JP2925925B2 - Golf cart guidance device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for guiding a golf cart used for carrying articles in a golf course.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A golf cart used in a golf course is provided with a special running path (cart) provided along a course for the purpose of preventing accidents caused by reckless driving and protecting grass on the course. The mainstream is guided driving on the road). On the other hand, use of an engine-driven golf cart that can provide a large horsepower is desired in order to enable not only the conveyance of articles such as golf bags and the like, but also the riding of players and caddies. For these reasons, in recent years, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-364506, golf carts configured to be capable of guided driving while being driven by an engine have been put to practical use.

This golf cart is provided with a pair of left and right detection coils (induction signal sensor) and another detection coil (travel sign sensor) at the front of the vehicle body. The vehicle is provided with means for adjusting the throttle opening and the braking force, and further includes steering means for steering the vehicle body. On the other hand, an induction wire through which an alternating current is applied is continuously buried in a cart path serving as a traveling path, and these positions are provided at positions where traveling conditions need to be changed, such as a change in speed or a stop. A marker magnet for instructing a change is embedded.

[0004] The golf cart constructed as described above is carried by the user according to the on / off operation of a start switch operable at the boarding position during the ride of the user, and by the user during non-ride. It is started and stopped according to the operation of the remote control transmitter. From the start to the stop,
Detecting a voltage induced in a pair of detection coils of the induction signal sensor by the action of a magnetic field formed around the induction wire, operating the steering means to eliminate the deviation of the induced voltage of both detection coils, Guidance traveling is performed by following the guidance line as a guidance sign, and during this traveling, when a sign magnet is detected by the traveling sign sensor, the speed changing means is operated to realize the traveling condition specified thereby. The travel speed is adjusted.

[0005] The adjustment of the traveling speed in accordance with the detection of the traveling sign sensor is for enabling safe traveling over the entire area of the traveling road that changes variously. Climbing up the road,
In front of dangerous places such as downhills and sharp turning points, a sign magnet (low-speed sign) that instructs driving at a speed (about 4 km / h) lower than the normal running speed (about 6 km / h). Provided, the golf cart responds to the detection of this low-speed sign,
The vehicle is driven at a low speed, and safe driving is enabled.

A marking magnet (stop sign) for instructing a stop corresponding to a predetermined position (tee ground, green, etc.) on the course is provided on the running path. The cart is automatically stopped. This makes it possible to prevent the golf cart from running out of control when the stop operation of the remote control transmitter is not performed during traveling in the non-riding state.

[0007] In addition to the low-speed sign and the stop sign, the traffic sign to be detected by the traffic sign sensor includes, for example, an instruction not to accept a start signal from the remote control transmitter, and detection of an obstacle passing ahead. It is provided to give various instructions according to the condition of the traveling road, such as an instruction to increase or decrease the sensitivity of the obstacle sensor provided for this purpose.

[0008] The above-described guided running is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-51762 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-74842 by the present applicant for a non-riding type golf cart driven by an electric motor. It can be implemented by the method described.

[0009]

However, in the use of the golf cart configured as described above, for example, the player moves to the next hitting point on foot while losing the operation of the remote control transmitter and reaches the point. If you notice that you have forgotten the operation at that point, you must start the golf cart by remote control from a distant point and wait for it, as described above,
Since the speed of the golf cart is set low in consideration of safety, there is a disadvantage that a long waiting time is imposed on the player until arrival.

[0010] The above-mentioned forgetting of the operation of the remote control transmitter is unavoidable for a player who is not accustomed to the operation and concentrates on playing, while the golf cart stagnation on the running path due to the forgetting of the operation follows. Since this also affects the player, there arises a problem that the player cannot concentrate on playing due to the operation of the golf cart.

[0011] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and by providing a section capable of traveling at a speed higher than the speed at the time of normal traveling, it is possible to provide a section from a distant position until arrival by a start operation. It is an object of the present invention to provide a golf cart guidance device that shortens the time required, reduces the waiting time of a user, reduces the occurrence of stagnation of a golf cart on a cart road, and reduces the labor for installing a sign. Aim.

[0012]

A guide device for a golf cart according to the present invention performs steering in accordance with detection of the guide sign on a travel path on which the guide sign and the travel sign are provided, and performs the steering of the guide sign. An apparatus for guiding a golf cart while maintaining a speed according to the detection, comprising means for detecting a traveling distance of the golf cart, wherein the traveling sign instructs traveling at a speed lower than an intermediate speed during normal traveling. A low-speed sign, and a high-speed sign that instructs traveling at a speed higher than the intermediate speed, and a detection result obtained by a unit that detects the low-speed sign or the high-speed sign and then detects the traveling distance. When the vehicle reaches a predetermined distance, the instruction by the low-speed sign or the high-speed sign is released and the vehicle returns to the running at the intermediate speed, and the predetermined distance to the high-speed sign is the low-speed sign. And setting longer than a predetermined distance against. In addition, the high speed sign comprises:
The running path is substantially straight, and is located in front of a section where a substantially flat portion continues.

