JP2015068746A - Axis adjustment device and axis adjustment method of on-vehicle radar - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an axis adjustment device and an axis adjustment method of an on-vehicle radar that can achieve accurate detection with a loaded article on the vehicle.SOLUTION: An axis adjustment device 1 of an on-vehicle radar for adjusting an axis of a millimeter wave radar 10 of an own vehicle V comprises a motor 12 for moving and changing a direction of a beam axis G of the millimeter wave radar 10, and a control part 13 and ECU20 for controlling a motion of the motor 12. When the ECU20 calculates an offset value of the own vehicle V according to at least the vehicle type, the offset value is transmitted from the ECU 20 to the control part 13 to operate the motor 12 so as to offset an elevation angle of the beam axis G according to the offset value.

Description

  The present invention relates to an on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device and an axis adjustment method.

  Conventionally, in-vehicle radars such as millimeter wave radars are sometimes mounted on a vehicle, for example, for detecting an object in front of the vehicle. What has been described is known. The axis adjustment device described in Patent Document 1 includes an irradiation device that irradiates a visible laser beam in the direction of the axle, and adjusts the beam axis (antenna axis) direction of the in-vehicle radar so as to be parallel to the laser irradiation direction or the axle direction. It is planned.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-326495

  Here, usually, in the above-described on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device, for example, in a factory production line, the beam axis must be adjusted in a state where there is no bodywork on the vehicle. Due to restrictions, there is a situation in which the beam axis must be adjusted by one target value (one reference). Therefore, when the bodywork is mounted on the vehicle, the orientation of the beam axis changes because the vehicle posture may change with respect to the adjustment time. There is a risk of detection. For this reason, the beam axis may have to be adjusted again after mounting. For example, when the vehicle is a commercial vehicle, such a concern becomes conspicuous due to a wide variety of mounted objects.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an on-vehicle radar axis adjusting device and an axis adjusting method capable of realizing accurate detection of the on-vehicle radar even when the body is mounted.

  In order to solve the above problems, an on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device according to the present invention is an axis adjustment device for adjusting the axis of an on-vehicle radar mounted on a vehicle, and moves the direction of the beam axis of the on-vehicle radar. And a control unit for controlling the operation of the movable unit. The control unit derives an offset value based on at least the type of vehicle type in the vehicle, and the angle of the beam axis with respect to the horizontal plane is the offset. The movable part is operated so as to be offset according to the value.

  According to the on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device of the present invention, for example, for the following reason, it is possible to realize detection of the on-vehicle radar with high accuracy even when the body is mounted. That is, at the time of mounting, the vehicle tilts forward or backward, and the degree may vary depending on the vehicle type, so the angle of the beam axis with respect to the horizontal plane (the angle between the horizontal direction and the beam axis: It is found that the height is also changed depending on the vehicle type. In this regard, in the present invention, as described above, the height of the beam axis is offset in accordance with the offset value derived based on at least the type of the vehicle type, thereby changing the beam axis depending on the vehicle type at the time of mounting. This is because it is possible to realize the optimum beam axis adjustment for each vehicle type in consideration of the elevation angle.

  In addition, the control unit has a map that defines an offset value using at least the vehicle type as a parameter, and uses the map to correspond to the vehicle type of the vehicle based on external input or vehicle information stored in advance. It is preferable to derive an offset value. As a result, the above-described effect of realizing the optimum adjustment of the beam axis for each vehicle type is preferably and specifically exhibited.

  The map further defines an offset value using the suspension type as a parameter, and the control unit uses the map to set an offset value corresponding to the suspension type in the vehicle based on external input or pre-stored vehicle information. It is preferable to derive. In this case, it is possible to consider the height of the beam axis that changes depending on the type of suspension during mounting, and it is possible to realize optimum beam axis adjustment for each type of suspension.

  The map further defines an offset value using the wheel base as a parameter, and the control unit uses the map to derive an offset value corresponding to the wheel base of the vehicle based on external input or pre-stored vehicle information. It is preferable. In this case, it is possible to take into account the elevation angle of the beam axis that changes depending on the wheel base during mounting, and it is also possible to realize the optimum adjustment of the beam axis for each wheel base.

  The axis adjustment method for the on-vehicle radar according to the present invention is an axis adjustment method for adjusting the axis of the on-vehicle radar mounted on the vehicle, and the beam axis of the on-vehicle radar is directed to the center of the reflector. A first step of operating a movable portion that changes its direction by moving, and a second step of operating the movable portion so that the angle of the beam axis of the in-vehicle radar is offset after the first step, The second step is characterized in that an offset value is derived based on at least the type of vehicle type in the vehicle, and the movable portion is operated so that the angle of the beam axis with respect to the horizontal plane is offset according to the offset value.

