JP2009087110A - Design support device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a design support device facilitating the accurate confirmation of the visible recognition of a meter dial. <P>SOLUTION: A control section of the design support device first calculates coordinate values corresponding to a right visual point Er (right eye) and a left visual point El (left eye) of a driver. Then, the device calculates a right projection line obtained by making a visible outline of a steering wheel 30 project toward the meter dial 40 from the right visual point Er and a left projection line Ll obtained by making a visible outline of the steering wheel 30 project toward the meter dial 40 from the left visual point El. On the basis of the right projection line and the left projection line Ll, data showing a boundary of a visibly recognizable range are calculated as visibly recognizable area data by using both a right eye (the right visual point Er) and a left eye (the left visual point El). A figure shown by the visibly recognizable area data is virtually displayed on a display part together with the steering wheel 30 and the meter dial 40. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a design support apparatus that virtually represents a three-dimensional shape of a part on a computer and supports the design of the part.

  Conventionally, it is known to design various parts mounted on a vehicle using a design support device (for example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2 below). Here, among the components mounted on the vehicle, there are some components whose visibility must be fully examined. For example, the meter dial is a component that presents information necessary for safe driving to the driver, and thus its visibility needs to be fully examined. The visibility of the meter dial is greatly affected by the relative relationship with the handle arranged on the front side of the meter dial. That is, the meter dial is located on the back side of the steering wheel as viewed from the driver sitting in the driver's seat. Therefore, the visibility of the meter dial may be hindered by the handle.

JP 2004-299472 A JP 2006-209245 A

  However, conventionally, the handle and the meter dial have been designed in different departments, and it has been difficult to accurately examine the relative positional relationship between the two and thus the visibility of the meter dial. Of course, in the past, the three-dimensional shape of the handle and the meter dial is virtually displayed on the display unit of the design support device, and the display content is visually confirmed, so that the visibility of the meter dial (the handle and the meter dial) The relative positional relationship of the board) could be confirmed roughly. However, the visibility confirmation by such a method is merely schematic and lacks in accuracy. That is, in the conventional technology, it is difficult to easily and accurately check the visibility of a component whose visibility changes depending on the relative positional relationship with other components, such as a meter dial.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a design support apparatus that can more easily and accurately examine the visibility of a component whose visibility changes depending on the relative positional relationship with other components.

  A design support apparatus according to the present invention is a design support apparatus that virtually represents a three-dimensional shape of a part on a computer and supports the design of the part, and the shape and arrangement of a first member arranged in a vehicle interior The first member data indicating the position, the second member data indicating the shape and arrangement of the second member disposed behind the first member as viewed from the driver sitting in the driver's seat, and the position of the driver's viewpoint Based on the three pieces of data stored in the storage means and the viewpoint related data including related information, the second member is visually recognized without being blocked by the first member when viewed from the viewpoint. Control means for calculating visual recognition area data indicating a possible visual recognition area; and display means for virtually displaying the three-dimensional shape indicated by each of the second member data and the visual recognition area data. First part day Based on the second member data and the viewpoint-related data, data indicating a projection line obtained by projecting at least a part of the first member toward the second member with respect to the viewpoint is calculated, and the calculated projection The visual recognition area data is calculated based on data indicating a line.

  In a preferred aspect, the viewpoint-related data includes at least information related to a right viewpoint position corresponding to a driver's right eye and a left viewpoint position corresponding to the left eye, and the control means uses the right viewpoint as a reference. And a projection line based on the left viewpoint is calculated, and based on the two calculated projection lines, the range that is visible from the right viewpoint and the range that is visible from the left viewpoint are added. Data is calculated as the viewing area data.

  In another preferred aspect, the viewpoint-related data includes at least information related to viewpoint positions of N% of all drivers, and the control means is the most preferable among the viewpoints of the N% drivers. A projection line based on a high high viewpoint and a projection line based on the lowest low viewpoint among the N% driver's viewpoints are calculated, and the N% driving is performed based on the two calculated projection lines. Data indicating a range that can be visually recognized by any person is calculated as viewing area data. At this time, it is also preferable that the control means calculates a plurality of types of viewing area data having different values of the target driver ratio N.

  In another preferred aspect, the viewpoint-related data includes driver seat CAD data indicating the shape and arrangement of the driver seat, and information indicating the relative position of the viewpoint with respect to the driver seat. In another preferred aspect, the visual recognition area data is line data indicating a boundary line of the visual recognition area. It is also desirable that the first member is a handle and the second member is a meter dial arranged on the back side of the handle.

