JPH06239188A - Obstacle detection device for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To restore detecting function automatically depending on vehicle running conditions even if occupants suspend the detecting function temporarily at their request. CONSTITUTION:The device is equipped with a sensor section 1, a display section 2, an operating section 3, a condition detecting section 4 and with a control section 5. The sensor section 1 transmits beams toward the circumference of a vehicle, and concurrently it receives the reflected waves of the beams from the blocks located around the circumference of the vehicle. The display section 2 displays the result of detection of the blocks by the sensor section 1. The operating section 3 includes a pose switch 31. The condition detecting section 4 generates conditional signals indicating the running condition of the vehicle. The control section 5 controls the sensor section 1 and the display section 2 based on signals from the condition detecting section 4 and the operating section 3, and concurrently the control section is furnished with a functional element which suspends at least, one control out of the sensor section 1 and the display section 2 while replying to the operating signal of the pose switch 31, and with a functional element which releases suspended conditions while replying to conditional signals from the condition detecting section 4.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an obstacle around a vehicle,
For example, the present invention relates to an improvement in an obstacle detection device for a vehicle that detects a building, a moving body, or the like that is in danger of contact with a vehicle, by using a reflected wave of a beam such as an ultrasonic wave.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an obstacle detecting device of this kind has been disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 55-111852. The conventional technique is to monitor an obstacle on the side of the vehicle, and has proposed a technique of activating the side monitoring function only when the vehicle runs at a low speed.

[0003]

In general, this type of vehicle obstacle detection device detects the presence or absence of obstacles around the vehicle and the obstacles when the vehicle is put in a parking space or when the vehicle travels in a narrow alley. It had the function of detecting the distance to an object and avoiding a vehicle accident with an obstacle. However, it is troublesome to inform the user of the obstacles around the vehicle irrespective of the traveling condition of the vehicle each time it detects an obstacle. Therefore, it is conceivable that the notification can be made only when the vehicle is traveling at a low speed as in the above-mentioned conventional technique.

Even when the vehicle is stopped, there are times when the occupant needs to detect an obstacle and times when it is not. For example, when trying to move a stopped vehicle backward, it is desirable to detect the presence or absence of an obstacle in advance before starting the vehicle in the backward direction. On the other hand, if a pedestrian traveling on a pedestrian crossing is detected as an obstacle while waiting for a signal at an intersection, it will be notified unnecessarily. Therefore, in this case, it is better not to detect the obstacle. In such a case, it is conceivable to open the main switch of the device to stop the power-on, and then to close the main switch again to restore the function when it is necessary to detect an obstacle.

However, if the user forgets to close the main switch, there is a risk that a contact accident may occur because the presence of the obstacle is not notified even though there is an obstacle around the vehicle.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, even after an occupant operates to temporarily stop the obstacle detecting function if desired, the detecting function is automatically restored according to the running state of the vehicle. With the goal. As a means for achieving the above object, a sensor unit that transmits a beam toward the periphery of the vehicle and receives a reflected wave of the beam by an object around the vehicle, and a detection result of the object by the sensor unit are displayed. Display unit, an operation unit having a pause switch, a state detection unit that generates a state signal indicating the running state of the vehicle, and controls the sensor unit and the display unit based on signals input from the state detection unit and the operation unit. In the vehicular obstacle detection device including a control unit, the control unit suspends control of at least one of a sensor unit and a display unit in response to an operation signal of the pause switch, and There is provided an obstacle detection device for a vehicle, comprising: a functional element that releases the sleep state in response to a predetermined state signal from a state detection unit.

[0007]

1 is an electric circuit diagram showing a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a sensor unit, 2 is a display unit, 3 is an operation unit, 4 is a state detection unit, 5 is a control unit, 6 is a voltage regulator, 7 is an ignition switch, and 8 is a DC power supply. Each configuration will be described below. First, the sensor unit 1 transmits a beam toward the periphery of the vehicle and receives a reflected wave of the beam by an object around the vehicle. Although ultrasonic waves are used as the beam in this embodiment, other coded infrared rays or microwaves can be used. The sensor unit 1 is composed of ultrasonic elements 11 and 12 and a drive circuit 13.

