JPH0411526A - Head-up display for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To allow a driver to easily confirm the remote scene in front of a vehicle at early stage during the traveling of a land vehicle by installing a means for displaying the remote scene in front of the vehicle in magnification on a display surface and a means for controlling the transmission light quantity of a combiner according to the speed of the vehicle. CONSTITUTION:The image information or traveling information for displaying the remote scene in front of a vehicle which is image-picked up by a CDD camera 7 is displayed on the optical information display means D of an information projector K. When the traveling speed of the vehicle is over a prescribed speed, the image (e.g., the image of a railroad crossing) in a region E is displayed in magnification, and the light transmissivity of a combiner C1 is reduced, and the transmission light quantity reduces. Accordingly, the image in the region E which is displayed in magnification can be easily recognized. When the traveling speed of the vehicle is less than a prescribed speed, e.g., if the vehicle stops in a station field, the light transmissivity of the combiner C1 is increased, and the external scene (scene of the station field) can be easily recognized.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] A1 Purpose of the Invention ■) Industrial Field of Application The present invention is intended for use when a driver of a land vehicle such as a railway vehicle or a high-speed automobile operates while looking at the scene in the outside world in front of him. This invention relates to a head-up display that displays various information superimposed on the scene of the outside world in front of the person.

If such a head-up display is used, the driver does not have to look at the instruments every time he or she looks away from the outside world, thereby preventing unexpected accidents that may occur while looking away from the outside world.

2) Prior Art The conventional radar-up display mentioned above usually has a combiner such as a half mirror or a hologram element placed in front of the driver's field of vision, and the combiner directs the light rays emitted from the external scene in the direction of the driver. The information display light is transmitted to the combiner from inside the cockpit and reflected or diffracted toward the driver.

The information projecting device that makes the information display light enter the combiner includes an optical information display means such as a CRT, a transmissive liquid crystal display panel, a plasma display, or a light emitting diode display, and the light emitted from the optical information display means. and an optical member that allows the light to enter the combiner. The optical member is usually composed of a lens, a reflector, etc., and is configured so that the information display light can be visually recognized in the driver's front field of vision.

3) Problems to be Solved by the Invention By the way, when driving a railway vehicle, a car, etc., the faster the vehicle is, the faster it is necessary to confirm distant scenes.

However, when these vehicles drive in dark places such as at night, it is difficult for the driver to quickly check the scene in front of the vehicle. The vehicle may travel more than Loom from when it is discovered until it stops. However, the forward position that can be easily confirmed by a car's headlights is usually about several tens of meters. Therefore, when an abnormality is discovered in front of the vehicle illuminated by the headlights, it may be difficult to stop the vehicle in front of it.

Further, when a railway vehicle is running in a bright place during the day, the limit distance for forward visibility is approximately 600 meters. In order to stop the vehicle within 600 meters after detecting an abnormality ahead, the maximum speed of railway vehicles other than Shinkansen trains is 1.
Approval has been granted only for trains of up to 20km (130km or less in some special vehicle sections).Please note that Shinkansen trains do not have level crossings, so the above restrictions do not apply.For railway vehicles other than Shinkansens, the above restrictions apply to high-speed trains. This had become a major bottleneck in the process of reform.

As can be seen from the above description, land vehicles have a problem in that the maximum speed in degrees Celsius is limited by the forward visibility limit distance.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to enable a driver to quickly check the scene in the far front part of the land vehicle while the vehicle is traveling.

B1 Structure of the invention 1)! Means for Solving Problem 1 In order to solve the above problem, the head-up display of the present invention comprises: an optical information display means having a display surface on which information is displayed; and information display light emitted from the display surface. an information projector equipped with an optical member that projects light in a predetermined direction; and an information projector that is installed at an angle in front of the driver and directs light rays from the outside world forward so that the driver can visually recognize the scene of the outside world ahead. A head-up display for a vehicle, which is equipped with a combiner that transmits information display light projected from the information projection device rearward and reflects or diffracts the information display light projected from the information projection device in a direction visible to the driver, the scene in front of the vehicle. The present invention is characterized in that it includes means for displaying an enlarged image on the display surface, and means for controlling the amount of light transmitted through the combiner in accordance with the speed of the vehicle.

2) Function The bed-up display of the present invention having the above-mentioned features is provided with a means for enlarging and displaying the scene in front of the vehicle on the display surface, so that it can be displayed when necessary, for example when the vehicle is traveling at high speed. , the distant scene in front of the vehicle is enlarged and displayed in the driver's field of vision. Further, the head-up display of the present invention is provided with a means for controlling the amount of light transmitted through the combiner according to the speed of the vehicle, so that when the front distant scene is enlarged and displayed, the amount of light transmitted through the combiner is reduced. be able to. This makes it easier to visually recognize the front scene enlarged and displayed on the rad-up display.

