JP6409709B2 - Control device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a control device for controlling the operation of a vehicle air conditioner.

  As a control device for a vehicle air conditioner, there has been proposed a control device capable of performing control in consideration of the radiation temperature in the vehicle interior, instead of simply controlling the air temperature in the vehicle interior to match the target temperature. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1 below). According to such a control device, for example, even if the temperature in the passenger compartment is appropriate, the vehicle air conditioner is operated so as to perform cooling when the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment is relatively high. It becomes possible to keep the room more comfortable. That is, it is possible to perform appropriate control while taking into account the thermal sensation felt by the passenger.

  In order to measure the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment, a radiation temperature sensor is provided in the passenger compartment. The radiation temperature sensor detects infrared rays radiated from various structures (seats, dashboards, etc.) in the passenger compartment and infrared rays incident on the passenger compartment from the outside through windows, and based on these infrared rays, the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment is detected. Is to measure.

Japanese Patent No. 4443294

  In the passenger compartment, infrared rays are incident on the passenger from all directions. However, since the infrared rays traveling from the rear side toward the occupant are blocked by the seat, they hardly reach the occupant. Therefore, it is infrared rays incident on the occupant from the front side that greatly affects the thermal sensation felt by the occupant.

  The radiation temperature sensor is installed at a position different from the position of the passenger in the passenger compartment. For example, a mode in which a radiation temperature sensor is installed at a position obliquely above the occupant on the ceiling is conceivable. What is detected by the radiation temperature sensor at such a position is not the infrared light incident on the occupant from the front side as described above, but the infrared light incident on the radiation temperature sensor. For this reason, the radiation temperature different from what a passenger | crew receives may be detected by a radiation temperature sensor, and control of a vehicle air conditioner may not be performed appropriately.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to accurately detect the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment received by the occupant and appropriately control the vehicle air conditioner. Is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a control device according to the present invention is a control device for controlling the operation of a vehicle air conditioner so as to reflect infrared rays incident on an occupant from the front side in a vehicle interior. A reflection part formed on the surface of the belt, an infrared detection part that is provided at a position on the front side of the occupant in the passenger compartment and that detects infrared rays that reach from a range including the reflection part, and an infrared detection part from the reflection part And a radiation temperature calculation unit that calculates the radiation temperature in the vehicle interior based on the infrared rays that reach the vehicle, and controls the operation of the vehicle air conditioner based on the calculated radiation temperature.

  According to such a control device, the radiation temperature in the vehicle interior is calculated based on the infrared rays that are incident on the passenger from the front side in the vehicle interior and reflected by the reflecting portion. For this reason, it is possible to accurately detect the radiation temperature from the front side, that is, the radiation temperature received by the occupant in the passenger compartment, with the configuration in which the infrared detection unit is provided at the front side of the occupant. By controlling the operation of the vehicle air conditioner based on such radiation temperature, the passenger compartment can be kept more comfortable.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the control apparatus which can detect correctly the radiation temperature which a passenger | crew receives in a vehicle interior and can control a vehicle air conditioner appropriately is provided.

It is a figure which shows typically the structure of the vehicle by which the control apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention is mounted. It is the figure which looked at a crew member and a seat belt from the front side. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the process performed with the control apparatus of FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In order to facilitate the understanding of the description, the same constituent elements in the drawings will be denoted by the same reference numerals as much as possible, and redundant description will be omitted.

  A control apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The control device 100 is a device for appropriately performing air conditioning in the passenger compartment RM by controlling the operation of the air conditioning device 200 provided in the vehicle. FIG. 1 schematically shows a part of the passenger compartment RM (in the vicinity of the driver's seat) of the vehicle on which the control device 100 is mounted.

  The air conditioner 200 is a device that keeps the interior of the passenger compartment RM comfortable by supplying the air whose temperature is adjusted by a refrigeration cycle (not shown) into the passenger compartment RM. The temperature and flow rate of air supplied from the air conditioner 200 into the passenger compartment RM are adjusted by control performed by the control device 100.

  The passenger compartment RM is provided with a seat ST that is a driver's seat and a seat belt BT. The seat ST is provided as a seat for the occupant M to sit and drive. The left side in FIG. 1 is the front side of the vehicle, and the right side is the rear side of the vehicle.

