JP2023139440A - In-cabin controller - Google Patents

Abstract

To perform control which does not deviate from an action level of a numerical value included in utterance of a user and to prevent the user from feeling discomfort when an on-vehicle unit is controlled in accordance with the utterance of the user.SOLUTION: When an air conditioning unit 11 is controlled, an utterance command corresponding to each of a plurality of numerical values smaller than a first threshold of a lower limit of a controllable range (18°C to 32°C) and an utterance command corresponding to a plurality of numerical values larger than a second threshold of an upper limit are stored in a memory 22, first control for controlling an air conditioning temperature to a lowest temperature (temperature of the first threshold) is performed when the numerical value included in the utterance of the user is matched with any of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold stored in the memory 22 by collation determination of the voice recognition part 21, and second control for controlling the air conditioning temperature to a highest temperature (temperature of a second threshold) is performed when the numerical value included in the utterance of the user is matched with any of the numerical values larger than the second threshold stored in the memory 22 by collation determination of the voice recognition part 21.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle interior control device that recognizes a user's utterance and controls in-vehicle equipment installed in the vehicle interior to an operating level corresponding to a numerical value included in the recognized utterance.

Conventionally, in a voice recognition device that recognizes the voice uttered by a person (user), as described in Patent Document 1, when recognizing the voice uttered by the user, a two-dimensional image taken around the user's mouth and a three-dimensional image are used. The accuracy of speech recognition is improved by estimating vowels and consonants through speech recognition using images.

By the way, some air conditioners for vehicles (hereinafter also referred to as air conditioners) are capable of controlling the air conditioning in the vehicle interior using the vehicle user's voice. An example of this type of device is one that includes a voice recognition section as described in Patent Document 1, and a control section that performs air conditioning control in accordance with the operation instructions recognized by the voice recognition section.

In recent years, car audio systems equipped with a display called Display Audio (hereinafter also referred to as DA) have been installed in vehicles, and this DA allows the tuner to receive FM/AM radio broadcasts. In addition to displaying videos saved on a USB device on the display and playing music for output, you can also connect a specified app on your smartphone with Bluetooth (registered trademark) and output it from the speaker. Some devices have functions such as displaying navigation images on the display by operating the corresponding navigation app on the smartphone with voice, and providing voice guidance on the navigation route. Since it is also possible to operate the above-described DA by voice input, it is also considered to utilize the voice input function of such a DA for the above-described operation of air conditioning control in the vehicle interior.

In this case, a communication system based on the CAN (Controller Area Network) protocol, which is generally installed as in-vehicle communication, is used, and the communication system between the DAECU (Electronic Control Unit), which controls the DA, and the air conditioner ECU, which controls the air conditioning inside the vehicle, is used. During this time, the air conditioner is controlled to the air conditioner temperature input by voice through serial communication carried out at a predetermined communication cycle via the communication bus.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-60693

However, in voice recognition when controlling an air conditioner according to the air conditioner temperature input by voice, different consonants with the same vowel component are estimated from a two-dimensional image and a three-dimensional image around the user's mouth, as described in Patent Document 1 mentioned above. Even if misperceptions are suppressed by doing so, misperceptions may still occur due to the confusing pronunciation and pronunciation of Japanese.

For example, the pronunciation and pronunciation of "10 (ju)" and "20 (niju)" are confusing, so even if you have two-dimensional and three-dimensional images of the area around the mouth, it is difficult to pronounce and read "10 (ju)" and "20 (niju)".・Do)” is mistakenly recognized as “27℃ (niju・nana・do)”, and “16℃ (ju・roku・do)” is mistakenly recognized as “26℃ (niju・roku・do)”. or

Furthermore, depending on the vehicle air conditioner, the controllable air conditioning temperature is limited to a predetermined temperature range (for example, 18°C to 32°C), and local voice recognition with a simpler configuration than the voice recognition device described in Patent Document 1 is required. Efforts are also being made to simplify the configuration of air conditioners that are equipped with such devices and can be controlled based on voice input. In this type of local voice recognition device, in order to control the air conditioner to the operating level corresponding to each numerical value in the predetermined temperature range of 18°C to 32°C, each of the numerical values 18 to 32 corresponding to each of the plurality of operating levels is used. The utterance command is stored in the storage unit in advance, a numerical value included in the user's utterance is acquired, and the numeric value included in the acquired user's utterance is determined to be one of the numerical values 18 to 32 stored in the storage unit. When it is determined that they match, the air conditioner is controlled to the operating level corresponding to the numerical value (air conditioning temperature) determined to be a match.

