JP3128606B2 - Illumination direction control device for vehicle lighting - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To control the irradiating direction of a lighting apparatus of a vehicle without any excessive correction during traveling on a rough road so as to improve visibility and so as to prevent a dazzle to an opposite vehicle and the like. SOLUTION: In an irradiating direction controller 1 automatically correcting the direction of an irradiating light from a lighting apparatus 5 according to a vertical inclination in the advancing direction of a vehicle, a rough road determining means 3b determines whether the road face is rough or not on the basis of information from a vehicle posture detecting means 2, an axle vibration detecting means 7, or a road face condition detecting means 8. If it is determined that the vehicle runs on a rough road, a signal is fed from the rough road determining means 3b to a drive controlling means 4a, and the irradiating direction of the lighting apparatus 5 is fixed in the predetermined direction, an allowable range of the irradiating direction is limited, or a response speed of the driving means 4 is lowered.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp which detects a vehicle posture and corrects the irradiation direction of the lamp so as to always maintain a predetermined state.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Apparatus for automatically adjusting the irradiation direction of a lamp so that the irradiation direction of the lamp is maintained in a predetermined state even when the inclination of a vehicle body changes (a so-called auto-leveling apparatus).
This type of device has a detecting means for detecting the inclination and height of the vehicle body due to the riding conditions (the number of occupants and the arrangement of the occupants), the loading conditions of the load, the running state of the vehicle, and the like. And
The amount of change in the inclination of the vehicle is calculated based on the information obtained by the detection means, and the illumination angle of the lamp is corrected with respect to its initial adjustment value so that the illumination state of the lamp always becomes a predetermined state. Control to obtain a predetermined light distribution.

For example, when a load is applied to the rear part of the vehicle, the inclination angle of the vehicle body in the front-rear direction at that time is obtained, and the lamp, which would otherwise shift the irradiation direction upward from the reference direction, is tilted downward. Thus, adjustment (so-called leveling adjustment) is performed so that the irradiation direction of the lamp is always maintained in the reference direction.

[0004]

By the way, in the conventional apparatus, when the vehicle is traveling on a rough road having a lot of unevenness on the road surface, the above-described automatic adjustment of the irradiation direction of the lamp is performed. Occasionally, the detection means reacts excessively to the vibration of the vehicle due to a bad road, and excessive adjustment control is performed with respect to the irradiation direction of the lamp. However, there is a problem that a driver may feel uncomfortable or dazzle an oncoming driver or a pedestrian.

For example, when the vehicle enters a rough road at a certain speed, vibrations and the like received by the wheels from the road surface are reduced by expansion and contraction of the suspension. May not change. For this reason, if the leveling adjustment is performed faithfully in accordance with the output of the detection means, there is a disadvantage that an excessive correction is made as compared with the actual inclination of the vehicle body.

Accordingly, the present invention improves the visibility by controlling the illumination direction of the lamp so as not to be excessively corrected while the vehicle is traveling on a rough road, so that the oncoming vehicle and the like are not dazzled. It is an object to guarantee the safety of running a vehicle.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an illumination direction of a vehicular lamp in which the direction of the illumination light of the vehicular lamp is changed according to the vertical inclination in the traveling direction of the vehicle. In the control device, a vehicle attitude detecting means for detecting the attitude of the stationary and / or moving vehicle, a rough road determining means for determining whether or not the road surface is in a rough road state with a lot of unevenness, and irradiation of a lamp. Driving means for directing light in a desired direction, and correction calculation means for sending a correction signal for keeping the irradiation light of the lamp in a predetermined direction to the driving means in accordance with a signal from the vehicle attitude detecting means, If the vehicle is traveling on a bad road by the bad road determination means, the driving means fixes the direction of the irradiation light of the lamp in a predetermined direction, or limits or drives the allowable range of the direction of the irradiation light. I will slow down the response speed of the means It is obtained by the.

Therefore, according to the present invention, when it is determined by the rough road determination means that the vehicle is traveling on a rough road,
Control the direction of illumination of the lamp so that it does not change indiscriminately by fixing the direction of the illumination of the lamp in a predetermined direction, or by limiting the direction of the illumination to a limited range, or by reducing the response speed of the driving means. This prevents the illumination direction of the lamp from being excessively corrected when traveling on a rough road.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 1 shows the basic configuration of the present invention. An irradiation direction control device 1 comprises a vehicle attitude detecting means 2, a control means 3 (consisting of a correction calculating means 3a and a bad road determining means 3b), Drive means 4 (drive control means 4a and drive mechanism 4b
Consists of ) And a lamp 5.

The vehicle attitude detecting means 2 is provided to detect the attitude of the vehicle at rest and / or in motion (including the vertical inclination in the traveling direction of the vehicle). When the vehicle height detecting means 6 for detecting the height of the vehicle is used, as shown in FIG. 2, the distance L between the vehicle height detecting means 6 and the road surface G is determined by a detection wave such as an ultrasonic wave or a laser beam. And a method of detecting the amount of expansion / contraction x of the suspension S in order to detect the vertical fluctuation of the axle. In any case, there is an advantage that the existing equipment in the vehicle can be used. is there.

The output of the vehicle attitude detecting means 2 is sent to a correction calculating means 3a and a rough road judging means 3b constituting the control means 3, and these outputs become control signals to the driving means 4,
This is a command for correcting the irradiation state of the lamp 5.

That is, the correction calculating means 3a sends a control signal to the driving means 4 in accordance with the detection signal from the vehicle attitude detecting means 2 so that the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 always faces a predetermined direction. . For example, as shown in FIG.
With respect to the light distribution pattern PN (shown by a solid line in the figure) set using −H or the vertical line VV as a reference line, the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 is changed to a horizontal line when the vehicle body is in a front-up state. H-
The light distribution pattern changes to the pattern P
In this case, the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 is changed downward to change the pattern as shown by the arrow A in FIG. The correction calculating means 3a sends a signal for lowering the light distribution pattern PN to match the light distribution pattern PN to the drive control means 4a. Conversely, when the vehicle body is lowered forward, the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 changes downward with respect to the horizontal line HH, and the light distribution pattern is indicated by a pattern PD (shown by a two-dot chain line in the figure). ), The illumination direction of the lamp 5 is changed upward in such a case to raise the pattern as shown by the arrow B in the figure to match the light distribution pattern PN. Is sent to the drive control means 4a by the correction calculation means 3a.

