JP2016199124A - Sound field control device and application method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a device capable of providing notification about various pieces of information by a sound having a sound field formed for an occupant in a vehicle.SOLUTION: A device, which notifies an occupant in a vehicle about information by forming a sound field, includes detection means for detecting the occupant's head position or posture, and sound field calculation means into which at least the detected information and vehicle driving information are input and which forms the sound field on the basis of the input information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus and an application method for notifying a vehicle occupant of various information by means of a sound generated in a sound field.

  Communication information with passengers by a large number of voices such as notifications of vehicle driving conditions and obstacles, warnings of approaching vehicles, voices from navigation systems, hands-free telephones, and the like are increasing. In particular, the driver basically has to pay attention to the front, and the information is basically the display or voice.

  Notification by voice to a vehicle occupant or driver is usually output from a car audio speaker, or is made from a discrete speaker attached to the device. In addition, regarding a voice notification method, a technique using sound image localization described in Patent Document 1 is also known.

With regard to the sound field space generation technology, the reality generation and sound source localization technologies are used in AV equipment including the one described in Patent Document 2.
In addition, these technologies can contribute to driving assistance for the driver.

JP 2012-201162 A Japanese Patent No. 4465870

  However, the techniques described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are not sufficient to reflect the changes in posture and driving conditions of passengers including the actual driver, and in addition, the acoustic environment in the vehicle compartment and the auditory characteristics of the driver are not considered. The effect could not be demonstrated.

  Specifically, there are frequent changes in the posture when checking the driver's left and right and backwards, and when checking the instrument, etc. It is conceivable that the driver is driving.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and senses the position change, posture and driving situation of passengers including the driver, and adapts the sound field accordingly, regardless of the above changes. The purpose is to provide vehicle information in an easily recognizable sound field by transmitting appropriate information and eliminating differences in personal sound field recognition.

  In order to achieve the above object, the sound field control device for a vehicle according to the present invention provides a position and posture of the head based on signals from a camera (2) that detects at least the posture of a passenger including a driver or a signal from an ultrasonic sensor. The output of the head position discriminating means (3) and the driving environment, vehicle signals, alarm signals, telephone / mail signals, etc. are input to the sound field control means (1).

  The sound field control means (1) comprises a situation signal determination means (4), a sound field calculation means (5), and a sound field correction means (6). The status signal discriminating means (4) receives a vehicle signal including a signal from the camera or the like, an alarm signal, and a telephone / mail signal, and discriminates the priority order and signal form of the signal.

  Here, the vehicle signal indicates the driving state of the vehicle, and indicates signals such as engine rotation, water temperature, oil amount, tire air pressure, and the like. The alarm signal is information on the position and distance of an obstacle detected when the vehicle is moving backward, the position and distance of another vehicle approaching during traveling, or notification of an obstacle ahead. This includes conditions such as a driver's sleep and physical condition changes. The telephone / mail signal is a telephone voice, a mail incoming signal, a voice reading of a mail when the vehicle is connected to a hands-free telephone or a network environment.

  The signal discriminated and output by the signal discriminating means is inputted to the sound field calculating means (5). This sound calculation means (5) is composed of sound field data in which the sound field to be generated for the input signal is recorded and calculation means for calculating the sound field based on this data, and calculates the sound field signal to be output. .

  The signal calculated and output by the sound field calculating means is input to the next-stage sound field correcting means (6). The sound field correcting means (6) has a correction map, performs correction according to the correction map and outputs it, and also receives signals from the camera (2) and the like for detecting the posture of the passenger such as the driver. The most effective sound field is formed by reflecting the latest position with respect to the movement of the passenger. The driver, especially the driver, changes the position and posture of the head every moment to check the surrounding conditions, so it is effective to create a sound field at the latest position, and the correction is updated. It is possible to make a notification reflecting the latest situation by using the location data.

  The audio signal output means (7) receives the signal from the preceding sound field correction means (6) and outputs the signal to the connected speaker group (8). The speaker group (8) is composed of a plurality of speakers, and may be arranged on the front and rear of the vehicle, the driver's headrest, the ceiling above the driver's seat, the upper part of the dashboard, or the inside.

  With such a configuration, the sound field control device can provide voice notification and the like to passengers including the driver with a sound field.