  According to the present invention, the viewing area data indicating the viewing area is calculated, and the shape indicated by the viewing area data is virtually displayed on the display unit together with the second member that requires the visibility confirmation. As a result, it is possible to more easily and accurately examine the visibility of the second member whose visibility changes depending on the relative positional relationship with the first member.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a design support apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. This design support apparatus 10 is an apparatus that generates CAD data indicating the shape and arrangement of each part based on a user's interactive operation, and virtually displays the three-dimensional shape indicated by the CAD data on a display screen. is there. In other words, the design support apparatus 10 is a so-called three-dimensional CAD apparatus.

  The physical configuration of the design support apparatus 10 is almost the same as that of a general computer. That is, the design support apparatus 10 includes a control unit 12 including a CPU, a storage unit 14 including a hard disk and a memory, a display unit 18 including an LCD, an input unit 16 including a keyboard and a mouse, a LAN card, and the like. A communication interface unit (communication I / F) 20 is provided. The storage unit 14 stores various data files 24 such as a CAD application program 22 and a CAD data file. In response to an instruction from the user, the computer control unit 12 activates the CAD application program, so that the computer functions as the design support apparatus 10.

  The design support apparatus 10 has various functions necessary to support the design of various parts (CAD data creation), as in a normal three-dimensional CAD apparatus. For example, the design support device 10 automatically draws various graphics such as 2D graphics (line segments, arcs, etc.) and 3D graphics (blocks, spheres, etc.), and tangents and intersections between the drawn graphics. It has functions. The shape and arrangement of a graphic drawn using such a function are stored in the storage unit 14 as CAD data including a plurality of three-dimensional coordinate values and line data and surface data indicating the relationship between the coordinate values. The Note that any of the above-described functions can be realized by a known technique, and thus detailed descriptions of specific processing procedures and the like are omitted.

  The design support apparatus 10 of the present embodiment has a function particularly suitable for designing a handle and a meter dial mounted on a vehicle, more specifically, automatic visual area data, in addition to the above-described known functions. It also has a calculation function. The viewing area data is graphic data indicating a viewing area that is visible on the meter dial face without being obstructed by the handle.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the handle 30 mounted on the vehicle is positioned on the front side of the meter dial 40 as viewed from the driver 100 sitting on the driver's seat 50. As shown in FIG. 3A, the handle 30 usually includes a ring-shaped handle ring 32 and a handle pad 34 disposed so as to cross the handle ring 32. A gap is normally formed between the handle ring 32 and the handle pad 34, and the driver 100 sees the meter dial 40 located behind the handle 30 through the gap.

  However, the gap formed between the handle pad 34 and the handle ring 32 is not necessarily large enough, and depending on the shape and arrangement of the handle 30, the handle 30 may be used as a part of the meter dial 40. In some cases, the visual recognition of was disturbed.

  Here, the meter dial 40 is a component that displays various information related to the state of the vehicle, such as a speed meter 42 and a fuel meter 44, as is well known and illustrated in FIG. 3B. is there. It is a big problem that the visibility of the meter dial 40 is hindered, and the visibility of the meter dial 40 needs to be fully examined.

  Therefore, conventionally, the designer displays the three-dimensional shape of the handle 30 and the meter dial 40 designed in the same coordinate system on the display unit 18 of the design support apparatus 10, and sees the display contents to display both parts. The relative position relationship between the two and thus the visibility of the meter dial 40 has been confirmed. Based on the confirmation result, the positions and shapes of the meter dial 40 and the handle 30 have been corrected.

  However, in the visibility check according to the above procedure, since the driver's viewpoint position is not clearly defined, accurate visibility cannot be confirmed. Further, in the conventional visibility checking operation, the designer needs to change and adjust the virtual viewpoint position (work viewpoint position) when the shape is displayed on the display unit 18 by operating the input unit 16 such as a mouse. It was extremely complicated. Furthermore, the visual recognition area of the meter dial 40 also changes depending on the viewpoint position (eye position) of the driver 100. The viewpoint position of the driver 100 varies depending on the physique of the driver 100, facial modeling, and the like. Therefore, it is extremely difficult and cumbersome to confirm the visibility of the meter dial 40 in consideration of the difference in viewpoint position for each driver 100.