However, in the case of a vehicle equipped with an air conditioner that has a control function using a local voice recognition device, users in the vehicle often do not know that the air conditioner for the vehicle can only control the temperature within a predetermined temperature range. Therefore, when an air conditioner temperature that exceeds the lower or upper side of the predetermined temperature range is instructed by voice, even if an attempt is made to control the temperature to the voice input, the input voice will be misunderstood and the air conditioner will cause an error that the user did not intend. There is a risk that the temperature will be controlled by the air conditioner.

Specifically, the user riding in the vehicle lowers the air-conditioning temperature to below 18 degrees Celsius, which is the lower limit of the predetermined temperature range, in order to rapidly cool the interior of the vehicle because the temperature inside the vehicle is rising according to the outside temperature. When you say ``17℃'' to lower the temperature to 17℃, as mentioned above, ``17℃ (ju・nana・do)'' and ``27℃ (niju・nana・do)'' are confusing. , since the memory of the local voice recognition device only stores spoken commands that correspond to the controllable temperature range of 18℃ to 32℃, the local voice recognition device can only recognize the ``17℃'' uttered by the user. is incorrectly pronounced and pronounced as "27℃" which is stored in the memory, and as a result, the air conditioner is controlled to 27℃ instead of the user's intended 17℃, and the temperature inside the vehicle increases. Since the air conditioner does not lower, the user may suspect that the air conditioner is malfunctioning or may feel uncomfortable.

In addition, when a user in a car wants to lower the air-conditioning temperature to 16°C, 15°C, or 14°C, which is lower than the lower limit of the predetermined temperature range of 18°C, A similar problem occurs when the user utters "℃".

The present invention provides control that does not deviate from the operation level of the numerical value included in the user's utterance when controlling in-vehicle equipment to a plurality of operation levels corresponding to consecutive numerical values within a predetermined range in response to the user's utterance. The purpose is to execute the program in a way that does not make the user feel uncomfortable.

In order to achieve the above object, the in-vehicle control device of the present invention recognizes the user's utterance and controls the in-vehicle equipment installed in the vehicle to an operating level corresponding to the numerical value included in the recognized utterance. In an in-vehicle control device for controlling the in-vehicle device, the memory unit stores speech commands of numerical values corresponding to each of the plurality of operation levels, in order to control the in-vehicle equipment to a plurality of operation levels corresponding to each of consecutive numerical values within a predetermined range. and obtaining a numerical value included in the user's utterance, and checking whether the obtained numerical value included in the user's utterance matches any of the numerical values of the plurality of utterance commands stored in the storage unit. When it is determined that a numerical value included in the user's utterance acquired by the determining unit and the determining unit matches any one of the numerical values of the plurality of utterance commands stored in the storage unit, a control unit that controls the in-vehicle equipment to an operation level corresponding to a numerical value included in the user's utterance acquired by the determination unit, and the storage unit stores a first threshold value that is a numerical value at the lower limit of the predetermined range. The control section stores speech commands for each of a plurality of numerical values smaller than , and speech commands for each of a plurality of numerical values larger than a second threshold, which is the upper limit value of the predetermined range, and the control section acquires the speech commands by the determination section. when it is determined that a numerical value included in the user's utterance matches one of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold value stored in the storage unit, the in-vehicle device is made to correspond to the first threshold value. a first control for controlling the operation level; and a numerical value included in the user's utterance obtained by the determination unit matches any one of numerical values larger than the second threshold value stored in the storage unit. When it is determined that this is the case, at least one of the second controls for controlling the in-vehicle equipment to an operation level corresponding to the second threshold value is executed.

According to such a configuration, the utterance commands corresponding to each of a plurality of numerical values smaller than the first threshold value which is the lower limit numerical value of the predetermined controllable range, and the second threshold value which is the upper limit numerical value of the predetermined range Speech commands corresponding to each of a plurality of large numerical values are stored in the storage unit, and the determination unit determines which of the numerical values included in the acquired user's utterance is smaller than the first threshold value stored in the storage unit. When it is determined that there is a match, the numerical value included in the acquired user's utterance is stored in the storage unit by the first control that controls the in-vehicle device to an operation level corresponding to the first threshold value and the determination unit. At least one of the second controls that controls the in-vehicle equipment to an operation level corresponding to the second threshold when it is determined that the vehicle matches one of the stored numerical values larger than the second threshold. Control is performed by a control unit.

