JP4140125B2 - Automatic headlamp optical axis adjustment device for vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To deal with various load conditions at the time of automatically adjusting an optical axis direction of vehicular headlights (head lamps) on the basis of an output from one height sensor. SOLUTION: A rear height value (a displacement amount of height in rear wheel side) is inputted from a height sensor arranged on a rear part of a vehicle to an ECU (an electronic control unit) 20. On the basis of the rear height value, a pitch angle to a horizontal surface in an optical axis direction of headlights 30 is calculated by a plurality of formulas for forecasting a vehicular posture corresponding to a vehicular type and corresponding to load conditions of an occupant load and a trunk load. Thus, the pitch angle corresponding to the load conditions of that time is calculated by the rear height value from one height sensor 11 in preparing a plurality of formulas for forecasting a vehicular posture corresponding to the load conditions beforehand. Accordingly, a necessary adjusting angle for a target optical axis direction can be calculated from the pitch angle to appropriately adjust the optical axis direction of the headlights 30.

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device for automatically adjusting the optical axis direction of irradiation by a headlamp disposed in a vehicle.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in a vehicle headlamp, when the optical axis direction of the headlamp is upward due to the inclination of the vehicle body, glare is given to an oncoming vehicle or the like, and when the optical axis direction is downward, the driver's distance visibility decreases. Therefore, there is a demand for keeping the optical axis direction of the headlamp constant.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, optical axis control using an inclination angle obtained by approximating a change amount of a vehicle posture due to a load by a linear expression is known. In this case, it is possible to make the optical axis direction of the headlamp coincide with the vehicle posture under limited load conditions such as “only occupant load” or “up to 50 kg of occupant load and trunk load”. However, the above-described one has a problem that it cannot cope with various load conditions due to the combination of the occupant load and the trunk load.
[0004]
Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object thereof is to provide an inexpensive vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device with a simple system, and in particular, the optical axis direction of a vehicle headlamp. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device that can cope with various load conditions when automatically adjusting the vehicle head based on the output from one vehicle height sensor.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device of claim 1, the tilt angle calculating means determines the tilt angle of the headlamp with respect to the horizontal plane in the optical axis direction based on the output from one vehicle height sensor as the occupant load. It is calculated using a prediction formula divided into a plurality of vehicle postures having different inclinations corresponding to the load condition with the trunk load, and the optical axis direction of the headlamp is adjusted by the optical axis direction adjusting means based on the inclination angle. For this reason, for example, the output value from one vehicle height sensor is detected by preparing in advance a plurality of vehicle posture prediction formulas corresponding to the vehicle type or the like and corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load and the trunk load. Then, the tilt angle corresponding to the load condition at that time is calculated, and the necessary target optical axis direction adjustment angle can be calculated from the tilt angle, and the optical axis direction of the headlamp is appropriate for the load condition at that time. The effect of being adjusted is obtained.
[0006]
In the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device according to claim 2, the inclination angle calculation means corresponds to the load condition at that time from a plurality of prediction expressions divided into a plurality of vehicle postures corresponding to sensor outputs other than the vehicle height sensor. The selected prediction formula is selected. For this reason, in addition to a vehicle type etc., the effect that the adjustment control of a more suitable optical axis direction can be implemented corresponding to the change of the complicated load condition at that time is acquired.
[0007]
According to the vehicle headlight optical axis direction automatic adjustment device of claim 3, the error from the attachment of the vehicle height sensor stored as the system error information in the output from the single vehicle height sensor by the inclination angle calculation means and the storage means. The angle of inclination of the headlight with respect to the horizontal plane in the optical axis direction is divided into multiple vehicle postures with different inclinations corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load and trunk load based on various errors based on the vehicle and other factors of the vehicle The optical axis direction of the headlamp is adjusted by the optical axis direction adjusting means based on this inclination angle. For this reason, for example, a plurality of vehicle attitude prediction formulas corresponding to the vehicle type and optional equipment corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load and the trunk load are prepared in advance, and the output detected by one vehicle height sensor is prepared. By adding system error information to the value, the tilt angle corresponding to the load condition at that time is calculated, and the required target optical axis direction adjustment angle can be calculated from the tilt angle, and the optical axis direction of the headlamp is The effect that it adjusts appropriately according to the load condition at the time is acquired.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on examples.