  In the present embodiment, in order to solve such a problem, based on the handle CAD data and dial CAD data created in advance, a visual recognition area that is visible without being obstructed by the handle 30 of the meter dial 40 is formed. The graphic data to be shown is automatically calculated as viewing area data. Hereinafter, the automatic calculation function of the viewing area data will be described in detail.

  First, the viewing area data calculated in the present embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, three types of viewing area data, that is, the widest viewing area data, the narrowest viewing area data, and the intermediate viewing area data are calculated. The widest viewing area data is data indicating an area of the meter dial 40 that is visible without being obstructed by the handle 30 when viewed from the viewpoint of the average driver's viewpoint. The visual recognition area indicated by the widest visual recognition area data is wider than the visual recognition areas indicated by the narrowest visual recognition area data and the intermediate visual recognition area data.

  The narrowest viewing area data is an area of the meter dial 40 that is visible to almost all drivers, specifically, about 99% of all drivers without being obstructed by the steering wheel 30. It is data which shows. Naturally, the area that can be visually recognized by almost all drivers must be narrow, and the visual recognition area indicated by the narrowest visual recognition area data is indicated by the widest visual recognition area data and the intermediate visual recognition area data. It becomes wider than the viewing area.

  The intermediate visual recognition area data indicates an area of the meter dial 40 that can be visually recognized by many drivers, specifically, about 95% of all drivers without being obstructed by the steering wheel 30. It is data. Although the visual recognition area indicated by the intermediate visual recognition area data is narrower than the widest visual recognition area data, it is wider than the narrowest visual recognition area data.

  The above three types of viewing area data are calculated for the following reason. The meter dial 40 is a component that displays various types of information. However, the importance of each information displayed on the meter dial 40 (the necessity for the driver to visually recognize the vehicle while traveling) is not uniform. For example, there is information that is highly necessary to be visible to the driver even while the vehicle is traveling, and there is information that is less necessary to be visible to the driver while the vehicle is traveling. When checking the visibility of the meter dial 40, it is necessary to consider the importance for each piece of information.

  That is, when confirming the visibility of the meter dial 40, it is necessary to determine whether or not the information display portion having a high importance is within a range that can be visually recognized by almost all drivers. In order to make it easy to make such a determination, in this embodiment, the narrowest viewing area data indicating an area that almost all drivers (99% of drivers) can visually recognize is calculated.

  In addition, the meter face 40 includes an information display portion with low importance that may be visible to as many drivers as possible but may not be visible to all drivers. When checking the visibility of the meter dial 40, it is also necessary to determine whether or not the information display part is within the viewing areas of many drivers. In order to facilitate such a determination, in the present embodiment, intermediate visual recognition area data indicating an area that can be visually recognized by any of a large number of drivers (95% of the drivers) is calculated. Further, in the present embodiment, as a reference for knowing the general tendency of the visual recognition area of the meter dial 40, the widest visual recognition area data indicating the average driver's visual recognition area is also calculated.

  And, in this way, by displaying the graphic indicated by the three types of viewing area data on the display unit 18, visibility confirmation considering the difference in importance for each information display part in the meter dial 40, It can be performed more easily and accurately.

  Next, a procedure for calculating the viewing area data will be described in detail. First, the procedure for calculating the widest viewing area data will be described. As described above, the widest viewing area data is data indicating the most average driver's viewing area. Therefore, when calculating the widest viewing area data, it is necessary to calculate a coordinate value (viewpoint coordinate value) corresponding to the viewpoint position of the average driver. Note that the driver usually has two viewpoints (eyes), that is, a right eye and a left eye, and therefore calculates two types of viewpoint coordinate values, that is, a right viewpoint coordinate value and a left viewpoint coordinate value.

  The procedure for calculating these two viewpoint coordinate values will be described with reference to FIG. 4A is a schematic side view around the driver seat 50, and FIG. 4B is a schematic front view around the driver seat 50. FIG. In the following drawings, the vehicle width direction axis is the X axis, the vehicle longitudinal axis direction is the Y axis, and the vehicle height direction axis is the Z axis.

