JP2012091628A - Vehicle control device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique capable of preventing a vehicle from erroneously starting with a simple structure without requiring an expensive component.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device 1 includes: a vehicle height variation determination unit 21 determining whether there is variation in vehicle height exceeding a specific value; a first travel direction determination unit 22 determining the travel direction of a vehicle on the basis of a gear position of the vehicle when the vehicle height variation determination unit determines that the vehicle height exceeds the specific value; a nonvolatile memory 11 storing travel direction data indicating the determination result by the first travel direction determination unit; a second travel direction determination unit 24 determining the travel direction of a vehicle on the basis of the gear position of the vehicle; and a control signal output unit 25 reading the travel direction data from the nonvolatile memory and outputting a control signal for preventing the vehicle from erroneously starting when the travel direction of the vehicle indicated by the travel direction data and the travel direction determined by the second travel direction determination unit are the same.

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for preventing erroneous start of a vehicle.

  In recent years, there are an increasing number of cases in which the vehicle is erroneously started due to the driver's inadvertent depression of the accelerator and brake. In many cases, this is due to the simple mistake of stepping on the accelerator where you tried to step on the brakes. Prior art examples of techniques for preventing such an erroneous start of the vehicle include, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-2911 (Patent Document 1), Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-18148 (Patent Document 2), and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-23769. No. (Patent Document 3) and the like.

  The prior examples disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are generally identified by the vehicle traveling direction predicted from information such as the driver's face orientation and posture, and the position of the gear position selected by the driver. The traveling direction of the vehicle is collated, and if the two do not match, the movement of the vehicle is limited. However, these previous examples require a camera for imaging the driver and an information processing device that detects the orientation of the driver's face from the captured image, etc., and this can be achieved with more than a certain amount of equipment. There is an inconvenience that it is limited to vehicles that have. In many cases, the direction of the driver's face and the actual traveling direction of the vehicle are different. For example, in the case of a vehicle equipped with a monitor that reflects the rear of the vehicle, the driver's face often faces the front even when the vehicle is moving backward. In such a case, it is difficult to prevent erroneous start in the preceding example.

  On the other hand, in the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 3, when there is an obstacle in the traveling direction of the vehicle, this is detected within a short time when the accelerator pedal is depressed, and the obstacle and the vehicle are detected. When it is determined that the accelerator is depressed more than necessary based on the distance, the movement of the vehicle is limited. However, this prior example has a disadvantage that a sensor for detecting an obstacle existing in the traveling direction of the vehicle is required, resulting in an increase in cost. In addition, it is necessary to detect the degree of depression of the accelerator pedal with relatively high accuracy and within a very short time, and there is also a disadvantage that the accuracy of determination of erroneous start depends on the accuracy of the accelerator pedal sensor. In recent years, although the accelerator pedal has been electronically controlled, for example, many small vehicles still use a wire-type accelerator pedal. In such a case, it is difficult to ensure the detection accuracy of the degree of depression of the accelerator pedal.

JP 2007-2911 A JP 2010-18148 A JP 2010-23769 A

  A specific aspect of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of preventing an erroneous start of a vehicle with a simple configuration without requiring expensive parts.

  A vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present invention is a vehicle control device that is used in connection with a vehicle and outputs a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle. (B) a vehicle height change determining unit that determines whether or not a height has exceeded a certain value; and (b) when the vehicle height is determined to exceed a certain value by the vehicle height change determining unit. A first traveling direction determination unit that determines a traveling direction of the vehicle based on a gear position; (c) a nonvolatile memory that stores traveling direction data indicating a determination result by the first traveling direction determination unit; ) A second traveling direction determination unit that determines the traveling direction of the vehicle based on the gear position of the vehicle; and (e) reading the traveling direction data from the nonvolatile memory and indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle indicated by the traveling direction data. Direction and front When the traveling direction of the vehicle as determined by the second moving direction judgment unit is the same, a control signal output unit for outputting a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle.

  Many of the scenes in which vehicles start wrongly are when parked and parked in parking lots, and many parking lots are equipped with curbs as wheel stops, etc. Park after stopping the vehicle. This is the same in both cases of parking while moving forward (so-called forward parking) and parking while moving backward.

