JP3473321B2 - Display device for vehicles - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle display device,
In particular, the present invention relates to improvement of a display form of a head-up display that projects and displays various information on a window glass of a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a display device of a vehicle or the like, a meter display device or the like embedded in a predetermined position of an instrumental panel has been mainstream. Further, in recent years, in order to improve the visibility of the display content of the display device, a display image composed of an upright virtual image is formed at a front position outside the windshield, and the front image is passed through the windshield while the driver is driving. 2. Description of the Related Art A head-up display device capable of recognizing display contents along with a scene is used.

The head-up display device is a thin-film combiner as a display area formed on the inner surface of the vehicle windshield, and a light source for projecting the display content displayed on the display on the combiner. It also includes a reflective mirror.

When such a head-up display device is used, the driver can remarkably reduce the amount of movement of the line of sight for the recognition of the displayed information. That is, when a driver, who has conventionally viewed the traffic condition and road shape through the windshield while driving a vehicle, recognizes the displayed information, the line of sight is embedded in a predetermined position on the instrument panel in the near view from the front view. It was necessary to move to the meter display device, and the amount of movement of the line of sight for that was large. On the other hand, in the case of the head-up display device, since the display content is displayed in the front view, the display content can be confirmed together with the front view. As a result, the amount of movement of the line of sight for recognizing the display content is reduced, and the information content is easily visible.

Further, in order to improve the visibility of the display information, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-83397, the display position of the head-up display device is changed according to the traveling direction of the vehicle, so that the display itself is displayed. There is disclosed a technique for eliminating the deterioration of visibility and recognizing the presence of the display by changing the display position. Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-266925 discloses a technique for changing the display form of the head-up display device according to the degree of caution of the driver who is driving the vehicle.

[0006]

However, in the conventional head-up display device, the view through the windshield serves as the display background of the display screen. Therefore, when the view in front of the windshield changes momentarily, the display background changes. The color of may be similar to the display screen or the display characters (display figure) on the display screen. In this case, there is a problem in that the visibility of the display screen and the display characters, display graphics, etc. on the display screen is significantly reduced. Further, when the scenery in the traveling direction of the vehicle changes one after another, there is a problem that the state in which the display is visible or invisible is repeated, which is visually annoying.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and provides a vehicle display device capable of recognizing the displayed contents satisfactorily even when the scenery around the vehicle changes. The purpose is to

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the structure of the present invention is a vehicle display device for projecting and displaying various information on a window glass of a vehicle. A map information acquisition unit for acquiring, a vehicle position detection unit for detecting the current position of the own vehicle, and a vehicle exterior scenery state that is the background of the display screen projected and displayed based on the current position of the own vehicle and the map information. The present invention is characterized by including: an outside-vehicle scenery estimating means for estimating; and a display-form changing means for non-assimilarly displaying the projection-displayed display form for the estimated outside-vehicle scenery state.

Here, the map information includes, in addition to general road form information, topographical information (for example, road undulations and elevation difference information) and facility information (for example, the size of buildings along the road and Color) and environmental information around the road (for example, the height and color of trees around the road). Further, the map information acquisition means uses the communication means to transmit the map information in a beacon or FM.
It may be acquired as external information from multiple broadcasts, or CD
-It may be acquired as internal information from a vehicle-mounted database such as a ROM. In addition, the non-assimilation display of the display form with respect to the exterior view state is to change to the display form in which the exterior view can be distinguished from the display screen and its contents.

According to this structure, even when the exterior scenery changes, the display forms of the vehicle display device are displayed in a distinct manner according to the change, so that the display content can be recognized well.

[0011]

[0012]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, in the structure of the present invention, in the device, the display form changing means recognizes a color type of a state of a scenery outside a vehicle, and a display screen is displayed according to the color type. It is characterized by changing the color.

Here, the change of the color of the display screen includes not only the entire display screen but also the individual change of the display contents such as characters and figures. To change the color, the background of the display screen may be set to have similar colors for characters and graphics (for example, the background is light green and the characters are dark green), or the colors may be completely different. You may

According to this structure, it is possible to easily make the display screen non-assimilar to the scenery outside the vehicle, so that good visibility can be obtained.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the constitution of the present invention is such that, in the above-mentioned apparatus, the display form changing means recognizes a color tone of a state of the scenery outside the vehicle, and the transparency of the display screen according to the color tone. It is characterized by changing.

According to this structure, the transparency of the display screen is changed according to the color tone of the scenery outside the vehicle, so that it is possible to display an image with no discomfort and good visibility in the window glass.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the configuration of the present invention is characterized in that, in the apparatus, the display form changing means changes a display position of a display screen in accordance with a state of a scenery outside the vehicle. To do.

