Display controller, head-up display device, program, and display system for vehicles

Abstract

To minimize a trouble by, for example, ensuring the visibility of an image showing a guide content which prompts activation of a driving assist feature.SOLUTION: A display controller 50 controls a HUD device 80 that superposes an image on a forward field of vision of a vehicle having a driving assist feature and forms the image on a projection member. The display controller includes a control unit 51 that locates an image, which shows a guide content prompting use of the driving assist feature, at an image formation position, which is indicated with a first distance and is nearer than a predetermined image formation position, according to first information containing at least one of an inputted current position of the vehicle, a behavior of the vehicle, and a scheduled advancing route of the vehicle, and displays the image on the HUD device. The control unit then locates the image, which shows the guide content, at an image formation position, which is indicated with a second distance farther than the first distance, according to second information containing at least one of a viewer's point of sight and a display elapsed time of the image showing the guide content, and displays the image on the HUD device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a display control device and the like that controls a head-up display device that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function and forms an image on a projection member.

Background Art

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a technique of a display control device that can generate an image having image content that prompts the activation of a driving support function in a vehicle equipped with a head-up display device in order to improve the convenience of the driver when the driving support function is activated.

[0003] The driving support function referred to here is a practical application of ADAS (Advanced Assistance Systems) such as ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control), LTA (Lane Trace Assist), and LCA (Lane Change Assist), in which the vehicle itself grasps the surrounding situation to realize the safety and comfort of the driver, accurately warns the driver by display or sound, or controls the vehicle on behalf of the driver. These driving support functions are executed when the driver gives an activation instruction for these functions.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

[0008] )

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] According to the technology described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, in a vehicle having a driving support function, an image showing guidance content that prompts the activation of the driving support function is displayed on the head-up display device so that it can be visually recognized by the driver. Therefore, the driver, who is the viewer, can grasp that the activation of the driving support function is possible, and thus the convenience of the driver is improved. However, when prompting the activation of the driving support function, an image showing the guidance content that prompts the activation of the driving support function expressed by characters or the like may overlap with the background image (the forward view of the vehicle). In this case, the visibility is reduced, and if the background image is an image such as an important warning or warning display in the driving scene, there are difficulties in terms of safe driving. In addition, the image showing the guidance content may interfere with the forward view and cause annoyance.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems. For example, after presenting an image showing guidance content that prompts the activation of the driving support function near the host vehicle for visual recognition, it is relocated to a position where it does not interfere with the background to ensure visibility and reduce annoyance, and an object of the present invention is to provide a display control device or the like.

[0007] Other objects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art by referring to the aspects and best embodiments illustrated below, as well as the accompanying drawings.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] Hereinafter, aspects according to the present invention will be exemplified to facilitate understanding of the outline of the present invention.

[0009] A first aspect is a display control device that controls a head-up display device that superimposes an image on a forward field of view of a vehicle having a driving support function and forms an image on a projection member. According to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, the image indicating guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function is arranged at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on the head-up display device. Subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image indicating the guidance content that is input, control is performed to rearrange the image indicating the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance located farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device, and has a control unit.

[0010] In the first aspect, the control unit displays an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of a driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (e.g., 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the input vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle on a head-up display device, and then, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is subsequently input, controls to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (e.g., 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device. In this way, by displaying the image showing the guidance content closer to the head-up display device (e.g., refer to Z1 in FIG. 2(b)) based on the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved, and then, by relocating it to a farther position (e.g., refer to Z2 in FIG. 2(b)) that the driver is not particularly concerned about based on the subsequently input second information and displaying it on the head-up display device, the visibility is improved because the chance that the image showing the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function overlaps with an important background in the driving scene is reduced, and also, the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed closer can be reduced. Note that as the display distance is changed, the effect becomes even more prominent by gradually reducing the size of the image showing the guidance content displayed on the head-up display device.

[0011] Here, the "first distance" and the "second distance" refer to, for example, as shown in FIG. 2(a), an imaging surface (a virtual imaging region VA defined by the viewpoint EP of the viewer, the viewing angle AV, and the posture of the vehicle 1, and defined by a virtual line (shown as a broken line in the figure) extending from the viewpoint EP at the viewing angle AV) that is virtually set in front of the vehicle, and the distance (display distance) in the depth direction between the image (the image showing the guidance content) formed on the imaging surface and the viewpoint EP of the viewer. The control of the display distance can be realized by tilting the display surface (see, for example, 80a in FIG. 2(a)) of the display device of the head-up display device and setting the imaging surface (see, for example, the imaging region VA in FIG. 2(a)) on which the image shown by the guidance content is projected to be tilted forward with respect to the vertical direction of the vehicle. In the head-up display device, since the image (the image showing the guidance content) formed on the imaging surface (imaging region) is visually recognized such that the upper end PU of the vertical viewing angle is inclined farther from the vehicle than the lower end PL of the viewing angle, the length of the display distance is such that the first distance < the second distance. Further, for example, as shown in FIG. 2(b), the imaging surface (imaging region VA) is divided into a first region Z1 and a second region Z2. The first region Z1 is a region including a portion corresponding to the "near" (closer) front view as seen from the driver of the vehicle who is the viewer, and the second region Z2 is a region including a portion corresponding to the "far" (farther) front view.

[0012] In a second aspect dependent on the first aspect, in a state where the control unit arranges the image showing the guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the first distance and displays it on the head-up display device, the control unit calculates the line of sight of the viewer from the viewpoint of the viewer to just before, and in accordance with the calculated line of sight, the control unit may perform control to relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field region where the residence time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time and display it on the head-up display device.

[0013] In the second aspect, the control unit refers to the line of sight of the viewer up to immediately before, while displaying an image showing the guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the first distance on the head-up display device, and relocates the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field area where the dwell time of the line of sight of the viewer exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) and performs control to display it on the head-up display device. In other words, in a state where the image showing the guidance content is displayed near the imaging area (for example, Z1 in FIG. 2(b)), for example, control is performed to move (relocate) it to a distant place (see Z2 in FIG. 2(b)) including outside the area of the visual field AoI (Area of Interest) (front, back, left, and right of the imaging plane), so that the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed nearby can be reduced.

[0014] As a method for calculating the line of sight of the viewer from the viewpoint of the viewer, for example, a vector r from the corneal reflection point of the viewer to the pupil center on a plane perpendicular to the reference line connecting the camera and the pupil center is calculated, and based on each vector r, the angle θ of the line of sight of the subject with respect to each reference line of the camera is calculated using a function f including M parameters (including the offset vector r0 of the vector r) (θ = f(|r - r0|)). Further, M parameters included in the function f are determined using a plurality of relational expressions derived based on the angle θ of the line of sight, and based on the direction of the line of sight calculated using the determined parameters, the intersection point of the line of sight on the display screen is obtained, whereby the fixation point where the line of sight of the viewer stays can be detected.

[0015] In a third aspect subordinate to the first aspect, the control unit calculates the line of sight up to immediately before from the viewpoint of the viewer, while displaying the image showing the guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the second distance on the head-up display device, and according to the calculated line of sight, relocates the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field area where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time and performs control to display it on the head-up display device.

[0016] In a third aspect, the control unit refers to the line-of-sight of the viewer up to immediately before, while an image showing guidance content is arranged at the imaging position indicated by the second distance and displayed on the head-up display device, and relocates the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field area where the dwell time of the viewer's line-of-sight exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) and performs control to display it on the head-up display device. In other words, in a state where the image showing the guidance content is displayed near the imaging area, for example, by performing control to move (relocate) it outside the area of the visual field AoI (front, rear, left, or right of the imaging plane), it is possible to reduce the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed nearby.

[0017] In a fourth aspect subordinate to the first to third aspects, the control unit may further perform control to erase the image showing the guidance content displayed on the head-up display device according to third information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned route of the vehicle that is subsequently input.

[0018] According to the fourth aspect, the control unit performs control to erase the image showing the guidance content displayed on the head-up display device according to third information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned route of the vehicle that is subsequently input. For example, when the driving support function is unusable with reference to the behavior or position information of the vehicle, or when the guided driving support function has been activated, etc., when the guidance content is not required, by making the image showing the guidance content non-displayed, it is possible to reduce the annoyance when the guidance content is always displayed.

[0019] In a fifth aspect subordinate to the first to third aspects, the control unit may acquire the display elapsed time since the image showing the guidance content was displayed, and when the display elapsed time exceeds a threshold value, perform control to relocate the image to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and display it on the head-up display device.

