JP2010159605A - Controller for opening/closing body - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reasonably control the opening of a back door when the back door is opened and a load is loaded and unloaded. <P>SOLUTION: This controller for an opening/closing body includes a control unit B for controllably opening the back door 10 by a drive force. The control unit B starts to open the back door 10 when detecting that the back door 10 is knocked, and continuously performs the opening operation while it continuously detects the presence of a person in the image information picked up by a camera 22 attached to the back door 10. The control unit stops the opening operation when the person moves from the area picked up by the camera to the outside through the opening operation of the back door 10 and the presence of the person cannot be detected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a control device for an opening / closing body, and more particularly to a control device that controls what is opened / closed by an actuator, such as a back door provided at the rear end of a vehicle body.

  In Patent Document 1, as a control device for an opening / closing body configured as described above, when the opening operation of the back door 2 is performed by controlling the actuator 18 from the inside of the vehicle, the controller 17 moves from the back sonars 14 to 16 to the rear of the vehicle body. The process to acquire the distance to the obstacle is performed. When the controller 17 determines that there is no obstacle in the movable range of the back door 2 by this process, the back door 2 is opened, and the obstacle is present in the movable range of the back door 2. A control form in which the back door 2 is not opened when the controller 17 determines is shown.

  Moreover, in this patent document 1, when operating the handle switch 13 with which the back door 2 was equipped, and performing the door opening operation of the back door 2, the back sonars 14-16 will detect the user behind a vehicle body. A control form in which the controller 17 opens the back door 2 regardless of this detection is shown.

  Further, Patent Document 2 shows a configuration in which a back door 32 that is opened and closed by an actuator 33 in Example 3 is provided, and a digital camera 34 that captures the rear of the vehicle is provided at the rear end of the vehicle 31. When the controller 6 detects the presence of an obstacle based on the imaging data of the digital camera 34, the opening operation is forcibly stopped even if the occupant starts to open the back door 32 by driving the actuator 33. In this case, it is described that not only the opening operation of the actuator 32 is stopped but also the back door 32 may be forcibly reversed.

JP 2004-230993 A (paragraph numbers [0012] to [0028], FIGS. 1 to 5) JP 2007-153193 A (paragraph numbers [0026] to [0032], FIG. 4)

  A back door provided in a passenger car is usually opened for loading and unloading of luggage, and if there is an obstacle such as a wall near the back like a parking lot or a garage, a patent document It is also necessary to limit the opening action as described in. Further, even in the side door provided in the passenger car, when the opening operation is performed by the actuator, the opening / closing operation needs to be limited.

  Taking the back door as an example, when loading and unloading small items like bags, the back door is stopped at the middle position of the operating area, and the gap formed between the side of the back door and the rear of the vehicle body It is also possible to do from. In loading and unloading luggage in such a form, it is not necessary to open the back door to the upper limit, and it is not necessary for the user to stand behind the vehicle body.

  In addition, when the back door is opened to the upper limit and the cargo is loaded and unloaded, not only the energy consumed by the actuator for opening the back door is large, but also the wind and rain may blow into the car under heavy wind and rain conditions. There is room for improvement.

  An object of the present invention is to rationally configure a control device that appropriately opens an opening / closing body such as a back door and loads and unloads luggage.

  The present invention is characterized in that an opening operation information acquisition means for acquiring an opening operation performed by a user from the outside of the vehicle body as opening operation information, and an actuator is controlled based on the opening operation information acquired by the opening operation information acquisition means to A control unit that performs an opening operation of the opening and closing body, and a human detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a person in the vicinity of the opening and closing body, and the control unit is in a state in which the presence of a person cannot be detected by the human detection unit. When the opening operation information is acquired from the opening operation information acquisition means, the target setting mode for opening the opening / closing body to a preset target opening position is controlled, and the presence of a person is detected by the person detection means. When the opening operation information is acquired from the opening operation information acquisition means in a detected state, the opening / closing body is continuously opened regardless of the target opening position. It lies in controlling the constant mode.

  With this configuration, in a state where the presence of the person cannot be detected by the human detection means, the opening operation information is acquired by the user performing the opening operation, and based on this acquisition, the control unit controls the actuator to set the target setting mode. The opening operation of the opening / closing body starts. Further, in the state where the presence of the person is detected by the human detection means, the opening operation information is acquired by the user performing the opening operation, and based on this acquisition, the control unit opens the opening / closing body in the target non-setting mode. To continue opening regardless of the target opening position. Therefore, a control device has been constructed that allows the opening and closing body such as the back door to be properly opened and loaded and unloaded easily.

  According to the present invention, when the control unit is in the target non-setting mode, the opening / closing body is continuously opened while the presence of the person is detected, and the presence of the person is detected. When the detection is no longer possible, the opening operation of the opening / closing body may be stopped. According to this configuration, when the opening / closing body opening operation is started in the target non-setting mode, the opening operation is continued as long as a person is detected, and a situation in which no person is detected due to the opening / closing body opening operation is reached. The opening operation stops at. In other words, for example, when the opening / closing body is a back door, the opening / closing body opening operation can be stopped at a position corresponding to the height of the person without performing the process of setting the target opening position for stopping the opening / closing body. In addition, when the opening / closing body is a slide door, the door can be opened in an area where a person exists without unnecessarily opening the door. As a result, it is possible to load and unload luggage while suppressing unnecessary opening operation.

