JP2008220602A - Mental state mitigation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mental state mitigation apparatus for mitigating a prescribed mental state of a subject. <P>SOLUTION: This mental state mitigation apparatus 1 for mitigating the prescribed mental state of the subject is characterized in having mental parameter acquisition means 2, 3, 4 and 5 for acquiring mental parameters, or parameters of the mental state of the subject, and stimulus application means 6, 7, 8 and 9 for applying unpleasant stimulus which the subject feels unpleasant, for mitigating the prescribed mental state of the subject in the case it is determined that the mental state of the subject is in the predetermined mental state based on the acquired mental parameters. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a psychological state alleviating apparatus that relieves a predetermined psychological state of a subject such as an irritated state.

When the driver gets in an irritated state due to traffic jams or the like, it becomes easy to make a judgment error or a sudden operation during driving. Therefore, a device for alleviating such an irritated state has been studied. In the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, the state of the driver is detected from the vehicle information and the biological information, and when the driver's stress state or the like is detected, content (music or the like) that makes the driver relax is reproduced.
JP 2004-168202 A JP 2003-244758 A JP 2005-49773 A

  FIG. 11 shows a case where a strong stimulus having a calming effect such as music or smell is given in a calm state (a state where no frustration is given) (SS), or a case where a weak stimulus having a calming effect is given (WS). When the calming stimulus is not applied (NS), the relaxation level changes with time, and it is confirmed that the stronger the calming stimulus, the higher the relax level. By using such a calming effect, in the above device, as shown in FIG. 12, when the driver is in an irritated state due to a traffic jam or the like, time elapses when no calming stimulation is given as shown by the solid line NS. As the frustration level gradually increases along with this, it is expected that the frustration level will decrease by applying a calming stimulus as indicated by the broken line GS.

  However, it has not been confirmed that the level of frustration is reduced when a calm stimulus is applied in an irritated state. Also, when the irritability is increasing, we are paying great attention to internal factors such as psychological conditions that have already occurred, so external factors such as newly generated stimuli (sedation stimuli) This is considered to be a state in which the acceptability of is greatly reduced and it is difficult to receive external stimuli. Therefore, even if a calming stimulus is given in an irritated state, the irritated state is not always relieved.

  Then, this invention makes it a subject to provide the psychological state relaxation apparatus which relieves a test subject's predetermined psychological state.

  The psychological state alleviating device according to the present invention is a psychological state alleviating device for alleviating a predetermined psychological state of a subject, a psychological parameter acquiring unit for acquiring a psychological parameter that is a parameter of the psychological state of the subject, and a psychological parameter acquiring unit When the subject's psychological state is determined to be a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameters acquired in step (i), the subject is provided with a stimulus applying means for applying an unpleasant stimulus that the subject feels uncomfortable in order to relax the predetermined psychological state of the subject. It is characterized by.

  In this psychological state alleviating apparatus, psychological parameters that represent the psychological state of the subject are acquired by the psychological parameter acquiring means. Then, in the psychological state alleviating device, when the psychological state of the subject is determined to be a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameter, the stimulus applying means applies an unpleasant stimulus that the subject feels unpleasant. Unpleasant stimuli tend to attract attention because humans are sensitive to unpleasant events. Therefore, by applying an unpleasant stimulus, a subject in a predetermined psychological state is attracted attention to the applied unpleasant stimulus and diverts attention to a factor for the predetermined psychological state. As a result, it is possible to suppress the predetermined psychological state from increasing further. Thus, in this psychological state alleviating apparatus, by applying an unpleasant stimulus in a predetermined psychological state, the subject's psychological state can be controlled by the unpleasant stimulus, and the predetermined psychological state can be relaxed. .

  The psychological parameters are various parameters representing the psychological state of the subject. For example, biological information (heart rate, blood pressure, etc.), behavior information (behavior, facial expression, etc.), external environmental information (congestion, interruption, etc.) It is. The predetermined psychological state is a psychological state on the side where the subject feels more uncomfortable than the calm state, for example, a state in which an irritated state is increasing, a state in which anger is increasing, or a state in which anxiety is increasing. To alleviate a predetermined psychological state, in addition to the psychological state shifting from the predetermined psychological state to the calm state side, maintaining a psychological state of the predetermined psychological state (to the uncomfortable side from the predetermined psychological state) To mitigate the rise in

  In the psychological state alleviating apparatus of the present invention, the stimulus imparting means does not impart an unpleasant stimulus when the subject's psychological state is determined to be an unpleasant state greater than or equal to a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameter acquired by the psychological parameter acquiring unit. It is preferable.