  According to the sound field control device for a vehicle of the present invention, a passenger including a driver can be notified by voice in an optimal sound field as appropriate, so that, for example, the direction and distance of an obstacle are adjusted to the driver's posture and direction. Regardless of this, since it is possible to accurately and intuitively grasp the spatial position, it is possible to improve the safety and comfort of vehicle operation. Moreover, if it is a telephone, since the other party's voice can be heard in the ear, it contributes also to protection of privacy. In music, audio playback, etc., music and information can be provided only to a specific passenger, so that, for example, a plurality of information can be simultaneously provided for each predetermined area.

It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of Embodiment 1 of the sound field control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart of operation | movement of the condition signal discrimination | determination means of Embodiment 1 of the sound field control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart of operation | movement of the sound field correction | amendment means of Embodiment 1 of the sound field control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is effect explanatory drawing of Embodiment 1 of the sound field control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of Embodiment 2 of the sound field control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart of the operation | movement by the adjustment means of the sound field discrimination device based on this invention. It is an application example in Embodiment 1, 2 of the sound field control apparatus which concerns on this invention.

  The sound field control device according to the present invention is capable of generating and using a sound field so that a passenger including a driver can make a sound information notification most clearly and intuitively according to the content of the notification. is there.

  In recent years, information on vehicle operation includes navigation information, information via the Internet connection, information on vehicle status, collision warnings, information on approaching other vehicles, obstacle information when reversing, hands-free for mobile phone conversations, etc. Auditory information, especially for drivers, is increasing.

  For safe operation, the information cannot be said to be sufficiently communicated by simple sounds or voices, and when it is intended to convey visually, the visual information that is most necessary for safe operation is essential. It is difficult to say that the additional information added to the information increases the burden and can sufficiently contribute to safe driving of the vehicle, and an effective information notification method other than visual information has been demanded.

  Therefore, the sound field control device according to the present invention generates a sound field according to the notification content, and uses the sound field control to reliably convey the notification content most intuitively to the passenger including the driver, It enables reliable transmission of information.

(Embodiment 1)
Next, Embodiment 1 of the sound field control apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  The overall configuration of the present invention is as shown in the block diagram of FIG. A signal from the camera 2 that has photographed the driver is input to the head position determination means 3 to determine whether the driver is facing the front or the other direction. The camera 2 may be used in combination with the camera recorder or may be attached separately. A known face recognition program can be used as a driver's face discrimination program, and a function such as doze detection by detecting the frequency of blinking eyes has also been put into practical use. Needless to say, it can also be output from the device. Also, an alarm or the like by a security function by face authentication is possible. It is also possible to detect the movement and posture of the face using an ultrasonic sensor or the like instead of the camera 2.

  The signal output by the head position determining means 3 is input to the situation signal determining means 4 and the sound field correcting means 6 constituting the sound field control means 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the sound field control means 1 includes a situation signal determination means 4, a sound field calculation means 5, and a sound field correction means 6. Hereinafter, functions of the situation signal determination unit 4, the sound field calculation unit 5, and the sound field correction unit 6 will be described.

  The head position discriminating means 3 discriminates and outputs the direction and posture of the driver's face from the signal from the camera 2. This output is sent to the status signal discriminating means 4 and the sound field correcting means 6. Needless to say, the camera 2 may be an ultrasonic sensor or the like as described above.

  In addition to the signal from the head position discriminating means 3, at least a vehicle signal, an alarm signal, a telephone / mail signal, etc. are input to the status signal discriminating means 4. Here, the vehicle signal means an engine including at least the vehicle speed, mission abnormality information, a signal related to traveling such as tire air pressure, and the like. The alarm signal is the condition of the obstacle at the time of retreating, for example, the distance to the obstacle, the direction, and the like. When traveling, it is information on a vehicle approaching from behind or obliquely behind, or a signal such as an obstacle in front or a collision warning. The telephone / mail signal indicates a signal input when the vehicle is connected to a hands-free telephone or the Internet.

  An important function of the status signal discriminating means 4 is a function of performing allocation in accordance with the priority order defined by a predetermined rule and sequentially outputting it while the above-mentioned various types of signals are input. If this function is not provided, a plurality of notifications may be output at the same time regardless of their importance, which may cause driver confusion and inappropriate maneuvering.