<Example 1>
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a vehicular headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting apparatus according to a first example of an embodiment of the present invention.
[0009]
In FIG. 1, a vehicle height sensor 11 is attached to the axle on the driver seat side or the passenger seat side at the rear of the vehicle. From the vehicle height sensor 11, the rear vehicle height value (the displacement amount of the rear wheel side vehicle height: the amount of displacement of the rear wheel side:
Various sensor signals and the like are input to an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 20 mounted on the vehicle from HR and other sensors (not shown). The ECU 20 is shown outside the vehicle for convenience.
[0010]
The ECU 20 is a logic composed of a CPU 21 as a known central processing unit, a ROM 22 storing a control program, a RAM 23 storing various data, a B / U (backup) RAM 24, an input / output circuit 25, a bus line 26 connecting them, and the like. It is configured as an arithmetic circuit. An output signal from the ECU 20 is input to the actuator 35 on the headlight (headlight) 30 side of the vehicle, and the optical axis direction of the headlight 30 is adjusted as will be described later.
[0011]
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a main configuration of the headlight 30 shown in FIG.
[0012]
In FIG. 2, a headlight 30 mainly supports a lamp 31 and a reflector 32 for fixing the lamp 31, a support portion 33 that supports the reflector 32 so as to be swingable in the direction of an arc, and the reflector 32 and is movable. The other movable portion 34, and an actuator 35 including a step motor for driving the movable portion 34 in the front-rear arrow direction. The optical axis direction of the headlight 30 is initially set on the assumption that one driver is in the vehicle.
[0013]
Next, the adjustment control in the optical axis direction corresponding to various load conditions in the CPU 21 in the ECU 20 used in the automatic headlamp optical axis direction adjustment device for a vehicle headlamp according to the first example of the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The processing procedure will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This control routine is repeatedly executed by the CPU 21 every predetermined time. Further, when executing the control routine of FIG. 3, it is determined in advance which table of prediction formulas of FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6 is to be used corresponding to the vehicle type. Necessary tables are stored in the ROM 22 in advance.
[0014]
Here, FIG. 4 is a table showing a prediction formula divided into two vehicle postures by a broken line connecting primary equations having different inclinations corresponding to the load condition for calculating the pitch angle [°] based on the rear vehicle height value [mm]. It corresponds to the sedan type or wagon type where the trunk load is behind the rear suspension. Further, FIG. 5 shows a modified example of the prediction formula divided into two vehicle postures by a broken line connecting primary equations having different inclinations corresponding to the load condition for calculating the pitch angle [°] based on the rear vehicle height [mm]. This table corresponds to a 1BOX type, a light vehicle, or the like in which a trunk load is applied to the rear suspension. FIG. 6 is a table showing a prediction formula divided into two vehicle postures by a broken line connecting primary equations having different inclinations corresponding to the load condition for calculating the pitch angle [°] based on the front vehicle height [mm]. Yes, it corresponds to midship vehicles and RR (rear engine / rear drive) vehicles where the trunk load is applied to the front suspension. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that a sedan type is assumed and the corresponding table of FIG. 4 is stored in the ROM 22 in advance.
[0015]
In FIG. 3, the rear vehicle height value (rear vehicle height measurement value) HR from the vehicle height sensor 11 is read in step S101. Next, the process proceeds to step S102, where the rear vehicle height value HR read in step S101 is a rear vehicle height value ha (= -9 [mm]) that divides the occupant load region and the trunk load region indicated by broken lines in FIG. It is determined whether this is the case. When the determination condition of step S102 is satisfied, that is, when the rear vehicle height value HR is larger than the rear vehicle height value ha and is in the occupant load region (the region surrounded by the hatched area on the right side of FIG. 4), the process proceeds to step S103. The pitch angle θp is calculated by one prediction formula f0 (HR) into which the rear vehicle height value HR read in step S101 is substituted among the prediction formulas divided into postures.
[0016]
On the other hand, if the determination condition in step S102 is not satisfied, that is, if the rear vehicle height value HR is small and less than the rear vehicle height value ha, and the vehicle is in the trunk load region (the region not surrounded by the slanted line on the left side of FIG. Then, the pitch angle θp is calculated from the other prediction formula f1 (HR) into which the rear vehicle height value HR read in step S101 is substituted. At this time, in FIG. 4, the prediction formula indicated by the one-dot chain line in the trunk load region in which the solid line indicating the prediction formula of the passenger load region is extended greatly deviates from the actual load condition indicated by the “diamond black” symbol. However, the solid line in which the slope is changed in the trunk load region shown as the present invention substantially matches the actual load condition. Note that the “diamond black paint” symbol shown in FIG. 4 is an actual measurement value based on the load condition when all the seats are in the occupant riding state, and the “square square” symbol is an occupant riding state in the driver seat.
