JP2010084417A - Opening/closing body control unit - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an opening/closing body control unit which enables the opening/closing of an opening/closing body by determining the presence (or absence) of a user's opening/closing command operation for the opening/closing body or the periphery of the opening/closing body without false detection. <P>SOLUTION: This opening/closing body control unit 1 includes: an opening/closing command operation input part which is mounted on the opening/closing body or a structural member on the periphery of the opening/closing body, and into which the opening/closing command operation is input; a vibration detecting sensor 11 which is mounted via the opening/closing command operation input part, and which detects vibrations caused by the opening/closing command operation; and a determination means 40 for determining the presence or absence of the opening/closing command operation of the opening/closing body by the user, on the basis of at least either the amplitude ratio between an amplitude level of an upside waveform and that of a downside waveform with respect to the vibration standard of the vibration waveform or the time ratio between the time when an approximate line of the waveform falls short of the amplitude standard and the time when the approximate line of the waveform exceeds the amplitude standard, and an envelope curve acquired from a damped vibration waveform in which the predetermined frequency band of the vibration waveform is damped. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an opening / closing body control device that detects an input of a user's opening / closing command operation to an opening / closing body or a periphery of the opening / closing body and opens / closes the opening / closing body.

  As an example of such an opening / closing body control device, a vehicle door opening / closing device linked with a locking system (smart entry system) that automatically controls unlocking and locking of a vehicle door is known. The smart entry system detects when a user approaches or gets off a vehicle by communicating with a portable device carried by the user, recognizes the unlocking or locking instruction for the user's vehicle door, and Controls locking and unlocking of doors. As a vehicle door opening / closing device in such a smart entry system, there is one in which a piezoelectric sensor is provided on a door handle for a user to open and close a vehicle door (for example, Patent Document 1).

  The door handle device described in Patent Document 1 includes a piezoelectric sensor formed of a flexible cable-like piezoelectric element on the door handle. Then, the door lock of the door is released in response to the detection signal from the piezoelectric sensor output in response to the user's contact with the door handle.

JP 2006-118349 A

  The door handle device described in Patent Document 1 does not take measures against vehicle noise, and may detect any signal. Further, since it is impossible to specify which door is struck, there is a possibility that a door other than the door desired by the user opens. Furthermore, the above document only describes unlocking. For this reason, when this technique is applied to a vehicle door, there is a risk that the door will move without permission. Therefore, it is necessary to identify which door has been struck in order to eliminate such a risk.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to determine whether there is a user's opening / closing command operation on the opening / closing body or the vicinity of the opening / closing body without erroneously detecting the opening / closing body. An object of the present invention is to provide an opening / closing body control device capable of performing the above.

  The characteristic configuration of the opening / closing body control device according to the present invention for achieving the above object includes an opening / closing command operation input unit that is attached to the opening / closing body or a structural member around the opening / closing body and to which an opening / closing command operation is input by a user, A vibration detection sensor that is attached to the structural member via the opening / closing command operation input unit and detects vibration caused by the opening / closing command operation, and an amplitude level of an upper waveform with respect to an amplitude reference of a vibration waveform obtained from the vibration detection sensor And / or the time ratio between the time when the waveform approximation line acquired from the vibration waveform falls below the amplitude reference and the time when the waveform approximation line exceeds the amplitude reference. And the envelope acquired from the damped vibration waveform in which the frequency band lower than the predetermined frequency is damped in the vibration waveform, based on the user Wherein in that it comprises a determination means for determining whether the switching command operation of the opening and closing member with.

  With such a characteristic configuration, the amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform, and the time between the time when the waveform approximation line is below the amplitude reference and the time when the waveform approximation line is above the amplitude reference Since the presence / absence of the opening / closing command operation by the user is determined based on at least one of the ratios and the envelope acquired from the damped vibration waveform, erroneous detection can be prevented. Further, for example, when an opening / closing command operation input unit is provided corresponding to a plurality of opening / closing bodies, the opening / closing body desired by the user can be specified, and the opening / closing body to be opened / closed is appropriately opened / closed. It becomes possible.

  Further, the determination means is configured to perform the opening / closing command operation when at least one of the amplitude ratio and the time ratio is equal to or greater than a predetermined determination threshold and the gradient of the envelope is a specific gradient. It is preferable to determine that there is.

  With such a configuration, the determination means can be a simple logic circuit. Therefore, since the calculation load can be reduced, the determination unit can be realized at low cost.

  Further, it is preferable that the amplitude reference is an output value from the vibration detection sensor when the opening / closing command operation is not input.

