JP2012008019A - Battery replacement support system, on-vehicle device, and battery replacement support device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make a vehicle such as an electric car loaded with a replaceable battery easily stop at an appropriate stop position without a need of a complicated structure for positioning.SOLUTION: A support information transmitter 4 acquires photographed images including at least the image of a car body bottom part of the vehicle 100 from a floor surface camera 41, and recognizes the loaded position of a battery 3 in the vehicle 100 within the photographed image on the basis of the photographed image. Then, on the basis of the acquired photographed image and the recognized loaded position of the battery 3, a support image indicating a battery replacement position 201 and the loaded position of the battery 3 respectively is prepared, and image information indicating the support image is transmitted to a navigation device 1. The navigation device 1 receives the image information transmitted from the support information transmitter 4 through a communication device 2 and displays the support image on the basis of the image information.

Description

  The present invention relates to a system and apparatus for supporting battery replacement in a vehicle such as an electric vehicle equipped with a replaceable battery.

  Conventional electric vehicles have a problem that the charging time of the battery is longer than the refueling time in an automobile using an internal combustion engine such as a gasoline engine. Therefore, in order to solve such a problem of charging time, a battery exchange device has been proposed in which a battery is replaceable in an electric vehicle and the battery is replaced with a charged battery when the remaining capacity of the battery is reduced. (See Patent Document 1).

JP-A-6-262951

  In the battery exchange device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the position of the battery body housing portion provided at the bottom of the vehicle body of the electric vehicle is detected, and the charged battery unit and the battery body housing portion are detected based on the detection result. Perform alignment. Therefore, the alignment mechanism is required for the battery exchange device, and there is a problem that the structure becomes complicated.

  In addition, in order to use the battery exchange device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the position of the battery body housing portion of the electric vehicle based on the position of the battery exchange device is within the movable range of the alignment mechanism. In addition, it is necessary to stop the electric vehicle at an appropriate stop position. However, since the battery body storage portion is provided at the bottom of the vehicle body of the electric vehicle, there is a problem that it is difficult for the driver of the electric vehicle to find an appropriate stop position.

  Here, in order to eliminate the difficulty of grasping the stop position as described above, it is also considered to provide a stop position restricting mechanism such as a groove or a tire stop according to the tire width of the electric vehicle near the battery exchange device. It is done. However, when such a stop position restriction mechanism is used, there is a problem that the battery exchange device cannot cope with a plurality of types of electric vehicles having different body sizes and wheel intervals.

A battery replacement support system according to an aspect of the present invention is provided in addition to a battery replacement device that performs battery replacement at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of a vehicle body. A support information transmitting device that transmits support information; and an in-vehicle device that is mounted on the vehicle and that supports battery replacement based on the support information. The support information transmitting device captures a predetermined imaging range. An imaging unit that acquires a captured image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle, an image recognition unit that recognizes a battery mounting position in the vehicle based on the captured image, and a captured image and an image recognition unit Based on the recognized battery mounting position, support images showing the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position are displayed. An image processing unit configured to transmit the image information representing the support image created by the image processing unit to the in-vehicle device as support information, and the in-vehicle device transmits from the support information transmitting device transmitted by the transmission unit. Receiving means for receiving the image information, and display means for displaying the support image based on the image information received by the receiving means.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a battery replacement support system that is provided alongside a battery replacement device that performs battery replacement at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body. A support information transmitting device that transmits support information for performing the operation, and an in-vehicle device that is mounted on the vehicle and that supports battery replacement based on the support information. The support information transmitting device has a predetermined imaging range. Photographic means for obtaining a photographed image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body, image information representing the photographed image obtained by the photographing means, and exchange position information representing a battery replacement position in the photographed image Transmitting means for transmitting information to the in-vehicle device, and the in-vehicle device transmits image information from the support information transmitting device transmitted by the transmitting means. Receiving means for receiving the replacement position information, image recognition means for recognizing the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle in the captured image based on the image information received by the receiving means, image information, replacement position information, and image Based on the battery mounting position recognized by the recognition means, an image processing means for creating a support image showing the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position, and a display means for displaying the support image created by the image processing means Are provided.
An in-vehicle device according to an aspect of the present invention is mounted on a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of a vehicle body, and is transmitted from a support information transmitting device that is attached to the battery replacement device that performs battery replacement at a predetermined battery replacement position. The support information is received and the support information transmission device captures at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body obtained by capturing a predetermined capturing range. Based on the image, a support image indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position in the vehicle is created, image information representing the support image is transmitted as support information, and the in-vehicle device is transmitted from the support information transmitting device. Receiving means for receiving image information and display means for displaying a support image based on the image information received by the receiving means. It is.
Further, an in-vehicle device according to another aspect of the present invention is mounted in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of a vehicle body, and transmits support information attached to the battery replacement device that performs battery replacement at a predetermined battery replacement position. The support information transmitted from the device is received and battery replacement support is performed based on the support information. The support information transmitting device captures an image of the bottom of the vehicle body obtained by photographing a predetermined photographing range. Image information representing a photographed image including at least and replacement position information representing a battery replacement position in the photographed image is transmitted as support information, and the in-vehicle device receives the image information and the exchange position information transmitted from the support information transmitting device. Based on the image information received by the receiving means and the image recognition for recognizing the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle in the captured image. And image processing means for creating a support image indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position based on the image information, the replacement position information, and the battery mounting position recognized by the image recognition means, and image processing, Display means for displaying a support image created by the means.
A support information transmission device according to an aspect of the present invention is provided in a battery exchange device that performs battery replacement at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle in which a replaceable battery is mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body, and performs battery replacement support. Assistance information is transmitted to an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle, and based on the captured image, a capturing unit that captures a predetermined capturing range and acquires a captured image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle , An image recognition means for recognizing the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle in the photographed image, and assistance indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position based on the captured image and the battery mounting position recognized by the image recognition means, respectively. Image processing means for creating an image, and image information representing the support image created by the image processing means as in-vehicle equipment It is intended and transmission means for transmitting to.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a support information transmitting apparatus that is provided in a battery exchange apparatus that performs battery replacement at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body, and that supports battery replacement. Image capturing means for transmitting support information to the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle, capturing a predetermined image capturing range and acquiring a captured image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle, and image capturing means Transmission means for transmitting, as support information, image information representing the photographed image acquired by the above and replacement position information representing the battery replacement position in the photographed image.