  When calculating the coordinate values of the right viewpoint Er and the left viewpoint El, first, the coordinate value of the center point C of both the viewpoints Er and El (that is, the coordinate value corresponding to the position between the eyebrows) is calculated. The coordinate value of the center point C is calculated based on the driver's seat CAD data, center point data, and the like stored in the storage unit 14 in advance. The center point data is data indicating the relative position from the driver's seat 50 of the center point C (substantially between the eyebrows) of the average driver. More specifically, the center point data is relative coordinate value data of the center point C (substantially between the eyebrows) of the average driver when a predetermined position of the driver's seat 50 (for example, the center point P of the seat) is the origin. It is. The center point data is calculated from the result of actually measuring the viewpoint positions (or center point positions) of a large number of drivers, and is stored in the storage unit 14 in advance.

  The control unit 12 of the design support apparatus 10 first calculates the absolute coordinate value of the center point C based on the driver's seat CAD data and the center point data stored in the storage unit 14. Next, based on the interocular distance data stored in the storage unit 14, the coordinate value of a point obtained by offsetting the center point C to the left and right (X-axis direction plus side and minus side) by the interocular distance is determined as Calculated as the coordinate values of Er and the left viewpoint El.

  The procedure for calculating the coordinate values of the viewpoints Er and El described here is an example, and may be changed as appropriate. For example, the designer may directly input the right viewpoint coordinate value and the left viewpoint coordinate value using an input unit such as a keyboard.

  If the right viewpoint coordinate value and the left viewpoint coordinate value can be calculated, then the control unit 12 calculates projection lines Mr and Ml obtained by projecting the outline of the handle 30 from the viewpoints Er and El toward the meter dial 40. . FIG. 5 is an image diagram showing how a projection line based on the left viewpoint El, that is, a left projection line Ml is calculated. In FIG. 5, the handle pad 34 is not shown for ease of viewing.

  When calculating the left projection line Ml, the control unit 12 passes through the left viewpoint El based on the coordinate value of the left viewpoint El calculated in the above procedure and the handle CAD data, and the inner peripheral surface of the handle ring 32 and A plurality of tangent lines La, Lb,... Ln in contact with the upper surface of the handle pad 34 are calculated. Next, the tangent lines La, Lb,... Ln are extended to the surface of the meter dial 40, and the intersections Pa, Pb,... Pn of the tangent lines La, Lb,. Calculate the coordinate values. Then, based on the calculated coordinate values of the intersection points Pa, Pb,... Pn, an interpolation curve Ml obtained by interpolating between the plurality of intersection points Pa, Pb,. This interpolation curve Ml becomes the left projection line Ml with the left viewpoint El as a reference.

  If the left projection line Ml can be calculated, the right projection line Mr (not shown in FIG. 5) is also calculated in the same procedure. That is, a plurality of tangents that pass through the right viewpoint Er and touch the surface of the handle 30 are calculated, intersections between the plurality of tangents and the meter dial 40 are calculated, and an interpolation curve obtained by interpolating between the plurality of intersections is projected to the right Calculated as line Mr.

  If the right projection line Mr and the left projection line Ml can be calculated, the control unit 12 finally calculates the remaining line data after deleting unnecessary portions of the projection lines Mr and Ml as the widest viewing area data. More specifically, the control unit 12 calculates line data indicating a range (addition range) obtained by adding the range surrounded by the right projection line Mr and the range surrounded by the left projection line Ml as the widest viewing area data. . Here, the range surrounded by the right projection line Mr means a range visible from the right viewpoint Er, and the range surrounded by the left projection line Ml means a range visible from the left viewpoint El. Therefore, the addition range of both ranges means the visual recognition range of the driver who has both the right eye (right viewpoint Er) and the left eye (left viewpoint El). In order to calculate the addition range (a range that can be seen using the right eye and the left eye), the control unit 12 specifies a line portion located outside the other projection lines Ml and Mr from among the projection lines Mr and Ml. delete. Then, the data of the last remaining line is calculated as the widest viewing area data indicating the viewing area that can be visually recognized by the average driver.

  FIG. 6 is an image diagram showing how the widest viewing area data is calculated. In FIG. 6, a thick line (solid line and broken line) indicates the left projection line Ml, and a thin line (solid line and broken line) indicates the right projection line Mr. In FIG. 6, a range surrounded by a thick broken line and a thin broken line is a visible range using both the right viewpoint Er and the left viewpoint El, and a thick solid line and a thin solid line are deleted as unnecessary parts. It is. In FIG. 6, graphic data indicating thick broken lines and thin broken lines are calculated as the widest viewing area data and stored in the storage unit 14.