[0013]

[0014]

According to the present invention, a low-speed sign for instructing a travel at a speed lower than an intermediate travel speed during normal traveling is provided on a traveling path on which a golf cart guides and travels, before the dangerous section. There is further provided a high speed sign for instructing the vehicle to run at a speed higher than the intermediate running speed, and the vehicle is driven at each of the low speed, the intermediate speed, and the high speed according to the detection.

The high-speed sign has a substantially straight running path, a substantially flat portion continues, and is placed in front of a section where a dangerous state can be easily confirmed to ensure safety. In addition, after the vehicle shifts to traveling at a high speed or a low speed, when the vehicle reaches a predetermined traveling distance, the vehicle is returned to the intermediate speed, and installation of a new sign for this return is omitted. Further, the traveling distance for returning to the intermediate speed is increased for a high-speed traveling in which a relatively long distance is traveled in a short time, thereby reducing the number of signs required for continuing the speed designation.

[0016]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings showing the embodiments. FIG. 1 is a side view showing the external appearance of a golf cart to which the guidance device according to the present invention is applied, and FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing the internal configuration of the golf cart.

As shown in the figure, the golf cart 1 has a front cowl 4a and a rear cowl 4b covering an upper portion of a body frame 4 supported by a pair of left and right front wheels 2, 2 and rear wheels 3, 3, and a front side of the rear cowl 4b. A seat 5a and a step 5b for seating are installed to constitute the riding section 5, and a steering column 6a protruding at a position operable in a seating position on the seat 5a is provided with a steering wheel. Steering wheel 6 is attached.

A pair of left and right supports 7a, 7a projecting rearward and upward from the front cowl 4a are provided on the upper side of the riding section 5.
(Only one side is shown), and the front side is similarly surrounded by a windshield plate 7c erected between the supports 7a, 7a so that the front side can be seen through. Crew members are protected from the elements. A mounting frame 8a on which a bulky article such as a golf bag is mounted is mounted on the rear side of the riding section 5 so as to be appropriately fixed. A small container 8b for storing small-sized articles is attached.

The golf cart 1 as described above has rear wheels 3, 3
Is used as a drive wheel, and the vehicle travels in a different direction by steering the front wheels 2 and 2. The traveling includes a manual traveling by a manual operation of a driver seated on a seat 5a of the boarding section 5 and a guided traveling performed along a predetermined traveling path as described later. It is performed only when operated by a dedicated worker, such as taking out the garage before and putting it in the garage after use, and only guided driving is possible while a general user such as a player or a caddy is riding.

The front wheels 2 are mounted on both ends of a front axle 20 laid on the front of the vehicle body frame 4 so as to be swingable about a substantially vertical axis. Are connected to both ends of a rack shaft 21 arranged side by side through separate knuckle arms 22, 22, respectively. Rack axis
21 meshes with a pinion (not shown) inside a rack housing 23 that houses the pinion,
The steering shaft 6 is pivotally supported inside the steering column 6a and is connected via a universal joint 24 to a steering shaft which rotates with the rotation of the steering wheel 6.

When the steering wheel 6 is operated, the pinion rotates via the universal joint 24, and this rotation is converted into a movement in the axial direction of the rack shaft 21, and the knuckle arm is moved by this movement. 22,22
Swings, and the front wheels 2 are steered by an angle corresponding to the operation amount in the operation direction of the steering wheel 6.

Further, the intermediate portion of the rack housing 23, is attached steering motor M _1, the output end of the steering motor M ₁ is extended to the inside of the rack housing 23, via a pinion (not shown) It is engaged with the rack shaft 21.

[0023] In Thus, when the steering motor M ₁ is rotated, this rotation is transmitted to the rack shaft 21 via the pinion, knuckle arms 22, 22 by movement in the axial direction of the rack shaft 21 is swung is allowed, the front wheels 2, 2 are steered by an angle corresponding to the rotation amount in the rotational direction of the steering motor M _1. The steering motor M ₁ is rotationally driven in accordance with a drive signal given from a travel control unit 10 mounted near the center of the body frame 4 as a steering unit of the golf cart 1 during guided traveling.