Here, changing the display position means moving an important object visible through the windshield, for example, a traffic light, a falling object on the road, a pedestrian or the like so that the display image does not overlap. Say.

According to this structure, it is possible to surely confirm the safety outside the vehicle and to improve the visibility of the display image by the moving operation.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as an embodiment) will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a vehicle display device 1 according to this embodiment.
0 system configuration block diagram is shown. In the case of the present embodiment, the vehicle display device 10 will be described using an example in which a part of the configuration of the navigation system is used.
The transceiver 12 communicates with an optical beacon or a radio wave beacon provided on the roadside, and in addition to information necessary for general navigation such as map information and traffic information, topographical information (for example, road undulations and height difference information). And various information such as facility information (for example, size and color of buildings along the road) and environmental information around the road (for example, height and color of trees around the road) in a form linked to the road map is doing. In addition, similarly, the receiver 14 receives the FM via the FM antenna 16.
Wide area information within the reception area (including traffic information, weather information, facility information, etc.) is received. These pieces of information are accumulated in a memory 20 via an electronic control unit (hereinafter referred to as ECU) 18 and are described later in a head-up display unit (hereinafter referred to as HUD unit).
22 is used for control and navigation processing. Also,
A GPS receiver 24 is connected to the ECU 18 as a vehicle position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle, and the absolute position of the vehicle is detected using a GPS satellite.

In addition, the ECU 18 is provided with a CD-RO.
A map database 26 using M or the like is connected.
Similar to the received map information described above, the map database 26 includes road information, topographical information (for example, road undulations and elevation difference information), and facility information (for example, the size and color of buildings along the road). ) And environmental information around the road (for example, the height and color of trees around the road) are stored.
The transmitter / receiver 12, the receiver 14, and the map database 26 do not necessarily have to be all provided, and may be provided individually if sufficient information can be obtained, or a plurality of them may be combined to complement each other's information. You may do it. For example, only topographical information may be prepared in the map database 26, and the transmitter / receiver 12 and the receiver 14 may appropriately supplement the information such as the heights of buildings and trees along the moving route of the vehicle.

Further, in the present embodiment, the ECU
Reference numeral 18 is connected to a CCD camera 28 for acquiring a color image from the scenery outside the vehicle (mainly in the front direction of the vehicle) and an illuminance sensor 30 for recognizing the brightness around the vehicle.

Similar to the conventional structure, the HUD unit 22 projects the display content displayed on the display unit onto a thin film combiner formed as an image display area on the indoor side surface of the windshield of the vehicle. It includes a light source, a reflection mirror, etc. Then, the information to be provided to the driver is imaged as an erecting virtual image at the front position outside the windshield. It becomes possible for the driver to recognize the displayed contents as well as the scenery in front through the windshield while driving. As a result, it is possible to confirm the display content together with the forward field of view (scenery) without significantly moving the line of sight during the driving of the vehicle, so that the visibility of the information content is improved and the safety during the driving of the vehicle can be enhanced. .

The characteristic feature of this embodiment is that the display mode of the display image is changed so that the display mode of the display image and the state of the outside scene of the vehicle are not assimilated when the state of the outside scene of the vehicle ahead changes. .

The processing operation of the vehicle display device 10 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. First, when the ignition switch (ACC or IG) of the vehicle is turned on, the display process of the vehicle display device 10 is started. ECU1
8 uses the GPS satellites via the GPS receiver 24 to recognize the absolute position of the vehicle (S100). Next, EC
U18 is map information, terrain information (for example, road ups and downs, height difference information, etc.), facility information (for example, size and color of buildings along the road), roads, etc. Environmental information of the surroundings (for example, the height and color of trees around the road) is acquired (S101). Similarly, wide area information in the FM reception area (including traffic information, weather information, facility information, etc.) is received via the receiver 14. Then, necessary information is stored in the memory 20 among the acquired information. In addition, the ECU 18 uses the direction sensor such as a geomagnetic sensor or a gyroscope mounted on the navigation device to indicate the direction in which the front of the vehicle is currently facing (the direction of the windshield of the vehicle).
Is recognized (S102).

Subsequently, the ECU 18 recognizes the state of the scenery outside the vehicle in front of the vehicle (S103). In the case of the present embodiment, the recognition of the outside scenery estimates the outside scenery based on the map information . As a reference example, the CCD camera 2
There is also a method of using 8 to obtain the actual exterior scenery.

