JP2009127334A - Sliding door control system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sliding door control system which can operate a sliding door even under circumstances where both hands of a user are occupied. <P>SOLUTION: When the user approaches a vehicle with a portable machine in his hand, wireless communication is performed between the vehicle and the portable machine. When it is confirmed that the portable machine is an authorized one, authentication is established (S105 to S130). In this state, when the user utters specific words near the vehicle (S140:voice input, S160:YES), the sliding door on the driver's seat side or the sliding door on the passenger's seat side are operated (S175, S180) in accordance with the position of the portable machine at the time of establishment of the authentication (S170). Thus, the user does not need to touch a door handle or operate a transmitter or the portable machine when operating the sliding door. Even under circumstances where both hands of the user are completely occupied, the sliding door can be easily operated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sliding door control system.

  Conventionally, as an electric slide door for a vehicle, when the slide door is manually slid to some extent, the slide door is opened electrically after that, and when the door handle is operated, the slide door is operated electrically. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In addition, a technique for operating a slide door using an operation on a door handle as a trigger is also adopted in a vehicle equipped with a so-called smart entry system or a remote keyless entry system.

  For example, in a vehicle equipped with a smart entry system, if a legitimate portable device possessed by a user exists in a wireless communication area near the vehicle, authentication by wireless communication is first performed. If the authentication is successful, the door is locked / unlocked by simply touching the door handle, and when the user pulls the door handle, the sliding door is controlled. Is called.

  In addition, in a vehicle equipped with a remote keyless entry system, the door is locked / unlocked by operating a transmitter owned by the user, and the user pulls the door handle. Operation control of the sliding door is performed.

Furthermore, if the above-described portable device or transmitter is provided with an operation unit for controlling the sliding door, the fact that a predetermined operation has been performed in such an operation unit is transmitted to the vehicle side by wireless communication. It is also possible to control the operation of the sliding door. In this case, the user can operate the slide door by operating the portable device or the transmitter without directly touching the door handle.
JP 2000-186464 A

  However, in the above-described conventional technology, either a user touches the door handle or an operation with a transmitter or a portable device is required. For this reason, for example, when the user is holding the luggage with both hands or holding the child with both hands, there is a problem that it is not easy to perform an operation for operating the sliding door.

  In particular, it was very difficult to operate the sliding door when the user's hands were completely blocked when there was no affordable place near the vehicle or in the rainy weather. .

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a sliding door control system capable of operating the sliding door even in a situation where both hands of the user are blocked. There is to do.

Hereinafter, the configuration employed in the present invention will be described.
In the sliding door control system according to claim 1, if the user brings the portable device close to the vehicle, the authentication unit performs wireless communication with the portable device, and is an authorized portable device. If it is confirmed, authentication is established.

  In addition, when the user utters the identification target voice in the vicinity of the vehicle, the voice recognition unit determines whether or not the input voice input through the voice input unit is the identification target voice. The input voice is recognized as a command from the user.

  As a typical example of the speech to be identified, the speech generated when a specific word (word or sentence) is given may be used, but in addition to this, speech having characteristics such as rhythm, pattern, scale, etc. It can also be used as identification target speech.

  Further, such identification target voice may be preset voice that is registered at the time of shipment of the product and cannot be changed, or the user may arbitrarily register the voice. If the user can register voice arbitrarily, it can change what kind of voice is activated, so the degree of freedom is high, but if you use the voice registered at the factory shipment of the product, the user Can save the trouble of registering the voice, so that the user can use the sliding door control function immediately without taking any trouble in preparation.

  Then, when the authentication by the authentication unit is established and the instruction from the user is recognized by the voice recognition unit, the slide door control unit controls the actuator to operate the slide door included in the vehicle. Therefore, if the user has a portable device, the user can subsequently operate the slide door only by emitting the identification target voice.

  Therefore, if the vehicle adopts such a sliding door control system, the user does not have to touch the door handle or perform an operation on the transmitter or portable device when operating the sliding door. Therefore, the slide door can be easily operated even in a situation where both hands of the user are completely blocked.

  Next, in the sliding door control system according to the second aspect, the voice recognition unit operates when authentication by the authentication unit is established. Therefore, with such a sliding door control system, the voice recognition means is shortened in operation period, unlike the case where the voice recognition means is operating, regardless of whether or not the authentication by the authentication means is established. Therefore, the power consumed by the system can be reduced accordingly.

  Next, in the sliding door control system according to claim 3, the authentication unit divides the wireless communication area into a plurality of partial areas, and sequentially switches the partial areas to be processed with the portable device for each partial area. Try wireless communication.