  According to the present invention, a replaceable battery is mounted, and a complicated structure for alignment is required for a plurality of types of vehicles such as electric vehicles having different vehicle body sizes and wheel intervals. Without stopping, it can be easily stopped at an appropriate stop position.

It is a figure for demonstrating the outline | summary of the battery exchange assistance system by one Embodiment of this invention. 1 is a configuration diagram of a battery replacement support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an example of a picked-up image. It is an example of a support image. It is a flowchart of the process each performed in the navigation apparatus and assistance information transmission apparatus by 1st embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart of the process each performed in the navigation apparatus and assistance information transmission apparatus by 2nd embodiment of this invention.

-First embodiment-
An outline of a battery replacement support system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, a navigation device 1, a communication device 2, and a battery 3 are mounted on a vehicle 100 that is an electric vehicle. The battery 3 is mounted on the bottom of the vehicle 100 and supplies power for operating the navigation device 1 and the communication device 2. In addition, electric power is supplied from the battery 3 to motors and auxiliary machines (not shown) mounted on the vehicle 100. The driving force generated by the motor using the power supplied from the battery 3 is transmitted to the driving wheels of the vehicle 100.

  The battery exchange device 200 is a device for exchanging the battery 3 mounted on the vehicle 100 from the lower side of the vehicle body, a mechanism for removing the battery 3 from the vehicle 100, and the removed battery 3 as another replacement battery 3. And a mechanism for attaching the replacement battery 3 to the vehicle 100. The battery exchange device 200 may be installed in a dedicated facility established as a battery exchange station, or installed in various other facilities such as a gas station, a parking lot, a convenience store, a service area, a parking area, and the like. Also good. Hereinafter, facilities in which the battery exchange device 200 is installed are collectively referred to as installation facilities.

  In order to be able to replace the battery 3 installed at the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle 100, the battery exchange device 200 is installed below the floor in the installation facility as described above. Corresponding to the installation position of the battery exchange device 200, a battery exchange position 201 is defined on the floor of the installation facility.

  When replacing the battery 3 at the installation facility, the driver of the vehicle 100 needs to stop the vehicle 100 so that the mounting position of the battery 3 coincides with the battery replacement position 201. In this state, the battery exchange device 200 can exchange the battery 3 of the vehicle 100.

  The battery exchange device 200 is provided with a support information transmitting device 4 that transmits support information for performing support for replacing the battery 3 toward the vehicle 100 at the installation facility. The support information transmitted from the support information transmitting device 4 is received by the communication device 2 in the vehicle 100 and output from the communication device 2 to the navigation device 1. The navigation apparatus 1 will be described later so that the driver can easily stop the vehicle 100 at an appropriate stop position based on this support information, that is, a stop position where the mounting position of the battery 3 coincides with the battery replacement position 201. Perform battery replacement support processing. Thereby, replacement of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 is supported.

  FIG. 2 shows a configuration diagram of the battery replacement support system described above. The battery replacement support system includes a navigation device 1, a communication device 2, and a support information transmission device 4.