  The same effect as the above effect can be obtained in this on-vehicle radar axis adjustment method. In other words, considering the height of the beam axis that varies depending on the vehicle type when mounting, the optimal beam axis adjustment for each vehicle type is realized, and as a result, accurate detection of on-vehicle radar is possible even when mounting the bodywork. It can be realized.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device and an axis adjustment method that can realize accurate detection of an on-vehicle radar even when a body is mounted.

It is a schematic block diagram which shows the axis adjustment apparatus of the vehicle-mounted radar which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure explaining an example of the map memorized beforehand in the axis adjustment device of the in-vehicle radar concerning an embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the axis adjustment method of the vehicle-mounted radar which concerns on embodiment.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the same or equivalent elements will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an on-vehicle radar axis adjusting device according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device 1 according to the present embodiment is for adjusting the axis of a millimeter wave radar 10 mounted on a host vehicle (vehicle) V. Although it does not specifically limit as the own vehicle V applied, For example, commercial vehicles, such as a bus and a truck, are mentioned.

  The millimeter wave radar 10 is a radar device that can detect the surrounding situation of the host vehicle V using the millimeter wave, and is attached to, for example, the center of the front surface of the host vehicle V in the vehicle width direction. The millimeter wave radar 10 here emits a beam-like millimeter wave (an electromagnetic wave in the millimeter wave band) forward from the vehicle V and detects a reflected wave reflected from the front object surface, thereby detecting an object. Information such as the distance to the object, the size of the object, and the relative speed of the object.

  For example, the millimeter wave radar 10 can detect an object (obstacle) in front of the host vehicle V as one that constitutes a collision damage reduction brake system that contributes to reduction of collision damage. Further, for example, the millimeter wave radar 10 constitutes a cruise system that automatically controls the vehicle speed of the host vehicle V, and can detect an inter-vehicle distance and a relative speed with another vehicle preceding the host vehicle V.

  The millimeter wave radar 10 includes an antenna substrate 11, a motor 12, and a control unit 13. The antenna substrate 11 is a transmission / reception antenna having a beam axis G, and is an integrated substrate integrated with the substrate. The antenna substrate 11 transmits a millimeter wave along the beam axis G and receives the reflected wave. The antenna substrate 11 is held so that the direction of the beam axis G can be varied.

  The motor 12 is a movable part that moves the antenna substrate 11 to change the direction of the beam axis G. For example, a DC motor is used as the motor 12. The control unit 13 controls driving (operation) of the motor 12. The control unit 13 executes at least a control for driving the motor 12 based on a millimeter wave transmission / reception result (see S5 below) and a control for driving the motor 12 based on a command from the ECU 20 described later (see S8 below). (Details will be described later).

  In addition, the on-vehicle radar axis adjustment device 1 in this embodiment includes an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 20. The ECU 20 is configured by a computer including, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory).

  The ECU 20 has a function for controlling the operation of the motor 12, and is connected to the control unit 13 of the millimeter wave radar 10 via CAN (Controller Area Network) communication or the like. Further, the ECU 20 can receive vehicle information, which is information related to the host vehicle V, from an external line facility L by a receiving unit (not shown) in a wired or wireless manner.

  The ECU 20 derives an offset value based on the type of vehicle in the host vehicle V, the type of suspension, and the wheelbase. Specifically, the ECU 20 stores in advance a map that prescribes an offset value using the vehicle type, suspension type, and wheelbase as parameters, and the map is used to offset based on the received vehicle information. Deriving a value. Then, the offset value is transmitted to the control unit 13 in order to offset the angle of the beam axis G according to the derived offset value.

  The type of the vehicle type is not particularly limited, but includes a single vehicle system, a tractor system (trailer system), a bus system, and the like. The single vehicle system includes a dump truck, a cargo, a tank truck and a mixer, and the tractor system includes a semi-tractor. Furthermore, the types of the vehicle type of the host vehicle V include a front one axis, a front two axes, a rear one axis, a rear two axes, and a low floor rear two axes as a configuration relating to the wheel axis.

  The type of suspension is not particularly limited, but a leaf suspension (hereinafter also simply referred to as “leaf”) that supports the chassis by a leaf spring, and the chassis is supported by using the elasticity of compressed air. Includes air suspension. The types of air suspensions are rear air suspensions (hereinafter also referred to simply as “Rr air”) in which only the rear side is an air suspension, and full air suspensions (hereinafter simply referred to as “full air”) in which all are air suspensions. ”).