  Therefore, in the above vehicle control device, when the vehicle contacts a curb or the like, a short-term change in the vehicle height is used as a trigger, and the traveling direction when the vehicle is parked and stopped at that time is stored in a nonvolatile memory. Keep it. After that, when the vehicle starts, the direction of travel is determined based on the gear position, and compared with the direction of travel when parked and stopped, it detects signs of erroneous start in the direction of overcoming curbs, etc. The control signal is output. When the vehicle side receives the control signal for preventing the erroneous start, the engine rotation is suppressed, the signal from the accelerator pedal is shut off, the brake is operated, or a plurality of methods are used in combination. This can prevent the vehicle from starting erroneously. Since a sensor for detecting the vehicle height is usually provided in the vehicle, it is not necessary to add a new one. Further, since it is only necessary to identify whether or not the curbstone is touched, the vehicle height sensor does not require a very high detection accuracy. That is, it is difficult to be influenced by the detection accuracy of the vehicle height sensor provided on the vehicle side. Therefore, according to the above-described vehicle control device, it is possible to prevent an erroneous start of the vehicle with a simple configuration without requiring expensive parts.

  The second traveling direction determination unit may determine a traveling direction of the vehicle when an engine of the vehicle is started.

  In general, an erroneous start is likely to occur when the engine is started after the vehicle engine is stopped and parked, so that only the erroneous start in that case can be determined with priority.

  The control signal output unit preferably outputs the control signal when the brake of the vehicle is released, and preferably outputs the control signal when the accelerator pedal of the vehicle is depressed.

  By taking into account the behavior of the brake and accelerator pedal, it is possible to more accurately determine the necessity of outputting a control signal for preventing erroneous start.

  Moreover, it is also preferable that the vehicle height change determination unit determines the change in the vehicle height when the vehicle speed of the vehicle is equal to or lower than a certain speed.

  As a result, the process of detecting a change in the vehicle height is not executed during normal travel other than when the vehicle is parked or stopped, and low power consumption can be achieved.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control apparatus for vehicles of one Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control apparatus for vehicles at the time of parking and stopping of a vehicle. It is the figure which showed typically the behavior of the vehicle at the time of parking and stopping. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the vehicle control apparatus at the time of start of a vehicle. It is the figure which showed typically the behavior of the vehicle at the time of start. It is the figure which showed typically the behavior of the vehicle at the time of start. It is a flowchart which shows the modification of operation | movement of the vehicle control apparatus at the time of start of a vehicle. It is a flowchart which shows the modification of operation | movement of the vehicle control apparatus at the time of start of a vehicle.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicle control device according to an embodiment. A vehicle control device 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a calculation unit (calculation device) 10 and a nonvolatile memory 11 connected thereto. The arithmetic unit 10 may be realized by using an arithmetic device provided for other purposes (for example, optical axis adjustment of a vehicular lamp). The nonvolatile memory 11 is a memory (storage device) that retains memory even when power is not supplied. For example, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) is preferably used.

  As shown in the figure, detection results from various sensors provided on the vehicle side are input to the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment. In the illustrated example, the detection results from the ignition sensor, the vehicle speed sensor, the gear position sensor, the vehicle height sensor, the accelerator pedal sensor, the brake pedal sensor, and the brake pressure sensor are input to the vehicle control device 1.

  The computing unit 10 described above is realized by executing a predetermined program in a computer system including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and as a functional block, a vehicle height change determination unit 21, a parking direction traveling direction determination unit (First traveling direction determination unit) 22, traveling direction recording unit 23, starting traveling direction determination unit (second traveling direction determination unit) 24, and erroneous start prevention signal output unit (control signal output unit) 25. .

  The vehicle height change determination unit 21 determines whether or not the vehicle height has changed beyond a certain value based on the detection value of the vehicle height sensor. Specifically, the vehicle height change determination unit 21 extracts a change in vehicle height due to a vehicle tire hitting a wheel stopper such as a curb. For example, when the detection value of the vehicle height sensor exceeds a predetermined threshold value, it can be determined that the vehicle height has changed beyond a certain value due to a curbstone or the like.

