Control device, steering wheel, vehicle, control method, and control program

Abstract

To provide a controller, a steering wheel, a vehicle, a control method and a control program, capable of conducting a smooth guide showing a required operation for shift to a manual operation.SOLUTION: A controller includes: an acquisition section for acquiring a travel scheduled route of a vehicle; and a control section for controlling a display section capable of displaying a grasp position of a steering wheel for a user to grasp when shifting from an automatic operation to a manual operation on the basis of the acquired travel scheduled route.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a control device, a steering wheel, a vehicle, a control method, and a control program for controlling a display unit provided inside a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for suppressing a sense of discomfort given to a driver and recognizing a rotation angle of a steering wheel. In this technique, when the control by the rudder angle control unit is switched from the second control to the first control, the change control unit controls the operation of the appearance change unit before the switching is executed. Thereby, the change control unit changes the appearance of the steering wheel to a predetermined appearance according to the cut angle.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a technique related to a steering wheel that can recognize a change amount of a wheel angle by steering operation and perform driving support during parking. In this technique, when moving to a parking position, a target wheel steering angle for guiding to the parking position is calculated by image processing of an image by a camera provided in the vehicle, and the direction of the calculated target wheel steering angle is displayed on a display device.

[0004] Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for preventing erroneous detection of gripping while appropriately instructing a driver of a gripping position of a steering wheel when taking over driving from automatic driving to manual driving. The automatic driving system of this technique includes a gripping position determination unit that determines the gripping position of the steering wheel based on the recognition result of the driving environment (road shape in the traveling direction of the own vehicle) and the detection result of the driver's state (detection result of the state of the driver's hand and the direction of the driver's face).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In the prior art, when shifting from automatic driving to manual driving, it is described that a gripping position determined based on the road shape and the driver's state is displayed for guidance. However, in the prior art, it does not become a gripping position considering the surrounding environment. Also, in the prior art, how to operate the operation amount and the acceleration / deceleration of the operation speed after gripping is not considered.

[0007] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a control device, a steering wheel, a vehicle, a control method, and a control program capable of performing smooth guidance indicating an operation necessary for shifting to manual driving.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] The control device according to claim 1 includes an acquisition unit that acquires a planned travel route of a vehicle, and a control unit that controls a display unit capable of displaying a gripping position of a steering wheel to be gripped by a user based on the acquired planned travel route when shifting from automatic driving to manual driving. The control unit causes the display unit to display a blinking indication that travels from the gripping position to the operation position a predetermined time ahead.

[0009] The control device according to claim 1 determines the gripping position based on the planned travel route. Thereby, smooth guidance indicating an operation necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed. Also, the steering operation can be induced by the blinking indication.

[0010] The control device according to claim 2 is the control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines the gripping position based on information regarding a steering angle of the steering wheel calculated from the planned travel route and the vehicle speed.

[0011] According to the control device described in claim 2, the gripping position is determined using information regarding the steering angle from the planned travel route and the vehicle speed. Thereby, the gripping position can be determined in consideration of the planned travel route including the surrounding environment and the state of the vehicle.

[0016] Claim 3 The control device described in Claim 1 In the control device described in , the blinking display determines the blinking speed based on the operation speed of the steering wheel at a predetermined time ahead in the planned travel route.

[0017] Claim 3 According to the control device described in , since the blinking speed is determined according to the temporal change of the steering angle, more intuitive operation guidance can be provided.

[0018] Claim 4 The control device described in Claim 3 In the control device described in , after the control for displaying the blinking display, when the steering angle during steering is different from the steering angle of the updated planned travel route, the control unit recalculates the blinking speed of the blinking display based on the operation speed at a predetermined time ahead of the update, and switches the blinking speed.

[0019] Claim 4 According to the control device described in , the blinking speed can be switched in response to an update of the planned travel route.

[0020] Claim 5 The control device described in is the control device described in claim 1, wherein the display unit has a transition notification display portion for identifying the state transition between automatic driving and manual driving, and when the user grips a position different from the displayed gripping position and the state transitions to manual driving, the control unit adjusts the transition notification display portion to a position corresponding to the position gripped by the user.

[0021] Claim 5 According to the control device described in , even when a position different from the guidance is gripped, the transition notification display portion is adjusted according to the gripped position, and smooth guidance can be provided.