Therefore, as a result of the collation determination by the determination unit, at least one of the first control and the second control is executed by the control unit, so that a plurality of operations corresponding to each consecutive numerical value within a predetermined range are executed. When controlling in-vehicle equipment based on the level, it is possible to perform control that does not deviate from the operational level of the numerical values included in the user's utterances, and this eliminates inconveniences such as the user suspecting a malfunction of the in-vehicle equipment or feeling strange. can be prevented. At this time, the control unit may execute both the first control and the second control.

In addition, the control unit determines that the determination unit determines that a numerical value included in the acquired utterance of the user matches one of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold value stored in the storage unit. When it is determined that the in-vehicle device is the same, a third control that controls the in-vehicle device to an operation level corresponding to a preset numerical value smaller than the first threshold value, instead of the first control; When it is determined by the unit that the numerical value included in the acquired utterance of the user matches any of the numerical values stored in the storage unit that are larger than the second threshold value, the unit controls the in-vehicle device to Instead of the second control, at least one of the fourth controls may be executed to control the operation level to a value that is larger than the preset second threshold value.

According to such a configuration, as a result of the collation determination by the determination unit, the control unit executes at least one of the third control and the fourth control instead of the first control and the second control. Therefore, when controlling the in-vehicle equipment to multiple operation levels corresponding to consecutive numerical values within a predetermined range, it is possible to execute control that does not deviate from the operational level of the numerical value included in the user's utterance, and the user This can prevent the person from feeling uncomfortable. At this time, the control unit may execute both the third control and the fourth control.

Further, it is preferable that the vehicle-mounted device is an air conditioner, and the numerical value corresponding to the plurality of speech commands stored in the storage unit is an air conditioning temperature in a vehicle interior by the air conditioner.

In this way, when controlling the in-vehicle air conditioner to multiple operating levels, each of which corresponds to a numerical value that is a continuous temperature within a predetermined temperature range, the numerical value that is the temperature included in the user's utterance will be controlled at the predetermined temperature. Even if the temperature is below the lower limit or above the upper limit of the range, the in-vehicle air conditioner can be controlled so as not to deviate from the air conditioning temperature of the numerical value included in the user's utterance.

According to the present invention, when controlling in-vehicle equipment to a plurality of operation levels corresponding to consecutive numerical values within a predetermined range in response to a user's utterance, the numerical value included in the user's utterance is the lower limit of the predetermined range. Even if the value is below the upper limit or exceeds the upper limit, it is possible to perform control that does not deviate from the action level of the numerical value included in the user's utterance, and it is possible to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable.

1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a vehicle interior control device of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation in FIG. 1; FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation in FIG. 1; 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of FIG. 1. FIG.

An embodiment of the vehicle interior control device of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

(composition)
The vehicle interior control device in this embodiment is configured as shown in FIG. That is, the vehicle interior control device 1 includes a microcomputer-configured DAECU 2 that is a DA control means that controls display audio (hereinafter referred to as DA), and a microcomputer that is an air conditioner control means that controls the air conditioner. A communication bus 4 for performing serial communication (hereinafter also referred to as CAN communication) at a predetermined communication cycle (60 msec) according to the CAN (Controller Area Network) protocol between the air conditioner ECU 3, the DAECU 2, and the air conditioner ECU 3 of the configuration. Equipped with The control range of the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner (vehicle air conditioner) is limited to 18°C to 32°C, and the air conditioner ECU 3 controls the air conditioning temperature at an operating level of 1°C in the range of 18°C to 32°C. The air conditioner is controlled to maintain the air conditioning temperature.

The DAECU 2 also includes a voice recognition unit 21 (corresponding to the “judgment unit” in the present invention) that recognizes the user's utterance input through the microphone 6 and compares and determines the numerical value of the air conditioning temperature included in the utterance, and a A memory 22 (corresponding to the "storage unit" in the present invention) that stores speech commands for each numerical value in advance, an audio output unit 23 that outputs voice synthesized through the speaker 7, and a communication bus 4 that outputs information. and a DA communication section 24 that performs CAN communication using the CAN protocol for transmitting and receiving. Here, the microphone 6 becomes operable by operating a microphone switch arranged on the steering wheel of the vehicle or the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, the memory 22 stores in advance utterance commands for each numerical value corresponding to each 1 degree Celsius within the air conditioning temperature control range of 18 degrees C. to 32 degrees Celsius. When the user utters a voice including the value of the air conditioner temperature to be controlled through the microphone 6, the voice recognition unit 21 recognizes the value of the air conditioner temperature included in the voice, and selects one of the values of the voice command stored in the memory 22. The voice recognition unit 21 compares and determines whether it matches any of the above, and the numerical value (air conditioning temperature) information that is determined to match is transmitted by the DA communication unit 24 via the communication bus 4 as transmission information for CAN communication. .