The bad road determining means 3b includes a vehicle attitude detecting means 2
It is provided to determine whether the vehicle is traveling on a rough road such as an unpaved road or the like based on the detection signal from the vehicle, and determines that the vehicle is traveling on a rough road In this case, a control signal is sent to the driving means 4 to fix the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 to a predetermined direction, limit the irradiation direction to a predetermined range, or change the irradiation direction of the lamp 5. , The response speed of the driving mechanism 4b is reduced to slowly control the change in the irradiation direction. When the bad road determination means 3b determines that the vehicle is traveling on a road with a good road surface condition such as pavement, the bad calculation means 3a sends the drive control means 4
A signal for correcting the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 to a predetermined direction based on the control signal transmitted to the drive control means 4a is transmitted to the drive control means 4a. The method of determining a bad road will be described later in detail.

The drive control means 4a is provided for receiving signals from the correction calculation means 3a and the bad road determination means 3b and changing the irradiation direction of the lamp 5 through the control of the drive mechanism 4b. As the control for changing the irradiation direction, a method of inclining the entire lamp or driving a part of a component of the lamp, such as a lens, a reflecting mirror, or a shade, can be used. The details will be described later.

In the above description, the vehicle attitude detecting means 2
Is output to the correction calculating means 3a and the rough road determination means 3b of the control means 3 and used for both of the processes. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It can be provided separately from the vehicle attitude detecting means 2. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, an axle vibration detecting means 7 for detecting axle vibration of a vehicle, a road surface state detecting means 8 for detecting unevenness of a road surface (an image pickup means for photographing a road surface state or an ultrasonic wave Means for detecting by radio waves or the like), and these output signals are determined by the rough road determination means 3b.
May be sent.

First, the method for determining a rough road in the rough road determination means 3b will be described by dividing it into the following four methods.

I) A method using a vehicle height detecting means (vehicle height sensor) as the vehicle attitude detecting means 2 ii) A method of detecting using the axle vibration detecting means 7 iii) A method of detecting using the road surface state detecting means 8 iv A) A method of detecting using both the vehicle height detecting means and the angular velocity detecting means.

First, the method using the vehicle height detecting means i) is based on the fact that the level of the detection signal fluctuates greatly when the vehicle is traveling on a rough road.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are for comparing the detection signals of the vehicle height sensor when the vehicle travels on a road with good road surface conditions and when the vehicle travels on a bad road. In the figure, the horizontal axis represents time t, and the vertical axis represents the level V of the detection signal.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a detection signal of a vehicle height sensor of a vehicle traveling on a paved road, and FIG. 5 shows an example of an output signal of a vehicle height sensor of a vehicle traveling on a rough road.
From the comparison between the two, it is recognized that the latter has a larger amplitude fluctuation width of the output signal.

Therefore, a certain detection period (hereinafter referred to as "T") is set, and it is determined whether the vehicle is on a rough road by observing a change in the detection level of the vehicle height sensor during the detection period T. be able to. At this time, a method of fixing the detection period T to a constant value, a method of changing the value of the detection period T between the time of determining a rough road and the time of determining other road surface conditions, or the method of setting the detection period T to the running of the vehicle Although there can be mentioned a method of changing according to the speed, for convenience of explanation, first,
A method for determining a rough road from the fluctuation width of the detection signal level in the detection period T while the detection period T is constant will be described.

FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 set comparison threshold values related to the upper and lower limits of the detection signal level of the vehicle height sensor, count the number of times the detection signal level deviated from the range defined by the upper and lower limits, and set the count number to a predetermined value. This is for explaining a method of making a rough road determination by comparing with a set value.

FIG. 6 schematically shows an example of a level change with the time t on the horizontal axis and the detection level V of the vehicle height sensor on the vertical axis. “UL” indicates an upper limit value, a comparison threshold “LL” indicates a lower limit value, t = Ts indicates a starting point of the detection period T, and t = Ts.
Te indicates the end point of the detection period T.

The number beside the point where the detection level V indicates the peak value (maximum value) or the bottom value (minimum value) indicates that the peak value and the bottom value are between UL and LL during the detection period T. It shows the number of times that deviated from the range. That is, one count is performed when the detection level V rises above the UL and then falls below LL, or when the detection level V rises after falling below the LL and rises above UL. You.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the flow of the rough road determination processing, and shows the processing procedure in the above-described rough road determination means 3b.

First, after the vehicle height is detected in step S1, in the next step S2, the number of times that the detection level V exceeds the upper and lower limits of the comparison threshold during the detection period T (this is referred to as "N"). Count. And the next step S
In step 3, it is determined whether or not the number N is equal to or more than a reference value for determination (this is referred to as “Nsh”). If N ≧ Nsh, the process proceeds to step S4. If N <Nsh, the process proceeds to step S5. move on.

In step S4, since it is determined that the vehicle is traveling on a rough road because the fluctuation range of the detection level V is large, the process returns to the first step S1.
In step 5, since it is determined that the vehicle is not traveling on a bad road because the fluctuation width of the detection level V is small, the process returns to the first step S1.

In the above description, the upper and lower limit values U of the comparison value are set.
It is assumed that L and LL are always constant. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The upper limit and / or the lower limit may be changed between when the vehicle is running and when the vehicle is stopped, or may be changed according to the running speed. (In this case, it is necessary to input a detection signal of the vehicle speed detection means 9 to the control means 3 as shown in FIG. 1).

In the above determination method, the total number of times the detection level V exceeds the upper and lower limits during the detection period T is compared with a predetermined value. By comparing with each comparison reference value,
A method for determining a bad road can be cited.