  With such a configuration, the amplitude reference can be easily set. Therefore, when an open / close command operation is input, the amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform, and the time when the waveform approximation line falls below the amplitude reference and the waveform approximation line The time ratio with the time exceeding the reference can be calculated appropriately. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately determine the presence / absence of the opening / closing command operation without erroneous detection.

  Preferably, the amplitude level of the upper waveform is a peak hold value of the upper waveform, and the amplitude level of the lower waveform is a bottom hold value of the lower waveform.

  With such a configuration, the peak hold value can be detected by the peak hold circuit, and the bottom hold value can be detected by the bottom hold circuit. In addition, since these peak hold circuit and bottom hold circuit can be configured with simple components, it is possible to detect the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform at low cost.

  Further, it is preferable that the waveform approximation line is obtained by attenuating a frequency band higher than a predetermined frequency from the vibration waveform.

  With such a configuration, a waveform approximation line can be easily obtained by using, for example, a low-pass filter.

  Further, it is preferable that the opening / closing command operation input unit is supported by the structural member such that a part of the edge is an open end.

  With such a configuration, it becomes easy to vibrate the opening / closing command operation input unit and the structural member at different periods. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately detect the presence / absence of an opening / closing command operation based on such vibrations with different periods.

  Further, it is preferable that the opening / closing command operation input unit is composed of a plate-like member that is cantilevered on one side with respect to the structural member.

  With such a configuration, the opening / closing command operation input unit is cantilevered, so that resonance easily occurs after being hit by the user. Further, if the opening / closing command operation input section is formed much smaller than the structural member, the resonance frequency can be increased. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately detect the vibration waveform related to the opening / closing command operation by the user.

  Hereinafter, the opening / closing body control apparatus 1 according to the present invention will be described. The opening / closing body control device 1 has a function of detecting an input of a user's opening / closing command operation to the periphery of the vehicle door as an opening / closing body and the vicinity of the opening / closing body, and opening and closing the vehicle door. I have. FIG. 1 is a view showing the rear of a vehicle provided with such an opening / closing body control device 1.

  The vehicle is provided with a plurality of doors as is well known, but in this embodiment, the vehicle door will be described as the back door 2. Here, the opening / closing command operation is a command operation performed when the user tries to open the vehicle door or a command operation performed when the user tries to close the vehicle door. Such a command operation corresponds to a so-called knock operation which is a hitting operation on the vehicle door in the opening / closing body control device 1. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the opening / closing body control device 1 will be described as detecting the user's knocking operation on the back door 2 and opening / closing the back door 2.

  The above opening / closing command operation is input to the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 by the user. The opening / closing command operation input unit 10 is attached to the opening / closing body or a structural member around the opening / closing body. The opening / closing body is a vehicle door in the present embodiment. Therefore, the structural member of the opening / closing body is the door panel itself of the back door 2, and the structural member around the opening / closing body is a panel around the back door 2. In this embodiment, the opening / closing command operation is a knock operation performed when the user attempts to open the back door 2 or a knock operation performed when the user attempts to close the back door 2. In this case, the input related to the opening / closing command operation corresponds to the hitting vibration related to the knocking operation. Therefore, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 is attached to the door panel of the back door 2 as a separate member, and a hitting vibration related to a knocking operation performed when the user opens / closes the back door 2 is input.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 1, a glass 51, an emblem 52, a license plate 53, a tail lamp 54, a garnish 55, and the like are provided in the rear portion of the vehicle. Of these parts, the garnish 55 corresponds to the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 in the present embodiment. Therefore, the above knocking operation is performed on the garnish 55.

  The garnish 55 is provided with a vibration detection sensor 11. The vibration detection sensor 11 is attached to the structural member of the vehicle door via the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 and detects vibration caused by the opening / closing command operation. As described above, the structural member of the vehicle door is the door panel of the back door 2. Further, the vibration due to the opening / closing command operation corresponds to the hitting vibration related to the knocking operation described above. Such a vibration detection sensor 11 is attached via the above-described opening / closing command operation input unit 10 as will be described in detail later. Therefore, the vibration detection sensor 11 is attached to the door panel of the back door 2 via the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 and detects a tapping vibration related to the knock operation.

2 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the back door 2 where the garnish 55 is provided, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the vibration detection sensor 11 is embedded in the garnish 55 as the opening / closing command operation input unit 10. As described above, the vibration detection sensor 11 is attached to the door panel of the back door 2 via the garnish 55. Therefore, when a knocking operation is performed on the garnish 55 in order to open and close the back door 2 by the user, the vibration detection sensor 11 receives a tapping vibration related to the knocking operation via the garnish 55.