Switching between manual traveling and guided traveling is performed in response to operation of a traveling switching lever 25 arranged in the middle of the steering column 6a. The travel switching lever 25
Is configured to operate a clutch (not shown) built in the steering column 6a to disconnect the connection between the steering wheel 6 and the universal joint 24. When the clutch is disconnected, the front wheel 2 is operated by operating the steering wheel 6. , 2 of steering is disabled and only the steering in accordance with the rotation of the steering motor M ₁ is an effective induction running state. The switching of the travel switching lever 25 to the guide traveling side (or the manual traveling side) is performed by using a travel switching switch 11 that is disposed close to the lever 25 and that uses a microswitch.
(See FIG. 1). The detection result is given to the traveling control unit 10.

Next, the structure of the drive system for the rear wheels 3, 3 serving as drive wheels will be described. The engine E, which serves as a drive source for the rear wheels 3, 3, is fixed horizontally on the body frame 4 slightly forward of the left and right rear wheels 3, 3 with its output shaft directed to the left and right. A drive pulley 31 provided with a centrifugal clutch 30 is fitted to the output end.

A transmission T is fixed to the body frame 4 at a position above a rear axle 32 that houses the axles of the rear wheels 3. A driven pulley 33 is fitted to an input end of the transmission T protruding on the same side as the output end of the engine E, and the output of the engine E is wound between the drive pulley 31 and the driven pulley 33. Transmission belt
The transmission T is transmitted to the transmission T via the transmission T, and further connected to the lower portion of the transmission T to form a rear axle.
The gears are distributed by a differential gear D (see FIG. 1) coaxially formed in the middle of the rear wheel 32, and the right and left rear wheels 3, 3
To be communicated to

The drive pulley 31 and the driven pulley 33 change their widths in opposite directions by the action of the tension of the transmission belt 34 wound between them, and
The automatic transmission changes the reduction ratio at the time of transmission to the engine E according to the increase or decrease of the load of the engine E. This makes it possible to obtain a sufficient rotational torque on the rear wheels 3, 3 when a person gets on the vehicle, loads a large amount of articles, travels on a hill, or the like, when the engine E load increases. The transmission T is capable of switching only between forward and reverse. This switching is performed by a forward / reverse switching lever 36 located below the seat 5a of the riding section 5 and disposed on the side of the rear cowl 4b.
(See FIG. 1).

Further to the output end of the engine E is connected starter motor M ₄ via the starter belt 35, the engine E, as will be activated brought forcibly rotating the output shaft by the rotation of the starter motor M ₄ There is something. The centrifugal clutch 30 attached to the drive pulley 31 performs an operation of engaging when the rotation speed of the engine E reaches a predetermined magnitude, and the output of the engine E to the drive pulley 31 is extracted as described above. The operation is performed on condition that the centrifugal clutch 30 is engaged. Therefore, the above-described activation of the engine E is performed in a state where the centrifugal clutch 30 is disconnected and the transmission T is disconnected from the transmission T.
Operation or the like of a key switch (not shown) disposed in the operable position by riding section 5, it is possible to start the engine E reliably by an easy operation for driving the starter motor M _4.

A throttle motor M ₂ and a choke solenoid 38 are mounted outside the engine E. The rotation of the throttle motor M ₂ causes the throttle wire 37 to rotate.
To open and close a throttle valve (not shown) built in the engine E.
The output of is increased or decreased in accordance with the forward and reverse rotation of the throttle motor M _2.

The throttle motor M ₂ is driven to rotate in accordance with a drive signal given from the travel control unit 10 in order to adjust the traveling speed of the golf cart 1 during guided traveling. Throttle opening determined depending on the rotation, as a medium rotation angle of the throttle motor M _2, are given to the travel control unit 10 is detected by the throttle opening sensor 50 formed by using a potentiometer or the like.

On the other hand, the speed of the golf cart 1 during manual running is adjusted in accordance with the depression of the accelerator pedal AP protruding above the step 5b of the riding section 5. However, the throttle wire 37 of the engine E and the accelerator pedal AP are not mechanically connected, and the speed adjustment during manual running is performed by controlling the depression amount of the accelerator pedal AP by an accelerator sensor 51 using a potentiometer or the like. detecting, by driving the throttle motor M ₂ by the operation of the travel control unit 10 based on the detection result are performed by the procedure of adjusting the output of the engine E.

On the other hand, the choke solenoid 38 is connected to the engine E
The choke valve is connected to a choke valve (not shown) disposed in the fuel supply system, and the choke valve is opened in accordance with energization of the exciting coil to increase the fuel concentration in the mixture supplied to the engine E. What to do. The energization of the choke solenoid 38 is performed in response to the operation of a choke button (not shown) arranged at a position operable in the riding section 5.
This is performed when it is difficult to start up quickly.