  The sound field calculation means 5 comprises a sound field map and calculation means as shown in FIG. Here, the sound field map receives a signal from the preceding situation signal discriminating means 4 and holds output data relating to the sound field formation corresponding to the signal corresponding to various input signals. The calculation means reads out the sound field map and outputs it to the sound field correction means 6 at the next stage.

  The sound field calculation means 5 will be described in detail later, but the sound field map and calculation means can change data with respect to basic map data and have a so-called learning function. Needless to say.

  The sound field correction means 6 receives signals from the sound field calculation means 5 and the head position determination means 3. The sound field correction means 6 corrects the signal from the sound field calculation means 5 based on the correction map based on the signal from the head position determination means 3, and regardless of the direction of the head of the passenger including the driver. Make sure that the direction and location of the alarm event is accurately reported. Specifically, it is performed by correcting and changing various parameters forming the sound field formed by the sound field calculation means 5.

  The reason why the sound field correcting means 6 is at this position in signal processing is that it is important to reflect the head position and posture of the passenger including the latest driver in order to enhance the effect of the present invention. is there. The corrected signal is output to the audio signal output means 7 at the subsequent stage.

  The audio signal output means 7 receives the output from the sound field correction means 6 and outputs a signal to the subsequent speaker group 8. The audio signal output means 7 converts the digital signal from the audio signal output means 7 into an analog signal and outputs it to a specific speaker of the speaker group 8. In this way, sound from each speaker is combined to form a sound field. Further, the number of speaker groups 8 needs to be at least two, and the target sound field effect tends to increase as the number increases.

  FIG. 2 shows a flow of the operation of the above-mentioned status signal discriminating means 4. If there is an input signal in the means, the type of the signal is determined. If the input signal is an alarm signal, it is determined at step S201 that the input signal is present, and the process proceeds to the next step to search the generated signal map and output a predetermined sound field signal at step S202. After this signal output, the presence or absence of a change in the alarm signal is confirmed in step S203. If there is a change, the generated signal map is searched again according to the change. If there is no change, it is output as it is. This process is for outputting the latest information, for example, when the distance information changes every moment.

  If NO in step S201, the process proceeds to step S204 for determining the presence or absence of a vehicle signal. If the signal is a vehicle signal, the generated signal is searched in step S205, and after passing through step S206 for determining the presence or absence of a change in the signal, A process similar to that in steps S202 and S203 is performed and output.

  If NO in step S204, the process proceeds to step S207 to proceed to a step of determining the presence / absence of a telephone / mail signal, and thereafter the same processing as described above is performed.

  By performing such processing, notifications are made in descending order of priority among a large number of inputs. Further, a signal with high urgency may be notified of the highest priority signal by using means such as interruption.

  FIG. 3 shows the process of the sound field correcting means 6. The sound field correction means 6 receives the head position determination signal from the head position determination means 3, and the presence / absence thereof is determined in step S207. If it is determined that the sound field correction means 6 is present, the process proceeds to step S208 and the sound field correction map is displayed. The correction value corresponding to the position of the head is retrieved and read, and correction is performed. In step S209, the signal from the sound field calculation means 5 in the previous stage is corrected and output. As a result, an accurate sound field can be provided regardless of a change in the position of the head of the passenger including the driver.

  FIG. 4 illustrates an example of the effect according to the present invention. FIGS. 4A and 4B show a case where there is an obstacle on the left rear when the vehicle is moving backward, and the proximity sensor detects it. The figure in (a) forms a sound field where a notification sound is emitted from the direction of the obstacle to the driver facing the front, and it feels as if a voice is being heard from the left rear. Yes. The figure shown to (b) has shown the case where the driver | operator has faced the right direction in the same situation. Even in such a situation, the notification sound is uttered from the left rear by the action of the head position determination signal and the sound field correcting means 6 described above, so that the driver intuitively Direction and distance can be recognized. Next, FIG. 4 (c) shows an example in which the speaker group 8 is attached to the upper ceiling or headrest of the driver's seat, and the driver turns his head to the left as the vehicle approaches from the right side. Shows the situation. Even in such a case, since the warning sound is heard from the direction of the approaching vehicle, it can react intuitively and reflexively, and the notification effect is far greater than that of a conventional system that simply outputs an alarm sound from a speaker.

