mirror changing mechanism so that a lane whose lane is to be changed is easily seen by at least one of a mirror and a room mirror. Lane change determining means for determining start and end of lane change based on the steering angle of the vehicle,
When the mirror control means changes the direction of at least one of the side mirror and the rearview mirror of the vehicle so that the lane to be changed is easy to see, and then the lane change determination means determines the end of the lane change The mirror control device according to claim 1, wherein the mirror changing mechanism is controlled such that the mirror is oriented in the direction before the lane change.   The mirror control means changes the direction of at least one of the side mirror and the rear view mirror of the vehicle so that the lane to be changed is easy to see, and then the lane change determination means starts the lane change during a predetermined period. 3. The mirror control device according to claim 2, wherein when the determination is not made, the mirror variable mechanism is controlled such that the mirror is in the direction before the change.   The mirror control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a setting device for a user to set the direction of at least one of the side mirror and the room mirror when changing lanes.

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