  In the present invention, the opening / closing body is provided at a rear end of the vehicle body as a back door that performs an opening operation along a trajectory of moving the swing end of the swinging rearward and upward, and the person detecting means is a portion facing the back door. And the lower part may be set as a detection area. According to this configuration, after the opening operation of the back door is started in the target non-setting mode, the opening operation is continuously performed in a situation where the person detecting means detects a person in the detection area, and the person detecting means detects the person. The opening operation is stopped when a situation where no person is detected in the area is reached, and the opening operation of the back door can be stopped at a position corresponding to the height of the person.

  The present invention includes position specifying means for specifying the position of a person relative to the vehicle body, and the control unit starts opening the opening / closing body in the target setting mode or the target non-setting mode. Determining the presence or absence of contact with the person based on the position information of the person specified by the position specifying means, and in the case of a determination result of contact, the operation of the opening and closing body is decelerated and stopped before the contact, or Further, forcible stop control means for controlling the actuator so as to stop the operation of the opening and closing body by issuing an alarm before contact may be provided. According to this configuration, when the opening / closing body is in a position where it contacts the person during the opening operation of the opening / closing body, the opening / closing body decelerates and stops, or the opening / closing body issues an alarm and stops before contacting the person. Therefore, it is possible to recognize by an alarm that the opening / closing body does not contact a person and that there is a possibility of contact.

  In the present invention, the opening operation information acquisition means includes a vibration sensor that acquires vibration when the opening / closing body or the vehicle body is knocked, and a knock detection module that detects knock based on a signal from the vibration sensor. May be. According to this configuration, the vibration sensor acquires the vibration of the knock only by the user knocking the opening / closing body or the vehicle body, and the opening / closing body can be opened when the knock detection module detects the knock.

The perspective view which shows the back door etc. of the vehicle body of the passenger car of 1st Embodiment Rear view of the vehicle body of the passenger car according to the first embodiment The side view which shows the opening / closing structure of the back door of 1st Embodiment Block circuit diagram of control system of first embodiment Block circuit diagram showing the flow of information of the first embodiment Flowchart of the opening control routine of the first embodiment The figure which shows the back door and image information at the time of a control start in the target non-setting mode of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the back door and image information immediately after opening operation | movement is started by the target non-setting mode of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the back door and image information just before a stop in the target non-setting mode of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the back door at the time of a stop in the target non-setting mode of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the back door at the time of a stop in the target setting mode of 1st Embodiment. Block circuit diagram of control system of second embodiment The block circuit diagram which shows the flow of the information of 2nd Embodiment Flowchart of the opening control routine of the second embodiment The figure which shows the back door at the time of a stop with the height reference mode and target setting mode of 2nd Embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[First Embodiment / Overall Configuration]
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, wheels 2 are provided on the front and rear of a vehicle body 1 of a passenger car, side doors 3 are provided on both sides of the vehicle body 1, and a hatch-type back door 10 is provided at the rear end of the vehicle body 1. Yes. In the present invention, both the side door 3 and the back door 10 can be regarded as an opening / closing body, but in the first embodiment, the back door 10 will be described as an example of an opening / closing body.

  The back door 10 is supported at the rear end position of the roof 4 of the vehicle body 1 so that the upper end of the back door 10 is swingable around the support shaft 11 in the horizontal posture so that the swinging end moves in a circular arc trajectory that moves rearward and upward. Has been. Between the back door 10 and the vehicle body 1, a gas spring type damper 12 that urges the back door 10 in the opening direction is provided. In addition, a drive opening / closing unit A for opening / closing the back door 10 with a driving force is provided on the rear end side of the vehicle body 1.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the drive opening / closing unit A includes an electric motor M as an actuator, and has a structure in which the drive force of the electric motor M is decelerated by the reduction gear case 13 to swing the operation arm 14. Yes. An operation rod 15 is provided between the operation arm 14 and the back door 10, and the opening operation of the back door 10 is performed by the swinging operation of the operation arm 14.

  The back door 10 opens from the closed position X to the fully open position Z by swinging the operating arm 14 from the closed swing end to the open swing end. An angle sensor S composed of a potentiometer or a rotary encoder is provided so as to measure the swing angle of the back door 10 around the support shaft 11. The angle sensor S may be provided at the proximal end portion of the operation arm 14.

  The back door 10 is provided with a rear window 16. A handle 17 for artificially opening the back door 10 and a handle switch 18 for detecting the artificial operation of the handle 17 are provided at the upper position of the space where the license plate is arranged. And. A latch mechanism 19 that maintains the back door 10 in a closed posture is provided at the swinging end of the back door 10. When the handle 17 is manually operated, this artificial operation is detected by the handle switch 18, and the latch state of the latch mechanism 19 is released based on this detection signal.

  Further, the swinging end of the back door 10 is provided with an artificial operation type close switch 20 for closing and operating the open back door 10, and a speaker 21 is provided on the rear side of the back door 10.

  The back door 10 includes a digital camera 22 that captures the rear side of the vehicle body 1, and the rear bumper 5 of the vehicle body 1 measures a distance to an obstacle or a person behind the vehicle body 1 by ultrasonic waves. The sonar 23 is provided. The camera 22 is used to determine the presence or absence of a person in the vicinity of the back door 10 as an opening / closing body.