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a map stored in advance in the ECU. In the figure, A type to H type of the vehicle type indicate examples of names of the types, and Range 1 to Range 4 of the wheel base mean that the wheel base becomes longer as the number increases (that is, , Range1 <Range2 <Range3 <Range4).

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the map M, the vehicle type is first divided for each type of vehicle, each of which is divided for each type of suspension, and each of which is divided by the distance (length range) of the wheelbase, and offset. A value has been assigned. This map M has the following relationship with respect to vehicle type, suspension type, and wheelbase.

  That is, the map M includes a single vehicle system and a tractor system as types of vehicle types, and the offset value corresponding to the tractor system is larger than the offset value corresponding to the single vehicle system. Further, the map M includes a leaf suspension and an air suspension as the types of suspension, and the offset value corresponding to the leaf suspension is larger than the offset value corresponding to the air suspension. Further, the map M has a relationship that the offset value is smaller as the wheelbase is longer.

  The offset value is a value related to the angle of the beam axis G with respect to the horizontal plane (hereinafter also simply referred to as “altitude angle”). In other words, the offset value is an angle value corresponding to the rotation angle around the axis along the vehicle width direction. The offset value here can be obtained from, for example, calculation, actual measurement, or experience. As an example, the offset value is an angle value that is corrected so that the elevation angle of the beam axis G is within a predetermined angle range when the bodywork state of the host vehicle V is between an empty state and a fixed volume state. ing. The predetermined angle range is an angle range in which, for example, the beam axis G is not excessively upward / downward and no erroneous detection occurs in the millimeter wave radar 10.

  Next, an axis adjustment method implemented using the above-described on-vehicle radar axis adjustment apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, the example implemented when it is in the state before mounting in the manufacturing line of a factory here is demonstrated.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an on-vehicle radar axis adjustment method according to the embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, first, the vehicle information of the host vehicle V is transmitted from the line equipment L, which is a factory side jig, to the ECU 20, whereby the ECU 20 acquires the vehicle information (S1). The vehicle information includes at least information on the type of vehicle in the host vehicle V, the type of suspension, and the wheel base.

  Subsequently, the reflector, which is a reflector having a triangular pyramid shape, is set so as to face the center position of the millimeter wave radar 10 (S2). Then, a start request for starting the axis adjustment of the millimeter wave radar 10 is transmitted from the line equipment L to the ECU 20, and an axis adjustment mode transition command for starting the adjustment of the beam axis G from the ECU 20 to the control unit 13 of the millimeter wave radar 10. Is transmitted (S3, S4).

  In response to the axis adjustment mode transition command, the millimeter wave radar 10 automatically adjusts so that the beam axis G faces the center of the reflector (S5: first step). Specifically, a millimeter wave is transmitted (irradiated) from the antenna substrate 11 to the reflector, and the reflected wave is received by the antenna substrate 11, and the values related to transmission and reception are one reference (first value). The motor 12 is driven by the control unit 13 so that the antenna substrate 11 is moved so as to be within the range. Thereby, the direction of the beam axis G is automatically adjusted to the direction of the reflector center.

  Subsequently, an offset value is derived from the vehicle information acquired in S1 using the map M stored in advance by the ECU 20 (S6). For example, in the example of FIG. 2, when the vehicle type is A type, when the suspension is leaf, the offset value is −0.5, while when the suspension is Rr air, the offset value is 0.0. For example, when the vehicle type is B and the suspension is leaf, the offset value is −0.4 when the wheelbase is Range1, while the offset value is −0.2 when the wheelbase is Range2.

  Subsequently, the offset value derived in S6 is transmitted from the ECU 20 to the control unit 13 of the millimeter wave radar 10 (S7). Then, in the millimeter wave radar 10, the direction of the beam axis G is further automatically adjusted based on the offset value (S8: second step). Specifically, the antenna substrate 11 is moved by driving the motor 12 by the control unit 13 so that the elevation angle of the beam axis G is offset by the offset value.

  By the way, it is found that the elevation angle of the beam axis G of the millimeter wave radar 10 varies depending on at least one of the vehicle type, the suspension, and the wheel base due to the mounting of the mounting object. In this regard, in this embodiment, as described above, an offset value corresponding to the type of vehicle type in the host vehicle V is derived using the map M, and the elevation angle of the beam axis G is offset by this offset value. .