Here, generally, the hit vibration generated when hitting an object has a vibration waveform as shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing signal intensity that changes with time, with the vertical axis representing signal intensity and the horizontal axis representing time. In FIG. 4, the signal has an amplitude before t ₀ , but this is a signal due to background noise. After that (after t ₀ ), when tapping vibration is detected, a signal having a plurality of peaks is output, and the amplitude is increased upward and downward with respect to a predetermined reference value (the signal intensity is 0 [V] in FIG. 4). As it repeats, it decays over time.

  However, when the vibration detection sensor 11 is embedded in the garnish 55, a signal as shown in FIG. 5 is obtained depending on the low-frequency vibration applied by the user and the resonance frequency of the garnish 55. This is because the garnish 55 is much smaller than the back door 2 and therefore has a high resonance frequency. This resonance frequency resonates at a higher frequency if the hardness of the garnish 55 is increased.

Also in FIG. 5, the amplitude of the signal before t ₀ is vibration caused by background noise. The opening / closing body control device 1 determines whether or not the signal obtained by the vibration detection sensor 11 as shown in FIG. 5 is a signal generated by the user's opening / closing command operation. Hereinafter, this determination will be described.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram schematically showing a schematic configuration of the opening / closing body control device 1. The opening / closing body control device 1 includes the above-described vibration detection sensor 11, vibration waveform detection means 20, signal calculation means 30, determination means 40, and door control unit 50.

  As described above, the vibration detection sensor 11 detects vibration generated by a knocking operation given to the back door 2 by the user. For this reason, it is preferable that the vibration detection sensor 11 is configured by a piezoelectric sensor capable of outputting a detection signal in accordance with vibrations applied from the outside. The vibration detection sensor 11 will be described as the piezoelectric sensor 11 in the following description.

  The vibration waveform detection means 20 acquires a vibration waveform from the sensor output output from the piezoelectric sensor 11. The signal calculation means 30 performs a calculation described later on the vibration waveform obtained by the vibration waveform detection means 20. The determination unit 40 determines whether or not the vibration waveform input from the piezoelectric sensor 11 is an opening / closing command operation by the user based on the calculation result by the vibration waveform detection unit 20. The door control unit 50 controls the opening / closing operation of the back door 2 based on the determination result of the determination unit 40.

  As will be described in detail later, the vibration waveform detection means 20 includes a filter 21 and a signal detection unit 22. The determination unit 30 includes an upper signal strength determination unit 31, a lower signal strength determination unit 32, an amplitude ratio determination unit 33, an upper signal time determination unit 34, a lower signal time determination unit 35, a time ratio calculation unit 36, a high pass. The filter 37 and the hit characteristic determination unit 38 are configured. The determination unit 40 includes a first determination unit 41 and a second determination unit 42.

  Here, in the opening / closing body control device 1, the above-described functional units for performing various processes for opening and closing the back door 2 using the CPU as a core member are constructed by hardware and / or software. Hereafter, the structure of each part of this opening / closing body control apparatus 1 is demonstrated.

  As described above, the piezoelectric sensor 11 is attached via the garnish 55 as the opening / closing operation command input unit 10, and detects a tapping vibration caused by a knocking operation performed by the user and outputs a detection signal. The detection signal is transmitted to the filter 21 described later.

  The filter 21 is configured by a bandpass filter, and attenuates frequency components other than a predetermined frequency band in the detection signal transmitted from the piezoelectric sensor 11. This predetermined frequency band can be changed according to the signal to be detected.

  The signal detection unit 22 acquires an upper waveform and a lower waveform with respect to the amplitude reference of the vibration waveform obtained from the piezoelectric sensor 11. The amplitude reference does not simply indicate the center of the amplitude of the detection signal but indicates the reference of the detection signal. That is, when the detection signal consists of a positive voltage and a negative voltage, it indicates zero potential. The upper waveform indicates a waveform positioned above the amplitude reference, and the lower waveform indicates a waveform positioned lower than the amplitude reference. For example, the amplitude reference is preferably determined as an output value from the piezoelectric sensor 11 when no opening / closing command operation is input. The case where the opening / closing command operation is not input may be simply an output value in a state of waiting for an input from the user or an output value in a state where the piezoelectric sensor 11 is not energized. In any case, it is preferable to set the amplitude reference in consideration of background noise. In the present embodiment, the amplitude reference is described as being zero potential.