That is, in FIG. 6, the number of times counted when the detection level V exceeds the upper limit value UL during the detection period T is "NU", and the detection level V falls below the lower limit value LL during the detection period T. "NL" indicates the number of times counted when
, NU and NL are set to the respective reference values NUs, N
The rough road determination may be performed by comparing with Ls.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of the rough road determination process in this case. After detecting the vehicle height in step S1, the next step S2 'is to count the numbers NU and NL during the detection period T. And the step S
At 3 ', the numbers NU, NL and their reference values NUs,
If NU ≧ NUs and NL ≧ NLs, the process proceeds to step S4 to determine a bad road, otherwise the process proceeds to step S5 to determine that the road is not bad. After that, the process returns to step S1 in any case.

As still another method, the difference between the upper limit value excess number NU and the lower limit value excess number NL or the absolute value of the difference (this is referred to as “ΔN”) is determined, and the above condition (N
In addition to U ≧ NUs and NL ≧ NLs, when ΔN is equal to or less than a reference value (hereinafter referred to as “ΔNs”), it is possible to determine a bad road. In this case, as shown in FIG. 9, the flow chart of FIG.
2 ″ is required, and in step S3 ′, ΔΔ
A determination is added as to whether N ≦ ΔNs.

As described above, the method of setting the predetermined upper and lower limits with respect to the detection level of the vehicle height sensor has an advantage that determination processing can be simplified because only comparison operation is required.

When comparing the upper and lower limits with the upper and lower limits UL and LL as shown in FIG. 6 by UL 'and LL' in order to provide a dead zone so that the comparison result does not greatly fluctuate near these limits. It is a matter of course that different thresholds can be set, and a prescription such as providing hysteresis to the comparison operation can be adopted.

Next, a description will be given of a method of determining a bad road which is hardly affected by a change in the DC component related to the detection level by detecting the peak value or the bottom value itself of the detection level V.

FIGS. 10 and 11 show a method of detecting a difference between an adjacent peak value and a bottom value with respect to a detection level and comparing an amount based on the difference with a predetermined reference value.

In the tV diagram showing the temporal change of the detection level V in FIG. 10, Li (i = 0, 1, 2,...) Indicates the bottom value, and Ui (i = 0, 1, 2) ,...) Indicate peak values, and the value of the identification number i is defined to increase as time t elapses within the detection period T. In other words, the detection results of the bottom value Li and the peak value Ui are obtained by arranging them in the direction of elapse of time in an array {L0, U0,..., Li, Ui, Li + 1,.
｝ (I = 0, 1, 2,...).

Then, the difference between the adjacent peak value Ui and the bottom value Li is calculated as "DEFi = Ui-Li" (i = 0, 1,
2,...), DEF within the detection period T
By comparing the total TDEF of i (= ΣDEFi) with a predetermined value, it can be determined whether or not the road is rough.

That is, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 11, after detecting the vehicle height in step Sa, the peak value Ui and bottom value Li of the detection level are obtained in the next step Sb, and the difference DEFi is calculated in step Sc. Calculate and calculate TDEF. Then, in step Sd, T
DEF is compared with a predetermined value (this is referred to as “TDEFs”). If TDEF ≧ TDEFs, the routine proceeds to step Se, where it is determined that the vehicle is traveling on a bad road, and TDEF <T
In the case of DEFs, the process proceeds to step Sf, and it is determined that the vehicle is not traveling on a bad road.
Return to

However, the present invention is not limited to this. The rough road determination may be performed by comparing the sum of the n-th power of DEFi (n is a natural number) with a predetermined value, or the average value of DEFi (ie, the average value of DEFi). When the total number is N, Σ (Ui−
The rough road determination may be performed by comparing an average value of Li) / N) and the n-th value of DEFi with a predetermined value.

In addition to these methods, a method of obtaining an average value of the peak value and / or the average value of the bottom value relating to the detection level V and comparing the average value with each threshold value can be mentioned. That is, when the number of peak values and bottom values of the detection level is N, A
Calculate VU = ／ Ui / N or AVD = ΣLi / N, compare these with the respective thresholds AVUs, AVDs, and
In the case of VU ≧ AVUs and / or AVD ≦ AVDs, the determination of the rough road may be made.

As a method for judging a bad road for monitoring a level change after detecting a peak value or a bottom value of a detection level, a fixed detection period is set after the detection level shows a peak value or a bottom value due to a change in vehicle attitude. A method of determining whether or not the change in the attitude of the vehicle is caused by running on a rough road can be exemplified by setting and seeing the magnitude of the change in the detection level during the period.

That is, when the detection level V temporally changes as shown in FIG. 12 and reaches a peak value at the point P, during the subsequent detection period T, the detection level V
Is greatly fluctuated as shown by the dashed line, it can be determined that the vehicle has entered a bad road, and the detection level V gradually decreases after the point P as shown by the broken line. If the change is relatively small, it can be determined that the vehicle is accelerating. Also, the detection level V
However, when the time changes as shown in FIG. 13 and reaches the bottom value at the point Q, during the subsequent detection period T, the detection level V greatly fluctuates as shown by the one-dot chain line. In this case, it can be determined that the vehicle has entered a bad road, and when the detection level V gradually rises after the point Q as shown by the broken line and the change is relatively small, Can determine that the vehicle is decelerating.
It should be noted that the above-described method may be directly used for the method of detecting the fluctuation of the detection level V, and the setting value of the detection period T may have various values such as different values after the peak detection and after the bottom detection. It is.

In the above description, the detection period T is fixed. However, the detection period T for determining that the road is rough and the detection period for determining that the road is not rough (this Is assumed to be “T ′”).
If “T> T ′”, the time required to determine that the vehicle is not a rough road is shorter than the time required to determine a rough road, and the illumination direction of the lamp is more positively corrected.
Therefore, when there is a rough road between the pavement road and the next pavement road and the distance is short, the determination of the rough road may not be made depending on the setting of the detection period T. It is meaningful to regard the determination as a harmless bad road determination when the determination is delayed. This is because the determination of a bad road may occur because the vehicle has finished the rough road and is traveling on the next pavement road because the determination of the bad road is delayed. It is.