  The camera 22 is provided for displaying an image behind the vehicle body 1 on a monitor (not shown) in the vicinity of the driver's seat when the vehicle is parked, and based on image information captured by the camera 22, It is also used as human detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a person behind. In the camera 22, a part facing the back door 10 and a lower part thereof are set as detection areas. By providing the rear bumper 5 with a plurality of sonars 23, it is possible to specify the position of the measurement target based on the vehicle body 1 based on the principle of triangulation from the measurement results of the respective sonars 23.

  In this passenger car, from the outside of the vehicle body 1, the user knocks the back door 10 or the handle 17 of the back door 10 to perform opening control for opening the back door 10 in a mode corresponding to the presence or absence of the user. A control unit B for realizing the opening control is provided in the vehicle body 1, and a configuration for realizing the opening control and a control form of the control unit B will be described below.

  The back door 10 includes a vibration sensor 25 that detects vibration when the back door 10 or the handle 17 is knocked. The vehicle body 1 includes an antenna 27 that transmits and receives radio waves to and from a smart card 26 that the user has.

  The camera 22 provided in the back door 10 includes a region behind the back door 10 in the imaging region V (a portion facing the back door 10 and a lower portion thereof are set as detection regions) in one second. Shoot multiple frames continuously.

[Control system]
As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit B includes an input / output interface 31 and an information processing system connected to the CPU 32 via a data bus. For the input / output interface 31, an input system for signals from the handle switch 18 and the close switch 20 is formed, and an output system for the latch mechanism 19 and the speaker 21 is formed.

  Furthermore, for the input / output interface 31, an image acquisition unit 22A that acquires image information captured by the camera 22, and a sonar control unit 23A that controls a plurality of sonars 23 to acquire distance information to the measurement object. A signal accessed by a signal from a vibration determination unit 25A that removes noise from vibration detected by the vibration sensor 25 and obtains knock information and a transmission / reception unit 28 that receives radio waves from the smart card 26 via the antenna 27. A system is formed.

  A signal system for controlling the electric motor M of the drive opening / closing unit A from the input / output interface 31 via the driver 29 and a signal system for inputting a signal from the angle sensor S to the input / output interface 31 are formed. .

  As an information processing system connected to the CPU 32 via a data bus, an authentication processing unit 33, a knock detection module 34 (an example of an opening operation information acquisition unit), an obstacle determination unit 35, a person extraction module 36, and a position specifying module 37 , A release control means 40, a forced stop control means 41, a closing control means 42, and a data storage unit 43 each comprising a storage such as a semiconductor memory.

  When the radio wave of the smart card 26 is received by the antenna 27, the authentication processing unit 33 transmits a request signal by controlling the transmission / reception unit 28, and acquires the ID information transmitted by the smart card 26 correspondingly. Then, authentication in a form in which the ID information is compared with information stored in advance is realized.

  When the knock detection module 34 acquires from the vibration determination unit 25A as detection information that the knock has been performed from the signal detected by the vibration sensor 25 in a situation where the authentication of the smart card 26 is established, the opening operation information Is generated.

  When the obstacle determination unit 35 acquires distance information from the sonar control unit 23 </ b> A to the measurement target (obstacle) measured by the plurality of sonars 23, the presence / absence of the obstacle and the obstacle are determined based on the acquired information. Get distance information. Further, in the obstacle determination means 35, when the person extraction module 36 determines that the measurement target existing at the position where the obstacle is present is a person, the measurement target is not regarded as an obstacle.

  The person extraction module 36 performs contour extraction processing from the image information captured by the camera 22, compares the contour with the contours of a plurality of types of people stored in advance, extracts an approximation as a person, When the person is extracted, the presence / absence information that the person exists is output, and when the person is not extracted, the presence / absence information that the person does not exist is output.

  Furthermore, the person extraction module 36 determines whether or not a person's face exists by performing face authentication processing of image information captured by the camera 22, and a person is present when the person's face is present in the image information. Presence / absence information is output, and if no person is extracted, presence / absence information that no person exists is output. In particular, in the case of performing this face authentication processing, it can be used for authentication for specifying a user from face feature information.

  Note that the person extraction module 36 may be provided with a plurality of antennas so that the location of the smart card 26 can be specified, and detecting the presence or absence of a person based on the reception positions of the plurality of antennas. It is also conceivable to increase the accuracy of discrimination by processing that combines the discrimination result and the discrimination result by image processing.

  In the situation where the person extraction module 36 determines the presence of a person, the position specifying module 37 determines the position of the person based on the principle of triangulation from the distance information to the measurement target (person) measured by a plurality of sonars 23. Is generated as position information.

  The position specifying module 37 may perform processing for specifying the position of a person by image processing of image information captured by the camera 22. In this case, in the case where the lens of the camera 22 performs automatic focusing (autofocus), position information that allows the position of the person to be identified from distance information at the time of focusing (at the time of focusing). The processing form may be set so as to generate.

  When the person is photographed by the camera 22 at the time when the opening operation of the back door 10 is started based on the acquisition of the opening operation information, the opening control unit 40 causes the mode selection unit 40a to execute the target non-setting mode execution unit 40b. Select the processing at. On the contrary, when the person is not photographed by the camera 22 at the time when the opening operation of the back door 10 is started, the mode selection unit 40a selects the processing in the target setting mode execution unit 40c.