  Such area division is a technique that is also realized in a known smart entry system, such as a driver's seat outside the passenger compartment, a passenger seat outside the passenger compartment, the rear of the vehicle outside the passenger compartment, the passenger compartment, the trunk, and so on. Attempt wireless communication with a portable device for each partial area.

  When the authentication by the authentication unit is established, the slide door control unit estimates the position of the portable device based on the partial area to be processed by the authentication unit, and determines whether to operate the slide door according to the estimation result. Determine whether.

  For example, in the case where a sliding door is provided on the passenger seat side, if it is estimated that the portable device is on the passenger seat side outside the passenger compartment, it may be determined that the sliding door is activated. In this case, the sliding door can be operated if the user emits a sound to be identified on the passenger side outside the passenger compartment.

  On the other hand, if a sliding door is installed on the passenger side, if it is estimated that there is a portable device other than the passenger's side outside the passenger compartment (for example, the driver's side outside the passenger compartment, the rear of the vehicle outside the passenger compartment, etc.), It is good to judge not to operate. In this case, the sliding door cannot be operated even if the user emits the sound to be identified, but for example, the sliding door on the passenger side operates even though the user is on the driver's seat outside the passenger compartment. Can be prevented in advance.

  In particular, as described in claim 4, if it is estimated that the portable device is in the vehicle interior and it is determined that the sliding door is not operated, even if the user utters the identification target voice in the vehicle interior, The sliding door will not be activated. Therefore, for example, even if a user in the vehicle accidentally utters a word corresponding to the identification target voice in a conversation, the slide door is not inadvertently opened.

Next, the sliding door control system according to claim 5 is effective when the vehicle is provided with a plurality of sliding doors.
Specifically, in the sliding door control system according to claim 5, the authentication unit divides the wireless communication area into a plurality of partial areas, and sequentially switches the partial areas to be processed, so that each portable area is carried by each partial area. Attempt wireless communication with the machine.

  Then, when the authentication by the authentication unit is established, the sliding door control unit estimates the position of the portable device based on the partial area that is the processing target by the authentication unit, and among the plurality of slide doors according to the estimation result, Which one is to be actuated is determined, and the sliding door that has been determined to be actuated is actuated.

  For example, if sliding doors are installed on the driver's seat and passenger seat side, and if it is estimated that there is a portable device on the passenger seat side outside the passenger compartment, the sliding door on the passenger seat side It is good to judge that is an operation target. In this case, if the user emits a sound to be identified on the passenger seat side outside the passenger compartment, the sliding door on the passenger seat side can be operated, and the sliding door on the driver seat side can be prevented from being operated.

  Conversely, if sliding doors are installed on the driver's seat and passenger's side, if it is presumed that there is a portable device on the driver's side outside the passenger compartment, the sliding door on the driver's side is determined to be the subject of operation. Good. In this case, if the user emits an identification target voice on the driver's seat outside the passenger compartment, the sliding door on the driver's seat can be operated, and the sliding door on the passenger's seat can be prevented from operating.

  Therefore, if the configuration as described above is adopted, it is possible to selectively activate the sliding door that the user wants to activate, compared to the case where all of the plurality of sliding doors are activated. , Can increase convenience.

  Next, in the sliding door control system according to the sixth aspect, the voice recognition means is configured by diverting the voice recognition means provided in the car navigation system with a voice recognition function mounted on the vehicle.

  Therefore, the cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the voice recognition means dedicated to the sliding door control system is provided separately from the car navigation system. In particular, in recent years, car navigation systems are often equipped as standard, and car navigation systems with voice recognition functions are also widely used, so the total cost of the entire system group installed in the vehicle Can be expected to be low.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with an example.
[Configuration of sliding door control system]
The sliding door control system described below is mounted on a vehicle equipped with a sliding door. When a specific portable device possessed by a regular user of the vehicle enters a wireless communication area around the vehicle, the door is controlled. This function is provided with a function (so-called smart entry function) for executing the lock / unlock control and the slide door operation control.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the sliding door control system. This sliding door control system is configured by a device group mounted on the vehicle 1 and a portable device 3 possessed by a user.

  More specifically, a navigation device 11 is mounted as a device group mounted on the vehicle 1. The navigation device 11 is a known device that can display various information such as the current position of the vehicle 1, the travel route to the destination, traffic jam information, and parking lot information on a monitor.

  The navigation device 11 is equipped with a voice recognition function. When a user utters a specific word decided in advance, the navigation device 11 that has input the voice recognizes it as an operation command, and the operation command. The function corresponding to is activated.

