JP2010085932A - Driving support apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a driving support apparatus that displays perspective images, in the support of driving of a vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: The driving support apparatus includes a display means 30 for displaying an image 32 ahead of a vehicle, and a control means 40 for controlling the mode of the image 32. The control means makes the image 32 undergo reciprocative motion between a ground surface 50 and a predetermined height 51; the reciprocation includes a free fall motion, from the predetermined height 51 to the ground surface 50 with the vertical speed of zero of the image 32 at the predetermined height 51; and after the image 32 reaches the impact collision with the ground surface 50 by the free-fall motion from a predetermined height 51, a parabolic motion from the ground surface 50 to the predetermined height 51, with an initial vertical speed providing a maximum point at the predetermined height 51 under the gravitational acceleration. When the image 32 that undergoes reciprocative motion reaches the position of impact with the ground surface 50, it is so arranged that a sound effect 20 is output. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a driving support device, and more particularly to a video display device that supports driving of a vehicle.

  The occupant visually confirms the front and sides according to the driving situation for safe driving of the vehicle. However, the shape of the vehicle varies, and some have a slant nose and some have a large bumper integrated with the vehicle body. In addition, the posture in which the occupant sits in the driver's seat and the occupant's body shape are various. Due to these factors, the field of view of the occupant changes and the range of visual confirmation also changes.

  In such a situation, it may not be easy for the occupant to grasp the front end of the vehicle sensuously. If the front end of the vehicle cannot be grasped, when entering a narrow alley, parking space, or avoiding an obstacle, the occupant needs to drive with sufficient distance so as not to touch the obstacle. Changes are also forced.

Therefore, a technique for forming an image (virtual image) in the vicinity of the front end so that the occupant can perceive the front end of the vehicle is disclosed (Patent Document 1). The occupant can drive the vehicle without moving the line of sight while grasping the front end position of the vehicle by visually recognizing the imaged image (virtual image).
Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-57937

  The above-described image (virtual image) in the prior art imitates a mark, a pole, or the like, and is displayed at a fixed position as a fixed shape. These images (virtual images) may be difficult to grasp a sense of distance as compared to a real mark or pole.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a driving support device that displays an image that makes it easy to grasp a sense of distance when driving a vehicle.

  In order to solve the above problem, an embodiment of the present invention is a driving support device that displays an image for supporting driving of a vehicle, the display unit displaying the image on the front periphery of the vehicle, and the image And a control means for controlling the form.

  The control means reciprocates the image between the ground surface and a predetermined height. The reciprocating motion is caused by the free fall movement from the predetermined height to the ground surface where the vertical moving speed of the video is zero at the predetermined height, and the free fall from the predetermined height. After reaching the position where it collides with the ground surface, it consists of a parabolic motion from the ground surface to the predetermined height, which has an initial initial velocity at which the predetermined height is the highest point under gravitational acceleration. Furthermore, a sound effect is output when the image that is reciprocating reaches a position where it collides with the ground surface.

  When humans use tools in their hands, they unconsciously consider them as part of their hands. This is called the body expansion phenomenon. This physical expansion phenomenon is also caused by visual and tactile integration in which pseudo tactile sensation and vision are fused when operating a remote control robot arm or a joystick in a video game. When the body expansion phenomenon occurs, it is easy to grasp the sense of distance in the operation even if the place to operate is remote or even in the display. It goes without saying that the body expansion phenomenon is not limited to the hand, but also occurs in the foot.

  The occupant operates equipment such as a steering wheel and pedals when driving the vehicle. If it is a steering wheel, it is gripped and rotated as necessary. If it is an accelerator pedal, depress it with a constant force to adjust the speed of the vehicle, and depress it strongly when accelerating. If it is a brake pedal, it is depressed to decelerate and stop the vehicle.

  When the device is operated in this way, the occupant performs various operations such as changing the grip strength of the hand, moving the arm, changing the pedaling force. By this operation, the vehicle is controlled, and the occupant recognizes the vehicle as a part of the body.

  However, the vehicle is larger than the occupant's physique, and it is not easy to drive the vehicle like a part of the body by always grasping the sense of distance at the front end of the vehicle. The video of the pole disclosed in the prior art supports the grasp of this sense of distance. However, while driving the vehicle, the focus is mainly on the front, and you are not always watching the image. Also, the image is confused with the surrounding scene, and the awareness of the image is weakened. The image may not be found after release. Under such circumstances, even if video is displayed, it is difficult to greatly contribute to driving support.