[0020] In the fifth aspect, when the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content exceeds a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), the control unit performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and display it on the head-up display device. Therefore, it is possible to switch the display at an appropriate timing when the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content exceeds the threshold value (display the image showing the guidance content at the second distance farther than the first distance).

[0021] In a sixth aspect dependent on the first to third aspects, when it is estimated based on the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past certain period that the viewer has viewed the image showing the guidance content, the control unit may perform control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and display it on the head-up display device.

[0022] In the sixth aspect, when it is estimated based on the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past certain period that the viewer has viewed the image showing the previous guidance content, the control unit performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and display it on the head-up display device. Therefore, it is possible to switch the display at an appropriate timing when it is estimated that the viewer has viewed the image showing the guidance content (display the image showing the guidance content at the second distance farther than the first distance).

[0023] Regarding whether the viewer is viewing the image showing the guidance content based on the viewer's viewpoint, for example, based on the viewer's viewpoint and the position information of the imaging surface where the image showing the guidance content is displayed, when the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight is equal to or longer than a predetermined time in the imaging area of the image showing the guidance content or its periphery, it can be determined that the viewer is viewing. Also, when the viewer's line of sight has headed toward the imaging area of the image showing the guidance content (the dwell time is less than the predetermined time), and when the viewing with a dwell time less than the predetermined time occurs a predetermined number of times or more (for example, 2 times or more) within a predetermined time (for example, within 20 seconds), it can be determined that the viewer is viewing the image showing the guidance content.

[0024] In a seventh aspect subordinate to the first aspect, the control unit may calculate a visual field area where the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight exceeds a predetermined time with reference to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past fixed period, and perform control to relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the calculated visual field area and display it on the head-up display device.

[0025] In the seventh aspect, the control unit refers to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past fixed period, calculates a visual field area (AoI) where the dwell time of the line of sight in the past fixed period exceeds a predetermined time, and performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the calculated visual field area and display it on the head-up display device. For this reason, it is possible to display the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field area (AoI) of the viewer at an appropriate timing when it is presumed that the viewer has viewed the image showing the guidance content, and it is possible to reduce the annoyance caused by being displayed nearby.

[0026] Note that, for example, a circle with a radius of 1 degree centered on the line of the line-of-sight vector obtained from the immediately previous line-of-sight information (see the circle C of the line of sight in Fig. 4(a)) and the visual field area of the forward field of view of the driver who is the viewer (see the rectangular area in Fig. 4(a)) are set, and the part where the visual field area intersects even a part of the circular area (see Fig. 4(b)) and the time thereof are calculated, and the part that has intersected for a certain time or more (see the hatched part AoI1 in the center of Fig. 4(b)) can be calculated as the AoI. Note that the hatched part and the non-hatched part (see AoI2 in Fig. 4(b)) around the central part are areas for less than a certain time.

[0027] In an eighth aspect subordinate to the seventh aspect, when the control unit performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content with reference to the information indicating the calculated visual field area and display it on the head-up display device, if the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer is less than a threshold value, or if the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed, control may be performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content near the four corners of the imaging area of the head-up display device.

[0028] In the eighth aspect, when the control unit performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content with reference to the information indicating the visual field area and display it on the head-up display device, if the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past fixed period is less than a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), or if the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content near the four corners of the imaging area of the head-up display device. In this way, when the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer is less than the threshold value, or when the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed, by performing control to relocate the image showing the guidance content near the four corners of the imaging area, when the data of the line-of-sight position information is insufficient (the time for referring to the viewpoint information of the viewer is less than the threshold value) or the area cannot be specified (the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed), the image showing the guidance content can be retreated and displayed in a place that is unlikely to be obstructive in terms of experience (the four corners of the imaging area).

[0029] In a ninth aspect subordinate to the seventh aspect, the control unit may erase the information indicating the visual field area when it is detected that the ignition of the vehicle is turned off.

[0030] In the ninth aspect, when the control unit detects that the ignition of the vehicle is turned off and erases the information indicating the visual field area, it is possible to prevent the movement of an image for display switching that is not suitable for the driving situation immediately before, such as at the start of driving.

[0031] A tenth aspect is a head-up display device that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving assistance function and forms an image on a projection member, including an image display unit that displays the image, and according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, controls to display the image indicating guidance content that prompts the use of the driving assistance function at an imaging position indicating a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position on the image display unit, and then, according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the guidance content that is input, controls to relocate the image indicating the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit, and has a control unit.

[0032] According to the tenth aspect, the control unit, according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, displays an image indicating guidance content that prompts the use of the driving assistance function at an imaging position indicating a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position on the image display unit, and then, according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image indicating the guidance content that is input, controls to relocate the image indicating the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit. In this way, by displaying the image indicating the guidance content closer to the image display unit (an imaging area that is relatively focused on by the viewer) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved, and then, by relocating it to a farther distance (an imaging area that is less frequently focused on by the viewer) that the driver is relatively less concerned about according to the input second information and displaying it on the image display unit, the chance that the image indicating the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving assistance function overlaps with an important background in the driving scene is reduced, so the visibility is improved, and a head-up display device can be provided that reduces the annoyance caused by the image indicating the guidance content being displayed closer.

[0033] A program for a display control device that controls a head-up display device that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function and forms an image on a projection member, the program causing a processor included in the display control device to, according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, which is input, perform a process of arranging the image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displaying it on the head-up display device; Subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewing point of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content, which is input, perform a process of controlling to rearrange the image showing the guidance content at an imaging position indicated by a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device.

[0034] According to the eleventh aspect, a processor implemented in a display control device reads and executes a program recorded in a memory, and according to first information including at least one of the current position of the input vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of a driving support function is arranged at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on a head-up display device. Subsequently, control is performed to rearrange the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) located farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is subsequently input. In this way, by displaying an image showing guidance content closer to the head-up display device (an imaging area that is relatively focused on by the viewer) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, according to the input second information, it can be rearranged to a distant area (an imaging area that is less frequently focused on by the viewer) that the driver is relatively less concerned about and displayed on the head-up display device. As a result, the visibility is improved because the chance that an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of a driving support function overlaps with an important background in the driving scene is reduced. Also, the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed nearby can be reduced.

[0035] A twelfth aspect is a vehicle display system having a driving support device that performs driving support for a vehicle, a head-up display device that superimposes an image on a forward view of the vehicle and forms an image on a projection member, and a display control device that controls the head-up display device. The display control device, in response to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, arranges the image showing guidance content that prompts the use of driving support by the driving support device at an imaging position indicating a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displays it on the head-up display device. Subsequently, in response to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device.

[0036] According to the twelfth aspect, in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle being input, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned route of the vehicle, an image showing guidance content prompting the use of a driving support function is arranged at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on a head-up display device. Subsequently, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer being input or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content. In this way, by displaying an image showing guidance content closer to the head-up display device (an imaging region relatively frequently gazed at by the viewer) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, by relocating it to a farther position (an imaging region less frequently gazed at by the viewer) that the driver is relatively less concerned about according to the input second information and displaying it on the head-up display device, the visibility is improved because the image showing the guidance content prompting the use of the driving support function is less likely to overlap with an important background in the driving scene. Also, a vehicle display system can be provided that reduces the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed closer.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0037]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5A

Figure 5B

Figure 5C

Figure 6

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0038] The best embodiment described below is used to easily understand the present invention. Therefore, those skilled in the art should note that the present invention is not unduly limited by the embodiment described below (hereinafter referred to as the present embodiment).

[0039] (Configuration of the Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a vehicle display system 100 to which the display control device 50 of the present embodiment is applied. According to FIG. 1, the vehicle display system 100 includes a driving support device 10, a navigation device 20, an in-vehicle monitoring device 30, an operation input device 40, and the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, and all of these are configured to be able to communicate bidirectionally via an I / O interface 60.

[0040] The driving support device 10 includes at least one of driving support functions by ADAS such as LKAS (Lane Keeping Assist System) and ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control System) that support the driving operation of the vehicle by the occupant, and an automatic driving function capable of substituting the driving operation of the occupant. Then, based on the information acquired from the in-vehicle monitoring device 30, the driving support device 10 recognizes or detects the driving environment and behavior in front of the vehicle, and in addition to controlling the vehicle (the drive system, braking system, and steering system, not shown) according to the analysis result of the information obtained here, the analysis result of this information can be transferred to the navigation device 20 and the display control device 50 of the present embodiment via the I / O interface 60.