  When the opening operation is started based on the acquisition of the opening operation information in this way, the timing at which the opening operation information is acquired in order to enable selection of the control mode based on whether or not a person is photographed by the camera 22. As the time (time lag) from the start to the opening operation (time lag), a time during which a person can move to an area outside the shooting area V of the camera 22 (see FIGS. 7, 8, etc.) is set.

  In other words, after the user knocks the back door 10 from behind, if the user is in that position, control in the target non-setting mode is started, and the user moves to a position where the camera 22 does not shoot after knocking. In this case, the control in the target setting mode can be started.

  In the target non-setting mode executed by the target non-setting mode execution unit 40b, the opening operation is continued as long as a person is photographed by the camera 22 after the opening / closing operation of the back door 10 is started. When a situation is reached in which a person is not photographed in (when it is no longer possible to detect the presence of a person), the release operation is stopped after the release operation is continued for a set amount.

  In the control in the target setting mode executed by the target setting mode execution unit 40c, after the opening operation of the back door 10 is started, the target opening position Ya in the middle of the opening operation region is set, and the back to the target opening position Ya is set. The opening operation is stopped at the timing when the swing end of the door 10 reaches (a specific processing form will be described later).

  The forced stop control means 41 obtains a determination result that the back door 10 may come into contact with a person or a bag possessed by the person after starting the opening operation of the back door 10 in the target non-setting mode or the target setting mode. If this happens, an alarm sound is output from the speaker 21, and the opening / closing operation of the back door 10 is forcibly stopped in preference to these controls.

  The closing control means 42 performs control for closing the back door 10 by the driving force of the drive opening / closing unit A when the close switch 20 is operated in a situation where the back door 10 is in an open state.

  The data storage unit 43 continues the opening operation by a set amount after the information on the target opening position Ya (see FIG. 11) in the opening operation in the target setting mode and the condition for stopping the opening operation in the target setting mode are established. Information on the control amount for the authentication, or ID information used for authentication by the authentication processing means 33 is stored.

  In this control system, the camera 22 and the person extraction module 36 constitute the person detection means of the present invention. As the person detection means, a plurality of antennas 27 for receiving radio waves from the smart card 26 and a configuration for determining the presence or absence of a person in the radio wave reception area of the plurality of antennas 27 are combined to determine the presence or absence of a person. It may be configured to do.

  A plurality of sonars 23 and a position specifying module 37 constitute position specifying means for specifying the position of the person. As the position specifying means, the processing form may be set so as to use information from the sonar 23 and the position of the person extracted from the image information captured by the camera 22. Further, as described above, it is possible to increase the positional accuracy by providing a plurality of antennas for receiving the radio wave of the smart card 26.

  The vibration sensor 25 and the knock detection module 34 constitute an opening operation information acquisition unit. As the opening operation information acquisition means, opening operation information may be acquired when the handle 17 of the back door 10 is artificially operated.

  The authentication processing means 33, knock detection module 34, obstacle discrimination means 35, person extraction module 36, position specifying module 37, opening control means 40, forced stop control means 41, and closing control means 42 are configured by software. However, it may be configured by hardware, or may be configured by a combination of software and hardware.

[Control form]
The outline of the control mode of the control unit B is shown as a flowchart in FIG. 6, and the flow of information is shown in FIG. That is, in a situation where the authentication processing means 33 authenticates the smart card 26, when the back door 10 or the like is knocked and the opening operation information is acquired, the opening control means 40 of the control unit B sets the latching state of the latch mechanism 19. The opening operation of the back door 10 is started by driving the electric motor M of the drive opening / closing unit A (steps # 101 to # 103).

  In this process, in a situation where it is determined that the user is a passenger car based on the ID information received from the smart card 26, it is determined that the knock detection module 34 is knocking the detection information detected by the vibration sensor 25. This is a condition for executing the process.

  When this opening operation is started, the presence or absence of an obstacle is determined based on the measurement result of the sonar 23. When it is determined that there is no obstacle, the opening operation of the back door 10 is started. In FIG. 5, the presence or absence of a person (basically a user) is determined from image information G (see FIGS. 7 and 8) captured by the camera 22.

  Further, in this control, after the user knocks, the user who knocks realizes selection of the control mode, so as described above, the timing for determining the presence / absence of the person (timing for starting the opening operation) The time lag is set so as to be slightly delayed from the timing of the knocking. Thereby, the user can control in a desired mode by arbitrarily selecting a position based on the back door 10 after knocking.

  When the determination result indicating that a person is present is acquired, the mode selection unit 40a selects the processing in the target non-setting mode execution unit 40b, and shifts to control in the target non-setting mode. On the other hand, when the determination result that the person does not exist is acquired, the mode selection unit 40a selects the processing in the target setting mode execution unit 40c and shifts to the target setting mode (steps # 104 and # 105). .

  In this process, the obstacle discriminating means 35 discriminates whether or not there is an obstacle based on the measurement results of the plurality of sonars 23. If there is an obstacle, the opening operation of the back door 10 is stopped (step # 110). ).

  An obstacle refers to a wall surface, a pillar, or the like included in the opening operation area of the back door 10 when the back door 10 is opened. Further, when determining the presence or absence of a person, as described above, contour extraction processing is performed from the image information captured by the camera 22, and the contour is compared with the contours of a plurality of types of human patterns stored in advance. It is determined that a person is present when an approximation is included. Simultaneously with this processing, the presence or absence of a person's face is determined in the image information G by the face authentication technique, and it is determined that a person is present even when the image information includes a person's face. That is, the person extraction module 36 extracts a person in both cases where the outline of a person exists and in the case where a person's face exists, and as a result, determines that a person exists.