  The navigation device 1 includes a control unit 10, a vibration gyro 11, a vehicle speed sensor 12, a hard disk drive (HDD) 13, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiving unit 14, a display monitor 15, a speaker 16, and an input device 17. The communication device 2 is connected to the control unit 10.

  The control unit 10 includes a microprocessor, various peripheral circuits, a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and executes various processes based on a control program and map data recorded in the HDD 13. Various processes for guiding the vehicle 100 to the destination are executed by the control unit 10. For example, destination search processing when setting a destination, search processing for a recommended route to the set destination, vehicle position detection processing, various image display processing, voice output processing during route guidance, etc. Executed.

  The support information from the support information transmitting device 4 received by the communication device 2 is output from the communication device 2 to the control unit 10. The control unit 10 executes battery replacement support processing based on the support information, thereby displaying a support image as described later on the display monitor 15 and vehicle control information for controlling the travel of the vehicle 100. Output to 100. Thus, the driver can easily stop the vehicle 100 at an appropriate stop position. The specific contents of the battery replacement support process will be described later in detail using the flowchart of FIG.

  The vibration gyro 11 is a sensor for detecting the angular velocity of the vehicle 100. The vehicle speed sensor 12 is a sensor for detecting the traveling speed of the vehicle 100. By detecting the motion state of the vehicle 100 at predetermined time intervals using these sensors, the control unit 10 determines the moving direction and the moving amount of the vehicle 100.

  The HDD 13 is a non-volatile recording medium, and records a control program, map data, and the like for executing the above processing in the control unit 10. Data recorded in the HDD 13 is read out under the control of the control unit 10 as necessary, and is used for various processes and controls executed by the control unit 10.

  The map data recorded on the HDD 13 includes route calculation data, road data, and background data. The route calculation data is data used when searching for a recommended route to the destination. The road data is data representing the shape and type of the road. In the map data, the minimum unit of each road is called a link. That is, each road in the map data is composed of a plurality of links. The background data is data representing the background of the map. Note that the background of the map is various components other than roads existing on the map. For example, rivers, railways, green zones, various structures, etc. are represented by background data.

  In the above description, the map data is recorded on the HDD 13 in the navigation device 1. However, these may be recorded on a recording medium other than the HDD. For example, map data recorded on a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, memory card, or the like can be used. That is, the navigation device according to the present embodiment may store these data using any recording medium.

  The GPS receiver 14 receives a GPS signal transmitted from a GPS satellite and outputs it to the controller 10. The GPS signal includes information on the position and transmission time of the GPS satellite that transmitted the GPS signal as information for determining the position of the vehicle 100. Therefore, by receiving GPS signals from a predetermined number of GPS satellites or more, the current position of the vehicle 100 can be calculated by the control unit 10 based on these pieces of information. Based on the calculation result of the current position based on the GPS signal and the calculation result of the moving direction and the moving amount based on the detection results of the vibration gyro 11 and the vehicle speed sensor 12, the current position of the vehicle 100 is detected every predetermined time. The

  The display monitor 15 is a device for performing various screen displays in the navigation device 1 and is configured using a liquid crystal display or the like. The display monitor 15 displays a map screen, a support image described later, and the like. The contents of the screen displayed on the display monitor 15 are determined by screen display control performed by the control unit 10. The display monitor 15 is installed at a position where the user can easily see, for example, on the dashboard of the vehicle 100 or in the instrument panel.

  The speaker 16 outputs various audio information related to traveling of the vehicle 100 under the control of the control unit 10. For example, route guidance voice for guiding the vehicle 100 to the destination according to the recommended route, various warning sounds, and the like are output.

  The input device 17 is a device for a user to perform various input operations for operating the navigation device 1 and includes various input switches. The user operates the input device 17 to input, for example, the name of a facility or point desired to be set as the destination, select a destination from registered locations registered in advance, Or scroll in the direction. The input device 17 can be realized by an operation panel, a remote controller, or the like. Alternatively, the input device 17 may be a touch panel integrated with the display monitor 15.

  When the user operates the input device 17 to set a destination, the navigation device 1 starts from the current position of the vehicle 100 detected as described above and uses a predetermined algorithm based on the route calculation data described above. Performs route search processing by calculation. When a recommended route from the departure point to the destination is searched by this route search process, route guidance is performed according to the searched recommended route, and the vehicle 100 is guided to the destination.