[0022] Claim 6 The control device described in Claim 5 In the control device described in , when the user's grip is a grip by one hand, the position when gripped by the other hand is estimated, and the transition notification display portion is adjusted to a position corresponding to the position gripped by the estimated user.

[0023] Claim 6 According to the control device described in , even when gripping a position different from the guidance with one hand, the transition notification display portion is adjusted according to the gripped position, and smooth guidance can be performed.

[0024] Claim 7 The control device described in is, in the control device described in claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the display unit provided along the circumferential direction of the steering wheel.

[0025] Claim 7 According to the control device described in , the user can be guided by the display of the steering wheel.

[0026] Claim 8 The steering wheel described in is the steering wheel mounted on the vehicle and includes the control device described in claim 1.

[0027] Claim 8 According to the steering wheel described in , smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed.

[0028] Claim 9 The vehicle described in Claim 8 includes the steering wheel described in .

[0029] Claim 9 According to the vehicle described in , smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed.

[0030] Claim 10 The control method described in [reference] acquires the planned driving route of the vehicle, and when shifting from automatic driving to manual driving, controls a display unit capable of displaying the gripping position of the steering wheel that the user should grip, based on the acquired planned driving route. In the control, the display unit is caused to display a blinking indication that travels from the gripping position to the operation position a predetermined time ahead. The computer executes the process.

[0031] Claim 10 According to the control method described in [reference], smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed. Also, the steering operation can be induced by the blinking indication.

[0032] Claim 11 The control program described in [reference] acquires the planned driving route of the vehicle, and when shifting from automatic driving to manual driving, controls a display unit capable of displaying the gripping position of the steering wheel that the user should grip, based on the acquired planned driving route. In the control, the display unit is caused to display a blinking indication that travels from the gripping position to the operation position a predetermined time ahead. The computer is made to execute the process.

[0033] Claim 11 According to the control program described in [reference], smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed. Also, the steering operation can be induced by the blinking indication.

Advantages of the Invention

[0034] According to the technology of the present disclosure, smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0035]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3A

Figure 3B

Figure 4A

Figure 4B

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0036] As shown in FIG. 1, the control system 10 of the embodiment of the present disclosure is provided for the vehicle 12. This control system 10 includes at least a light-emitting steering wheel 14, an integrated ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 21, an external recognition sensor 30, and an occupant monitoring sensor 32. The light-emitting steering wheel 14 includes a light-emitting control ECU 22 as a control device, a steering sensor 24, and a display unit 40. In this embodiment, the display unit 40 is the rim portion of the light-emitting steering wheel 14. The light-emitting control ECU 22 may be a part of the integrated ECU 21. In addition, although the case where the display unit 40 is a rim portion provided along the circumferential direction of the light-emitting steering wheel 14 will be described as an example, the present disclosure is not limited to this, and a display provided on a meter, a front window, a center console, or the like may be used as the display unit 40. The light-emitting steering wheel 14 is an example of the steering wheel of the present disclosure.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 1, the control system 10 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of ECUs 20. These ECUs 20 include at least the above-described integrated ECU 21 and the light-emitting control ECU 22.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 2, the ECU 20 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 20A, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 20B, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 20C, an input / output I / F (Interface) 20D, and an in-vehicle communication I / F 20E. The CPU 20A, the ROM 20B, the RAM 20C, the input / output I / F 20D, and the in-vehicle communication I / F 20E are communicably connected to each other via an internal bus 20G.

[0039] The CPU 20A, which is a processor, is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each part. That is, the CPU 20A reads a program from the ROM 20B and executes the program using the RAM 20C as a work area.

[0040] ROM 20B stores various programs and various data. Note that the ECU 20 may include a storage configured by an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive) instead of or in addition to the ROM 20B. The RAM 20C temporarily stores programs or data as a working area.

[0041] The input / output I / F 20D is an interface for connecting to sensors mounted on the vehicle 12, such as the external recognition sensor 30 and the occupant monitoring sensor 32.

[0042] The in-vehicle communication I / F 20E is an interface for connecting to each ECU 20. In this interface, communication is performed according to the CAN (Controller Area Network) protocol or Ethernet (registered trademark). The in-vehicle communication I / F 20E is connected to the external bus 20H (see FIG. 1).

