Automobile

Abstract

The vehicle is provided with: a traveling road information storage device that stores traveling road information; a traveling position detection device that detects the traveling position of the vehicle; a display device that displays an image in front of the driver; and a control device that controls the display device to display an image of a driving line in front of the driver based on the traveling position and the traveling road information. The control device controls the display device to switch and display the driving lines corresponding to a plurality of driving modes. By switching the driving mode based on the traveling road and the driver's needs, it is possible to display an image of the driving line corresponding to the traveling road and the driver's needs.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an automobile, and more particularly to an automobile having a display device capable of displaying an image of a driving line in front of a driver. Background Art

[0002] In the prior art, as such an automobile, an automobile equipped with a head-up display for displaying an image on a front windshield has been proposed (for example, see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-248574). In this automobile, by displaying a predetermined driving line of the wheels of the vehicle on the front windshield, the driver can easily and clearly recognize the predetermined driving line of the wheels. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In such an automobile, it is also considered to display an image of a predetermined and ideal driving line on the front windshield when driving on a driving road. However, since the desired driving line varies depending on the driving road and the driver's preference, it is impossible to display an image of a driving line corresponding to the driving road and the driver's needs with only a predetermined and ideal driving line.

[0004] The main object of the automobile of the present invention is to display an image of a driving line corresponding to the driving road and the driver's needs.

[0005] The automobile of the present invention adopts the following means to achieve the above main object.

[0006] The automobile of the present invention is characterized by comprising:

[0007] a driving road information storage device for storing driving road information;

[0008] a driving position detection device for detecting the driving position of the vehicle;

[0009] a display device for displaying an image in front of the driver; and

[0010] a control device for controlling the display device to display an image of a driving line in front of the driver based on the driving position and the driving road information,

[0011] the control device controls the display device to switch and display driving lines corresponding to a plurality of driving modes.

[0012] In the automobile of the present invention, when controlling the display device to display an image of a driving line in front of the driver based on the driving position and the driving road information, the display device is controlled to switch and display driving lines corresponding to a plurality of driving modes. By switching the driving mode based on the driving road and the driver's needs, an image of a driving line corresponding to the driving road and the driver's needs can be displayed.

[0013] In the vehicle of the present invention described above, it may also be configured such that the control device controls to display an image of the driving line of the driving mode selected by the driver among the multiple driving modes. Thus, an image of the driving line desired by the driver can be displayed.

[0014] In the vehicle of the present invention, the driving road information may include information on a specific driving road, and the multiple driving modes may include the driving modes of specific drivers when multiple specific drivers drive on the specific driving road. When driving on the specific driving road, the control device controls to display an image of the driving line of the driving mode of the specific driver selected by the driver among the driving modes of the multiple specific drivers. Thus, when driving on a specific driving road, an image of the driving line corresponding to the driving mode of the specific driver selected by the driver can be displayed.

[0015] In the vehicle of the present invention, the driving mode may include at least one of a braking time, a steering start time, and a shift time, and the control device controls to display an image of at least one of the braking time, the steering start time, and the shift time together with the image of the driving line. Thus, braking operation, steering operation, and shift operation can be performed corresponding to the braking time, the steering start time, and the shift time.

[0016] In the vehicle of the present invention, an automatic driving device for performing automatic driving control may also be provided, and the automatic driving device controls to make the vehicle drive on the displayed driving line when automatic driving is selected. Thus, it becomes possible to perform automatic driving on the driving line corresponding to the selected driving mode.

[0017] In the vehicle of the present invention, it may also be configured such that the control device permits the display of an image of the driving line when driving on a specified driving road, and prohibits the display of an image of the driving line when driving on a driving road other than the specified driving road. Thus, an image of the driving line can be displayed only on the specified driving road. In addition, as the specified driving road, there are driving roads separated from ordinary roads such as a circuit, and specific vehicle-only roads, etc.

[0018] In the vehicle of the present invention, it may also be configured such that the control device controls to display an image of the driving line of the driving mode corresponding to the road condition under the multiple driving modes. Thus, an image of the driving line of the driving mode corresponding to the road condition can be displayed. Description of the Drawings

[0019] The features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals denote like parts, wherein:

[0020] Figure 1 It is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle 20 as an embodiment of the present invention, centered on an electronic control unit 50 and displayed in a block form.

[0021] Figure 2 It is a flowchart showing an example of a driving line display process executed by the electronic control unit 50.

