JPH11245712A - Light control system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a battery from being exhausted by making a light control function effective only when a key insertion switch is ON, so as to prevent a head lamp from being lit continuously in time interval stopping of engine after starting of the engine by remote control. SOLUTION: In this light control system, a control device 50 makes a light control function ineffective when a key insertion switch is OFF. In the case of a light control system with an automatic lighting function, a head lamp 9 and a side lamp 10 are prevented thereby from being automatically lit at the time of engine starting by remote operation from an outside even when a light control switch is ON and when illuminance in a car outside is low, and the head lamp and the side lamp are prevented from being lit continuously to prevent wasteful consumption of a battery even when an engine is forcibly stopped by time interval control without getting-in of a driver in a vehicle.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to an automatic light device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an automatic light device having a structure shown in FIG. 5 is known. This conventional auto light device operates as follows.

<Automatic Lighting> When the auto light switch 4 is turned on after the ignition switch 3 is turned on and the engine is started, the control unit 5 determines that the outside of the vehicle is dark based on the outside illuminance detected by the outside illuminance sensor 6. When it is determined, a headlight operation signal and a vehicle width light operation signal are output to drive the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay 8R, and the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are automatically turned on.

<Automatic light-off> When the control device 5 determines that the outside of the vehicle is bright based on the outside illuminance detected by the outside illuminance sensor 6, the output of the headlight operation signal and the vehicle width light operation signal is stopped. The operation of the headlight relay 7R and the width light relay 8R is stopped, and the headlight 9 and the width light 10 are automatically turned off.

<When the engine is stopped>
When the ignition switch 3 is turned off and the engine is stopped while the headlight operation signal and the vehicle width light operation signal are being output, the control device 5 controls the driver to open the driver's door and go out. Judgment is made based on ON / OFF of the seat door switch 11, and after the driver's seat door is opened, the output of the headlight operating signal and the vehicle width light operating signal is stopped, and the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay are stopped. The operation of the 8R is stopped, and the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are automatically turned off.

[0006] As a conventional auto light device, a device having a configuration shown in FIG. 6 is also known. This conventional example is intended to realize a function of preventing forgetting to turn off a headlight and a vehicle width light after traveling, and does not have an automatic turning-on / off function by illuminance outside the vehicle as in the conventional example of FIG. The control device 5 controls the operation of the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay 8R based on the on / off state of the light switch 1 and the vehicle width light switch 2, and turns on the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10. When the ignition switch 3 is turned off and the engine is stopped while the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are on, the driver's seat door switch 11 is not turned off immediately. The headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are continuously turned on until it is detected that the driver's seat door is opened by the on / off operation of the vehicle.

On the other hand, in recent years, a remote / timed engine starter 20 as shown in FIG. 7 has been mounted on a vehicle for the purpose of automatic warm-up operation or the like. The engine starter 20 transmits a remote control signal for starting the engine from outside the vehicle using a remote control transmitter 21.
The signal is received by the antenna 22 on the vehicle side, and the control unit 23 controls the engine starter switch bypass relay 24 and the ignition switch bypass relay 2 based on the remote control signal.
5. By operating the accessory switch bypass relay 26, forcibly starting the engine even when the engine starter switch 27, the ignition switch 3, and the accessory switch 28 are not turned on, and supplying power to various electric systems. It is. If the time limit is reached by the time control unit 29, it is determined that there is no intention to ride the driver, and the engine is forcibly stopped.

[0008]

However, the above-mentioned conventional auto light device has the following problems when mounted in parallel with the above-described engine start device. In the case of a vehicle in which the auto light device having the function of automatically turning on and off the light according to the brightness of the outside illuminance shown in FIG. Then, when the engine is started by remote control, the headlights and the side lights are automatically turned on by the automatic light control. However, if the driver does not start driving within a predetermined time, the engine is forcibly stopped by the time control unit 29 of the engine starter 20 side, but since the driver is not in the vehicle, the driver's seat door is not opened. , The driver door switch 11 remains off. As a result, in a conventional autolight device in which the headlights and the vehicle width lights that are automatically turned on are not turned off until the driver's seat door is opened, the headlights and the vehicle width lights are left lit. However, there is a problem that the battery power is wasted unnecessarily, which also occurs after a remote start of the engine.
The same problem occurs when remote control for stopping the engine is performed using the same remote control transmitter 21.

In the case of a vehicle in which an auto light device having only the automatic light-off function shown in FIG. 6 and the engine starting device 20 are mounted side by side, the driver turns off the headlights and the vehicle side lights while keeping the vehicle on. When the driver stops the engine remotely with the remote control transmitter 21 from outside the vehicle after closing the driver's seat door, or stops the engine with the headlight and the vehicle width light switch turned on, and goes out of the vehicle. After that, the engine start operation was performed from outside the vehicle using the remote control transmitter 21, but if the engine was automatically stopped without entering the time limit, the driver's seat door would not be opened after the engine was stopped, so that the headlights, Since the vehicle side lights are left lit continuously, there is a problem that battery power is wasted.