[0017]
After the pitch angle θp is calculated in step S103 or step S104, the process proceeds to step S105, and the target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT (≈−θp) that does not give glare to the oncoming vehicle with respect to the pitch angle θp is calculated. The Next, the process proceeds to step S106, where the actuator 35 is driven based on the target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT calculated in step S105, and this routine is terminated. The control speed setting for the actuator 35 is omitted.
[0018]
Thus, the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device of the present embodiment is disposed at the rear of the vehicle, and includes one vehicle height sensor 11 that detects the amount of displacement of the vehicle height, and the vehicle height sensor 11. Two different slopes corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load determined by the occupant riding state in the vehicle interior and the trunk load determined by the baggage loaded state in the vehicle trunk based on the output rear vehicle height HR ( This is achieved by the CPU 21 in the ECU 20 that calculates the pitch angle θp corresponding to the inclination angle of the headlight (headlight) 30 of the vehicle with respect to the horizontal plane in the optical axis direction using a prediction formula divided into a plurality of vehicle postures. This is achieved by the inclination angle calculating means and the CPU 21 in the ECU 20 that adjusts the optical axis direction of the headlight 30 by the target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT based on the pitch angle θp calculated by the inclination angle calculating means. Is intended to and a that the optical axis direction adjusting means.
[0019]
Therefore, the pitch angle θp corresponding to the inclination angle of the headlight 30 with respect to the horizontal plane in the optical axis direction based on the rear vehicle height value HR that is the output from one vehicle height sensor 11 by the CPU 21 in the ECU 20 is the passenger load and trunk at that time. Calculated using prediction formulas f0 (HR) and f1 (HR) divided into two vehicle postures corresponding to load conditions and different inclinations, and the optical axis direction of the headlight 30 is adjusted based on the pitch angle θp. Is done. For this reason, for example, by preparing in advance a prediction formula that is divided into two vehicle postures corresponding to the vehicle type or the like and corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load and the trunk load and having different inclinations, the vehicle height sensor 11 If the rear vehicle height value HR is detected, the pitch angle θp corresponding to the load condition at that time is calculated, and the necessary target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT can be calculated from the pitch angle θp, so that the optical axis direction of the headlight 30 can be calculated. Is appropriately adjusted in accordance with the load condition at that time.
[0020]
Next, the adjustment control in the optical axis direction corresponding to various load conditions in the CPU 21 in the ECU 20 used in the automatic headlamp optical axis direction adjustment device for a vehicle headlamp according to the first example of the embodiment of the present invention will be described. A case where a table having three prediction expressions divided into two vehicle postures shown in FIG. 7 corresponding to sensor outputs other than the vehicle height sensor 11 in the processing will be described.
[0021]
FIG. 7 corresponds to the sedan type or the wagon type in which the trunk load is behind the rear suspension as in FIG. 4 and is divided into two vehicle postures that are selected based on other sensor signals. The table which has three prediction formulas A, B, and C corresponding to sensor outputs other than a vehicle height sensor is shown. Here, the other sensor signals are provided in the passenger seat of the vehicle and detect a passenger in the passenger seat (not shown), a load sensor (not shown) for measuring a trunk load, and a well-known G (acceleration). It is a sensor signal from a sensor. That is, a table having three prediction formulas corresponding to the vehicle type and divided into two vehicle postures is stored in advance in the ROM 22 of the ECU 20, and the prediction formula is selected and switched in accordance with a complicated change in actual load conditions. Thus, since the pitch angle θp can be calculated, a more accurate vehicle posture can be predicted, and more appropriate adjustment control in the optical axis direction can be performed.
[0022]
Thus, in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device of this modification, the prediction formula in which the tilt angle calculation means achieved by the CPU 21 of the ECU 20 is divided into two (plural) vehicle postures is arranged in the vehicle. There are three (a plurality) corresponding to sensor outputs other than the installed vehicle height sensor 11, and the sensor outputs other than the vehicle height sensor 11 are selected. Therefore, the prediction formula corresponding to the load condition at that time can be selected from three prediction formulas corresponding to the vehicle type or the like and divided into two vehicle postures. For this reason, in addition to the vehicle type and the like, more appropriate adjustment control in the optical axis direction can be performed in response to a complicated change in load conditions at that time.
