JP2008296620A - Vehicular display device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular display device enabling to visually identifying information independently of a driver's height, while reducing the displacement of the driver's visual line. <P>SOLUTION: The vehicular display device comprises a laser illumination device 80 for displaying information on an instrument panel surface 94 of a vehicle with the illumination of laser beams L, the laser illumination device 80 being able to display the information in a position adjustable manner. Thus, the information display position is adjustable to a position to reduce the displacement of the visual line while visually identifying the information, depending on the driver's height. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle display device that displays information by irradiating a surface of an instrument panel of a vehicle with a laser beam.

Conventionally, various methods for reducing the amount of movement of the driver's line of sight have been studied as methods for displaying information to the vehicle driver. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which information is displayed by irradiating a laser beam on a road surface in front of a vehicle or a front portion of the vehicle.
JP-A-9-210716

  In the configuration described in Patent Document 1, a laser beam is applied to the road surface in front of the vehicle and the front portion of the vehicle. However, the distance from the driver is long, and the laser beam is visible through the windshield. Therefore, it may be difficult to see due to reflection or the like. Therefore, a configuration in which a laser beam is irradiated on the instrument panel surface is conceivable.

  Here, in order to reduce the movement amount of the driver's line of sight, it is desirable to display information at a position as close to the instrument panel surface as possible (a position closer to the windshield). However, the front position on the instrument panel surface may be difficult to visually recognize for a short driver.

  The present invention has been made in view of these problems, and provides a vehicle display device capable of visually recognizing information regardless of the height of the driver's back while reducing the amount of movement of the driver's line of sight. The purpose is to do.

  According to the vehicle display device of the first aspect, the display position of information displayed by irradiating the surface of the instrument panel of the vehicle with the laser beam can be adjusted by the position adjusting means. For this reason, according to the height of a driver | operator's back etc., it becomes possible to adjust the information display position to a position where the amount of movement of the line of sight can be reduced while enabling the visual recognition of information.

  Specifically, for example, the vehicular display device includes eye point detection means for detecting a position in the height direction as the position of the driver's eyes. Then, the position adjusting means adjusts the display position of the information by the information display means according to the position of the driver's eyes detected by the eye point detecting means. According to the vehicle display device having such a configuration, the display position of information can be automatically adjusted, and the display position can be adjusted without making the driver aware of it.

  Here, the position in the height direction of the driver's eyes can be detected based on a photographed image of the driver's face photographed by the photographing means, for example. If comprised in this way, the position in the height direction of a driver | operator's eyes can be detected comparatively accurately.

  Further, the position in the height direction of the driver's eyes can be detected based on the angle in the vertical direction of the room mirror detected by the vertical angle detection means, for example, as described in claim 4. If comprised in this way, the position in the height direction of a driver | operator's eyes can be detected with a comparatively simple structure.

  However, even if the eyes of the driver are the same, the visibility of the instrument panel surface varies depending on the position in the front-rear direction. Therefore, in the vehicle display device according to the fifth aspect, the eye point detection means also detects the position in the front-rear direction as the position of the driver's eyes. According to the vehicle display device having such a configuration, the display position of information can be adjusted more appropriately.

  Here, the position in the front-rear direction of the driver's eyes can be detected based on the adjustment position of the driver's seat detected by the driving position detecting means, for example, as described in claim 6. If comprised in this way, the position of the driver | operator's eyes in the front-back direction can be detected relatively accurately.

  Further, the position in the front-rear direction of the driver's eyes can be detected based on the angle in the left-right direction of the room mirror detected by the left-right angle detection means, for example, as described in claim 7. If comprised in this way, the position of the driver | operator's eyes in the front-back direction can be detected with a relatively simple configuration.

  On the other hand, the information display position may be adjusted by a driver's manual operation. Specifically, for example, the vehicular display device includes an operation unit capable of changing an information display position by the information display unit. Then, the position adjusting means adjusts the display position of information by the information display means in accordance with the changing operation by the operating means. According to the vehicle display device having such a configuration, the information display position can be adjusted to a position according to the driver's preference.