In order to solve such a problem, when the remote control transmitter 21 remotely controls the engine to stop, the driver's door switch is turned on after the engine stops, that is, the door is opened. To prevent forgetting to turn off the headlights and side lights.

However, in recent years, anti-theft devices have been developed, and if the driver's seat door is opened without performing proper procedures or receiving a signal from a valid transmitter, it is determined that the vehicle is stolen and crime prevention is performed. There is a vehicle in which the device is operated, and if the above-described pseudo-on signal of the driver's door is generated, the security device may malfunction, and in order to prevent it, a more complicated mechanism must be provided. There was a problem that would not be.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional problem, and has an automatic light device which is mechanically simple and can reliably prevent the headlights and the vehicle side lights from being continuously turned on after the engine is stopped. The purpose is to provide.

[0013]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an auto light device which enables a control operation by turning on an ignition switch or an accessory switch.
When the switch is turned off with the headlight or the vehicle width light turned on, then, an auto light control means for maintaining the headlight or the vehicle width light in the lighted state until the driver's seat door is opened, An engine start operation identifying means for identifying an on operation of the switch by the procedure access as an engine start remote operation from outside the vehicle, and when the engine start operation identification means identifies the on operation of the switch by the regular procedure access. Auto light operation restricting means for making the control operation of the automatic light control means effective.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the automatic light device according to the first aspect of the present invention, the engine start operation identifying means detects a signal of a key insertion detection switch for detecting insertion of a starter key into a key cylinder. The identification is performed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the automatic light device according to the first aspect of the present invention, the engine start operation identifying means receives and verifies the wireless encryption signal, and permits the wireless encryption collation means for permitting the engine start. The identification is performed based on a signal.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic light device according to the first to third aspects of the present invention, when the illuminance outside the vehicle is low, the autolight control means may switch the headlight or vehicle width after turning on the switch. It has a function to automatically turn on the lamp.

In the automatic light device according to the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, the engine start operation identifying means identifies an ON operation of an ignition switch or an accessory switch by a regular procedure access and a remote operation of the engine start from outside the vehicle. When the start identification means identifies the ON operation of the switch by the access in the regular procedure, the auto light operation restricting means enables the control operation of the auto light control means, and causes the auto light control means to turn on the headlight or the vehicle width light. When the switch is turned off in a state in which the driver's seat door is opened, the headlight or the vehicle side light is maintained in the lighting state thereafter, but the engine start identification means identifies the engine start by remote operation from outside the vehicle. When the automatic light operation control means It is referred to as invalid.

Thus, in the case of an automatic light device having an automatic light-off function, when the engine is started by remote control from outside the vehicle, the headlight is turned on even if the automatic light switch is turned on and the illuminance outside the vehicle is low. The headlights and side lights are not turned on automatically, so even if the engine is forcibly stopped by the timed control without the driver getting on the vehicle after that, the headlights and side lights may continue to light. And the battery can be prevented from being wasted. Also, in the case of an auto light device that only has the function of automatically turning off the engine after stopping the engine, when the engine is started by remote control from outside the vehicle, even if the headlight switch and vehicle width light switch are turned on, the headlight The headlights and side lights are not turned on, so even if the driver does not get into the vehicle and the engine is forcibly stopped by timed control, the headlights and side lights do not continue to light. In addition, useless consumption of the battery can be prevented.

[0019]

According to the automatic light device of the present invention, in the case of an automatic light device having an automatic light-off function, when the engine is started by remote control from outside the vehicle, the automatic light switch is turned on. Even when the vehicle is turned on and the illuminance outside the vehicle is low, the headlights and the side lights are not automatically turned on, so even if the engine is forcibly stopped by timed control without the driver getting in the vehicle after that, In the case of an auto light device equipped with only an automatic light-off function after the engine stops, the headlight and the vehicle width light will not continue to light. Even if the headlight switch and the vehicle width light switch are turned on, the headlight and vehicle width light are not turned on, and therefore, when the driver does not enter the vehicle afterwards Even in the event forced the engine is stopped by the control, headlight, situation in which the car width lamp continues to light up is no longer occur, wasteful consumption of the battery can be prevented.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a circuit configuration of the auto light device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As in the conventional example shown in FIG.
A headlight switch 2; a headlight relay 7R connected in series to each of these; a headlight relay 8R; these headlight relays 7R and headlights 9 which are turned on by operating the respective headlights 8R. Side light 10, ignition switch 3 for engine start operation, auto light switch 4 for automatic turning on and off, illuminance sensor 6 for detecting illuminance outside the vehicle, driver's seat for detecting opening and closing of a driver's door A door switch 11 is provided. As a feature of the present invention, the control device 50 effectively activates the auto-light function based on the ON signal of the key insertion switch 12 which is turned ON / OFF by inserting and removing the starter key.

