Vehicle lighting device, vehicle lighting control method and program

Abstract

To provide a vehicle lighting device, a vehicle lighting control method and a program that enable comprehensive communication with other parties and further improve traffic safety for the vehicles of oneself and other parties, thereby contributing to the development of a sustainable transportation system.SOLUTION: A vehicle lighting device includes first exterior lights provided on an exterior part of a vehicle, second exterior lights provided on the exterior part of the vehicle, a recognition unit that recognizes objects present in a travel path of the vehicle, a detection unit that detects a viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle, and a control unit that operates the second exterior lights when the recognition unit recognizes the object, and operates the first exterior lights in accordance with the viewing direction detected by the detection unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle lighting device, a vehicle lighting control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] In general, lamps other than turn signals provided at the front and rear of a vehicle are used to ensure forward visibility at night and to inform following vehicles of the vehicle's position. In recent years, in order to further ensure the safety of vehicles and pedestrians, technologies have been proposed that give the above-mentioned lamps a warning function to pedestrians, etc., in addition to their conventional roles.

[0003] For example, a vehicle lighting device (vehicle lighting system) has been proposed that can inform pedestrians that a vehicle traveling in autonomous driving mode has recognized the pedestrian (see Patent Document 1). This device includes a communication lamp that is visible from the front of the vehicle, and a lighting control device that changes the lighting state of the communication lamp when the vehicle detects a pedestrian. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 021063 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, although the vehicle itself notifies the other party (pedestrian) whether it recognizes the other party, it is not possible to reflect whether the driver recognizes the other party or whether the vehicle system recognizes the other party. Therefore, it is not possible to communicate comprehensively with the other party, and there is room for improvement in ensuring the traffic safety of the vehicle and the other party.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and one of its objectives is to provide a vehicle lighting device, a vehicle lighting control method, and a program that enable comprehensive communication between other parties, further improve traffic safety for vehicles and other parties, and contribute to the development of a sustainable transportation system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The vehicle lighting device, the vehicle lighting control method, and the program according to the present invention employ the following configuration. (1): A vehicle lighting device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a vehicle lighting device including a first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of a vehicle, a second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle, a recognition unit that recognizes an object present in a path of travel of the vehicle, a detection unit that detects the viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle, and a control unit that operates the second exterior light when the recognition unit recognizes the object, and operates the first exterior light in accordance with the viewing direction detected by the detection unit.

[0008] (2): In the above aspect (1), when the vehicle stops before an intersection or a crosswalk and the recognition unit recognizes the object, the control unit operates the second exterior light, and operates the first exterior light according to the viewing direction detected by the detection unit.

[0009] (3): In the above aspect (1), the first exterior light is provided along the outer edge on the side of the vehicle, and the second exterior light is provided along the vehicle width direction on the front front of the vehicle.

[0010] (4): In the above aspect (1), the control unit turns on the second exterior light so as to follow the object.

[0011] (5): In the above aspect (1), when a plurality of the objects are recognized, the control unit lights up positions in the second exterior light that correspond to the plurality of the objects.

[0012] (6): In the above aspect (1), the control unit changes the manner in which the second exterior light is turned on depending on the positional relationship between the vehicle and each of the plurality of objects.

[0013] (7): A vehicle lighting control method according to one embodiment of the present invention is a vehicle lighting control method in which a processor of a vehicle lighting device including a first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle and a second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle executes the following processes: recognizing an object present in a path of travel of the vehicle; detecting the viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle; and, if the object is recognized, operating the second exterior light and operating the first exterior light in accordance with the viewing direction detected by the detection unit.

[0014] (8): A program according to one embodiment of the present invention is a program for causing a processor of a vehicle lighting device having a first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle and a second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle to execute a process of recognizing an object present in a path of travel of the vehicle, a process of detecting the viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle, and, when the object is recognized, a process of operating the second exterior light and operating the first exterior light in accordance with the viewing direction detected by the detection unit. Effect of the Invention

