JP2010149576A - Coaxial motorcycle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a coaxial motorcycle capable of improving the safety of traveling by properly presenting the speed. <P>SOLUTION: The coaxial motorcycle includes: a pair of wheel driving units for driving the pair of wheels, respectively; a traveling control unit for giving a traveling instruction to the wheel driving units; a moving speed calculation means for calculating the moving speed of the coaxial motorcycle; a speed presenting signal generation unit for generating a signal indicating a speed presenting sound for presenting the moving speed found by the moving speed calculation means to an occupant; and a speaker for sounding the speed presenting sound. The speaker is provided so as to sound to the ground or the front. The speed presenting sound changes a pitch, volume, and time duration of the sound according to the moving speed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle that travels with a passenger. More specifically, the present invention relates to a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle in which surrounding people and passengers can appropriately recognize the traveling speed.

2. Description of the Related Art A coaxial two-wheeled vehicle that has a pair of coaxial wheels driven by an electric motor and travels while maintaining a balance while a person is on a step in a standing posture is known (for example, Patent Documents 1, 2, and 3). .
Such a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle naturally has a limit speed for maintaining balance control due to its structure (paragraph 0049 of Patent Document 1).
Since exceeding the limit speed is extremely dangerous, there is a configuration with a speed limit function to prevent the limit speed from being exceeded and a warning function to issue a warning to prompt deceleration when the limit speed is exceeded. It is known (paragraphs 0050 and 0051 of JP 2003-502002).
As a speed limiting function for preventing the vehicle from exceeding the limit speed, a method of reducing the speed of the vehicle by tilting the vehicle in the direction opposite to the traveling direction is disclosed (paragraph 0050 of Patent Document 1).
Further, as a warning function for prompting deceleration when the speed limit is exceeded, an audible or visual warning function such as a rattling sound is disclosed (paragraph 0051 of Patent Document 1).

Special table 2003-502002 gazette Patent 3722493 JP 2006-315666 A

Such a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle is small in appearance and can be seen as a vehicle that is easier than a bicycle or the like because it looks just like a small wheel under the passenger's foot.
The passenger also operates as an extension of walking rather than driving the vehicle.
And because of its small size and light weight and standing posture, it tends to run side by side on the same sidewalk as pedestrians in the city.

However, since the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle is driven by an electric motor, it is possible to obtain a speed that easily exceeds the speed of walking and running.
On the other hand, coaxial two-wheeled vehicles are small enough to have wheels under the passenger's feet, and the rotation of the electric motor is very quiet, so that the coaxial two-wheeled vehicles are approaching the surrounding pedestrians. Is almost unrecognizable.
Even if a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle enters the field of view, the control posture of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle remains standing, and there is no difference in appearance such as walking and running, so it is quite difficult to determine whether it is fast or slow from the appearance. . If a pedestrian does not notice the coaxial motorcycle and a contact accident occurs, it is very dangerous.

In addition, when traveling on the sidewalk, it is generally required to travel at a speed of 6 km / h or less in consideration of the safety of the surrounding people, but there is no means for confirming whether the passenger complies with this rule. Even if you are unconsciously or deliberately overspeeding, it is impossible for the people around you to notice.
Therefore, there is a problem in the effectiveness even if the speed limit regulations and manners are applied to the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle.

Here, it is conceivable to present the speed to the passenger by attaching a speedometer to the handle portion in the same way as a bicycle or a motorcycle.
However, since the handle of a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle is very close to the body, maneuvering while looking at the handle near the body makes it difficult to see the surroundings, so the danger increases.
Moreover, since the surrounding people cannot see the indicator of a steering wheel, there are few places which contribute to the safety | security improvement of the surrounding pedestrian.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle that improves traveling safety by appropriately presenting a speed.