  The present invention makes it easy to grasp the sense of distance to an image by moving the image. The movement of the image is a reciprocating movement that mimics the free fall of an object, and is a movement that passengers are familiar from everyday. The passenger can predict the moving trajectory and timing of the video from daily experience, and can instantly grasp the position of the video even if he keeps an eye on the video. Furthermore, by generating a sound effect when an object falls, the occupant can correct the trajectory of the image assumed by the occupant at the timing when the image reaches the ground surface, thereby making it easier to grasp the position of the image.

  Such a configuration makes the video of the familiar movement that can be predicted by the occupant in the image, so that the image of the front end position of the vehicle is not confused with the surrounding scene, while the movement of the image prevents the occupant's attention from being distracted. be able to.

  According to another configuration of the invention, the reciprocating motion includes a constant velocity motion in the left-right direction from the right front end of the vehicle to the left front end, and when the image reaches the left front end from the right front end. The movement direction may be reversed to move to the right front end, and the movement direction may be reversed to move to the left front end when the right front end is reached from the left front end.

  With this configuration, compared to the fixed image of the prior art that required two images to be displayed on the right and left, one image can be used to display not only the front end position of the vehicle but also the right front end and the left front end of the vehicle. The position can also be displayed.

  As described above, the present invention provides a driving support device that displays an image that allows a user to easily grasp a sense of distance when driving a vehicle.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the present embodiment, FIG. 2 is a plan view of a vehicle for explaining video display, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a side cross section of the vehicle for explaining video display. is there.

  The driving support device according to the present embodiment includes a control device 40 that controls the form of the image 32, and light from the optical element 31 disposed in the vehicle 10 through the windshield (vehicle window) 11. A video display device 30 that is displayed around the front of the vehicle 10 and a sound source 20 that outputs sound effects are provided.

  The video display device 30 that displays the video 32 includes an optical element 31. As shown in FIG. 3, the light generated from the optical element 31 is reflected by the concave mirror 35 as indicated by a broken line 36, and passes through the irradiation region 13 that occupies a predetermined range of the windshield 11, and the occupant's eye point 80 To reach. Then, the occupant can see the image 32 imaged at a predetermined position in front of the vehicle 10. The video display device 30 can employ a head-up display that projects an image onto a transparent optical glass element.

[Example 1]
An example of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory front view of the vehicle 10 viewed from the inside through the windshield 11. In FIG. 4, the driver's seat side on which the steering 12 is disposed will be described as the right side of the vehicle 10 and the depth direction in the figure will be described as the front side.

  An occupant (not shown) who gets on the driver's seat grips the steering wheel 12. While the vehicle 10 is traveling, the field of view of the occupant viewing the front is within the range of the windshield 11 shown in FIG. A part of the right front end 14 and the left front end 15 of the vehicle 10 can be visually recognized in the field of view, and an approximate position can be grasped. However, the shape of the vehicle varies, and some vehicles have a slant nose and others have a large bumper integrated with the vehicle body, and the front end of the vehicle 10 may be further forward than the visually recognized position.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the control device 40 causes the video display device 30 to display the video 32 that indicates the actual position of the front end of the vehicle 10. In FIG. 4, only the video 32 of the left front end 15 is displayed. However, as will be described later, the video 32 can be displayed between the right front end 14 and the left front end 15.

  The video 32 is displayed as a moving image that moves freely from a predetermined height 51. The reference symbols A1 to A6 in FIG. 4 indicate the position of the image every time a substantially constant time elapses in the order of A2, A3, A4, A5, and A6, with the image 32 positioned at the predetermined height 51 as A1. , A6 shows the motion of one image 32, which is the position reaching the ground surface 50 at A6.

  Here, the image 32 after A4 is represented by a broken line. However, when the object is moving at the front end of the vehicle, the image 32 is out of the occupant's field of view by the vehicle bumper after A4. Is not displayed.

  The image 32 is reciprocating between the ground surface 50 and a predetermined height 51. This reciprocating motion is caused by the free fall motion from the predetermined height 51 to the ground surface 50 and the free fall motion from the predetermined height 51, where the vertical movement speed of the video 32 is zero at the predetermined height 51. After reaching the position where it collides with the ground surface 50, a parabolic motion from the ground surface 50 to the predetermined height 51 having an initial initial velocity at which the predetermined height 51 is the highest point under gravitational acceleration is repeated. Yes.

  The reciprocating motion that imitates the free-falling parabola of an object is a movement that the occupant is familiar with from everyday, and the occupant can predict the trajectory and timing of the image from the daily experience. Therefore, even if the occupant has looked away from the video once, it can immediately grasp the position of the video.