[0015] According to aspects (1) to (8), the vehicle lighting device controls each light according to the position of the object and the driver's viewing direction, thereby enabling comprehensive communication with the other party, thereby further improving traffic safety for the vehicle and other parties and contributing to the development of a sustainable transportation system. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle lighting device 1. FIG. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle 200 on which a vehicle lighting device 1 is mounted. [Diagram 3] 13 is a front view of the second exterior light 50. FIG. [Figure 4] 2 is an enlarged view of the second exterior light 50. FIG. [Diagram 5] 2 is a diagram showing the recognition range of the external sensor 20 and the field of view of the driver. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of how each light is turned on when the vehicle 200 is traveling. [Figure 7] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian begins to approach the vehicle 200 from the right side. FIG. [Figure 8] 8 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state of FIG. 7. FIG. [Figure 9] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is approaching the vehicle 200 from the right side. FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state of FIG. 9. FIG. [Figure 11] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is approaching the front right side of the vehicle 200. FIG. [Figure 12] 12 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state shown in FIG. 11. FIG. [Figure 13] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is approaching the left side of the vehicle 200. FIG. [Figure 14] 14 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state shown in FIG. 13. FIG. [Figure 15] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is moving away to the left of the vehicle 200. FIG. [Figure 16] 16 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state shown in FIG. 15. FIG. [Figure 17] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is moving away to the left of the vehicle 200. FIG. [Figure 18] 18 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state shown in FIG. 17. FIG. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example in which a plurality of objects exist. [Figure 20] 20 is a front view of a vehicle 200 showing a lighting mode of the vehicle lighting device 1 controlled in the case of FIG. 19. FIG. [Figure 21] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a lighting mode of the vehicle lighting device 1 when the vehicle 200 is stopped. [Figure 22] 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the second exterior light 50. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, embodiments of a vehicle lighting device, a vehicle lighting control method, and a program according to the present invention will be described.

[0018] The vehicle lighting device 1 is, for example, a lighting device mounted on a vehicle. Examples of vehicles include four-wheeled vehicles, motorcycles, and micromobiles. In the following explanation, a four-wheeled vehicle will be explained. For example, when an object such as a pedestrian, bicycle, wheelchair, or livestock crosses a road on which the vehicle is traveling, the vehicle lighting device 1 operates to turn on the lighting in response to the movement of the object. For example, the vehicle lighting device 1 detects the object with a camera or the like, and further detects the viewing direction of the driver of the vehicle to represent the movement of the object.

[0019] 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle lighting device 1. The vehicle lighting device 1 includes, for example, a position measurement device 10, an external sensor 20, an in-vehicle camera 30, a first right exterior light 40R, a first left exterior light 40L, a second exterior light 50, a right headlight 60R, a left headlight 60L, an in-vehicle communication network 70, and a control device 100.

[0020] The position measuring device 10 is, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver. The position measuring device 10 measures the position of the vehicle 200 and outputs the position to the control device 100.

[0021] The external sensor 20 is, for example, a camera for acquiring information outside the vehicle, a radar device, a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), a sonar, etc. The external sensor 20 transmits a signal representing the detected information to the control device 100.

[0022] The in-vehicle camera 30 is, for example, a visible light camera. The in-vehicle camera 30 is provided in the passenger compartment 201 of the vehicle 200 so as to capture an image of the face of the driver.

[0023] 2 is a perspective view of a vehicle 200 equipped with the vehicle lighting device 1. The first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L are light-emitting devices provided along the outer edge on the side of the vehicle 200. The first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L are provided, for example, along the fender. The first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L are provided along the boundary between the left and right bonnet hoods 202 and the front fenders 203 of the vehicle 200. The operation of the first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L is controlled by the control device 100.

[0024] The second exterior light 50 is a light-emitting device provided along the vehicle width direction on the front surface of the vehicle 200. The second exterior light 50 is provided, for example, in a front grill that constitutes the front part of the vehicle 200. The second exterior light 50 is provided between the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L so as to extend in the vehicle width direction.

[0025] The right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L are provided on both the left and right sides in the vehicle width direction at the front of the vehicle 200, respectively.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a front view of the second exterior light 50. The second exterior light 50 has a plurality of tube portions 51 facing forward (lighting direction) of the vehicle 200, which are arranged in the vertical direction and the vehicle width direction. Each of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L is composed of a headlight body 61 and a plurality of status indicator lights 62 surrounding the periphery of the headlight body 61. The headlight body 61 is a light that illuminates the front at night or the like. A plurality of status indicator lights 62 are arranged in a circular ring shape when viewed from the front. The status indicator lights 62 function as direction indicators. The status indicator lights 62 are controlled to be turned on / off for each light. In FIG. 2, the forward direction of the vehicle 200 is indicated by an arrow FR. The upward direction of the vehicle 200 is indicated by an arrow UP. The left direction of the vehicle 200 when facing forward is indicated by an arrow LH.