Further, a method of changing the detection period T according to the running speed of the vehicle (this is referred to as "v") (in this case, the detection signal of the vehicle speed detecting means 9 is controlled as shown in FIG. 1). When the vehicle travels a certain traveling distance (this is referred to as “ΔS”), the detection period T is calculated from ΔS = v · T. Methods can be mentioned. The reason why the traveling speed v of the vehicle is taken into consideration is that the higher the traveling speed v, the shorter the passage time on a rough road or the like. This is because there is a possibility that a determination result that does not match the state may be obtained.

In any of the above-described methods, a bad road determination result cannot be obtained until after a detection period T has elapsed from the start of detection, so that the length of the detection period T directly affects the control delay. As a method of avoiding this, for example, a method using a moving average can be cited.

In this case, a method of calculating a moving average value of the value of the detection level itself and comparing the calculated value with a predetermined reference value can be considered. A method of calculating a moving average and comparing the calculated value with a predetermined value, and a method of calculating a moving average of the peak value or the bottom value of the detection level and comparing these with a predetermined value can be cited.

In the former case, the comparison thresholds UL and LL as shown in FIG. 6 are set for the detection level, and it is always determined whether or not the detection level exceeds the upper limit UL or falls below the lower limit LL. It is only necessary to sequentially calculate the number of moving averages in the above, and to judge a rough road when the number of times exceeds a predetermined value.

That is, in the flowchart shown in FIG. 14, first, after detecting the vehicle height in step SS1, in the next step SS2, the detection level at detection time Ti (this is set to "Vi") is the upper limit value UL. Is determined, or whether Vi has fallen below the lower limit value LL. If Vi> UL or Vi <LL, the process proceeds to step SS3, where 1 is set to a variable N (Ti). If LL ≦ Vi ≦ UL, the process proceeds to step SS4 to change the variable N (Ti). Is set to 0. Note that the variable N (T
i) indicates whether the detection level Vi at the detection time Ti has deviated from the range between the comparison threshold values LL and UL.

In step SS5, a moving average calculation for the variable N (Ti) is performed. That is, the time axis is set to the unit time Ts.
Assuming that the reference period related to the moving average is “MT = m · Ts” in the case of sampling and discretization, the moving average value “MA (Ti)” is “= (N (Ti−m) + N (Ti −
m-1) + ... + N (Ti-1) + N (Ti)) /
m ”. Therefore, step S
In S6, the reference value for determining MA (Ti) (this is referred to as “M
As ". ), The process proceeds to step SS7 if MA (Ti) ≧ MAs, and proceeds to step SS8 if MA (Ti) <MAs.

In step SS7, after it is determined that the vehicle is traveling on a rough road, the process returns to the first step SS1, and
In step SS8, it is determined that the vehicle is not traveling on a bad road, and the process returns to the first step SS1.

The reference value MAs and the reference period MT relating to moving averaging are changed according to the vehicle condition (vehicle speed, etc.), or the moving average relating to the number of times the upper limit is exceeded and the number of times the lower limit is exceeded is calculated. Various embodiments are possible, such as separately obtaining these and comparing them with predetermined values, or taking a moving average of the difference between the number of times the upper limit is exceeded and the number of times the lower limit is exceeded and comparing this with a predetermined value. This is clear from the above description.

The method of calculating the moving average of the peak value and the bottom value of the detection level and comparing the moving average with a predetermined value is the same as the method of detecting the peak value and the bottom value of the detection level described above. It is only necessary to calculate the moving average such as the bottom value or the difference between the two, and the operation in step Sc in FIG. 11 is replaced with the moving average operation, and the reference value DEFs in step Sd is used as the reference value for the determination of the moving average value, TDEF. May be regarded as a moving average value. still,
It is apparent from the above description that various embodiments are possible, such as taking a moving average of the difference between adjacent peak values and bottom values, or taking each moving average of the peak value and bottom value.

Next, a method for determining a rough road from the time change rate of the detection level V will be described.

When the vehicle is traveling on a rough road, the amount of change in the position of the axle with respect to the vehicle body is large. Therefore, a rough road can be determined by detecting this change and comparing it with a predetermined reference value. For example, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 15, after detecting the vehicle height at the detection time point t in step ST1, the detection level of the vehicle height sensor at that time point t (this is referred to as “V (t)”) in the next step ST2. "
And ), Or the absolute value of “dV (t) / dt”. Then, in step ST3, this is compared with a predetermined reference value, and if dV (t) / dt or its absolute value is equal to or more than the reference value, the process proceeds to step ST4, where dV (t) / dt or its absolute value is compared with the reference value. If less than the value, the process proceeds to step ST5.

In step ST4, after it is determined that the vehicle is traveling on a rough road, the process returns to the first step ST1.
In step ST5, it is determined that the vehicle is not traveling on a rough road, and the process returns to the first step ST1.

For the time derivative “dV (t) / dt”, the V value at a certain time point and the V value at the immediately preceding time point are obtained by using the time discretized by sampling on the time axis. , The detection does not involve a large delay.

Next, a description will be given of a method for determining a bad road by checking the correlation and output difference between vehicle height changes before and after and / or left and right of the vehicle.

