Driver information processing device

Abstract

The present invention provides a driver information processing device that minimizes the impact on the privacy of registered drivers, even if biometric authentication data is leaked. [Solution] In one embodiment of the present invention, the driver information processing device includes a millimeter-wave radar that irradiates millimeter waves toward the driver of a vehicle and receives reflected waves from the driver, and an ECU that processes and stores the information of the reflected waves. When the ECU determines that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state, it irradiates millimeter waves toward the driver from the millimeter-wave radar and stores the driver's physical characteristics as the reflected wave signal characteristics when the millimeter waves are irradiated.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a driver information processing device.

Background Art

[0002] The biometric authentication system of Patent Document 1 determines whether the person is a registered driver by comparing the biometric information of the person (for example, the dorsal vein pattern of the finger, etc.) with the registered biometric information, and permits the driving of the vehicle when the person is a registered driver. Based on the operation input of the registered driver determined by the biometric authentication system, it permits the driving by a temporary key used for the temporary driving of the vehicle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, when a vehicle security system determines whether a person is a registered driver based on biometric authentication data such as fingerprints, veins, and irises, if the biometric authentication data leaks by any chance, since these biometric authentication data are unique physical characteristics of each person and the individual can be identified, there is a problem that the impact on the privacy protection of the registered driver is great.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a driver information processing device that has little impact on the privacy protection of a registered driver even if the biometric authentication data leaks by any chance.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] Therefore, in one embodiment, the driver information processing device according to the present invention includes a millimeter-wave radar that irradiates millimeter waves toward the driver of a vehicle and receives reflected waves from the driver, and an ECU that processes and stores information of the reflected waves. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, even if biometric authentication data is leaked, the impact on the protection of registered drivers' privacy is minimal. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram of vehicle security systems. [Figure 2] This figure shows a preferred configuration of the millimeter-wave irradiation range. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart showing the procedure for registering biometric authentication data. [Figure 4] This is a flowchart showing the driver authentication process. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the driver information processing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a block diagram showing a vehicle security system 10 installed in vehicle 1, and the vehicle security system 10 is composed of a driver information processing device 20.

[0010] The vehicle security system 10 shown in Figure 1 determines whether the driver of vehicle 1 is a registered driver authorized to drive the vehicle. If the driver is a registered driver, it permits the engine to start, thereby allowing the vehicle 1 to be driven. If the driver is not a registered driver, it denies the vehicle 1's operation by stopping the engine. In this way, the vehicle security system 10 prevents unauthorized driving of vehicle 1 and theft of vehicle 1 by limiting the persons authorized to drive vehicle 1.

[0011] The vehicle security system 10 consists of a millimeter-wave radar 11, a smart key 12 which is the official key, an ignition switch (or start switch) 13, a brake pedal sensor 14, a steering wheel hold sensor 15, a seat position system 16, and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 17. The ECU17 then registers the driver's biometric authentication data and identifies the driver based on that data, and permits vehicle operation (engine operation) only when the driver is a registered driver.

[0012] The millimeter-wave radar 11 emits millimeter waves towards the driver, or in other words, the person sitting in the driver's seat, and receives the reflected waves from the driver. Here, the millimeter-wave radar 11 is installed inside the vehicle 1, for example, near the dashboard or near the sun visor, and emits millimeter waves from the front of the driver toward the driver.

[0013] The ECU17 then stores the physical characteristics of the owner of vehicle 1 or the person authorized to drive it, in other words, biometric authentication data, as reflected wave signal characteristics when millimeter waves are irradiated onto the driver. Thus, the millimeter-wave radar 11 and the ECU 17 constitute the driver information processing device 20. As will be described later, the ECU 17 determines whether the person is the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it, based on whether or not they possess the official key, the smart key 12.

[0014] Figure 2 shows a preferred configuration of the millimeter-wave irradiation range in the millimeter-wave radar 11. In Figure 2, the millimeter-wave radar 11 is installed near the dashboard 21 of the vehicle 1 and emits millimeter waves from a horizontal height passing through the center of the steering wheel 22 upwards. In other words, the millimeter-wave radar 11 is positioned near the dashboard 21 or sun visor, etc., so as to emit millimeter waves to the area above the horizontal height passing through the center of the steering wheel 22.

[0015] By setting such an irradiation range, biometric data from the face to the chest of the person 24 who has boarded the driver's seat 23, that is, the driver, can be obtained. Here, the biometric data of the driver obtained as the reflected wave signal characteristics when irradiating the driver with millimeter waves includes the position of the face (specifically, the height of the head, the position of the nose, the length of the ears, and the position of the jaw), the width of the shoulder span, the height of the shoulders, the thickness of the neck, etc. It is preferable that a combination of a plurality of these is used as data indicating the physical characteristics of the registered driver.