[0027] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the second exterior light 50. Each tube portion 51 has a peripheral wall 52a formed in a hexagonal shape. The multiple tube portions 51 are arranged in a staggered pattern in the vertical direction and the vehicle width direction. A Y-shaped connecting wall 53 is provided on the front side (lighting display direction side) of each tube portion 51, connecting alternately spaced tops 52t of the hexagonal peripheral wall 52a. Therefore, the peripheral walls 52a of each tube portion 51 of the tube portion assembly wall form a continuous honeycomb shape. The light of the light source thus turned on is emitted to the front side of the vehicle through the tube portion 51 of the tube portion assembly wall. A viewer outside the vehicle can recognize characters, figures, etc. displayed by the light of the light source turned on inside the tube portion. When the light source is not turned on, the light source is hidden by the peripheral wall 52a of the tube portion 51, making it difficult to see from the outside.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the recognition range of the external sensor 20 and the field of view of the driver. A indicates the field of view of the driver, and B indicates the recognition range of the external sensor 20. In a vehicle to which the present invention is applied, the field of view A of the driver is wider than the recognition range B of the external sensor. As described below, when the vehicle 200 stops near an intersection or a crosswalk and an object such as a pedestrian or another vehicle is present in the recognition range B of the external sensor 20, the recognition unit 110 recognizes the object using the external sensor 20. When an object exists in the field of view A of the driver and outside the recognition range of the external sensor 20, the driver notices the object and looks at it, and the detection unit 120 detects the driver's viewing direction using the in-vehicle camera 30 and estimates that the object exists.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 1, the control device 100 includes, for example, a recognition unit 110, a detection unit 120, a control unit 130, and a storage unit 140. The components other than the storage unit 140 are realized by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or may be realized by cooperation between software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device (a storage device having a non-transient storage medium) such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a flash memory, or may be stored in a removable storage medium (a non-transient storage medium) such as a DVD or a CD-ROM, and may be installed by mounting the storage medium in a drive device.

[0030] The recognition unit 110 recognizes an object. The recognition unit 110 recognizes an object present on the travel path of the vehicle 200 based on information input from the external sensor 20. For example, an image captured by a camera is input to a trained model for recognizing objects, thereby recognizing the position of the object on the image, and converting it to a position on a virtual plane viewed from the sky, thereby recognizing the object present on the travel path of the vehicle 200. The recognition unit 110 transmits the recognized recognition information to the control unit 130. The recognition information is, for example, position information of the recognized object.

[0031] The detection unit 120 detects the driver's viewing direction using the in-vehicle camera 30. The viewing direction is, for example, the direction in which the driver of the vehicle 200 is looking. The viewing direction is not limited to the direction in which the driver is gazing, and may be the direction in which the driver is vaguely looking. The detection unit 120 detects the driver's viewing direction using, for example, a corneal reflex method in which infrared rays are reflected by the driver's cornea to detect the driver's viewing direction, a limbus tracking method that uses the difference in reflectance of the cornea and the sclera to light, an image analysis method in which an image of the eyeball is captured by a camera and the line of sight is detected by image processing, or the like.

[0032] For example, the detection unit 120 captures an image of the driver's eyes using the in-vehicle camera 30, and detects the viewing direction from the positional relationship between the inner corner of the eye and the iris. The detection unit 120 measures the elapsed time when the movement of the viewing direction stops. When the detection unit 120 detects that the driver's viewing direction is facing in the same direction (within a predetermined angle range) for a certain period of time, it transmits the direction to the control unit 130 as the viewing direction (detection information).

[0033] The control unit 130 controls the first right exterior light 40R, the first left exterior light 40L, the second exterior light 50, the right headlight 60R, and the left headlight 60L based on the recognition information and detection information transmitted from the recognition unit 110 and the detection unit 120, the driving status of the vehicle 200, and information on the scene in which the vehicle is placed. The driving status is, for example, information that the vehicle 200 is running, stopped, or about to turn right / left.