[0022] Figure 3 It is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the state of an image (hologram) displaying a driving line based on a recommended driving mode on an ordinary road. Detailed Embodiments

[0023] Hereinafter, a mode for implementing the present invention will be described using an embodiment.

[0024] Figure 1 It is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle 20 as an embodiment of the present invention, centered on an electronic control unit 50 and displayed in a block form. As shown in the figure, the vehicle 20 of the embodiment is configured to be a vehicle that travels using power from a driving device 62 such as a motor or an engine.

[0025] In addition to the driving device 62, the vehicle 20 of the embodiment further includes an ignition switch 22, a GPS (Global Positioning System, Global Positioning Satellite) 24, a front camera 26, an in-vehicle camera 28, a vehicle speed sensor 30, an acceleration sensor 32, a rain drop sensor 34, a millimeter wave radar 36, an acceleration sensor 38, a brake sensor 40, a mode changeover switch 42, a display changeover switch 44, an electronic control unit 50, a driving actuator 60, a brake actuator 64, a braking device 66, a steering actuator 68, a steering device 70, a holographic optical device 72, a front window 74, a driving state indicator 76, an instrument 78, a navigation system 80, a DCM (Data Communication Module) 86, a driving line information storage device 90, etc.

[0026] The GPS 24 is a device that detects the position of a vehicle based on signals sent from multiple GPS satellites. The front camera 26 is a camera configured to be mounted on the upper part of the front center of the passenger compartment and photograph the front via the front windshield 74. The in-vehicle camera 28 is a camera configured to be mounted on the upper part of the front center of the passenger compartment and photograph the interior of the passenger compartment. The vehicle speed sensor 30 detects the vehicle speed of the vehicle based on the wheel speed and the like. The acceleration sensor 32 detects, for example, the acceleration of the vehicle in the front-rear direction and the acceleration of the vehicle in the left-right direction (lateral direction). The rain drop sensor 34 is a sensor that detects rain drops on the front windshield. The millimeter wave radar 36 detects the inter-vehicle distance, relative speed between the own vehicle and the vehicle in front, and the inter-vehicle distance, relative speed between the own vehicle and the vehicle behind.

[0027] The acceleration sensor 38 detects the accelerator opening degree corresponding to the depression amount of the driver's accelerator pedal and the like. The brake sensor 40 detects the brake position, which is the depression amount of the driver's brake pedal, and the like. The mode switching switch 42 is arranged near the steering wheel of the driver's seat and is a switch for switching between the manual driving mode and the autonomous driving mode. The display switching switch 44 is a switch for switching between displaying and not displaying an image (hologram) of the driving line of the selected driving mode in front of the driver.

[0028] The drive device 62 includes an electric motor for driving, an engine, etc., and is driven and controlled by the drive actuator 60.

[0029] The electronic control unit 50 is composed of a microcomputer centered on a CPU (not shown), and in addition to the CPU, it also has a ROM, a RAM, a flash memory, an input port, an output port, a communication port, etc. The electronic control unit 50, corresponding to the driving mode from the mode switching switch 42, based on the accelerator opening degree from the acceleration sensor 38, the brake position from the brake sensor 40, etc., sets the required torque to be output from the drive device to the drive shaft connected to the drive wheels, the required braking force to be output from the braking device, etc.

[0030] In the manual driving mode, the electronic control unit 50 sets the required torque and the required braking force based on the accelerator opening degree from the acceleration sensor 38, the braking position from the brake sensor 40, the vehicle speed from the vehicle speed sensor 30, etc., and sends the set required torque to the drive actuator 60 and the set required braking force to the brake actuator 64. In the autonomous driving mode, the electronic control unit 50 sets the target driving state of the vehicle based on the map information from the navigation system 80, the road information obtained from the road information management center 100, the surrounding information obtained from the millimeter wave radar 36, the front camera 26, etc., and sets the required torque, the required braking force, the target steering position, etc. in such a way as to achieve the set target driving state, sends the set required torque to the drive actuator 60, sends the set required braking force to the brake actuator 64, and sends the target steering position to the steering actuator 68.

[0031] The drive actuator 60 drives and controls the drive device 62 so that the required torque set by the electronic control unit 50 is output from the drive device 62 to the drive shaft.

[0032] The brake actuator 64 controls the brake device 66 so that the required braking force set by the electronic control unit 50 acts on the vehicle through the brake device 66.