The left and right rear wheels 3, 3 are provided with brakes 40, 40 for applying a braking force to each of them. These brakes 40, 40 are connected to the accelerator pedal AP.
Are connected to a brake pedal BP protruding above the step 5b of the riding section 5 through separate brake wires 41, 41 shown by two-dot chain lines in the figure and a link mechanism (not shown). Further, the arrangement position of the brake pedal BP on the vehicle body frame 4 in the rear, is attached a brake motor M _3, the output end of the brake motor M ₃ are, speed reducer that is not shown, and in common with the brake pedal BP The brake wires 41 are connected to the brake wires 41 via a link mechanism.

The brake wire 41, 41 Thus, the depression of the brake pedal BP, or pulled in response to the rotation of the brake motor M _3, the brake 40 according to this tension,
The braking force generated by 40 is applied to the rear wheels 3,3, respectively. Interference with the rotation of the stepping the brake motor M ₃ of the brake pedal BP is are no to be absorbed by the link mechanism.

The brake motor M ₃ is driven to rotate in accordance with a drive signal given from the travel control unit 10 in order to stop the golf cart 1 during guided travel and to adjust the travel speed. Braking force applied to the rear wheels 3 by the rotation, as the rotation angle of the brake motor M _3, are given in the travel control unit 10 is detected by the brake sensor 52 formed by using the potentiometer or the like.

At the front of the golf cart 1, a halfway portion is pivotally supported substantially at the center of the front axle 20, and a sensor arm 60 is provided.
Is installed. The sensor arm 60 is connected to the body frame 4
Is extended to the front of the front wheels 2 and 2 at the lower side, and is branched to the left and right sides. At these branch ends, a pair of guidance signal sensors 61 and 61 are provided with the front wheels 2 and 2 and the rear wheel 3. 3 is mounted facing the road surface to be grounded. The rear end of the sensor arm 60 is engaged with the rack shaft 21 inside the rack housing 23, and moves left and right with the rack shaft 21. With this configuration, the guide signal sensors 61, 61 at the front of the sensor arm 60 follow the steering of the front wheels 2, 2 accompanying the movement of the rack shaft 21, and move on both the left and right sides in a plane substantially parallel to the road surface. Will swing.

On the bottom surface of the body frame 4 slightly rearward of the rack housing 23, the front wheels 2, 2 and the rear wheels 3, 3 are opposed to a ground surface at a position shifted from the center in the width direction to one side. At least a traffic sign sensor 62 is attached. Both the traffic sign sensor 62 and the guidance signal sensors 61, 61 are coils that generate an induced voltage by the action of a peripheral magnetic field, and the former is a coil of the guidance wire 9a that is buried under the road surface and is supplied with an alternating current. A magnetic field formed around the object is a detection target, and a magnetic field formed by the marker magnet 9b buried at a required position below the road surface is a detection target. The detection results of the guidance signal sensors 61, 61 and the traffic sign sensor 62 are given to the travel control unit 10 as voltage signals induced by them.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the golf cart 1 configured as described above. The detection signals of the throttle opening sensor 50, the accelerator sensor 51, and the brake sensor 52 are given to the input side of the travel control unit 10 using a microprocessor. The induced voltages of the induced signal sensors 61, 61
Amplified by 63, 63 and given to a comparator 64, the comparator
The output of the traveling sign sensor 62 is given to the traveling control unit 10 as the output signal of the sensor 64, that is, the deviation signal of the induced voltage of both sensors 61
The induced voltage of is amplified by the amplifier 65, and the waveform shaping circuit
It is given to the travel control unit 10 via 66.

Further, on the input side of the traveling control unit 10, an on / off signal of the traveling changeover switch 11, an on / off signal of a start switch 12 disposed at a position operable on the boarding unit 5,
An output signal of a remote control receiver 13 mounted at an appropriate position, an output signal of an obstacle sensor 14 disposed at a front portion of the body frame 4, a vehicle speed sensor for detecting a traveling speed of the golf cart 1
Fifteen output signals are each provided.