For example, the detection level of a vehicle height sensor for detecting a change in vehicle height near the front right and rear left wheels or the front left and rear right wheels of the vehicle in the traveling direction of the vehicle is Vf (t). , Vr (t), FIG.
As shown in a period T1, when the vehicle is traveling on a road with little unevenness, the detection level Vf (t) of the front vehicle height sensor and the detection level Vr of the rear vehicle height sensor are used.
(T), that is, the time difference Δt according to the axle distance (wheel base) and the speed of the vehicle is Vf
Vf (t−Δt) and Vr (t) obtained by shifting (t) in the time axis direction have similar shapes and a high correlation, but Vf (t) during traveling on a rough road shown in a period T2 in FIG. t-Δt) and Vr
Since there is no or little correlation with (t), a bad road determination can be made by detecting this difference.
In order to quantify the correlation between Vf (t) and Vr (t), function convolution calculation or the like can be used.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing the flow of the rough road determination process. First, in step SP1, the vehicle height is detected for the right front and left rear or the left front and right rear of the vehicle, and then the next step is performed. V in SP2
The degree of correlation between f (t−Δt) and Vr (t) is obtained.
Then, the level of the correlation is determined in step SP3. If the correlation is low, the process proceeds to step SP4, and if the correlation is high, the process proceeds to step SP5. In step SP4, the process returns to the first step SP1 after determining that the vehicle is traveling on a bad road, and in step SP5, the first step SP1 after determining that the vehicle is not traveling on a bad road.
Return to

When a vehicle height sensor is provided for detecting a vehicle height change near the front wheel or the rear wheel of the vehicle, the detection level of each of the left and right vehicle height sensors is set to VL (t). , VR (t), as shown in FIG. 18, when the vehicle is traveling on a road with little unevenness, the detection level VL (t) of the left vehicle height sensor and the detection level of the right vehicle height sensor are used. The correlation with the detection level VR (t) is positive as shown in the period T1 or negative during the curve running of the vehicle as shown in the period T2, but is shown in the period T3 while the vehicle is running on a bad road. VL (t) and VR
Since there is no or little correlation with (t), a bad road determination can be made by detecting this difference.
It should be noted that the processing flow is as follows. Step SP1 in FIG. 17 is replaced with vehicle height detection for the left and right of the vehicle, and steps SP2 and S
Vf (t) and Vr (t) at P3 are each represented by VL
(T) and VR (t).

It is also possible to detect the difference between VL (t) and VR (t) or its absolute value, and determine a rough road when the difference changes little by little. That is, as shown in FIG. 18, when the vehicle is traveling on a road with less unevenness (periods T1 and T2), VL (t) and VR (t) change relatively slowly. Even when the difference between the two is taken, this tends to change gently, while VL (t) and VR (t) change greatly during traveling on a rough road, and VL ( The difference between t) and VR (t) tends to fluctuate randomly. Therefore, by detecting this difference, the rough road can be determined. In this case, the processing flow is the same as that in step SP1 in FIG.
Is replaced with vehicle height detection for the left and right sides of the vehicle, and the difference between VL (t) and VR (t) or its absolute value is determined in step SP2, and this is compared with a predetermined reference value to branch conditionally. SP3 may be used.

Next, the above method ii), that is, a method in which the axle vibration detecting means 7 for detecting the vibration of the axle is attached to the vehicle to determine whether or not the vehicle is traveling on a rough road. Will be described. In addition, in this method, when there is a restriction on the vehicle design such that the mounting position of the vehicle height sensor is limited to a predetermined range for the intended use, the axle vibration of the axle vibration at a desired position not subject to such restrictions is considered. It has the advantage that detection can be performed.

FIG. 19 shows an example of the change over time, with the horizontal axis representing time t and the vertical axis representing the output level of the axle vibration detection sensor (referred to as "AV"). Since the amplitude value of the AV is relatively small during the period T1 when the vehicle is traveling on a road with little unevenness, the amplitude value of the AV is large during the period T2 when the vehicle is traveling on a rough road.
By detecting this difference, a rough road determination can be made. When detecting the amplitude value of the output level AV, for example, as shown by a thin line in FIG. 19, upper and lower limits AU and AL of the amplitude value are set, and AV> AU, AV <
A determination method of determining that the vehicle is traveling on a rough road in the case of AL, or a method of counting the number of times exceeding the upper and lower limits of the comparison threshold over a certain detection period as described in the method i), The determination method based on the peak value or the bottom value of the output level AV can be directly followed.

In the above method, the rough road is determined by detecting the influence of the road surface condition on the wheels, the axles, and the like. For example, if the rough road can be determined from the road surface state itself, the rough road can be determined. It is possible to determine the irregularities more directly, which is the method iii) described above.

That is, an image pickup means (CCD camera or the like) is installed at the front part of the vehicle, and the road surface condition during traveling is photographed by the image pickup means, and a rough road can be determined by image processing. For example, since the distribution tendency of the spatial frequency of the image differs between the photographed image of the pavement road and the photographed image of the unpaved road (the latter has a higher proportion of a small area having a higher spatial frequency). What is necessary is just to detect.

According to this method iii), the road surface condition can be known without being affected by the vehicle vibration, and the road surface condition can be recognized even when the vehicle is stopped.

The above method detects direct or indirect information of the road surface state by a certain means. The method of comparing information obtained by a plurality of detecting means can be mentioned. The method iv) is to determine a bad road by using both a vehicle height sensor and an angular velocity sensor.

In FIG. 20, the upper graph shows the time derivative of the inclination angle (so-called pitch angle) in the pitching direction of the vehicle calculated from the detection level V of the vehicle height sensor (this is referred to as "dθ / dt"). ), And the lower graph shows the temporal change in the output level of the angular velocity sensor in the pitching direction (referred to as “ω”) attached to a position above the suspension of the vehicle. It shows the change. Note that a period T1 shown in the drawing indicates a period in which the vehicle is traveling on a road with little unevenness, and the period T1
2 indicates an acceleration / deceleration running period of the vehicle, and a period T3 indicates a rough road running period.

As can be seen from the figure, during the period T1, dθ /
dt and ω are small, and in the period T2, dθ
Although there are changes in / dt and ω due to acceleration / deceleration, there is a correlation between the two in both cases. On the other hand, in the period T3, the vibration component of dθ / dt is large, and there is no large change in ω, so it can be seen that there is no or little correlation between the two. This is because the vehicle height sensor detects the vibration of the suspension when the vehicle is traveling on a rough road, so that the calculated dθ / dt is affected by the vibration. This is because the influence of the vibration is absorbed by the expansion and contraction of the suspension, and the portion does not incline so much in the pitching direction. Therefore, the output level ω of the angular velocity sensor related to the pitch angle attached thereto is also unsprung to the suspension. A large vibration component related to the load will not be reflected. As described above, when a vibration component having a large dθ / dt and a slow change in ω are simultaneously detected, it is possible to determine a bad road. Note that the number of angular velocity sensors is not limited to one, and it is a matter of course that information necessary for calculating angular velocity may be obtained based on information from a plurality of sensors.