The display unit 2 displays the detection result of the object by the sensor unit 1. The display unit 2 is
Display device 2 such as a buzzer or a display installed in the passenger compartment
1, 22 and the drive circuit 23.

The operation unit 3 includes a pause switch 31,
It is composed of a main switch 32, an indicator 33, a transistor 34, a capacitor 35, and resistors 36a to 36e. The pause switch 31, the main switch 32, and the indicator 33 are assembled into, for example, one switch unit, and are provided, for example, on an instrument panel or the like near the occupant seat so that the occupant of the vehicle can manually operate them. By the way, the pause switch 31 is composed of an automatic return type push switch and is closed only when the occupant pushes it. The pause switch 31 temporarily suspends the detection function and the display function of obstacles around the vehicle when it is not desired to detect a pedestrian crossing a pedestrian crossing when waiting for a signal at an intersection, for example. It is a switch to operate. The main switch 32 is a switch for turning on the power of the obstacle detection device. The indicator 33 is made of a light emitting diode and is turned on when the power is turned on by operating the main switch 32 and the detection function and the display function of obstacles around the vehicle are in operation. Therefore, the operation of the pause switch 31 makes the indicator 33 unlit while the detection function and the display function are stopped. still,
The indicator 33 uses a two-color light emitting diode,
The lighting color may be changed and displayed depending on whether the device is in operation or not in operation by operating the pause switch 31.

Further, the state detecting section 4 determines the traveling speed of the vehicle,
A state signal indicating the operation position of the shift operation lever and the operation position of the parking brake is generated. The state detection unit 4 includes a reverse switch 42 connected to the backup lamp 41, a parking switch 44 connected to the parking indicator lamp 43, a reed switch 45 for generating a pulse having a cycle proportional to the vehicle speed, and an interface circuit 46. I am configuring. By the way, the reverse switch 42 is a switch that is closed when the shift operation lever is operated to the “R” range, and is composed of, for example, an inhibitor switch. The parking switch 44 is a switch that closes when the parking brake handle is operated to the park side. The reed switch 45 closes each time the wheel rotates a predetermined number of times, and outputs one pulse signal. Therefore, the cycle of the pulse signal becomes proportional to the vehicle speed.

The control unit 5 controls the sensor unit 1 and the display unit 2 based on signals input from the state detection unit 4 and the operation unit 3. The control unit 5 is composed of a microcomputer, and has a function element that suspends control of at least one of the sensor unit 1 and the display unit 2 in response to an operation signal of the pause switch 31, and a predetermined input from the state detection unit 4. The program includes various functional elements such as a functional element that cancels the hibernation state in response to the status signal. Details of the program will be clarified by the operation description given later.

Next, the operation will be described based on the flow chart shown in FIG. The flow chart is for R of the control unit 5.
A part of the program written in advance in the OM (not shown) will be described. First, in steps 101 to 104,
This is a step for suspending the control of the sensor unit 1 and the display unit 2 when the parking handle is operated to the park side. In step 101 or step 103,
A signal is fetched from the state detection unit 4 to determine the open / closed state of the parking switch 44. Then, when the parking brake handle is operated to the park side, the parking switch 44 is closed, and step 101
Then, the determination in step 103 is NO, and a closed loop is formed between steps 101 and 104.

When the parking brake is released from the parking side, the parking switch 44 is opened, the judgment in step 103 is YES, and the routine proceeds to step 105. In steps 105 to 111, when the occupant of the vehicle operates the pause switch 31 while waiting for a signal at an intersection, for example, the control of the sensor unit 1 and the display unit 2 is stopped in response to the operation signal. It is a step to do. For example, if the pause switch 31 is operated, the judgment in step 105 becomes YES, and step 10
Go to 6.