  The vehicle height change determination unit 21 may determine the vehicle height change only when the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than a certain speed (for example, 5 km / h or less) based on the detection value of the vehicle speed sensor. Thereby, the power consumption can be reduced by omitting the determination process during normal driving of the vehicle.

  When the vehicle height change determination unit 21 determines that the vehicle height has exceeded a certain value, the traveling direction determination unit 22 at the time of parking / stopping acquires the detection value of the gear position sensor and sets the gear position indicated thereby. Based on this, the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined. In the present embodiment, the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined to be “forward” or “reverse”.

  The traveling direction recording unit 23 records traveling direction data indicating the determination result by the traveling direction determining unit 22 at the time of parking and stopping in the nonvolatile memory 11. The traveling direction data is held in the nonvolatile memory 11 even after the power supply is stopped due to engine off or the like.

  The starting traveling direction determination unit 24 acquires the detection value of the gear position sensor, and determines the traveling direction of the vehicle based on the vehicle gear position indicated thereby. As described above, the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined to be “forward” or “reverse”.

  The starting traveling direction determination unit 24 detects that the vehicle engine has stopped and then started based on the detection value of the ignition sensor, and uses this as a trigger to determine the traveling direction of the vehicle. May be. Similarly, based on the detected values of the brake pedal sensor and the accelerator pedal sensor, it is detected that the accelerator has been depressed after the brake is depressed (that is, the vehicle has started from a stopped state), and the vehicle is triggered by this. The traveling direction may be determined. Thereby, power consumption can be reduced by omitting determination processing other than when parking or stopping.

  The erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 reads the traveling direction data from the nonvolatile memory 11, and the traveling direction of the vehicle indicated by the traveling direction data is the same as the traveling direction of the vehicle determined by the traveling direction determination unit 24 at the time of starting. When this is the case, an erroneous start prevention signal, which is a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle, is output.

  The vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment has such a configuration, and the operation thereof will be described in detail next.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle control device 1 when the vehicle is parked or stopped. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the behavior of the vehicle when parked or stopped.

  The vehicle height change determination unit 21 determines whether or not the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than a certain speed (for example, 5 km or less per hour) based on the detection value of the vehicle speed sensor (step S10). When the vehicle speed exceeds a certain speed (step S10; NO), the vehicle height change determination unit 21 does not execute the vehicle height determination process. This step can be omitted.

  When the vehicle speed is equal to or less than a certain speed (step S10; YES), the vehicle height change determination unit 21 reads the detection value (vehicle height sensor value) of the vehicle height sensor (step S11).

  Next, the vehicle height change determination unit 21 determines whether or not the vehicle height has changed beyond a certain value based on the detection value read from the vehicle height sensor (step S12). For example, as shown in FIG. 3 (a), when the tire of the vehicle 100 at the time of reverse movement hits a wheel stopper 102 such as a curb or as shown in FIG. 3 (b), the tire of the vehicle 100 at the time of forward movement is a curb or the like. The vehicle height change can be detected based on the detection value from each vehicle height sensor 101 provided in the vehicle.

  The vehicle height change determination unit 21 may perform a differentiation operation on the detected value read from the vehicle height sensor. Thereby, a change in the vehicle height can be detected more easily.

  When the vehicle height change determination unit 21 determines that the detection value of the vehicle height sensor exceeds a certain value (step S12; YES), the parking / traveling traveling direction determination unit 22 determines the traveling direction of the vehicle based on the gear position ( In this example, “forward” or “reverse”) is determined (step S13). In the situation shown in FIG. 3A, the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined as “reverse”, and in the situation shown in FIG. 3B, the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined as “forward”.

  The traveling direction recording unit 23 records the traveling direction data indicating the determination result by the traveling direction determining unit 22 during parking and stopping in the nonvolatile memory 11 (step S14).

  Thereafter, for example, the engine of the vehicle is turned off (stopped) (step S15). The traveling direction data recorded in the nonvolatile memory 11 is retained even after the engine is turned off.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle control device 1 when the vehicle starts.

  For example, when the vehicle engine is turned on (started) (step S20), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 reads the traveling direction data from the nonvolatile memory 11 (step S21).

  When the vehicle engine is turned on, the starting traveling direction determination unit 24 acquires the detection value of the gear position sensor, and determines the traveling direction of the vehicle based on the vehicle gear position indicated thereby ( Step S22).