  The signal detection unit 22 acquires an upper waveform and a lower waveform with respect to the detection signal. These upper waveform and lower waveform are transmitted to an upper signal strength determination unit 31, a lower signal strength determination unit 32, an upper signal time determination unit 34, a lower signal time determination unit 35, and a high-pass filter 37, which will be described later. The Note that an amplification unit (not shown) is provided between the piezoelectric sensor 11 and the filter 21 or between the filter 21 and the signal detection unit 22 to amplify the detection signal and the detection signal after filtering processing performed by the filter 21. You may do it.

The upper signal strength determination unit 31 determines the amplitude level of the upper waveform with respect to the amplitude reference of the vibration waveform obtained from the vibration detection sensor (piezoelectric sensor) 11 as the upper amplitude level. The amplitude level corresponds to the detection voltage of the detection signal, and is preferably an amplitude level that maximizes the amplitude of the detection signal. For this reason, the amplitude level of the upper waveform corresponds to the peak hold value of the upper waveform. Therefore, the upper signal strength determination unit 31 determines the peak hold value of the detected voltage in the upper waveform as the upper amplitude level. Note that such an upper signal strength determination unit 31 is preferably constituted by a so-called peak hold circuit. The peak hold circuit acquires the peak value of the input signal. The peak hold circuit is preferably composed of a capacitor, a diode, an operational amplifier, etc., but since it is a known technique, description thereof is omitted. In the detection signal transmitted from the signal detection unit 22 as shown in FIG. 7, the detection voltage indicated by the reference symbol V ₁ corresponds. The upper amplitude level determined by the upper signal strength determination unit 31 is transmitted to an amplitude ratio calculation unit 33 described later.

The lower signal strength determination unit 32 determines the amplitude level of the lower waveform with respect to the amplitude reference of the vibration waveform obtained from the vibration detection sensor (piezoelectric sensor) 11 as the lower amplitude level. The amplitude level corresponds to the detection voltage of the detection signal, and is preferably an amplitude level that minimizes the amplitude in the detection signal. For this reason, the amplitude level of the lower waveform corresponds to the bottom hold value of the lower waveform. Therefore, the lower signal strength determination unit 32 determines the bottom hold value of the detection voltage in the lower waveform as the lower amplitude level. Note that such a lower signal strength determination unit 32 is preferably constituted by a so-called bottom hold circuit. The bottom hold circuit acquires the peak value (bottom value) of the input signal. The bottom hold circuit is preferably composed of a capacitor, a diode, an operational amplifier, etc., but since it is a known technique, description thereof is omitted. In the detection signal transmitted from the signal detection unit 22 as shown in FIG. 7, the detection voltage indicated by the reference symbol V ₂ corresponds. The lower amplitude level determined by the lower signal strength determination unit 32 is transmitted to an amplitude ratio calculation unit 33 described later.

The amplitude ratio calculator 33 calculates the amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform. The amplitude level of the upper waveform is transmitted from the upper waveform intensity determination unit 31 described above. On the other hand, the amplitude level of the lower waveform is transmitted from the lower waveform strength determination unit 32. The amplitude ratio is a ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform, and is an index indicating how many times the lower amplitude level is the upper amplitude level. Therefore, the amplitude ratio calculator 33 calculates an amplitude ratio indicating how many times the lower amplitude level is the upper amplitude level. As described above, when the amplitude level of the upper waveform is V ₁ and the amplitude level of the lower waveform is V ₂ , the amplitude ratio calculation unit 33 divides V ₂ by V ₁ to obtain the amplitude. Calculate the ratio. If the lower amplitude level is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold value set in advance for the upper amplitude level, the amplitude calculator 33 outputs a Hi signal. On the other hand, if it is less than a predetermined threshold value set in advance, a Lo signal is output. In the present embodiment, the amplitude ratio calculator 33 outputs a Hi signal when the lower amplitude level is twice or more of the upper amplitude level, and outputs a Lo signal when the lower amplitude level is less than twice. The output (Hi signal or Lo signal) of the amplitude ratio calculator 33 is output to the first determination means 41 described later.

