Image projection device

Abstract

The present invention provides an image projection device that allows the rider to appropriately recognize the tilt angle of the motorcycle's body. [Solution] The system includes a tilt angle detection unit 11 that detects the tilt angle of the motorcycle body 3, an image projection unit 13 that projects image light forward from the motorcycle 1 and projects an image using the image light onto the road surface R in front of the motorcycle 1, and a control unit 14 that controls the projected image of the image projection unit 13. The control unit 14 projects a tilt image G indicating the tilt angle of the motorcycle body 3 onto the road surface R.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an image projection device.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for determining the risk of a motorcycle falling based on the inclination of the motorcycle body, the vehicle speed, and skidding, and warning the rider of the risk when it is determined that there is a risk of falling.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the risk of falling is warned by a lamp provided on the vehicle body, there is a problem that it is difficult for the rider who is in the state of looking straight ahead in the traveling direction to notice the warning.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an image projection device that can appropriately make a rider recognize the inclination angle of a motorcycle body.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] On one side, the following solution means is provided. <7500034>An inclination angle detection unit that detects the inclination angle of the motorcycle body, An image projection unit that projects image light forward from the motorcycle and projects an image by the image light on the road surface in front of the motorcycle, A control unit that controls the projection image of the image projection unit, and is provided with The control unit projects an inclination image indicating the inclination angle on the road surface.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] This disclosure makes it possible to provide an image projection device that allows the rider to appropriately recognize the tilt angle of the motorcycle's body. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view of a motorcycle equipped with an image projection device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image projection device. [Figure 3] This figure shows an example of the operation of an image projection device. [Figure 4] (a) is a diagram showing a tilt image with normal tilt, (b) is a diagram showing a tilt image with insufficient tilt, and (c) is a diagram showing a tilt image with excessive tilt. [Figure 5] (a) is a figure showing the first modified example of the tilt image in a state of insufficient tilt, (b) is a figure showing the second modified example of the tilt image in a state of insufficient tilt, and (c) is a figure showing the third modified example of the tilt image in a state of insufficient tilt. [Figure 6] This is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the control unit. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes each embodiment in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0010] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a motorcycle 1 equipped with an image projection device 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 1, the motorcycle 1 comprises a body 3 on which an engine 2 is mounted, a rear wheel 4 that rotates with engine power, a seat 5 on which the rider sits, a front wheel 7 that is steered by operating the handlebars 6, left and right rearview mirrors 8 mounted on the handlebars 6, and a headlight 9. The headlight 9 is mounted on the front of the body 3 and projects headlight light H onto the road surface R in front.

[0011] When motorcycle 1 travels on a curved road, it is necessary to lean the vehicle body 3 towards the inside of the curve. The appropriate lean angle is determined based on the curve radius, the speed of motorcycle 1, etc. Here, the state where the current lean angle is the appropriate lean angle is defined as the normal lean state (normal state). The state where the current lean angle is less than the appropriate lean angle is defined as the insufficient lean state. The state where the current lean angle is excessive compared to the appropriate lean angle is defined as the over-lean state.

[0012] If the tilt angle of the motorcycle 1's body 3 is insufficient or excessive when traveling around a curve, the motorcycle 1 may not be able to travel along the curve and may deviate from its lane. For example, in the case of insufficient tilt, the motorcycle may veer into the oncoming lane in the inner lane or swerve outwards towards the outer edge of the curve and come into contact with the guardrail in the outer lane. In the case of excessive tilt, the motorcycle may tip over or veer into the oncoming lane in the inner lane. The image projection device 10 of this disclosure facilitates the prompt resolution of insufficient or excessive tilt by allowing the rider to appropriately recognize the tilt angle of the motorcycle 1's body 3.

[0013] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image projection device 10. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the image projection device 10 includes a tilt angle detection unit 11, a travel speed detection unit 12, an image projection unit 13, and a control unit 14.

[0014] The tilt angle detection unit 11 detects at least the tilt angle of the vehicle body 3 in the vehicle width direction. For example, an IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) equipped with a 6-axis sensor (accelerometer and gyroscope) can be used as the tilt angle detection unit 11. Alternatively, the tilt angle detection unit 11 may acquire tilt angle information of the vehicle body 3 from the control device (not shown) of the motorcycle 1 without detecting the tilt angle of the vehicle body 3.