Thus, according to each of the above methods, it is possible to determine whether or not the vehicle is traveling on a bad road, but it is possible to use each method alone or to use these methods. Of course, it is possible to implement in various forms such as increasing the certainty of the judgment by combining some of them.

Next, the control of the direction of the irradiation light of the lamp 5 by the driving means 4 will be described.

The simplest method of changing the illumination pattern of a lamp in a vertical plane is to irradiate the lamp with a horizontal plane by rotating the entire lamp around its rotation axis, as shown in FIG. This is a method of changing the angle. For example, a member that supports the left and right side portions of the lamp so as to be rotatable and that the rotation axis of the lamp is directly rotated by a driving source such as a motor, or that is fixed to the lamp or formed integrally with the lamp. And a driving mechanism for rotating the driving means by a driving means. An example of such a lamp is a mechanism in which the rotational force of a motor is turned by a transmission mechanism using a worm and a worm wheel (see, for example,
See -166672. ).

When it is determined by the rough road determination means 3b that the road is not a rough road, the drive control means 4a rotates the entire lamp in a vertical plane so that the irradiation angle becomes as instructed by the correction calculation means 3a. Move.

When the rough road determination means 3b determines that the vehicle is on a rough road, when the drive control means 4a receives a command from the rough road determination means 3b, it controls the irradiation angle of the lamp. The following method can be adopted for

1) A method for fixing the irradiation angle 2) A method for limiting the range of the irradiation angle or prohibiting a part of the range 3) A method for changing the response speed or control speed of the actuator.

First, the simplest method 1) of the above three methods is a method of always keeping the illumination angle of the lamp at a certain angle when determining a bad road. That is, it is sufficient to hold the lamp in a state where the irradiation direction of the lamp is slightly downward so that the irradiation light of the lamp does not become upward light unnecessarily when traveling on a rough road.

At this time, the downward irradiation angle may be set to a value irrelevant to the irradiation angle before the determination of a rough road, or to the irradiation angle immediately before the determination of a rough road or the irradiation angle. The angle can be set to an angle to which a correction (slightly downward, etc.) has been added, or an average irradiation angle before bad road determination or an angle to which the correction has been added.

The method 2) for limiting the irradiation angle range is such that the allowable range of the irradiation angle of the lamp at the time of the rough road determination is smaller than the allowable range of the irradiation angle at the time other than the determination of the rough road. It is a method of narrowing.

For example, as shown in FIG. 22, the allowable range of the irradiation angle of the lamp 5 at the time of determining a rough road is “θa”, and the allowable range of the irradiation angle other than at the time of determining a bad road is “θb”. At this time, by introducing the ratio “n” (0 <(1 / n) <1) and narrowing the angle range so that “θa = θb / n”, when the vehicle is traveling on rough roads, The frequency of irradiation light becoming upward light can be reduced.

Further, as shown in FIG. 23, the upper limit of the irradiation angle of the lamp 5 when traveling on a rough road can be set so as not to be directed upward. Upper limit θ with respect to the allowable range “θb” of the irradiation angle of
If m is set so that the allowable range θa of the illumination angle of the lamp 5 at the time of determining a rough road does not exceed the upper limit θm, control can be performed so that the illumination light of the lamp does not become upward light when traveling on a rough road. it can.

The remaining method 3) controls the response speed of the driving means 4 in contrast to the control of the former two in terms of the irradiation angle itself. It is a method that does not change.

In other words, the control relating to the response speed of the driving means 4 varies depending on its configuration. However, it is difficult to control the response speed of the driving means 4 by changing the voltage and current supplied to the actuators and the like constituting the driving means 4 and the control signals. Lighting device 5 when driving on the road
Attitude control can be slowed down.

[0085] For example, the actuator has a built-in DC (direct current) motor, the control target position of the actuator (or angle) and by detecting the difference between the current position (or angle), the duty cycle in response thereto In the case where the position control of the actuator is performed by supplying the pulse signal to the DC motor, as shown in FIG.
If the characteristic of T is changed from the relatively fast response speed indicated by the dashed line 10 to the slow response speed indicated by the solid line 11, the duty cycle DT at the time of traveling on a rough road for the same position difference Δx = Δxa Is smaller than the duty cycle when the vehicle is not traveling on a rough road, so that the driving control of the lamp by the actuator becomes slow.

Various embodiments, such as changing the response speed of the driving means 4 according to the traveling speed of the vehicle, or changing the response speed according to whether the vehicle is traveling at a constant speed or during acceleration / deceleration, etc. Of course, the methods 1) to 3) can be combined according to the situation of the vehicle (running state, change in the attitude of the vehicle, etc.).

In the above description, the irradiation direction is changed by rotating the entire lamp by the driving means 4, but the position control may be performed on a part of the constituent members of the lamp.

For example, as shown in FIG.
A configuration in which the direction of the reflected light is changed by rotating the reflecting mirror 12 in a vertical plane, for example,
A transmission mechanism including a worm and a worm wheel is used to rotatably support a part of the reflector to the lamp and rotate a screw member for adjusting the tilt angle of the reflector attached to the other part by a motor. The used lens may be used (for example, see JP-A-59-195441). Alternatively, as shown in FIG.
3 is tilted to change the direction of the irradiation light passing through the lens 13 (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-3).
See 7405 publication. ). Instead of tilting the entire reflecting mirror or lens, the main part of the irradiation light may be changed in a desired direction by controlling the position of a part thereof.

Further, as shown in FIG. 27, by moving the shade 14 located between the reflecting mirror 12 and the lens 13 in the lamp 5 by the driving means 4, the light / dark boundary in the light distribution pattern of the lamp 5 is defined. You may make it change up and down (for example, refer to Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 7-29401).

In addition, the optical structure of the lamp 5, such as changing the direction of irradiation light up and down by moving the reflecting mirror and light source, the lens and reflecting mirror, or the lens and shade together by the driving means 4, and so on. Various embodiments are possible depending on the combination of the members.