  Next, a procedure for calculating the narrowest viewing area data will be described. The procedure for calculating the narrowest viewing area data is basically the same as the procedure for calculating the widest viewing area data described above. That is, first, the coordinate value of the viewpoint is calculated, a plurality of projection lines are calculated by projecting the handle outline from the viewpoint toward the meter dial 40, and unnecessary lines are deleted from the projection lines to indicate the remaining lines. Data is calculated as the widest viewing area data.

  However, as described above, the narrowest viewing area data is data indicating an area that can be visually recognized by almost all drivers. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the difference in viewpoint position for each driver. As a result, in calculating the narrowest viewing area data, the viewpoint coordinate value calculation procedure is different from that for the widest viewing area data.

  Specifically, in order to calculate a range that can be visually recognized by almost all drivers, it is necessary to calculate the visual recognition area of each driver and extract the overlapping range. However, it is extremely complicated to calculate the visual recognition area for each of a large number of drivers. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, in this embodiment, the viewing area at the highest viewpoint Eh and the viewing area at the lowest viewpoint Ed are overlapped among the viewpoints of almost all drivers. The range S is extracted, and the graphic data indicating the overlapping range is calculated as the narrowest viewing area data.

  Therefore, when calculating the narrowest viewing area data, first, it is necessary to calculate the coordinate values of the highest viewpoint Eh and the lowest viewpoint Ed. These coordinate values are calculated based on driver's seat CAD data, 99% eye range CAD data, eye range arrangement data, and the like. The 99% eye range CAD data is three-dimensional CAD data indicating the variation range of the viewpoint position (more precisely, the position between the eyebrows) of 99% of all drivers, and more specifically, 99% It is three-dimensional CAD data which shows the substantially egg-shaped figure (99% eye range) which envelops a driver | operator's all eyebrow position. The 99% eye range CAD data is created in advance based on the results of actual measurement of the viewpoint positions (or eyebrow positions) of a large number of drivers, and is stored in the storage unit 14. The eye range arrangement data is relative coordinate value data with respect to the driver seat at the midpoint O of the 99% eye range.

  When calculating the narrowest viewing area data, the control unit first calculates the 99% eyerange arrangement position, specifically, the absolute coordinate value of the 99% eyerange midpoint O based on these data. . Next, a plane that passes through the 99% eye range midpoint O and is parallel to the YZ plane is calculated as a central plane. FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view at this central plane.

  If the center plane can be calculated, the control unit 12 subsequently calculates a tangent line that contacts the upper surface of the 99% eye range 60 and the inner peripheral surface of the handle ring 32 as the first tangent line Lh. Further, a tangent line in contact with the lower surface of the 99% eye range 60 and the upper surface of the handle pad 34 is calculated as the second tangent line Ld. The contact point between the first tangent line Ld and the 99% eye range 60 is set as the center point Ch (substantially between the eyebrows) of the driver with the highest viewpoint position, and the coordinate value is calculated. Further, the contact point between the second tangent line Ld and the 99% eye range 60 is set as the center point Cd (substantially between the eyebrows) of the driver with the lowest viewpoint position, and the coordinate value is calculated.

  If the two types of center points Ch and Cd can be calculated, the two center points Ch and Cd are subsequently moved to the left and right (X-axis direction plus side and minus side) based on the interocular distance data stored in advance. The coordinate value of the offset point is calculated as the left and right viewpoint coordinate values. That is, as illustrated in FIG. 9, points obtained by offsetting the center point Ch of the driver with the highest viewpoint position to the left and right are set as the high-order right viewpoint Ehr and the high-order left viewpoint Ehl, and the coordinate values thereof are calculated. Similarly, a point obtained by offsetting the center point Cd of the driver with the lowest viewpoint position to the left and right is set as the lower right viewpoint Edr and the lower left viewpoint Edl, and the coordinate values thereof are calculated. In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the interocular distance of the driver with the highest viewpoint position (interval between the high-order right viewpoint Ehr and the high-order left viewpoint Ehl) and the interocular distance of the driver with the lowest viewpoint position (low-order right The distance between the viewpoint Edr and the lower left viewpoint Edl does not have to be the same, and either one may be smaller than the other.