  The form of the video 32 is preferably a model of an object with experience of seeing a scene where a passenger falls in daily life. For example, water drops, tennis balls, etc. are applicable, but the form of the object that is easy to see differs depending on each occupant, so select icons and markers provided in car navigation systems, register them, and register You may make it display the icon and marker suitable for. In FIG. 4, as an example, a spherical image 32 close to a tennis ball is used.

  In addition to the above-described configuration, the present embodiment outputs a sound effect by the sound source 20 when the image 32 reaches the position A6 in FIG. 4 where the image 32 collides with the ground surface 50 by a free fall movement from a predetermined height 51. It is configured. The sound effect corresponds to, for example, bounce sound or vibration such as “pon” (tennis ball), “chapon” (water droplets). However, it is not limited to these sound effects and the timing of output, but may be one that outputs sound effects that express the fall while the video 32 is falling.

  Next, a setting example of the flow of operation and reciprocating motion in the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for controlling the operation of the video 32, and FIG. 6 is a time diagram showing an example in which the height changes with time due to the reciprocating motion of the video 32.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the control device 40 calculates the height of the image 32 simulating free fall and parabolic motion (step S01). If the height is within the field of view of the occupant (step S02: YES), the video 32 is displayed on the video display device 30 (step S03). After the height is outside the occupant's field of view (step S02: NO) or the video 32 is displayed (step S03), it is determined whether or not a sound effect is necessary (step S04). In step S04, it is set in advance whether or not a sound effect is output for the position or motion state when the image 32 reaches the ground surface 50 or during a fall, and when the condition is met (step S04: YES), sound effects and vibrations are output (step S05). When the sound effect output condition is not met (step S04: NO), or when the sound effect and vibration are output (step S05), the height of the video 32 is calculated again (step S01). ) Repeat a series of flows.

  The predetermined height 51 of the image 32 can be arbitrarily set as long as the occupant can visually recognize the reciprocating motion of the image 32. In FIG. 6, the predetermined height 51 is 122.5 cm. The height of 122.5 cm from the ground surface 50 is within the occupant's visual field range, and is about 0.5 seconds before an object naturally falls from the predetermined height 51 to the ground surface 50. Thus, if the image 32 is reciprocated within a time that is easy for the occupant to calculate, it can also be used to measure the inter-vehicle time (for example, 2 to 3 seconds) between one's own vehicle and another preceding vehicle. This is preferable.

  In FIG. 6, the height of the non-display range of the video is set to 50 to 70 cm from the ground surface, but it goes without saying that this height is changed depending on the shape and size of the vehicle 10.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the image 32 is displayed imitating a free-falling motion, and further, by making the bounce on the ground surface 50 aware of the bounce on the ground surface 50 with sound effects or the like, The sense of distance is improved.

[Example 2]
Next, Example 2 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that portions that are the same as those in the first embodiment are omitted, and the differences are mainly described. FIG. 7 is a front view for explanation as seen from the inside of the vehicle 10 through the windshield 11, as in FIG. 4.

  In this embodiment, a reciprocating motion in the left-right direction is added to the reciprocating motion in the vertical direction of the image of the first embodiment. The image shows a reciprocating motion that simulates the behavior of an object ejected with an initial velocity at a predetermined angle of incidence performing a constant velocity motion in the left-right direction and a parabolic free-fall motion under gravity acceleration in the vertical direction. I am exercising.

  The reciprocating motion in the vertical direction is the same as that in FIG.

  The reciprocating motion in the left-right direction reciprocates between the right front end 14 and the left front end 15 of the vehicle 10 at a constant speed, and the image 32 is shown in FIG. In this way, the movements of B1 to B11 are repeated.

  It is desirable that the image 32 be in the occupant's visual field range when positioned at the right front end 14 and the left front end 15. Therefore, the speed in the left-right direction may be set so that the position where the video 32 reaches the ground surface 50 is at the center as shown in FIG. Although not shown, the video 32 may be bounced twice on the ground surface 50 so that the video 32 appears at the center of the vehicle 10.

  Next, an operation flow in the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 8 is a flowchart for controlling the operation of the video 32. In the flowchart of FIG. 8, the same numbers are assigned to the same determination and control steps as in the first embodiment described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the control device 40 performs a constant velocity motion in the left-right direction and a height and left-right direction of the image 32 simulating a parabolic free-fall motion under gravity acceleration in the vertical direction. The position in the direction is calculated (step S10). If the height is within the field of view of the occupant (step S02: YES), the video 32 is displayed on the video display device 30 (step S03). After the height is outside the occupant's field of view (step S02: NO) or the video 32 is displayed (step S03), it is determined whether or not a sound effect is necessary (step S04). In step S04, whether or not a sound effect is output in advance is set for the position and motion status when the image 32 reaches the ground surface 50 or when it is falling, and the condition is met (step S04: YES). ), Sound effects and vibrations are output (step S05). Thus, the flow from step S10 to step S05 is substantially the same as in the first embodiment.