At this time, as shown in FIG. 2, in the memory 22, in addition to commands 18 to 32, which are spoken commands of numerical values 18 to 32 for the air conditioning temperature control range of 18 to 32 degrees Celsius, the lower limit of the control range is stored in the memory 22. Commands 17 to 10, which are spoken commands 17 to 10, which are smaller than the first threshold 18, and commands 33 to 10, which are spoken commands 33 to 39, which are larger than 32, which is the second threshold of the upper limit of the control range. Command 39 is also stored. Note that the spoken command may have a plurality of bits such as 16 bits, and is not necessarily limited to a plurality of bits.

The air conditioner ECU 3 corresponds to a "control unit" in the present invention, and this air conditioner ECU 3 includes an AC communication unit 31 that performs serial communication using the CAN protocol to transmit and receive information via the communication bus 4. Receives information regarding the numerical value (air conditioning temperature) of the comparison judgment result by the voice recognition unit 21 transmitted from the DA communication unit 24, takes in the temperature information detected by the temperature sensor 9 that detects the vehicle interior temperature, and places it on the instrument panel, etc. In addition to controlling the air conditioner unit 11 corresponding to the in-vehicle air conditioner, which is an in-vehicle device, in accordance with the switch operation of the air conditioner operation unit 10, the voice recognition unit 21 recognizes the numerical value of the air conditioner temperature included in the user's utterance. Then, when the numerical information (air conditioning temperature) is transmitted from the DA communication section 24 to the AC communication section 31, the AC communication section 31 controls the air conditioner unit 11 according to the received numerical information (air conditioning temperature).

The DAECU 2 basically controls the audio system 8, and plays music and outputs it from the speaker 7, performs audio control to display audio information on a display 8a included in the audio system 8, and provides audio guidance for navigation to the speaker 7. It performs navigation control to display the navigation route on the map on the display 8a, as well as other audio output and screen display controls.

By the way, the information transmitted from the AC communication section 31 to the DA communication section 24 includes audio feedback information regarding the set temperature of the air conditioner unit 11 as shown in FIG. For example, when the user utters "23°C" to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 to 23°C, the air conditioner ECU 3 controls the air conditioner unit 11 so that the air conditioning temperature becomes 23°C, and the AC communication unit 31 Based on the feedback voice information transmitted to the DA communication unit 24, a feedback voice saying “Set to 23° C.” is synthesized by the voice output unit 23 and output from the speaker 7.

When controlling the air conditioner unit 11 based on the user's utterance using the vehicle interior control device 1 having such a configuration, for example, when the user utters "20 degrees Celsius" to control the air conditioning temperature of the air conditioner unit 11 to 20 degrees Celsius, Among the utterance commands stored in the memory 22, the speech recognition unit 21 determines whether there is a utterance command that matches the numeric value "20" included in the utterance, and the numeric value "20" (air conditioning temperature) matches. Therefore, when information regarding the numerical value “20” is transmitted from the DA communication unit 24 to the AC communication unit 31, and when information regarding the numerical value “20” (air conditioning temperature) is received by the AC communication unit 31, the temperature sensor 9 If the temperature inside the vehicle is not 20°C, the air conditioner unit 11 is controlled by the air conditioner ECU 3 so that the air conditioning temperature becomes 20°C, and the AC communication unit 31 gives feedback to the DA communication unit 24 saying “set it to 20°C”. The voice information is transmitted, and the voice output section 23 synthesizes a feedback voice saying "Set the temperature to 20 degrees Celsius" and outputs the synthesized voice from the speaker 7 to the user.