The coaxial two-wheeled vehicle of the present invention is
A vehicle body having a step on the upper surface on which the passenger puts his / her foot;
A pair of wheels arranged coaxially on both sides in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the vehicle body;
A pair of wheel drive units that respectively drive the pair of wheels;
A travel control unit that gives a travel command to the wheel drive unit;
A moving speed calculating means for calculating the moving speed of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle;
A speed presentation signal generation unit that generates a signal representing a speed presentation sound for presenting the movement speed obtained by the movement speed calculation means to the surroundings;
A speaker for producing the speed presentation sound,
The speaker is provided on the lower surface of the vehicle body, and the sound generation surface is directed to the ground side.

Further, the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle of the present invention has a vehicle body having a step on the upper surface by which a rider puts his foot,
A pair of wheels arranged coaxially on both sides in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the vehicle body;
A pair of wheel drive units that respectively drive the pair of wheels;
A travel control unit that gives a travel command to the wheel drive unit;
A moving speed calculating means for calculating the moving speed of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle;
A speed presentation signal generation unit that generates a signal representing a speed presentation sound for presenting the movement speed obtained by the movement speed calculation means to the surroundings;
A speaker for producing the speed presentation sound,
The speaker is characterized in that its sound generation surface is provided forward.

According to such a configuration, the speaker emits a sound toward the ground or the front, so that the sound is easily transmitted to the surrounding people, and if the speed is exceeded, this can be clearly seen in the surroundings.
Therefore, it is possible to encourage the passenger to restrain the speed voluntarily by watching and controlling from surrounding people, and to reduce the accident rate by safe driving.
In addition, the speaker sounds toward the ground and forward, and is less effective than the transmission of sound to the surrounding people, but the passenger can also hear the speed presentation sound, so the speed can be recognized by the sound. Can do. Therefore, the passenger can recognize the current speed while keeping his line of sight in the traveling direction.
Coaxial motorcycles are likely to travel where there are many pedestrians, so there is a high risk of accidents if the line of sight is often removed from the direction of travel in order to check the indicator display, etc. Because the speed can be recognized, the occupant can concentrate safely in the direction of travel.

In the present invention,
It is preferable that the pitch of the speed presentation sound changes according to the moving speed.

In the present invention,
The speed presenting sound preferably has a volume that changes according to the moving speed.

In the present invention,
It is preferable that the speed presenting sound changes in duration of the sound according to the moving speed.

  According to such a configuration, the moving speed can be clearly presented to surrounding people and the passengers themselves by changing the pitch, volume, and sound duration.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be illustrated and described with reference to reference numerals attached to respective elements in the drawings.
(First embodiment)
A first embodiment according to the coaxial two-wheel vehicle of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a front view of a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle.
FIG. 2 is a side view of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle.
The coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 includes a vehicle main body 1, a pair of left and right wheels 2L and 2R, a pair of left and right wheel drive units 3L and 3R, an operation lever 4, and a speaker 30.

  The pair of wheels 2L and 2R are coaxially arranged on both sides in a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the vehicle main body 1, and are rotatably supported by the vehicle main body 1.

  In the following description, an axis corresponding to the axles of the pair of wheels 2L and 2R is a pitch axis, and an axis passing through the center of the vehicle body 1 and parallel to the traveling direction of the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 is a roll axis.

On the upper surface of the vehicle body 1, there are provided two step portions 1a and 1b on which the rider's feet are respectively placed.
On the side surface of the vehicle body 1, a pair of left and right wheel drive units 3L and 3R for independently rotating and driving the wheels 2L and 2R are provided. Each wheel drive unit 3L, 3R is constituted by, for example, a wheel drive motor and a speed reducer that decelerates the rotational force of the wheel drive motor and transmits it to each wheel 2L, 2R.

An operation lever 4 is attached to the vehicle body 1 so as to be rotatable in the roll axis rotation direction.
When the operation lever 4 tilts in the pitch axis rotation direction (front-rear direction), the forward or backward operation of the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 is executed. When the operation lever 4 tilts in the roll axis rotation direction (left-right direction), the turning operation of the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 is performed. Executed.
In addition, a speaker 30 that emits sound is provided on the lower surface of the vehicle body 1. The sound generation direction of the speaker 30 is the lower surface side (ground side), that is, the sound generation surface is directed to the lower side (ground side).