[0041] The navigation device 20 uses a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) such as GPS (Global Positioning System) or a gyro sensor to obtain map information from map information or by wireless communication with the outside of the vehicle, and performs guidance on surrounding facilities and route guidance of the vehicle. The navigation device 20 transfers a signal prompting a display output based on this guidance information to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment via the I / O interface 60 at an appropriate timing.

[0042] Note that the navigation device 20 has a map information database (map information DB200). The map information DB200 can acquire and store the latest map information, for example, by communicating with an external center (not shown) via a V2X (Vehicle to X) type communication system (not shown). Here, the map information stored in the map information DB200 is mapping data that is digitized to represent the driving environment of the vehicle. It is preferably digital data of a particularly high-precision dynamic map as the mapping data. Here, the "dynamic map" refers to a digital map that combines a vast amount of dynamic information that changes moment by moment, such as traffic regulations, construction information, accidents, traffic jams, pedestrian and signal information, and static information such as high-precision three-dimensional position information (road surface information, diagonal line information, three-dimensional structures).

[0043] The in-vehicle monitoring device 30 includes sensors necessary for recognizing the surrounding driving environment including the front of the vehicle, such as a camera 301, a GPS 302, a behavior sensor 303, a LiDAR 304, and a viewpoint sensor 305. The camera 301 captures at least the front view (real scene) of the vehicle 1 and the eyes (pupil images) of the passengers. The LiDAR 304 uses near-infrared light, visible light, or ultraviolet light to irradiate light, for example, on obstacles existing in front of the vehicle captured by the camera 301, captures the reflected light with a light sensor, and determines the distance to the obstacle based on the time difference. Note that the behavior sensor 303 includes an IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) and a vehicle speed sensor, etc. The IMU can measure (detect translational motion in three axial directions from acceleration [m / s 2 and rotational motion from angular velocity [deg / s]) the driving situation and posture of the vehicle using a three-axis acceleration sensor and a three-axis angular velocity sensor (gyro sensor). The viewpoint sensor 305 can detect the viewpoint of the passenger with high precision by performing image recognition on the eyes (pupil images) of the driver, who is the viewer captured by the camera 301.

[0044] The operation input device 40 is, for example, a switch or a cantilever provided on the spoke portion of a steering wheel (steering handle). By operating these switches or cantilevers, the driver who is the viewer can switch the head-up display device 80 (hereinafter referred to as the HUD device 80) on and off and give instructions regarding the driving support function. Note that the instructions regarding the driving support function include, for example, instructions regarding the activation and deactivation of LKAS, the activation and deactivation of ACC, and the setting of the inter-vehicle distance of ACC.

[0045] The display control device 50 of the present embodiment is a display control device 50 that controls a HUD device 80 that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function (see 1 in FIG. 2 described later) and forms an image on a projection member (windshield 13 in FIG. 2(a)). The display control device 50 of the present embodiment arranges an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displays it on the HUD device 80 according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1 that is input. Subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewer's viewpoint or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, it performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the HUD device 80. It has a control unit 51 and a storage unit 52 that stores programs and data necessary for the control unit to perform the above-described control.

[0046] Here, the "first distance" and the "second distance" refer to, for example, as shown in FIG. 2(a) described later, an imaging plane (a virtual imaging region VA defined by the viewpoint EP, the viewing angle AV, and the posture of the vehicle 1, which is defined by a virtual line (shown by a broken line in the figure) extending at the viewing angle AV from the viewpoint EP of the viewer) that is virtually set in front of the vehicle 1, and the distance (display distance) in the depth direction between the image (the image showing the guidance content) formed on the imaging plane and the viewpoint EP of the viewer. The control of this display distance can be realized by tilting the display surface of the display device (see, for example, 80a in FIG. 2(a)) of the HUD device 80 and setting the imaging plane (see, for example, the imaging region VA in FIG. 2(a)) on which the image shown by the guidance content is projected to be tilted forward with respect to the vertical direction of the vehicle.

[0047] Further, in the HUD device 80, since the image (the image showing the guidance content) formed on the imaging plane (imaging region VA) is visually recognized such that the upper end PU of the viewing angle in the vertical direction (see FIG. 2(a)) is inclined farther from the vehicle than the lower end PL of the viewing angle, the length of the display distance is such that the first distance < the second distance. Also, for example, as shown in FIG. 2(b), the imaging plane (imaging region VA) is divided into a first region Z1 and a second region Z2. The first region Z1 is a region including a location corresponding to the "near" (closer) forward visual field as seen from the driver of the vehicle, who is the viewer, and the second region Z2 is a region including a location corresponding to the "far" (farther) forward visual field.

[0048] In a state where the control unit 51 arranges the image showing the guidance content at the imaging position (display position) indicated by the first distance and displays it on the HUD device 80, the control unit 51 calculates the line of sight from the viewpoint of the viewer to just before, and according to the calculated line of sight position, controls to relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field region (area of interest AoI) where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) and display it on the HUD device 80.

[0049] Further, in a state where an image indicating guidance content is arranged at the imaging position (display position) indicated by the second distance and displayed on the HUD device 80, the control unit 51 calculates the line of sight from the viewpoint of the viewer up to immediately before, and according to the calculated line of sight, the control unit 51 can perform control to relocate the image indicating the guidance content outside the visual field area (AoI) where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) and display it on the HUD device 80.

[0050] Further, the control unit 51 can perform control to erase the image indicating the guidance content displayed on the HUD device 80 according to at least one of the third information including the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1 that is subsequently input.

[0051] Further, the control unit 51 can acquire the display elapsed time since the image indicating the guidance content was displayed, and when the display elapsed time exceeds a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), perform control to relocate the image indicating the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and display it on the HUD device 80. Note that the display elapsed time since the image indicating the guidance content was displayed is constantly monitored by the control unit 51, stored in a predetermined area (work area) of the storage unit 52, and sequentially updated.

[0052] Further, when it is estimated based on the line of sight position information of the viewer in a past certain period that the viewer has viewed the image indicating the guidance content, the control unit 51 can perform control to relocate the image indicating the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and display it on the HUD device 80 (display the image indicating the guidance content at the second distance farther than the first distance).

[0053] Regarding whether or not the viewer is visually recognizing an image showing guidance content based on the viewer's perspective, for example, based on the viewer's perspective and the position information of the imaging plane (imaging region VA) where the image showing the guidance content is formed, when the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight is equal to or longer than a predetermined time in the imaging region VA of the image showing the guidance content or its vicinity, it can be determined that the viewer is visually recognizing it (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2023-157200 describes a technique for determining the degree of attention to each subject based on the detected viewer's perspective and selecting one of a plurality of subjects as the main subject). Also, when the viewer's line of sight has directed toward the imaging region of the image showing the guidance content (dwell time is less than a predetermined time), and when visual recognition with a dwell time less than a predetermined time occurs a predetermined number of times or more (for example, 2 times or more) within a predetermined time (for example, within 20 seconds), it can be determined that the driver, who is the viewer, is visually recognizing the image showing the guidance content.

[0054] Further, the control unit 51 can calculate a region of interest (AoI) where the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight exceeds a predetermined time by referring to the viewer's line of sight position information in a past fixed period, and perform control to relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the calculated region of interest (AoI) and display it on the HUD device 80. Note that the viewer's line of sight position information in a past fixed period is stored in a predetermined area of the storage unit 52 and is sequentially updated.

[0055] In addition, for the method of calculating the visual field area where the fixation time of the viewer's line of sight exceeds a predetermined time within a certain period, for example, a circle with a radius of 1 degree centered on the line of the line-of-sight vector obtained from the immediately previous line-of-sight information (refer to the circle C of the line of sight in Fig. 4(a)) and the visual field area of the driver's forward field of view (the rectangular area in Fig. 4(a)) are set. The overlapping part (refer to Fig. 4(b)) between the visual field area and a part of the circular area and the time are calculated, and the part that is longer than a certain time (refer to the hatched part AoI1 in the center of Fig. 4(b)) can be calculated as the AoI. Note that the hatched part around the central part and the non-hatched part (refer to AoI2 in Fig. 4(b)) are areas that are less than a certain time. There is also a method of obtaining the visual field area AoI using a calculation formula or a coefficient table. An example of the details of this method is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-635958 (Fig. 7 and paragraph

[0079] ).