  In the present embodiment, such a voice recognition function of the navigation device 11 is used, and the navigation device 11 is used as a voice recognition device constituting a part of the slide door control system.

  Specifically, the navigation device 11 is connected to a microphone 12 for inputting a voice uttered by a user around the vehicle 1. The microphone 12 is provided for the sliding door control system, and the microphone (not shown) for giving an operation command to the navigation device 11 is capable of inputting mainly sound in the passenger compartment. On the other hand, the microphone 12 is disposed at a position where the voice of the user standing in the vicinity of the slide door can be input.

  In FIG. 1, only one microphone 12 is illustrated for convenience, but the number of microphones 12 is not limited, and two or more microphones 12 may be provided. Specifically, for example, when there are slide doors on both sides of the vehicle 1 (for example, the driver's seat side and the passenger seat side), one microphone 12 may be provided near each of the slide doors on both sides. . Moreover, in order to improve the sound collection performance, two or more microphones 12 may be provided in association with one slide door.

  Of course, when there is a sliding door only on one side of the vehicle 1 (for example, the passenger seat side), only one microphone 12 may be provided near the sliding door. Further, even when there are sliding doors on both sides of the vehicle 1, a single microphone 12 may be disposed at a position in the middle (for example, on the roof of the vehicle). That is, the number of microphones 12 is arbitrary, and the number does not coincide with the number of sliding doors.

  Now, the voice input to such a microphone 12 is input to the navigation device 11, and it is analyzed whether or not the user has uttered a predetermined word using the voice recognition function of the navigation device 11. . Although details will be described later in the processing, in the case of the present embodiment, when the user utters the word “OPEN”, the voice is recognized as the identification target voice by the navigation device 11. In this case, the navigation device 11 outputs an output signal indicating that the identification target voice uttered by the user is recognized to the verification ECU 13.

  The verification ECU 13 is an electronic control device that mainly controls the verification function in the smart entry system, and includes a control unit 15 and a transmission unit 17. A receiving unit 19 is connected to the verification ECU 13.

  The control unit 15 includes a microcomputer that executes control on the transmission unit 17, input processing from the reception unit 19, input / output processing with the navigation device 11, and the like.

  The transmission unit 17 is a means for transmitting a radio signal in the LF band to the portable device 3, and the radio signal transmitted from the transmission unit 17 is a driver's seat outside the passenger compartment, a passenger seat outside the passenger compartment, a vehicle rear outside the passenger compartment, Only a limited number of areas (partial areas referred to in the present invention) such as a passenger compartment and a trunk can be reached. Moreover, when transmitting a radio signal to each of these areas, transmission is performed for each area while sequentially switching each area.

  The receiving unit 19 is configured by a tuner capable of receiving an RF band radio signal transmitted from the portable device 3. The radio signal received by the receiving unit 19 is input to the control unit 15, whereby the control unit 15 executes verification processing for confirming whether or not the mobile device 3 is legitimate.

  As a result of the verification process performed by the verification ECU 13, if authentication for the portable device 3 is established, an output signal indicating that fact is output from the verification ECU 13 to the body ECU 21. The body ECU 21 is an electronic control device that controls equipment around the body of the vehicle 1. As related to the present invention, the door lock actuator 23, the slide door motor 25, and the like are controlled by the body ECU 21.

  The door lock actuator 23 is an actuator for switching lock / unlock of doors (swing door, slide door, rear door, etc.) provided in the vehicle 1. The sliding door motor 25 is a motor for sliding the sliding door. How the door lock actuator 23 and the slide door motor 25 operate will be described in the process described later.

  The above is a group of devices mounted on the vehicle 1 among the devices constituting the slide door control system. In addition to these groups of devices, there is a portable device 3 possessed by the user. The portable device 3 includes a control unit 31, a reception unit 33, a transmission unit 35, and the like.

  The control unit 31 is a microcomputer that controls the operation of the entire portable device 3 side. The receiving unit 33 is means for receiving an LF band radio signal transmitted from the vehicle 1 side. The transmitter 35 is a means for transmitting an RF band radio signal to the vehicle 1 side.

  In the portable device 3, when the reception unit 33 receives a radio signal from the vehicle 1, the control unit 31 transmits an ID unique to the portable device 3 from the transmission unit 35. This ID is received on the vehicle 1 side and is used for the above-described verification process.