  By the way, when irradiating the instrument panel surface with a laser beam, it is conceivable that there is an obstacle that prevents the irradiation. Here, the fixed position can be dealt with at the time of design, but there are also cases where the position is adjusted by the driver, such as a steering wheel.

  In view of this, the vehicle display device according to claim 9 includes obstacle detection means for detecting an obstacle that hinders irradiation of the laser beam. The position adjusting means adjusts the information display position by the information display means so that the laser beam irradiation is not hindered by the obstacle detected by the obstacle detecting means. According to the vehicular display device having such a configuration, display of information can be prevented from being hindered by an obstacle.

Embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[1. overall structure]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an in-vehicle system as a vehicle display device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the inside of a vehicle room in which the in-vehicle system is mounted.

  This in-vehicle system includes a face photographing camera 10, a mirror angle sensor 20, a seat drive mechanism 30, a seat ECU 31, a handle drive mechanism 40, a tilt / telescopic ECU 41, a navigation ECU 50, a display position adjustment switch 60, a laser beam ECU 70, and a laser irradiation device 80. Is provided.

The face photographing camera 10 is for photographing the face of an occupant (driver) seated in the driver's seat 92 and is provided at an upper position in the shaft portion of the handle 90.
The mirror angle sensor 20 detects the adjustment angle of the room mirror 91. Specifically, the adjustment angle in the vertical direction and the adjustment angle in the horizontal direction are detected.

The seat drive mechanism 30 is a mechanism for electrically adjusting the position of the driver's seat 92 (the position in the front-rear direction, the angle of the backrest, etc.).
The seat ECU 31 inputs an adjustment position based on the position in the front-rear direction, the angle of the backrest, and the like as the position information of the driver's seat 92 from the seat drive mechanism 30.

The handle driving mechanism 40 is a mechanism for electrically adjusting the position of the handle 90 (the vertical angle and the amount of expansion and contraction in the axial direction).
The tilt / telescopic ECU 41 inputs an adjustment position based on the angle in the vertical direction and the amount of expansion and contraction in the axial direction as position information of the handle 90 from the handle driving mechanism 40.

  The navigation ECU 50 is an electronic control unit that is configured with a microcomputer at the center, and identifies the position of the vehicle on the map and performs processing such as route guidance. Further, in the present embodiment, the navigation ECU 50 transmits the information (display information) to the laser beam ECU 70 together with the irradiation start command when information is to be displayed on the instrument panel surface 94. Thereafter, an irradiation completion command is transmitted to the laser beam ECU 70 when the display of information becomes unnecessary. In addition, as information for a display, the information etc. of the left-right turn instruction | indication in route guidance are mentioned, for example. Specifically, the point of the light projected on the instrument panel surface 94 by irradiation of the laser beam L is moved forward (from the driver side to the windshield side), and turns left when turning left and turns right when turning right. And move further. By repeating such movement of the light spot, information on the right / left turn instruction is displayed.

  The display position adjustment switch 60 is for performing an operation of moving a reference laser beam LB (FIG. 8), which will be described later, upward and downward, and is provided at a position below the handle 90. .

The laser beam ECU 70 is an electronic control device mainly composed of a microcomputer, and executes various processes (FIGS. 3, 7, and 9) described later.
The laser irradiation device 80 displays information by irradiating the instrument panel surface 94 with a laser beam L in accordance with an instruction from the laser beam ECU 70, and is provided in the vicinity of the center position of the ceiling 93 in the vehicle compartment. Note that a portion of the instrument panel surface 94 indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 2 indicates a center portion.

[2. Processing performed by laser beam ECU]
In the in-vehicle system of the present embodiment, the laser beam ECU 70 performs processing for adjusting the display position of information by the laser irradiation device 80. Specifically, it is configured such that the user can set whether to adjust the display position automatically or manually, and performs processing according to the setting contents.