  In this psychological state alleviating apparatus, when the stimulus applying means determines that the subject's psychological state is an unpleasant state equal to or higher than a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameter, no unpleasant stimulus is applied. If the state in which the subject feels uncomfortable is excessively high, he / she pays great attention to the factors for the high unpleasant state. Therefore, it is better not to give an unpleasant stimulus when such a state occurs.

  In the psychological state alleviating apparatus of the present invention, the stimulus applying means is configured such that the psychological state of the subject is about a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameters acquired by the psychological parameter acquiring means after a predetermined time has elapsed after applying the unpleasant stimulus. If it is determined that the discomfort stimulus is maintained, it is preferable to finish applying the unpleasant stimulus.

  In this psychological state alleviating apparatus, in order to relieve a predetermined psychological state, when an unpleasant stimulus is started to be applied by the stimulus applying means, the unpleasant stimulus is applied for a predetermined time or more. Then, in the psychological state alleviating device, when it is determined by the stimulus applying means that the subject's psychological state maintains a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameters after a certain period of time has elapsed, the giving of the unpleasant stimulus is terminated. To do. By applying unpleasant stimuli for a certain period of time or more, subjects who maintain a certain level of psychological state are sufficiently attracted attention to the given unpleasant stimuli and are sufficiently diverted from paying attention to the factors for the predetermined psychological state. ing. At that time, by removing the applied unpleasant stimulus, a calming effect is obtained by releasing from the unpleasant stimulus, and the unpleasant state is calmed down. In this way, in this psychological state alleviating apparatus, the predetermined psychological state can be further relaxed by removing the unpleasant stimulus after giving the unpleasant stimulus for a certain time or more, and the psychological state shifts to the calm state side.

  The present invention can alleviate a predetermined psychological state by applying an unpleasant stimulus in a predetermined psychological state.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a psychological state alleviating device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In the present embodiment, the psychological state mitigating device according to the present invention is applied to an irritating device that is mounted on a vehicle and relieves the driver's irritating state. In the irritation mitigation device according to the present invention, a mild discomfort stimulus is applied when the driver's irritation state is likely to be high, and the irritation state is further mitigated. Furthermore, in the irritation mitigation device according to the present invention, after applying the unpleasant stimulus for a certain period of time, the unpleasant stimulus is removed and the annoyed state is calmed down.

  The outline of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is an example of the temporal change in the frustration level when the unpleasant stimulus is applied and when it is not applied. In FIG. 2, when the driver is in an irritating state due to traffic congestion or the like, the time change of the irritability level when a mild discomfort stimulus is given is indicated by a broken line GS, and the frustration level when the mild discomfort stimulus is not given. Is shown by a solid line NS.

  Based on environmental information (congestion, interruption, etc.), vehicle information (vehicle speed reduction, sudden braking, etc.), biometric information (heart rate, blood pressure, etc.), changes in the driver's frustration (irritability level) are detected. Then, the change in the frustrated state is monitored, and a slight discomfort stimulus is started to be given to the driver, starting from the time point when the frustrated state is determined to be high. Even after applying the unpleasant stimulus, the change in the irritated state is monitored, and the provision of the unpleasant stimulus is terminated with the time point when it is determined that the light irritated state is maintained after being applied for a certain time or more.

  The frustrating level used in the present embodiment is a value from 0 to 2, and may be an integer value (0, 1, 2) or may not be an integer value. The frustration level 0 is a state where there is no awareness of frustration and is a normal calm state. The frustration level 1 is a state in which the awareness of the frustration is small, and it is a state that makes it stuffy. The frustrating level 2 is a state in which the awareness of frustration is large, endures anger, and is a state of immediate touch. When the level is up to about this frustrating level 2, misjudgments and sudden operations are likely to occur during driving. Incidentally, the frustrating level 3 is a state in which anger is expelled. You may make it detect to this irritation level 3.