The upper signal time determination unit 34 acquires a waveform approximate line from the vibration waveform, and determines a time when the waveform approximate line exceeds the amplitude reference as an upper signal time. The waveform approximation line is a waveform approximated so that the vibration waveform is a smooth upper waveform and a lower waveform each consisting of one convex portion. For example, such a waveform approximation line is preferably acquired by attenuating a frequency band higher than a predetermined frequency from the vibration waveform. In such a case, the waveform approximation line can be easily obtained by inputting the vibration waveform to the low-pass filter. The upper signal time determination unit 34 acquires such a waveform approximation line. Then, the time when the waveform approximation line exceeds the amplitude reference is determined as the upper signal time. Here, in this embodiment, the amplitude reference is the zero potential of the detection signal. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, when an approximate waveform is obtained from the vibration waveform, the time indicated by the symbol t ₂ corresponds to the upper signal time. The upper signal time determined by the upper signal time determination unit 34 is transmitted to a time ratio calculation unit 36 described later. Here, for example, a known polynomial approximation or moving average may be used as the waveform approximation line. Of course, it is also possible to approximate the waveform as a plurality of convex portions.

The lower signal time determination unit 35 acquires a waveform approximate line from the vibration waveform, and determines a time when the waveform approximate line is below the amplitude reference as the lower signal time. The waveform approximation line is a waveform obtained by approximating the vibration waveform so as to be a smooth upper waveform and a lower waveform each consisting of one convex portion as described above, and is preferably obtained as described above. The lower signal time determination unit 35 acquires such a waveform approximation line. Then, the time when the waveform approximation line falls below the amplitude reference is determined as the lower signal time. Here, in this embodiment, the amplitude reference is the zero potential of the detection signal. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, when the approximate waveform is obtained from the vibration waveform, the time indicated by the symbol t ₁ corresponds to the lower signal time. The lower signal time determined by the lower signal time determination unit 35 is transmitted to a time ratio calculation unit 36 described later.

The time ratio calculator 36 calculates the time ratio between the time when the waveform approximation line acquired from the vibration waveform falls below the amplitude reference and the time when the waveform approximation line exceeds the amplitude reference. The time when the waveform approximation line acquired from the vibration waveform falls below the amplitude reference is transmitted as the lower signal time from the lower waveform time determination unit 35 described above. On the other hand, the time when the waveform approximation line acquired from the vibration waveform exceeds the amplitude reference is transmitted from the upper waveform time determination unit 34 as the upper signal time. The time ratio is a ratio between the upper signal time and the lower signal time, and is an index indicating how many times the upper signal time is lower than the lower signal time. Therefore, the time ratio calculator 36 calculates a time ratio indicating how many times the upper signal time is lower than the lower signal time. As described above, when the lower signal time is t ₁ and the upper signal time is t ₂ , the time ratio calculator 36 calculates the time ratio by dividing t ₂ by t ₁ . If the upper signal time is equal to or greater than a predetermined determination threshold value set in advance for the lower signal time, the time ratio calculation unit 36 outputs a Hi signal. On the other hand, if it is less than a predetermined threshold value set in advance, a Lo signal is output. In this embodiment, the time ratio calculation unit 36 outputs a Hi signal when the upper signal time is five times or more of the lower signal time, and outputs a Lo signal when the upper signal time is less than five times. The output (Hi signal or Lo signal) of the time ratio calculation unit 36 is output to the first determination means 41 described later.

  The high pass filter 37 generates a damped vibration waveform in which a frequency band lower than a predetermined frequency in the vibration waveform is attenuated. The vibration waveform is transmitted from the signal detector 22. As described above, the vibration waveform is a signal in which the low-frequency vibration pressurized by the user and the resonance frequency of the garnish 55 are mixed. The high-pass filter 37 generates a damped vibration waveform in which low-frequency vibrations pressed by the user are damped. Therefore, the predetermined frequency is a frequency resulting from a low frequency pressurized by the user. When a vibration waveform as shown in FIG. 5 is input to the high-pass filter 37 having such a function, a damped vibration waveform as shown in FIG. 9 is generated. Such a damped vibration waveform is transmitted to the hit characteristic determination unit 38 described later.

  The hit characteristic determination unit 38 determines whether or not the envelope acquired from the damped vibration waveform generated by the high pass filter 27 has a hit characteristic. The hit characteristic is a characteristic indicating that a knock operation has been performed by the user. The hit characteristic determination unit 38 determines that the knocking operation has been performed by the user when the hit characteristic is included in the damped vibration waveform.

  In order to determine whether or not there is such a hit feature, the hit feature determining unit 38 first acquires an envelope W by connecting the peaks of the damped vibration waveform (see FIG. 10). By acquiring the envelope W, noise such as engine vibration due to idling, vibration due to the sound of in-vehicle audio, and vibration due to rain can be removed. In FIG. 10, the envelope W is formed by connecting the peaks of the damped vibration waveform, but the envelope may be acquired by connecting the valleys of the damped vibration waveform.