<Example 2>
FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration of a vehicular headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting apparatus according to a second example of the embodiment of the present invention.
[0023]
8 is different from the schematic configuration diagram of FIG. 1 in the above-described embodiment in that a rewritable nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM 29 is provided as a storage medium for storing system error information in advance, and the EEPROM 29 is provided in the ECU 20. It is only built-in. Note that the EEPROM 29 may be connected to the outside of the ECU 20. For this reason, the same reference numerals and symbols are assigned to other configurations, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted. Further, the configuration of the main part of the headlight is also the same as the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 in the above-described embodiment, and detailed description thereof is also omitted. Here, the system error information is an error in mounting the height sensor 11 on the vehicle, an error in the spring constants of the front and rear suspensions, an error in weight due to a difference in vehicle specifications, an error in the position of the center of gravity, etc. It is a factor that affects the calculation.
[0024]
Next, the light which copes with various load conditions in consideration of the system error information in the CPU 21 in the ECU 20 used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device according to the second example of the embodiment of the present invention. Based on the flowchart of FIG. 9 which shows the processing procedure of the adjustment control of an axial direction, it demonstrates with reference to FIG.10, FIG11 and FIG.12. This control routine is repeatedly executed by the CPU 21 every predetermined time.
[0025]
Here, FIG. 10 shows a prediction formula (thin solid line) before the system error information corresponding to the characteristics of the standard vehicle is taken into account, and −20 [ mm] is a table showing a prediction formula (thick solid line) in consideration of system error information at the time of deviation. FIG. 11 shows a prediction formula before the system error information corresponding to the characteristics of the standard vehicle is taken into account (thin solid line) and a system when the slope of the prediction formula changes due to an error in the spring constant of the front and rear suspensions. It is a table which shows the prediction formula (thick solid line) in which error information was considered. FIG. 12 is a table showing five prediction formulas that take into account system error information including various errors based on errors in mounting the vehicle height sensor 11 on the vehicle and other factors of the vehicle. In the tables shown in FIG. 10, FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the “diamond black” symbol is an actual measurement value based on the load condition when all the seats are in the occupant riding state, and the “square square” symbol is the passenger seating in the driver seat. The prediction formula corresponding to the standard vehicle characteristic is stored in the ROM 22 in advance.
[0026]
In FIG. 9, the rear vehicle height value (rear vehicle height measurement value) HR from the vehicle height sensor 11 is read in step S201. In step S202, system error information is read. Next, the process proceeds to step S203, where the rear vehicle height value HR read in step S201 is the correction gain α and the correction amount (offset amount) Δh based on the system error information read in step S202 (α * HR− Δh).
[0027]
Here, as shown in FIG. 10 as a prediction formula before the system error information is taken into consideration with a thin solid line, it is simply shifted by −20 [mm] in terms of the rear vehicle height value HR due to the mounting error of the vehicle height sensor 11. As shown in FIG. 10 as a prediction formula in which system error information is taken into consideration with a thick solid line in FIG. 10, the error (correction amount Δh) is corrected so that the “diamond black” symbol and the “ The actual load condition indicated by the “white square” symbol is approximately the same. Further, as shown in FIG. 11 as a prediction formula before the system error information is taken into consideration with a thin solid line, the inclination of the prediction formula is changed by the mounting error of the vehicle height sensor 11 and the spring constant error of the front and rear suspensions. In this case, as shown in FIG. 11 as a prediction formula in which system error information is taken into consideration with a thick solid line, the error (correction gain α and correction amount Δh) is corrected, and the “diamond black” symbol and “ The actual load condition indicated by the “white square” symbol is approximately the same.
[0028]
Next, the process proceeds to step S204, where the rear vehicle height value HR updated in step S203 is further divided into a rear vehicle height value ha (= −9 [mm] that divides the occupant load region and the trunk load region shown by broken lines in FIG. ]) Or more is determined. When the determination condition of step S204 is satisfied, that is, when the rear vehicle height value HR is larger than the rear vehicle height value ha and is in the occupant load region (the region surrounded by the hatched line on the right side of FIG. 12), the process proceeds to step S205. It is selected from five prediction formulas fxi (HR), (i = 1, 2,..., 5) divided into postures, and the rear vehicle height value HR updated in step S203 is substituted into the prediction formula, and the pitch angle θp is set. Calculated.