  Here, the display position automatic adjustment processing executed by the laser beam ECU 70 when the vehicle engine is started in a state where the automatic adjustment is set will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  When the laser beam ECU 70 starts the automatic display position adjustment process, first, in S101, the eye point of the driver is detected. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the position of the driver's eyes (position in the vehicle compartment) in the two-dimensional position in the vertical direction (height direction) and the depth direction (front-back direction) is detected as an eye point IP. . Here, the position in the vertical direction is detected by analyzing an image captured by the face camera 10. Further, the position in the depth direction is detected based on the adjustment position of the driver seat 92.

  Subsequently, in S102, it is determined whether the driver's eyepoint IP detected in S101 is included in a group with a high viewpoint (upper group) or a group with a low viewpoint (lower group). Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, a straight line that bisects the area of the eye ellipse IE, which passes through a preset point A and has 99% of human eyepoints. The threshold value is set, and a position higher than the threshold value is an upper group, and a position lower than the threshold value is a lower group. In the present embodiment, the point A is set in advance at an inflection point (corner) between the surface near the horizontal and the surface near the vertical on the instrument panel surface (see FIG. 4).

Subsequently, in S103, position information of the handle 90 (adjustment position based on the vertical angle and the amount of expansion / contraction in the axial direction) is received from the tilt / telescopic ECU 41.
Subsequently, in S104, a prohibited area where the irradiation of the laser beam L is prohibited is calculated based on the position information of the handle 90 received in S103. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, on the laser beam irradiation coordinate data representing the information displayable area of the instrument panel surface 94, an area where irradiation with the laser beam L is hindered by the handle 90 (a donut-shaped oblique line in FIG. 6). Area) is calculated, and the area is set as a prohibited area. Further, when it is determined in S102 that the driver's eyepoint IP is included in the lower group, a certain area (rectangular hatched area in FIG. 6) in the upper part (the end on the windshield side) is also a prohibited area. To do. Thereafter, the automatic display position adjustment process is terminated.

  Next, the display position manual adjustment process executed by the laser beam ECU 70 when the vehicle engine is started in the state where the manual adjustment is set will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  When the display position manual adjustment process is started, the laser beam ECU 70 first irradiates the instrument panel surface 94 with the reference laser beam LB shown in FIG. Here, the reference laser beam LB is a line indicating the upper and lower limits of the laser beam irradiation area LA.

Subsequently, in S202, the reference laser beam LB is moved in the vertical direction in accordance with the operation performed by the display position adjustment switch 60.
Subsequently, in S203, it is determined whether or not an operation is not performed with the display position adjustment switch 60 for a predetermined time.

  If it is determined in S203 that the time during which no operation is performed with the display position adjustment switch 60 has not continued for a predetermined time, the process returns to S202, and if it is determined that the time has not been operated for a predetermined time, the process proceeds to S204. That is, if the driver operates the display position adjustment switch 60 and leaves it for a predetermined time, the display position adjustment is considered complete and the process proceeds to S204.

In S204, position information of the handle 90 (adjustment position based on the vertical angle and the amount of expansion / contraction in the axial direction) is received from the tilt / telescopic ECU 41.
Subsequently, in S205, based on the position information of the handle 90 received in S204, a prohibited area for prohibiting the irradiation of the laser beam L is calculated (similar to S104 described above). Further, a region exceeding the upper and lower limits set by the reference laser beam LB is also set as a prohibited area. Thereafter, the display position manual adjustment process is terminated.

  Next, information display processing executed by the laser beam ECU 70 by receiving an irradiation start command together with display information from the navigation ECU 50 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  When the information display process is started, the laser beam ECU 70 first displays information for display by irradiating the laser beam L at a position avoiding the prohibited area on the laser beam irradiation coordinate data in S301. In other words, if the initial value of the area required to display information (information display area) does not overlap with the prohibited area, it is displayed as it is, but if the information display area partially overlaps the prohibited area, it is prohibited. The information display area is shifted to a position that does not overlap the area at all.