Furthermore, when the user utters "18°C" in order to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 to the first lower limit threshold of 18°C, the air conditioner unit 11 is activated in the same manner as the control of "20°C" described above. The air conditioning temperature is controlled to the lowest controllable temperature of 18° C., and the voice output section 23 synthesizes a voice saying "Set the lowest temperature" and outputs it from the speaker 7 to the user. Further, when the user utters "32°C" to control the air conditioner temperature to the second threshold of 32°C, the air conditioner unit 11 controls the air conditioner temperature in the same manner as the control of "20°C" described above. The temperature is controlled to 32° C., which is the highest possible temperature, and the voice output section 23 synthesizes a voice saying "Set to the highest temperature" and outputs it from the speaker 7 to the user.

On the other hand, when the user utters "17 degrees Celsius" in order to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 to, for example, 17 degrees Celsius, which is lower than the first lower threshold of 18 degrees Celsius, among the spoken commands stored in the memory 22, The speech recognition unit 21 determines whether there is a speech command that matches the number "17" included in the utterance, and since the number "17" (air conditioning temperature) matches, information regarding the number "17" is determined. When information regarding the numerical value "17" (air conditioning temperature) is transmitted from the DA communication section 24 to the AC communication section 31 and received by the AC communication section 31, the received numerical value "17" of the air conditioning temperature can be controlled. Since the value is below 18°C, which is the first threshold of the lower limit of the temperature range, the air conditioner ECU 3 executes the first control on the air conditioner unit 11 so that the air conditioning temperature becomes 18°C, which is the lowest controllable temperature. At the same time, as shown in FIG. 3, the voice output section 23 synthesizes a feedback voice saying "Set the lowest temperature" and outputs it from the speaker 7 to the user.

Note that in order for the user to control the air conditioner temperature to 16°C, 15°C, 14°C, ..., 10°C, which is lower than the first lower limit threshold of 18°C, "16°C", "15°C", ..., even if you say "10 degrees Celsius", the first control to control the temperature to 18 degrees Celsius is executed in the same way as when you say "17 degrees Celsius" mentioned above, and the voice output section 23 says "Set to the lowest temperature. ” is synthesized and output from the speaker 7 to the user.

Further, when the user utters "33 degrees Celsius" in order to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 to, for example, 33 degrees Celsius, which is higher than the upper second threshold of 32 degrees Celsius, among the spoken commands stored in the memory 22, The speech recognition unit 21 determines whether there is a speech command that matches the number "33" included in the utterance, and since the number "33" (air conditioning temperature) matches, information regarding the number "33" is determined. When information regarding the numerical value "33" (air conditioning temperature) is transmitted from the DA communication section 24 to the AC communication section 31 and received by the AC communication section 31, the received numerical value "33" of the air conditioning temperature can be controlled. Since the value exceeds 32°C, which is the second threshold at the bottom of the temperature range, the air conditioner ECU 3 executes second control on the air conditioner unit 11 so that the air conditioning temperature reaches the maximum controllable temperature of 32°C. At the same time, as shown in FIG. 3, the voice output unit 23 synthesizes a feedback voice saying "Set to maximum temperature" and outputs it from the speaker 7 to the user.

Note that in order for the user to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 to 34°C, 35°C, 36°C, ..., 39°C, which is higher than the second upper limit threshold of 32°C, the user selects "34°C", "35°C". ℃'', ..., ``39℃'', the second control to control the temperature to 32℃ is executed in the same way as when uttering ``33℃'' described above, and the voice output unit is output as shown in FIG. 23, a feedback voice saying "Set to maximum temperature" is synthesized and output from the speaker 7 to the user.

(motion)
A procedure for controlling the air conditioner by the vehicle interior control device 1 having the above-described configuration will be explained with reference to FIG. 4.

Now, as shown in FIG. 4, when the user utters a voice to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11, the voice recognition unit 21 performs recognition processing for the voice uttered by the user (step S1), and the user's voice is recognized by the voice recognition unit 21. It is determined whether or not the utterance includes a numerical value representing the air conditioning temperature (step S2). If the utterance does not include a numerical value representing the air conditioning temperature and the determination result in step S2 is NO, the process returns to step S1 and the air conditioning A numerical value representing the temperature is included, and if the determination result in step S2 is YES, the numerical value representing the air conditioning temperature is set as a first threshold corresponding to the lower limit of the controllable temperature range among the spoken commands stored in the memory 22. A comparison is made to determine whether the value is greater than or equal to "18" (step S3).