[Details of sliding door control]
Next, the details of the sliding door control executed on the vehicle 1 side will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. The process shown in FIG. 2 is a process executed when the door is locked in the vehicle 1 and the portable device 3 is outside the passenger compartment (= not in the passenger compartment). In addition, when the processing shown in FIG. 2 is executed in the vehicle 1, processing that is not directly related to sliding door control is also executed as appropriate, but FIG. 2 shows only processing related to sliding door control. Is excerpted.

  When the sliding door control is started, first, in the vehicle 1, a portable device search is executed (S105). Specifically, the verification ECU 13 switches the area from the transmission unit 17 while sequentially switching transmission antennas corresponding to areas such as the driver's seat side outside the passenger compartment, the passenger seat outside the passenger compartment, the rear of the vehicle outside the passenger compartment, the passenger compartment, and the trunk. A radio signal is transmitted every time and a response is received from the portable device 3 for each area.

  When the search for these areas is completed, it is then determined whether the portable device 3 is on the driver's seat side (S110), whether the portable device 3 is on the passenger seat side (S115), and the rear door side. It is confirmed in turn whether or not there was a portable device 3 (S120). Here, when there is no portable device 3 on any of the driver seat side, the passenger seat side, and the rear door side (S110: NO, S115: NO, and S120: NO), the processing returns to S105, Retry mobile device search.

  On the other hand, when the portable device 3 is on any of the driver seat side, the passenger seat side, or the rear door side (S110: YES, S115: YES, or S120: YES), the signal from the portable device 3 is received. Then, the signal is analyzed (S125). Then, it is determined whether or not the received signal is a regular signal received from a regular portable device 3 corresponding to the vehicle 1 (S130). If no regular signal is received (S130: NO), S105 Return to the process and retry the mobile device search.

  In the process of S130, when a regular signal is received (S130), the position of the portable device 3 (either the driver's seat side, the passenger seat side, or the rear door side) when the regular signal is received is stored. Then, a trigger input standby state is entered (S135). When the process of S135 is executed, an activation command signal is transmitted from the verification ECU 13 to the navigation device 11, whereby the navigation device 11 that is in the sleep state shifts to an activation state in which the voice recognition function can be used.

  However, in the process of S135, if the trigger input is not received within a predetermined time (for example, within 5 seconds in the present embodiment) after entering the standby state of the trigger input, it is determined that a timeout has occurred. In this case, the process of S105 Return to and retry the mobile device search. At that time, the navigation device 11 shifts from the activated state to the sleep state.

  On the other hand, if there is a trigger input in the process of S135, it is determined whether the input trigger is a door handle switch or a voice uttered by the user (S140).

  In the process of S140, if the user cancels the door handle of the swing door, slide door, or rear door and touches a switch of any door handle (S140: switch input), the vehicle 1 The ECU 21 controls the door lock actuator 23 to unlock the electronic lock of the vehicle 1 (S145).

  If the input is from the door handle of the slide door (S150: YES), the body ECU 21 controls the slide door motor 25 and the slide door is activated (S155). On the other hand, in the process of S150, when the input is not from the door handle of the slide door (S150: NO), the process of S155 is not executed and the slide door does not operate.

Note that when the above processes are completed, the sliding door control shown in FIG. 2 is terminated.
On the other hand, in the process of S140, when the user utters a voice (S140: voice input), in the vehicle 1, it is determined whether or not the input voice is a specific word (S150). The determination process of S150 is a process executed using the voice recognition function provided in the navigation device 11.

  Here, when it is not a specific word (S160: NO), it returns to the process of S135. That is, as a result of inputting some sound, if the process has shifted to the process of S160, the process returns to the process of S135 again to return to the state of waiting for the trigger input again.

  On the other hand, if it is a specific word in the process of S160 (S160: YES), the body ECU 21 controls the door lock actuator 23 to unlock the electronic lock of the vehicle 1 (S165).

  Further, it is determined whether the position of the portable device 3 stored in the process of S135 is the driver's seat side, the passenger seat side, or the other (S170). Here, if the portable device 3 is on the driver's seat side (S170: driver's seat side), the sliding door corresponding to the driver's seat side is operated (S175). If the portable device 3 is on the passenger seat side (S170: passenger seat side), the sliding door corresponding to the passenger seat side is operated (S180). In addition, when the portable device 3 is on the rear door side or the like, if it is not at least on either the driver seat side or the passenger seat side (S170: other), the processing of S175 and S180 is not executed and the slide door does not operate. .

