JP2022160207A - Controller for camera monitoring system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a controller which quickly restores the state that a driver can visually recognize a rear side when abnormality occurs to a camera monitoring system.SOLUTION: A controller 15 includes an abnormality detection part 21 and a visual recognition state switch part 22. The abnormality detection part 21 detects abnormality of CMS 10. The visual recognition state switch part 22 puts a monitor 12 to non-display and a visual recognition state using the monitor 12 is switched to a visual recognition state using a half mirror 18 when abnormality of the CMS 10 is detected. Thus, even when abnormality occurs to the CMS 10, defects such as component burning can be prevented in advance, by detecting the state of the CMS 10. Since the monitor 12 is switched to the half mirror 18 without requiring the driver 91 to operate, it is possible to quickly restore the state that the driver 91 can visually recognize a rear side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a control device for a camera monitoring system.

Conventionally, a camera monitoring system (hereinafter referred to as CMS) using a camera and a monitor has been put into practical use in place of a vehicle interior rearview mirror using only a mirror. Among the CMSs on the market, there is one, such as that disclosed in Patent Document 1, which is combined with a half-mirror so that the driver can use either the monitor or the half-mirror depending on his intention.

JP 2013-244753 A

By the way, UN-R46 Convention Regulation on Indirect Visibility, which is a UN regulation, states that ``the driver must recognize that the system is inoperable (e.g., CMS failure) (by warning display, display information, lack of status indicator, etc.). shall be made possible. Information for drivers shall be explained in the user manual. ] is stipulated. In the conventional CMS, for example, if the camera image is abnormal, the monitor continues to display "no signal". However, even if it is possible to inform the driver of the system abnormality, the driver will continue to be unable to visually recognize the rear.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been created in view of such a point, and its object is to provide a control device that can quickly return to a state in which the driver can see the rear in the event of an abnormality in the CMS.

The control device of the present invention is used for a CMS that allows the driver to view the rear of the vehicle by displaying an image captured by a camera on a monitor and showing the image on the monitor through a half mirror to the driver of the vehicle. , an abnormality detection unit and a visibility state switching unit.

The anomaly detector detects an anomaly of the CMS. When an abnormality of the CMS is detected, the viewing state switching unit hides the display of the monitor and switches from the viewing state using the monitor to the viewing state using the half mirror. As a result, even if an abnormality occurs in the CMS, it is possible to prevent failures such as component burning by detecting the system state. In addition, the monitor can be switched to the half mirror without the driver's operation, so the driver can quickly return to a state where the rear can be seen.

Preferably, the angle of the half-mirror with respect to the driver does not change between the viewing state using the monitor and the viewing state using the half-mirror. The visual recognition state switching unit switches the visual recognition state using the monitor to the visual recognition state using the half mirror simply by turning off the monitor. As a result, it is not necessary to manually adjust the angle of the half mirror when switching the viewing state, and it is not necessary to automatically change the angle of the half mirror using an actuator or the like. Therefore, the system can be simplified. Moreover, the time required for switching the visual recognition state can be shortened as much as possible.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a CMS of one embodiment; FIG. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining processing executed by the control device in FIG. 1; FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an abnormality processing routine executed by the control device in FIG. 1;

[One embodiment]
A control device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. A controller is used in the CMS. CMS is a system that uses a camera and a monitor to replace the traditional mirror-only interior rear-view mirror.

<CMS>
The CMS 10 will be described with reference to FIG. CMS 10 comprises camera 11 , monitor 12 , monitor switch 13 , LED lamp 14 and controller 15 .

The camera 11 is installed in the vehicle 90 so as to be able to photograph the rear of the vehicle. A monitor 12 is installed in the mirror unit 16 and displays an image captured by the camera 11 . The mirror unit 16 has a housing 17, a half mirror 18 installed in the opening of the housing 17 on the rear side of the vehicle, and an arm 19 that supports the housing 17 so that the angle can be changed. The monitor 12 is installed inside the housing 17 and on the front side of the vehicle with respect to the half mirror 18 . The half mirror 18 can transmit screen display light from the monitor 12 .