[0016] The smart key 12 constitutes a system that can unlock the door and start the engine without using a physical key by transmitting and receiving radio waves with the vehicle body. When the ID (Identification) set in the key matches the ID set on the vehicle body side, engine start is permitted. The ignition switch 13 is a switch operated by the driver to start the vehicle 1.

[0017] The brake pedal sensor 14 is a sensor that detects the depression amount (stroke amount) of the brake pedal that operates the braking device of the vehicle 1. The steering holding sensor 15 is realized by a capacitance sensor or the like and is a sensor that detects whether or not the driver is holding (gripping) the steering wheel 22. The seat position system 16 is a system that automatically adjusts the seat position of the driver's seat 23 and can register and recall the seat position.

[0018] <0​​ECU 17 acquires information on the reflected wave from the millimeter-wave radar 11, acquires the ID code signal from the smart key 12, acquires the on / off signal of the ignition switch 13, acquires the signal of the depression amount of the brake pedal from the brake pedal sensor 14, acquires the signal indicating the holding state of the steering wheel 22 from the steering holding sensor 15, and acquires the signal indicating the selection state of the seat position from the seat position system 16.

[0019] ECU 17 has a function as a driving posture determination unit 17A for determining based on the acquired signal whether the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state, as software. In addition, ECU 17 includes a non-volatile memory 17B that stores the biometric authentication data of the authorized driver (in other words, the reflected wave signal characteristics when irradiated with millimeter waves). Here, when ECU 17 determines that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state, it irradiates the driver with the millimeter wave from the millimeter-wave radar 11, and stores the physical characteristics of the driver, that is, the biometric authentication data, in the non-volatile memory 17B as the reflected wave signal characteristics when irradiated with the millimeter wave.

[0020] Then, when starting the engine or during the running of the vehicle 1, ECU 17 compares the reflected wave signal characteristics when irradiating the driver with the millimeter wave at that time with the reflected wave signal characteristics (biometric authentication data) of the authorized driver stored in the non-volatile memory 17B, to identify whether the current driver is an authorized driver. When the reflected wave signal characteristics when irradiating the current driver with the millimeter wave match the reflected wave signal characteristics of the authorized driver, ECU 17 determines that the authorized driver is the driver, and transmits an engine operation permission signal 18 to the engine control unit that controls the operation of the engine. On the other hand, when the reflected wave signal characteristics when irradiating the current driver with the millimeter wave do not match the reflected wave signal characteristics of the authorized driver, ECU​​ Figure 3 is a flowchart showing the procedure for registering biometric authentication data, which is performed by ECU17. In step S101, ECU17 determines whether the initial settings for the reflected wave signal characteristics have been completed. The initial setup of the reflected wave signal characteristics involves irradiating the unoccupied driver's seat 23 with millimeter waves while the driver is not seated in the driver's seat 23, and then acquiring and saving the reflected wave signal characteristics at that time.

[0022] Here, if the ECU17 has not been initialized, it proceeds to step S102, where it performs initial setup by acquiring and saving the reflected wave signal characteristics when the driver is not seated in the driver's seat 23, and then returns to the determination process in step S101. On the other hand, if the ECU17 has been initialized, it proceeds from step S101 to step S103 to determine whether the ignition switch 13 is on or not.

[0023] When the ignition switch 13 is turned on, ECU17 proceeds to step S104. In step S104, the ECU17 determines whether the driver has the legitimate key based on the ID code transmitted from the smart key 12.

[0024] At this point, if the ECU17 receives a signal with an ID code that matches the ID code on the vehicle side, it determines that the driver is the one in possession of the legitimate key, that is, the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it. On the other hand, if ECU17 does not receive an ID code signal that matches the vehicle's ID code, it determines that the current driver is not the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it.

[0025] Then, if ECU17 determines that the driver is the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it, it proceeds to the registration process from step S105 onwards. If it determines that the driver is not the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it, it does not proceed to the registration process from step S105 onwards. If the ECU 17 determines that the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it is in the vehicle as the driver, it first determines in step S105 (driving posture determination unit 17A) whether the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state.