Subsequently, in S302, it is determined whether or not an irradiation completion command is received from the navigation ECU 50.
If it is determined in S302 that an irradiation completion command has not been received, the process returns to S301.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the irradiation completion command has been received, the process proceeds to S303, the irradiation of the laser beam L is terminated, and this information display process is terminated. That is, the display information display process is continued from the reception of the irradiation start command to the reception of the irradiation completion command.

[3. Effects of the embodiment]
As described above, according to the in-vehicle system of the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
Since the display position of information on the instrument panel surface 94 can be adjusted, the information can be viewed at a position where the amount of movement of the line of sight can be reduced while allowing the information to be visually recognized according to the height of the driver's back. The display position can be adjusted.

  -By detecting the driver's eye point and automatically adjusting the display position of information on the instrument panel surface 94 based on the detected eye point, the display position can be adjusted without making the driver aware of it.

  Since the position of the eye point in the vertical direction is detected based on the captured image of the face camera 10, and the position of the eye point in the depth direction is detected based on the adjustment position of the driver's seat 92, the eye point is relatively It can be detected accurately.

Since the display position of information on the instrument panel surface 94 can be adjusted by the driver's manual operation, the position can be adjusted to the driver's preference.
Since the display position of information on the instrument panel surface 94 is adjusted so that the irradiation of the laser beam L is not hindered by the handle 90, the display of information can be prevented from being hindered by the handle 90.

[4. Correspondence with Claims]
In the in-vehicle system of the present embodiment, the laser beam ECU 70 that executes information display processing (FIG. 9) and the laser irradiation device 80 correspond to information display means.

Further, the laser beam ECU 70 that executes the processing of S102 to S104 and the display position manual adjustment processing (FIG. 7) in the automatic display position adjustment processing (FIG. 3) corresponds to the position adjustment means.
Further, the laser beam ECU 70 that executes the processing of S101 corresponds to eye point detection means, the face photographing camera 10 corresponds to photographing means, and the seat ECU 31 corresponds to driving position detection means.

Further, the display position adjustment switch 60 corresponds to an operation unit, and the tilt / telescopic ECU 41 corresponds to an obstacle detection unit.
[5. Other forms]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, it cannot be overemphasized that this invention can take a various form.

  (1) In the above embodiment, in S101 of the automatic display position adjustment process (FIG. 3), the vertical position of the driver's eyes is based on the image captured by the face camera 10, and the position in the depth direction of the driver's seat 92 is determined. Although detection is performed based on the adjustment position, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the positions of the driver's eyes in the vertical direction and the depth direction may be detected based on the adjustment angle of the room mirror 91. Specifically, the vertical position of the driver's eyes is detected based on the vertical adjustment angle of the rearview mirror 91, and the depth direction position of the driver's eyes is determined based on the horizontal adjustment angle of the rearview mirror 91. It becomes possible to detect. If comprised in this way, a driver | operator's eyepoint IP can be detected with a comparatively simple structure. In this configuration, the mirror angle sensor 20 corresponds to a vertical angle detection unit and a horizontal angle detection unit.

  (2) In the above embodiment, the configuration in which information is displayed by moving a spot of light on the instrument panel surface 94 is exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an arrow or the like by high-speed scanning of the laser beam L It is also possible to have a configuration for displaying the image. The information to be displayed is not limited to the route guidance information, and various information can be displayed.

  (3) In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the laser irradiation device 80 is disposed on the ceiling 93 in the vehicle compartment is illustrated. However, the configuration is not limited thereto, and may be disposed in the room mirror 91, for example.

  (4) In the above embodiment, the configuration in which the display position of information by the laser irradiation device 80 is adjusted only when the engine is started is not limited to this. For example, it may be performed every predetermined time. Good. In this way, it is possible to cope with a change in driving posture accompanying fatigue or the like.