  In order to maintain life, humans are sensitive to unpleasant events such as anger, fear and anxiety. Therefore, unpleasant stimuli are more likely to attract attention than other stimuli (such as calming stimuli) even in an irritated state (response characteristics to unpleasantness).

  Therefore, when the frustrating state is increasing due to factors such as traffic jams (when the frustration level is in the range of 1 to 2), the driver's attention is attracted to the mild discomfort stimulus by giving a mild discomfort stimulus. The light irritating state (the irritated level is about 1) with respect to the mild unpleasant stimulus itself is kept. In this way, by giving a mild discomfort stimulus, the attention to the factors of the frustrating state will be diverted, so that the frustrating state can be suppressed and the frustrating level that hinders driving 2 can be prevented (keeping in an irritated state).

  After sufficiently attracting attention to the unpleasant stimulus, the calming effect by releasing the unpleasant stimulus can be obtained by eliminating the unpleasant stimulus. As a result, the light and frustrated state that has been kept can be further lowered to return to a calm state (sedation due to stimulus release).

  When the frustration level becomes 2 (if the frustration is too high), the driver is paying great attention to the factors for the high frustration, so that even if an unpleasant stimulus is given, the opposite effect is obtained. Therefore, no unpleasant stimulation is given when such a state occurs.

  Mild unpleasant stimuli are stimuli that can be applied in the vehicle, and are mild unpleasant stimuli that do not impair the safety of the driver even when the stimuli are received, such as white for the auditory system. In the case of noise, alarm sound, horn, and visual system, the alarm lamp blinks. In the case of interface system, it is an input button error reaction and voice recognition error response. In the case of the input button, even if the driver presses the input button, the input is not accepted. In the case of voice recognition, even if the driver generates voice, it responds that the voice cannot be recognized.

  With reference to FIGS. 3-7, the irritation mitigation apparatus 1 which concerns on this Embodiment is demonstrated. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of the frustrating mitigation device according to the present embodiment. FIG. 4 is an example of the temporal change of the frustrating level. FIG. 5 is an example of a time change of the heart rate after giving an unpleasant stimulus. FIG. 6 is an example of a temporal change in blood pressure after an unpleasant stimulus is applied. FIG. 7 is an example of an utterance pattern of misrecognition of speech recognition that is an unpleasant stimulus.

  The frustration mitigation device 1 detects the frustration level of the driver and suppresses the frustration level from becoming higher when the frustration level becomes higher. In particular, the frustrating mitigation device 1 imparts a mild unpleasant stimulus to distract attention from frustrating factors. Therefore, the frustration mitigation device 1 includes environmental information detection means 2, vehicle information detection means 3, biological information detection means 4, frustration state change detection means 5, start determination means 6, end determination means 7, unpleasant stimulus control means 8, An unpleasant stimulus presentation device 9 is provided. In particular, the frustration state change detection means 5, the start determination means 6, the end determination means 7, and the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 are configured in an ECU [Electronic Control Unit] of the frustration mitigation apparatus 1.

  In the present embodiment, the environment information detection means 2, the vehicle information detection means 3, the biological information detection means 4, and the frustration state change detection means 5 correspond to the psychological parameter acquisition means described in the claims, and start determination Means 6, end determination means 7, unpleasant stimulus control means 8, and unpleasant stimulus presentation device 9 correspond to the stimulus applying means described in the claims.

  The environmental information detection means 2 is means for detecting information on environmental factors that affect the frustrating conditions such as traffic jams and interruptions. For example, in a traffic jam, the navigation device acquires VICS information (such as traffic jam information). In the case of an interrupt, a radar sensor for detecting the inter-vehicle distance and a processing unit that determines an interrupt based on the inter-vehicle distance, a camera that captures a front image and a processing unit that determines an interrupt based on image information, or a combination thereof It is. Each processing unit of the environment information detecting unit 2 may be configured in the ECU.