[0034] The driving conditions are acquired, for example, from an in-vehicle communication network 70. The in-vehicle communication network 70 is, for example, a controller area network (CAN). The in-vehicle communication network 70 is connected to sensors and an electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle 200, and various types of status information used for vehicle control are transmitted to the in-vehicle communication network 70.

[0035] The scene is information indicating whether the vehicle 200 is at an intersection or a crosswalk. The control unit 130 compares the history of the position information of the vehicle 200 measured by the position measuring device 10 with the information of the map information 142 stored in the storage unit 140 to determine the scene.

[0036] The storage unit 140 stores map information 142. The map information 142 stores the latest map as appropriate, and stores the locations of intersections or pedestrian crossings. The storage unit 140 may be realized by the various storage devices described above, or an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), or the like.

[0037] Furthermore, in addition to recognizing an object using the external sensor 20, the recognition unit 110 may recognize the presence of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle 200 through communication with a mobile terminal of a pedestrian or with another vehicle.

[0038] When the recognition unit 110 recognizes an object, the control unit 130 operates the second exterior light 50, the right headlight 60R, and the left headlight 60L. The control unit 130 may operate the second exterior light 50 further based on the driver's viewing direction detected by the detection unit 120. On the other hand, the control unit 130 operates the first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L based on the driver's viewing direction detected by the detection unit 120. In addition, when the recognition unit 110 recognizes an object and the control unit 130 determines that the vehicle 200 is in front of an intersection or a pedestrian crossing, each light may be operated. Hereinafter, the lighting modes of the first right exterior light 40R, the first left exterior light 40L, the second exterior light 50, the right headlight 60R, and the left headlight 60L will be described.

[0039] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when the vehicle 200 is traveling. "During traveling" means that the vehicle is traveling on a road in the direction of travel at a speed equal to or higher than a predetermined speed. When the vehicle 200 is traveling, the control unit 130 turns off the first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L. The control unit 130 turns on the second exterior light 50 in a single line. The control unit 130 turns off the headlight main body 61 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L, and turns on the status display light 62. The lighting state of each light shown in FIG. 6 is defined as a first lighting state. When the vehicle 200 is traveling normally on a road, the control unit 130 controls each light to the first lighting state. The control unit 130 determines that the vehicle 200 is traveling normally by acquiring the driving situation from the in-vehicle communication network 70. For example, the control unit 130 determines that the vehicle 200 is traveling when the vehicle speed of the vehicle 200 is equal to or greater than a predetermined speed.

[0040] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian starts approaching from the right side of the vehicle 200 while the vehicle 200 is turning right. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled in the state of FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 8, the pedestrian H is about to cross the crosswalk from the right side of the driver. The driver can visually recognize the pedestrian H. When the detection unit 120 detects that the driver visually recognizes the pedestrian H, as shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 130 lights up the first right exterior light 40R in a first color. The first color may be, for example, green or another color. The control unit 130 keeps the first left exterior light 40L turned off. The control unit 130 lights up the right side of the second exterior light 50 in a dogleg shape based on the lighting signal of the first right exterior light 40R, and lights up the lights dimly toward the left side. The control unit 130 turns on only the right side of the second exterior light 50 and turns off the center and left sides. The control unit 130 turns off the headlight bodies 61 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L and turns on the status display light 62. The lighting mode of each light shown in Fig. 7 is defined as the second lighting mode.

[0041] As shown in Fig. 8, when pedestrian H starts to approach near a pedestrian crossing, the driver stops vehicle 200 to avoid a collision and visually checks the direction of pedestrian H. Detection unit 120 detects the driver's visual direction. When detection unit 120 detects the driver's visual direction and determines that the driver is gazing to the right from the detected visual direction and the elapsed time, control unit 130 changes the lighting mode of each light to the second lighting mode. By control unit 130 controlling each light to be lit in the second lighting mode, the fact that the driver has visually checked pedestrian H is conveyed to pedestrian H, and pedestrian H can feel a sense of security.