[0029]
On the other hand, if the determination condition in step S204 is not satisfied, that is, the rear vehicle height value HR is small and less than the rear vehicle height value ha, the process proceeds to step S206 when the vehicle is in the trunk load region (the region not surrounded by the hatched area on the left side in FIG. Then, one of the five prediction formulas fyi (HR), (i = 1, 2,..., 5) divided into two vehicle postures is selected, and the rear vehicle height value HR updated in step S203 is substituted into the prediction formula. The pitch angle θp is calculated. At this time, in FIG. 12, the prediction formula selected in consideration of the system error information substantially matches the actual load condition indicated by the “diamond black paint” symbol and the “square square” symbol.
[0030]
After the pitch angle θp is calculated in step S205 or step S206, the process proceeds to step S207, and the target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT (≈−θp) that does not give glare to the oncoming vehicle with respect to the pitch angle θp is calculated. The Next, the process proceeds to step S208, where the actuator 35 is driven based on the target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT calculated in step S207, and this routine ends. The control speed setting for the actuator 35 is omitted.
[0031]
As described above, the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device of the present embodiment is disposed at the rear portion of the vehicle, and includes one vehicle height sensor 11 that detects the amount of displacement of the vehicle height, and attachment of the vehicle height sensor 11. EEPROM 29 as storage means for preliminarily storing various errors based on the error caused by the vehicle and other factors of the vehicle as system error information, and the rear vehicle height value HR as the output from the vehicle height sensor 11 and the system error stored in the EEPROM 29 Based on the information, two (plural) vehicle postures with different inclinations corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load determined by the occupant riding state in the vehicle interior and the trunk load determined by the luggage loading state in the vehicle trunk CP in ECU20 which calculates pitch angle (theta) p corresponding to the inclination angle with respect to the horizontal surface of the optical axis direction of the headlight (headlamp) 30 of a vehicle using the prediction formula divided into (2). The CPU 21 in the ECU 20 that adjusts the optical axis direction of the headlight 30 by the inclination angle calculating means achieved in 21 and the target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT based on the pitch angle θp calculated by the inclination angle calculating means. And an optical axis direction adjusting means to be achieved.
[0032]
Therefore, the pitch corresponding to the tilt angle of the headlight 30 with respect to the horizontal plane in the optical axis direction based on the rear vehicle height value HR that is output from one vehicle height sensor 11 and the system error information stored in the EEPROM 29 by the CPU 21 in the ECU 20. The angle θp is calculated using the prediction formulas fxi (HR) and fyi (HR) divided into two vehicle postures having different inclinations corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load and the trunk load at that time, and the pitch angle θp Based on this, the optical axis direction of the headlight 30 is adjusted. For this reason, for example, a prediction formula divided into two vehicle postures corresponding to the vehicle type or the like and corresponding to the load conditions of the occupant load and the trunk load and having different inclinations is prepared in advance. By adding system error information to the rear vehicle height value HR, a pitch angle θp corresponding to the load condition at that time is calculated, and a necessary target optical axis direction adjustment angle θT can be calculated from the pitch angle θp. The optical axis direction is appropriately adjusted in accordance with the load condition at that time.
[0033]
By the way, in the said Example, although the table divided | segmented into two area | regions of a passenger | crew load area | region and a trunk load area | region was used as a prediction type | formula divided | segmented into the several vehicle attitude | position corresponding to load conditions, when implementing this invention However, the present invention is not limited to this, and even in the same occupant load area and trunk load area, if the vehicle posture differs depending on the load position, the table may be further divided into three or more areas. . Moreover, although the prediction formula is a broken line that connects linear equations having different slopes corresponding to the load conditions, any function such as a high-order equation or an exponential function can be used. At this time, even if the prediction formula is a high-order formula, it is possible to divide the area into a large number and approximate each area with a linear formula for simplifying the program. Further, in a vehicle type in which the pitch angle θp does not change even if the rear vehicle height value HR changes, the prediction formula may be a constant (0th order formula).