[0033] The steering actuator 68 drives and controls the steering device 70 so that the steering position in the steering device 70 becomes the target steering position set by the electronic control unit 50.

[0034] The holographic optical device 72 is configured as an AR (Augmented Reality) device that displays various holograms on the front windshield 74 and is assembled to the instrument panel of the vehicle.

[0035] The DCM (Data Communication Module) 86 sends the information of this vehicle to the road information management center 100 and receives the road traffic information from the road information management center 100. As the information of this vehicle, for example, the position, vehicle speed, driving power, driving mode, etc. of this vehicle can be cited. As the road traffic information, for example, information related to current and / or future congestion, information related to the predicted value of the current average vehicle speed and / or future average vehicle speed in the section on the driving route, information related to traffic restrictions, information related to weather, information related to road surface conditions, information related to maps, etc. can be cited. The DCM 86 communicates with the road information management center 100 at regular intervals (for example, every 30 seconds, every 1 minute, every 2 minutes, etc.).

[0036] The navigation system 80 is a system that guides the vehicle to the set destination, and includes a map information database 82 and a display unit 84. In the map information database 82, map information such as the road surface paving state, road width, number of lanes, sidewalk width, vehicle-passable direction, and legal speed in each section is stored. The navigation system 80 communicates with the road information management center 100 via a DCM (Data Communication Module) 86. If a destination is set, the navigation system 80 sets a route based on the information of the destination, the information of the current location (the current position of the vehicle) obtained by the GPS 24, and the information stored in the map information database 82. Further, the navigation system 80 communicates with the road information management center 100 at regular intervals (for example, every 3 minutes, every 5 minutes, etc.) to obtain road traffic information, and performs route guidance based on the road traffic information.

[0037] The driving line information storage device 90 is a storage device that stores necessary information for displaying a hologram (image) of a driving line in various driving modes on the front windshield 74 through a holographic optical device 72, and includes a racetrack information database 92 and a driving mode database 94. The racetrack information database 92 stores information about racetracks scattered around the world (the shape of the track, the state of the driving road, the width of the driving road, the position on the map, etc.). The driving mode database 94 includes various specific driving modes (specific driver driving modes) used by famous F1 drivers or rally drivers, etc., an advanced driver driving mode, an intermediate driver driving mode, a beginner driver driving mode, a recommended driving mode, etc. In the specific driver driving mode, the driving line of a specific driver on each racetrack, the driver's perspective, the braking start point, the steering start point, the gear shift point, etc. are included. In addition, in the specific driver driving mode, the driving line, the driver's perspective, the braking start point, the steering start point, the gear shift point, etc. when the fastest lap time is achieved by a specific driver on each racetrack are also included. In the advanced driver driving mode, the intermediate driver driving mode, and the beginner driver driving mode, for example, the driving line at a curve is set to out-in-out, out-in-in, or in-in-in. In the recommended driving mode, the driving line is set to an ideal driving line considered to be the safest.

[0038] Next, the operation of the vehicle 20 configured as described above, particularly the operation when displaying the driving line, will be described. Figure 2 This is a flowchart showing an example of the driving line display process executed by the electronic control unit 50. This driving line display process is executed when the display is switched to the driving line display by the display changeover switch 44.

[0039] If the driving line display process is executed, the electronic control unit 50 first requests a selection as to whether the driving road is a racetrack (step S100). This request can be made, for example, by causing the driver to touch icons of "racetrack" and "ordinary road" displayed on the display unit 84 of the navigation system 80.

[0040] When "racetrack" is selected in step S100, the racetrack on which the vehicle is traveling is selected from the racetracks stored in the racetrack information database 92 of the driving line information storage device 90 (step S110), and a specific driver is selected (step S120). The selection of the racetrack can be made by using the position information of the own vehicle and the map information from the map information database 82 of the navigation system 80 to select a matching racetrack, or by displaying a list of the racetracks stored in the racetrack information database 92 of the driving line information storage device 90 and causing the driver to make a selection. The selection of the specific driver can be made by causing the driver to select by displaying a column of the specific driver in the racetrack selected and stored in the racetrack information database 92. If the specific driver is selected as described above, the driving mode of the specific driver in the selected racetrack is set from the driving modes of the specific driver in each racetrack stored in the driving mode database 94 of the driving line information storage device 90 (step S140), and the display of the image (hologram) of the driving line in the set driving mode is started (step S150).