[0042] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is approaching the vehicle 200 from the right side. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the pedestrian H as seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state of FIG. 9. As shown in FIG. 10, the pedestrian H is walking on the crosswalk on the right side from the driver's perspective, and has moved forward from the time point of FIG. 8. By moving forward, the pedestrian H is walking in a place closer to the vehicle 200. As shown in FIG. 9, the control unit 130 lights up the first right exterior light 40R so that the second color moves from the right direction to the left direction while lighting up the first color. The second color may be, for example, white or another color, and is a color different from the first color. The control unit 130 keeps the second exterior light 50 on in the same state as the second exterior light 50 in FIG. 8. The control unit 130 keeps the headlight main body 61 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L turned off as in Fig. 8, and keeps the status display light 62 turned on. The lighting mode of the lights shown in Fig. 9 is defined as a third lighting mode.

[0043] The driver continues to gaze at the pedestrian H walking on the crosswalk. The driver's viewing direction moves leftward as the pedestrian H moves forward. For example, when the detection unit 120 detects that the driver has gazed at the pedestrian H for 1 to 2 seconds, the control unit 130 lights the first right exterior light 40R in the second color and lights it up so as to follow the driver's viewing direction. For example, the second color gradually moves leftward and the lit areas are dimmed. The control unit 130 lights the dimmed areas in the first color.

[0044] By controlling the control unit 130 to turn on each light in the third lighting mode, the pedestrian H is informed that the driver's line of sight is following the pedestrian H, and the pedestrian H can feel safe.

[0045] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is approaching the front right side of the vehicle 200. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H as seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state of FIG. 11. As shown in FIG. 12, the pedestrian H moves forward further and walks on the crosswalk in the front right direction of the vehicle 200. As shown in FIG. 11, the control unit 130 lights the first right exterior light 40R in the first color while lighting the second color at the left end. The control unit 130 gradually dims the first right exterior light 40R at the portion where the second color is lit, and lights only the first color. The control unit 130 lights the second exterior light 50 only at the right end. The shape of the second exterior light 50 when it is lit may be, for example, a hexagon as shown in FIG. 11, a human shape, or a point. The control unit 130 turns off the right side portions of the headlight body 61 and the status indicator light 62 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L, and turns on the other portions of the status indicator light 62. The control unit 130 turns off the first left exterior light 40L. The lighting state of the lights shown in FIG. 11 is the fourth lighting mode.

[0046] 12, as pedestrian H moves forward, the driver's viewing direction gradually moves to the front of vehicle 200. Control unit 130 controls the lighting state of each light in accordance with the viewing direction, and lights up the lights in the fourth lighting mode.

[0047] By the control unit 130 controlling each light to turn on in the fourth lighting mode, the pedestrian H is informed that the driver's viewing direction continues to follow the pedestrian H, and the pedestrian H can feel safe.

[0048] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is approaching the left side of the vehicle 200. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the pedestrian H seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled in the state of FIG. 13. The pedestrian H moves further forward and walks on the left side as seen from the driver. The driver's viewing direction moves to the left. As shown in FIG. 13, the control unit 130 dims the first color of the first right exterior light 40R. The control unit 130 turns off the first left exterior light 40L. The control unit 130 turns on the left side of the second exterior light 50 in a hexagonal shape. The control unit 130 turns off the headlight main body 61 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L, and turns on only the status display light 62. The lighting state of each light shown in FIG. 13 is called the fifth lighting state.

[0049] 14, as the pedestrian H moves to the left, the driver's viewing direction also moves to the left, so the control unit 130 controls the second exterior light 50 so that the lit portion is on the left side. In addition, the control unit 130 dims the first right exterior light 40R.

[0050] By the control unit 130 controlling each light to turn on in the fifth lighting mode, the pedestrian H can feel safe because the pedestrian H can see that the movement of each light is following his / her movement to the left side of the road.

[0051] FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is moving away to the left of the vehicle 200. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H as seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state of FIG. 15. The pedestrian H moves forward further and is about to finish crossing the crosswalk, moving away from the vehicle 200. As shown in FIG. 15, the control unit 130 turns off the first right exterior light 40R. The control unit 130 turns on the first left exterior light 40L in a first color, and turns on the second color while moving according to the movement of the pedestrian H. The control unit 130 turns on the left side of the second exterior light 50 in a dogleg shape. The control unit 130 turns off the headlight main body 61 and the left side of the status indicator light 62 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L, and turns on the other status indicator lights 62. The lighting state of the lights shown in FIG. 15 is referred to as a sixth lighting mode.