The monitor switch 13 is a switch for the driver 91 to manually switch the screen display of the monitor 12 between ON (display) and OFF (non-display). LED lamp 14 is a lamp for indicating the state of CMS 10 . The control device 15 processes the image signal output from the camera 11 and displays it on the monitor 12 as an image. The control device 15 also adjusts the brightness, hue, chromaticity, etc. of the monitor 12 and displays various messages on the monitor 12 . The monitor switch 13 , the LED lamp 14 and the control device 15 may be arranged in the mirror unit 16 or may be arranged outside the mirror unit 16 .

The CMS 10 displays the image captured by the camera 11 on the monitor 12 and shows the image on the monitor 12 to the driver 91 of the vehicle 90 through the half mirror 18 so that the driver 91 can visually recognize the rear of the vehicle. In addition, the CMS 10 hides the monitor 12 and shows the image reflected on the half mirror 18 to the driver 91 so that the driver 91 can visually recognize the rear of the vehicle.

In the following description, the state in which the driver 91 can visually recognize the rear of the vehicle by looking at the image displayed on the monitor 12 is referred to as the state of visual recognition using the monitor 12, and the image of the driver 91 reflected in the half mirror 18. A state in which the rear of the vehicle can be visually recognized by looking at it is referred to as a state of visual recognition using a half mirror. By operating the monitor switch 13, the driver 91 can use either the monitor-based visual recognition state or the half-mirror-based visual recognition state according to his/her own intention.

<Conventional problem>
Here, the problems of the conventional CMS will be explained. A conventional CMS has a mechanism for tilting the mirror surface of the half mirror upward when using the monitor compared to when using the half mirror. Therefore, even if the driver is notified of the abnormality of the CMS by the monitor display, the driver must manually switch to the visual recognition state using the half mirror. Simply turning off the monitor does not allow rearward visibility, and the angle of the half-mirror must be adjusted. Also, if the backlight of the monitor is left on, the visibility of the mirror is poor due to the light (brightness) of the backlight.

<Characteristics of one embodiment>
One embodiment has the following features for the above conventional problem. The control device 15 includes an abnormality detection section 21 and a visibility state switching section 22 . The anomaly detector 21 detects an anomaly of the CMS 10 . When an abnormality of the CMS 10 is detected, the viewing state switching unit 22 hides the monitor 12 and switches from the viewing state using the monitor 12 to the viewing state using the half mirror 18 . "Hiding the monitor" includes both turning off the screen of the monitor while the power remains on and turning off the power of the monitor. As a result, even if an abnormality occurs in the CMS 10, by detecting the state of the CMS 10, it is possible to prevent failures such as parts burning. In addition, since the monitor 12 is switched to the half mirror 18 without requiring the operation of the driver 91, the driver 91 can immediately return to a state in which the rear can be visually recognized.

Further, the angle of the half mirror 18 with respect to the driver 91 does not change between the visual recognition state using the monitor 12 and the visual recognition state using the half mirror 18 . The visual recognition state switching unit 22 switches the visual recognition state using the monitor 12 to the visual recognition state using the half mirror 18 only by turning off the monitor 12 . As a result, when switching from the viewing state using the monitor 12 to the viewing state using the half mirror 18, there is no need to manually adjust the angle of the half mirror 18, and the angle of the half mirror 18 can be adjusted using, for example, an actuator. There is no need to change automatically. Therefore, the driver 91 can quickly return to a state in which the rear view can be seen, and the system can be simplified.

Each of the functional units 21 and 22 of the control device 15 may be realized by hardware processing using a dedicated logic circuit, or may be realized by software processing by executing a program pre-stored in memory by the CPU. . Which part of the functional units 21 and 22 is implemented by hardware processing and which part is implemented by software processing can be selected as appropriate.