[0043] As shown in FIG. 1, the external recognition sensor 30 is a group of sensors used for detecting objects around the vehicle 12. The external recognition sensor 30 includes, for example, a camera that images the surroundings of the vehicle 12, a millimeter-wave radar that transmits a probing wave and receives a reflected wave, and a lidar (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) that scans the front of the vehicle 12.

[0044] The occupant monitoring sensor 32 is a device that monitors the state of the occupant. The occupant monitoring sensor 32 includes at least a camera that images the driver provided on the steering column (not shown).

[0045] [First Embodiment] (ECU) The integrated ECU 21 has a function of an automatic driving function by an automatic driving system, a function of recognizing the surrounding environment of the vehicle 12 based on the information acquired from the external recognition sensor 30, and a function of estimating a planned travel route of the travel route on which the vehicle 12 travels. Further, the integrated ECU 21 has a function of estimating the movement of the driver's line of sight based on the captured image of the driver acquired from the occupant monitoring sensor 32.

[0046] The light emission control ECU 22 has a function of controlling the light emission of the display unit 40 constituting the light emitting steering wheel 14.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 3A, a processing program 100 is stored in the ROM 20B of the integrated ECU 21. The processing program 100 is a program for controlling the integrated ECU 21.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 3B, in the integrated ECU 21 of the present embodiment, the CPU 20A functions as an environment recognition unit 200, a driving state determination unit 210, a driver operation detection unit 220, a driver state detection unit 230, and a driving change determination unit 240 by executing the processing program 100.

[0049] The environment recognition unit 200 recognizes the surrounding environment based on the detection of the external recognition sensor 30. The surrounding environment includes objects on the travel route, the shape of the curve, and the weather.

[0050] The driving state determination unit 210 determines the vehicle information of the vehicle 12. The vehicle information includes, for example, vehicle speed, acceleration, yaw rate, wheel angle of the wheel, accelerator opening, brake pedal force, and information related to driving. The driving state determination unit 210 estimates a planned travel route based on the surrounding environment recognized by the environment recognition unit 200 and the vehicle information. The planned travel route can be estimated, for example, by detecting the road shape using a recognition method such as YOLO and collating the road shape with the route of the current position on the map.

[0051] The driver operation detection unit 220 detects the steering operation of the illuminated steering wheel 14 of the driver based on the detection of the steering sensor 24. As the steering operation, the steering direction, the steering angle, and the operation amount are detected.

[0052] The driver state detection unit 230 detects the movement of the driver's line of sight and the gripping state of the illuminated steering wheel 14 based on the captured image of the driver acquired from the passenger monitoring sensor 32. The gripping state may be detected based on the detection of the steering sensor 24. The gripping state includes the gripping position gripped by the driver.

[0053] The driving handover determination unit 240 determines whether it is necessary to transfer the steering operation from the automatic driving system to the driver. The case where the transfer is necessary is when shifting from automatic driving to manual driving. When it is determined that the transfer is necessary, a transfer request is output to the illumination control ECU 22 of the illuminated steering wheel 14.

[0054] As shown in FIG. 4A, a control program 150 as an illumination control program is stored in the ROM 20B of the illumination control ECU 22. The control program 150 is a program for controlling the illumination of the display unit 40. Patterns related to illumination such as the illumination pattern and the illumination color when the display unit 40 of the illuminated steering wheel 14 emits light are defined in the control program 150. As the illumination pattern, at least the illumination of the display indicating the gripping position and the mode of the illumination that blinks in the circumferential direction with respect to the steering direction from the gripping position are defined. If it is a blinking display, the illumination pattern is defined.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 4B, in the illumination control ECU 21 of the present embodiment, the CPU 20B functions as an acquisition unit 300 and a control unit 310 by executing the control program 150.

[0056] The acquisition unit 300 receives a transfer request from the driving handover determination unit 240. The acquisition unit 300 acquires the planned travel route from the travel state determination unit 210.