  The vehicle information detection means 3 is a means for detecting information on the vehicle side for inferring that an environmental factor that affects an irritated state such as traffic jam or interruption has occurred. For example, in the case of a traffic jam, a vehicle speed sensor for detecting the vehicle speed and a processing unit that determines a decrease in the vehicle speed based on the vehicle speed. In the case of interruption, a vehicle speed sensor for detecting the vehicle speed and a processing unit for determining sudden braking based on the vehicle speed, a brake sensor for detecting depression of the brake and a processing unit for determining sudden braking based on the depression of the brake, or It is a combination of these. The vehicle information detection means 3 may be included in the configuration of the environment information detection means 2 to comprehensively detect environmental factors such as traffic jams and interruptions. Further, each processing unit of the vehicle information detection means 3 may be configured in the ECU.

  The biological information detection means 4 is a means for detecting heart rate and blood pressure as biological information representing an irritated state. Specifically, a heart rate sensor (which may be an electrocardiographic sensor) or a blood pressure sensor.

  The frustrated state change detection means 5 is means for detecting the driver's frustration level. Specifically, in the frustration state change detection means 5, the environment that causes the frustration state acquired from the environment information detected by the environment information detection means 2 and the vehicle information detected by the vehicle information detection means 3 by a conventional method. The frustration level is determined based on factors (congestion, interruption) and biometric information (heart rate, blood pressure) representing the frustrated state obtained from information detected by the biometric information detection means 4. In addition, about the determination method of an irritated level, what kind of method may be sufficient, it may determine only with biometric information, may determine only with an environmental factor, or another information, such as a driver's behavior information. You may determine using. Moreover, information other than the heart rate and blood pressure may be used for the biological information.

  The start determination means 6 is a means for determining a time point at which application of a mild discomfort stimulus is started. Specifically, the start determination means 6 constantly monitors the frustration level detected by the frustration state change detection means 5 and determines whether or not the frustration level is within the reference level (see FIG. 4). The reference level is a range of an irritated level where the driver's irritated state is increasing, and is a range from 1 to 2 of the irritated level.

  When the frustration level falls within the reference level, when the frustration state is increasing, the start determination unit 6 determines the frustration level after time t0 from the time point based on the environmental information detected by the environmental information detection unit 2. It is estimated whether or not the upper limit level is exceeded (see FIG. 4). The upper limit level is an irritating level in which the driver's irritating state hinders driving, and the irritating level is 2. Here, we analyze the situation in which the frustrating state rises from past experience and experiments with a large number of drivers, etc., and in the case where the frustrating state rises due to environmental factors, the frustration level is the upper limit level Presumed to be above. For example, an increase in the frustration level is estimated based on whether or not a situation that causes a frustrating state such as a traffic jam continues for a time t0 or more.

  If it is estimated that the irritated level becomes equal to or higher than the upper limit level after time t0, the irritated state is increasing and there is a possibility that the irritated state may further increase. A start command is output to the control means 8 (see FIG. 4).

  In addition, after the time t0, the estimation of whether or not the frustrating level is equal to or higher than the upper limit level is lost, and it is determined only whether or not the frustrating level is within the reference level. It is good.

  The end determination means 7 is a means for determining the time point when the application of the mild discomfort stimulus is ended. Specifically, the end determination means 7 determines whether or not the minimum presentation time has elapsed from the start time T0 at which the discomfort stimulus has started to be applied. The minimum presentation time is the minimum time required for attracting attention to the mild unpleasant stimulus given by the driver due to the factors of the frustrated state, and is set in advance by experiments for a large number of drivers.

  When the minimum presentation time elapses from the start time T0, it can be predicted that the effect of applying mild discomfort stimulation has appeared. Therefore, the end determination means 7 determines the past interval from the current time based on the heart rate detected by the biometric information detection means 4. The heart rate in t1 is cut out, and the blood pressure in the past section t1 from the present time is cut out from the blood pressure detected by the biological information detection means 4. The section t1 is a time range necessary for determining the irritability level from the biological information, and is set in advance by an experiment or the like.