The control device 50 controls the automatic turning on and off of the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 according to the procedure shown in the flowchart of FIG.

<Automatic Lighting> First, it is determined whether or not the starter key is inserted into the key cylinder and the key insertion switch 12 is turned on as a condition for enabling the automatic light function itself (step S1). Then, after confirming that the key insertion switch 12 is turned on, the ignition switch 3 is turned on (or the accessory switch is turned on).
And it is confirmed that the auto light switch is turned on to enable the auto light function (step S
2, S3).

When the auto light function is activated in this way, the control device 50 determines the brightness of the outside of the vehicle based on a signal from the illuminance sensor 6 outside the vehicle, and determines that the vehicle is dark enough to turn on the light (step S4). , And outputs a headlight operation signal and a vehicle width light operation signal to drive the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay 8R, so that the headlight is independent of the state of the headlight switch 1 and the vehicle width light switch 2. 9. The vehicle width light 10 is automatically turned on (step S5).

<Automatic Lighting Off> In the automatic light device of this embodiment, even under the condition that the control device 50 determines that the automatic light function is valid, the outside of the vehicle is bright based on the external illuminance detected by the external illuminance sensor 6. When it is determined, the output of the headlight operation signal and the vehicle width light operation signal is stopped to stop the operation of the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay 8R,
The headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are automatically turned off, or if the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are not turned on by then, the light-off state is maintained (steps S4 and S6).

<When the engine is stopped> The auto light function continues to operate unless the auto light switch 4 is turned off (step S7), and continues to operate as long as the ignition switch 3 is on (step S8).

If the ignition switch 3 is turned off and the engine is stopped (step S8) during the continuation of the auto light function, the auto light function is continuously enabled if the headlight and vehicle width light operation signals are being output. (Step S
9) The headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are continuously turned on until the driver opens the driver's door and goes out of the vehicle, that is, until the driver's door switch 11 is turned on (step S10). However, if the driver's seat door is opened and the driver's seat door switch 11 is turned on (step S10),
The light is turned off automatically (step S11).

As described above, in the auto light device according to the first embodiment, the driver having the proper starter key inserts the starter key into the key cylinder to turn on at least the accessory switch or does not perform the engine start operation. As long as the auto light function does not work effectively, if the vehicle also has a remote start function that starts the engine with a remote control transmitter from outside the vehicle, if the engine start operation is performed with the remote control transmitter, Key insertion switch 12
Will not be turned on, the auto light function will not be enabled, and even if the auto light switch 4 is turned on and the outside of the car is dark, the headlights and side lights will not be turned on automatically. Therefore, even when the engine is automatically stopped after a certain period of time has elapsed in the timed control, the headlights and the vehicle side lights do not continue to light, and wasteful consumption of the battery can be reliably prevented.

In the above embodiment, the description has been given of turning on and off the headlights and the side lights at the same time according to the signal of the illuminance sensor outside the vehicle. When it is not dark enough to turn on the headlights, first turn on only the side lights in dusk, and when it gets darker, turn on the headlights. Can be configured to perform reverse control. Even in a control device having such a function, the key insertion switch 1 of the above-described embodiment can be used.
Operation 2 can be a precondition for enabling the auto light function.

In the above-described embodiment, the turning on of the key insertion switch 12 is a precondition for enabling the auto light function. However, the accessory switch can be operated by a regular access procedure from a remote start of the engine from outside the vehicle. Since it is sufficient to enable the auto light function by identifying the ON operation or the engine start operation, it can be a precondition for effectively operating the auto light function in the following cases.

(1) An immobilizer is provided which receives an encryption code signal from a starter key incorporating a transponder and checks it against an encryption code registered in the vehicle, and permits the engine start only after the check is established. In a vehicle, the establishment of the collation of the encryption code is a precondition for enabling the auto light function.

(2) Receiving an encryption code from a smart card having a transponder possessed by a legitimate owner of the vehicle and collating it with the legitimate owner's encryption code registered on the vehicle side, and verification is established. In a vehicle provided with a smart receiver that permits an engine start operation for the first time, the verification of the encryption code is a precondition for enabling the auto light function.