<Processing executed by the control device>
Next, a series of processes executed by the control device 15 for detecting an abnormality in the CMS 10 and switching the viewing state will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. The process shown in FIG. 2 is executed when the monitor 12 is activated by turning on the monitor switch 13 or the like. In the following description, "S" means step.

2, the state of the CMS 10 such as the image signal of the camera 11, the power supply voltage of the camera 11, the power supply voltage of the backlight of the monitor 12, various supply voltages, and the temperature of the monitor 12 is displayed in S100. Based on the information (hereinafter referred to as system information), the presence or absence of abnormality in the CMS 10 is determined. CMS 10 anomalies include, for example, no signal, screen freeze, overheating, and power overload. If the CMS 10 is abnormal (S100: Yes), the process proceeds to S200. If the CMS 10 is not abnormal (S100: No), the process executes S100 again.

At S200, the abnormality processing routine shown in FIG. 3 is called and executed. When the routine of FIG. 3 is started, in S201, it waits for a predetermined time (for example, 3 seconds). After S201, the process proceeds to S202.

In S202, whether or not there is an abnormality in the CMS 10 for the second time is determined based on the system information. If the CMS 10 is abnormal (S202: Yes), the process proceeds to S203. If the CMS 10 is not abnormal (S202: No), the process proceeds to S100.

At S203, the CMS 10 is reset. After S203, the process proceeds to S204.

In S204, it is determined whether or not there is an abnormality in the CMS 10 for the third time based on the system information. If the CMS 10 is abnormal (S204: Yes), the process proceeds to S205. If the CMS 10 is not abnormal (S204: No), the process proceeds to S100.

At S205, the brightness of the monitor 12 is lowered. Subsequently, in S206, a message is displayed on the monitor 12 informing that the CMS 10 is abnormal. Subsequently, in S207, the LED lamp 14 is changed from lighting to blinking. Subsequently, in S208, it waits for a predetermined time (for example, 3 seconds). Subsequently, in S209, the monitor 12 becomes non-display. After S209, the process returns to the routine of FIG. 2, and the routine of FIG. 2 ends.

<effect>
As described above, when an abnormality of the CMS 10 is detected, the monitor 12 is hidden, and the state of visual recognition using the monitor 12 is switched to the state of visual recognition using the half mirror 18, so that the driver 91 can visually recognize the rear side. You can get back in shape quickly.

In addition, since the angle of the half mirror 18 with respect to the driver 91 does not change between the visual recognition state using the monitor 12 and the visual recognition state using the half mirror 18, the monitor 12 can be turned off by using, for example, an actuator or the like. Without changing the angle of the half-mirror 18, the driver 91 can quickly return to a state in which the rear can be visually recognized.

[Other embodiments]
In another embodiment, an actuator that changes the angle of the half mirror may be provided, and the visibility state switching unit may be configured to hide the monitor and change the angle of the half mirror using the actuator. Even so, the monitor can be switched to the half mirror without the driver's operation, so the driver can quickly return to a state where the rear can be seen.

As described above, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and can be embodied in various forms without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

10 CMS, 11 camera, 12 monitor, 13 monitor switch,
14 LED lamp, 15 control device, 16 mirror unit, 17 housing,
18 half mirror, 19 arm, 21 abnormality detection unit, 22 visual recognition state switching unit,
90 vehicles, 91 drivers.

Claims (2)

A control device for a camera monitoring system that allows the driver to view behind the vehicle by displaying an image captured by a camera on a monitor and showing the image on the monitor to the driver of the vehicle through a half mirror,
an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality in the camera monitoring system;
a viewing state switching unit that hides the monitor when an abnormality of the camera monitoring system is detected and switches from the viewing state using the monitor to the viewing state using the half mirror;
A controller for a camera monitoring system comprising: The angle of the half mirror with respect to the driver does not change between the viewing state using the monitor and the viewing state using the half mirror,
2. The control device for a camera monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said visual recognition state switching unit switches from a visual recognition state using said monitor to a visual recognition state using said half mirror only by hiding said monitor.

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