[0056] In addition, when the control unit 51 performs control to relocate and display an image indicating the guidance content with reference to the information indicating the calculated visual field area (AoI) on the HUD device 80, when the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer (stored in the storage unit 52) within a past certain period is less than a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), or when the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area (AoI) cannot be performed, control can be performed to relocate the image indicating the guidance content near the four corners of the imaging area VA of the HUD device 80.

[0057] In addition, the control unit 51 can perform control to erase the information indicating the visual field area (AoI) when it is detected that the ignition of the vehicle 1 is turned off.

[0058] Therefore, the control unit 51 includes an input information acquisition unit 511, a line-of-sight monitoring unit 512, a visual field area calculation unit 513, a display distance determination unit 514, a display position calculation unit 515, an image generation unit 516, and a display control unit 517 in order for the display control device 50 of the present embodiment to perform the above-described control.

[0059] The input information acquisition unit 511 acquires first information (including third information) including at least one of "the current position of the vehicle", "the behavior of the vehicle", or "the planned route of the vehicle". Here, the first information (third information) uses the position information measured by the GPS 302 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30 as "the current position of the vehicle", the driving status and posture detected by the behavior sensor 303 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30 as "the behavior of the vehicle", and the route guidance information by the navigation device 20 as "the planned route of the vehicle", respectively, and can be acquired. Further, the input information acquisition unit 511 subsequently acquires second information including at least one of the "viewpoint" of the viewer or "the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content". Here, the second information uses the viewpoint information of the driver, who is the viewer detected by the viewpoint sensor 305 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30, as the "viewpoint of the viewer", and the information monitored and output by the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 as the "display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content", respectively, and delivers it to the visual field area calculation unit 513.

[0060] Note that the input information acquisition unit 511 further acquires, for example, the activation and stop of the driving support function by the driving support device 10 and the setting information set at that time (for example, the inter-vehicle distance in the case of ACC) input by the driver, who is the viewer, operating the operation input device 40 (a switch or a cantilever provided on the spoke portion of the steering wheel), and delivers it to the image generation unit 516.

[0061] The line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 monitors the line of sight of the viewer from the viewpoint information detected by the viewpoint sensor 305 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30 or obtained by image recognition from the face image of the viewer captured by the camera 301 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30. For example, the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 calculates a vector r from the corneal reflection point of the viewer to the pupil center on a plane perpendicular to the reference line connecting the camera 301 and the pupil center, and based on each vector r, calculates the angle θ of the viewer's line of sight with respect to each reference line of the camera using a function f including M parameters (including the offset vector r0 of the vector r), that is, θ = f(|r - r0|). Further, M parameters included in the function f are determined using a plurality of relational expressions derived based on the line of sight (angle θ), and based on the direction of the line of sight calculated using the determined parameters, the intersection point of the line of sight on the display screen is obtained to detect the fixation point where the viewer's line of sight stays. This is described in detail, for example, in WO2012 / 077713 (paragraph

[0009] , FIG. 1). Note that the direction of the line of sight can also be detected using near-infrared light and the diaphragm reflection method by eye tracking.

[0062] In addition, the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 determines whether the driver, who is the viewer, is viewing an image showing guidance content that prompts the driving support function displayed on the HUD device 80, and can also monitor the display elapsed time of the guidance content. Regarding whether the viewer is viewing an image showing the guidance content based on the viewer's viewpoint, for example, based on the viewer's viewpoint and the position information of the imaging surface where the image showing the guidance content is formed, when the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight in the imaging area of the image showing the guidance content or its periphery is equal to or longer than a predetermined time, it can be determined that the viewer is viewing (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2023-157200 describes a technique for determining the degree of attention to each subject based on the detected viewpoint of the user and selecting one of the plurality of subjects as the main subject). Further, when the viewer's line of sight has directed toward the imaging area of the image showing the guidance content (the dwell time is less than a predetermined time), and when the viewing with a dwell time less than the predetermined time occurs a predetermined number of times or more (for example, 2 times or more) within a predetermined time (for example, within 20 seconds), it can be determined that the viewer is viewing the image showing the guidance content.

[0063] The field of view calculation unit 513 calculates a region of interest (AoI) where the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight exceeds a predetermined time by referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a predetermined period in the past, which is monitored by the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 and stored in a predetermined area of the storage unit 52. When calculating the AoI where the dwell time of the viewer 14's line of sight exceeds the predetermined time in a certain period, the field of view calculation unit 513, for example, as shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), sets a circle with a radius of 1 degree centered on the line of the line-of-sight vector obtained from the line-of-sight information of the viewer 14 immediately before being monitored by the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 (the circle C of the line of sight in FIG. 4(a)) and the field of view area of the forward field of view of the driver who is the viewer 14, calculates the part (FIG. 4(b)) where the field of view area intersects even a part of the area of the circle C and the time thereof, and can calculate the part where it is longer than a certain time (the hatched part AoI1 in the center of FIG. 4(b)) as the AoI. Note that the hatched part around the central part and the non-hatched part (AoI2 in FIG. 5(b)) are areas shorter than a certain time. The AoI can also be obtained by a calculation formula or a coefficient table. For example, an example is described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-635958 (FIG. 7 and paragraph

[0079] ).

[0064] The display distance determination unit 514 can determine the display distance of the image showing the guidance content. That is, the display distance determination unit 514 controls how far forward the image showing the guidance content is displayed from the vehicle and in what spatial arrangement. The control of the display distance can be realized by controlling the display of the image (the image showing the guidance content) in the imaging region VA in a manner with depth. For example, it can be controlled by drawing using a perspective method (for example, the one-point perspective method), or by tilting the display surface of the HUD device 80 (see 80a in FIG. 2(a)), the imaging surface (imaging region VA) on which the image showing the guidance content is displayed is tilted forward with respect to the vertical direction of the vehicle 1 to give depth to the image showing the guidance content. In this case, the drawing control may be performed in a manner that gives depth to the image showing the guidance content in consideration of the projection from the viewpoint of the driver who is the viewer to the imaging surface (imaging region VA) of the image to be viewed.

[0065] The display position calculation unit 515 calculates the display position so as to display an image indicating specific display content at an arbitrary position within the imaging region VA, and controls the HUD device 80 so as to be visually recognized by being superimposed on the forward field of view. The display position calculation unit 515 calculates the display position of the image indicating the guidance content based on a preset correction value in order to display the image indicating the guidance content in accordance with the captured image (forward field of view of the vehicle 1) acquired from the camera 301 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30. Here, the correction value is a value set based on the deviation amount between the viewpoint of the viewer and the mounting position of the camera 301. That is, the display position calculation unit 515 is based on the coordinate system with the mounting position of the camera 301 as a reference and the coordinate system with the viewpoint of the driver, who is the viewer, as a reference, and calculates the display position when displaying an image indicating the guidance display on the display surface (see 80a in Fig. 2(a)), that is, the display position based on the viewpoint of the driver, who is the viewer. The technique for specifying the display position when displaying an image on the display surface 80a (see Fig. 2(a)) based on the above-described mounting position of the camera 301 and the driver's viewpoint, that is, the display position when displaying an image based on the driver's viewpoint, is described in detail in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2021-142770.

[0066] The image generation unit 516 generates display information including an image indicating guidance content for prompting the use of the driving support function, and performs control to draw (write) the generated display information in a VRAM (Video RAM) area allocated and stored in a partial area of the storage unit 52. Here, the image indicating the guidance content includes data indicating the display distance (the first distance or the second distance) determined by the display distance determination unit 514 for driving the HUD device 80 (the projection unit 821 of the image display unit 82 in Fig. 6 described later). The image generation unit 516 arranges (draws in the VRAM area) the image indicating the guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the first distance in accordance with the input first information, and then, in accordance with the input second information, also performs control to rearrange (draw in the VRAM area) the image indicating the guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the second distance located farther than the first distance.

[0067] The display control unit 517 reads out, in synchronization with the display timing of the HUD device 80, display information including an image showing guidance content drawn and written in synchronization with the update timing by the image generation unit 516 from the VRAM area assigned to a predetermined area of the storage unit 52, and performs control to display it on the HUD device 80.