If the numerical value determined in step S2 is equal to or higher than "18", which is the first threshold of the lower limit of the controllable temperature range, the determination result in step S3 becomes YES, and the process moves to the next step S4, and step S2 It is determined whether the numerical value determined in step S2 is equal to or less than a second threshold value "32" corresponding to the upper limit of the controllable temperature range (step S4), and the numerical value determined in step S2 is determined to be within the controllable temperature range. If the second upper limit threshold is "32" or less, the determination result in step S4 becomes YES, and the process moves to step S5.

In step S5, it is determined whether the temperature inside the vehicle detected by the temperature sensor 9 is the air conditioning temperature that the user has uttered in order to control the air conditioner (step S5). Since the indoor temperature is the user's desired temperature, there is no need to perform air conditioner control, so the operation ends without performing air conditioner control.

On the other hand, if the current cabin temperature detected by the temperature sensor 9 is not the user's desired temperature, the determination result in step S5 is NO, and the air conditioner ECU 3 controls the air conditioner so that the air conditioner temperature reaches the user's desired temperature, for example, 25°C. The unit 11 is controlled so that the air conditioning temperature reaches the user's desired temperature (step S6), feedback audio information is transmitted from the AC communication section 31 of the air conditioner ECU 3 to the DA communication section 24 of the DAECU 2, and the speaker 7 outputs " A feedback voice saying "Set the temperature to 25°C" is output (step S7), and then the operation ends.

By the way, if the numerical value determined in step S2 is smaller than "18", which is the first threshold of the lower limit of the controllable temperature range, and the determination result in step S3 is NO, the process moves to step S8, and the air conditioning temperature is The air conditioner unit 11 is controlled by the air conditioner ECU 3 so that the temperature becomes 18° C. (first threshold value), which is the lowest temperature in the controllable temperature range. After the first control is executed (step S8), the process proceeds to step S7. Then, feedback voice information is transmitted from the AC communication unit 31 of the air conditioner ECU 3 to the DA communication unit 24 of the DAECU 2, and the feedback voice “Set to the lowest temperature” is output from the speaker 7 (step S7), and then the operation starts. ends.

Further, if the numerical value determined in step S2 is larger than "32", which is the second upper limit threshold of the controllable temperature range, and the determination result in step S4 is NO, the process moves to step S9, and the air conditioning temperature The air conditioner unit 11 is controlled by the air conditioner ECU 3 so that the temperature reaches 32° C. (second threshold value), which is the highest temperature in the controllable temperature range. After the second control is executed (step S9), the process proceeds to step S7. Then, the feedback voice information is transmitted from the AC communication unit 31 of the air conditioner ECU 3 to the DA communication unit 24 of the DAECU 2, and the feedback voice “Set to maximum temperature” is output from the speaker 7 (step S7), and then the operation starts. ends.

In this way, the utterance commands corresponding to each of a plurality of numerical values smaller than the first threshold value "18" which is the lower limit numerical value of the temperature range (18 degrees Celsius to 32 degrees Celsius) in which the air conditioner unit 11 can be controlled, and the upper limit numerical value The speech commands corresponding to each of a plurality of numerical values larger than the second threshold "32" are stored in the memory 22, and the speech recognition unit 21 determines that the numerical value included in the user's speech is the first value stored in the memory 22. When it is collated and judged to match one of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold value "18", a first control is executed to control the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 to the first threshold value "18", that is, the lowest temperature, When the voice recognition unit 21 compares and determines that the numerical value included in the user's utterance matches any of the numerical values stored in the memory 22 that are larger than the second threshold “32”, the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 is adjusted. Second control is performed to control the temperature to the second threshold value "32", that is, the maximum temperature. Note that when the voice recognition unit 21 determines that the numerical value included in the user's utterance matches the utterance command stored in the memory 22 within the range of the first threshold “18” to the second threshold “32”, the air conditioner unit 11 The air conditioning temperature is controlled to be within the range of 18°C to 32°C.

Therefore, according to the embodiment described above, the first control and the second control are executed by the air conditioner ECU 3 as a result of the verification and determination by the voice recognition unit 21, so that each numerical value within the temperature range of 18°C to 32°C is When controlling the air conditioner unit 11 so that the air conditioner temperature corresponds to the air conditioner temperature, it is possible to execute control that does not deviate from the value included in the user's utterances and the corresponding air conditioner temperature, so that the user does not suspect that the air conditioner unit 11 is malfunctioning. It becomes possible to prevent inconveniences such as feeling uncomfortable.