[0015] The traveling speed detection unit 12 detects the traveling speed of the motorcycle 1. As the traveling speed detection unit 12, for example, a rotation sensor that detects the rotational speed of the axle of the rear wheel 4 is used. Note that the traveling speed detection unit 12 may acquire the traveling speed information of the motorcycle 1 from the control device of the motorcycle 1 instead of detecting the traveling speed of the motorcycle 1.

[0016] The image projection unit 13 is a projector that projects image light forward from the motorcycle 1 and projects an image by the image light onto the road surface R in front of the motorcycle 1. The image projection unit 13 includes, for example, a light source unit 131, and a projection unit 132 that includes a display (not shown) that scans the light (for example, laser light) emitted from the light source unit 131 to form image light and a projection lens (not shown) that projects the image light.

[0017] The image projection device 10 may integrally include the light source unit 131 and the projection unit 132, or may include the light source unit 131 and the projection unit 132 separately and arrange them at different locations. For example, in this embodiment, the light source unit 131 is arranged in the space below the seat 5, and the projection unit 32 is arranged near the lower part of the headlight 9, and the light emitted from the light source unit 131 is guided to the projection unit 132 by the optical fiber 133. Note that the projection unit 132 can be arranged at an arbitrary position as long as it can project image light in front of the motorcycle 1, not limited to the vicinity of the lower part of the headlight 9. For example, as shown by the dashed line in FIG. 1, the projection unit 132 may be arranged on the front side of the rearview mirror 8.

[0018] The control unit 14 controls the projection image of the image projection unit 13. For example, the control unit 14 is a control unit including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc., and controls the image projection unit 13 based on the execution of a program written in the ROM.

[0019] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an operation example of the image projection device 10. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 14 controls the image projection unit 13 and projects an inclination image G indicating the inclination angle of the vehicle body 3 onto the road surface R in front of the motorcycle 1. According to such an inclination image G, the rider can easily recognize the inclination angle of the vehicle body 3 while keeping looking in the traveling direction.

[0020] As shown in Figure 3, it is desirable that the tilted image G be projected onto the area between the projection area of ​​the headlight light H and the motorcycle 1 on the road surface R. This prevents the tilted image G from overlapping with the headlight light H and becoming difficult to see.

[0021] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, when the motorcycle 1 is traveling between the left and right lane boundary lines L1 and L2 of a curved road, it is desirable that the tilt image G be projected closer to the lane boundary line L2 on the inner side of the curve than to the lane boundary line L1 on the outer side of the curve. In this way, the tilt image G is projected in the direction of the rider's line of sight while traveling around the curve, so the rider can easily see the tilt angle of the vehicle 3 without moving their eyes significantly.

[0022] Furthermore, it is desirable that the tilted image G is not projected onto the road surface R when the motorcycle 1 is traveling at a speed below a predetermined speed (e.g., 60 km / h), but only when it is traveling at or above that speed. This reduces the annoyance of the tilted image G being projected onto the road surface R when traveling at speeds where the tilt angle of the vehicle 3 does not need to be particularly considered. Also, by not projecting the tilted image G when turning right or left in an intersection at speeds below the predetermined speed, it is possible to avoid interfering with the rider's attention to pedestrians or oncoming vehicles. Alternatively, the system may determine whether it is in an intersection based on map information from the navigation system, and prohibit the projection of the tilted image G according to the determination result.

[0023] The image projected onto the road surface R by the image projection unit 13 is not limited to the tilt image G. For example, the system may recognize a curve in the road in advance and project a curve arrow image (not shown) indicating the direction of the curve onto the road surface R before the curve (for example, about 50m away). In this case, it is desirable to switch from the curve arrow image to the tilt image G once the vehicle body 3 is detected to be tilted after entering the curve. The curve in the road can be recognized based on map information from a navigation system, etc. Alternatively, the system may recognize a curve warning sign using an on-board camera and project a curve arrow image onto the road surface R at the time of recognition. Furthermore, when driving straight, guidance images from the navigation system (not shown) or warning images based on obstacle detection by the on-board camera (not shown) may be projected onto the road surface R.

[0024] Next, the specific processing details of the control unit 14 will be explained with reference to Figures 4 to 6.

[0025] The control unit 14, as a functional configuration realized through the cooperation of hardware and software, includes a curve driving determination means, a tilt state determination means, and a tilt image determination means.