  Then, the end determination means 7 determines whether or not the heart rate in the section t1 is within the reference heart rate HR1 (see FIG. 5). The reference heart rate HR1 is a heart rate representing an irritated level 1 (light irritated state), and is a heart rate in the range of the threshold a1 or more and the threshold a2 or less. The threshold values a1 and a2 are values set in advance by experiments with a large number of subjects, and a1 <a2. Further, the end determination means 7 determines whether or not the blood pressure in the section t1 is within the reference blood pressure BP1 (see FIG. 6). The reference blood pressure BP1 is a blood pressure representing an irritated level 1 (light irritated state), and is a blood pressure in a range of the threshold value b1 or more and the threshold value b2 or less. The threshold values b1 and b2 are values set in advance by experiments with a large number of subjects, and b1 <b2.

  When the heart rate in the section t1 is within the reference heart rate HR1 and the blood pressure in the section t1 is within the reference blood pressure BP1, a mild frustrating state is kept by a mild unpleasant stimulus. The end time is set and an end command is output to the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 (see FIGS. 5 and 6).

  The unpleasant stimulus control means 8 is a means for controlling the giving of unpleasant stimuli and giving various commands to the unpleasant stimulus presenting device 9. Specifically, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 determines whether or not a start command is input from the start determination means 6. When a start command is input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 selects a stimulus applying method for the unpleasant stimulus. Then, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 outputs a giving command indicating the content of the stimulus to be given according to the selected stimulus giving method to the unpleasant stimulus presentation device 9 that gives the stimulus. After applying the unpleasant stimulus, the unpleasant stimulus control unit 8 determines whether or not an end command is input from the end determination unit 7. When the end command is not input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 repeatedly outputs the giving command to the unpleasant stimulus presenting device 9. On the other hand, when the end command is input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 outputs the giving end command indicating the end of the unpleasant stimulus to the unpleasant stimulus presenting device 9 that has output the giving command.

  The method for applying the stimulus may be selected by any method, for example, may be performed in a predetermined order from the above-mentioned several unpleasant stimuli, or voice recognition, etc. A plurality of patterns of one type of unpleasant stimulus may be selected as appropriate, and an unpleasant stimulus that can be given to an operation (input operation, voice recognition, etc.) performed by the driver at that time is selected. It may be. FIG. 7 shows an example of an unpleasant stimulus using voice recognition. A plurality of patterns A, B,... Are prepared as voice utterance scenarios, and these patterns are appropriately selected.

  In the case of the example shown in Fig. 7, when the start command is input, the system asks "Do you want to change the route?" And says "I could not recognize it regardless of the driver's answer or the contents. Please tell me again." The voice utterance is repeated until the end command is input, and the question is repeatedly asked to pay attention to this exchange. At this time, the driver receives a slight discomfort and is a little frustrated. Then, when an end command is input, a normal answer such as “I understand. I will search the route again” is uttered, and the exchange is ended. At this time, the driver is freed from discomfort that was not correctly recognized by the voice.

  The unpleasant stimulus presentation device 9 is a device that applies a mild unpleasant stimulus. Specifically, when the discomfort stimulus presenting device 9 receives a provision command from the discomfort stimulus control means 8, it presents a predetermined discomfort stimulus according to the provision command. Moreover, in the discomfort stimulus presentation device 9, when there is an application end command from the discomfort stimulus control means 8, the presentation of a predetermined discomfort stimulus is ended according to the application end command. Examples of the unpleasant stimulus presenting device 9 include a white noise generating device, an alarm sound generating device, a horn and its generation control device, an alarm lamp and its lighting control device, various input buttons and its control device, and a voice recognition device. .

  With reference to FIGS. 3-7, operation | movement of the irritation mitigation apparatus 1 is demonstrated. In particular, the process of the start determination unit 6 will be described along the flowchart of FIG. 8, the process of the end determination unit 7 will be described along the flowchart of FIG. 9, and the process of the unpleasant stimulus control unit 8 will be described with reference to FIG. It demonstrates along a flowchart. Here, a case where misrecognition of speech recognition is given as an unpleasant stimulus will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the start determining means of FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the end determination means of FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing of the unpleasant stimulus control means of FIG.

  The environmental information detection means 2 always senses environmental information such as traffic jams and interruptions. Further, the vehicle information detection means 3 always senses vehicle information such as a decrease in vehicle speed and sudden braking. Further, the biological information detecting means 4 always senses the heart rate and blood pressure.

