JP2010224770A - Biological state determination device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a biological state determination device for properly determining whether a driver is in a drowsy or drunken state. <P>SOLUTION: The biological state determination device 1 is configured to determine the biological state of a driver in the traveling support of a vehicle, and provided with: a steering actuator 6 and a brake pedal actuator 7 for applying a reaction force to the steering and brake pedal of the vehicle; and an ECU 2 for determining the biological state based on the operation result of the steering and a brake pedal by the driver when applying a reaction force to the steering or the brake pedal. The biological state determination device 1 is configured to properly determine the drowsy or drunken state of the driver from the operation result of the driver, that is, the reaction of the driver when the reaction force is applied to the steering and the brake pedal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a biological state determination device that determines a biological state of a driver.

  Conventionally, as a technique in such a field, for example, an abnormal steering determination device described in JP-A-5-85221 is known. In this abnormal steering determination device, the driver's steering amount, lane change operation, and vehicle speed are detected, and from these detection results, the amount of deviation of the vehicle position relative to the lane and the driver's steering operation at the time of correcting this deviation are detected. Calculate the delay. Then, based on the calculated delay of the steering operation, it is determined whether or not the driver is in an abnormal state such as a dozing state.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-85221

  By the way, when the driver is in a drinking state, unlike the dozing state, the driver is conscious, and therefore there may be a case where the delay of the steering operation is not remarkable. For this reason, the above-described abnormal steering determination device has a problem that the driver's drinking level may not be determined appropriately.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and by determining the biological state based on the operation result of the operator by the driver when a reaction force is applied to the operator, the driver An object of the present invention is to provide a living body state determination apparatus that can appropriately determine the state of sleep and drinking.

  The present invention is a biological state determination device that determines a biological state of a driver during driving support of a vehicle, and provides a reaction force applying unit that applies a reaction force to an operator of the vehicle, and a reaction force applied to the operator. And a biological state determining means for determining the biological state based on the operation result of the operator by the driver at the time.

  According to the biological state determination device according to the present invention, it is possible to appropriately determine a biological state such as a dozing state or a drinking state from a driver's operation result when a reaction force is applied to the operator, that is, a driver's reaction. it can. For example, a drunk driver is less likely to have control of the body, and as a reaction to the reaction force, it is considered that it is easy to perform excessive operations such as turning the steering wheel and depressing the brake pedal more than necessary. It is possible to appropriately determine the driver's drinking level based on the excessive operation amount. In addition, as a driver of a dozing state, it is considered that a reaction to reaction force starts from an unconscious state or a drunken state by recognizing the reaction force, so driving based on the operation delay time as the operation result It becomes possible to determine a person's dozing state appropriately.

  Moreover, it is preferable that a biological state determination means determines a driver's dozing state based on the operation delay time of the operator by a driver. The driver in a dozing state is likely to start the operation by noting the reaction force from a state of low consciousness or a dull state as a reaction to the reaction force, so based on the operation delay time as the operation result, It becomes possible to determine the dozing state appropriately.

  Moreover, it is preferable that a biological condition determination means determines a driver | operator's drinking state based on the excessive amount of operation of the operator by a driver. A drunk driver is likely to over-operate, such as turning the steering wheel more than necessary or depressing the brake pedal, as a reaction to the reaction force, so the driver's drinking based on the amount of over-operation as a result of the operation It becomes possible to determine the state appropriately.

  The operation element is preferably a vehicle handle. By adopting the handle that is normally held by the driver while driving as an operator, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the driver will not notice the applied reaction force and to determine an appropriate biological state. .

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, a driver | operator's dozing state and a drinking state can be determined appropriately.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of one Embodiment of the biological condition determination apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process of ECU of FIG.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a biological state determination device according to the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a biological state determination device 1 according to the present invention is provided in a vehicle and determines a biological state such as a driver's drowsiness state or a drinking state, and an ECU that comprehensively controls the device. [Electric Control Unit] (biological state determination means) 2 is provided.

  The ECU 2 includes a CPU [Central Processing Unit] that performs arithmetic processing, a ROM [Read Only Memory] and a RAM [Random Access Memory] serving as a storage unit, an input signal circuit, an output signal circuit, a power supply circuit, and the like. The ECU 2 is electrically connected to the travel support system 3, the steering detection unit 4, and the brake pedal operation detection unit 5. Further, the ECU 2 is electrically connected to a steering actuator (reaction force applying means) 6, a brake pedal actuator (reaction force applying means) 7, a speaker 8, and a communication unit 9.