  The seat belt BT is a belt-like belt provided on the seat ST as a safety device for fixing the body of the passenger M to the seat ST. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the occupant M is wearing the seat belt BT and driving, the seat belt BT is a front part of the occupant M's body, specifically, from the right shoulder to the chest, Covers the part of the abdomen. At this time, the surface on the occupant M side of the seat belt BT is in close contact with the garment CL of the occupant M (see FIG. 2). A marker 130 which is a part of the control device 100 is formed on the surface of the seat belt BT opposite to the occupant M, that is, the surface facing the front side.

  The vehicle is provided with a sensor (not shown) for measuring the temperature in the passenger compartment RM. The air temperature measured by the sensor is input to the control device 100 (main body 110).

  The control device 100 according to the present embodiment includes a main body 110, a thermal image camera 120, and the marker 130 described above. The main body 110 is a computer system including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. The main body 110 calculates the temperature of each part (including the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment) based on a thermal image taken by a thermal image camera 120 described later, and controls the operation of the air conditioner 200 based on the temperature. .

  The main body 110 includes a radiation temperature calculation unit 111, a surface temperature calculation unit 112, and an air conditioning control unit 113 as functional control blocks. The radiation temperature calculation unit 111 is a part that calculates the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM based on the thermal image captured by the thermal image camera 120. The surface temperature calculation unit 112 is a part that calculates the surface temperature of the clothing CL of the occupant M based on a thermal image taken by the thermal image camera 120. The air conditioning control unit 113 is a part that controls the operation of the air conditioner 200. Details of specific processing performed by each of the radiation temperature calculation unit 111, the surface temperature calculation unit 112, and the air conditioning control unit 113 will be described later.

  The thermal image camera 120 is a camera for detecting an infrared ray that is radiated or reflected from an object and capturing an image (thermal image) indicating an intensity distribution of the infrared ray. The thermal image camera 120 includes a plurality of infrared imaging elements arranged in a matrix. With these infrared imaging elements, it is possible to measure the intensity distribution of infrared rays reaching from each part of the imaging range and output it as a thermal image. The range of the infrared wavelength detected by the thermal image camera 120 is 8 μm to 14 μm.

  The thermal image camera 120 is attached to a position on the front side and the upper side of the passenger M in the passenger compartment RM so that a thermal image including the upper body portion of the passenger M can be taken from the front side. In FIG. 1, a range in which a thermal image can be taken by the thermal image camera 120 is indicated by an arrow RG. The range includes the marker 130 formed on the seat belt BT and its peripheral portion in addition to the upper body of the occupant M. Note that the range captured as a thermal image by the thermal image camera 120 substantially matches the range shown in FIG.

  The marker 130 is formed by attaching a sheet made of circular aluminum to the surface (front surface) of the seat belt BT. As shown in FIG. 2, the marker 130 is provided at a position that is the center of the abdomen of the occupant when the seat belt BT is worn. The marker 130 reflects incident infrared rays and causes a part thereof to reach the thermal image camera. As a material of the marker 130, any material other than aluminum may be used as long as it has a sufficiently high reflectance (that is, a sufficiently low emissivity) for infrared rays having a wavelength of 8 μm to 14 μm.

  Fine irregularities are formed on the surface of the marker 130. For this reason, the infrared rays incident on the marker 130 are diffused and reflected substantially uniformly in all directions as indicated by the arrow AR2 in FIG. 1 regardless of the incident direction. Since the surface of the marker 130 faces the front side, most of the infrared light reflected by the marker 130 is incident on the marker 130 from the front side.

  Incidentally, it is known that the thermal sensation felt by the occupant M in the passenger compartment RM is affected by the air temperature, but is also affected by infrared rays incident on the occupant M's body. Moreover, since the infrared rays from the rear side are blocked by the seat ST, it can be said that most of the influence on the thermal sensation of the occupant M is the infrared rays incident on the occupant M from the front side. In other words, it can be said that the radiation temperature received by the occupant M is substantially determined only by the intensity of infrared rays from the front side.