  The support information transmission device 4 includes a floor camera 41, an image processing unit 42, and a communication unit 43.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the floor camera 41 is installed on the floor surface near the battery replacement position 201, and acquires a captured image by shooting a predetermined shooting range upward from the floor surface. When the vehicle 100 approaches the battery replacement position 201 and is within the imaging range of the floor camera 41, the vehicle body bottom portion of the vehicle 100 can be captured by the floor camera 41. In this case, a captured image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle 100 is acquired by the floor camera 41. In addition, it is preferable that the floor camera 41 includes an illumination light or the like so that the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle 100 can be photographed with appropriate brightness from the floor. Further, in order to secure a necessary shooting range, the floor camera 41 may be configured by combining a plurality of cameras each having a different shooting range. The captured image acquired by the floor camera 41 is output from the floor camera 41 to the image processing unit 42.

  The image processing unit 42 performs image processing for converting a captured image acquired by the floor camera 41 into a support image. The support image is an image displayed by the navigation device 1 for the purpose of assisting the driver so that the vehicle 100 is stopped at an appropriate stop position when the battery 3 is replaced. In this support image, the relationship between the mounting position of the battery 3 and the battery replacement position 201 in the vehicle 100 is shown in an easy-to-understand manner for the driver. The specific contents of the image processing performed by the image processing unit 42 will be described later. Image information representing the support image is output from the image processing unit 42 to the communication unit 43.

  Further, the image processing unit 42 calculates the difference between the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 based on the captured image acquired by the floor camera 41. Then, position difference information representing the calculated position difference is output to the communication unit 43.

  The communication unit 43 transmits the image information and position difference information output from the image processing unit 42 to the vehicle 100 as support information. That is, the image information and the position difference information are each modulated into a radio signal according to a predetermined communication standard and output. Image information and position difference information transmitted as support information from the communication unit 43 is received by the navigation device 1 via the communication device 2 in the vehicle 100.

  Next, the contents of the image processing performed by the image processing unit 42 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 shows an example of a captured image acquired by the floor camera 41. FIG. 4 shows an example of a support image created by the image processing unit 42 based on the captured image of FIG.

  In the captured image of FIG. 3, the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle 100 including the mounting position of the battery 3 is captured. Based on this captured image, the image processing unit 42 recognizes the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 in the captured image. In order to easily identify the mounting position of the battery 3 in the captured image, it is preferable that a mark indicating the mounting position of the battery 3 is provided on the bottom of the vehicle body. For example, in the vehicle 100, the entire mounting position of the battery 3 is painted in a color different from that of the other bottom portion of the vehicle body, or the mounting position of the battery 3 is surrounded by a frame line.

  Here, in the captured image of FIG. 3, it is assumed that the battery replacement position 201 exists at the position indicated by the broken line in the drawing. The position of the battery replacement position 201 in the captured image can be determined in advance from the relationship between the imaging range of the floor camera 41 and the battery replacement position 201 in real space. In FIG. 3, the battery replacement position 201 is indicated by a broken line for the sake of explanation, but such a broken line does not exist in the actually acquired captured image.

  The support image in FIG. 4 is created by reversing the captured image in FIG. 3 from left to right and indicating where the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 are in the image using predetermined graphics or the like. be able to. The battery replacement position 201 in the support image can be determined by reversing the battery replacement position 201 in the photographed image determined in advance as described above. The mounting position of the battery 3 in the support image can be determined by reversing the mounting position of the battery 3 recognized in the captured image as described above. By creating the support image in this way, the positional relationship between the battery replacement position 201 and the vehicle 100 on which the battery 3 is mounted is reversed left and right from the captured image. As a result, the state seen from above the vehicle 100 can be expressed in the support image, and therefore, the relationship between the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 is presented to the driver of the vehicle 100 in an easily understandable manner. Can do.

  In order to express the relationship between the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 more easily in the support image, an image of the vehicle 100 viewed from above is stored in advance, and the vehicle 100 in the support image is stored in advance. The position where the battery 3 is mounted may be indicated after the part is replaced with this image. Alternatively, the portion of the vehicle 100 may be deleted from the support image and only the mounting position of the battery 3 may be indicated.

  Further, the image processing unit 42 calculates the direction and distance from the battery replacement position 201 determined in advance in the captured image to the mounting position of the battery 3 recognized in the captured image. Then, the position difference information is obtained by converting the calculated direction and distance into a direction and distance in real space. This position difference information indicates how much the mounting position of the battery 3 is shifted in the real space with respect to the battery replacement position 201, and can be expressed using, for example, a two-dimensional vector. Further, a travel locus of the vehicle 100 for matching the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 may be obtained from the calculated position difference information, and the travel locus may be displayed in the support image.

  By performing the image processing as described above in the image processing unit 42, a support image can be created based on the captured image acquired by the floor camera 41. In addition, position difference information representing a difference between the battery replacement position 201 and the battery 3 mounting position in the vehicle 100 can be obtained.

  FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of processing executed in the battery replacement support system of this embodiment. FIG. 5A is a flowchart of battery replacement support processing executed by the control unit 10 in the navigation device 1, and FIG. 5B is a flowchart of processing executed in the support information transmission device 4.

  In step S <b> 10 of FIG. 5A, the control unit 10 transmits a connection request for starting connection to the support information transmitting device 4 via the communication device 2. The connection request is transmitted, for example, when the driver of the vehicle 100 performs a predetermined start operation using the input device 17. Alternatively, the navigation device 1 determines whether the vehicle 100 has entered the installation facility based on the current position of the vehicle 100 and the map data recorded in the HDD 13, and automatically performs the determination according to the determination result. Also good.

  In step S <b> 20, the control unit 10 receives the image information and the position difference information transmitted from the support information transmitting device 4 when the connection request is transmitted in step S <b> 10 via the communication device 2. The image information received here represents a support image created by performing the image processing as described above in the image processing unit 42 of the support information transmitting device 4. The position difference information represents a difference between the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100.

  In step S30, the control unit 10 performs image display processing for displaying the support image represented by the image information based on the image information received in step S20. Thereby, a support image as illustrated in FIG. 4 is displayed on the display monitor 15.

  In step S40, the control unit 10 performs a process for controlling the traveling of the vehicle 100 based on the positional difference information received in step S20. Here, the movement of the vehicle 100 is calculated such that the difference in the mounting position of the battery 3 with respect to the battery replacement position 201 represented by the position difference information is zero, and the steering angle and motor drive amount of the vehicle 100 are calculated based on the calculation result. calculate. Information on the steering angle and motor drive amount calculated in this way is output to the vehicle 100 as vehicle control information. The vehicle 100 controls the steering angle and the motor driving amount based on the vehicle control information output from the control unit 10 to cause the vehicle 100 to travel so that the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 coincide with each other. . At this time, the brake of the vehicle 100 may be driven as necessary.

  In step S40, the position difference information received in step S20 may be output as it is from the control unit 10 to the vehicle 100 as vehicle control information. In this case, the steering angle and motor drive amount of the vehicle 100 are calculated by an in-vehicle computer or the like mounted on the vehicle 100, and the vehicle 100 is caused to travel based on the calculation result.

  In step S50, the control unit 10 determines whether or not to end the battery replacement support process. This determination is performed based on, for example, whether the driver of the vehicle 100 has performed a predetermined end operation using the input device 17. If the end operation is not performed by the driver, the process returns to step S20, and if the end operation is performed, the process proceeds to step S60. Alternatively, when the difference in the mounting position of the battery 3 with respect to the battery replacement position 201 represented by the position difference information becomes 0, it may be determined in step S50 that the battery replacement support process is terminated.

  In step S <b> 60, the control unit 10 transmits a connection termination request for terminating the connection to the support information transmitting device 4 via the communication device 2. If step S60 is performed, the control part 10 will complete | finish the flowchart of Fig.5 (a).

  In step S <b> 110 of FIG. 5B, the support information transmitting device 4 determines whether there is a connection request from the navigation device 1. When the communication unit 43 receives the connection request transmitted in step S10 in FIG. 5A, the support information transmitting device 4 determines that there is a connection request and proceeds to step S120.

  In step S120, the support information transmitting device 4 activates the floor camera 41. In the next step S <b> 130, the support information transmission device 4 acquires a captured image as illustrated in FIG. 3 by the floor camera 41.

  The processing of steps S140 to S160 described below is executed by the image processing unit 42 in the support information transmitting device 4. In step S140, the image processing unit 42 recognizes the mounting position of the battery 3 in the captured image based on the captured image acquired by the floor camera 41 in step S130. For example, when the above-described mark indicating the mounting position of the battery 3 is provided on the bottom of the vehicle body of the vehicle 100, the battery 3 is mounted by recognizing where the mark is located in the captured image. The position can be recognized.

  In step S150, the image processing unit 42 creates a support image by the method described above based on the captured image acquired in step S130 and the mounting position of the battery 3 recognized in step S140. Thereby, a support image as illustrated in FIG. 4 is created. The contents of the support image created here are output from the image processing unit 42 to the communication unit 43 as image information.

  In step S160, the image processing unit 42 calculates the difference between the battery replacement position 201 in the real space and the mounting position of the battery 3 by the method described above based on the mounting position of the battery 3 recognized in step S140. . The content of the position difference calculated here is output from the image processing unit 42 to the communication unit 43 as position difference information.

  In step S170, the support information transmitting device 4 uses the communication unit 43 as the support information, the navigation device 1 using the image information representing the support image created in step S150 and the position difference information representing the position difference calculated in step S160 as support information. To each. The image information and the position difference information transmitted here are received via the communication device 2 by the control unit 10 of the navigation device 1 in step S20 of FIG.