[0057] Based on the planned driving route, the control unit 310 estimates information regarding the steering angle of the illuminated steering wheel 14, and determines the gripping position 40A of the display unit 40 based on the information regarding the steering angle and the vehicle speed. Thereby, the control unit 310 controls the display unit 40 based on the planned driving route, and causes the gripping position 40 to emit light. The gripping position 40A is the position of the illuminated steering wheel 14 that the driver should grip, and is the position that emits light so as to guide as a gripping position. Further, the control unit 310 controls the blinking display 40B that heads to the operation position a predetermined time ahead from the gripping position 40A. Thereby, the control unit 310 causes the operation position a predetermined time ahead to be displayed by the blinking display 40B. Therefore, the operation position a predetermined time ahead is the position from the gripping position 40A on the display unit 40 to the end of the blinking display 40B turned around. The information regarding the steering angle is the steering grip torque that resists the alignment torque when switching to manual driving, and the steering angular velocity corresponding to the time transition of the steering angle a predetermined time ahead required for following the planned driving route. The predetermined time ahead is any number of seconds estimable by the control system 10, such as 10 seconds to 60 seconds ahead. The steering angular velocity is obtained by differentiating the steering angle with respect to time. Further, when the control unit 310 detects the driver's grip, it switches the display color of the transition notification display portion 40C of the display unit 40 from OFF to ON. The transition notification display portion 40C is a display portion for identifying the state transition between automatic driving and manual driving. Note that the display mode of the display unit 40 displays at least the gripping position 40A, and the blinking display 40B and the transition notification display portion 40C can be selectively implemented as appropriate. Thus, the display unit 40 can display the gripping position 40A of the illuminated steering wheel 14 that the driver should grip.

[0058] For the blinking display 40B, the control unit 310 determines the propagation amount based on the steering grip torque and determines the propagation direction based on the steering angle. The blinking speed in the blinking display is determined based on the steering angular velocity. In this way, the blinking display to be displayed on the display unit 40 as the light emission mode of the illumination is determined. As a result, the driver can intuitively grasp where to grip the illuminated steering wheel 14 and how much to steer, and by presenting appropriate acceleration / deceleration and handling, smooth operation can be induced. Note that the state where the driver is not gripping (the state where the automatic driving is controlling the steering) is represented as hands-off, and the state where the driver is gripping is represented as hands-on. The hands-on state is a state for shifting from automatic driving to manual driving. In the hands-on state, the switching to manual driving is completed by performing the steering operation indicated by the guidance. The steering angular velocity is an example of the operation speed of the steering wheel of the present disclosure.

[0059] An example of the display of the light emission mode related to the display unit 40 will be illustrated. FIG. 5 shows the light emission mode of the steering wheel 14 when there is a handover request, which is an example of the case of guiding before the driver grasps it. The light emission mode of the steering wheel 14 changes as shown in (a-1) to (a-3). (a-1) is the hands-off state, the display unit 40 is in a non-light-emitting state, and the transition notification display portion 40C is in the hands-off display color state. (a-2) shows a state in which there is a handover request and the display unit 40 displays the light emission of the gripping position 40A and the light emission by the illumination of the blinking display 40B. By the light emission of the gripping position 40A and the blinking display 40B, it is possible to guide the driver's operation and line of sight. (a-3) is a state in which the driver grips the gripping position 40A with the hand G, and the transition notification display portion 40C switches to the hands-on display color. The circumferential arrow on the outside of the steering wheel 14 indicates the turning direction to be guided by the blinking display 40B. The blinking display 40B is, for example, a display of illumination that flows in the direction of the arrow. By making the blinking display 40B an illumination in this way, a display is made to head toward the operation position at a predetermined time in the future. By making the gripping position 40A emit light, the driver is guided to grip the position. By making the blinking display 40B emit light with the determined propagation direction and propagation amount, the turning direction and force adjustment of the steering operation after gripping the gripping position 40A are guided. The driver performs the steering operation along the propagation direction and propagation amount of the blinking display 40B.

[0060] (Flow of control) The flow of the control process executed by the control system 10 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 6. The control process by the light emission control ECU 22 is executed by the CPU 30A functioning as each part of the acquisition unit 300 and the control unit 310, and is executed periodically.

[0061] In step 100, CPU 30A determines whether it is performing steering control by automatic driving with hands off. If it is determined that steering control is being performed by automatic driving, the process proceeds to step S102. If it is determined that steering control is not being performed by automatic driving, the control process ends (Return). After Return, the control process is executed at the next execution timing.

[0062] In step 102, CPU 30A determines whether a takeover request has been received. If it is determined that a takeover request has been received, the process proceeds to step S104. If it is determined that a takeover request has not been received, the control process ends.

[0063] In step 104, CPU 30A estimates the steering grip torque as information regarding the steering angle. The steering grip torque is estimated by calculating the alignment torque when switching to manual driving from the planned travel route and vehicle information.