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to consider the elevation angle of the beam axis G that varies depending on the vehicle type at the time of mounting (shipping, empty vehicle, and constant product), and the optimum beam axis G for each vehicle type. Adjustment can be realized. Therefore, it is possible to realize accurate detection of the millimeter wave radar 10 even when the bodywork is mounted (regardless of the mounted state). As a result, unnecessary operation of the millimeter wave radar 10 can be suppressed, and for example, erroneous detection of road joints, road signs, and the like as obstacles can be suppressed.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the map M further uses the type of suspension as a parameter, and the offset value is derived as corresponding to the type of suspension in the host vehicle V. Accordingly, the height angle of the beam axis G that varies depending on the type of suspension during mounting can be taken into consideration, and the optimum adjustment of the beam axis G can be realized for each type of suspension.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, as described above, the map M further uses the wheel base as a parameter, and the offset value is derived as corresponding to the type of suspension in the host vehicle V. As a result, it is possible to further consider the elevation angle of the beam axis G that changes depending on the wheel base during mounting, and it is possible to realize the optimum adjustment of the beam axis for each wheel base.

  As described above, in the map M, the tractor system offset value is larger than the single vehicle system offset value, the leaf suspension offset value is larger than the air suspension offset value, and the wheelbase. The longer the is, the smaller the offset value is. These are due to the fact that the single vehicle system is more stable than the tractor system, the air suspension is more stable than the leaf suspension, and the longer the wheelbase, the more stable the vehicle posture in the pitch direction due to the bodywork. .

  Incidentally, the horizontal angle (angle in the horizontal plane) of the beam axis G in the millimeter wave radar 10 can be automatically adjusted by calculation from the angle of the millimeter wave transmitted to and received from the object when the host vehicle V is traveling, for example. it can.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. The present invention can be modified without departing from the scope described in the claims or applied to other embodiments. May be.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the millimeter wave radar 10 is applied as the in-vehicle radar, but an optical radar or the like may of course be applied. In the present invention, a radar device that transmits and receives radio waves, light, ultrasonic waves, or the like is used. It can be applied as an in-vehicle radar. The host vehicle V is not limited, and may be, for example, a large vehicle, a medium-sized vehicle, a normal passenger car, a small vehicle, or a light vehicle.

  In the above embodiment, the offset value is derived using the map M using the vehicle type, the suspension type, and the wheel base as parameters. However, the map using at least any of these parameters as parameters is used. An offset value may be derived. The offset value may be derived without using the map M. In short, the offset value may be derived based on at least one of the vehicle type, the suspension type, and the wheel base.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the vehicle information of the own vehicle V was acquired as an external input from the line equipment L, the own vehicle V may have vehicle information previously. Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the motor 12 was used as a movable part, as long as the direction of the beam axis G can be moved, you may use another means. In the above, the control unit 13 and the ECU 20 constitute a control unit for controlling the operation of the motor 12.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Axis adjustment apparatus of vehicle-mounted radar, 10 ... Millimeter wave radar (vehicle-mounted radar), 12 ... Motor (movable part), 13 ... Control part (control part), 20 ... ECU (control part), G ... Beam axis, M ... Map, V ... Own vehicle (vehicle).

Claims (5)

An axis adjustment device for adjusting the axis of an on-vehicle radar mounted on a vehicle,
A movable part that moves and changes the direction of the beam axis of the in-vehicle radar; and
A control unit for controlling the operation of the movable unit,
The controller is
Deriving an offset value based on at least the type of vehicle type in the vehicle,
An on-vehicle radar axis adjusting device, wherein the movable portion is operated so that an angle of the beam axis with respect to a horizontal plane is offset according to the offset value. The controller is
Having a map that defines the offset value with at least the type of vehicle type as a parameter;
2. The on-vehicle radar according to claim 1, wherein the offset value corresponding to a type of a vehicle type of the vehicle is derived based on vehicle information of the vehicle that is externally input or stored in advance using the map. Axis adjustment device. The map further defines the offset value with the type of suspension as a parameter,
The said control part derives | leads-out the said offset value corresponding to the classification of the suspension in the said vehicle based on the said vehicle information memorize | stored externally or using the said map using the said map. In-vehicle radar axis adjustment device. The map defines the offset value with the wheelbase as a further parameter,
The said control part derives | leads-out the said offset value corresponding to the wheelbase of the said vehicle based on the said vehicle information memorize | stored externally or using the said map using the said map. In-vehicle radar axis adjustment device. An axis adjustment method for adjusting the axis of an on-vehicle radar mounted on a vehicle,
A first step of operating a movable part that moves and changes the direction of the beam axis so that the beam axis of the in-vehicle radar faces the center of the reflector;
After the first step, the second step of operating the movable portion so that the angle of the beam axis of the in-vehicle radar is offset, and
In the second step,
Deriving an offset value based on at least the type of vehicle type in the vehicle,
An on-vehicle radar axis adjustment method, wherein the movable portion is operated so that an angle of the beam axis with respect to a horizontal plane is offset according to the offset value.

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