[0068] Note that, in order to perform the above-described control, the control unit 51 has, for example, a processor with a built-in memory (ROM / RAM) or an externally attached memory, and the processor reads out and sequentially executes a program recorded in the memory (which may be the storage unit 52), whereby the input information acquisition unit 511, the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512, the visual field area calculation unit 513, the display distance determination unit 514, the display position calculation unit 515, the image generation unit 516, and the display control unit 517 can each execute their functions. That is, in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1 to be input, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1, an image showing guidance content prompting the use of the driving support function is arranged at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on the HUD device 80, and then, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content to be input, control is performed to rearrange the image showing the guidance content at an imaging position indicated by a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the HUD device 80. Further, at least a part of the above-described functions can also be realized by hardware such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or a logic circuit, without relying on a processor.

[0069] The memory unit 52 is a memory in which, for example, a static RAM, a dynamic RAM, or a flash memory, etc., where a program area and a work area are allocated, is implemented. Here, in the program area, a program for a display control device that controls a HUD device 80 that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving assistance function (refer to 1 in FIG. 2 described later) and forms an image on a projection member (window shield 13 in FIG. 2(a)) is written. In the work area, for example, information indicating the driver's line-of-sight position information over a certain period in the past, information indicating the calculated area of interest (AoI), or an image indicating guidance content, etc., which are generated during the execution of the above-described program, are allocated and written.

[0070] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an application example of the HUD device 80 used by the display control device 50 of the present embodiment as a display device to the vehicle 1. FIG. 2(a) is a diagram cited to explain the relationship between the viewpoint position in the height direction of the viewer and the imaging area VA. FIG. 2(b) is a diagram cited to explain the relationship between the imaging area VA (imaging plane) virtually set in front of the vehicle 1 and the imaging position viewed by the viewer.

[0071] In FIG. 2(a), the width direction (left-right direction, or lateral direction) of the vehicle 1 is defined as the X direction, and the direction along the line segment that is orthogonal to the left-right direction and orthogonal to the plane corresponding to the road surface (up-down direction, or height direction) is defined as the Y direction. Also, the direction along the line segment that is orthogonal to both the left-right direction and the up-down direction (the front-back direction indicating the forward and backward directions of the vehicle 1) is defined as the Z direction. This is the same in FIG. 2(b).

[0072] As shown in FIG. 2(a), in the HUD device 80, a display device of the HUD device 80 (for example, refer to the liquid crystal display element 822 in FIG. 6) provided inside the instrument panel 11 of the vehicle 1 projects display light L, which is reflected by the windshield 13 of the vehicle 1 in the direction of the viewer 14 of the vehicle 1, i.e., the driver, to display an image (for example, the virtual image V shown in FIG. 2(a), which shows guidance content here). In other words, the HUD device 80 projects the display light L emitted from the inclined display device onto the windshield 13, which is the projection member, and causes the viewer 14, i.e., the driver, to visually recognize the display light L (image) in response to this projection. As a result, the driver, who is the viewer 14, can visually recognize the virtual image V showing the guidance content by superimposing it on the forward view (landscape) of the vehicle 1.

[0073] In this case, the HUD device 80 projects the display light L such that, with respect to the road surface on which the vehicle 1 is traveling, the virtual image V is inclined at 45° or less, and the upper part of the virtual image V appears to be inclined further away from the driver, who is the viewer 14, than the lower part. As a result, the driver, who is the viewer 14, can visually recognize the virtual image V mainly superimposed on the road surface on the front side of the vehicle 1 and obtain information on the virtual image V (the image shown by the guidance content here).

[0074] Incidentally, an eye box is set in the HUD device 80. If the virtual range in the space where the virtual image V can be formed by the HUD device 80 is defined as the imaging region VA, which is the imaging surface, the eye box is the viewing angle defined based on the virtual line connecting the eyes of the driver, who is the viewer 14, and the outer edge of the imaging region VA (shown by a dashed line in FIG. 1(a), with the upper end indicated by PU and the lower end indicated by PD). The eye box is the angular range (viewing angle AV) within which the driver, who is the viewer 14, can visually recognize the virtual image V. By changing the angle (depression angle LD) formed by the straight line VL parallel to the road surface with reference to the height of the eyes of the driver, who is the viewer 14, and the straight line (dashed line) connecting the eyes of the driver, who is the viewer 14, and the virtual image V, the angular range (the angular range within which the viewer 14 can visually recognize the virtual image V as seen from the viewing point EP) within which the driver, who is the viewer 14, can visually recognize the virtual image V can be adjusted.

[0075] Also, as shown in FIG. 2(b), the imaging region VA virtually set by the HUD device 80 is set such that the horizontal viewing angle (e.g., about 10 to 12°) in the horizontal direction is larger than the vertical viewing angle (e.g., about 4 to 5°) in the vertical direction. In FIG. 2(b), the same reference numerals are given to the portions common to FIG. 2(a), and the vertical direction of the imaging region VA is the vertical viewing angle, and the horizontal direction is the horizontal viewing angle. The front range overlapping the imaging region VA, which is the imaging surface when viewed from the viewpoint EP of the driver who is the viewer 14, is the range of the viewing angle AV. The imaging region VA corresponds to the display surface 80a (see FIG. 2(a)) of the HUD device 80. In other words, the imaging region VA has a conjugate relationship with the display surface 80a. And the virtual image V viewed in the imaging region VA corresponds to the image displayed on the display surface 80a of the HUD device 80. Further, the imaging region VA is divided into a first region Z1 and a second region Z2. The first region Z1 is a region including a portion corresponding to the "near" (closer) front view as seen from the driver of the vehicle who is the viewer 14, and the second region Z2 is a region including a portion corresponding to the "far" (farther) front view. Note that in FIG. 2(b), the first region Z1 and the second region Z2 are rectangular regions, but are not limited thereto, and may be circular or the like.

[0076] (Operation of the Embodiment) Figure 3 is a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the display control device 50 of the present embodiment. Further, Figure 4 is an image diagram for calculating a visual field area with a long gaze retention time in the display control device according to the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4(a) is a circle with a radius of 1 degree set centered on the line of the gaze vector obtained from the gaze information, and Figure 4(b) shows the visual field area of the forward visual field of the viewer. Also, Figure 5A is a figure cited to explain the imaging position on the imaging surface (moving only in the XY direction) when relocating an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function outside the visual field area AoI. Figure 5B is a figure cited to explain the imaging position on the imaging surface (moving only in the Z direction) when relocating an image showing the guidance content outside the visual field area AoI. Figure 5C is a figure cited to explain the imaging position on the imaging surface (moving in all XYZ directions) when relocating an image showing the guidance content outside the visual field area AoI.

[0077] Hereinafter, with reference to Figures 3, 4, 5A, 5B, and 5C, the operation of the display control device 50 of the present embodiment shown in Figure 1 will be described in detail.

[0078] In Figure 3, in the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, the control unit 51 constantly monitors the input of "first information" including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1 (step ST101). Specifically, the control unit 51 causes the input information acquisition unit 511 to use the position information measured by the GPS 302 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30 as the current position of the vehicle, the driving status and posture detected by the behavior sensor 303 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30 as the behavior of the vehicle, and the route guidance information by the navigation device 20 as the "planned travel route of the vehicle", and respectively captures them (step ST102).

[0079] The control unit 51 also monitors whether there is an input operation for activating the driving support function by the driving support device 10 (step ST103). Here, when the driver, who is the viewer 14, operates the operation input device 40 (a switch or a cantilever provided on the spoke portion of the steering wheel) to instruct the activation of the driving support by the driving support device 10 (step ST103 “YES”), the control unit 51 causes the input information acquisition unit 511 to capture this, and an image indicating guidance content prompting the use of the driving support function generated by the image generation unit 515 is displayed at an arbitrary position of the HUD device 80 controlled by the display control unit 516 at the display distance determined by the display distance determination unit 514 and the display position calculated by the display position calculation unit 515 (step ST104).

[0080] Further, when the control unit 51 (input information acquisition unit 511) subsequently acquires second information including at least one of the viewer's viewpoint or the display elapsed time of the image indicating the guidance content (step ST105 “YES”), the input information acquisition unit 511 captures this information and outputs it to the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 (step ST106). Here, for the second information, the input information acquisition unit 511 can acquire the viewpoint information of the driver, who is the viewer detected by the viewpoint sensor 305 of the in-vehicle monitoring device 30, as the “viewer's viewpoint” and the information monitored and output by the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 as the “display elapsed time of the image indicating the guidance content”, respectively.

