Display control device, display control method, and computer program

Abstract

To effectively utilize a highly visible area of ​​an image display section. [Solution] A control device 2 controls the display of an image display unit 1 that displays images for vehicle occupants depending on the mode of the vehicle's power switch.When the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle can be driven, driving information related to vehicle driving is displayed in a specified area of ​​the image display unit 1, and when the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not driven and images are displayed on the image display unit 1, images or videos that suit the preferences of the vehicle occupants are displayed in the area.

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses an awakening device configured to display a status image related to the vehicle's status, such as vehicle speed, in the center of an image display unit (head-up display), and to display an awakening image to encourage vehicle occupants to wake up in an area below the outer edge of the image display unit that does not overlap with the status image. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-151067 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The central part of the image display unit is basically an area that is easily noticeable and highly visible. Therefore, the central part of an image display unit, such as a meter display, for notifying or providing information to vehicle occupants, particularly the driver, usually displays various information related to vehicle driving that is necessary or useful while the vehicle is driving, such as the vehicle speed, the monitoring status of the surrounding environment, and the operating status of a driving assistance function (hereinafter referred to as "driving information").

[0005] On the other hand, such driving information does not necessarily need to be displayed when the vehicle is in a mode that does not assume the vehicle is being driven, such as an ACC (accessory) mode, etc. Therefore, there has been a problem in that the highly visible area of ​​the image display unit is not necessarily used effectively in such a mode that does not assume the vehicle is being driven.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to make it possible to effectively utilize the highly visible area of ​​the image display section. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, a display control device according to one aspect of the present invention is configured to control the display of an image display unit that displays images toward vehicle occupants according to the mode of the vehicle's power switch, and when the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle is capable of driving, display driving information related to vehicle driving in a specified area of ​​the image display unit, and when the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not capable of driving and images are displayed on the image display unit, display images or videos that suit the preferences of the vehicle occupants in the area.

[0008] In addition, a display control method according to one aspect of the present invention controls the display of an image display unit that displays images toward vehicle occupants in accordance with the mode of the vehicle's power switch, and when the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle can be driven, displays driving information related to vehicle driving in a specified area of ​​the image display unit, and when the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not driven and in which images are displayed on the image display unit, displays images or videos that suit the preferences of the vehicle occupants in the area.

[0009] In addition, a computer program according to one aspect of the present invention controls the display of an image display unit that displays images toward vehicle occupants according to the mode of the vehicle's power switch, and when the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle can be driven, displays driving information related to the vehicle's driving in a specified area of ​​the image display unit, and when the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not driven and in which images are displayed on the image display unit, displays images or videos that suit the preferences of the vehicle occupants in the specified area. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to this aspect of the present invention, it is possible to effectively utilize the highly visible area of ​​the image display section. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a display on the image display unit when the power switch is in the ON mode. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing one example of a display on the image display unit when the power switch is in the ACC mode. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the position of the upper part of the image display unit. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart illustrating details of display control according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, like components are designated by like reference numerals.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a display device 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] The display device 100 includes an image display unit 1 and a control device 2. The image display unit 1 and the control device 2 are communicably connected via an internal network 110 that complies with a standard such as a controller area network.

[0015] The image display unit 1 is an output device for visually notifying and providing information to vehicle occupants, and is, for example, a display such as a meter display, a center display, or a head-up display. The image display unit 1 displays information according to a display signal received from the control device 2. Note that the image display unit 1 according to this embodiment is a meter display that provides various notifications and information to the driver.

[0016] The control device 2 is an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) including a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a processing unit .

[0017] The communication unit 21 includes an interface circuit for connecting the control device 2 to the internal network 110. The communication unit 21 outputs various display signals output from the processing unit 23 to the image display unit 1.

[0018] The storage unit 22 has a storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid disk drive (SSD), or a semiconductor memory, and stores various computer programs, data, and the like used for processing by the processing unit 23.

[0019] The processing unit 23 has one or more central processing units (CPUs) and their peripheral circuits, and executes various computer programs stored in the storage unit 22. The processing unit 23 is, for example, a processor. The processing unit 23 executes processing in accordance with the computer programs, thereby functioning as the display control unit 31 and operating as a functional unit (module) that realizes a predetermined function. In the following description, when processing is described with the display control unit 31 as the subject, it indicates that the processing unit 23 is executing a program that realizes the display control unit 31.