  In the frustrated state change detecting means 5, the frustration level is determined based on the environmental information detected by the environmental information detecting means 2, the vehicle information detected by the vehicle information detecting means 3 and the biological information detected by the biological information detecting means 4 at regular intervals. Determine.

  The start determination means 6 acquires the frustration level from the frustration state change detection means 5 at regular time intervals (S10). Then, the start determination unit 6 determines whether or not the current frustration level is within the reference level (S11). If it is determined in S11 that the frustration level is not within the reference level, the start determination unit 6 waits until the frustration level at the next time point is acquired, and again determines the frustration level at the next time point.

  When it is determined in S11 that the frustration level is within the reference level, the start determination unit 6 determines whether or not the frustration level becomes equal to or higher than the upper limit level after time t0 from the current time (S12). When it is determined in S12 that the frustration level does not become the upper limit level or later after time t0, the start determination means 6 waits until the frustration level at the next time point is acquired, and again determines the frustration level at the next time point. .

  When it is determined in S12 that the frustrating level becomes equal to or higher than the upper limit level after time t0, the start determination unit 6 determines the current time T0 as the start time and outputs a start command to the unpleasant stimulus control unit 8 (S13). At this time, the driver is in an irritated state, and the irritated state is likely to further increase in the future.

  The end determination means 7 determines whether or not the minimum presentation time has elapsed from the start time T0 at regular intervals, and waits until the minimum presentation time has elapsed (S20).

  When it is determined in S20 that the minimum presentation time has elapsed from the start time T0, the end determination means 7 determines whether the blood pressure in the past section t1 from the current time is within the reference blood pressure among the blood pressure detected by the biological information detection means 4 It is determined whether or not (S21). When it is determined in S21 that the blood pressure in the section t1 is not within the reference blood pressure, the end determination means 7 waits for a certain time and determines again.

  If it is determined in S21 that the blood pressure in the section t1 is within the reference blood pressure, the end determination means 7 uses the heart rate detected in the past section t1 from the current time out of the heart rates detected by the biometric information detection means 4. It is determined whether the number is within the range (S22). When it is determined in S22 that the heart rate in the section t1 is not within the reference heart rate, the end determination unit 7 waits for a certain time and determines again from the blood pressure.

When it is determined in S21 that the heart rate in the section t1 is within the reference heart rate, the end determination means 7
The current time T1 is determined as the end time, and an end command is output to the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 (S23). At this time, the driver is in a state where the frustrated state is not increased and the light frustrated state is kept.

  The unpleasant stimulus control means 8 determines whether or not a start command is input from the start determination means 6 at regular time intervals (S30). If it is determined in S30 that a start command has not been input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 waits for a predetermined time and determines again.

  If it is determined in S30 that a start command has been input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 selects a mild discomfort stimulus applying method (S31). Here, the misrecognition pattern A of speech recognition is selected (see FIG. 7). Then, the discomfort stimulus control means 8 gives a command to give a voice utterance 1 (replacement route) according to the selected recognition error pattern A of the voice recognition to the voice recognition device (discomfort stimulus presentation device). 9) (S32). When this grant command is input, the voice recognition device outputs a voice message “Do you want to change the route?”.

  The unpleasant stimulus control means 8 determines whether or not the driver has answered the question based on information from the voice recognition device (S33). If it is determined in S33 that there is no answer, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 determines whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed since the previous utterance, and waits until the predetermined time elapses (S34).

  If it is determined in S33 that there has been an answer or if it is determined in S34 that the predetermined time has elapsed, the discomfort stimulus control means 8 is able to recognize the voice utterance 2 (cannot be recognized according to the selected voice recognition misrecognition pattern A. (Please tell me again.) Is output to the voice recognition device (unpleasant stimulus presenting device 9) for instructing to generate (S35). When this grant command is input, the voice recognition device outputs a voice saying "Could not be recognized. Please say again."

  Then, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 determines whether or not an end command is input from the end determination means 7 (S36). If it is determined in S36 that the end command has not been input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 returns to S33 and performs the processes of S33 to S36 again. Here, the driver is repeatedly informed that voice recognition is not possible, and the driver receives mild discomfort due to misrecognition by the voice recognition device.