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10. As shown in FIG.
The coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 includes an attitude sensor unit 8, an angle detection sensor 6, a pair of drive circuits 9L and 9R, a pair of wheel speed sensors 7L and 7R, and a control device 5.

The attitude sensor unit 8 is disposed in the vehicle main body 1 and detects the pitch angle, pitch angular velocity, acceleration, and the like of the vehicle main body 1 when the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 is traveling.
The attitude sensor unit 8 includes, for example, a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, and the like.
When the operation lever 4 is tilted forward or backward, the vehicle body 1 is also tilted in the same direction in conjunction with the operation lever 4.
The posture sensor unit 8 detects the pitch angle and pitch angular velocity (posture value) of the vehicle main body 1 corresponding to the inclination of the operation lever 4.

The angle detection sensor 6 is attached to the rotation shaft of the operation lever 4. As the angle detection sensor 6, for example, a potentiometer, a variable capacitor structure sensor, or the like can be applied. The angle detection sensor 6 detects the operation amount and the operation direction when the operation lever 4 is rotated in a desired direction in which the rider wants to turn.
When the operation lever 4 is operated, the angle detection sensor 6 outputs an operation signal corresponding to the operation amount and the operation direction to the control device 5.

  The left and right wheel speed sensors 7L and 7R are disposed on the left and right wheels 2L and 2R, respectively, and detect the wheel speeds of the wheels 2L and 2R, respectively. The wheel speed sensors 7L and 7R output the detected wheel speeds of the wheels 2L and 2R to the control device 5.

  The pair of drive circuits 9L and 9R are built in the vehicle main body 1 and drive the left and right wheel drive units 3L and 3R, respectively.

The control device 5 drives and controls the wheel drive units 3L and 3R via the drive circuits 9L and 9R.
The control device 5 temporarily stores a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that performs control processing, arithmetic processing, and the like, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores a control program executed by the CPU, an arithmetic program, processing data, and the like RAM (Random Access Memory) and the like, and includes a travel control unit 51 and a speed presentation control unit 52.

Based on the pitch angle and pitch angular velocity of the vehicle body 1 detected by the attitude sensor unit 8, the travel control unit 51 calculates the tilt direction (front or rear) of the operation lever 4 and the corresponding moving speed. Then, the traveling control unit 51 drives and controls each of the wheel drive units 3L and 3R so that the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 moves at the calculated inclination direction and moving speed while maintaining the balance of the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10.
Thereby, the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle 10 can move forward or backward at a desired moving speed while maintaining balance. Further, the traveling control unit 51 controls the driving of the pair of wheel drive units 3L and 3R according to the operation signal from the angle detection sensor 6, and causes a rotation difference between the left and right wheels 2L and 2R. As a result, the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle 10 turns in a desired direction at a desired vehicle speed.

  The speed presentation control unit 52 includes a movement speed calculation unit 53 and a speed presentation signal generation unit 54.

The moving speed calculation unit 53 calculates the moving speed V of the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 based on the rotational speeds of the wheels 2L and 2R detected by the wheel speed sensors 7L and 7R. Here, the wheel speed sensors 7R and 7L and the movement speed calculation unit 53 constitute a movement speed calculation means.
The speed presentation signal generation unit 54 generates a speed presentation signal for presenting the speed to the passenger according to the movement speed calculated by the movement speed calculation unit 53.
In the speed presentation signal generation unit 54, a threshold value for dividing the moving speed V into several stages is set, and a pitch (pitch, sound frequency) corresponding to each speed stage is set.
The speed presentation signal generating unit 54 compares the moving speed sent from the moving speed calculating unit 53 every moment with each threshold value, and obtains a pitch corresponding to the moving speed at that time.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the speed presentation signal generated by the speed presentation signal generation unit 54 and the moving speed V.
The speed presentation signal includes a signal representing a pitch (sound frequency), and the magnitude of the moving speed and the pitch (sound frequency) are positively correlated. As this correlation, a direct proportionality, a linear function, an exponential function, or the like can be adopted and is not particularly limited. However, in consideration of the auditory property with respect to the pitch, the magnitude of the moving speed and the pitch may be proportional. preferable.
Since the noise associated with general vehicle acceleration is proportional to the speed, there is also an advantage that it is easy for the passenger to understand intuitively.