  In step S180, the support information transmitting device 4 determines whether or not there is a connection termination request from the navigation device 1. When the communication end unit 43 receives the connection end request transmitted in step S60 of FIG. 5A, the support information transmitting device 4 determines that there is a connection end request, and ends the flowchart of FIG. 5B. On the other hand, when there is no connection termination request from the navigation device 1, the support information transmitting device 4 returns to step S130 and repeats the processing as described above. Thereby, a captured image is continuously acquired by the floor camera 41, image processing is performed by the image processing unit 42 based on the captured image, and image information and position difference information as support information are transmitted from the communication unit 43. The

  According to the first embodiment described above, the following effects (1) and (2) are obtained.

(1) The support information transmitting device 4 acquires a captured image as shown in FIG. 3 including at least the image of the bottom of the vehicle 100 with the floor camera 41 (step S130), and based on the captured image, the image processing unit. 42, the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 is recognized in the captured image (step S140). Then, based on the acquired captured image and the recognized mounting position of the battery 3, the image processing unit 42 creates support images indicating the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3, respectively (step S150). The image information representing the support image thus created is transmitted to the navigation device 1 as support information by the communication unit 43 (step S170). On the other hand, the navigation device 1 receives the image information from the support information transmitting device 4 transmitted in step S170 by the control unit 10 via the communication device 2 (step S20), and obtains a support image based on the image information. The image is displayed on the display monitor 15 (step S30). Since it did in this way, the relationship between the battery exchange position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 can be presented in an easily understandable manner for the driver of the vehicle 100. As a result, the vehicle 100 can be easily stopped at an appropriate stop position without requiring a complicated structure for aligning the battery replacement position 201 and the battery 3 mounting position.

(2) In step S <b> 170, the support information transmitting device 4 further transmits position difference information representing the difference between the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 as support information through the communication unit 43. The navigation device 1 receives the position difference information by the control unit 10 via the communication device 2 in step S20, and outputs vehicle control information for controlling the travel of the vehicle 100 to the vehicle 100 based on the received position difference information (step S20). Step S40). Since it did in this way, the vehicle 100 can be reliably stopped at an appropriate stop position without bothering a driver | operator's hand.

-Second embodiment-
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment described above, an example has been described in which the support information transmission device 4 generates a support image and calculates a position difference between the battery replacement position 201 and the battery 3 mounting position. On the other hand, in the second embodiment described below, an example in which these processes are performed in the navigation device 1 will be described. The outline and configuration of the battery replacement support system according to this embodiment are the same as those according to the first embodiment shown in FIGS. Therefore, these descriptions are omitted.

  FIG. 6 shows a flowchart of processing executed in the battery replacement support system of this embodiment. FIG. 6A is a flowchart of battery replacement support processing executed by the control unit 10 in the navigation device 1, and FIG. 6B is a flowchart of processing executed in the support information transmission device 4. In these flowcharts, processing steps having the same contents as those in the flowchart according to the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B are assigned the same step numbers. In the following description, the processing of the same step number as those in FIGS. 5A and 5B is omitted unless particularly required.

  In step S <b> 21 of FIG. 6A, the control unit 10 receives the image information and the exchange position information transmitted from the support information transmitting device 4 via the communication device 2. The image information received here is different from the image information received in step S20 of FIG. 5A in the first embodiment, and is a captured image acquired by the floor camera 41 in the support information transmitting device 4. Is expressed. Further, the replacement position information represents the position of the battery replacement position 201 in the captured image, unlike the position difference information received in step S20 of FIG. 5A in the first embodiment. Note that the position of the battery replacement position 201 in the captured image is determined in advance from the relationship between the imaging range of the floor camera 41 and the battery replacement position 201 in real space as described above.

  When the image information and the exchange position information as described above are received in step S21, the control unit 10 sequentially executes the processes of steps S140, S150, and S160 described with reference to FIG. That is, in step S140, the mounting position of the battery 3 in the captured image is recognized based on the captured image represented by the image information received in step S21. In subsequent step S150, a support image is obtained based on the captured image represented by the image information received in step S21, the mounting position of the battery 3 recognized in step S140, and the battery replacement position 201 represented by the replacement position information received in step S21. create. In subsequent step S160, based on the mounting position of battery 3 recognized in step S140 and the battery replacement position 201 represented by the replacement position information received in step S21, the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of battery 3 in real space are determined. Calculate the difference.