[0064] In step 106, CPU 30A estimates the steering angular velocity as information regarding the steering angle. The steering angular velocity is the speed corresponding to the time transition of the steering angle at a predetermined time ahead required for following the planned travel route.

[0065] In step 108, CPU 30A determines the grip position 40A of the display unit 40 based on the information regarding the steering angle and the current vehicle speed.

[0066] In step 110, CPU 30A determines the circumferential propagation direction and propagation amount of the blinking display 40B from the grip position to the operation position at a predetermined time ahead. The propagation amount is determined based on the steering grip torque, and the propagation direction is determined based on the steering angle.

[0067] In step 112, CPU 30A determines the blinking speed of the blinking display based on the steering angular velocity.

[0068] In step 114, the CPU 30A controls the light emission mode of the display unit 40 so as to emit light at the determined gripping position and in a blinking display mode.

[0069] In step 116, the CPU 30A determines whether the driver has gripped the light-emitting steering wheel 14. If it is determined that the driver has gripped the steering wheel, the control process ends. Also, when it is determined that the driver has gripped the steering wheel, the transition notification display portion 40C is switched to the display color of "hands ON". If it is determined that the driver has not gripped the steering wheel, the process returns to step S114 to repeat the control of the light emission mode.

[0070] FIG. 7 shows an image of the light emission mode of the light-emitting steering wheel 14 when the planned travel route is a curve. In FIG. 7, it is shown that the blinking display 40B propagates in the counterclockwise direction along a left-turning curve.

[0071] [Modification example] An example of a modified display mode of the light emission related to the display unit 40 will be illustrated. FIG. 8 shows the light emission mode of the steering wheel 14 when there is a takeover request, and it is an example when guiding after the driver grips it. The light emission mode of the steering wheel 14 changes as shown in (b-1) to (b-3). (b-1) is the hands-off state, the display unit 40 is not emitting light, and the transition notification display portion 40C is in the hands-off display color state. (b-2) shows a state where there is a takeover request and the display unit 40 displays the light emission of the grip position 40A. (b-3) shows a state where, after the driver's grip, the light emission by the blinking display 40B is displayed. Thus, after the driver's grip, smoothly, by the light emission of the blinking display 40B, the driver's operation guidance and line-of-sight guidance can be achieved. (b-4) is a state where the driver grips the grip position 40A, and the transition notification display portion 40C switches to the hands-on display color. By causing the grip position 40A to emit light, the driver is guided to grip the position. Also, after gripping, by causing the blinking display 40B to emit light with the determined propagation direction and propagation amount, the turning direction and force adjustment of the steering operation after gripping the grip position 40A are guided. The driver performs the steering operation along the propagation direction and propagation amount of the blinking display 40B. By making the blinking display 40B after gripping, the driver is presented with the operation step by step, so the operation is easier to recognize.

[0072] The flow of the control process executed by the control system 10 according to the modified example will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 9. Regarding the modified example, the differences from the flowchart of FIG. 6 of the first embodiment will be described. In the modified example, after step S112, step S200 is executed.

[0073] In step 200, the CPU 30A controls the light emission mode of the display unit 40 so as to emit light at the determined grip position.

[0074] In step 202, the CPU 30A determines whether the driver has grasped the illuminated steering wheel 14. If it is determined that the driver has grasped the wheel, the control process ends. Also, when it is determined that the driver has grasped the wheel, the transition notification display section 40C is switched to the hands-on display color. If it is determined that the driver has not grasped the wheel, the process returns to step S200 to repeat the control of the illumination mode.

[0075] In step 204, the CPU 30A controls the illumination mode of the display section 40 to cause it to emit light in the determined blinking display.

[0076] As described above, the control system 10 of the present embodiment causes the display section 40 of the illuminated steering wheel 14 to display the grasped position and the blinking display determined from the planned travel route. In this way, it is possible to perform smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for the transition to manual driving.

[0077] [Second Embodiment] The second embodiment is a mode in which the blinking display is switched after grasping. When a switch to manual driving occurs, for example, before a curve, further steering operation is required after grasping. Therefore, when the steering angle during steering is different from the steering angle of the vehicle on the updated current planned travel route, the updated steering angular velocity is estimated, the blinking speed is recalculated, and the blinking speed is switched. The steering angle during steering is the steering angle at which the illuminated steering wheel 14 is grasped by the driver and steered along the route during travel. This enables the transition operation to be completed smoothly even when approaching a curve or the like.