[0052] By controlling the control unit 130 to turn on each light in the sixth lighting mode, the pedestrian H can feel secure because the pedestrian H can see that the movement of each light is following even when the pedestrian H is about to finish crossing the crosswalk.

[0053] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of the lighting state of each light when a pedestrian H is moving away to the left of the vehicle 200. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a pedestrian H as seen from the viewpoint of the driver of the vehicle 200 when each light is controlled to the state of FIG. 17. The pedestrian H moves forward further and finishes crossing the crosswalk. As shown in FIG. 17, the control unit 130 continues to turn off the first right exterior light 40R. The control unit 130 moves the second color light of the first left exterior light 40L to the left. The control unit 130 continues to light the left side of the second exterior light 50 in a dogleg shape. The control unit 130 turns off the headlight main body 61 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L and turns on the status indicator light 62. The lighting state of each light shown in FIG. 17 is called the seventh lighting state.

[0054] The driver determines that the pedestrian H has moved away and that there is no longer any risk of collision, and then shifts his or her line of sight back to the road ahead and continues driving. Each light of the vehicle lighting device 1 returns to the first lighting mode.

[0055] When the vehicle 200 stops near an intersection or a crosswalk, the recognition unit 110 recognizes an object, and the detection unit 120 detects that the driver's viewing direction is toward the object, the vehicle lighting device 1 lights up from the second lighting mode to the seventh lighting mode. The vehicle lighting device 1 does not necessarily change from the first lighting mode in sequence, but changes the lighting mode depending on the position and viewing direction of the object when an object is present near the vehicle 200 and it is detected that the driver has changed his or her viewing direction toward the object. By changing the lighting mode depending on the position and viewing direction of the object, the driver's viewing direction can be communicated outside the vehicle 200, allowing comprehensive communication to be performed.

[0056] When there are multiple objects, the control unit 130 lights up each object in a manner that emphasizes the object with a higher danger risk for the vehicle 200. The danger risk is the risk of a collision with the vehicle 200 that the control unit 130 determines. The danger risk is calculated from conditions such as a high overlap ratio between the object and the vehicle 200 and a short distance between the object and the vehicle 200. The overlap ratio is a value calculated by dividing the lateral difference between the left edge of the vehicle 200 and the center of the object by the overall width of the vehicle 200 when the vehicle 200 is traveling on a road.

[0057] FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example in which a plurality of objects are present. Pedestrians C and D are present in the traveling direction of vehicle 200. Pedestrians C and D are present within a range recognized by external sensor 20 of vehicle 200. Control unit 130 calculates the danger risk of pedestrians C and D, respectively. The danger risk is calculated to be highest when the overlap rate between vehicle 200 and the object is highest and the distance between vehicle 200 and the object is shortest. In the case of FIG. 19, pedestrian C is calculated to have the highest danger risk.

[0058] FIG. 20 is a front view of the vehicle 200 showing the lighting mode of the vehicle lighting device 1 controlled in the case of FIG. 19. The control unit 130 turns off the first right exterior light 40R and the first left exterior light 40L. The control unit 130 turns on the second exterior light 50 in a rectangular shape at the locations corresponding to the pedestrians C and D. The control unit 130 turns on the second exterior light 50 in a darker rectangle corresponding to the pedestrian C who is at high risk of danger, and turns on a lighter rectangle corresponding to the pedestrian D who is at low risk of danger. The control unit 130 turns off the headlight bodies 61 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L, and turns on the status display lights 62.

[0059] The control unit 130 controls the position at which the second exterior light 50 is turned on in accordance with the positional relationship of the object, and also controls the lighting mode in accordance with the danger level risk of the object.

[0060] FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of a lighting mode of the vehicle lighting device 1 when the vehicle 200 is stopped. "Stopped" means that the vehicle 200 is stopped at less than a predetermined speed. When the vehicle 200 is stopped, the control unit 130 turns off the first right exterior light 40R, the first left exterior light 40L, and the second exterior light 50. The control unit 130 turns on only the lower half of the status indicator lights 62 of the right headlight 60R and the left headlight 60L, and turns off the other parts. The lighting mode shown in FIG. 21 is defined as an eighth lighting mode.

[0061] Fig. 22 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the second exterior light 50. The process of this flowchart is executed repeatedly at a predetermined cycle, for example. In the flowchart of Fig. 22, it is assumed that there is one target object.