  The speed presentation signal generation unit 54 causes the speaker 30 to generate a pitch obtained according to the moving speed V. Then, the sound is reflected on the ground and can be heard well by the people around. Of course, it can be heard by the passenger. The pitch of this sound allows surrounding people and passengers to easily recognize the traveling speed of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle 10.

According to such a first embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.
(1) Since a sound having a pitch corresponding to the speed is emitted from the speaker 30, the speed can be recognized by the pitch. At this time, since the speaker 30 reflects the sound to the ground, the surrounding people can recognize the existence of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle and the approximate traveling speed thereof. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a situation in which a pedestrian is not aware of the approaching coaxial two-wheeled vehicle or erroneously measures the speed even if he / she notices the accident, and an accident can be avoided.

(2) Since the speaker 30 emits a sound toward the ground, the sound is easily transmitted to the surrounding people, and if the speed is exceeded, it can be clearly seen in the surroundings. Therefore, it is possible to encourage the passenger to restrain the speed voluntarily by watching and controlling from surrounding people, and to reduce the accident rate by safe driving.

(3) The speaker 30 emits sound toward the ground, but it is less effective than the sound transmitted to the surrounding people, but the sound is transmitted to the passenger, so the passenger recognizes the speed by sound. Can do. Therefore, the passenger can recognize the current speed while keeping his line of sight in the traveling direction. Coaxial motorcycles are likely to travel where there are many pedestrians, so there is a high risk of accidents if the line of sight is often removed from the direction of travel in order to check the indicator display, etc. Because the speed can be recognized, the passenger can concentrate safely in the direction of travel.

(Modification 1)
Next, Modification 1 will be described.
The first modification is characterized in that the volume of the speed presentation sound is changed according to the moving speed V.
FIG. 5 is an example of the volume of the speed presentation sound when the moving speed V increases at a constant rate.
As shown in FIG. 5, a positive correlation is provided between the magnitude of the moving speed and the volume.
As this correlation, a direct proportionality, a linear function, an exponential function, a logarithmic function or the like can be adopted and is not particularly limited.
In the case where the amount of change in speed and the amount of change in audible volume are combined, a logarithmic relationship is taken as an example from the human auditory characteristics.
Or, at low speeds (1km / h or 2km / h), it is not necessary to let the passengers recognize the difference in speed so much. It is preferable to make it recognize.
As described above, when the weighting is changed depending on the speed range, an exponential correlation is given as an example.
According to such a configuration, the traveling speed of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle can be presented in an easy-to-understand manner to both passengers and the surrounding people by changing the volume.

(Modification 2)
Next, Modification 2 will be described.
The modification 2 is characterized in that the duration time of the speed presentation sound changes according to the moving speed.
FIG. 6 is an example of the speed presentation sound when the speed increases at a constant rate.
As shown in FIG. 6, a positive correlation (for example, proportionality or linear function) is given to the magnitude of the moving speed V and the sound duration.
The passenger and the surrounding people can know the moving speed according to the duration of the sound.

(Modification 3)
Next, Modification 3 will be described.
Modification 3 is characterized in that the sounding direction of the speaker is in front of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a third modification.
The speaker 31 is provided on the proximal end side of the operation lever 4 with the sound generation surface facing forward. Thereby, it is possible to inform the pedestrian in front of the fact that the coaxial two-wheel vehicle 10 is approaching and the approximate speed thereof. The speaker may be disposed not on the operation lever 4 but on the vehicle body 1.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications, improvements, etc. within the scope that can achieve the object of the present invention are included in the present invention. In the above-described embodiment, a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle with an operation lever is taken as an example. However, for example, a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle without an operation lever as shown in FIG. 8 may be used.