  If the process of step S140-S160 is performed, the control part 10 will progress to step S30. In step S30, the control unit 10 performs image display processing for displaying the support image created in step S150. Thereby, a support image as illustrated in FIG. 4 is displayed on the display monitor 15. In subsequent step S40, control unit 10 performs a process for controlling the traveling of vehicle 100 based on the positional difference calculated in step S160. As a result, the traveling of the vehicle 100 is controlled so that the battery replacement position 201 matches the mounting position of the battery 3.

  If the captured image as illustrated in FIG. 3 is acquired by the floor camera 41 in step S130 of FIG. 6B, the support information transmitting apparatus 4 proceeds to step S171. In step S171, the support information transmitting apparatus 4 uses the communication unit 43 to obtain image information representing the captured image acquired in step S130 and replacement position information representing the position of the battery replacement position 201 in the captured image. To the navigation device 1 respectively. At this time, image information representing the contents of the captured image acquired in step S130 and exchange position information whose contents are determined in advance are output from the image processing unit 42 to the communication unit 43, respectively. The communication unit 43 modulates the image information and the exchange position information into a radio signal and transmits it.

  According to the second embodiment described above, the following effects (3) and (4) are obtained.

(3) The support information transmitting device 4 acquires a captured image as shown in FIG. 3 including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle 100 with the floor camera 41 (step S130), image information representing the captured image, The exchange position information indicating the battery exchange position 201 in the photographed image is transmitted to the navigation device 1 as support information by the communication unit 43 (step S171). On the other hand, the navigation device 1 receives the image information and the exchange position information from the support information transmitting device 4 transmitted in step S171 by the control unit 10 via the communication device 2 (step S21). Based on the received image information, the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 is recognized in the captured image (step S140). Based on the received image information and replacement position information, and the recognized mounting position of the battery 3 Then, support images indicating the battery replacement position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 are created (step S150). The support image thus created is displayed on the display monitor 15 (step S30). Since it did in this way, the driver | operator of the vehicle 100 can show the relationship between the battery exchange position 201 and the mounting position of the battery 3 in the vehicle 100 in an easy-to-understand manner as in the first embodiment. As a result, the vehicle 100 can be easily stopped at an appropriate stop position without requiring a complicated structure for aligning the battery replacement position 201 and the battery 3 mounting position.

(4) The navigation device 1 controls the travel of the vehicle 100 by the control unit 10 based on the battery replacement position 201 represented by the replacement position information received in step S21 and the mounting position of the battery 3 recognized in step S140. The vehicle control information for doing this is output to the vehicle 100 (step S40). Since it did in this way, similarly to 1st embodiment, the vehicle 100 can be reliably stopped at an appropriate stop position without bothering a driver | operator's hand.

  In each of the embodiments described above, only one process of the support image display in step S30 and the vehicle control in step S40 may be executed, and the other process may not be executed. In the first embodiment, when the support image display in step S30 is not performed, the support image creation process in step S150 is omitted in the flowchart of FIG. 5B, and image information is transmitted in step S170. Can be omitted. If the vehicle control in step S40 is not performed, the position difference calculation process in step S160 can be omitted and the transmission of the position difference information can be omitted in step S170 in the flowchart of FIG. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, when the support image display in step S30 is not performed, the support image creation process in step S150 can be omitted in the flowchart of FIG. Further, when the vehicle control in step S40 is not performed, the position difference calculation process in step S160 can be omitted in the flowchart of FIG.

  Further, in each of the embodiments described above, the support information transmitted from the support information transmitting device 4 is received by the navigation device 1 and the battery replacement support process is performed. However, the in-vehicle device other than the navigation device is used. This may be realized.

  Each embodiment and various modifications described above are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these contents as long as the features of the invention are not impaired.

1: navigation device, 2: communication device, 3: battery, 4: support information transmission device,
10: control unit, 11: vibration gyro, 12: vehicle speed sensor, 13: HDD,
14: GPS receiver, 15: display monitor, 16: speaker, 17: input device,
41: floor camera, 42: image processing unit, 43: communication unit,
100: Vehicle, 200: Battery exchange device, 201: Battery exchange position

Claims (10)