3) Example An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, a driver's cab 2 is installed at the front end of a railway vehicle 1, which is an example of a land vehicle.

In this driver's cab 2, an instrument panel 4 is arranged in front of a seat 3 for a driver P. Further, in front of the driver's cab 2, a windshield C is disposed between the lower part 5 of the vehicle body of the railway vehicle 1 and the ceiling 6. This windshield C is arranged so as to be inclined downward as it goes forward. There is a combiner C partially on the inside of the windshield C.
1 is provided. The combiner C1 is composed of a panel such as a liquid crystal panel that can control the amount of transmitted light. Further, a CCD camera 7 as an imaging means is disposed at an upper position at the front end of the railway vehicle 1. In addition,
The reason why the CCD camera 7 is disposed at the upper position is to reduce the sense of discomfort when an image captured by the CCD camera 7 is enlarged and displayed when viewing the actual object. Note that it is convenient to use the CCD camera 7 at night if it has high infrared sensitivity.

The instrument panel 4 of the driver's cab 2 is provided with an optical member A and a CRT display (that is, an optical information display means) D. On the display surface of this CRT display D,
Information necessary for the operation of the railway vehicle (for example, the scene in front of the vehicle captured by the CCD camera, speed information, time information, brake pressure information, etc.) is displayed.

Note that, instead of the CRT display D, a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, a light emitting diode display, or the like may be used as the optical information display means.

The optical member A includes a concave lens A1. It is composed of a mirror A2, a convex lens A3, etc., and the information display light emitted from the optical information display means is transferred to the combiner C1.
It is arranged so that it is incident on the

The combiner C1 is arranged so as to transmit a part of the information display light incident from the optical member A and reflect the remaining part toward the driver P.
The information display light can be visually recognized while looking at the front of the vehicle. Further, the windshield C is arranged so as to reflect a part of the external light J incident from an external scene, etc., and allow the remaining part to enter the combiner C1.

The combiner CI is arranged so as to transmit the incident external light J toward the driver P.

The optical member A and the CRT display D constitute an information projecting device K, and the combiner C1
, the information projecting device, and a display signal output means U to be described later.
A head-up display H (see FIG. 2) is constructed from these components.

In the head-up display H shown in FIG. 2, the display signal output means U for outputting a signal for driving the CRT display D is configured to operate in accordance with the speed signal of the vehicle detected by the speed sensor 8. has been done. The display signal output means U is composed of a display information output means U1 and a display signal forming circuit U2 that outputs a display signal based on the output signal of the display information output means U1.

The display information output means U1 includes an image information reading circuit 9 that reads an image signal captured by the CCD camera 7, and an operation information circuit 9 that outputs information signals such as speed, brake pressure, or time necessary for the operation of the vehicle. and an output port 810. Further, the display signal forming circuit U2 includes a display information control section 11 that forms and stores display data based on the input signal from the display information output means U1.

This display information control section 11 has a display memory lla that stores the display data.

When the speed of the railway vehicle is within a certain range below a predetermined speed, the image captured by the CCD camera 7 is recorded as display data in the display memory lla, but when the speed is above the predetermined speed, the image captured by the CCD camera 7 is recorded as display data. An enlarged part of the captured image (image information of the far front part) is recorded as display data.

In response to the scanning signal of the scanning circuit S, the controller 12
A timing control signal is output to the display information output means U1, the display information control section 11, and the parallel-to-serial converter 13. The display data stored in the display memory lla is
Display information control unit 11 based on the timing control signal
(i.e., the read address signal formed by the CR
The address signal is read out in synchronization with the scanning of T-display D. Therefore, if the speed of the railway vehicle is within a certain range below a predetermined speed, the data (display data) of the image captured by the CCD camera 7 is read out as is, but if the speed is above the predetermined speed, the data of the image captured by the CCD camera Image data (display data) obtained by enlarging a part of the image (image information of the front and far part) is read out.

The display data output from the display information control section 11 is
It is converted into serial data by the parallel-to-serial converter 13, and CR
The signal is D/A converted by the T driver 14, amplified to an appropriate driving voltage, and input to the cathode of the CRT display D or the control grid. Note that if the display data is output from the display information control section 11 in serial, the parallel-to-serial converter 13 can be omitted.
It is also possible to provide a buffer memory or the like if necessary.