  Next, the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 determines whether or not the traveling direction of the vehicle indicated by the read traveling direction data is “forward” (step S23).

  When the traveling direction of the vehicle is “forward” (step S23; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 determines whether the traveling direction of the vehicle determined by the starting traveling direction determination unit 24 is “forward”. It is determined whether or not the gear position is in the forward direction (step S24).

  If the gear position is in the forward direction (step S24; YES), the vehicle traveling direction indicated by the traveling direction data and the current traveling direction of the vehicle are the same direction, so an erroneous start prevention signal output unit. 25 outputs an erroneous start prevention signal, which is a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle (step S25).

  On the other hand, when the traveling direction of the vehicle is “reverse” (step S23; NO), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 determines that the traveling direction of the vehicle determined by the starting traveling direction determination unit 24 is “reverse”. It is determined whether there is a gear position, that is, whether the gear position is in the backward direction (step S26).

  If the gear position is in the reverse direction (step S26; YES), the vehicle traveling direction indicated by the traveling direction data and the current traveling direction of the vehicle are the same direction, so an erroneous start prevention signal output unit. 25 outputs an erroneous start prevention signal, which is a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle (step S27).

  When the vehicle side receives the erroneous start prevention signal, the vehicle side suppresses the engine rotation, blocks the signal from the accelerator pedal, operates the brake, or the like, or uses a plurality of methods in combination. Can be prevented.

  When the traveling direction of the vehicle indicated by the traveling direction data and the current traveling direction of the vehicle are not the same direction (step S24 or step S26; NO), the traveling direction of the vehicle indicated by the traveling direction data and the current traveling direction Since the traveling direction of the vehicle is different, the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 does not output an erroneous start prevention signal.

  5 and 6 are diagrams schematically showing the behavior of the vehicle at the start. For example, as shown in FIGS. 5 (a) to 5 (c), when the vehicle 100 contacts and stops while moving forward with respect to the wheel stopper 102, and then attempts to move forward further, the vehicle control device 1 A false start prevention signal is output to the vehicle. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 6 (a) to 6 (c), when the vehicle 100 comes in contact with the wheel stopper 102 while retreating, parks and stops, and then further retreats when starting, An erroneous start prevention signal is output from the vehicle control device 1 to the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 5A or FIG. 6A, the vehicle control device 1 of the present embodiment is not limited to the case where an obstacle 103 such as a building exists in the vicinity of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 6B, there is a wide range such as when a deep step 104 exists in the vicinity of the vehicle, or when a pedestrian 105 exists in the vicinity of the vehicle as shown in FIG. 5C or FIG. 6C. It can handle situations.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a modification of the operation of the vehicle control device 1 when the vehicle starts. Since the only difference from the flowchart shown in FIG. 4 is that steps S28 and S29 are added, this difference will be described below.

  When the gear position is in the forward direction (step S24; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 further determines whether or not the vehicle brake has been released based on the detection value of the brake pedal sensor. (Step S28). When the brake is released (step S28; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 outputs an erroneous start prevention signal that is a control signal for preventing the vehicle from starting erroneously (step S25).

  Even when the gear position is in the reverse direction (step S26; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 further determines whether or not the vehicle brake is released based on the detection value of the brake pedal sensor. Determination is made (step S29). When the brake is released (step S29; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 outputs an erroneous start prevention signal that is a control signal for preventing the vehicle from starting erroneously (step S27).

  If the brake is not released (step S28 or step S29; NO), the vehicle is in a restricted state, so the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 does not output an erroneous start prevention signal.

  In this way, in addition to the determination of the traveling direction based on the gear position, the brake depression state may be determined. Thereby, it is possible to further improve the accuracy of determining whether or not to output the false start prevention signal.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a modified example of the operation of the vehicle control device 1 when the vehicle starts. Since the only difference from the flowchart shown in FIG. 4 is that steps S30 and S31 are added, this difference will be described below.

  If the gear position is in the forward direction (step S24; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 further determines whether or not the accelerator pedal of the vehicle has been depressed based on the detected value of the accelerator pedal sensor. (Step S30). When the accelerator pedal is depressed (step S30; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 outputs an erroneous start prevention signal that is a control signal for preventing the vehicle from starting erroneously (step S25).