A support information transmitting device for transmitting support information for supporting the replacement of the battery, which is attached to a battery replacement device that replaces the battery at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body; A battery replacement support system having an in-vehicle device mounted on the vehicle and configured to support the replacement of the battery based on the support information,
The support information transmitting device includes:
Photographing means for photographing a predetermined photographing range and obtaining a photographed image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body;
Image recognition means for recognizing in the captured image the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle based on the captured image;
Image processing means for creating support images respectively indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position based on the captured image and the battery mounting position recognized by the image recognition means;
Transmission means for transmitting image information representing the support image created by the image processing means to the in-vehicle device as the support information,
The in-vehicle device is
Receiving means for receiving image information from the support information transmitting apparatus transmitted by the transmitting means;
A battery exchange support system comprising: display means for displaying the support image based on image information received by the receiving means. The battery replacement support system according to claim 1,
The on-vehicle device further includes vehicle control information output means for outputting vehicle control information for controlling the traveling of the vehicle to the vehicle,
The transmitting means further transmits position difference information representing the difference between the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position in the vehicle as the support information,
The receiving means receives position difference information from the support information transmitting apparatus transmitted by the transmitting means,
The battery control information output means outputs the vehicle control information based on the positional difference information received by the receiving means. A support information transmitting device for transmitting support information for supporting the replacement of the battery, which is attached to a battery replacement device that replaces the battery at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body; A battery replacement support system having an in-vehicle device mounted on the vehicle and configured to support the replacement of the battery based on the support information,
The support information transmitting device includes:
Photographing means for photographing a predetermined photographing range and obtaining a photographed image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body;
Transmission means for transmitting image information representing a photographed image acquired by the photographing means and replacement position information representing the battery replacement position in the photographed image to the in-vehicle device as the support information;
The in-vehicle device is
Receiving means for receiving image information and exchange position information from the support information transmitting apparatus transmitted by the transmitting means;
Based on the image information received by the receiving means, image recognition means for recognizing the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle in the captured image;
Image processing means for creating support images respectively indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position based on the image information, the replacement position information, and the battery mounting position recognized by the image recognition means; ,
A battery exchange support system comprising: display means for displaying a support image created by the image processing means. In the battery replacement support system according to claim 3,
The on-vehicle device further includes vehicle control information output means for outputting vehicle control information for controlling the running of the vehicle to the vehicle based on the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position. Battery replacement support system. Receiving support information transmitted from a support information transmitting device installed in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body and performing replacement of the battery at a predetermined battery replacement position; An in-vehicle device that provides battery replacement support based on support information,
The support information transmitting device indicates the battery replacement position and the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle, respectively, based on a captured image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body acquired by capturing a predetermined capturing range. Creating a support image, transmitting image information representing the support image as the support information,
The in-vehicle device is
Receiving means for receiving image information transmitted from the support information transmitting device;
An in-vehicle device comprising: display means for displaying the support image based on image information received by the receiving means. The in-vehicle device according to claim 5,
Vehicle control information output means for outputting vehicle control information for controlling travel of the vehicle to the vehicle;
The support information transmitting device further transmits position difference information representing the difference between the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position in the vehicle as the support information,
The receiving means receives position difference information transmitted from the support information transmitting device,
The vehicle control information output means outputs the vehicle control information based on the position difference information received by the receiving means. Receiving support information transmitted from a support information transmitting device installed in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body and performing replacement of the battery at a predetermined battery replacement position; An in-vehicle device that provides battery replacement support based on support information,
The support information transmitting device includes: image information representing a captured image including at least an image of a vehicle body bottom portion of the vehicle acquired by photographing a predetermined photographing range; and replacement position information representing the battery replacement position in the photographed image. Send as the support information,
The in-vehicle device is
Receiving means for receiving image information and exchange position information transmitted from the support information transmitting device;
Based on the image information received by the receiving means, image recognition means for recognizing the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle in the captured image;
Image processing means for creating support images respectively indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position based on the image information, the replacement position information, and the battery mounting position recognized by the image recognition means; ,
A vehicle-mounted apparatus comprising: a display unit that displays a support image created by the image processing unit. The in-vehicle device according to claim 7,
A vehicle-mounted device further comprising vehicle control information output means for outputting vehicle control information for controlling the running of the vehicle to the vehicle based on the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position. In-vehicle mounted with support information for performing battery replacement support, which is provided alongside a battery replacement device that replaces the battery at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body A support information transmitting device for transmitting to the device,
Photographing means for photographing a predetermined photographing range and obtaining a photographed image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body;
Image recognition means for recognizing in the captured image the mounting position of the battery in the vehicle based on the captured image;
Image processing means for creating support images respectively indicating the battery replacement position and the battery mounting position based on the captured image and the battery mounting position recognized by the image recognition means;
A support information transmitting apparatus comprising: transmitting means for transmitting image information representing a support image created by the image processing means to the in-vehicle apparatus as the support information. In-vehicle mounted with support information for performing battery replacement support, which is provided alongside a battery replacement device that replaces the battery at a predetermined battery replacement position in a vehicle having a replaceable battery mounted on the bottom of the vehicle body A support information transmitting device for transmitting to the device,
Photographing means for photographing a predetermined photographing range and obtaining a photographed image including at least an image of the bottom of the vehicle body;
A support information transmission apparatus comprising: transmission means for transmitting, as the support information, image information representing a photographed image acquired by the photographing means and replacement position information representing the battery replacement position in the photographed image. .

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