  If the coordinate values of the four types of viewpoints Ehr, Ehl, Edr, and Edl can be calculated, a projection line in which the handle 30 is projected toward the meter dial 40 is calculated for each viewpoint. The projection line calculation procedure is substantially the same as that for the widest viewing area data. That is, a plurality of tangents that pass through each viewpoint Ehr, Ehl, Edr, Edl and touch the surface of the handle 30 are calculated, a plurality of intersections between the plurality of tangents and the meter dial 40 are calculated, and a space between the calculated intersections is calculated. The interpolated interpolation curve is calculated as a projection line.

  However, in the narrowest viewing area data, only the projection line of the handle ring 32 is calculated as the projection line based on the high-order right viewpoint Ehr and the high-order left viewpoint Ehl. Further, only the projection line of the handle pad 34 is calculated as a projection line based on the lower right viewpoint Edr and the lower left viewpoint Edl.

  An example of the projection line calculated by such a procedure is shown in FIG. In FIG. 10, the thin solid line represents the projection line Lhr of the handle ring 32 with respect to the high-order right viewpoint Ehr, the thin broken line represents the projection line Lhl of the handle ring 32 with respect to the high-order left viewpoint Ehl, and the thick solid line represents the low-order right viewpoint. The projection line Ldr of the handle pad 34 with respect to Edr is shown, and the thick broken line shows the projection line Ldl of the handle pad 34 with reference to the lower left viewpoint Edl.

  If the four types of projection lines Ehr, Ehl, Edr, Edl can be calculated, the control unit 12 deletes unnecessary portions from the four projection lines Ehr, Ehl, Edr, Edl. Specifically, the control unit first deletes, as an unnecessary part, a line portion located inside the other handle ring projection line for each of the two handle ring projection lines Lhr and Lhl. Similarly, for each of the two handle pad projection lines Ldr and Ldl, a line portion located inside the other handle pad projection line is deleted as an unnecessary portion. Subsequently, of the remaining handle ring projection line and handle pad projection line, a portion located outside the other projection line is deleted. Then, the line remaining after the deletion process is set as the narrowest boundary line, and the graphic data indicating the narrowest boundary line is calculated as the narrowest visible area data indicating an area that can be visually recognized by almost all drivers. FIG. 10B is a diagram showing an example of the narrowest boundary line obtained by such a procedure. A range surrounded by the narrowest boundary illustrated in FIG. 10B is the narrowest visible region that can be visually recognized by almost all drivers.

  Next, a procedure for calculating the intermediate visual recognition area data will be briefly described. As described above, the intermediate visual recognition area data is data indicating an area that can be visually recognized by a large number of drivers, specifically, 95% of all the drivers. The procedure for calculating the intermediate visual recognition area data is substantially the same as the procedure for calculating the narrowest visual recognition area data. However, unlike the narrowest viewing area data for 99% of drivers, this intermediate viewing area data is data for 95% of drivers, and therefore the eye range used for calculating the viewpoint coordinate values. The shape (size) is slightly different.

  That is, at the time of calculating the narrowest viewable area data, four types of viewpoint coordinate values were calculated using a 99% eye range that envelops all the viewpoints of 99% of the drivers. Four types of viewpoint coordinate values are calculated using a 95% eye range that envelops the viewpoints of all drivers. The 95% eye range is expressed as a substantially oval figure like the 99% eye range, but its size is slightly smaller than the 99% eye range.

  Using the 95% eye range, the coordinate values of four types of viewpoints (higher right viewpoint Ehr, higher left viewpoint Ehl, lower right viewpoint Edr, lower left viewpoint Edl) are calculated, and a projection line for each viewpoint is calculated. Then, an unnecessary portion of the obtained projection line is deleted, and the remaining line becomes the intermediate boundary line. The control unit 12 calculates data indicating the intermediate boundary line as intermediate visual recognition area data indicating an area that can be viewed by a large number of drivers, and stores the data in the storage unit 14.

  The three types of viewing area data calculated in this way are stored in the storage unit 14 in association with the driver's seat CAD data, handle CAD data, and meter dial CAD data used for the calculation of the viewing area data. . Further, the graphic (boundary line) indicated by the three types of viewing area data is virtually drawn and displayed on the display unit 18 together with the three-dimensional shape of the meter dial 40. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example when three types of boundary lines are simultaneously displayed. In FIG. 11, the solid line indicates the widest boundary line Ba, the broken line indicates the narrowest boundary line Bb, and the alternate long and short dash line indicates the intermediate boundary line Bc. Here, the line type is changed for each type of boundary line, but the color may be changed for each type of boundary line.