In the case of estimating the outside scenery based on MAP information, outside scenery acquisition means included in the ECU18 is, (S1
The map information around the current vehicle position is read from the memory 20 or the map data database 26 based on the vehicle position recognized in (00) and the vehicle front direction recognized in (S102). At the same time, the ECU 18 uses the memory 20.
Reads the weather information around the vehicle position accumulated in.
As described above, the map information includes information such as road undulations, height difference information, the size and color of facilities around the road, and the height and color of trees around the road. If the weather, the current time, and the like are known, it is possible to easily estimate what the current scenery in the forward direction of the vehicle is like.
For example, if it is daytime when the weather is fine, and one side of the road is a coast and the other side is a mountain, the scenery that appears through the windshield of the running vehicle can see the sea depending on the curve and undulations of the road. You can estimate whether you can see the mountain or the mountain. Further, even when driving in an urban area, it is possible to estimate the scenery that appears through the windshield depending on the condition of buildings and roadside trees around the road and the curved and undulating conditions of the road.

The CCD camera 2 shown as a reference example
8 using, if you get the actual outside scenery, ECU1
The vehicle exterior scenery acquisition means included in 8 acquires the actual vehicle exterior scenery using the CCD camera 28. The CCD camera 2
The reference numeral 8 is arranged, for example, on the windshield on the driver's seat side or on the rear surface of the rear-view mirror so as to ensure substantially the same field of view as the driver.

[0031] ECU18 is Once you estimate the outside scenery, and FIG. 3
As shown in, the outside scenery state (background color) that becomes the display background surface B of the display area of the image by the HUD unit 22 is calculated. When estimating the exterior view from the map information, if the current vehicle front direction is, for example, the sea side, the sea should be visible through the windshield, so the ECU 18 displays "dark blue" as the background color. Presumed to be. On the other hand, if the vehicle front direction is, for example, the mountain side, it is estimated that the background color is “dark green”. Also,
When driving at night, it is estimated that the display background color is "black". If snowfall or snowfall is confirmed in the traveling area based on the weather information, the display background color is estimated to be "white". In this case, the ECU 18 may recognize the brightness around the vehicle based on the information from the illuminance sensor 30 and may recognize the darkness of the state of the scenery outside the vehicle to further finely recognize the display background color. . On the other hand, shown as a reference example
When the outside scene is acquired with the CCD camera 28,
This performing color classification performs image processing on a pixel-by-pixel basis in a manner well known
You can Then, the display background color is determined while matching with the color pattern prepared in advance. The background color determination process may be performed on the entire range of the image captured by the CCD camera 28, but may be performed only on the display background surface B of the display area and its peripheral portion. Can be shortened. Further, the type of color of the image that may be captured by the CCD camera 28 can be obtained from the map information of the map database 26, the illuminance information from the illuminance sensor 30, and other various kinds of information provided, such as time, weather, season, and direction of travel. If you select in advance based on the information of
The color of the screen captured by the CCD camera 28 and the prepared color pattern can be collated more smoothly in a shorter time, and the display background color can be determined.

Subsequently, the display form changing means included in the ECU 18 determines the color of the HUD display screen C (see FIG. 3) as a color that is not assimilated (non-assimilated color) with respect to the determined exterior scenery state (S104). ). For example, if the color of the state of the scenery outside the vehicle (the color of the display background surface B) is bluish, the color of the HUD display screen C is set to green or yellow. It is desirable that the correspondence between non-assimilated colors be determined in advance by the system or the user at 1: 1. Subsequently, the display form changing means displays the HUD display contents (characters and figures as information actually provided to the driver).
The color of is determined (S105). Also in this case, basically,
A color that is not assimilated (non-assimilated color) is selected for the state of the scenery outside the vehicle, but in addition, it is necessary to select a color that is not assimilated to the color of the HUD display screen C. However, in order to simplify the color selecting process and the synthesizing process, the color of the HUD display screen C may be a light color and the color of the HUD display content may be the same dark color. In this way, even by changing the color intensity, it is possible to satisfactorily recognize the display content without assimilating the state of the scenery outside the vehicle. Also in this case, it is desirable that the correspondence between the non-assimilated color and the darkness is determined in advance by 1: 1 by the system or user.

Further, the display form changing means included in the ECU 18 recognizes the brightness around the vehicle (mainly in the front direction of the vehicle) obtained from the CCD camera 28, the illuminance sensor 30, etc., and determines the display transparency of the HUD unit 22. Determine (S1
06). For example, in the daytime on a sunny day, the light transmittance of the HUD display unit is lowered. That is, the display color is darkened as a whole. On the other hand, at night, in tunnels, inside buildings, etc., HU
Increase the light transmittance of the D display unit. If the front of the vehicle is bright at night or in a tunnel due to headlights of an oncoming vehicle, the transparency is controlled to be low as in the daytime. Also, the brightness of the HUD display is ON / O of the headlight.
It is desirable to adjust in conjunction with FF. In this way, by adjusting the transparency, it is possible to display the HUD on the front windshield without any discomfort.