  In FIG. 1, such infrared rays from the front side are indicated by an arrow AR1. The infrared rays from the front side include, for example, infrared rays radiated from a structure such as a dashboard on the front side and infrared rays that enter the passenger compartment RM through the windshield.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, a part of the infrared ray traveling from the front side toward the occupant M, that is, the infrared ray having a great influence on the thermal sensation felt by the occupant is reflected by the marker 130, and a part thereof is further reflected by the thermal image camera 120. Will be detected (photographed). The main body 110 calculates a radiation temperature based on the infrared rays reflected by the marker 130 from the thermal image obtained by the thermal image camera 120. Such calculation is performed by the radiation temperature calculation unit 111 of the main body 110.

  As described above, the radiation temperature calculated by the radiation temperature calculation unit 111 is equal to the radiation temperature received by the occupant M from the front side. The air conditioning controller 113 of the main body 110 controls the operation of the air conditioner 200 based on the radiation temperature. For example, when the calculated radiation temperature is higher than a predetermined range, the temperature sense in the passenger compartment RM is reduced by 1 degree so that the thermal sensation felt by the passenger M is more comfortable. It becomes possible.

  Details of specific processing performed by the main body 110 will be described with reference to FIG. A series of processes shown in FIG. 3 are repeatedly executed by the main body 110 every time a predetermined period elapses.

  In the first step S01, a thermal image is taken by the thermal image camera 120, and the thermal image is acquired by the main body 110.

  In step S02 following step S01, the acquired thermal image is analyzed to detect the marker 130 included in the thermal image. In the present embodiment, it is configured to identify a circular portion having a uniform temperature from a range where the marker 130 can exist (the central portion of the thermal image) and detect the portion as the range of the marker 130. ing.

  In this embodiment, in order to facilitate the detection of the marker 130 from the thermal image, the seat belt BT is formed of a material having a low reflectance (that is, a high emissivity) for infrared rays having a wavelength of 8 μm to 14 μm. Has been. That is, the reflectance of the surface of the seat belt BT other than the marker 130 is 0 or in the vicinity thereof, and the reflectance of the marker 130 is 1 or in the vicinity thereof.

  As a result, the temperature of each part indicated by the thermal image substantially matches the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM in the marker 130 portion, and substantially matches the surface temperature of the clothing CL in the portion around the marker 130. Usually, since both are different from each other, the position and range of the marker 130 can be easily detected based on the temperature contrast indicated by the thermal image.

  If the temperature difference between the two is close and it is difficult to detect the marker 130 based on the contrast of the thermal image, the temperature of the air blown out from the air conditioner 200 may be temporarily lowered. Further, the air direction may be temporarily changed so that the blown air directly hits the marker 130, or the flow rate of the blown air may be temporarily increased. At this time, the temperature shown in the marker 130 portion of the thermal image hardly changes (because it is not the temperature of the marker 130 itself but the ambient radiation temperature), while the temperature shown in the thermal image around the marker 130 is (clothing). (Because it is the temperature of CL). Thereby, a difference arises between the temperature shown between the part of the marker 130 and its periphery, and the marker 130 can be easily detected by contrast.

  In step S03 following step S02, the radiation temperature calculation unit 111 measures (calculates) the temperature indicated in the marker 130 portion of the thermal image. In the present embodiment, the center position of the circular marker 130 is set as a temperature measurement point MP1 (see FIG. 2), and the temperature in the portion is measured.

  In step S04 following step S03, the temperature of the measurement point MP1 measured in step S03 is directly calculated as the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM received by the passenger M. In addition, when the reflectance of the marker 130 is smaller than 1 and known, a value corrected based on the reflectance may be calculated as the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM.

  Subsequent to step S02, step S05 is performed in parallel with step S03. In step S <b> 05, the surface temperature calculation unit 112 measures the temperature in the vicinity of the marker 130. Specifically, in the thermal image, the temperature indicated at the measurement point MP2 that is a predetermined distance away from the measurement point MP1 is measured (calculated).

  The predetermined distance is slightly larger than the radius of the marker 130. Further, the direction from the measurement point MP1 to the measurement point MP2 is a direction substantially along the longitudinal direction of the seat belt BT. As a result, the measurement point MP2 is in the vicinity (outside) of the marker 130 and on the surface of the seat belt BT. In other words, the position of the measurement point MP2 is determined so as to be such a position, and the temperature at the position is measured.