  The designer (the user of the design support apparatus 10) visually confirms the display content as shown in FIG. 11, and confirms whether or not the display part of each piece of information on the meter dial 40 is in an appropriate position. . More specifically, whether or not the highly important information display part is in a position where almost all the drivers can visually recognize, in other words, is in the range surrounded by the narrowest boundary line Bb. Confirm whether or not. Also, it is confirmed whether the information display part having a slightly higher importance is in a position where many drivers can visually recognize, in other words, whether it is within the range surrounded by the intermediate boundary line Bc. To do. Further, based on the relative relationship between the widest boundary line Ba and the meter dial 40, the visual recognition area of the average driver is also confirmed.

  When it is determined that appropriate visibility cannot be obtained as a result of the confirmation work, the designer can determine the position and shape of the meter dial 40 and the handle 30 and the arrangement position of each information display unit in the meter dial 40. Change the size and size. In this work, the work can be performed while looking at the virtually displayed boundary lines Ba, Bb, and Bc, so that the design can be changed more easily and more accurately.

  Of course, if the position and shape of the handle 30 and the driver's seat are changed, the visual recognition area (the position and shape of the boundary line) is also changed. Therefore, when the position or shape of the steering wheel 30 or the driver's seat is changed, the control unit 12 changes the icon color or figure displayed on the screen or displays a message to display the current one. The user is notified that the boundary line is not a boundary line corresponding to the current design content (design content after design change).

  Finally, the design flow of the handle 30 and the meter dial 40 using this visual recognition area data automatic calculation function will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a design flow of the handle 30 and the meter dial 40. In FIG. 12, the solid line blocks indicate the processing of the design support apparatus 10, and the broken line blocks indicate the work contents of the designer.

  First, the control unit 12 of the design support apparatus 10 reads handle CAD data and dial CAD data instructed by the designer, and virtually draws and displays the three-dimensional shape indicated by the CAD data on the display unit (S10, S12). The designer visually confirms this display content, and if necessary, roughly adjusts the arrangement of the handle and meter dial (S14).

  Next, the designer operates the input unit 16 to instruct the design support apparatus 10 to automatically calculate the viewing area data (S16). Upon receiving this instruction, the control unit 12 first calculates a coordinate value of the viewpoint necessary for calculating the viewing area data based on the driver's seat CAD data, the eye range CAD data, and the like stored in the storage unit 14 ( S18).

  Subsequently, based on the calculated viewpoint coordinate values, three types of viewing area data, that is, the widest viewing area data, the narrowest viewing area data, and the intermediate viewing area data are calculated (S20). Next, the figures indicated by the calculated three viewing area data, that is, the widest boundary line, the narrowest boundary line, and the intermediate boundary line are virtually drawn on the display unit 18 together with the handle 30 and the meter dial 40. It is displayed (S22).

  The designer determines whether the visibility of the meter dial 40 is appropriate based on the positional relationship between the displayed boundary line and the part (S24). Specifically, it is determined whether or not an important information display part is within a range surrounded by the narrowest boundary line. If it is determined that the visibility is appropriate, the design work of the meter dial 40 and the handle 30 is completed because there is no problem with the current design content.

  On the other hand, if it is determined as a result of the determination that there is some problem regarding visibility, the designer again changes the arrangement of the components (S26). When the arrangement or the like of each component is changed, the control unit 12 changes the icon graphic displayed on the display unit 18 or notifies a message so that the currently displayed boundary line is the latest. It is presented to the designer that it is not (invalid) (S28).

  Further, when the desired change work (S26) is completed, the designer instructs the automatic calculation of the viewing area data again (S16). Thereafter, steps S16 to S28 are repeated until it can be determined that the visibility is appropriate.

  As is apparent from the above description, according to the present embodiment, data indicating the visual recognition area is automatically created, and the graphic indicated by the data is displayed on the screen together with the design target part. Therefore, the designer can easily and accurately determine whether or not the visibility of the meter dial 40 is appropriate. As a result, it is possible to easily make fine adjustments regarding the arrangement and the like of each component.

  In the present embodiment, three types of viewing area data are calculated, but the number of types of viewing area data to be calculated is not particularly limited. Therefore, the calculated viewing area data may be only one type or four or more types.