[0062] First, the control unit 130 determines whether the vehicle speed of the vehicle 200 is equal to or greater than a predetermined speed (step S100). The predetermined speed is, for example, a value of about 1 [km / h], and is a value for determining whether the vehicle 200 is stopped or in a state close to that.

[0063] When the vehicle 200 is traveling at or above the predetermined speed, the control unit 130 controls the second exterior light 50 to the first lighting mode (step S120).

[0064] If the vehicle 200 is traveling at a speed less than the predetermined speed, the control unit 130 determines whether the vehicle 200 is located near an intersection or a pedestrian crossing (step S110).

[0065] In the processing of step S110, if it is determined that the vehicle 200 is stopped near an intersection or a crosswalk (i.e., the vehicle 200 is near an intersection or a crosswalk in a nearly stopped state), the recognition unit 110 determines whether or not an object is present (step S130).

[0066] If no object is present, the control unit 130 controls the second exterior light 50 to the eighth lighting mode (step S140).

[0067] When an object is present, the control unit 130 controls the second exterior light 50 from the second lighting mode to the seventh lighting mode in accordance with the driver's viewing direction and the position of the object (step S150).

[0068] According to the embodiment described above, by controlling each light according to the position of the object and the driver's viewing direction, comprehensive communication with the other party can be achieved, further improving traffic safety for the vehicle and other parties, and contributing to the development of a sustainable transportation system.

[0069] The above-described embodiment can be expressed as follows. a storage medium for storing computer-readable instructions; A first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of a vehicle; A second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle; a processor coupled to the storage medium; The vehicle lighting device processor executes the computer-readable instructions to: A process of recognizing an object present on a travel path of the vehicle; A process of detecting a viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle; When the object is recognized, a process of operating the second exterior light and operating the first exterior light according to the viewing direction detected by the detection unit; A vehicle lighting device that performs the above.

[0070] Although the embodiment has been described above as a form for carrying out the present invention, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope of the present invention. It is preferable to prohibit forward movement of the vehicle 200 (movement in a direction approaching an object) between the second lighting mode and the seventh lighting mode. In addition, sound effects and voices may be linked using an external speaker (not shown) in accordance with the second lighting mode to the seventh lighting mode. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 1 Vehicle lighting device 10 Positioning device 20 External Sensor 30 In-car camera 40R 1st right exterior light 40L 1st left exterior light 50 2nd exterior light 60R Right headlight 60L Left headlight 70 In-vehicle communication network 100 Control device 110 Recognition part 120 Detection unit 130 Control section 140 Storage section 142 Map Information

Claims

1. A first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle; A second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle; A recognition unit that recognizes an object present on a travel path of the vehicle; A detection unit that detects a viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle; a control unit that operates the second exterior light when the recognition unit recognizes the object, and operates the first exterior light in accordance with the viewing direction detected by the detection unit; A vehicle lighting device comprising:

2. The control unit, when the vehicle stops in front of an intersection or a crosswalk and the recognition unit recognizes the object, operates the second exterior light, and operates the first exterior light according to the viewing direction detected by the detection unit.

2. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1.

3. The first exterior light is provided along an outer edge of a side of the vehicle, The second exterior light is provided on a front surface of the vehicle along a vehicle width direction.

2. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1.

4. The control unit turns on the second exterior light so as to follow the object.

2. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1.

5. The control unit, when a plurality of the objects are recognized, lights up positions of the second exterior light corresponding to the plurality of the objects.

2. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1.

6. The control unit changes a manner in which the second exterior light is turned on depending on a positional relationship between the vehicle and each of the plurality of objects.

2. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1.

7. A processor of a vehicle lighting device including a first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of a vehicle and a second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle, A process of recognizing an object present on a travel path of the vehicle; A process of detecting a viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle; When the object is recognized, the second exterior light is operated, and the first exterior light is operated according to the detected viewing direction. A vehicle lighting control method that performs the above.

8. A processor of a vehicle lighting device including a first exterior light provided on an exterior portion of a vehicle and a second exterior light provided on an exterior portion of the vehicle, A process of recognizing an object present on a travel path of the vehicle; A process of detecting a viewing direction of a driver of the vehicle; When the object is recognized, the second exterior light is operated, and the first exterior light is operated according to the detected viewing direction. A program for executing.

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