Finally, a signal processing method for determining a bad road will be described.

As described above, the output of the vehicle height sensor or the like is used as the basic information for determining a bad road. However, if the detection signal has a large variation or undesired data is obtained due to the influence of noise, etc. May adversely affect the determination of a rough road. For example, there may be a problem that the determination of a rough road is made due to the influence of certain data even when the vehicle is not traveling on a rough road.

Thus, as a method of removing data that has an adverse effect on the determination of a bad road, for example, a method of averaging adjacent peak values and bottom values with respect to a detection level by a vehicle height sensor or the like can be cited.

This is because the peak value of the detection level of the sensor is Ui (i = 0, 1, 2,...) And the bottom value is Li.
When (i = 0, 1, 2,...), The average value of the peak value Ui of the detection level at a certain point in time and the bottom value Li or Li-1 before and after the detection level is used for rough road determination. (This is referred to as “DATAi” (i = 0, 1, 2,...)
・). ), For example,
A data value obtained by “DATAi = (Ui−Li) / 2” may be used as basic data for determining a rough road.

Another method is to take the difference between the adjacent peak value and the bottom value. In this case, the peak value of the detection level of the sensor is Ui (i =
0, 1, 2,...) And the bottom value is Li (i = 0, 1,.
2,...), The difference or the absolute value between the peak value Ui of the detection level at a certain point in time and the bottom value Li or Li-1 before and after the detected value or the absolute value thereof is used as data for rough road determination ( This is adopted as “DATAi” (i = 0, 1, 2,...). For example, "DATAi = Ui
−Li ”may be used as basic data for determining a rough road.

In addition to the above, there is a method of cutting a portion of the detection level outside the predetermined range. For example, in the tV diagram shown in FIG. 28, threshold values UL and LL indicating the upper and lower limits of the range are set. , Detection level V is V> UL or V
If <LL is reached, that part may be ignored.
In particular, as shown by the chain line in FIG.
When cutting 5, 15,..., There is a tendency to remove data for controlling the irradiation direction of the lamp upward,
It is possible to prevent glare from occurring on an oncoming vehicle or the like.

As a method for removing the high-frequency component of the detection signal, a low-pass filter formed by an integrating circuit or an analog filter can be added, or a signal component in a predetermined range can be removed by a filtering process using software.

Further, a change in the pitch angle of the vehicle is determined, and a signal obtained by removing a predetermined range of the high-frequency component of the signal (attributable to unevenness of the road surface) according to the change in the pitch angle is used as basic data for determining a rough road. Can be mentioned.

[0099]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the present invention, when the vehicle is determined to be traveling on a rough road by the rough road determination means, the illumination of the lamp is performed. By fixing the direction to a predetermined direction, restricting the irradiation direction to a limited range, or slowing down the response speed of the driving means so that the irradiation direction of the lamp does not change unnecessarily, it is bad. To prevent the illumination direction of the lamp from being overcorrected when traveling on the road, and to suppress the discomfort given to the driver due to the light distribution of the lamp or the sensitive change in the visibility, and the dazzle given to the oncoming driver or pedestrian, etc. Can be.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the information of the vehicle attitude detecting means can be used also as basic information for determining a rough road.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the basic information for determining a bad road can be obtained from the axle vibration detecting means, the axle vibration detecting means can be provided at a place different from the vehicle attitude detecting means.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, a rough road can be determined without being affected by vehicle vibration or the like based on information obtained by the road surface state detecting means for detecting road surface unevenness.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the vehicle height detecting means is used in a vehicle as existing equipment, basic information for determining a rough road can be easily obtained from the vehicle height detecting means. it can.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a more accurate determination of a bad road can be made by comparing the magnitudes of the vibration components of the outputs of the vehicle height sensor and the angular velocity sensor.

According to the present invention, a threshold value is set for the output level of the vehicle attitude detecting means or the axle vibration detecting means, and the number of times when the comparison result satisfies a predetermined condition is counted. Bad road determination can be performed by a simple method.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the rough road is determined based on the peak value and / or the bottom value of the output level of the vehicle attitude detecting means or the axle vibration detecting means. It can be unaffected or less susceptible to fluctuations.

According to the ninth aspect, by comparing the moving average value of the output level of the vehicle attitude detecting means or the axle vibration detecting means with a predetermined value, it is possible to reduce the delay of the rough road determination. .

According to the tenth aspect, the time change rate of the output level of the vehicle attitude detecting means or the axle vibration detecting means or the time change rate of the output level immediately after the output level shows the peak value or the bottom value is obtained. Since the rough road determination is made by comparing these with a predetermined value, an instantaneous change in vehicle attitude or axle vibration can be captured.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, the level of the correlation or the level difference between the output levels indicating the vehicle height change or vibration change before and after or right and left of the vehicle provided with the vehicle attitude detecting means or the axle vibration detecting means is provided. Can be determined based on the size of the vehicle.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a vehicle for explaining a vehicle height detecting means.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for describing correction control of an irradiation direction of a lamp.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a temporal change of a detection level of a vehicle height sensor together with FIG. 5, and this figure shows a level change when the vehicle is traveling on a paved road.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a level change when the vehicle is traveling on a rough road.

6 shows a method of counting the number of times that the detection level deviates from the upper and lower limits of the detection level in a predetermined period in the rough road determination processing together with FIG. 7, and FIG. It is a figure showing setting of a lower limit.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a rough road determination process.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of a rough road determination process in which the number of times deviating from the upper and lower limits of the detection level is separately counted within a predetermined period.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart in the case where a step of obtaining a difference in the number of times deviating from each of the upper and lower limits of the detection level and comparing the difference with a predetermined value is added to the determination processing of FIG.

FIG. 10 shows a method of extracting a peak value and a bottom value of a detection level in the rough road determination processing together with FIG. 11, and this figure is a diagram showing a temporal change of the detection level of the vehicle height sensor.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a rough road determination process.

FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining a method of performing a rough road determination from a level change after detection of a peak time or a bottom time of a detection level, and FIG. 13 illustrates a temporal change of the detection level after detection of a peak time; FIG.

FIG. 13 is a diagram for describing a temporal change in a detection level after detection of a bottom point.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining a method for determining a rough road from a moving average relating to a detection level.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining a method of performing a rough road determination from a time change rate of a detection level.

FIG. 16 shows a method of determining a bad road from the correlation between the vehicle height detection levels before and after the vehicle together with FIG. 17, and FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a temporal change in the detection level.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a rough road determination process.

FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining a method for determining a bad road from the correlation between the vehicle height detection levels on the left and right of the vehicle.

FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining a method of detecting axle vibration and performing bad road determination.

FIG. 20 is a diagram for describing a method of performing a rough road determination by using both a vehicle height sensor and an angular velocity sensor.

FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram showing an example in which the irradiation direction is changed by drive control of the entire lamp.

FIG. 22 is a schematic diagram for explaining a method of limiting the allowable range of the illumination angle of the lamp when determining a bad road.

FIG. 23 is a schematic diagram for explaining a method of restricting the allowable range of the illumination angle of the lamp and prohibiting upward light when determining a bad road.

FIG. 24 is a diagram for explaining a method of reducing the response speed of the driving means when determining a bad road.

FIG. 25 is a schematic diagram showing an example in which the irradiation direction is changed by drive control of a reflecting mirror.

FIG. 26 is a schematic diagram showing an example in which the irradiation direction is changed by drive control of a lens.

FIG. 27 is a schematic view showing an example in which the irradiation direction is changed by drive control of a shade.

FIG. 28 is a diagram for explaining a signal processing method in which when a detection level deviates from a range set by an upper limit and a lower limit with respect to the detection level, the portion is not used as data.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Irradiation direction control device 2 Vehicle attitude detection means 3a Correction calculation means 3b Bad road determination means 4 Driving means 5 Vehicle lamp 6 Vehicle height detection means 7 Axle vibration detection means 8 Road surface state detection means

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References German Patent Application Publication No. 19631525 (DE, A1) European Patent Application Publication No. 554663 (EP, A2) (58) Fields searched (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) ) B60Q 1/115

Claims (11)

(57) [Claims] 1. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp, wherein the direction of irradiation light of the lamp is changed according to a vertical inclination in a traveling direction of the vehicle, wherein a posture of the vehicle at rest and / or in motion is detected. Vehicle position detecting means for determining whether the road surface is in a rough road state with a lot of unevenness, driving means for directing the illumination light of the lamp in a desired direction, and vehicle posture detecting means Correction means for sending a correction signal to the driving means for keeping the irradiation light of the lamp in a predetermined direction in accordance with a signal from the means, wherein the vehicle is traveling on a rough road by the rough road determination means. A vehicle, wherein the driving means fixes the direction of the irradiating light of the lamp in a predetermined direction, limits an allowable range of the direction of the irradiating light, or reduces the response speed of the driving means. Direction control device for lighting fixtures . 2. The irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the rough road determining means determines whether or not the road surface is in a rough road state having a lot of unevenness based on information from the vehicle posture detecting means. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicular lamp, wherein the judgment is performed. In the irradiation direction control device of a vehicle lamp according to the claim 1, further comprising: providing an axle vibration detecting means for detecting the axle vibrations of the vehicle, rough road determining means based on information from the axle vibration detecting means An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp, wherein it is determined whether or not a road surface is in a rough road state having a lot of unevenness. 4. The irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, further comprising a road surface state detecting means for detecting road surface unevenness,
An irradiating direction control device for a vehicle lamp, wherein the rough road determining means determines whether or not the road surface is in a rough road state having a lot of unevenness based on information from the road surface state detecting means. 5. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle height detecting means detects a height of the vehicle in a vertical direction as a vehicle posture detecting means. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp, wherein a detection unit is used. 6. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle posture detecting means detects a height of the vehicle in a vertical direction; An angular velocity sensor relating to the vertical inclination angle in the traveling direction of the vehicle, and determining whether the road surface is in a rough road state by comparing the magnitude of the vibration component of the output of the vehicle height sensor and the angular velocity sensor with the rough road determination means. A lighting direction control device for a vehicle lighting device, wherein 7. The irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the bad road determination means outputs an output of a vehicle attitude detection means or an axle vibration detection means. Level and the upper limit set for this and / or
Alternatively, by comparing the output level with the lower threshold value, counting the number of times when the output level is larger than the upper threshold value or smaller than the lower threshold value over a predetermined period, and comparing this with a predetermined value, the road surface is in a rough road condition. A lighting direction control device for a vehicle lamp, wherein a determination is made as to whether or not the lighting direction is normal. 8. The illumination direction control apparatus for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the bad road determination means outputs an output of a vehicle attitude detection means or an axle vibration detection means. The peak value and / or the bottom value of the level are extracted, and a determination is made as to whether the road surface is in a bad road state by comparing these values or a value obtained from the sum or difference thereof with a predetermined value. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp. 9. The irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the bad road determination means outputs an output of a vehicle attitude detection means or an axle vibration detection means. An irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp, wherein a moving average value is calculated for a level, and the calculated average value is compared with a predetermined value to determine whether or not the road surface is in a bad road condition. 10. The irradiation direction control device for a vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the bad road determination means outputs an output of a vehicle attitude detection means or an axle vibration detection means. Determine the time change rate of the level or the time change rate of the output level immediately after the output level indicates the peak value or the bottom value, and compare this with a predetermined value to determine whether the road surface is in a bad road condition. A lighting direction control device for a vehicle lamp. 11. The vehicle lighting direction control apparatus according to claim 1, 2, 3, or 5, wherein the bad road determining means is a vehicle attitude detecting means or an axle vibration detecting means. Change in vehicle height or vibration before and after or left and right
Irradiation direction control device of a vehicle lamp, characterized in that as it is determined whether or not the road surface is rough road condition based on the magnitude of the correlation height or level difference of the output level indicated.