(Embodiment 2)
The description of the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. A feature of the second embodiment is that a signal from the adjusting means 9 is inputted to the sound field correcting means 6. The adjusting means 9 is provided with a registration button 10 and an adjustment switch 11. The adjustment switch 11 allows passengers including the driver to adjust the front and rear, right and left of the sound source and the degree of hearing, and can be adjusted to a position where the sound field effect appears most clearly. The registration buttons 10 are switches for registering adjusted positions. In FIG. 5, four buttons are arranged so that four people can register. Of course, the number of registrations is not limited to four.

  The reason for providing the adjusting means 9 is that the generated sound field often depends on the individual auditory characteristics, and may be appropriate for one person but may not be sufficiently effective for another person. In the prior art, a technique for arranging and feeding back a microphone is disclosed, but the system is large and unsuitable for practical use. By doing so, an optimal sound field effect can be obtained with simple means. it can.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the adjusting means 9 includes a switch for moving the sound field back and forth and left and right and a knob described as clear. To optimize the sound field, it is not necessary to simply move or rotate the sound field back and forth or adjust the volume, but it is necessary to adjust the sound field forming parameters as appropriate. Therefore, in order to make it easy for the adjuster to understand, a switch in the direction of front and rear, left and right and a switch of clear are provided. A combination of a plurality of parameters for forming a sound field is calculated from signals from these two switches so that an optimum sound field can be formed.

  Next, FIG. 6 will be described. This shows the process of adjusting to the personal characteristics by the adjusting means described above. If YES in step S210 to determine whether an adjustment signal is input, the value from the adjustment switch 11 is read in the next step S211 and a correction value is calculated in step S212 and registered in the correction map in step S213. When instructed by the registration button 10 by this process, an optimum sound field can be obtained by using this correction value. At the time of registration, adjustment may be performed for each typical head position and posture. When step S210 is NO, the process as described in FIG. 3 is performed.

  Next, FIG. 7 will be described. This figure shows a case where there are a large number of passengers such as sightseeing buses, and speaking in different languages. In such an environment, the sound field control means according to the present invention is arranged in a plurality of predetermined regions, a different sound field is generated for each region, and information is notified for each region without interference. Yes.

  In FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B, passengers are boarded according to the language used, and four speakers 8 are arranged in each area. Using the two sound field control devices of the present invention, the boundary between regions (A) and (B) is identified, the direction of the head of the passenger is detected, and the sound field is controlled to control the sound field for each region. Generate.

  For example, if the (A) area outputs tourist information in English and the (B) area outputs in Japanese, not only will it be possible to listen to explanations in each area without the interference of the sounds in each area. It becomes possible to hear a clear explanation regardless of the direction of the head with respect to the explanation of buildings and the like on the left and right.

  In addition, when notifying information with the voice of the passenger of the vehicle, a sound field can be formed and notified so that clear and accurate information can be notified to the passenger.

  The above description is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and modifications unless the features of the present invention are impaired. The constituent elements of the embodiment and the modified examples include those that can be replaced while maintaining the identity of the invention and that are obvious for replacement. That is, other forms conceivable within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention are also included in the scope of the present invention. Moreover, it is also possible to arbitrarily combine one or more of the above-described embodiments and modified examples.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sound field control means 2 Camera 3 Head position discrimination means 4 Situation signal discrimination means 5 Sound field calculation means 7 Audio signal output means 8 Speaker group

Claims (5)

  An apparatus for forming a sound field and notifying information to a passenger of a vehicle, the detection means for detecting the head position or posture of the passenger, at least the detected information and the driving information of the vehicle are input, A sound field control device comprising sound field calculation means for forming a sound field based on input information.   2. The sound field control device according to claim 1, wherein output information from the detection means for detecting the head position or posture of the occupant is corrected last by a calculation process in the sound field calculation means.   The sound field calculation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the detection means for detecting the head position or posture of the passenger is a camera or an ultrasonic sensor installed inside the vehicle.   2. The sound field computing device according to claim 1, further comprising adjusting means for optimizing at least movement of the formed sound field and sound field effect, and correcting the sound field by a signal from the adjusting means. A method of applying a sound field control device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle interior space is divided into a plurality of regions, the sound field control device is arranged for each region, and different information is notified for each region.

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