[0034]
In the above embodiment, the pitch angle θp is calculated from the rear vehicle height value HR using a prediction table divided into a plurality of vehicle postures. For example, after estimating the front vehicle height value from the rear vehicle height value, the pitch angle May be calculated.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration of a vehicular headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting apparatus according to a first example of an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a main configuration of the headlight of FIG.
FIG. 3 is an optical axis direction that copes with various load conditions in the CPU in the ECU used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device according to the first example of the embodiment of the present invention; It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of this adjustment control.
FIG. 4 is divided into two vehicle postures for calculating the pitch angle based on the rear vehicle height value used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device according to the first example of the embodiment of the present invention. It is a table which shows a prediction formula.
FIG. 5 shows two other vehicle postures for calculating the pitch angle based on the rear vehicle height value used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device according to the first example of the embodiment of the invention. It is a table which shows the divided | segmented prediction formula.
FIG. 6 is divided into two vehicle postures for calculating the pitch angle based on the front vehicle height value used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device according to the first example of the embodiment of the present invention. It is a table which shows a prediction formula.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing two examples of calculating the pitch angle based on the rear vehicle height value and other sensor outputs used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device according to the first example of the embodiment of the invention; It is a table which shows three prediction formulas divided into vehicle postures corresponding to sensor outputs other than the vehicle height sensor.
FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration of a vehicular headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting apparatus according to a second example of the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 9 shows various load conditions in consideration of system error information in the CPU in the ECU used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting apparatus according to the second example of the embodiment of the present invention. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of adjustment control in the optical axis direction to cope with the above.
FIG. 10 is a diagram before system error information corresponding to characteristics of a standard vehicle used in a vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting apparatus according to a second example of the embodiment of the present invention is taken into consideration; It is a table | surface which shows a prediction formula and the prediction formula in which the system error information by the attachment error to the vehicle of a vehicle height sensor was considered.
FIG. 11 is a system error information before the system error information corresponding to the characteristic of the standard vehicle used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device according to the second example of the embodiment of the present invention is considered; It is a table which shows a prediction formula and a prediction formula which considered system error information when the inclination of a prediction formula changed with the error of the spring constant of a front and rear suspension.
FIG. 12 is based on a mounting error of the vehicle height sensor used in the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device for a vehicle according to the second example of the embodiment of the present invention and other factors of the vehicle; It is a table which shows five prediction formulas in which the system error information which consists of various errors was considered.
[Explanation of symbols]
11 Vehicle height sensor 20 ECU (electronic control unit)
30 Headlight (headlight)
35 Actuator

Claims (3)

A vehicle height sensor disposed at the front or rear of the vehicle for detecting the amount of vehicle height displacement;
Based on the output from the vehicle height sensor, a plurality of vehicle postures having different inclinations corresponding to the load conditions of an occupant load determined by an occupant riding state in the vehicle interior of the vehicle and a trunk load determined by a baggage loading state of the vehicle An inclination angle calculating means for calculating an inclination angle with respect to a horizontal plane in the optical axis direction of the headlight of the vehicle by selecting and switching the prediction formula divided into
An automotive headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device, comprising: an optical axis direction adjusting unit that adjusts an optical axis direction of the headlamp based on the tilt angle calculated by the tilt angle calculating unit. The inclination angle calculation means has a plurality of prediction formulas divided into the plurality of vehicle postures corresponding to sensor outputs other than the vehicle height sensor disposed in the vehicle, and is based on sensor outputs other than the vehicle height sensor. The vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjustment device is selected. A vehicle height sensor disposed at the front or rear of the vehicle for detecting the amount of vehicle height displacement;
Storage means for preliminarily storing, as system error information, various errors based on errors associated with the mounting of the vehicle height sensor and other factors of the vehicle;
Based on the output from the vehicle height sensor and the system error information stored in the storage means, an occupant load determined by the occupant riding state in the vehicle cabin and a trunk load determined by the baggage loading state of the vehicle An inclination angle calculating means for calculating an inclination angle with respect to a horizontal plane in the optical axis direction of the headlight of the vehicle by selecting and switching a prediction formula divided into a plurality of vehicle postures having different inclinations corresponding to the load conditions ;
An automotive headlamp optical axis direction automatic adjusting device, comprising: an optical axis direction adjusting unit that adjusts an optical axis direction of the headlamp based on the tilt angle calculated by the tilt angle calculating unit.

Images