[Control form-target non-setting mode]
In the target non-setting mode, the operation of opening the back door 10 is continued (steps # 106 to # 108) when the determination result that a person is present is continuously acquired from the image information captured by the camera 22. When the opening operation is continued, when it is detected from the position information from the position specifying module 37 that the back door 10 has approached a person or the like, the speed of the opening operation is reduced and an alarm sound is output.

  When the opening operation in the target non-setting mode is continued, if the back door 10 comes into contact with a person or the like from the position information from the position specifying module 37, the forced stop control is performed. Under the control of the means 41, an alarm sound is output from the speaker 21 and the opening operation is stopped (steps # 107, # 111, # 110).

  This forced stop is performed by the forced stop control means 41 in preference to the control in the target non-setting mode. By forcibly stopping the opening operation of the back door 10, Avoid contact.

  In this target non-setting mode, at the initial stage of the opening operation of the back door 10, as shown in FIG. 7A, the whole area of the person is included in the photographing region V of the camera 22, so that the camera 22 is shown in FIG. 7B. In the image information G photographed in step 1, almost the whole body from the person's head to the foot is photographed. Therefore, the target non-setting mode execution unit 40b acquires the determination result that the person exists in the image information G from the person extraction module 36, and the release operation continues.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), the shooting area V of the camera 22 is displaced upward in accordance with the opening operation of the back door 10, and according to this displacement, as shown in FIG. Only the head is present. Even in a situation where only the head of the person is photographed in this way, the determination result that the person exists in the image information G is acquired from the person extraction module 36, and the target non-setting mode execution unit 40b performs the opening operation. Will continue.

  Thereafter, when the back door 10 reaches the position Yt as shown in FIG. 9A, the person's face is not included in the photographing region V, and the image information G photographed by the camera 22 is shown in FIG. 9B. As shown, it reaches the situation where no person exists. When the back door 10 reaches the position Yt as described above, a determination result indicating that no person exists is acquired from the person extraction module 36, and the target non-setting mode execution unit 40b sets the opening operation to a set amount (set time or setting). Then, the opening operation is stopped (steps # 109 and # 110).

  Thus, after acquiring the discrimination result that no person exists, the opening operation is continued for the set amount (setting time or setting angle) acquired from the data storage unit 43, so that the back door 10 reaches the position Yu and the opening operation is performed. Stops. As shown in FIG. 10, this position Yu is a position higher than the height of the person by a distance P.

  Thereby, in the target non-setting mode, the position Yu of the swinging end of the back door 10 at the time when the opening operation is stopped is higher than the height of the person (basically the user) by the distance P, and the person does not bend substantially. It is possible to easily load and unload luggage by moving the lower side of the vehicle 10.

  When the opening operation is continued for a set amount, the set amount may be a preset time or angle value. For example, a person's height is measured from the image information G, and 10% of the height is measured. The value may vary depending on the person.

  In particular, the drawing shows the transition of the image information in the state where the position of the person does not change, but the opening operation is also stopped when the person moves out of the shooting area V of the camera 22 before the opening operation stops. It becomes possible to make it.

[Control form-target setting mode]
In the target setting mode, as shown in FIG. 11, the target opening position Ya is set, the opening operation of the back door 10 is continued until the angle sensor S detects this target opening position Ya, and the opening operation is performed at the detected timing. Stop (# 112 to # 115 steps, # 110 steps).

  The target opening position Ya is set in the middle of the opening operation area of the back door 10 (area from the closing position X to the full opening position Z).

  When the opening operation of the back door 10 is performed in this target setting mode, the user stands at a position off the rear of the vehicle body 1 and knocks the back door 10 or the handle 17 or knocks the back door 10 or the handle 17. After that, the operation is performed in such a manner that the user moves immediately to a position deviated from the rear of the vehicle.

  When the opening operation is continued, when it is detected from the position information of the position specifying module 37 that the back door 10 has approached a person or the like, the speed of the opening operation is reduced and an alarm sound is output. Is performed (step # 113).

  Further, when the opening operation in the target setting mode continues, when the back door 10 may come into contact with a person or the like based on the position information of the position specifying module 37, the forced stop control means An alarm sound is output under the control of 41 and the opening operation is stopped (steps # 114, # 111, # 110).

  This forcible stop is performed by the forcible stop control means 41 in preference to the control in the target setting mode, and the back door 10 and the person or the like are forcibly stopped by forcibly stopping the opening operation of the back door 10 as described above. Can be avoided.

  When it is determined by this control that the swing end of the back door 10 has reached the target opening position Ya by the feedback signal from the angle sensor S, the opening operation is stopped at that timing (# 115, # 110 steps).

  Thus, in the target setting mode, as shown in FIG. 11, the back door 10 is stopped at the intermediate position without being swung to the fully open position Z. In this open state, the cargo can be loaded and unloaded from a gap formed between the side of the back door 10 and the rear portion of the vehicle body 1.

  In the control shown in this flowchart, when the opening operation of the back door 10 is forcibly stopped by the forced stop control means 41, the opening operation cannot be continued. For example, there is a possibility of contact. The control form may be set so that the opening operation is resumed when the cancellation is made. Further, after the opening operation is forcibly stopped, the control mode may be set so that the opening operation is restarted by performing an operation such as knocking the back door 10 after the person has moved to a position where contact is avoided. good.