In the above embodiment, the case has been described in which the moving speed V is divided into several stages according to a predetermined threshold, and the speed presentation is performed with the pitch, volume, and sound duration according to each speed stage. The pitch, volume, and duration of the presentation sound may change continuously.
In this case, a multiplication coefficient or conversion formula for converting the moving speed into the speed presenting sound is set, and the frequency, volume, duration, etc. of the speed presenting sound are calculated by sequential calculation.
Since the vehicle is controlled with a very short control cycle, the speed of the vehicle changes very rapidly.
If you try to change the speed presentation sound continuously according to the moving speed that fluctuates frequently in this way, it will be impossible to calculate, the output will be delayed, the switching will be too intense, and the passenger will accurately There arises a problem that the traveling speed cannot be recognized. Therefore, when continuously changing the speed presentation signal in accordance with the movement speed, it is preferable to attach a low-pass filter to the movement speed calculation section or the speed presentation signal generation section.

  As the moving speed calculation means, the case where the wheel speed sensor and the moving speed calculation unit are configured is exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and an acceleration sensor may be used, or the speed of the vehicle may be determined from the travel control signal. You may ask for it.

  In the description of the above embodiment, the case where the speaker is directed downward and forward is exemplified, but in addition to this, it is only necessary that the moving speed can be appropriately transmitted to surrounding people by sound, so the speaker surface is directed upward. A configuration that emits sound toward the camera can also be adopted.

1 is a front view of a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle in a first embodiment. 1 is a side view of a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle in a first embodiment. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle in the first embodiment. The figure which shows the relationship between the speed presentation signal and the moving speed V in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the example of the volume of a speed presentation sound when the movement speed increases in the modification 1. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a speed presentation sound when the speed increases in the second modification. The figure which shows the modification 3. FIG. The figure which shows the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle without an operation lever as a modification.

Explanation of symbols

1 ... Vehicle body, 1a, 1b ... Step part, 2L, 2R ... Wheel, 3L, 3R ... Wheel drive unit, 4 ... Control lever, 5 ... Control device, 6 ... Angle detection sensor, 7L, 7R ... Wheel speed sensor, 8 ... Attitude sensor unit, 9L, 9R ... Drive circuit, 10 ... Coaxial motorcycle, 30, 31 ... Speaker, 51 ... Run control unit, 52 ... Speed presentation control unit, 53 ... Movement speed calculation unit, 54 ... Speed presentation signal generation Department.

Claims (5)

A vehicle body having a step on the upper surface on which the passenger puts his / her foot;
A pair of wheels arranged coaxially on both sides in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the vehicle body;
A pair of wheel drive units that respectively drive the pair of wheels;
A travel control unit that gives a travel command to the wheel drive unit;
A moving speed calculating means for calculating the moving speed of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle;
A speed presentation signal generation unit that generates a signal representing a speed presentation sound for presenting the movement speed obtained by the movement speed calculation means to the surroundings;
A speaker for producing the speed presentation sound,
The said speaker is provided in the lower surface of the vehicle main body, The sound-emitting surface is orient | assigned to the ground side. The coaxial two-wheeled vehicle characterized by the above-mentioned. A vehicle body having a step on the upper surface on which the passenger puts his / her foot;
A pair of wheels arranged coaxially on both sides in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the vehicle body;
A pair of wheel drive units that respectively drive the pair of wheels;
A travel control unit that gives a travel command to the wheel drive unit;
A moving speed calculating means for calculating the moving speed of the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle;
A speed presentation signal generation unit that generates a signal representing a speed presentation sound for presenting the movement speed obtained by the movement speed calculation means to the surroundings;
A speaker for producing the speed presentation sound,
The speaker is provided with a sounding surface facing forward. A coaxial two-wheeled vehicle. In the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle according to claim 1 or claim 2,
The coaxial two-wheeled vehicle, wherein the speed presenting sound changes in pitch according to a moving speed. In the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle according to claim 1 or claim 2,
A volume of the speed presentation sound changes according to a moving speed. A coaxial two-wheeled vehicle. In the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle according to claim 1 or claim 2,
The coaxial two-wheeled vehicle, wherein the speed presenting sound changes in duration of the sound according to a moving speed.

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