[0041] On the other hand, when "ordinary road" is selected in step S100, the driver level is selected (step S130). The selection of the driver level can be made, for example, by displaying "advanced driver", "intermediate driver", "beginner driver", "recommended driver" and causing the driver to make a selection. If the driver level is selected, the driving mode of the selected driver level is set (step S140), and the display of the image (hologram) of the driving line in the set driving mode is started (step S150). As the driving mode, the advanced driver driving mode is set when "advanced driver" is selected, the intermediate driver driving mode is set when "intermediate driver" is selected, the beginner driver driving mode is set when "beginner driver" is selected, and the recommended driving mode is set when "recommended driver" is selected.

[0042] If the display of the image (hologram) of the driving line in the driving mode is started, the following process is repeatedly executed until the display is ended by switching to non-display of the driving line by the display changeover switch 44.

[0043] In the repeated process, first, the position information of the own vehicle is obtained through the GPS 24 etc. (step S160), and the travel road information is obtained based on the position information of the own vehicle (step S170). As the travel road information, in the case where the travel road is a racetrack, the information of the track corresponding to the position of the own vehicle within the selected racetrack in the racetrack information database 92 (the shape of the track, the state of the travel road, the width of the travel road, etc.), and in the case where the travel road is an ordinary road, the map information corresponding to the position of the own vehicle in the map information database 82 of the navigation system 80 (the road surface paving state of each section, the width of the road, the number of lanes, the width of the sidewalk, the direction in which the vehicle can travel, the legal speed, etc.).

[0044] Then, the captured image of the in-vehicle camera 28 is analyzed to determine the target position of the driver (step S180), and the travel road image from the front camera 26 is obtained (step S190). Next, the travel road image is analyzed to calculate the position of the own vehicle on the travel road in the travel road image (step S200), and based on the position of the own vehicle and the position of the driver's eyes in the travel road image, the display position of the travel line in the driving mode is calculated (step S210). Then, the holographic optical device 72 is controlled so that the holographic optical device 72 displays the image (hologram) of the travel line 110 on the front window 74 at the calculated display position (step S220). In addition, images (holograms) of points such as the display viewpoint 112, the braking start point 114, the steering start point 116, and the gear shift point 118 are displayed (step S230), and it is determined whether to end the display by switching the display of the travel line to non-display through the display changeover switch 44 (step S240). In the case of continuing the display, it returns to step S160, and in the case of ending the display, the travel line display process is ended.

[0045] Figure 3 This is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the state of displaying the image (hologram) of the travel line in the recommended driving mode on an ordinary road. In Figure 3 this figure, the image (hologram) of the travel line 110 is displayed at the road (the center line between the thick solid line and the thick dashed line) that can be recognized through the front window 74. In addition, images (holograms) of the viewpoint 112 in the far left, the braking start point 114 marked with "B" surrounded by a square, the steering start point 116 marked with an identifier consisting of "H" surrounded by a square and an arrow indicating the rotation direction, and the gear shift point 118 marked with "S" surrounded by a square are also displayed. The driver can drive the vehicle along the displayed travel line, and thus can travel based on the travel line corresponding to the desired driving mode.

[0046] In addition, when the autonomous driving mode is selected by the mode switching switch 42 and the driving line display is switched by the display switching switch 44, the steering device 70 is controlled to travel on the driving line of the selected driving mode. In this case, for the vehicle speed, it is only necessary to set it to a vehicle speed that follows within the legal speed when there is a preceding vehicle on an ordinary road and a vehicle speed corresponding to the road conditions within the legal speed when there is no preceding vehicle on an ordinary road. The vehicle speed within a range where safe driving is possible on a racetrack is sufficient.

[0047] In the vehicle 20 of the embodiment described above, the driving mode desired by the driver is selected from among a plurality of driving modes, and an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the selected driving mode is displayed on the front window 74. Thus, an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the driving road and the driver's needs can be displayed.

[0048] In the vehicle 20 of the embodiment, when the driving road is a racetrack, an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the selected specific driver driving mode is displayed. When the driving road is not a racetrack (ordinary road), one of the advanced driver driving mode, intermediate driver driving mode, beginner driver driving mode, and recommended driving mode is selected and an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the driving mode is displayed. However, when the driving road is a racetrack, it is also possible to permit the display of an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the selected specific driver driving mode as in the embodiment, and when the driving road is not a racetrack (ordinary road), prohibit the display of the image (hologram) of the driving line. In this case, even when the driving road is not a racetrack, the display of the image (hologram) of the driving line may be permitted when the driving road is an exclusive road for vehicles.