[Effects of First Embodiment]
As described above, in the first embodiment, when a person authenticated as a user knocks the back door 10, the opening operation of the back door 10 is started at a timing slightly delayed from the knock. As a result, by selecting a position that stands with respect to the back door 10 after knocking, either one of the target non-setting mode and the target setting mode can be selected.

  When the opening operation is started, it is determined whether or not a person is present in the image information captured by the camera 22, and if the determination result that a person is present is acquired by this determination, the control in the target non-setting mode is performed. If a person is not included in the image information selected and photographed by the camera 22, the target setting mode is selected.

  In the control in the target non-setting mode, the release operation continues as long as a person is included in the image information captured by the camera 22, and when reaching a state in which no person is included, the set amount is reached from the time when the state is reached. Only after the back door 10 is opened and stopped. As a result, the back door 10 can be stopped at a position slightly higher than the height of the person, and loading / unloading of luggage can be easily performed.

  In the target setting mode control, a preset target opening position Ya is set, and the opening operation stops when the swing end of the back door 10 reaches the target opening position Ya. As a result, it is possible to load and unload luggage via a gap formed between the rear end of the vehicle body 1 and the side of the back door 10.

  By performing such control, the back door 10 is not opened to the fully open position Z in any control of the target non-setting mode and the target setting mode, so that energy is not wasted and the opening / closing operation time is also long. It can be shortened and is highly convenient. Furthermore, even when the wind and rain are strong, the inconvenience of rain and wind blowing into the room can be eliminated.

  In particular, in any opening operation of the target non-setting mode and the target setting mode, when the back door 10 approaches a person or the like, an alarm is issued to decelerate the contact between the back door 10 and the person or the like. Can be avoided in advance. In addition, when the possibility of contact is high, an alarm is issued and the operation is forcibly stopped, so that contact can be reliably avoided.

[Second Embodiment]
In the second embodiment, the basic configuration of the passenger car and the configuration for realizing the opening / closing operation of the back door 10 are not fundamentally different from those shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 in the first embodiment. The configuration and the control mode are slightly different from those of the first embodiment, and the configuration and control mode different from the first embodiment will be described below. In addition, in this 2nd Embodiment, the same number and code | symbol as 1st Embodiment are attached | subjected to what is common in 1st Embodiment.

  In this passenger car, from the outside of the vehicle body 1, the user knocks the back door 10 or the handle 17 to determine whether the user exists, and opens the back door 10 in a mode corresponding to the presence / absence of the user. Take control. A control unit B for realizing the opening control is provided in the vehicle body 1, and a configuration for realizing the opening control and a control form of the control unit B will be described below.

  The back door 10 includes a vibration sensor 25 that detects vibration when the back door 10 or the handle 17 is knocked. The vehicle body 1 includes an antenna 27 that transmits and receives radio waves to and from a smart card 26 that the user has.

  The camera 22 provided in the back door 10 includes a region behind the back door 10 in the photographing region V, and continuously photographs a plurality of frames or more per second.

[Control system]
In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, the control unit B has a configuration in which a height measurement module 38 connected to the CPU 32 via a data bus is added to the control system of the first embodiment, and Instead of the opening control means 40 of the first embodiment, the opening control means 40 is different in that it includes a mode selection unit 40d, a height reference mode execution unit 40e, and a target setting mode execution unit 40f.

  In the situation where the position of the person has been acquired by the position specifying module 37, the height measuring module 38 determines the height H (see FIG. 15A) from the position of the person's head by image processing of the image information captured by the camera 22. ) Is measured, and the height information is generated.

  As a specific processing form, the position of the person's head is specified from the information of the whole figure extracted by the person extraction module 36, and the position of the head and the position information acquired by the position specifying module 37 are used. Based on the principle of triangulation or the position of the head included in the image information, information on the height H of the person is acquired.

  In the opening control means 40, when the person is photographed with the camera 22 when the opening operation information is acquired, the mode selection unit 40a selects the processing in the height reference mode execution unit 40e and acquires the opening operation information. When the person is not photographed by the camera 22 at this time, the mode selection unit 40a selects the processing in the target setting mode execution unit 40c.

  In the control of the height reference mode in the height reference mode execution unit 40e, as shown in FIG. 15A, the target release position Yb is set at a position higher than the height H of the person by the set distance D, and the release operation is started. The opening operation is stopped when the swing end of the back door 10 reaches the target opening position Yb.

  In particular, in this height reference mode, it is only necessary to set the target opening position Yb to a position corresponding to the height H. For example, the target opening position Yb is set at a position that matches the height H, or slightly lower than the height H. The target opening position Yb may be set at a low position.

[Control form]
The outline of the control mode of the control unit B is shown as a flowchart in FIG. 14, and the information flow is shown in FIG. That is, in the situation where the authentication processing unit 33 authenticates the smart card 26, when the back door 10 or the like is knocked and the opening operation information is acquired, it is determined whether there is an obstacle based on the measurement result of the sonar 23, When there is no obstacle, it is determined whether or not a person exists (steps # 201 to # 204).

  In this process, in a situation where it is determined that the user is a passenger car based on the ID information received from the smart card 26, it is determined that the knock detection module 34 is knocking the detection information detected by the vibration sensor 25. This is a condition for executing the process. Then, the presence / absence of an obstacle is determined based on the measurement result of the sonar 23.