[0081] Next, the control unit 51 determines whether the driver, who is the viewer 14, has visually recognized an image showing the guidance content prompting the driving support function displayed on the HUD device 80, or whether the display elapsed time is equal to or greater than the threshold value (step ST107). Here, regarding whether the viewer 14 has visually recognized the image showing the guidance content based on the viewpoint of the driver who is the viewer 14, for example, based on the viewpoint EP of the driver who is the viewer 14 (see Fig. 2(a)) and the position information of the imaging surface where the image showing the guidance content is displayed, it can be determined that the viewer has visually recognized it when the dwell time of the viewer 14's line of sight in the imaging area VA of the image showing the guidance content or its periphery is equal to or greater than a predetermined time. Also, when the viewer's line of sight has headed towards the imaging area of the image showing the guidance content (dwell time is less than a predetermined time), and when visual recognition with a dwell time less than the predetermined time has occurred a predetermined number of times or more (for example, 2 times or more) within a predetermined time (for example, within 20 seconds), it can be determined that the viewer has visually recognized the image showing the guidance content.

[0082] In step ST107, if it is determined that the driver, who is the viewer, has visually recognized the image showing the guidance content or the display elapsed time is equal to or greater than the threshold value (step ST107 “YES”), the control unit 51 causes the visual field area calculation unit 513 to calculate the visual field area (AoI), which is the area of interest in the imaging area VA of the driver who is the viewer 14 (step ST108). When calculating the visual field area (AoI), the visual field area calculation unit 513 refers to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer 14 in a certain past period monitored by the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512 and stored in a predetermined area of the storage unit 52, and calculates the visual field area (AoI) where the dwell time of the viewer 14's line of sight exceeds a predetermined time.

[0083] In calculating the area of interest (AoI) of the visual field region where the dwell time of the line of sight of the viewer 14 exceeds a predetermined time within a certain period, the visual field region calculation unit 513, for example, as shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), sets a circle with a radius of 1 degree centered on the line of the line of sight vector obtained from the line of sight information of the viewer 14 immediately before being monitored by the line of sight monitoring unit 512 (the circle C of the line of sight in FIG. 4(a)) and the visual field region of the forward visual field of the driver who is the viewer 14. Then, it calculates the part where the visual field region intersects even a part of the region of the circle C (FIG. 4(b)) and the time thereof, and can calculate the part where the time is longer than a certain time (the hatched part AoI1 in the center of FIG. 4(b)) as the visual field region AoI. Note that the hatched part around the central part and the non-hatched part (AoI2 in FIG. 4(b)) are regions where the time is less than a certain time.

[0084] The control unit 51 (the visual field region calculation unit 513) delivers the calculated AoI information to the display distance determination unit 514, the display position calculation unit 515, and the image generation unit 516. Based on the display distance determined by the display distance determination unit 514 and the display position calculated by the display position calculation unit 515, the image generation unit 516 relocates the image showing the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance located farther than the first distance, and the display control unit 517 performs control to display it at the corresponding position of the HUD device 80 (step ST109).

[0085] In step ST109, the image generation unit 516 may calculate the line of sight from the viewpoint of the viewer 14 to the immediate previous moment in the state where the image showing the guidance content is arranged at the display position indicated by the first distance and displayed on the HUD device 80, and relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field region (AoI) where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) according to the calculated line of sight position, and perform control to display it on the HUD device 80. Also, the image generation unit 516 may calculate the line of sight from the viewpoint of the viewer 14 to the immediate previous moment in the state where the image showing the guidance content is arranged at the display position indicated by the second distance and displayed on the HUD device 80, and relocate the image showing the guidance content outside the visual field region where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time according to the calculated line of sight position, and perform control to display it on the HUD device 80.

[0086] In addition, when the image generation unit 516 controls to relocate an image showing guidance content with reference to the information indicating the field of view area (AoI) calculated by the field of view area calculation unit 513 and display it on the HUD device 80, if the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer 14 in a predetermined period in the past stored in a predetermined area of the storage unit 42 is less than a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), or if the line of sight is dispersed and the field of view area calculation unit 513 cannot calculate the field of view area (AoI), control may be performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to the vicinity of the four corners of the imaging area VA of the HUD device 80.

[0087] FIG. 5A shows a diagram cited to explain the imaging position (moving only in the XY direction) on the imaging surface when an image showing guidance content prompting the use of the driving support function is relocated outside the field of view area AoI. FIG. 5B shows a diagram cited to explain the imaging position (moving only in the Z direction) on the imaging surface when an image showing guidance content is relocated outside the field of view area AoI. FIG. 5C shows a diagram cited to explain the imaging position (moving in all XYZ directions) on the imaging surface when an image showing guidance content is relocated outside the field of view area AoI. In FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C, (a) shows a state where an image showing guidance content (here, ACC Ready) is arranged outside the range of the field of view area AoI on the XY plan view, and (b) shows the change in the display distance (from the first distance to the second distance) on the YZ plane (with the Y axis as the horizontal viewing angle and the Z axis as the depth direction).

[0088] In the example shown in FIG. 5A, the control unit 51 (display distance determination unit 514 and display position calculation unit 515) needs to control the display distance and display position in order to move an image included in the range of the visual field area AoI (here, the image "ACC Ready" indicating guidance content that prompts the use of the driving assistance function) to an area outside the range of the visual field area AoI on the XY plane (moving only in the XY direction). In this case, there is no change in the display distance. That is, the image "Acc Ready" indicating guidance content that prompts the use of the driving assistance function is an image that is planarly imaged on the XY plane at the first display distance and does not give the viewer 14 a sense of perspective. According to such a planar image, the entire display can be clearly recognized generally without adjusting the focus of the eyes.

[0089] Also, in the example shown in FIG. 5B, the control unit 51 (display distance determination unit 514 and display position calculation unit 515) needs to perform control by perspective projection to move an image included in the range of the visual field area AoI to a distance far enough that the focus of the eyes of the driver, who is the viewer 14, typically does not match well (moving only in the Z direction) and show it. There is no change in the position on the plane. That is, the image (the image "ACC Ready" indicating guidance content that prompts the use of the driving assistance function) is planarly imaged at a second display distance farther from the viewer than the first distance and is an image that gives the viewer a sense of perspective. Such an image can give a three-dimensional impression because the entire display is clearly recognized by adjusting the focus of the viewer's eyes.

[0090] Note that in the example shown in FIG. 5C, the examples shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B are combined (the image moves in all XYZ directions), and the image is moved to a position on the plane that the viewer does not pay much attention to, that is, the image indicating the guidance content is moved to the vicinity of the four corners of the imaging area VA of the HUD device 80. At the same time, control by perspective projection is required to move the image to a distance far enough that the focus of the eyes of the driver, who is the viewer 14, typically does not match well and show it. That is, it is an image that is imaged at a second display distance farther than the first distance and gives the viewer 14 a sense of perspective. Such an image can give a three-dimensional impression because the entire display is clearly recognized by adjusting the focus of the viewer's eyes.

[0091] Note that the information indicating the visual field area is erased by the control unit 51 when the in-vehicle monitoring device 30 detects that the ignition of the vehicle 1 is turned off. This can prevent the movement of the image for display switching that is not suitable for the driving situation immediately before, such as at the start of driving.

[0092] Returning the explanation to the flowchart of FIG. 3. The control unit 51 (image generation unit 516) arranges the image (ACC Ready) indicating the guidance content far away, outside the AoI, or both far away and outside the AoI. After the display control unit 516 displays it at the corresponding position of the HUD device 80, when third information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle is subsequently input (step ST110), the input information acquisition unit 511 captures this information (position information, the behavior of the vehicle 1, planned travel route) (step ST111). Then, for example, when the driving support device 10 is in a non-usable state with reference to the behavior and position information of the vehicle 1 (step ST112 “YES”), or when the guided driving support function is activated, etc., when the display of the guidance content is not required, the image indicating the guidance content is made non-displayed (step ST113), thereby reducing the annoyance when the guidance content is always displayed. Note that when the display of the guidance content is continuously required (step ST112 “NO”), the process returns to step ST109 to continue the display of the guidance content.

[0093] (Modification example) According to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment described above, the display control device 50 arranges an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicating a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1, and displays it on the HUD device 80. Subsequently, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer 14 or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is subsequently input, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the HUD device 80. However, by incorporating these functions into the HUD device 80, the functions of the display control device 50 can be realized by the HUD device 80 alone. In this case, the processing load of the display control device 50 can be reduced.

[0094] In this case, as shown in FIG. 6 for example, the HUD device 80 is composed of a control unit 81, an image display unit 82, and a storage unit 83.