The start switch 12 is used by a user who has boarded the boarding section 5 as starting and stopping means, and the remote control receiver 13 is used for starting and stopping operations at a position away from the golf cart 1. The start / stop signal from the remote control transmitter 16 carried by the user is received and the reception result is output. The golf cart 1 is operated by a predetermined operation of the travel control unit 10 according to the input from the start / stop signal.
Is started according to the ON operation of the start switch 12 or the start operation of the remote control transmitter 16, and the start switch 12
Is stopped in response to the turning-off operation of the remote control transmitter 16, the stop operation of the remote control transmitter 16, or the detection of the fixed-point stop marker magnet 9b described later.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the obstacle sensor 14 has, for example, an ultrasonic transmitter or a receiver disposed at the front of the vehicle body frame 4 to detect the ultrasonic wave emitted forward from the transmitter. It may be a known one in which a reflected wave from an obstacle is captured by a receiver and the presence or absence of an obstacle is determined based on the level of the output of the receiver. When the detection by the obstacle sensor 14 is performed, the traveling control unit 10 performs a predetermined operation for urgently stopping the golf cart 1.

The vehicle speed sensor 15 includes, for example, a slit disk mounted at an appropriate position in a transmission system from the transmission T to the rear wheels 3 and 3, and a photo interrupter disposed between the slit disks. A plurality of pulse signals may be obtained for each rotation of the golf cart 1, and an output corresponding to the rotation speed of the rear wheels 3, 3, ie, the vehicle speed of the golf cart 1 may be obtained by the F / V converter. The output of the vehicle speed sensor 15 is used for comparison with a target speed specified by the marker magnet 9b as described later, and for calculating the traveling distance.

On the other hand, the steering motor M ₁ , the throttle motor M ₂ , and the brake motor M ₃ are connected to the output side of the traveling control unit 10 via respective drive circuits D ₁ , D ₂ , D _3. Each of the motors M ₁ , M ₂ , and M ₃ is rotationally driven in accordance with a drive signal individually given from the traveling control unit 10, and performs respective operations, that is, steering of the front wheels 2 and 2 and output of the engine E. Adjustment and braking of the rear wheels 3, 3 are performed.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an example of a golf course in which the golf cart 1 is used. The guide wire 9a is continuously buried substantially in the center of a dedicated cart path R provided along the course. This guide wire 9a is
Is used as a guide sign when the vehicle is guided along the cart path R.
At the starting point of the cart path R, as shown in FIG. 2, a pair of guidance signal sensors 61, 61 attached to the front part are positioned so as to straddle the guidance wire 9a, and the travel switching lever 25 is operated to the guidance travel side. Handed over to the user.

The traveling control unit 10 recognizes that the traveling changeover switch 11 is turned on to switch to the guided traveling state, and thereafter the golf cart 1 is turned on by the user who has entered the riding unit 5 by turning on the start switch 12. Or, the vehicle starts running in response to a start operation of the remote control transmitter 16 at a remote position.
During this traveling, the guidance signal sensors 61, 61
Induced voltages are respectively generated by the action of the magnetic field formed around 9a, and the magnitude of these induced voltages is inversely proportional to the distance from the induction wire 9a which is the source of the magnetic field.

Accordingly, the output of the comparator 64 is the center of the two guide signal sensors 61, 61, that is, the substantially central portion in the width direction of the golf cart 1 provided with these at the front thereof, relative to the guide wire 9a. When the signal is biased, the signal has a code corresponding to the direction of the bias and a level corresponding to the amount of bias. Travel control unit 10 recognizes the deviation of the golf carts 1 with respect to the guiding line 9a by an input from the comparator 64 issues a drive command to the steering motor M ₁ which is connected to the output side in order to eliminate this bias, An operation for steering the front wheels 2 is performed.
As a result, the golf cart 1 travels on the cart path R while being automatically steered so that the central portion in the width direction follows the guide line 9a.

The marker magnet 9b to be detected by the traveling marker sensor 61 is for enabling safe traveling over the entire area of the cart road R which changes variously in accordance with the surrounding natural conditions. Yes, it is buried at each position where running conditions need to be changed, such as changing speed or stopping.

The marker magnet 9b is used to control the receiver 13 from the remote control transmitter 16 in order to prevent dangerous remote operation at a position where it is difficult to see from the course. An instruction to ignore the start command given through, an instruction to reduce the detection sensitivity of the obstacle sensor 14 in order to prevent a meaningless stop at a position where a tree or the like exists near the cart path R, and conversely, In order to increase the safety at the position where expected etc., various instructions according to the conditions of the traveling road, such as an instruction to increase the detection sensitivity of the obstacle sensor 14, are provided, and the types of these instructions are: This is performed by utilizing the difference in the polarity of the marker magnets 9b, the order in which the plurality of marker magnets 9b are arranged, the difference in the interval between these members, and the like.

Further, in the present invention, the marker magnet 9b for instructing the speed change is instructed to run at a running speed (about 4 km / h) lower than the intermediate speed during normal running (about 6 km / h). In addition to the low-speed sign, a high-speed sign is provided to instruct the vehicle to run at a speed higher than the intermediate speed (about 10 km / h).