  Alternatively, the damped oscillation waveform may be full-wave rectified to the positive side or the negative side of the voltage, and an envelope may be obtained by connecting peaks or valleys of the waveform after full-wave rectification. In the waveform after full-wave rectification, the interval between peaks and peaks or valleys and valleys is narrower than the waveform before full-wave rectification, so that the envelope can be acquired with higher accuracy.

Tapping feature judging unit 38, the envelope W as shown in FIG. 10 is an increase time T ₁ of the up to the peak value P from the predetermined threshold value V _t, the predetermined envelope W from the peak value P threshold V _t Based on the decay time T ₂ that decays until the end, the opening / closing instruction by the user, that is, the presence or absence of knocking is determined. That is, when the slope of the envelope is a specific slope, it is determined that there is a hit characteristic.

In the present embodiment, a threshold voltage (threshold value V _t ) is 1/10 of the peak voltage (peak value P) of the envelope W. Threshold V _t can be arbitrarily set. In addition, the standard threshold value V _t may be set from a standard peak value P such as an average value without setting the threshold value V _t for each envelope W generated by the high-pass filter 37 described above. . The rise time (increase time T ₁ ) from when the envelope W exceeds the threshold value V _t to the peak value P is preferably within a few ms (eg, within 3 to 5 ms). Further, it is preferable that the decay time T ₂ for decaying from the peak value P to the predetermined threshold value V _t is within 150 ms. Decay time T ₂ are the back door 2 size varies depending on the mounting position, the material of the door panel or the like. When the hit characteristic determination unit 38 determines that the envelope W has a hit characteristic, the hit characteristic determination unit 38 outputs a Hi signal to the second determination unit 42 described later. Output a signal.

  As described above, the determination unit 40 determines the amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform and the time ratio between the time when the waveform approximation line is below the amplitude reference and the time when the waveform approximation line is above the amplitude reference. The presence / absence of a vehicle door opening / closing command operation by the user is determined based on at least one of the above and the hitting characteristic of the envelope W. Specifically, the determination unit 40 includes a first determination unit 41 and a second determination unit 42. The first determination unit 41 is configured by a so-called OR gate, and the second determination unit 42 is configured by a so-called AND gate. The first determination means 41 is at least one of the amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform and the time ratio of the time when the waveform approximation line is below the amplitude reference and the time when the waveform approximation line is above the amplitude reference. It is determined whether one of them is equal to or greater than a predetermined determination threshold. In addition, the second determination unit 42 determines whether or not the user has performed an opening / closing command operation of the opening / closing body (vehicle door) based on at least one of the amplitude ratio and the time ratio and the hitting characteristic of the envelope W. Determine.

  As described above, the first determination unit 41 receives outputs (Hi signal or Lo signal) according to the respective calculation results from the amplitude ratio calculation unit 33 and the time ratio calculation unit 36. As described above, in the present embodiment, the amplitude ratio calculation unit 33 outputs a Hi signal to the first determination unit 41 when the lower amplitude level is twice or more the upper amplitude level, and is less than twice. In this case, the Lo signal is output. On the other hand, the time ratio calculation unit 36 outputs a Hi signal to the first determination means 41 when the upper signal time is five times or more of the lower signal time, and outputs a Lo signal when the upper signal time is less than five times. To do. Therefore, the first determination unit 41 outputs a Hi signal when the lower amplitude level is twice or more of the upper amplitude level or when the upper signal time is five or more times of the lower signal time. On the other hand, the Lo signal is output when the lower amplitude level is less than twice the upper amplitude level and when the upper signal time is less than five times the lower signal time. In addition, the output from the 1st determination part 41 is output to the below-mentioned 2nd determination part 42. FIG.

  As described above, the second determination unit 42 receives an output (Hi signal or Lo signal) according to the determination result from the hitting characteristic determination unit 38. As described above, in the present embodiment, when the hit characteristic determination unit 38 determines that the envelope W has a hit characteristic, the Hi signal is input to the second determination unit 42 and is not determined to have a hit characteristic. In the case of an error, a Lo signal is input. The second determination unit 42 outputs a signal according to the signal input from the hitting characteristic determination unit 38 and the signal input from the first determination unit 41 described above. That is, when the lower amplitude level is twice or more of the upper amplitude level, or when the upper signal time is five times or more of the lower signal time, and when the envelope W has a hit characteristic, the piezoelectric sensor 11 determines that the vibration detected by the user is related to a knocking operation by the user, and outputs a Hi signal. On the other hand, when the lower amplitude level is less than twice the upper amplitude level, and when the upper signal time is less than five times the lower signal time, and when there is no hit characteristic in the envelope, the piezoelectric sensor 11 is It determines with the detected vibration not being the vibration which concerns on knock operation by a user, and outputs Lo signal. The output from the second determination unit 42 is output to a door control unit 50 described later.