  Even when the gear position is in the reverse direction (step S26; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 further determines whether or not the accelerator pedal of the vehicle is depressed based on the detected value of the accelerator pedal sensor. Is determined (step S31). When the accelerator pedal is depressed (step S31; YES), the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 outputs an erroneous start prevention signal that is a control signal for preventing the vehicle from starting erroneously (step S27).

  When the accelerator pedal is not depressed (step S30 or step S31; NO), the vehicle is in a state that hardly proceeds, so the erroneous start prevention signal output unit 25 does not output an erroneous start prevention signal.

  Thus, in addition to the determination of the traveling direction based on the gear position, the depression state of the accelerator pedal may be determined. Thereby, it is possible to further improve the accuracy of determining whether or not to output the false start prevention signal.

  According to the present embodiment as described above, the sensor for detecting the vehicle height is normally provided in the vehicle, so that it is not necessary to add a new one. Further, since it is only necessary to identify whether or not the curbstone has been touched, the vehicle height sensor does not require a very high detection accuracy. That is, it is difficult to be influenced by the detection accuracy of the vehicle height sensor provided on the vehicle side. Therefore, it is possible to prevent erroneous start of the vehicle with a simple configuration without requiring expensive parts. When the vehicle side receives the control signal for preventing erroneous start, the vehicle side is controlled by a method such as suppressing engine rotation, blocking a signal from an accelerator pedal, or operating a brake, or a plurality of methods are used in combination. As a result, erroneous start of the vehicle can be prevented.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the content of embodiment mentioned above, In the range of the summary of this invention, it can change and implement variously.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the on (start) and off (stop) of the engine is detected, but this may be omitted. Similarly, detection of the vehicle speed may be omitted.

  Further, when some or all of the sensors necessary for the operation of the vehicle control device, such as a vehicle height sensor, are not provided on the vehicle side, the sensors may be provided as a configuration of the vehicle control device. .

  In the above-described embodiment, the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined based on the position of the gear position. At this time, if the gear position is “neutral”, the traveling direction is determined using information on the previous gear position. May be determined. In this way, it can be prevented that the traveling direction of the vehicle cannot be determined when the gear position is “neutral”, for example.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle control apparatus 10 ... Calculation part (calculation apparatus)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Nonvolatile memory 21 ... Vehicle height change determination part 22 ... Traveling direction determination part at the time of parking / stopping (1st traveling direction determination part)
23 ... Traveling direction recording unit 24 ... Starting direction traveling direction determination unit (second traveling direction determination unit)
25. Signal output unit for preventing erroneous start (control signal output unit)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Vehicle 101 ... Vehicle height sensor 102 ... Wheel stop 103 ... Obstacle 104 ... Step 105 ... Pedestrian

Claims (5)

A vehicle control device that is used in connection with a vehicle and outputs a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle,
A vehicle height change determination unit for determining whether or not the vehicle height of the vehicle has changed beyond a certain value;
A first travel direction determination unit that determines a travel direction of the vehicle based on a gear position of the vehicle when the vehicle height change determination unit determines that the vehicle height exceeds a certain value;
A non-volatile memory that stores traveling direction data indicating a determination result by the first traveling direction determination unit;
A second traveling direction determination unit that determines a traveling direction of the vehicle based on a gear position of the vehicle;
When the traveling direction data is read from the nonvolatile memory and the traveling direction of the vehicle indicated by the traveling direction data is the same as the traveling direction of the vehicle determined by the second traveling direction determination unit, A control signal output unit for outputting a control signal for preventing erroneous start of the vehicle,
A vehicle control apparatus including: The second traveling direction determination unit determines the traveling direction of the vehicle when the engine of the vehicle is started.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1. The control signal output unit outputs the control signal when the brake of the vehicle is released.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1 or 2. The control signal output unit outputs the control signal when an accelerator pedal of the vehicle is depressed.
The vehicle control device according to claim 1 or 2. The vehicle height change determination unit determines the change in the vehicle height when the vehicle speed of the vehicle is equal to or lower than a certain speed.
The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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