[0078] The flow of the update control process executed by the control system 10 of the second embodiment will be described using the flowchart of FIG. 10. The process transitions from the state after the driver has grasped the wheel in Y of step S116 in FIG. 6 or step S204 in FIG. 9. Also, it is assumed that the planned travel route has been updated.

[0079] In step 300, the CPU 30A determines whether the steering angle during the steering of the light-emitting steering wheel 14 is different from the steering angle of the updated planned travel route. If it is determined that they are different, the process proceeds to step S302. If it is determined that they are not different, the update control process ends.

[0080] In step 302, the CPU 30A estimates the updated steering angular velocity based on the updated planned travel route. It is the speed according to the time change of the steering angle at a predetermined time ahead required to follow the updated planned travel route.

[0081] In step 304, the CPU 30A recalculates the blinking speed of the blinking display based on the updated steering angular velocity.

[0082] In step 306, the CPU 30A controls the light-emitting mode to switch to the recalculated blinking speed.

[0083] As described above, the control system 10 of the present embodiment causes the display unit 40 of the light-emitting steering wheel 14 to display the gripping position and the blinking display determined from the planned travel route, and switches the blinking speed according to the updated planned travel route. In this way, even when there is a change in the road shape of the planned travel route, it is possible to perform smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving.

[0084] [Third Embodiment] The third embodiment is a mode in which the display position of the transition notification display portion 40C is switched when the position gripped by the driver is different from the displayed gripping position. The transition notification display portion 40C has a role of notifying the state transition and guiding the user's central visual axis by being displayed at the upper center position that is centered with respect to the position gripped by the driver with both hands. Therefore, when the driver grips a position different from the guided gripping position, the display position is adjusted and notified according to the actually gripped position to achieve guidance.

[0085] The flow of the transition notification control process executed by the control system 10 according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 11. It is assumed that a transition occurs from the state after the driver has grasped in step S116 of FIG. 6 or step S204 of FIG. 9, and the transition notification display portion 40C is not switched from the hands-off display color to the hands-on display color. Further, the grasping state including the position grasped by the driver is detected from the steering sensor 24. The grasping state includes states such as grasping with both hands, grasping with one hand, and which hand (left or right) is used for grasping.

[0086] In step 400, the CPU 30A determines whether the grasped position displayed in the emission mode is different from the position actually grasped by the driver. If it is determined that they are different, the process proceeds to step S402. If it is determined that they are not different, the transition notification control process ends.

[0087] In step 402, the CPU 30A determines whether the driver's grasp is with both hands. If it is determined that the grasp is with both hands, the process proceeds to step S404. If it is determined that the grasp is not with both hands (i.e., if it is determined that the grasp is with one hand), the process proceeds to step S406.

[0088] In step 404, the CPU 30A adjusts the position of the transition notification display portion 40C to the upper center position according to the position grasped by the driver with both hands, and switches the display color from hands-off to hands-on. The adjustment is to move from the original position of the transition notification display portion 40C to the upper center position so as to come to the center of both hands according to the position grasped by the user.

[0089] In step 406, the CPU 30A determines which hand the driver is grasping with from the grasping state detected by the steering sensor 24.

[0090] In step 408, the CPU 30A estimates the position when grasped with the other hand from the grasped position of the determined one hand during grasping.

[0091] In step 410, the CPU 30A adjusts the position of the transition notification display portion 40C to the upper center position assuming the case of gripping with both hands, and switches the display color from hands-off to hands-on.

[0092] FIG. 12 is an image diagram of the case of gripping a position different from the induced gripping position with both hands. As shown in FIG. 12, in (c-1), a position different from the induced gripping position 40A is gripped with both hands, and the transition notification display portion 40C is displayed at the upper center position CL1. In (c-2), the position of the transition notification display portion 40C is adjusted to the upper center position moved from CL1 to CL2 according to the position gripped with both hands, and the display color is switched from hands-off to hands-on. Even if gripping is performed at a position different from the gripping position 40A, by switching the display color of the notification display portion 40C to the hands-on display color, the driver recognizes that the state has been switched to a state where manual driving can be shifted to, and can perform a steering operation along the propagation direction and propagation amount of the blinking display 40B.