[0026] The specified state of the driver's riding posture refers to a posture that allows for the appropriate determination of the driver's physical characteristics from the reflected millimeter wave signal characteristics; in other words, a posture that allows for the appropriate recognition of the driver's face position, shoulder width and height, neck thickness, etc., from the reflected millimeter wave signal characteristics. Furthermore, by acquiring the reflected wave signal characteristics from millimeter-wave irradiation when the vehicle is in a constant driving position, the system suppresses the decrease in driver identification accuracy due to variations in driving position.

[0027] Here, in determining whether the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state, the ECU17 can determine that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state when, for example, both the first condition that the brake pedal is pressed and the second condition that the steering wheel is held are met, that is, when the driver is in a posture that corresponds to normal driving conditions. The ECU 17 determines whether the first condition is met or not based on the output of the brake pedal sensor 14, and determines whether the second condition is met or not based on the output of the steering hold sensor 15.

[0028] Furthermore, if the vehicle 1 is equipped with a seat position system 16, the ECU 17 can determine that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state when all of the following conditions are met: the first and second conditions, and the third condition that the seat is set to a registered seat position. By adding a third condition, it is possible to prevent a decrease in the accuracy of driver identification due to changes in the distance from the millimeter-wave radar 11 to the driver caused by differences in seat position.

[0029] When the ECU17 determines that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state, it proceeds from step S105 to step S106. In step S106, the ECU17 recognizes the driver's physical characteristics by analyzing the reflected wave signal obtained by irradiating the driver with millimeter waves, using the reflected wave signal obtained by irradiating the driver's seat with millimeter waves as a reference. The ECU17 then determines whether the recognized physical characteristics match those of a registered driver, that is, whether the driver currently in the vehicle is already a registered driver.

[0030] In this case, if the physical characteristics of the driver recognized in this instance match those of a registered driver, and the driver is already a registered driver, then new registration (in other words, storage of biometric authentication data as an authorized driver) is not required. Therefore, ECU17 terminates the registration process without performing a new registration.

[0031] On the other hand, if the physical characteristics of the driver recognized in this instance do not match those of the registered driver, it is presumed that a person other than the registered driver was authorized to drive and boarded Vehicle 1. In such cases, the physical characteristics of that person must be registered (remembered) as the physical characteristics of the authorized driver. Therefore, ECU17 proceeds to step S107 and stores the newly acquired physical characteristics of the driver in non-volatile memory as the physical characteristics of the authorized driver. This means that if multiple people are authorized to drive, each person's physical characteristics will be recorded and stored in non-volatile memory when they get into the vehicle.

[0032] Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the driver authentication process performed by the ECU17. In step S201, ECU17 periodically irradiates the driver with millimeter waves during engine startup or while vehicle 1 is in motion to determine the person in the driver's seat (determine their physical characteristics).

[0033] Next, in step S202, the ECU17 determines whether the driver possesses the legitimate key based on the ID code transmitted from the smart key 12. If the driver has the correct key, ECU17 can allow the engine to start, so it returns to step S202 to determine if the driver has the correct key without performing any actions such as stopping the engine.

[0034] On the other hand, if the driver does not have the correct key, the ECU17 proceeds to step S203 and determines whether the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state. Furthermore, if the driver's riding posture is not in the predetermined state, the ECU17 cannot correctly recognize the driver's physical characteristics from the millimeter-wave reflected signal, and therefore returns to step S202 to determine whether the driver possesses the correct key without performing any processing such as stopping the engine.

[0035] In response, if the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state and the driver's physical characteristics can be correctly recognized from the reflected millimeter wave signal, the ECU 17 proceeds to step S204 and determines whether the driver's physical characteristics obtained by irradiating the driver with millimeter waves in the current state match any of the physical characteristics of the registered authorized driver. At this point, if the ECU17 determines that the physical characteristics of the current driver obtained by irradiating the driver with millimeter waves match any of the physical characteristics of a registered authorized driver, that is, if the current driver is an authorized driver, it returns to the determination of possession of the legitimate key in step S202 without performing any actions such as stopping the engine.

[0036] On the other hand, if the ECU17 determines that the physical characteristics of the current driver obtained by irradiating the driver with millimeter waves do not match any of the physical characteristics of the registered authorized driver, that is, if the current driver is not an authorized driver, it proceeds to step S205. In step S205, ECU17, taking into consideration the safety of the surroundings, shuts down the engine of vehicle 1 and sets it to refuse restart. Furthermore, when stopping the engine of vehicle 1, the ECU 17 can gradually reduce the speed of vehicle 1 before stopping the engine, or it can stop the engine only if vehicle 1 is stationary. Furthermore, when stopping the engine, the ECU17 can determine whether it is possible to decelerate and stop the vehicle 1 based on external information recognized by the camera installed in the vehicle 1, and the result of determining whether the road the vehicle 1 is traveling on is a highway or an ordinary road.