[0049] In the vehicle 20 of the embodiment, the driving mode desired by the driver is selected from among a plurality of driving modes, and an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the selected driving mode is displayed. It is also possible to select the driving mode corresponding to the state of the driving road in addition, and display an image (hologram) of the driving line corresponding to the selected driving mode. The state of the driving road includes the state of being a paved road or an unpaved road, the state of whether the road surface is wet, the state of whether the road surface is snow-covered, the state of whether the road surface is frozen, etc. In this case, when it is a paved road and the road surface is not wet, it is possible to select one of the advanced driver driving mode, intermediate driver driving mode, beginner driver driving mode, and recommended driving mode as shown in the embodiment. In the case of an unpaved road, select the driving mode for unpaved roads. When the road surface is wet, select the driving mode for rain. When the road surface is snow-covered, select the driving mode for snow tracks. When the road surface is frozen, select the driving mode for frozen roads.

[0050] In the vehicle 20 of the embodiment, when the autonomous driving mode is selected and the display is switched to the travel line display by the display changeover switch 44, the steering device 70 is controlled to travel on the travel line of the selected travel mode. However, it is also possible not to display the image (hologram) of the travel line when the autonomous driving mode is selected.

[0051] In the vehicle 20 of the embodiment, an image (hologram) is formed to display the viewpoint 112, the braking start point 114, the steering start point 116, and the gear shift point 118 in addition to the travel line 110. However, it is also possible to form an image (hologram) that displays a part of the viewpoint 112, the braking start point 114, the steering start point 116, and the gear shift point 118, or to form an image (hologram) that displays points other than these points, or not to display the images (holograms) of these points.

[0052] The correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the column of the means for solving the problem (the column of the invention content) will be described. In the embodiment, the travel line information storage device 90 and the navigation system 80 correspond to the "travel road information storage device", the GPS 24 corresponds to the "travel position detection device", the holographic optical device 72 and the front window 74 correspond to the "display device", and the electronic control unit 50 corresponds to the "control device".

[0053] In addition, the correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the column of the means for solving the problem (the column of the invention content) is that the embodiment is an example for specifically illustrating the manner for implementing the invention described in the column of the means for solving the problem (the column of the invention content). Therefore, the embodiment does not limit the elements of the invention described in the column of the means for solving the problem (the column of the invention content). That is, the interpretation of the invention described in the column of the means for solving the problem (the column of the invention content) should be based on the description in that column, and the embodiment is only a specific example of the invention described in the column of the means for solving the problem (the column of the invention content).

[0054] As described above, the embodiments have been used to describe the manner for implementing the present invention, but the present invention is not limited by the above embodiments, and of course, it can be implemented in various ways without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0055] The present invention can be applied to the manufacturing industry of vehicles and the like.

Claims

1. A vehicle, characterized in that, Comprising: A driving road information storage device for storing driving road information; A driving position detection device for detecting the driving position of the vehicle; A display device for displaying an image in front of the driver; And A control device for controlling the display device to display an image of a driving line in front of the driver based on the driving position and the driving road information, The control device controls the display device to switch and display driving lines corresponding to multiple driving modes, The driving road information includes information about a racetrack, The multiple driving modes include the driving modes of specific drivers when the specific drivers drive on the racetrack, When driving on the racetrack, the control device controls to display an image of the driving line of the driving mode of the specific driver selected by the driver among the driving modes of the multiple specific drivers, When driving on the racetrack, the control device permits the display of an image of the driving line, and when driving on a driving road other than the racetrack, the control device prohibits the display of an image of the driving line.

2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein, The driving mode includes at least one of a braking moment, a steering start moment, and a shifting moment, The control device controls to display an image of at least one of a braking moment, a steering start moment, and a shifting moment together with the image of the driving line.

3. The vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, It is equipped with an automatic driving device for performing automatic driving control, The automatic driving device controls to make the vehicle drive on the displayed driving line when automatic driving is selected.

4. The vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The control device controls to display an image of the driving line of the driving mode corresponding to the road condition in the multiple driving modes.

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