  As described above, the door control unit 50 controls the opening / closing operation of the back door 2 based on the determination result of the determination unit 40. That is, when the Hi signal is input from the second determination unit 42, it is determined that the vibration is related to the knocking operation by the user, so that the back door 2 is opened and closed and the Lo signal is input. Therefore, the opening / closing operation of the back door 2 is not performed because it is determined that the vibration is not related to the knocking operation by the user.

  In this way, the opening / closing body control device 1 determines whether or not the vibration detected by the piezoelectric sensor 11 is vibration related to the knocking operation by the user, whereby the user's opening / closing command to the vehicle door is determined. It is possible to determine the presence / absence of an operation without erroneous detection. And based on this determination result, it becomes possible to open and close a vehicle door appropriately.

[Other Embodiments]
In the above-described embodiment, the determination unit 40 has an amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform with respect to the amplitude reference of the vibration waveform obtained from the piezoelectric sensor 11 and the waveform approximation line obtained from the vibration waveform has an amplitude. An envelope acquired from a damped vibration waveform in which a frequency band lower than a predetermined frequency in the vibration waveform is attenuated is at least one of a time ratio between the time below the reference and the time when the waveform approximation line exceeds the amplitude reference. It has been described that the presence / absence of the opening / closing command operation of the opening / closing body by the user is determined based on the hitting characteristics. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this.

  For example, the amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform relative to the amplitude reference of the vibration waveform obtained from the piezoelectric sensor 11, the time when the waveform approximation line acquired from the vibration waveform falls below the amplitude reference, and the waveform approximation line For the vehicle by the user based on the time ratio with respect to the time when the amplitude exceeds the amplitude reference, and the tapping characteristic of the envelope obtained from the damped vibration waveform in which the frequency band lower than the predetermined frequency is damped in the vibration waveform It is also possible to determine the presence / absence of a door opening / closing command operation. That is, when the output signal related to the amplitude ratio is the Hi signal, the output signal related to the time ratio is the Hi signal, and the output signal related to the hitting characteristic is the Hi signal, the determination unit 40 detects by the piezoelectric sensor 11. Naturally, it is also possible to determine that the obtained vibration waveform is a vibration waveform related to the knocking operation by the user. With such a configuration, it becomes possible to prevent erroneous detection more reliably.

  In the above embodiment, the amplitude ratio calculation unit 33 outputs a Hi signal to the first determination means 41 described later when the lower amplitude level is twice or more the upper amplitude level, and when the amplitude is less than twice. Has been described as outputting a Lo signal. The time ratio calculator 36 outputs a Hi signal to the first determination means 41 described later when the upper signal time is five times or more of the lower signal time, and when it is less than five times, the Lo signal is output. Was described as output. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. The above 2 times and 5 times are merely examples, and it is naturally possible to set them with other numerical values. This numerical value is preferably determined according to the detection characteristics of the piezoelectric sensor 11, the rigidity of the back door 2, the position where the piezoelectric sensor 11 is provided with respect to the back door 2, and the like.

  In the above embodiment, the piezoelectric sensor 11 is described as being embedded in the garnish 55 as the opening / closing command operation input unit 10. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 may be configured to be supported by the structural member such that a part of the edge becomes an open end. That part of the edge is an open end means that at least a part of the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 is configured not to contact the door panel. In addition, for example, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 can be configured by a plate-like member that is cantilevered on one side with respect to the structural member. Here, “cantilevered on one side” means a state in which the plate-shaped member is supported by the vehicle on one side and at least a piece facing the one side is not supported by the vehicle. That is, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 may be fixed to the vehicle with one side forming a plate shape. In such a case, as shown in FIG. 11, it is preferable that the plate-like member is constituted by a rectangular plate-like member and the long side is fixed to the back door 2. In this case, it is preferable that the long side is formed to have a length five times or longer than the short side. Of course, you may arrange | position so that a short side may be fixed. In FIG. 11, the piezoelectric sensor 11 is disposed in contact with the surface (on the surface) of the garnish 55 so as to be hidden under the garnish 55. However, the piezoelectric sensor 11 is provided on the opposite surface (visible). Of course, it is also possible to prepare.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 12, the piezoelectric sensor 11 can be fixed together with the garnish 55. In this case, it is preferable to fix the piezoelectric sensor 11 together with a bolt 55 a that fixes the garnish 55 to the back door 2.