[0020] The display control unit 31 controls the display content of the image display unit 1 to display content according to the mode of the vehicle's power switch. In this embodiment, there are three modes of the vehicle's power switch: OFF mode, ACC (accessory) mode, and ON mode. The OFF mode is a mode in which the vehicle's functions are stopped and the vehicle is in a stopped state. The ACC mode is a mode in which the vehicle is not intended to be driven, and although power is supplied to some electrical components including the image display unit 1, the vehicle itself cannot be driven. The ON mode is a mode in which power is supplied to all electrical components, allowing the vehicle to be driven.

[0021] When the power switch of the vehicle is in the OFF mode, the display control unit 31 puts the image display unit 1 in a non-display state where no power is supplied.

[0022] Furthermore, when the vehicle's power switch is in the ON mode, i.e., when power is supplied to all electrical components and the vehicle is ready to run, the display control unit 31 displays the above-mentioned driving information (i.e., various information related to the driving of the vehicle that is necessary or useful when the vehicle is running, such as the vehicle speed, the monitoring status of the surrounding environment, and the operating status of driving assistance functions) in the central portion 11 of the image display unit 1, which is a highly visible area that is easily noticeable to the driver, as shown in FIG. 2, and displays indicator lights such as turn signal lights and tail light lights, and warning lights such as brake warning lights and charging warning lights, as needed, in the outer edge portion 12 around the central portion of the image display unit 1. Note that in FIG. 2, only turn signal lights are shown in the outer edge portion 12. It should be understood that FIG. 2 is merely a diagram for facilitating understanding of the invention, and does not show all of the information displayed in the central portion 11.

[0023] When the vehicle's power switch is in the ACC mode, power is supplied to some electrical components, including the meter display as the image display unit 1, but the vehicle is in a stopped state and cannot run. Therefore, it is not necessary to display running information on the image display unit 1.

[0024] Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 3, when the vehicle power switch is in the ACC mode, a predetermined image different from the image related to the driving information is displayed in the central portion 11 of the image display unit 1, which is an area that is easily noticeable to the driver and has high visibility, i.e., the area where the driving information was displayed. The predetermined image can be an image or video that matches the preferences of the vehicle occupant, and in this embodiment, an image or video selected by the vehicle occupant from a plurality of images or videos for screen background prepared in advance is displayed as the predetermined image. Although Fig. 3 shows an image for the screen background (so-called wallpaper) selected by the vehicle occupant, the present invention is not limited to this example, and any image or video prepared by the vehicle occupant may be displayed.

[0025] As a result, when the vehicle's power switch is in the ACC mode, i.e., when the vehicle is stopped, an image or video that suits the driver's preferences can be displayed in the center portion 11 of the meter display (image display unit 1), which is an area that is easily noticeable to the driver and has high visibility, thereby increasing the product value. Furthermore, since the indicator lights and warning lights displayed on the outer edge portion 12 of the meter display (image display unit 1) do not overlap with the image or video displayed in the center portion 11, it is possible to prevent the indicator lights and warning lights from becoming difficult to see due to the background color of the image or video displayed in the center portion 11. In other words, since the indicator lights and warning lights displayed on the outer edge portion 12 of the meter display (image display unit 1) do not overlap with the image or video displayed in the center portion 11, it is possible to freely display an image or video that suits the driver's preferences in the center portion 11, without restrictions such as background color.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 4, when various messages such as suggestion messages and warning messages for the driver are temporarily popped up on the message display unit 13 as needed in a part of the central portion 11 of the meter display as the image display unit 1 (in the example of FIG. 4, a part of the area below the central portion 11), an image or video that suits the driver's preferences may be displayed in an area that does not overlap with the message display unit 13, for example, in the upper portion 14 of the meter display (in the example of FIG. 4, the area above the central portion 11).

[0027] 5 is a flowchart illustrating the details of the display control according to this embodiment. The control device 2 alternately executes this routine at predetermined calculation intervals.

[0028] In step S1, the control device 2 determines whether the vehicle's power switch is in the OFF mode. If the vehicle's power switch is in the OFF mode, the control device 2 proceeds to step S2. On the other hand, if the vehicle's power switch is not in the OFF mode, the control device 2 proceeds to step S3.

[0029] In step S2, the control device 2 sets the image display unit 1 to a non-display state.