The low-speed sign is conventionally provided, and is placed in front of a dangerous place such as an uphill, a downhill, or a sharp turning point existing in the middle of the cart path R. FIG.
In the descending front to become A ₁ point Sakabe, the A ₂ points before entry into Hayashi, for example, 2 having a polarity respectively N and S
A low-speed sign is provided by embedding two sign magnets 9b, 9b in this order at a short interval of about 60 cm.

On the other hand, the high-speed sign is placed in a section where a substantially straight flat portion that does not include a sharp turn, an uphill or a downhill continues. In FIG. 4, B ₁ point, B ₂ points, B
_{At the three} points and the _four points B, for example, two marker magnets 9b, 9b having S and N polarities, respectively, are placed in this order.
High speed markers are embedded at long intervals of about cm.

Also, the tee ground TG in the course,
At each point (C ₁ , C ₂ , C ₃ ) on the cart path R which is close to the green G and the second hitting point between them,
For example, two marker magnets 9 both having S polarity
Stop signs are provided by embedding b and 9b in this order at short intervals of about 60 cm.

In FIG. 4, the positions where the marker magnets 9b are buried at the respective points are shown by dots, and the interval between the dots is schematically the difference between the short interval and the long interval described above. It does not correspond to the actual burying interval. Although the dots are shown outside the cart path R for the sake of illustration, the actual marker magnet 9b is, as shown in FIG.
The guide wire 9a is buried in the vicinity of one side.

When the output of the traveling sign sensor 62 corresponding to the detection of the sign magnet 9b is given, the traveling control unit 10 calculates the traveling distance from this point in time based on the detection result of the vehicle speed sensor 15, and this distance is calculated. Until the predetermined distance (120 cm) is reached, it is monitored whether or not the next sign magnet 9b is detected. If this is detected, the polarity of the sign magnet 9b is checked, and the traffic sign is determined from these results. Is determined.

That is, in the first time, the marker magnet 9b of the S pole is used.
Is detected, and after a 120 cm run, N
When the pole sign magnet 9b is detected, the traveling control unit 10
Recognizes that the high-speed sign described above has been detected, and similarly, when the S-mark magnet 9b is detected again at the time when the vehicle travels 60 cm, the travel control unit 10 detects the stop sign described above. Recognize that When the N-pole marker magnet 9b is detected for the first time and the S-pole marker magnet 9b is detected at the time when the vehicle travels 60 cm thereafter, the traveling control unit 10 determines whether the low-speed marker described above is used. Recognize that it has been detected.

Further, when the second detection of the marker magnet 9b is performed at a time different from the above-described respective times, or when the second detection of the marker magnet 9b is not performed during the traveling of 120 cm. Recognizes that a traffic sign other than the low-speed sign, the high-speed sign, and the stop sign has been detected.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the traveling control unit 10. The traveling control unit 10 starts its operation in response to activation of the engine E by operating a key switch (not shown), first checks the on / off state of the traveling changeover switch 11 (step 1), and guides the vehicle by the guidance signal sensors 61, 61. It is checked whether or not the line 9a has been detected (step 2). If the travel changeover switch 11 is on and the guide line 9a has been detected, a standby state in which guided travel is possible is established. When shifting to the standby state, the detection by the obstacle sensor 14 is not performed, there is no contact object in the bumper at the front of the vehicle body, and the power is supplied to the motors M ₁ , M ₂ and M ₃ on the output side. Although other conditions for enabling a safe start, such as a normal operation, are also checked, FIG. 5 omits the steps for these checks.

After shifting to the standby state, the traveling control unit 10 checks whether or not a start operation has been performed, specifically, whether or not an ON signal from the start switch 12 or an input of an output signal of the remote control receiver 13 has been input (step S1). 3) If the starting operation has not been performed, the standby state is continued while repeating the determinations in Steps 1 and 2; if the starting operation has been performed, the normal traveling operation is started in accordance with this operation (Step 4).

This normal traveling operation is an operation for guiding traveling with a preset intermediate speed (for example, 6 km / h) as a target speed. As will be described later in detail in a high-speed traveling subroutine, a vehicle speed sensor 15 is provided. , And compares the detected vehicle speed with the target speed. In order to eliminate the deviation between the _two , a drive command is issued to the throttle motor M2 to adjust the output of the engine E.
₃ issues a drive command, and brakes 40, 40
A speed control to apply a braking force, as described above, to recognize a bias to the induction line 9a by an input from the inductive signal sensor 61, a drive command to the steering motor M ₁ in order to overcome this bias emitted to the front wheels 2 , 2 are steered.