  (5) In the above embodiment, the configuration in which the user can set whether to adjust the display position of information by the laser irradiation device 80 automatically or manually is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited to this. A configuration dedicated to automatic adjustment or a configuration dedicated to manual adjustment is also possible.

  (6) In the above embodiment, the configuration for determining which of the two groups of the upper group and the lower group the driver's eyepoint IP is included is not limited to this. For example, Alternatively, the determination may be made in a more detailed group.

  (7) In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the driver's eye position in the two-dimensional position in the vertical direction and the depth direction is detected as the eye point IP is exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this. It is also possible to adjust the display position based only on the position. Moreover, you may make it detect also the position of the left-right direction.

It is a block diagram showing schematic structure of the vehicle-mounted system of embodiment. It is a schematic diagram showing the mode of the vehicle interior in which the vehicle-mounted system of embodiment is mounted. It is a flowchart of a display position automatic adjustment process. It is explanatory drawing explaining the process which detects a driver | operator's eye point. It is explanatory drawing explaining the process which determines whether a driver | operator's eyepoint is contained in an upper group and a lower group. It is explanatory drawing explaining the process which calculates the prohibition area which prohibits irradiation of a laser beam. It is a flowchart of a display position manual adjustment process. It is a perspective view showing the state which irradiated the reference | standard laser beam to the instrument panel surface. It is a flowchart of an information display process.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Face camera, 20 ... Mirror angle sensor, 30 ... Seat drive mechanism, 31 ... Seat ECU, 40 ... Handle drive mechanism, 41 ... Tilt / telescopic ECU, 50 ... Navigation ECU, 60 ... Display position adjustment switch, 70 ... Laser beam ECU, 80 ... Laser irradiation device, 90 ... Handle, 91 ... Room mirror, 92 ... Driver's seat, 93 ... Ceiling, 94 ... Instrument panel surface, IP ... Eyepoint, L ... Laser beam, LA ... Laser beam irradiation area , LB ... Reference laser beam

Claims (9)

Information display means for displaying information by irradiating a laser beam on the instrument panel surface of the vehicle;
A vehicle display device comprising: position adjusting means for adjusting a display position of information by the information display means. Eye point detection means for detecting the position in the height direction as the position of the driver's eyes,
2. The vehicle display according to claim 1, wherein the position adjustment unit adjusts a display position of information by the information display unit in accordance with a position of a driver's eye detected by the eye point detection unit. apparatus. Equipped with a photographing means to photograph the driver's face,
The vehicle display device according to claim 2, wherein the eye point detection unit detects a position in a height direction of a driver's eyes based on an image photographed by the photographing unit. Provided with a vertical angle detection means for detecting the vertical angle of the room mirror;
3. The vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the eye point detection unit detects a position in a height direction of a driver's eyes based on an angle in a vertical direction of a room mirror detected by the vertical angle detection unit. Display device. The vehicular display device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the eye point detection means also detects a position in the front-rear direction as the position of the driver's eyes. Driving position detection means for detecting the adjustment position of the driver's seat is provided,
The vehicle display device according to claim 5, wherein the eye point detection unit detects a position of the driver's eyes in the front-rear direction based on the adjustment position of the driver's seat detected by the driving position detection unit. . A left-right angle detection means for detecting the left-right angle of the room mirror,
6. The vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the eye point detection unit detects a position of the driver's eyes in the front-rear direction based on a left-right angle of the rearview mirror detected by the left-right angle detection unit. Display device. An operation means capable of changing the display position of information by the information display means;
The vehicle display device according to claim 1, wherein the position adjusting unit adjusts a display position of information by the information display unit in accordance with a change operation by the operation unit. An obstacle detection means for detecting an obstacle that hinders irradiation of the laser beam;
The position adjustment means adjusts a display position of information by the information display means so that irradiation of a laser beam is not hindered by an obstacle detected by the obstacle detection means. The vehicular display device according to claim 8.