[0037] Furthermore, in step S205, instead of stopping the engine of vehicle 1, ECU 17 can perform actions such as limiting the speed of vehicle 1 to below the maximum speed limit for preventing illegal driving (theft), automatically sounding the horn of vehicle 1, automatically turning on the hazard lights, automatically locking the transmission into neutral, or having vehicle 1 move to a safe location such as the shoulder of the road and stop using an automated driving system or advanced driver assistance system.

[0038] Furthermore, in step S205, ECU17 can not only perform actions on vehicle 1 such as stopping the engine, but can also automatically notify the driver of vehicle 1 or the police of any illegal operation (theft) of vehicle 1. Furthermore, according to the vehicle security system 10, even if someone attempts to steal vehicle 1 using methods such as a relay attack utilizing the weak radio waves of the smart key 12, or a CAN invader that infiltrates the vehicle 1's CAN (Controller Area Network) to start the engine, the driver is not a registered authorized driver, so the action taken in step S205 is implemented, deterring the theft of vehicle 1.

[0039] Furthermore, if a vehicle security system determines whether a person is a registered driver based on biometric data such as fingerprints, veins, or irises, a leak of this biometric data would have a significant impact on the privacy protection of registered drivers, as this data represents unique physical characteristics specific to each individual and can identify them. In contrast, according to the above-mentioned vehicle security system 10 (driver information processing device 20), the physical characteristics used for driver authentication are such as the position of the face, the width and height of the shoulders, and the thickness of the neck, which are not unique physical characteristics of each individual, making it relatively difficult to identify an individual. Therefore, even if the biometric authentication data used in the vehicle security system 10 were to be leaked, the impact on the protection of registered drivers' privacy would be minimal.

[0040] In other words, the vehicle security system 10 (driver information processing device 20) can identify whether the driver is the owner of vehicle 1 or a person authorized to drive it, based on the driver's physical characteristics, thereby deterring unauthorized driving and theft of vehicle 1. Furthermore, even if biometric authentication data is leaked, the privacy of registered drivers is protected. Furthermore, according to the vehicle security system 10 (driver information processing device 20), simply by the driver getting into the vehicle, biometric authentication data is registered and the driver is identified based on the biometric authentication data, so vehicle security can be easily achieved without the need for any special operations.

[0041] The technical concepts described in the above embodiments can be used in appropriate combinations, as long as no contradictions arise. Furthermore, although the contents of the present invention have been specifically described with reference to preferred embodiments, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various modifications can be taken based on the basic technical concept and teachings of the present invention.

[0042] For example, the driver information processing system using millimeter-wave radar can be applied not only to engine-powered vehicles, but also to electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, and the like. Furthermore, when registering the physical characteristics of the owner or authorized driver of vehicle 1, or when authenticating a registered driver, the ECU 17 can perform processes to guide the driver to assume a predetermined driving posture using voice, on-screen displays, etc. [Explanation of symbols]

[0043] 1...Vehicle, 10...Vehicle security system, 11...Millimeter-wave radar, 12...Smart key, 13...Ignition switch, 14...Brake pedal sensor, 15...Steering wheel hold sensor, 16...Seat position system, 17...ECU, 20...Driver information processing unit

Claims

1. A millimeter-wave radar that emits millimeter waves toward the driver of a vehicle and receives reflected waves from the driver, An ECU (Electronic Control Unit) processes and stores the information of the reflected wave, A driver information processing device having

2. A driver information processing device according to claim 1, The aforementioned ECU is The vehicle includes a driving posture determination unit that determines whether the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state. When the driving posture determination unit determines that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state, it emits millimeter waves from the millimeter-wave radar toward the driver. The physical characteristics of the driver are stored as the reflected wave signal characteristics when the millimeter waves are irradiated. Driver information processing device.

3. A driver information processing device according to claim 2, The aforementioned driving posture determination unit determines that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state when both the first condition, that the brake pedal is pressed, and the second condition, that the steering wheel is held, are met. Driver information processing device.

4. A driver information processing device according to claim 3, The driving posture determination unit determines that the driver's riding posture is in a predetermined state when all three conditions are met: the first condition, the second condition, and the third condition that the seat is set to a registered seat position. Driver information processing device.

5. A driver information processing device according to claim 1, The millimeter-wave radar irradiates the region above the horizontal height passing through the center of the steering wheel with millimeter waves. Driver information processing device.

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