  An obstacle refers to a wall surface, a pillar, or the like included in the opening operation area of the back door 10 when the back door 10 is opened. Further, when determining the presence or absence of a person, as described above, contour extraction processing is performed from the image information captured by the camera 22, and the contour is compared with the contours of a plurality of types of human patterns stored in advance. It is determined that a person is present when an approximation is included. Simultaneously with this processing, the presence or absence of a person's face is determined in the image information G by the face authentication technique, and it is determined that a person is present even when the image information includes a person's face. That is, the person extraction module 36 extracts a person in both cases where the outline of a person exists and in the case where a person's face exists, and as a result, determines that a person exists.

  As a result of the determination of the presence / absence of the person, when the determination result indicating the presence of the person is acquired, the mode selection unit 40d selects the process in the height reference mode execution unit 40e and shifts to the control of the height reference mode. On the other hand, when the determination result that the person does not exist is acquired, the mode selection unit 40d selects the process in the target setting mode execution unit 40f and shifts to the target setting mode (step # 204).

  In this control, after the user knocks, the user who knocks realizes the selection of the control mode, so that the time lag is slightly delayed from the timing of the knock so that the timing for determining the presence or absence of the person is slightly delayed. Is set. Thereby, the user can control in a desired mode by arbitrarily selecting a position based on the back door 10 after knocking.

  In the target setting mode, the control condition is that no person is present behind the vehicle body 1, but even when it is determined from the image information of the camera 22 that a person exists at a position away from the rear of the vehicle body 1, Control in this target setting mode is executed.

[Control form-Height standard mode]
In the height reference mode, information about the height H of the person determined by the person extraction module 36 based on the image information from the camera 22 is acquired by the height measurement module 38, and further information on the set distance D is acquired from the data storage unit 43. Then, as shown in FIG. 15, the target opening position Yb is set, and the opening operation of the back door 10 is started (steps # 205 and # 206).

  In this way, when the opening operation of the back door 10 is started, the opening control means 40 of the control unit B releases the latched state of the latch mechanism 19 and the electric motor M of the drive opening / closing unit A is driven to drive the back door 10. Start the opening operation.

  When the opening operation in the height reference mode continues, when it is detected from the position information from the position specifying module 37 that the back door 10 has approached a person or the like, the speed of the opening operation is reduced. At the same time, an alarm sound is output. In addition, when the opening operation in the height reference mode continues, if the back door 10 comes into contact with a person or the like based on the position information from the position specifying module 37, the forced stop is performed. Under the control of the control means 41, an alarm sound is output from the speaker 21 and the opening operation is stopped (steps # 207 to # 209, steps # 211 and # 210).

  This forced stop is performed by the forced stop control means 41 in preference to the control in the height reference mode, and the opening operation of the back door 10 is forcibly stopped, so that the back door 10 is brought into contact with a person or the like. To avoid.

  When it is determined by this control that the swing end of the back door 10 has reached the target opening position Yb based on the feedback signal from the angle sensor S, the opening operation is stopped at that timing (steps # 209 and # 210).

[Control form-target setting mode]
In the target setting mode, as shown in FIG. 15, the target opening position Ya is set, and the opening operation of the back door 10 is started (steps # 212 and # 213).

  The target opening position Ya is set in the middle of the opening operation area of the back door 10 (area from the closing position X to the full opening position Z). In this target setting mode, as shown in FIG. It is set in the middle of the area.

  When the opening operation of the back door 10 is performed in this target setting mode, the user stands at a position off the rear of the vehicle body 1 and knocks the back door 10 or the handle 17 or knocks the back door 10 or the handle 17. After that, the operation is performed in such a manner that the user moves immediately to a position deviated from the rear of the vehicle.

  Thus, after the target opening position Ya is set and the opening operation of the back door 10 is started, the opening operation of the back door 10 is continued until the angle sensor S detects the target opening position Ya, and is opened at the detected timing. The operation is stopped (steps # 214 to # 116, step # 210).

  When the opening operation is continued, when it is detected from the position information of the position specifying module 37 that the back door 10 has approached a person or the like, the speed of the opening operation is reduced and an alarm sound is output. Is performed (step # 214).

  Further, when the opening operation in the target setting mode continues, when the back door 10 may come into contact with a person or the like based on the position information of the position specifying module 37, the forced stop control means An alarm sound is output under the control of 41 and the opening operation is stopped (steps # 215, # 211 and # 210).

  This forcible stop is performed by the forcible stop control means 41 in preference to the control in the target setting mode, and by forcibly stopping the opening operation of the back door 10 as described above, Such contact can be avoided.

  If it is determined by the feedback signal from the angle sensor S that the swing end of the back door 10 has reached the target opening position Ya by this control, the opening operation is stopped at that timing (steps # 216 and # 210).

  Thereby, in the target setting mode, the back door 10 is stopped at the intermediate position without being swung to the fully open position Z. In this open state, the cargo can be loaded and unloaded from a gap formed between the side of the back door 10 and the rear portion of the vehicle body 1.

  In the control shown in this flowchart, when the opening operation of the back door 10 is forcibly stopped by the forced stop control means 41, the opening operation cannot be continued. For example, there is a possibility of contact. The control form may be set so that the opening operation is resumed when the cancellation is made. In addition, after the opening operation is forcibly stopped, the control mode may be set so that the opening operation is restarted by an operation such as knocking the back door 10 after the person has moved to a position where contact is avoided.