Note that when the above processes are completed, the sliding door control shown in FIG. 2 is terminated.
[effect]
As described above, in the case of the vehicle 1 equipped with the sliding door control system as described above, the user touches the door handle or performs an operation on the transmitter or the portable device when operating the sliding door. You do n’t have to. Therefore, the sliding door can be easily operated even under a situation where both hands of the user are completely blocked.

  In the sliding door control system, the navigation device 11 used as a voice recognition device is activated in the process of S135. Therefore, the navigation apparatus 11 remains in the sleep state during the period in which the processes of S105 to S130 are repeated. stand by. Therefore, regardless of whether the authentication of the portable device 3 is established or not, unlike the case where the navigation device 11 is operating, the actual operation period of the navigation device 11 can be shortened. The power consumed by can be suppressed.

  In the sliding door control system, the position of the portable device 3 that has been authenticated is stored in the process of S135, and in the processes of S170 to S180, the position of the portable device 3 is determined according to the position of the portable device 3. A nearby sliding door is activated. Therefore, even though there are a plurality of sliding doors, only the sliding doors located away from the user who owns the portable device 3 do not operate, or all the sliding doors do not operate. Only the sliding door that is most convenient for the user can be activated.

  Furthermore, although the sliding door control shown in FIG. 2 is executed when the portable device 3 is outside the passenger compartment, it is not executed when the portable device 3 is present in the passenger compartment. Even if a word corresponding to the identification target voice is uttered in the conversation, the sliding door is not inadvertently opened.

  In addition, since the voice recognition device provided in the slide door control system is configured by diverting the voice recognition means provided in the navigation device 11 having a voice recognition function, it is dedicated to the slide door control system separately from the car navigation system. Compared with the case where the voice recognition apparatus is provided, the cost can be reduced.

[Modifications, etc.]
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said specific one Embodiment, In addition, it can implement with a various form.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the slide door is opened is exemplified as the operation control of the slide door. However, the slide door control system of the present invention can also be applied when the slide door is closed. That is, when the authentication of the portable device 3 is established and the user utters a voice instructing to close the slide door by voice, the slide door may be operated in the closing direction. In this way, the sliding door can be easily closed even if both hands are occupied when getting off the vehicle 1.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the example which has a sliding door in both the driver's seat side and the passenger's seat side of the vehicle 1 was illustrated, the vehicle which has a sliding door in any one, the vehicle which has many more sliding doors, etc. The configuration of the present invention can also be adopted.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the slide door control system illustrated as embodiment of this invention. The flowchart of sliding door control.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle, 3 ... Portable machine, 11 ... Navigation apparatus, 12 ... Microphone, 13 ... Collation ECU, 15, 31 ... Control part, 17, 35 ... Transmission part , 19, 33... Receiving unit, 21... Body ECU, 23... Door lock actuator, 25.

Claims (6)

When a portable device exists in a wireless communication area near the vehicle, wireless communication is performed with the portable device, and authentication is performed when it is confirmed that the portable device is a legitimate portable device corresponding to the vehicle by the wireless communication. An authentication means to be established;
Voice recognition means for judging whether or not the input voice inputted through the voice input means is the identification target voice, and recognizing the input voice as a command from the user when the voice is the identification target voice When,
A slide door control means for controlling an actuator to operate a slide door included in the vehicle when authentication by the authentication means is established and a command from the user is recognized by the voice recognition means; A sliding door control system comprising: The sliding door control system according to claim 1, wherein the voice recognition unit operates when authentication by the authentication unit is established. The authentication unit divides the wireless communication area into a plurality of partial areas, and sequentially switches the partial areas to be processed while trying wireless communication with the portable device for each partial area,
When the authentication by the authentication unit is established, the slide door control unit estimates the position of the portable device based on the partial area to be processed by the authentication unit, and sets the slide door according to the estimation result. The slide door control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the slide door is operated when it is determined whether or not the slide door is to be operated. The slide door control system according to claim 3, wherein the slide door control means determines that the slide door is not operated when the portable device is estimated to be in a vehicle interior. The vehicle is provided with a plurality of the sliding doors,
The authentication unit divides the wireless communication area into a plurality of partial areas, and sequentially switches the partial areas to be processed while trying wireless communication with the portable device for each partial area,
When the authentication by the authentication unit is established, the slide door control unit estimates the position of the portable device based on the partial area to be processed by the authentication unit, and a plurality of slides according to the estimation result The sliding door control system according to claim 1, wherein which of the doors is to be operated is determined, and the sliding door that has been determined to be the operating target is operated. 6. The voice recognition unit is configured by diverting a voice recognition unit provided in a car navigation system with a voice recognition function mounted on the vehicle. Sliding door control system.

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