Next, an automatic light device according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The auto light device of the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment,
It is provided with only an automatic light-off function for preventing the user from forgetting to turn off, similar to the conventional example shown in FIG.
The control device 50 checks the on / off state of the side light switch 2.
0 controls operation / stop of the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay 8R, and turns on / off the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10;
When the ignition switch 3 is turned off and the engine is stopped with the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 turned on, or when the accessory switch is turned off, the driver's door is not turned off immediately. The headlamp 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are continuously lit until it is detected that the driver's seat door is opened by turning on / off the switch 11. As a feature of the present invention, the control device 5
In the case of 00, the headlight operation signal and the vehicle side light operation signal are effectively output only when there is an ON signal of the key insertion switch 12 which is turned on / off by inserting and removing the starter key.

Next, the operation of the second embodiment having the above configuration will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

<Lighting of Headlight and Side Light> First, a starter key is inserted into a key cylinder and the key insertion switch 12 is turned on as a condition for enabling the auto light function itself of the second embodiment. It is determined whether or not it has been performed (step S21).

After confirming that the key insertion switch 12 is on, if the ignition switch 3 is on (or the accessory switch is on) (step S2)
2) If the headlamp switch 1 and the vehicle width light switch 2 are on, respectively, a headlight operation signal and a vehicle width light operation signal are output to drive the headlight relay 7R and the vehicle width light relay 8R. Then, the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 are turned on (steps S23 to S27). Conversely, when each of the headlight switch 1 and the vehicle width light switch 2 is turned off, the output of the headlight operation signal and the vehicle width light operation signal is stopped and the headlight relay 7 is turned off.
R and the vehicle width light relay 8R are deenergized to turn off the headlight 9 and the vehicle width light 10 respectively (steps S24 and S2).
7).

<Automatic light-off> When the ignition switch 3 is turned off and the engine is stopped while only the vehicle width light 10 or both the vehicle width light 10 and the headlight 9 are lit, or the accessory switch is turned off. When the driver is turned off (steps S28 and S29), the driver's door switch 1 is set until the driver opens the driver's door and goes out of the vehicle.
The vehicle width light, or the vehicle width light and the headlight, which have been lit until 1 is turned on, are continuously lit (step S3).
0). When the driver's seat door switch 11 is turned on, all lights are turned off (step S31).

As described above, in the auto light device according to the second embodiment, unless the driver having the proper starter key inserts the starter key into the key cylinder and turns on the accessory switch or starts the engine start operation. Since the auto light function was disabled, the driver was not able to start the engine with the remote control transmitter from outside the vehicle. Since there is no need to turn on the lights without being in the car, the headlights and the side lights are not turned on even when the headlight switch 1 and the side light switch 2 are in the on state. Even if the engine automatically stops after a certain period of time under control, headlights,
The vehicle side light does not continue to light, and wasteful consumption of the battery can be reliably prevented.

In the above-described embodiment, the turning on of the key insertion switch 12 is a precondition for enabling the auto light function. However, the engine start operation according to the regular access procedure from the engine start remote operation from outside the vehicle. It is sufficient that the auto-light function is validated and the case such as (1) or (2) described in the first embodiment is a precondition for effectively operating the auto-light function. it can.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit block diagram according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an auto light function according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a circuit block diagram according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an auto light function according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a circuit block diagram of a conventional example.

FIG. 6 is a circuit block diagram of another conventional example.

FIG. 7 is a circuit block diagram of a general remote control engine starting system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Headlight switch 2 Vehicle width switch 3 Ignition switch 4 Auto light switch 6 Exterior light intensity sensor 7R Headlight relay 8R Vehicle width light relay 9 Headlight 10 Vehicle width light 11 Driver's seat door switch 12 Key insertion switch 50 Control device 500 Control device

Claims (4)

[Claims] A control operation is enabled by turning on an ignition switch or an accessory switch,
When the switch is turned off with the headlight or the vehicle width light turned on, an auto light control unit that keeps the headlight or the vehicle width light on until the driver's door is opened, The on operation of the switch by accessing the procedure,
An engine start operation identification means for identifying an engine start remote operation from outside the vehicle; and when the engine start operation identification means identifies an ON operation of the switch by the access of the regular procedure, the control operation of the auto light control means is enabled. An auto light device comprising: an auto light operation restricting means. 2. The engine start operation identifying means,
2. The auto light device according to claim 1, wherein the identification is performed based on a signal of a key insertion detection switch that detects insertion of a starter key into a key cylinder. 3. The engine start operation identifying means,
2. The auto light device according to claim 1, wherein the identification is performed based on a permission signal of a wireless encryption collating means for receiving and collating a wireless encryption signal and permitting an engine start. 4. The automatic light control means has a function of automatically turning on the headlight or the vehicle side light after the switch is turned on when the illuminance outside the vehicle is low. The auto light device according to any one of the above.