The display signal output circuit U2 is designated by the numerals 11 to 14.
is configured.

The speed signal outputted from the speed sensor 8 is compared with a predetermined speed set in a comparator 16, and if the speed is equal to or higher than the predetermined speed, the liquid crystal driver 17 is configured to operate. When the liquid crystal driver 17 is activated, the amount of light transmitted through the combiner C1 made up of the liquid crystal panel is reduced.

Next, the operation of the embodiment having the above-described configuration will be explained.

External light rays J traveling toward the windshield C from the outside world on the left side of FIG. Go straight and reach driver P's eyes.

This allows the driver P to visually recognize the scene in the outside world as it is.

On the other hand, on the optical information display means of the information projection bag fK, image information showing a distant scene in front of the vehicle captured by the CCD camera 7 or the operation information is displayed. When the traveling speed of the vehicle is equal to or higher than a predetermined speed, the image in area E in FIG. 3A (for example, the image of a railroad crossing) is enlarged and displayed, and the light transmittance of the combiner C1 is reduced. , the amount of transmitted light decreases. For this reason, the enlarged image of the area E becomes very easy to view. In addition, when the traveling speed of the vehicle is less than a predetermined speed, for example, when the vehicle stops inside a station, the light transmittance of the combiner C1 is increased as shown in FIG. 3B, and the external scene (the scene inside the station) is visually recognized. becomes easier. Although information is not displayed on the head-up display in FIG. 3B, it is also possible to display, for example, brake pressure information even when the vehicle is stopped.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various design changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention described in the claims. is possible.

For example, the present invention can be applied to various land vehicles such as automobiles in addition to railway vehicles. In addition, as a means for enlarging and displaying an image taken by the front imaging means, instead of enlarging and displaying the taken image by signal processing, a zoom 1/lens is added to the front imaging means and the image is enlarged. It is also possible to enlarge the display.

Furthermore, the enlarged display can be performed continuously instead of step by step, and instead of automatically depending on the speed of the vehicle, it can be performed manually at the driver's will. is also possible. Furthermore, it is also possible to make the enlargement direction not entirely but only in the horizontal direction or only in the vertical direction. When the amount of light transmitted through the combiner increases, it is possible to increase the display brightness, and when displaying a distant scene in front of the vehicle, the imaging means of the CCD camera can be mounted on the ground instead of being mounted on the vehicle. It is also possible to receive and display m images obtained by the disposed imaging means.

C1 Effects of the Invention The above-described Hella door display of the present invention is provided with a means for magnifying and displaying the scene in front of the vehicle on the display surface, so that the distant scene in front of the vehicle is magnified and displayed in the field of view of the driver. be able to. Also, since a means is provided to control the amount of light transmitted through the combiner according to the speed of the vehicle,
When the front distant scene is enlarged and displayed, the amount of light transmitted through the combiner can be reduced. This makes it easier to visually recognize the front scene enlarged and displayed on the head-up display. Therefore, if there is an obstacle in front of the vehicle or something abnormal is occurring, the driver can easily find the obstacle or abnormality earlier than before. Therefore, the driver can take measures against the obstacles or abnormalities at an early stage, thereby reducing the occurrence of accidents. Therefore, it becomes possible to increase the value of the maximum speed limit. ! Furthermore, the present invention allows the driver to drive at high speed while checking the distant scene in front of the vehicle even when the vehicle is traveling in a dark place where it is difficult to see the scene in front of the vehicle. .

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the head-up display of the present invention installed in a railway vehicle, Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the circuit portion of the embodiment, and Fig. 3ABB is an operation explanatory opening. be. A... Optical member, C1... Combiner, D... Optical information display means (CRT display), H... Head up display, K... Information projector, L...
...Information display light, P...Driver, 7...Imaging means (CCD camera) Patent applicant Shimabara Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Patent attorney 1) Hidegai Nakataka 1 person Figure 3A Figure 3B

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] An information projecting device comprising: an optical information display means having a display surface on which information is displayed; and an optical member that projects information display light emitted from the display surface in a predetermined direction; An information display that is tilted in front of the driver, transmits light rays from the outside world from the front to the rear so that the driver can visually recognize the scene of the outside world in front of the driver, and that is projected by the information projection device. A head-up display for a vehicle, comprising a combiner that reflects or diffracts light in a direction visible to the driver, comprising: means for magnifying and displaying a scene in front of the vehicle on the display surface; A head-up display characterized in that it is provided with means for controlling according to.