  If it is determined in S36 that an end command has been input, the unpleasant stimulus control means 8 generates voice utterance 3 (Okay. I will search for the route again) according to the misrecognition pattern A of the selected voice recognition. The giving end command instructing to do is output to the voice recognition device (unpleasant stimulus presenting device 9) (S37). When this grant end command is input, the voice recognition device outputs a voice saying "I understand. I will search for the route again." Here, it is finally recognized correctly by the voice recognition device, and the driver is released from discomfort due to misrecognition and becomes calm.

  According to this irritation mitigation device 1, it is possible to alleviate further increase in the irritation state by giving a mild discomfort stimulus when the irritation state is getting higher, and to maintain a light irritation state due to the mild discomfort stimulus. Can do. Furthermore, in the irritation mitigation apparatus 1, when the mild irritation state is maintained after giving a mild discomfort stimulus for a certain period of time or longer, the mild irritation state can be calmed down by removing the discomfort stimulus. It can return to a calm state. Moreover, since the irritation mitigation apparatus 1 does not give an unpleasant stimulus when the annoyed state becomes too high, the annoyed state is not promoted by the unpleasant stimulus.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment which concerns on this invention was described, this invention is implemented in various forms, without being limited to the said embodiment.

  For example, in this embodiment, it is mounted on a vehicle and applied to an irritating device that eases the driver's irritated state, but other predetermined psychological states such as an angry state and an uneasy state other than an irritated state It can also be applied to mitigating devices, and can also be applied to other objects such as other vehicle operators, various plant supervisors, and night workers.

  Moreover, although it was set as the structure which detects an irritation level with an irritation mitigation apparatus in this Embodiment, it is good also as a structure which acquires an irritation level from other apparatuses, such as an irritation estimation apparatus.

  Further, in this embodiment, the discomfort stimulus is applied in a light frustration state, and the light discomfort stimulus is terminated when the light frustration state is maintained after a lapse of a certain period of time. It may be configured to end the application of the unpleasant stimulus when it is reduced, or may be configured to apply the unpleasant stimulus for a predetermined time.

It is a conceptual diagram of this invention. It is an example of the time change of the irritation level when the case where an unpleasant stimulus is given and the case where it is not given. It is a lineblock diagram of the frustration mitigation device concerning this embodiment. It is an example of the time change of an irritated level. It is an example of the time change of the heart rate after giving an unpleasant stimulus. It is an example of the time change of the blood pressure after giving an unpleasant stimulus. It is an example of the speech pattern of the misrecognition of the speech recognition which is an unpleasant stimulus. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the start determination means of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the completion | finish determination means of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the discomfort stimulus control means of FIG. It is a calming effect when a calming stimulus is applied during calm and when it is not applied. This is the expected effect when the calm stimulus is applied during the frustration and when it is not applied.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Irritating device, 2 ... Environmental information detection means, 3 ... Vehicle information detection means, 4 ... Biological information detection means, 5 ... Irritable state change detection means, 6 ... Start determination means, 7 ... End determination means, 8 ... Uncomfortable Stimulus control means, 9 ... discomfort stimulus presentation device

Claims (3)

A psychological state mitigating device for relieving a subject's predetermined psychological state,
Psychological parameter acquisition means for acquiring a psychological parameter that is a parameter of the psychological state of the subject;
Stimulation that gives an unpleasant stimulus that the subject feels uncomfortable in order to relieve the predetermined psychological state of the subject when the psychological state of the subject is determined to be a predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameter acquired by the psychological parameter acquisition means A psychological state alleviating device comprising: means.   The stimulus applying means does not give an unpleasant stimulus when the subject's psychological state is determined to be an unpleasant state equal to or greater than the predetermined psychological state based on the psychological parameter acquired by the psychological parameter acquiring unit. 1. The psychological state alleviating device described in 1.   The stimulus imparting means determines that the psychological state of the subject maintains the predetermined psychological state degree based on the psychological parameter acquired by the psychological parameter acquiring means after a predetermined time has elapsed after applying the unpleasant stimulus. The psychological state alleviating apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the provision of the unpleasant stimulus is terminated.

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