When the display color and the display transparency of the HUD are determined, the display form changing means included in the ECU 18 determines the display position (appearing position) of the HUD display portion on the windshield (S107). The display is performed at the position (S108). As shown in FIG. 4, the display position of the HUD display unit is one position selected from, for example, the display positions 32a to 32c (three positions in the present embodiment) of the driver side windshield, and the display screen Is about 5 inches, for example. This display position is appropriately selected based on the scenery in front of the vehicle recognized by the CCD camera 28 or the like. For example, when an oncoming vehicle, an obstacle (falling object, etc.) approaches from the front of the vehicle with the CCD camera 28, or a traffic signal or a sign approaches, it is important to perform safe driving through the windshield. When a simple object is visible, a position is selected such that the HUD display position does not overlap the object. Further, a thin film combiner may be formed to be larger than the display screen, and the display position may be arbitrarily moved in the vertical and horizontal directions according to the driver's driving posture and physique for fine adjustment. At this time, the contents displayed on the HUD are road information and emergency information that can be obtained from the route guidance by the navigation device, VICS or the like as shown in FIG. In addition, information on the front of the vehicle obtained from the CCD camera 28, the map database 26, and the like, for example, information on the vehicle traveling ahead, sign information, information on surrounding buildings, etc. is displayed to display the front information of the driver. It may be used as a recognition aid. In addition, if necessary, different display positions 32a to 32c are used and different information,
For example, the character information and the video information may be combined and displayed.

Subsequently, the display form changing means included in the ECU 18 monitors whether or not there is a change in the scenery condition in front of the vehicle which can be recognized by the map database 26, the CCD camera 28, etc. (S109). In this case, the color of the currently recognized landscape is compared with the color of the landscape in the past for a predetermined time, or the current brightness in front of the vehicle is compared with the brightness in the past for a predetermined time to determine the color or brightness. If a change in the scenery state exceeding the threshold value is confirmed (S100)
Then, the process for changing the display form of the HUD is performed. If it is determined that there is no change in the landscape state that exceeds the predetermined threshold value, the current HUD display state is maintained and the presence or absence of the landscape state is continuously monitored. It should be noted that the above-described processing for changing the display continues until the ignition switch is turned off.

If the display color or display position of the HUD is frequently changed, such as when traveling on a continuous curve or passing through an intermittent tunnel, the visibility of the display content may be deteriorated. There is. Therefore, the CCD camera 28
And the surrounding situation from the map database 26, etc.
The threshold for changing the display form of the UD may be set high so that the change is not executed extremely frequently. In addition, the driver may arbitrarily set the change interval if necessary.

In this embodiment, an example in which the map information by the map database 26 and the image information by the CCD camera 28 are combined and recognized in order to more accurately recognize the scenery outside the vehicle has been described, but only the map database 26 is recognized. <br/> Alternatively, image information may be added to the map information and used for recognition. Further, in the present embodiment, the operation of the vehicular display device is described by using a part of the functions of the navigation device, but a GPS receiver, a map database, etc. may be prepared exclusively for the vehicular display device.

[0038]

According to the present invention, even when the scenery outside the vehicle changes, the display form of the HUD is changed according to the change,
Since they are displayed separately, the display content can be recognized well.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram of a vehicle display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the vehicle display device according to the embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a display position of the vehicle display device according to the embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a display position of the vehicle display device according to the embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a display example of the vehicle display device according to the embodiment of the invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 vehicle display device, 12 transceiver, 14 receiver, 16 FM antenna, 18 electronic control unit (E
CU), 20 memory, 22 HUD unit, 24
GPS receiver, 26 map database, 28 CCD
Camera, 30 illuminance sensor.

Continuation of the front page (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G01C 21/00 B60K 35/00 G08G 1/0969 G09B 29/00-29/10

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A vehicle display device for projecting and displaying various kinds of information on a window glass of a vehicle, the map information acquiring means for acquiring map information, and the own vehicle position detecting means for detecting the current position of the own vehicle. A vehicle exterior scenery estimating means for estimating a vehicle exterior scenery state which is a background of the projected display screen based on the current position of the vehicle and the map information; and projecting and displaying the estimated vehicle exterior scenery state. A vehicle display device, comprising: a display mode changing unit that displays the display mode in a non-assimilated manner. The apparatus of claim 2 according to claim 1 Symbol placement, the display form changing means, vehicle recognizes the color types of exterior landscape state, and changing the color of the display screen in accordance with the color type Display device. The apparatus of 3. A process according to claim 1 Symbol placement, the display form changing means recognizes the color of the exterior landscape state, vehicle and changes the transmittance of the display screen in response to the tone Display device. 4. A device according to claim 1 to any one of claims 3, wherein the display form changing means, in response to outside scenery state, and changes the display position of the display screen Vehicle display device.