  In this embodiment, the visual recognition area is indicated by “line (boundary line)”. However, if the visual recognition area can be recognized by the designer, the visual recognition area is expressed by “surface” instead of “line”. May be. In other words, “surface” data corresponding to the viewing area may be calculated as the viewing area data.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, the viewing area data is obtained by calculating the coordinate values of a plurality of viewpoints such as the right viewpoint and the left viewpoint. However, it is not always necessary to calculate a plurality of viewpoints, and the viewing area data may be calculated from only one viewpoint.

  In this embodiment, the visual area data for confirming the positional relationship between the handle and the meter dial is calculated. However, the visual area data for confirming the positional relation between other components may be calculated. Good. For example, in recent years, for the purpose of detecting the driver's sleep, etc., it has been studied to install a camera for photographing the driver's face in the vicinity of the steering wheel. You may make it calculate the visual recognition area data for confirming the presence or absence of the visibility obstruction of the meter dial by such a camera. Specifically, from the driver's viewpoint, data indicating a projection line obtained by projecting the camera outer shape toward the meter dial may be calculated as the viewing area data.

It is a schematic block diagram of the design support apparatus which is embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic side view of the vehicle around the steering wheel. (A) is a schematic front view in the periphery of a handle | steering-wheel, (b) is a schematic front view of a meter dial face. It is an image figure which shows the mode of viewpoint coordinate value calculation. It is an image figure which shows the mode of projection line calculation. It is an image figure which shows the calculated right projection line and left projection line. It is an image figure which shows the mode of calculation of the narrowest visual recognition area | region data. It is a schematic sectional drawing in a center plane. It is an image figure which shows the mode of calculation of a high-order viewpoint coordinate value and a low-order viewpoint coordinate value. (A) is an image figure which shows four types of calculated projection lines, (b) is an image figure which shows the boundary line extracted from four types of projection lines. It is a figure which shows an example when three types of boundary lines are displayed simultaneously. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a design of a handle | steering-wheel and a meter dial face.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Design support apparatus, 12 Control part, 14 Storage part, 16 Input part, 18 Display part, 30 Handle, 32 Handle ring, 34 Handle pad, 40 Meter dial, 42 Speed meter, 44 Fuel meter, 46 Travel distance display part , 50 driver seats, 60 eye ranges, 100 drivers.

Claims (7)

A design support device that virtually represents a three-dimensional shape of a part on a computer and supports the design of the part,
First member data indicating the shape and arrangement of the first member arranged in the passenger compartment, and the shape and arrangement of the second member arranged behind the first member as seen from the driver sitting in the driver's seat are shown. Storage means for storing second member data and viewpoint related data including information related to the position of the driver's viewpoint;
Based on the three data stored in the storage means, among the second member, a control means for calculating visual area data indicating a visual recognition area that is visible without being blocked by the first member when viewed from the viewpoint;
Display means for virtually displaying the three-dimensional shape indicated by each of the second member data and the viewing area data;
With
The control means includes
Based on the first member data, the second member data, and the viewpoint related data, data indicating a projection line obtained by projecting at least a part of the first member toward the second member with respect to the viewpoint is calculated. ,
The visual recognition area data is calculated on the basis of data indicating the calculated projection line. The design support apparatus according to claim 1,
The viewpoint related data includes at least information related to the position of the right viewpoint corresponding to the right eye of the driver and the position of the left viewpoint corresponding to the left eye,
The control means includes
Calculating a projection line based on the right viewpoint and a projection line based on the left viewpoint;
Based on the two calculated projection lines, data indicating a range obtained by adding a range visible from the right viewpoint and a range visible from the left viewpoint is calculated as the visual recognition area data. . The design support apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The viewpoint related data includes at least information related to viewpoint positions of N% of all drivers,
The control means includes
Calculating a projection line based on the highest high viewpoint among the N% driver viewpoints and a projection line based on the lowest low viewpoint among the N driver viewpoints;
Based on the two calculated projection lines, data indicating a range that can be visually recognized by any of the N% of the drivers is calculated as visual recognition area data. The design support apparatus according to claim 3,
The design support device, wherein the control means calculates a plurality of types of viewing area data having different target driver ratios N. The design support apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The design support device, wherein the viewpoint related data includes driver seat CAD data indicating a shape and arrangement of a driver seat and information indicating a relative position of the viewpoint with respect to the driver seat.   The design support apparatus, wherein the visual recognition area data is line data indicating a boundary line of the visual recognition area. The design support apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A design support apparatus characterized in that the first member is a handle and the second member is a meter dial arranged on the back side of the handle.

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