During such normal running, the running control unit 10
The input from the traffic sign sensor 62 is constantly monitored (step 5), and when the traffic sign is detected, the type of the traffic sign is specified next. As a result, when the traffic sign is identified as a high-speed sign (Step 6) or when it is specified that the sign is a low speed sign (Step 7), a high speed running subroutine for high speed running (Step 8) or a low speed running subroutine for low speed running (Step 9) ).

Further, if the detected traffic sign is a stop sign as a result of the specific result in step 6 (step 10),
A predetermined stop operation for stopping the golf cart 1 gently is performed (step 11). After the operation is completed, the process returns to step 1 and the above-described operation is repeated. If it is not a stop sign, that is, if a high speed sign, a low speed sign, and a run sign other than the stop sign are detected, a predetermined operation according to each run sign is performed (step 12). Returning to step 4, the normal traveling is continued.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the traveling control unit 10 in the high-speed traveling subroutine. In this high-speed running subroutine, a speed higher than the running speed during normal running (for example, 10 km / h) becomes the target speed _VH , and the running control unit 10 first resets a built-in distance counter (step 20). This distance counter is a counter for the traveling distance calculated based on the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor 15, and is one of the conditions for return, as described later.

[0063] Then, the cruise control unit 10 captures the detected vehicle speed V by the vehicle speed sensor 15 (step 21), then, this was compared with the target speed V _H (step 22), if it is V <V _H (after migration is in this state), emits a drive signal for the forward rotation to the throttle motor M _2, without the acceleration operation allowed to increase the output of the engine E increases the throttle opening (step 23), is V ≧ V _H If, issues a drive signal for reverse rotation to the throttle motor M _2, it forms a decelerating operation allowed to decrease the output of the engine E by subtracting the throttle opening (step 24).

During the acceleration operation and the deceleration operation as described above, the traveling control unit 10 monitors the current throttle opening inputted from the throttle opening sensor 51, and during the acceleration operation, the throttle opening is set to a predetermined upper limit value. Is exceeded (step 25),
Alternatively, if the throttle opening falls below the predetermined lower limit value during the deceleration operation (step 26), the operation according to the high-speed running subroutine is immediately stopped, and the process returns to step 4 in FIG.

In this operation, the high-speed running subroutine is executed in the uphill section or downhill section of the cart road R, and the target speed _VH is maintained despite the throttle opening being increased to the upper limit or reduced to the lower limit. This is for the case where the operation is not performed. In order to reduce the load on the engine E and ensure safety, a quick transition to normal traveling is performed. Actually, the low-speed sign is provided in front of the uphill or downhill as described above, and the determination in step 25 or step 26 cannot be justified.

If the determination in step 25 or 26 is negative, the travel control unit 10 checks whether or not a travel sign has been detected based on the input from the travel sign sensor 62 (step 2).
7) If a traffic sign is detected, it is checked whether this is a high-speed sign (step 28). If it is a high-speed sign, the process returns to step 20, and the distance counter is reset again and described above. Repeat the operation. On the other hand, in the case of another sign, the vehicle immediately leaves the high-speed driving subroutine,
It returns to step 4 of FIG.

On the other hand, if the traffic sign is not detected,
The traveling control unit 10 checks the count value of the distance counter (step 29), and returns if it is counting up, returns to step 21 if it is counting up, and repeats the above-described operation. In this case, the distance counter is not reset, and continues counting.

The distance counter indicates a predetermined distance (for example, 50
The count is incremented by the count of m). That is, the operation according to the high-speed traveling subroutine is automatically released after the advance of the predetermined distance after the transition accompanying the detection of the high-speed sign, and when a new high-speed sign is detected again during this advance, As a result of the resetting of the distance counter, the distance counter is continued while traveling by the predetermined distance from the re-detection point.

[0069] high-speed label provided to B ₄ points in the Figure 4, high-speed running state B ₄ points after following the high speed labeling provided this previous B ₃ points is also necessary to continue. Also, high-speed running state according to the high speed label provided in B ₁ point is released before reaching the C ₂ point where stop signs provided, stop at C ₂ point is set to be stopped from the intermediate speed It is.

During this time, the throttle opening of the engine E is increased or decreased to eliminate the deviation between the current vehicle speed V and the target speed V _H , so that high-speed running while maintaining the target speed V _H is performed. Will be During this time, the guidance signal sensor 61,
The input from 61 recognizes the bias to the induction line 9a, it goes without saying that the steering control is performed in conjunction emitting a drive command to the steering motor M ₁ in order to eliminate this bias.