[0095] The control unit 81 performs control to arrange an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicating a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1, and display it on the image display unit 82. Subsequently, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer 14 or the display elapsed time of the guidance content that is subsequently input, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit 82. For this reason, the control unit 81 includes an input information acquisition unit 811, a line-of-sight monitoring unit 812, a visual field region calculation unit 813, a display distance determination unit 814, a display position calculation unit 815, an image generation unit 816, and a display control unit 817.

[0096] The functions of the input information acquisition unit 811, the line-of-sight monitoring unit 812, the field-of-view area calculation unit 813, the display distance determination unit, the display position calculation unit 815, the image generation unit 816, and the display control unit 817 are the same as those of the input information acquisition unit 511, the line-of-sight monitoring unit 512, the field-of-view area calculation unit 513, the display distance determination unit 514, the display position calculation unit 515, the image generation unit 516, and the display control unit 517 of the control unit 51 of the display control device 50 shown in FIG. 1. Therefore, the description here is omitted to avoid redundant description. Note that in the storage unit 83, in addition to the programs necessary for the control unit 81 to perform the above-described control, information generated during the execution of the program, for example, information indicating the line-of-sight position information of the driver, who is the viewer 14, over a certain period in the past, information indicating the calculated field-of-view area (AoI), an image indicating the guidance content, VRAM, etc. are allocated and written.

[0097] The image display unit 82 mainly includes a light source composed of light-emitting diodes mounted on a wiring board and a projection unit 821 including a relay optical system, and a TFT (Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal) type liquid crystal display element 822 located on the emission side (directly above) of the light source so as to transmit the illumination light from the light source and form display light. The liquid crystal display element 822 can output display light by transmitting the light emitted from the light source. The liquid crystal display element 822 forms a desired image based on display information (drive signal) generated under the control of the control unit 81, and superimposes the image formed on an imaging plane (imaging area) virtually set in front of the vehicle on the forward field of view and displays it so that the viewer can visually recognize it.

[0098] According to the HUD device 80 of the present embodiment, the control unit 81 arranges an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of a driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle 1, the behavior of the vehicle 1, or the planned travel route of the vehicle 1, and displays it on the image display unit 82. Subsequently, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer 14 or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit. In this way, by displaying the image showing the guidance content closer to the image display unit 82 (imaging region relatively frequently gazed at by the viewer 14) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, by relocating it to a farther position (imaging region with a low frequency of being gazed at by the viewer 14) that the driver, who is the viewer 14, does not particularly care about according to the input second information and displaying it on the image display unit 82, the chance that the image showing the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function overlaps with an important background in the driving scene is reduced, so the visibility is improved. Also, it is possible to provide the HUD device 80 that reduces the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed closer.

[0099] (Effect of the embodiment) As described above, the display control device according to the present embodiment is, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, a display control device 50 that controls a head-up display device (HUD device 80) that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function (driving support device 10) and forms an image on a windshield 13 of a projection member (see FIG. 28a). Then, the display control device 50 displays an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle input thereto, and then, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content input subsequently, performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance located farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device, and has a control unit 51.

[0100] According to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, the control unit 51 arranges an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of a driving support function (driving support device 10) at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the input vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, and displays it on the HUD device 80. Subsequently, in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the HUD device 80. In this way, by displaying the image showing the guidance content closer to the HUD device 80 (for example, refer to Z1 in FIG. 2(b)) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, by relocating it to a farther distance (for example, refer to Z2 in FIG. 2(b)) that the driver is not particularly concerned about according to the input second information and displaying it on the HUD device 80, the chance that the image showing the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function (driving support device 10) overlaps with an important background in the driving scene is reduced, so the visibility is improved. Also, the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed closer can be reduced. Note that as the display distance is changed, the size of the image showing the guidance content displayed on the HUD device 80 is gradually and slightly changed, making the effect even more prominent.

[0101] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, in a state where the control unit 51 arranges an image showing guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the first distance and displays it on the HUD device 80, the control unit 51 refers to the line-of-sight of the viewer until immediately before, and relocates the image showing the guidance content to outside the visual field area where the dwell time of the viewer's line-of-sight exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) and displays it on the HUD device 80. In other words, in a state where the image showing the guidance content is displayed near the imaging area (for example, Z1 in FIG. 2(b)), by performing control to move (relocate) it to a distant place (for example, refer to Z2 in FIG. 2(b)) including outside the area of the visual field AoI (Area of Interest) (front, rear, left, and right of the imaging plane), the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed nearby can be reduced.

[0102] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, in a state where the control unit 51 arranges an image showing guidance content at the imaging position indicated by the second distance and displays it on the HUD device 80, the control unit 51 refers to the line-of-sight position of the viewer until immediately before, and relocates the image showing the guidance content to outside the visual field area where the dwell time of the viewer's line-of-sight exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 20 seconds) and displays it on the head-up display device. In other words, in a state where the image showing the guidance content is displayed near the imaging area, by performing control to move (relocate) it outside the area of the visual field AoI (front, rear, left, and right of the imaging plane), the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed nearby can be reduced.

[0103] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, the control unit 51 further performs control to erase the image showing the guidance content displayed on the HUD device 80 according to the third information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is subsequently input. For example, when the driving support function is unusable with reference to the behavior or position information of the vehicle, or when the guided driving support function has been activated, etc., when the guidance content is not required, by making the image showing the guidance content non-displayed, the annoyance when the guidance content is always displayed can be reduced.

[0104] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, when the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content exceeds a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), the control unit 51 rearranges the image showing the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and performs control to display it on the head-up display device. Therefore, it is possible to switch the display at an appropriate timing when the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content exceeds the threshold value (display the image showing the guidance content at the second distance farther than the first distance).

[0105] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, when it is estimated that the viewer has viewed the image showing the guidance content based on the viewer's line-of-sight position information in a past certain period, the control unit 51 rearranges the image showing the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and performs control to display it on the HUD device 80. Therefore, it is possible to switch the display at an appropriate timing when it is estimated that the viewer has viewed the image showing the guidance content (display the image showing the guidance content at the second distance farther than the first distance).

[0106] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, the control unit 51 refers to the viewer's line-of-sight position information in a past certain period, calculates a region of interest (AoI) where the dwell time of the line of sight in the past certain period exceeds a predetermined time, and rearranges the image showing the guidance content outside the calculated region of interest and performs control to display it on the HUD device 80. Therefore, it is possible to display the image showing the guidance content outside the viewer's region of interest (AoI) at an appropriate timing when it is estimated that the viewer has viewed the image showing the guidance content, and it is possible to reduce the annoyance caused by being displayed nearby.

[0107] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, when the control unit 51 performs control to relocate an image showing guidance content with reference to the information indicating the visual field area and display it on the HUD device 80, if the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past certain period is less than a threshold value (for example, 5 minutes), or if the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed, the control unit 51 performs control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to the vicinity of the four corners of the imaging area of the HUD device 80. In this way, when the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer is less than the threshold value, or when the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed, by performing control to relocate the image showing the guidance content to the vicinity of the four corners of the imaging area, when the data of the line-of-sight position information is insufficient (the time for referring to the viewpoint information of the viewer is less than the threshold value) or when the area cannot be specified (the line of sight is dispersed and the calculation of the visual field area cannot be performed), the image showing the guidance content can be displayed by being retreated to a place where it is unlikely to be obstructive in terms of experience (the four corners of the imaging area).

[0108] Also, according to the display control device 50 of the present embodiment, when the control unit 51 detects that the ignition of the vehicle is turned off, the control unit 51 erases the information indicating the visual field area, thereby preventing the movement of an image for display switching that is not suitable for the driving situation immediately before, such as at the start of driving.

[0109] The head-up display device of this embodiment is, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, a head-up display device (HUD device 80) that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function (driving support device 10) and forms an image on a projection member (see the windshield 13 in FIG. 2(a)). The HUD device 80, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, includes an image display unit 82 that displays an image, and according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned route of the vehicle that is input, controls to display an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position on the image display unit 82. Subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewing point of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the guidance content that is input, it controls to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit 82. The control unit 81 has such a control function.

[0110] According to the head-up display device 80 of the present embodiment, the control unit 81 arranges an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position according to first information including at least one of the current position of the input vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, and displays it on the image display unit 80. Subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit 82. In this way, by displaying the image showing the guidance content closer to the image display unit 82 (the imaging area that is relatively watched by the viewer) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, according to the input second information, it is relocated to a distant place (the imaging area that is watched less frequently by the viewer) that the driver is not relatively concerned about and displayed on the image display unit 82, so that the chance that the image showing the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function overlaps with an important background in the driving scene is reduced, and the visibility is improved. In addition, it is possible to provide the head-up display device 80 that reduces the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed nearby.