  When the sound effect output condition is not met (step S04: NO), or when the sound effect and vibration are output (step S05), the left and right positions of the video are the right front end 14 or the left front end 15. (Step S11). In step S11, whether or not a sound effect is output in advance is set in accordance with the position or motion state when the video 32 reaches the right front end 14 or the left front end 15 or when it is falling, etc. (Step S11: YES), sound effects and vibrations are output (Step S12).

  When the conditions for sound effect output are not met (step S11: NO), or when sound effects and vibrations are output (step S12), the height and the horizontal position of the video 32 are calculated again (step S12). S10), a series of flow is repeated.

  Next, a setting example of the reciprocating motion in the left-right direction will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 9 is a time diagram illustrating an example of a position that changes with time due to the reciprocating motion of the video 32 in the horizontal direction. In this embodiment, the reciprocating motion in the vertical direction is the same as in FIG. 6 described above, and it is assumed that the reciprocation between the predetermined height of 122.5 cm and the ground surface takes 0.5 seconds in one way.

  FIG. 9 corresponds to the case where the video 32 follows the trajectory represented by B1 to B11 between the left front end 15 and the right front end 16 as shown in FIG. The vertical axis in FIG. 9 indicates the moving range of the left and right positions of the image 32 centered on the center of the vehicle 10 and having the right front end 14 in the upward direction and the left front end 15 in the downward direction. The horizontal axis in FIG. 9 is time. A change in the position of the image 32 is indicated by a broken line.

  The image 32 emitted from the right front end 14 at a constant speed passes through the center of the vehicle 10 in 0.5 seconds and reaches the left front end 15 in 1 second. Then, the reciprocating motion which moves to the right front end 14 again is repeated.

  As described with reference to FIG. 8, by setting conditions such as sound effects in advance, when the video 32 reaches the left front end 15, a sound effect and vibration are output when the video 32 reaches the right front end 14. May be.

  With this configuration, the occupant can easily grasp the positions of the right front end 14 and the left front end 15 of the vehicle 10 from one video 32.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above. The present invention is not limited to the one described in the drawings, and design changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

It is a block diagram showing the structure of embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the vehicle explaining the display of an image. It is the figure which modeled the side cross section of the vehicle explaining the display of an image | video. It is the front view for explanation which looked ahead through the windshield from the room of vehicles concerning Example 1 of an embodiment. It is a flowchart for controlling the operation | movement of the image | video concerning Example 1 of embodiment. It is a time diagram showing an example of the height which changes with time by the reciprocating motion of the picture concerning Example 1 of an embodiment. It is the front view for description which looked ahead through the windshield from the room | chamber interior of the vehicle concerning Example 2 of embodiment. It is a flowchart for controlling operation | movement of the image | video concerning Example 2 of embodiment. It is a time line figure showing an example of a position which changes with time by a horizontal reciprocating motion of a picture concerning Example 2 of an embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Vehicle 11 Windshield 12 Steering 13 Irradiation area 14 Right front end 15 Left front end 20 Sound source 30 Image display device 31 Optical element 32 Image 40 Control device 50 Ground surface 51 Predetermined height

Claims (3)

A driving support device for displaying a video for supporting driving of a vehicle,
Display means for displaying the video in front of the vehicle;
Control means for controlling the form of the video,
The control means reciprocates the image between the ground surface and a predetermined height,
The reciprocating motion is based on a free fall motion from the predetermined height to the ground surface where the vertical moving speed of the image is zero at the predetermined height and a free fall motion from the predetermined height. A parabolic motion from the ground surface to the predetermined height, having an initial velocity in the upward direction where the predetermined height is the highest point under gravitational acceleration,
A driving assistance device configured to output a sound effect when the image reciprocating reaches a position where the image collides with the ground surface. The reciprocating motion includes a constant velocity motion in the left-right direction from the right front end of the vehicle to the left front end,
When the image reaches the left front end from the right front end, the moving direction is reversed to move to the right front end, and when the image reaches the right front end from the left front end, the moving direction is reversed to move to the left front end. The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the driving support device is configured to perform.   The driving support device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a sound effect is output when the video reaches the predetermined height.

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