In the present embodiment, the routine is returned unconditionally when a running sign other than the high-speed sign is detected as a result of the determination in step 28. However, a low-speed sign or a stop sign is detected. In this case, the return may be made only when the vehicle is running, and in other cases, the high-speed running state may be continued. However, other traffic signs are mainly for ensuring safety, such as an instruction to ignore a start command by operating the remote control transmitter 16 and an instruction to increase or decrease the detection sensitivity of the obstacle sensor 14, as described above. In this case, as shown in the present embodiment, it is desirable to return unconditionally when a traveling sign other than the high-speed sign is detected, and to shift to normal traveling or low-speed traveling.

The details of the control in the low-speed running subroutine are the same as the details of the control in the high-speed running subroutine, and a detailed description thereof will not be repeated. / h), and in step 25, if the target speed is not maintained despite the acceleration operation performed until the throttle opening exceeds the upper limit value, the traveling is stopped. That is different. This stop can be realized, for example, by setting a flag for instructing a stop operation and returning.

The operation according to the low-speed running subroutine is automatically canceled after a predetermined distance has elapsed after the transition accompanying the detection of the low-speed sign, as in the case of the high-speed running. The distance is set to be sufficiently shorter (for example, 10 m) than the predetermined distance (50 m) described above. This is because high-speed driving is specified in a section in which a long and straight-lined straight cart path R continues, whereas low-speed driving is specified in a place where the road width is narrow and there are many obstacles such as trees. This is because it is performed locally.

[0074]

As described in detail above, in the golf cart guiding apparatus according to the present invention, the golf cart travels at a speed lower than the intermediate speed during normal traveling on the traveling path on which the golf cart guides and travels before the dangerous section. In addition to the low speed signs to indicate,
A high-speed sign is provided to instruct driving at a speed higher than the intermediate speed, so if the user starts from a distant position by traveling in response to the detection of the high-speed sign, the vehicle arrives at the desired position. Can be greatly reduced, the waiting time of the user can be reduced, and the occurrence of stagnation of the golf cart on the cart road can be reduced.

Also, since the high-speed sign is placed before a section where the traveling path is substantially straight and a substantially flat portion continues, that is, a section where danger can be easily predicted, there is a possibility that a safety problem may occur. Since the small and high speed signs are canceled when the traveling distance reaches a predetermined distance, there is no need to provide a traveling sign to instruct return to the intermediate speed, and relatively long distances The predetermined distance for returning from high-speed driving, which is often continued for a long time, is longer than that for low-speed driving, so the number of signs installed for continuing high-speed driving is minimized. The present invention has excellent effects, for example, it can be suppressed and the labor for installing the sign is greatly reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the appearance of a golf cart to which a guidance device according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing an internal configuration of a golf cart to which the guidance device according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of a golf cart to which the guidance device according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an example of a golf course provided with the guidance device according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation content of a traveling control unit.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation content of a traveling control unit in response to detection of a high-speed sign.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Golf cart 4 Body frame 9a Guidance line 9b Marking magnet 10 Travel control part 11 Travel changeover switch 12 Start switch 13 Remote control receiver 14 Obstacle sensor 15 Vehicle speed sensor 16 Remote control transmitter 51 Throttle opening degree sensor 52 Brake sensor 60 Sensor arm 61 inductive signal sensor 62 traveling label sensor E engine M ₁ steering motor M ₂ throttle motor M ₃ brake motors R cart path

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-5-274029 (JP, A) JP-A-61-94501 (JP, A) JP-A-2-84911 (JP, U) 8802 (JP, B2) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G05D 1/02 A63B 55/08

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A device for performing steering according to the detection of a guidance sign on a travel path on which the guidance sign and the traveling sign are installed, and guiding a golf cart while maintaining a speed corresponding to the detection of the traveling sign. In the traveling of the golf cart
Means for detecting a distance, wherein the travel sign indicates that the vehicle is traveling normally
Low speed instructing to run at a speed lower than the intermediate speed at the time
Signs and indicate running at a speed higher than the intermediate speed
A high speed sign, and the low speed sign or the high speed sign
Detection by the means for detecting the traveling distance after detecting
When the result reaches a predetermined distance, the low speed sign or
Cancel the instruction by the high speed sign and at the intermediate speed
Return to running and the predetermined distance to the high speed sign
Is set longer than a predetermined distance to the low-speed sign.
Golf cart of the guidance system, characterized in that that. 2. The golf cart guidance device according to claim 1, wherein the high-speed sign is provided in a section where the traveling path is substantially straight and a substantially flat portion continues.