[0026] The curve-driving determination means determines whether the motorcycle 1 is driving on a curve. For example, methods such as determining whether the motorcycle is driving on a curve based on map information from a navigation system, determining whether the motorcycle is driving on a curve based on the duration of the vehicle body 3's tilt, or methods that combine these to determine whether the motorcycle is driving on a curve can be used.

[0027] The tilt state determination means determines whether the tilt angle of the vehicle body 3 during cornering is in the normal tilt state, insufficient tilt state, or excessive tilt state as described above. For example, it calculates an appropriate tilt angle based on the curve radius and the speed of the motorcycle 1, and then determines which state it is based on the current tilt angle relative to the appropriate tilt angle.

[0028] Figure 4(a) shows a tilt image G with normal tilt, Figure 4(b) shows a tilt image G with insufficient tilt, and Figure 4(c) shows a tilt image G with excessive tilt. The tilt image determination means determines the tilt image G to be projected onto the road surface R based on the determination result of the tilt state determination means. As shown in Figure 4, the tilt image G in this embodiment includes a normal tilt image G1 that shows the appropriate (normal) tilt angle of the vehicle body 3, and a current tilt image G2 that shows the current tilt angle of the vehicle body 3. The tilt image G is a triangular image with the base S1 on the near side as seen from the occupant's perspective and the vertex S2 on the far side.

[0029] When the tilt image determination means determines that the tilt is normal, it does not project the current tilt image G2, as shown in Figure 4(a), but projects only the normal tilt image G1 onto the road surface R. This allows the occupants to recognize that the tilt is normal based on the normal tilt image G1.

[0030] Furthermore, when the tilt image determination means determines that there is insufficient tilt, it projects the current tilt image G2 alongside the normal tilt image G1 (to the left of the normal tilt image G1 in the case of a right curve, and to the right of the normal tilt image G1 in the case of a left curve), as shown in Figure 4(b). This allows the occupants to recognize that there is insufficient tilt based on the position of the current tilt image G2 relative to the normal tilt image G1.

[0031] Furthermore, when the tilt image determination means determines that the tilt is excessive, it projects the current tilt image G2 alongside the tilted side of the normal tilt image G1 (to the right of the normal tilt image G1 in the case of a right curve, and to the left of the normal tilt image G1 in the case of a left curve), as shown in Figure 4(c). This allows the occupants to recognize that the tilt is excessive based on the position of the current tilt image G2 relative to the normal tilt image G1.

[0032] As shown in Figure 4, it is desirable to project the normal tilt image G1 and the current tilt image G2 onto the road surface R with their front bases S1 overlapping. In this way, the occupants can easily recognize the current tilt direction relative to the correct tilt angle.

[0033] It is desirable to project the normal tilt image G1 onto the road surface R using cool colors (e.g., blue or green), and the current tilt image G2 onto the road surface R using warm colors (e.g., red or orange). This not only clearly distinguishes between the normal tilt image G1 and the current tilt image G2, but also enhances the warning effect to occupants by indicating insufficient or excessive tilt with warm colors. In the case of insufficient or excessive tilt, the normal tilt image G1 may be used as an outline image (e.g., a dashed line image), as shown in the upper part of Figures 4(b) and (c), or as a filled image, as shown in the lower part of Figures 4(b) and (c). Furthermore, the colors of the normal tilt image G1 and the current tilt image G2 may be changed depending on the situation.

[0034] Figure 5(a) shows the first modified example of tilt image G in a state of insufficient tilt, Figure 5(b) shows the second modified example of tilt image G in a state of insufficient tilt, and Figure 5(c) shows the third modified example of tilt image G in a state of insufficient tilt. In the tilted image G shown in Figure 4, the lengths in the front-to-back direction of the normal tilted image G1 and the current tilted image G2 are the same. However, as shown in Figures 5(a) to (c), the lengths in the front-to-back direction of the normal tilted image G1 and the current tilted image G2 may be different.

[0035] Furthermore, in the tilted image G shown in Figure 4, the normal tilted image G1 and the current tilted image G2 are represented as a triangle with the front side as the base S1 and the back side as the vertex S2. However, as shown in Figure 5(a), they may also be represented as a triangle with the front side as the vertex and the back side as the base. Alternatively, as shown in Figure 5(b), they may be represented as a rectangle.