  In the above embodiment, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 has been described as being the garnish 55. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as a matter of course, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 may be the emblem 52, the license plate 53, or the tail lamp 54. Although not shown, it is naturally possible to use a mall.

  In the above embodiment, the opening / closing body control device 1 has been described as opening and closing the back door 2 of the vehicle. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is naturally possible to apply the present invention to the opening / closing body control device 1 that opens and closes a slide door provided on a side surface of the vehicle. Further, it is naturally possible to apply to other doors (for example, a door of a building).

  In the above embodiment, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 has been described as being provided in the back door 2. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 may be provided on the body itself (that is, cantilevered on the body) without being provided on the back door 2.

  In the said embodiment, the opening / closing command operation input part 10 was demonstrated as a plate-shaped member and a rectangle. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the opening / closing command operation input unit 10 is not limited to a rectangular shape, and the present invention can naturally be applied to a circular or semicircular shape, for example.

The figure which showed the back of vehicles provided with the opening-and-closing body control device Enlarged view of the area around the backdoor garnish The figure which showed the III-III line cross section in FIG. A diagram showing an example of the tapping vibration that generally occurs when an object is struck The figure which shows an example of the vibration waveform acquired by the vibration detection sensor with which the opening-closing body control apparatus which concerns on this invention is provided. Block diagram schematically showing the schematic configuration of the opening / closing body control device The figure explaining the amplitude ratio of the upper waveform and the lower waveform of the vibration waveform A diagram for explaining the time ratio between the upper waveform and the lower waveform of the vibration waveform Diagram illustrating a damped vibration waveform Diagram explaining envelope and hit characteristics The figure which shows the other arrangement | positioning form of a vibration detection sensor The figure which shows the other arrangement | positioning form of a vibration detection sensor

Explanation of symbols

1: Opening and closing body control device 11: Vibration detection sensor (piezoelectric sensor)
20: Vibration waveform detector 21: Filter 22: Signal detector 30: Signal calculator 31: Upper signal strength determiner 32: Lower signal strength determiner 33: Amplitude ratio calculator 34: Upper signal time determiner 35: Lower Side signal time determination unit 36: time ratio calculation unit 37: high-pass filter 38: hitting characteristic determination unit 40: determination means 41: first determination unit 42: second determination unit 50: door control unit

Claims (7)

An opening / closing command operation input unit, which is attached to the opening / closing body or a structural member around the opening / closing body, and an opening / closing command operation is input by a user;
A vibration detection sensor that is attached to the structural member via the opening / closing command operation input unit and detects vibration caused by the opening / closing command operation;
An amplitude ratio between the amplitude level of the upper waveform and the amplitude level of the lower waveform with respect to the amplitude reference of the vibration waveform obtained from the vibration detection sensor, and a time during which the waveform approximation line obtained from the vibration waveform falls below the amplitude reference At least one of the time ratio of the waveform approximate line to the time exceeding the amplitude reference, and an envelope acquired from a damped vibration waveform in which a frequency band lower than a predetermined frequency is attenuated in the vibration waveform, Determination means for determining the presence / absence of an opening / closing command operation of the opening / closing body by the user,
An opening / closing body control device comprising:   The determination means has the opening / closing command operation when at least one of the amplitude ratio and the time ratio is equal to or greater than a predetermined determination threshold value and the gradient of the envelope is a specific gradient. The opening / closing body control apparatus of Claim 1 which determines with having met.   The opening / closing body control device according to claim 1, wherein the amplitude reference is an output value from the vibration detection sensor when the opening / closing command operation is not input.   The opening / closing body according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the amplitude level of the upper waveform is a peak hold value of the upper waveform, and an amplitude level of the lower waveform is a bottom hold value of the lower waveform. Control device.   5. The opening / closing body control device according to claim 1, wherein the waveform approximation line is acquired by attenuating a frequency band higher than a predetermined frequency from the vibration waveform.   The opening / closing body control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the opening / closing command operation input unit is supported by the structural member such that a part of an edge is an open end.   The opening / closing body control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the opening / closing command operation input unit includes a plate-like member that is cantilevered on one side with respect to the structural member.

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