At step 106, a signal is fetched from the state detecting section 4 and the open / closed state of the reverse switch 42 is judged. Then, if the operation position of the gear shift operation lever is in the "R" range, that is, the reverse position and the reverse switch 42 is closed, the determination in step 106 becomes YES and the process proceeds to step 112. On the contrary, if the operation position of the gear shift operation lever is at another position and the reverse switch 42 is open, the determination in step 106 is NO,
Go to step 107.

In step 107, a control suspension flag is set and the process proceeds to step 108. Steps 108-111
Then, a closed loop is formed and stands by until the running state of the vehicle reaches a predetermined state or the pause switch 31 is operated again. That is, in step 108, the state detection unit 4
The vehicle speed pulse signal fetched from the predetermined vehicle speed is, for example, 10
If it is determined to be less than [Km / h], the process proceeds to step 109, and if it is determined to be NO, the closed loop is exited and the process proceeds to step 114. In step 109, the parking switch 4 is activated by the signal received from the state detector 4.
If it is determined that 4 is open, that is, NO, step 11
When it is determined that the process is closed, that is, YES, the process exits the closed loop and proceeds to step 101. If it is determined in step 110 that the pause switch 31 has not been operated, that is, NO, the process proceeds to step 111, and if it is determined that it has been operated, that is, YES, the closed loop is exited and the process proceeds to step 102. If it is determined in step 111 that the reverse switch 42 is open, that is, NO by the signal received from the state detection unit 4, the process returns to step 108, and if it is closed, that is, YES, the closed loop is exited and the process proceeds to step 102.

Next, the judgment in step 105 is N.
If O, go to step 112. Steps 112 to 114 are steps for suspending the control when the traveling speed of the vehicle becomes relatively high. That is,
In step 112, when the traveling speed of the vehicle is less than the predetermined vehicle speed, that is, when it is determined to be NO, the routine proceeds to step 103, and when it is more than the predetermined vehicle speed, that is, YES is determined, the routine proceeds to step 113. In step 113, a control suspension flag is set and the process proceeds to step 114. In step 114, a closed loop is formed and stands by until the traveling speed of the vehicle becomes relatively slow. Then, when the vehicle speed becomes relatively low, a YES determination is made to exit the closed loop, and the routine proceeds to step 102.

As described above, in the above-described embodiment, as shown in steps 105 to 111, even if the control switch is temporarily stopped by the operation of the pause switch 31, the vehicle starts to run or the shift operation lever is moved to the reverse side. The control suspension state is automatically released when the vehicle enters a predetermined traveling state such as when the vehicle is operated.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but various modified embodiments are possible without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, when a microcomputer is not used as a control unit, a functional element that suspends control is configured by a flip-flop circuit, and when the pause switch is operated, the flip-flop circuit enters a set state to suspend control and the vehicle is in a predetermined running state. When this occurs, the flip-flop circuit may be reset to cancel the control suspension state.

[0019]

According to the present invention, the control unit responds to the operation signal of the pause switch to stop the control of at least one of the sensor unit and the display unit, and the predetermined state signal from the state detection unit. And a function element for canceling the hibernation state. Therefore, even if the occupant temporarily stops the obstacle detection function if desired, the automatic detection function is performed according to the running state of the vehicle. It has an excellent effect of being able to recover.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an electric circuit diagram showing a preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a main part of a program provided in a control unit shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 sensor part 2 display part 3 operation part 4 state detection part 5 control part 31 pause switch 42 reverse switch 44 parking switch

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A sensor unit for transmitting a beam toward the periphery of a vehicle and receiving a reflected wave of the beam by an object around the vehicle, a display unit for displaying a detection result of the object by the sensor unit, and a pause switch. An operation unit having a, a state detection unit that generates a state signal indicating the traveling state of the vehicle,
In an obstacle detection device for a vehicle, comprising: a control unit that controls the sensor unit and a display unit based on a signal input from the state detection unit and an operation unit, wherein the control unit outputs an operation signal of the pause switch. In response, a functional element that suspends control of at least one of the sensor unit and the display unit, and a functional element that cancels the suspension state in response to a predetermined state signal from the state detection unit are provided. Vehicle obstacle detection device.