[Effects of Second Embodiment]
As described above, in the second embodiment, when a person who is recognized as a user knocks the back door 10, it is determined whether or not a person exists in the image information captured by the camera 22 at a timing slightly delayed from the knock. Is done. As a result, by selecting a position that stands with respect to the back door 10 after knocking, it is possible to select either the height reference mode or the target setting mode.

  If a discrimination result indicating that a person is present is acquired in this discrimination, control in the height reference mode is selected. In the control in the height reference mode, the height information of the person's height H of the image information photographed by the camera 22 is acquired, the target opening position Yb is set at a position slightly higher than the height information, and the opening operation of the back door 10 is performed. Be started. Thereafter, when the swinging end of the back door 10 reaches the target opening position Yb, the back door 10 is opened and then stopped. As a result, the back door 10 can be stopped at a position slightly higher than the height of the person, and loading / unloading of luggage can be easily performed.

  Further, when a person is not included in the image information captured by the camera 22, the control in the target setting mode is selected. In the control in the target setting mode, a preset target opening position Ya is set, the swinging end of the back door 10 reaches the target opening position Ya, and the opening operation is stopped. As a result, it is possible to load and unload luggage via a gap formed between the rear end of the vehicle body 1 and the side of the back door 10.

  In any control of the height reference setting mode and the target setting mode, the back door 10 is not opened to the fully open position Z, so that energy is not wasted and the opening / closing operation time can be shortened, which is highly convenient. . Furthermore, even when the wind and rain are strong, the inconvenience of rain and wind blowing into the room can be eliminated.

  In particular, in any opening operation of the height reference mode and the target setting mode, when the back door 10 approaches a person or the like, the back door 10 and the person or the like are brought into contact by decelerating with an alarm. It can be avoided in advance. In addition, when the possibility of contact is high, an alarm is issued and the operation is forcibly stopped, so that contact can be reliably avoided.

[Another embodiment]
The present invention may be configured as follows in addition to the embodiment described above.

(A) A side door or a sliding door is set as a control target as an opening / closing body provided in the vehicle body. As described above, even when the side door or the slide door is set as a control target, it is possible to avoid the control of opening the door unnecessarily large by selecting the position where the user stands with respect to the door.

(B) The opening operation information acquisition means for acquiring the opening operation information is configured to receive a radio wave signal and a sound wave signal from the remote controller. With this configuration, the back door 10 can be opened in the control mode corresponding to the position where the user stands by operating the remote controller without having the smart card 26.

(C) The rear fender includes the vibration sensor 25, and the opening operation information acquisition unit is configured to acquire the opening operation information based on the vibration when the rear fender is knocked. By configuring in this way, the opening operation of the back door 10 can be performed by knocking the rear fender without knocking the back door 10.

  The present invention can be used for a back door and a side door in a vehicle including a truck in addition to a passenger car.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Car body 10 Opening and closing body, back door 22 Person detection means, camera 23 Position identification means (sonar)
25 Opening operation information acquisition means / vibration sensor 34 Opening operation information acquisition means / knock detection module 36 Human detection means (person extraction module)
37 Position specifying means (position specifying module)
41 Forced stop control means B Control unit M Actuator (electric motor)
Ya Target release position

Claims (5)

An opening operation information acquisition means for acquiring an opening operation performed by a user from outside the vehicle body as opening operation information, and an opening operation of the opening / closing body of the vehicle body by controlling an actuator based on the opening operation information acquired by the opening operation information acquisition means A control unit for performing the above and a human detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a person in the vicinity of the opening and closing body,
The control unit is
When the opening operation information is acquired from the opening operation information acquisition unit in a state where the presence of a person cannot be detected by the human detection unit, a target setting mode for opening the opening / closing body to a preset target opening position is set. Control
When the opening operation information is acquired from the opening operation information acquisition unit in a state where the presence of a person is detected by the human detection unit, the opening operation of the opening / closing body is continued regardless of the target opening position. A control device for an opening / closing body that performs control in a target non-setting mode.   While the control unit is in the target non-setting mode, while the presence of the person is detected, the control unit continuously performs the opening operation of the opening / closing body and cannot detect the presence of the person. The opening / closing body control device according to claim 1, wherein the opening operation of the opening / closing body is stopped.   The opening / closing body is provided at the rear end of the vehicle body as a back door that performs an opening operation with a trajectory that moves the swinging end rearward and upward, and the person detecting means is a portion facing the back door and a lower portion thereof The control device for an opening / closing body according to claim 1 or 2, wherein is set as a detection region. A position specifying means for specifying the position of the person based on the vehicle body;
When the control unit starts the opening / closing body opening operation in the target setting mode or the target non-setting mode, the control unit determines whether or not there is contact with the person based on the position information of the person specified by the position specifying unit. If the result is a contact discrimination result, the operation of the opening / closing body is decelerated and stopped before the contact, or an alarm is issued before the contact and the actuator is controlled to stop the operation of the opening / closing body. The control apparatus of the opening-closing body as described in any one of Claims 1-3 provided with the stop control means.   The opening operation information acquisition means includes a vibration sensor that acquires vibration when the opening / closing body or the vehicle body is knocked, and a knock detection module that detects knock based on a signal from the vibration sensor. The control apparatus of the opening-closing body as described in any one of 1-4.

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