[0111] The program of the present embodiment is, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, a program for a display control device 50 that controls a head-up display device (HUD device 80) that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function (driving support device 10) and forms an image on a windshield 13 of a projection member (see FIG. 28a). Then, the program causes a processor included in the display control device 50 to, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, arrange an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and display it on the head-up display device 80 (steps ST101 to ST104), and subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewing point of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, perform control to rearrange the image showing the guidance content at an imaging position indicated by a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device (steps ST105 to ST109).

[0112] According to the program of this embodiment, by a processor implemented in the display control device 50 (control unit 51) reading and executing a program recorded in a memory, an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of a driving support function is placed at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position in accordance with first information including at least one of the current position of the input vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, and is displayed on the HUD device 80. Subsequently, control is performed to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance and display it on the HUD device 80 in accordance with second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is subsequently input. In this way, by displaying an image showing the guidance content closer to the HUD device 80 (an imaging area that is relatively watched by the viewer) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, it can be relocated to a farther position (an imaging area that is watched less frequently by the viewer) that the driver is not particularly concerned about according to the subsequently input second information and displayed on the head-up display device. As a result, the visibility is improved because the chance of the image showing the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function overlapping with an important background in the driving scene is reduced. Also, the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed closer can be reduced.

[0113] The vehicle display system according to this embodiment is, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle display system 100 including a driving support device 10 that performs driving support for the vehicle, a head-up display device (HUD device 80) that superimposes an image on the forward view of the vehicle and forms an image on a projection member (see the windshield 13 in FIG. 2(a)), and a display control device 50 that controls the HUD device 80. Then, the display control device 50 (control unit 51) displays an image showing guidance content that prompts the use of driving support by the driving support device 10 at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, and subsequently, according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is input, controls to relocate the image showing the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the HUD device 80.

[0114] According to the vehicle display system 100 of the present embodiment, the display control device 50 (control unit 51) determines, according to first information including at least one of the current position of the input vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, an image showing guidance content prompting the use of a driving assistance function is arranged at an imaging position indicated by a first distance (for example, 5 m) closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on the HUD device 80. Subsequently, control is performed to rearrange and display on the HUD device 80 the image showing the guidance content at an imaging position indicated by a second distance (for example, 30 m) farther than the first distance according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is subsequently input. In this way, by displaying the image showing the guidance content closer to the HUD device 80 (imaging area relatively watched by the viewer) according to the input first information, the readability of the guidance content can be improved. Subsequently, by rearranging and displaying on the HUD device 80 at a farther distance (imaging area watched less frequently by the viewer) that the driver is relatively less concerned about according to the input second information, the visibility is improved because the opportunity for the image showing the guidance content prompting the use of the driving assistance function to overlap with an important background in the driving scene is reduced. Also, a vehicle display system 100 can be provided that reduces the annoyance caused by the image showing the guidance content being displayed closer.

[0115] The present invention is not limited to the above-described exemplary embodiments, and those skilled in the art will be able to easily modify the above-described exemplary embodiments to the extent included in the scope of the claims.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0116] 1... Vehicle, 10... Driving support device, 11... Dashboard, 13... Windshield, 14... Viewer, 20... Navigation device, 30... In-vehicle monitoring device, 40... Operation input device, 50... Display control device, 51... Control unit, 52... Memory unit, 60... I / O interface, 80... Head-up display device (HUD device), 80A... Display surface, 100... Vehicle display system, 301... Camera, 302... GPS, 303... Behavior sensor, 304... LiDAR, 305... Viewpoint sensor, 511... Input information acquisition unit, 512... Gaze monitoring unit, 513... Visual field area calculation unit, 514... Display distance determination unit, 515... Display position calculation unit, 516... Image generation unit, 517... Display control unit, 811... Input information acquisition unit, 812... Gaze monitoring unit, 813... Visual field area calculation unit, 814... Display distance determination unit, 815... Display position calculation unit, 816... Image generation unit, 817... Display control unit, V... Virtual image (image showing guidance content), VA... Imaging region, L... Display light, AoI... Visual field area

Claims

1. A display control device for controlling a head-up display device that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function and forms an image on a projection member, comprising: According to at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input, the image indicating the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function is arranged at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on the head-up display device; Subsequently, according to at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image indicating the guidance content that is input, control is performed to rearrange the image indicating the guidance content to an imaging position indicated by a second distance located farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device. A display control device having a control unit.

2. The control unit: In a state where the image indicating the guidance content is arranged at the imaging position indicated by the first distance and displayed on the head-up display device, the line-of-sight position from the viewpoint of the viewer to the immediate previous position is calculated, and according to the calculated line-of-sight position, the image indicating the guidance content is rearranged outside the visual field region where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time and control is performed to display it on the head-up display device. The display control device according to claim 1.

3. The control unit: In a state where the image indicating the guidance content is arranged at the imaging position indicated by the second distance and displayed on the head-up display device, the line-of-sight position from the viewpoint of the viewer to the immediate previous position is calculated, and according to the calculated line-of-sight position, the image indicating the guidance content is rearranged outside the visual field region where the dwell time of the line of sight exceeds a predetermined time and control is performed to display it on the head-up display device. The display control device according to claim 1.

4. The control unit: Performs control to erase the image indicating the guidance content displayed on the head-up display device according to at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned route of the vehicle that is subsequently input, the display control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The control unit Obtains the display elapsed time since the image indicating the guidance content was displayed, and when the display elapsed time exceeds a threshold value, relocates the image to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and performs control to display it on the head-up display device, the display control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. The control unit When it is estimated based on the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past certain period that the viewer has visually recognized the image indicating the guidance content, relocates the image indicating the guidance content to the imaging position indicated by the second distance and performs control to display it on the head-up display device, the display control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

7. The control unit Calculates a visual field area where the dwell time of the viewer's line of sight exceeds a predetermined time with reference to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer in a past certain period, and relocates the image indicating the guidance content outside the calculated visual field area and performs control to display it on the head-up display device, the display control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

8. The control unit When performing control to relocate the image indicating the guidance content and display it on the head-up display device with reference to the information indicating the calculated visual field area, if the time for referring to the line-of-sight position information of the viewer is less than the threshold value, or if the line of sight is dispersed and the visual field area cannot be calculated, performs control to relocate the image indicating the guidance content to the vicinity of the four corners of the imaging area of the head-up display device, the display control device according to claim 7.

9. The control unit performs control to erase information indicating the visual field area when it is detected that the ignition of the vehicle is turned off, the display control device according to claim 7.

10. A head-up display device that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function and forms an image on a projection member, an image display unit that displays the image; According to at least one of the currently input vehicle position, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, the image indicating the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function is arranged at an imaging position indicating a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displayed on the image display unit. Subsequently, according to at least one of the input viewer's viewpoint or the display elapsed time of the guidance content, control is performed to rearrange the image indicating the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the image display unit, a head-up display device having a control unit.

11. A program for a display control device that controls a head-up display device that superimposes an image on the front view of a vehicle having a driving support function and forms an image on a projection member, on a processor included in the display control device, According to at least one of the currently input vehicle position, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle, a process of arranging the image indicating the guidance content that prompts the use of the driving support function at an imaging position indicating a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position and displaying it on the head-up display device; Subsequently, according to at least one of the input viewer's viewpoint or the display elapsed time of the image indicating the guidance content, a process of performing control to rearrange the image indicating the guidance content to an imaging position indicating a second distance farther than the first distance and display it on the head-up display device, a program that causes the execution. Claim 12 A vehicle display system comprising a driving support device that performs driving support for a vehicle, a head-up display device that superimposes an image on a forward field of view of the vehicle and forms an image on a projection member, and a display control device that controls the head-up display device, wherein the display control device, displays, on the head-up display device, the image showing guidance content that prompts use of the driving support by the driving support device at an imaging position indicated by a first distance closer than a predetermined imaging position, according to first information including at least one of the current position of the vehicle, the behavior of the vehicle, or the planned travel route of the vehicle that is input; and then performs control to relocate and display, on the head-up display device, the image showing the guidance content at an imaging position indicated by a second distance located farther than the first distance, according to second information including at least one of the viewpoint of the viewer or the display elapsed time of the image showing the guidance content that is subsequently input.

Images