  The driving support system 3 supports driving of the vehicle, and has a driving support function such as ACC [Active Cruise Control] and LKA [Lane Keep Assist]. The driving support system 3 detects the driving state of the vehicle that is driving support (various distance from the preceding vehicle in the front-rear direction and distance from the lane boundary line in the vehicle width direction) by various sensors. The driving support system 3 transmits to the ECU 2 driving state information related to the detected driving state of the vehicle.

  The steering detection unit 4 is provided on the steering wheel (operator) of the vehicle and detects the steering operation by the driver. The steering detection unit 4 transmits the detected steering wheel operation to the ECU 2 as steering information.

  The brake pedal operation detection unit 5 is provided in a brake pedal (operator) of the vehicle and detects a depression operation of the brake pedal by the driver. The brake pedal operation detection unit 5 transmits the detected depression operation of the brake pedal to the ECU 2 as brake pedal operation information.

  The steering actuator 6 is provided on the steering wheel of the vehicle, and applies a reaction force in the rotation direction (a force repelling a force holding the driver's steering wheel) to the steering wheel. The steering actuator 6 applies a reaction force according to a command from the ECU 2 to the steering wheel.

  The brake pedal actuator 7 is provided on the brake pedal of the vehicle and applies a reaction force (force to push back the driver's foot) to the brake pedal. The brake pedal actuator 7 applies a reaction force according to a command from the ECU 2 to the brake pedal.

  The speaker 8 is provided in the passenger compartment and transmits information to the driver by voice. The speaker 8 performs an alarm for awakening a doze or alerts by voice in response to a command from the ECU 2. The communication unit 9 is provided in the vehicle and transmits various types of information to a manager (for example, a management system of a transportation company or a person in charge) through a communications infrastructure. The communication unit 9 notifies the manager of information related to the biological state of the driver according to a command from the ECU 2.

ECU2 is based on the driving | running | working state information transmitted from the driving assistance system 3 in driving assistance,
It is determined whether or not it is a confirmation timing for confirming the biological state of the driver. The timing for checking the biological state is, for example, when a vehicle that is being automatically driven by the driving support system 3 catches up with a preceding vehicle ahead (when the inter-vehicle distance is equal to or less than a predetermined distance), or when the road width is narrow. One example is when the distance between the vehicle and the lane boundary line is equal to or less than a predetermined distance after entering the section.

  The ECU 2 transmits a reaction force application command to the steering actuator 6 and the brake pedal actuator 7 when it is determined that it is the confirmation timing for confirming the biological state of the driver. It should be noted that the strength of the reaction force applied by each actuator may be constant or may vary depending on the content of travel support.

  When the ECU 2 transmits the reaction force application command, the ECU 2 acquires the steering information by transmission from the steering detection unit 4, and acquires the brake pedal operation information by transmission from the brake pedal operation detection unit 5. The ECU 2 extracts a driver's operation result when a reaction force is applied to the steering wheel and the brake pedal based on the acquired steering information and brake pedal operation information. Specifically, as the operation result, the operation delay time from when the reaction force is applied until the driver operates the steering wheel or the brake pedal and the excessive operation amount that the driver has excessively operated against the reaction force are extracted. Is done.

  The ECU 2 determines the biological state of the driver based on the extracted operation result. Specifically, the ECU 2 determines whether or not the operation delay time of the driver is greater than or equal to a predetermined delay time threshold based on the extracted operation result. When it is determined that the operation delay time is equal to or greater than the delay time threshold, the ECU 2 determines whether or not the driver's overoperation amount is equal to or greater than a predetermined overoperation threshold.

  When the ECU 2 determines that the driver's overoperation amount is not equal to or greater than the overoperation threshold, the ECU 2 determines that the driver is in a dozing state. When the ECU 2 determines that the driver is dozing, the ECU 2 transmits an alarm output command for awakening the driver by an alarm to the speaker 8 and determines that the driver is dozing to the manager. A dozing state notification command is sent to notify

  On the other hand, if the ECU 2 determines that the driver's overoperation amount is equal to or greater than the overoperation threshold, the ECU 2 determines that the driver is in a drunk state. When the ECU 2 determines that the driver is in a drunk state, the ECU 2 transmits an alcohol test request command to stop the vehicle and perform an alcohol test to the speaker 8, and the driver is in a drunk state to the manager. A drinking status notification command for notifying that it has been determined is transmitted.