Moreover, as another embodiment of the present invention, instead of the above-described first control and second control,
(1) When the voice recognition unit 21 determines that the numerical value included in the user's utterance matches one of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold “18” stored in the memory 22, the first threshold is set. a third control that controls the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 so that the temperature is a preset numerical value among numerical values smaller than "18" (for example, 16 ° C.);
(2) When the voice recognition unit 21 determines that the numerical value included in the user's utterance matches any of the numerical values stored in the memory 22 that are larger than the second threshold “32”, the second threshold is set. a fourth control for controlling the air conditioning temperature by the air conditioner unit 11 so that the temperature is a preset value among the values larger than "32" (for example, 34 ° C.);
may also be executed.

Further, only one of the first control and the second control described above may be executed, and only one of the third control and the fourth control may be executed. You can do it like this.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various changes other than those described above can be made without departing from the spirit thereof.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, a case has been described in which the air conditioner unit 11 corresponding to an on-vehicle air conditioner, which is an in-vehicle device, is controlled, but the control object is not limited to the air conditioner; In addition to controlling the brightness of a device, the present invention can also be applied to controlling the volume of audio guidance for navigation by the DAECU 2.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the result of controlling the air conditioner unit 11 by the air conditioner ECU 3 is outputted to the user as a feedback voice such as "Set the temperature to 20 degrees Celsius". Feedback may be provided to the user using other melodies, warning sounds, etc., or may be provided through display on the display 8a.

Furthermore, the configuration of the vehicle interior control device 1 is of course not limited to that shown in FIG. 1, and is not limited to voice recognition using DA.

The present invention can be applied to an in-vehicle control device that recognizes a user's utterance and controls in-vehicle equipment installed in the vehicle interior to an operating level corresponding to a numerical value included in the recognized utterance.

1... Vehicle interior control device 3... Air conditioner ECU (control unit)
11... Air conditioner unit (vehicle equipment)
21...Speech recognition unit (judgment unit)
22...Memory (storage unit)

Claims (3)

In a vehicle interior control device that recognizes a user's utterance and controls in-vehicle equipment installed in the vehicle interior to an operation level corresponding to a numerical value included in the recognized utterance,
a storage unit storing utterance commands of numerical values corresponding to each of the plurality of operation levels in order to control the in-vehicle equipment to a plurality of operation levels corresponding to each of the consecutive numerical values within a predetermined range;
Obtaining a numerical value included in the user's utterance, and comparing and determining whether the obtained numerical value included in the user's utterance matches any of the numerical values of the plurality of utterance commands stored in the storage unit. A determination section;
acquired by the determination unit when it is determined that a numerical value included in the user's utterance acquired by the determination unit matches any of the numerical values of the plurality of utterance commands stored in the storage unit. a control unit that controls the in-vehicle device to an operation level corresponding to a numerical value included in the user's utterance;
The storage unit includes:
Memorize utterance commands for each of a plurality of numerical values that are smaller than a first threshold value that is a numerical value at the lower limit of the predetermined range, and utterance commands for each of a plurality of numerical values that are larger than a second threshold value that is a numerical value for the upper limit of the predetermined range. ,
The control unit includes:
When the determination unit determines that a numerical value included in the acquired utterance of the user matches any of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold value stored in the storage unit, the in-vehicle device is a first control to control to an operating level corresponding to a first threshold;
as well as,
When the determination unit determines that a numerical value included in the acquired utterance of the user matches any of the numerical values stored in the storage unit that are larger than the second threshold value, the in-vehicle device is A vehicle interior control device that executes at least one of the second controls to control the operation level to a second threshold value. The control unit includes:
When the determination unit determines that a numerical value included in the acquired utterance of the user matches any of the numerical values smaller than the first threshold stored in the storage unit, the in-vehicle device is configured to: In place of the first control, a third control that controls to an operation level corresponding to a numerical value smaller than the first threshold value set in advance;
as well as,
When the determination unit determines that a numerical value included in the acquired utterance of the user matches any of the numerical values stored in the storage unit that are larger than the second threshold value, the in-vehicle device is configured to: Claim 1, characterized in that, in place of the second control, at least one of a fourth control is executed to control the operation level to an operation level corresponding to a numerical value larger than the preset second threshold value. The in-vehicle control device described in . The in-vehicle equipment is an air conditioner,
The vehicle interior control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the numerical value corresponding to the plurality of speech commands stored in the storage unit is an air conditioning temperature in the vehicle interior by the air conditioner.

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