  Since the seat belt BT is in close contact with the clothing CL of the occupant M, the surface temperature thereof is substantially equal to the surface temperature of the clothing CL. Further, as described above, the reflectance in the portion other than the marker 130 on the surface of the seat belt BT is 0 or in the vicinity thereof. For this reason, the temperature of the measurement point MP2 calculated by the surface temperature calculation unit 112 is substantially equal to the surface temperature of the clothing CL.

  Therefore, in step S06 following step S05, the temperature of the measurement point MP2 measured in step S05 is directly calculated as the surface temperature of the clothing CL of the occupant M. If the reflectance of the surface of the seat belt BT is greater than 0 and is known, a value corrected based on the reflectance may be calculated as the surface temperature of the clothing CL.

  It replaces with the above aspects and the temperature shown in measurement point MP3 (refer FIG. 2) set on the surface of the clothing CL among thermal images is directly calculated as the surface temperature of the clothing CL. Such a mode may be sufficient. However, since the type (reflectance) of the clothing CL is unknown, an error may occur between the calculated temperature and the actual temperature. Therefore, as in this embodiment, a mode in which the position on the seat belt BT where the reflectance is known is used as a measurement point and the temperature at the position is calculated as the surface temperature of the clothing CL is preferable.

  In step S07 following step S04 and step S06, based on the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM calculated by the radiation temperature calculation unit 111 and the surface temperature of the clothing CL calculated by the surface temperature calculation unit 112, the air conditioner 200 operations (set temperature and air volume) are adjusted. For example, when the surface temperature of the clothing CL is higher than the temperature in the passenger compartment RM, it is possible to perform control such as lowering the blowing temperature once even if the temperature is appropriate. .

  In addition, for each combination of values of the temperature in the passenger compartment RM, the radiation temperature, and the surface temperature of the clothing CL, the control parameters (blowing temperature and air volume) of the air conditioner 200 are stored as a map. Also good.

  Thus, by measuring each of the temperature in the passenger compartment RM, the radiation temperature, and the surface temperature of the clothing CL, and performing a control that comprehensively considers these, the thermal sensation felt by the occupant M is more comfortable. It becomes possible.

  As described above, the control device 100 according to the present embodiment includes the marker 130 formed on the surface of the seat belt BT so as to reflect infrared rays incident on the occupant M from the front side in the passenger compartment RM, and the passenger compartment. A thermal image camera 120 that is provided at a position in front of the occupant M in the RM and detects infrared rays that reach the area including the marker 130 (arrow RG in FIG. 1), and reaches the thermal image camera 120 from the marker 130 And a radiation temperature calculation unit 111 that calculates the radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM based on the infrared rays. Furthermore, the control device 100 controls the operation of the air conditioner 200 based on the radiation temperature calculated by the radiation temperature calculation unit 111.

  With such a configuration, the thermal imaging camera 120 is provided at a position on the front side of the occupant M (that is, a position different from the occupant M), but the occupant M receives from the front side in the passenger compartment RM. The radiation temperature can be accurately detected. By controlling the operation of the air conditioner 200 based on such radiation temperature, the interior of the passenger compartment RM can be kept more comfortable.

  Furthermore, the control device 100 includes a surface temperature calculation unit 112 that calculates the surface temperature of the clothing CL of the occupant M based on infrared rays that reach the thermal image camera 120 from a predetermined location (measurement point MP2) in the vicinity of the marker 130. In addition, the operation of the air conditioner 200 is controlled based on the calculated surface temperature.

  By controlling the air conditioning based on the surface temperature of the clothing CL in addition to the air temperature and radiation temperature in the passenger compartment RM, it is possible to make the thermal sensation felt by the occupant M more comfortable.

  By the way, the surface temperature of the clothing CL may be greatly different between a portion where the clothing CL is in close contact with the body of the occupant M and a portion where the clothing CL is not in close contact (for example, the apex portion of the bag generated in the clothing CL). Many. Therefore, depending on how to select the measurement point of the clothing CL, there is a possibility that the air conditioning control based on the surface temperature of the clothing CL is not appropriately performed.