  Next, processing of the ECU 2 of the biological state determination device 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. The ECU 2 starts processing by the start of driving support by the driving support system 3, and repeats the following processing during driving support.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in step S <b> 1, it is determined based on the driving state information transmitted from the driving support system 3 that is driving support whether or not it is a confirmation timing for checking the driver's biological state. . If it is determined that it is not the confirmation timing for confirming the biological state of the driver, the confirmation timing is determined again after a predetermined time has elapsed.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that it is the confirmation timing for confirming the biological state of the driver, a reaction force application command is transmitted to the steering actuator 6 and the brake pedal actuator 7 (S2). Then, steering information and brake pedal operation information are acquired by transmission from the steering detection unit 4 and the brake pedal operation detection unit 5. Based on the acquired steering information and brake pedal operation information, the operation result of the driver when reaction force is applied to the steering wheel and the brake pedal is extracted (S3).

  Subsequently, based on the extracted operation result, it is determined whether or not the operation delay time of the driver is greater than or equal to a predetermined delay time threshold value (S4). If it is determined that the operation delay time is not equal to or greater than the delay time threshold, the driver determines that the operation is in a normal state, ends the process, and returns to step S1. On the other hand, when it is determined that the operation delay time is equal to or greater than the delay time threshold value, it is determined whether or not the driver's overoperation amount is equal to or greater than a predetermined overoperation threshold value (S5).

  If it is determined in step S5 that the driver's overoperation amount is not equal to or greater than the overoperation threshold, the driver is determined to be in a dozing state (S6). On the other hand, when it is determined that the driver's overoperation amount is equal to or greater than the overoperation threshold, the driver is determined to be in a drunk state (S7). Thereafter, a command for performing an alarm and notification is transmitted to the speaker 8 and the communication unit 9 according to the determination result (S8).

  In the biological state determination device 1 described above, the biological state of the driver such as a dozing state or a drinking state is determined from the driver's operation result when the reaction force is applied to the steering wheel and the brake pedal, that is, the driver's reaction. Can do. For example, a drunk driver is less likely to control the body, and as a reaction to the reaction force, it is considered easy to perform excessive operations such as turning the steering wheel more than necessary and depressing the brake pedal. It is possible to appropriately determine the driver's drinking level based on the excessive operation amount. In addition, as a reaction to reaction force, a dozing driver is likely to start the operation by noticing the reaction force from a state of low consciousness or jealousy, so drive based on the operation delay time as the operation result It becomes possible to determine a person's dozing state appropriately.

  Furthermore, for driving beginners who are unfamiliar and tend to over-operate during normal driving, it is considered that they tend to follow the reaction force given to the controls, so by making a determination based on the reaction to the reaction force It is possible to avoid erroneously determining an unfamiliar operation of a driving beginner as an abnormal operation due to a drowsiness state or the like, thereby improving the reliability of the biological state determination device 1.

  Also, for drivers who perform violent driving, there is a tendency not to use the driving support system during such driving, so it is possible to make a rough driving operation by determining the biological state of the driver during driving support Can be erroneously determined to be an abnormal operation due to a dozing state or the like.

  Moreover, in the biological state determination apparatus 1, the driver notices the reaction force applied to the operator by adopting a handle that is normally held by the driver during driving as the operator described in the claims. It is possible to realize the determination of an appropriate biological state by lowering the possibility of being absent.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. For example, in the above-described embodiment, when the operation delay time is equal to or greater than the delay time threshold and the overoperation amount is equal to or greater than the overoperation threshold, the driver determines that the driver is in a drinking state. The aspect which determines a driver | operator's drinking state from only may be sufficient. Further, the operation element is not limited to the handle and the brake pedal, an accelerator pedal or the like may be added, or only the handle may be used.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Living body state determination apparatus, 2 ... ECU (biological state determination means), 3 ... Driving support system, 4 ... Steering detection part, 5 ... Brake pedal operation detection part, 6 ... Steering actuator (reaction force provision means), ..Brake pedal actuator (reaction force applying means)

Claims (4)

A biological state determination device for determining a biological state of a driver during driving support of a vehicle,
Reaction force applying means for applying a reaction force to the operator of the vehicle;
Biological state determination means for determining the biological state based on the operation result of the operator by the driver when a reaction force is applied to the operator;
A biological state determination device comprising:   The biological state determination device according to claim 1, wherein the biological state determination unit determines a drowsiness state of the driver based on an operation delay time of the operator by the driver.   3. The biological state determination device according to claim 1, wherein the biological state determination unit determines a drinking state of the driver based on an excessive operation amount of the operator by the driver. .   The living body state determination apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation element is a steering wheel of a vehicle.

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