[0036] Furthermore, in the tilt image G shown in Figure 4, when the normal tilt image G1 and the current tilt image G2 overlap, the overlapping region is projected as the combined color of both images G1 and G2. However, as shown in Figures 5(b) and (c), the overlapping region may be projected using the color of the current tilt image G2. Doing so can enhance the warning effect to the occupants in cases of insufficient or excessive tilt.

[0037] Next, the processing procedure of the control unit 14 will be explained with reference to Figure 6.

[0038] Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the control unit 14. As shown in Figure 6, the control unit 14 determines whether the motorcycle 1 is traveling at a predetermined speed or higher (S1). If the result of this determination is NO, it skips the following steps and returns to the higher-level routine. If the result of the determination in step S1 is YES, the control unit 14 determines whether the motorcycle is traveling on a curve (S2). If the result of this determination is NO, it skips the following steps and returns to the higher-level routine. If the result of the determination in step S2 is YES, the control unit 14 determines whether the tilt angle of the vehicle body 3 is in a normal tilt state (S3). If the result of this determination is YES, it projects a tilt image G (see tilt image G1 in Figure 4(a)) indicating a normal tilt state onto the road surface R (S4). If the result of the judgment in step S3 is NO, the control unit 14 determines whether the tilt angle of the vehicle body 3 is insufficient (S5). If the result of this judgment is YES, it projects a tilt image G (see the current tilt image G2 in Figure 4(b)) indicating insufficient tilt onto the road surface R (S6). If the result of the judgment in step S5 is NO, the control unit 14 projects a tilt image G (see the current tilt image G2 in Figure 4(c)) indicating excessive tilt onto the road surface R (S7).

[0039] Although each embodiment has been described in detail above, the invention is not limited to any particular embodiment, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope described in the claims. Furthermore, it is possible to combine all or more of the components of the embodiments described above. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1. Motorcycle 2 engines 3. Vehicle Body 4 Rear wheels 5 sheets 6 handles 7 Front wheels 8. Rearview mirror 9 Headlights 10 Image projection device 11. Tilt angle detection unit 12. Driving speed detection unit 13 Image projection section 131 Light source section 132 Projection section 133 Optical Fiber 14 Control Unit G tilted image G1 tilt normal image G2 Current tilt image H Headlights L1, L2 lane boundary lines

Claims

1. A tilt angle detection unit that detects the tilt angle of the motorcycle's body, An image projection unit projects image light forward from the motorcycle and projects an image onto the road surface in front of the motorcycle. The system comprises a control unit for controlling the projected image of the image projection unit, The control unit is an image projection device that projects an inclination image indicating the inclination angle onto the road surface.

2. The aforementioned motorcycle projects headlight light onto the road surface in front of it. The image projection device according to claim 1, wherein the tilted image is projected onto the road surface in the area between the projection area of ​​the headlight light and the motorcycle.

3. The vehicle further comprises a speed detection unit for detecting the speed of the motorcycle, The image projection device according to claim 1, wherein the tilted image is projected onto the road surface when the travel speed is equal to or greater than a predetermined speed.

4. When the aforementioned motorcycle travels between the left and right lane boundaries of a curved road, The image projection device according to claim 1, wherein the tilted image is projected at a position closer to the lane boundary line on the inner side of the curve than to the lane boundary line on the outer side of the curve.

5. The image projection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a tilt state determination means for determining whether the tilt angle is in a normal state, an insufficient tilt state, or an excessive tilt state.

6. The aforementioned tilted image is A tilt normal image showing the normal tilt angle of the vehicle body, This includes an image showing the current tilt angle of the vehicle body, The image projection device according to claim 5, wherein when the tilted current image is determined to be insufficiently tilted, it is projected alongside the upright side of the tilted normal image, and when the tilted current state is determined to be excessive, it is projected alongside the tilted side of the tilted normal image.

7. The image projection device according to claim 6, wherein the tilt normal image is projected onto the road surface in cool colors, and the tilt current image is projected onto the road surface in warm colors.

8. The image projection device according to claim 6, wherein the tilt current image is projected onto the road surface only when it is determined that the tilt is insufficient or excessive.

9. The image projection device according to claim 6, wherein the tilted normal image and the tilted current image are projected onto the road surface with their foregrounds overlapping.

Images