  On the other hand, at the measurement point MP2 of the present embodiment, the clothing CL is pressed against the body of the occupant M by the pulling force of the seat belt BT, and the clothing CL and the body of the occupant M are always in close contact with each other. Yes. The same applies to the case where the surface temperature of the clothing CL is measured at the measurement point MP3 (FIG. 2).

  For this reason, the measured surface temperature of the clothing CL can be used as an index indicating the thermal sensation felt by the occupant M (because it is the temperature of the contact portion). By controlling the air conditioning based on the surface temperature thus measured, the interior of the passenger compartment RM can be kept more comfortable.

  Measurement point MP2 of the surface temperature of clothing CL is set as a location on the surface of seat belt BT. Since the surface temperature of the clothing CL is measured based on infrared rays from a portion with a known reflectance, measurement with a small measurement error is possible.

  In the present embodiment, the reflectance of the surface of the seat belt BT is 0 or in the vicinity thereof. In other words, the radiation rate of the surface of the seat belt BT is 1 or the vicinity thereof. For this reason, in the thermal image, the temperature indicated at the measurement point MP2 on the seat belt BT is substantially equal to the surface temperature of the clothing CL (since it is hardly affected by reflection). That is, the surface temperature of the clothing CL can be measured more accurately.

  In addition, the aspect in which the radiation rate of the surface of the seat belt BT is 1 or in the vicinity thereof only in a local range including the measurement point MP2 may be employed.

  The surface of the marker 130 is processed to diffusely reflect incident infrared rays. For this reason, infrared rays reaching the occupant M from a wide range on the front side of the vehicle (from all directions) are reflected by the marker 130 and reach the thermal image camera 120. As a result, the temperature indicated by the marker 130 in the thermal image is the average of the radiation temperature from the front side of the occupant M. That is, it is possible to appropriately measure the radiation temperature received by the occupant M without being affected by radiation from a local high-temperature location (for example, aspect).

  In the present embodiment, a single marker 130 is formed on the surface of the seat belt BT. It may replace with such an aspect and the aspect in which the marker 130 is formed in multiple places may be sufficient. Further, the marker 130 may be formed by weaving or plating a material having high reflectivity with respect to the seat belt BT.

  The embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to specific examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these specific examples. In other words, those specific examples that have been appropriately modified by those skilled in the art are also included in the scope of the present invention as long as they have the characteristics of the present invention. For example, the elements included in each of the specific examples described above and their arrangement, materials, conditions, shapes, sizes, and the like are not limited to those illustrated, but can be changed as appropriate. Moreover, each element with which each embodiment mentioned above is provided can be combined as long as technically possible, and the combination of these is also included in the scope of the present invention as long as it includes the features of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100: Control apparatus 111: Radiation temperature calculation part 112: Surface temperature calculation part 113: Air-conditioning control part 120: Thermal image camera 130: Marker 200: Air-conditioning apparatus BT: Seat belt CL: Clothing RM: Car interior ST: Seat

Claims (5)

A control device (100) for controlling the operation of the vehicle air conditioner (200),
A reflecting portion (130) formed on the surface of the seat belt (BT) so as to reflect infrared rays incident on the occupant (M) from the front side in the passenger compartment (RM);
An infrared detection unit (120) that is provided at a position on the front side of the occupant in the vehicle interior and detects infrared rays that reach from a range including the reflection unit;
A radiation temperature calculation unit (111) that calculates a radiation temperature in the vehicle interior based on infrared rays that reach the infrared detection unit from the reflection unit,
A control device that controls operation of the vehicle air conditioner based on the calculated radiation temperature. A surface temperature calculation unit (112) that calculates the surface temperature of the occupant's clothes (CL) based on infrared rays that reach the infrared detection unit from a predetermined location (MP2) in the vicinity of the reflection unit;
The control device according to claim 1, wherein an operation of the vehicle air conditioner is controlled based on the calculated surface temperature.   The control device according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined portion is a portion on a surface of the seat belt.   The control device according to claim 3, wherein a value of a radiation rate at least in the predetermined portion of the seat belt is 1 or the vicinity thereof.   5. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the surface of the reflection portion is processed to diffusely reflect incident infrared rays. 6.

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