[0030] In step S3, the control device 2 determines whether the mode of the vehicle's power switch is the ACC mode. If the mode of the vehicle's power switch is the ACC mode, the control device 2 proceeds to the processing of step S4. On the other hand, if the mode of the vehicle's power switch is not the ACC mode, that is, if the mode of the vehicle's power switch is the ON mode, the control device 2 proceeds to the processing of step S5.

[0031] In step S4, the control device 2 displays an image or video that matches the driver's preferences in the central portion 11 of the image display unit 1, and displays indicator lights and warning lights in the outer edge portion 12 as necessary.

[0032] In step S5, the control device 2 displays the driving information in the central portion 11 of the image display unit 1, and displays the indicator lights and warning lights on the outer edge portion 12 as necessary.

[0033] The control device 2 (display control device) according to the present embodiment described above controls the display of the image display unit 1, which displays images for the vehicle occupants according to the mode of the vehicle's power switch, and is configured to display driving information related to vehicle driving in the central part 11 (predetermined area) of the image display unit 1 when the vehicle's power switch mode is the ON mode (first mode) in which the vehicle can be driven, and to display images or videos that suit the preferences of the vehicle occupants in the central part 11 of the image display unit 1 when the vehicle's power switch mode is the ACC mode (second mode) in which the vehicle is not driven and images are displayed on the image display unit 1.

[0034] As a result, when the vehicle power switch is in the ACC mode, that is, when the vehicle is stopped and not intended to be driven, an image or video that suits the preferences of the vehicle occupant can be displayed in the center portion 11 of the image display unit 1, which is a highly visible area that is easily noticed by the vehicle occupant. Therefore, when the vehicle is stopped and not intended to be driven, the highly visible area of ​​the image display unit 1 can be effectively utilized to increase the product value.

[0035] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above embodiments merely illustrate some of the application examples of the present invention, and it is not intended that the technical scope of the present invention be limited to the specific configurations of the above embodiments.

[0036] For example, the control device 2 (display control device) according to a modified example of this embodiment is configured to display an image or video that matches the preferences of the vehicle occupant in the upper portion of the image display unit 1 in the vertical direction of the vehicle, which is a part of the central portion 11 (predetermined area), when the vehicle power switch is in the ACC mode (second mode). This makes it possible to effectively utilize the highly visible upper portion 14 of the image display unit 1 when the vehicle is stopped and not in motion, thereby increasing the commercial value. Furthermore, other necessary information, such as various messages such as suggestion messages and warning messages for the vehicle occupant, can be displayed in the lower central portion of the image display unit 1, thereby attracting the vehicle occupant's attention to the necessary information.

[0037] In the above embodiment, the computer program executed by the control device 2 may be provided in a form recorded on a computer-readable portable recording medium such as a semiconductor memory, a magnetic recording medium, or an optical recording medium. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1 Image display section 2. Control device (display control device)

Claims

1. 1. A display control device that controls display of an image display unit that displays an image toward an occupant of a vehicle in accordance with a mode of a power switch of the vehicle, When the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle is capable of traveling, traveling information relating to the traveling of the vehicle is displayed in a predetermined area of ​​the image display unit; When the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not traveling and an image is displayed on the image display unit, an image or video that matches the preference of an occupant of the vehicle is displayed in the area. Display control device.

2. the area is a central portion of the image display unit; The display control device according to claim 1 .

3. When the mode is the second mode, an image or video that matches the preference of an occupant of the vehicle is displayed in a part of the area, The part of the area is an upper part of the image display unit in the vehicle vertical direction. The display control device according to claim 1 .

4. 1. A display control method for controlling a display on an image display unit that displays an image toward an occupant of a vehicle in accordance with a mode of a power switch of the vehicle, the method comprising: When the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle is capable of traveling, traveling information relating to the traveling of the vehicle is displayed in a predetermined area of ​​the image display unit; When the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not traveling and an image is displayed on the image display unit, an image or video that matches the preference of the occupant of the vehicle is displayed in the area. Display control method.

5. Controlling display of an image display unit that displays an image toward an occupant of the vehicle according to a mode of a power switch of the vehicle; When the mode is a first mode in which the vehicle is capable of traveling, traveling information relating to the traveling of the vehicle is displayed in a predetermined area of ​​the image display unit; When the mode is a second mode in which the vehicle is not traveling and an image is displayed on the image display unit, an image or video that matches the preference of the occupant of the vehicle is displayed in the area. A computer program that causes a computer to perform a process.

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