[0093] Although the case of adjusting the upper center position and switching the display position of the transition notification display portion 40C has been described as an example, the display positions of the gripping position 40A and the blinking display 40B may also be controlled to be adjusted and displayed according to the position gripped by the driver.

[0094] As described above, the control system 10 of the present embodiment causes the gripping position and the blinking display determined from the planned travel route to be displayed on the display portion 40 of the light-emitting steering wheel 14, and causes the transition notification display portion 40C to be displayed at the upper center position according to the position gripped by the driver different from the guidance. In this way, even when the driver grips a position different from the guidance, smooth guidance indicating the operations necessary for shifting to manual driving can be performed.

[0095] The light-emitting mode of the control system 10 of each of the above-described embodiments is not limited to the display portion 40 of the light-emitting steering wheel 14, and may be displayed on other displays.

[0096] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, the various processes executed by the CPU 20A by reading software (program) may be executed by various processors other than the CPU. Examples of the processor in this case include a PLD (Programmable Logic Device) whose circuit configuration can be changed after manufacturing, such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), and a dedicated electric circuit which is a processor having a circuit configuration dedicated to executing specific processes, such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Further, each of the above-described processes may be executed by one of these various processors, or may be executed by a combination of two or more processors of the same type or different types (for example, a combination of a plurality of FPGAs, a combination of a CPU and an FPGA, etc.). More specifically, the hardware structure of these various processors is an electric circuit formed by combining circuit elements such as semiconductor elements.

[0097] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, each program has been described in a mode where it is pre-stored (installed) in a non-transitory recording medium readable by a computer. For example, the processing program 100 in the integrated ECU 21 is pre-stored in the ROM 20B of the integrated ECU 21, and the control program 150 in the light emission control ECU 22 is pre-stored in the ROM 20B of the light emission control ECU 22. However, it is not limited to this, and each program may be provided in a form recorded in a non-transitory recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disc Read Only Memory), and a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory. Further, the program may be in a form downloaded from an external device via a network.

[0098] The flow of the processes described in each of the above embodiments is an example, and unnecessary steps may be deleted, new steps may be added, or the order of the processes may be changed within a range not departing from the gist.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0099] 22 Light emission control ECU (control device) 300 Acquisition unit 310 Control unit

Claims

1. An acquisition unit that acquires a planned driving route of a vehicle; A control unit that controls a display unit capable of displaying a gripping position of a steering wheel to be gripped by a user when shifting from automatic driving to manual driving, based on the acquired planned driving route; comprising: The control unit is a control device that causes the display unit to display a blinking display that moves from the gripping position to an operation position a predetermined time ahead.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines the gripping position based on information regarding a steering angle of the steering wheel calculated from the planned driving route and a vehicle speed.

3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the blinking display determines a blinking speed based on an operation speed of the steering wheel a predetermined time ahead in the planned driving route.

4. After the control for displaying the blinking display, when the steering angle during steering is different from the steering angle of the updated planned driving route, the control unit recalculates the blinking speed of the blinking display based on the updated operation speed a predetermined time ahead, and switches the blinking speed. The control device according to claim 3.

5. The display unit has a transition notification display portion for identifying a state transition between automatic driving and manual driving, The control device according to claim 1, wherein when the user grips a position different from the displayed gripping position and makes a state transition to manual driving, the control unit adjusts the transition notification display portion to a position corresponding to the position gripped by the user.

6. When the user's grip is by one hand, the position when gripped by the other hand is estimated, and the control device according to claim 5, wherein the transition notification display portion is adjusted to a position corresponding to the estimated position gripped by the user.

7. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the display unit provided along a circumferential direction of the steering wheel.

8. The steering wheel mounted on the vehicle, A steering wheel comprising the control device according to claim 1.

9. A vehicle comprising the steering wheel according to claim 8.

10. Obtain the planned travel route of the vehicle, When shifting from automatic driving to manual driving, control a display unit capable of displaying a gripping position of the steering wheel to be gripped by the user based on the obtained planned travel route, A control method in which a computer executes a process of causing the display unit to display a blinking display from the gripping position to an operation position a predetermined time ahead in the control.

11. Obtain the planned travel route of the vehicle, When shifting from automatic driving to manual driving, control a display unit capable of displaying a gripping position of the steering wheel to be gripped by the user based on the obtained planned travel route, A control program for causing a computer to execute a process of causing the display unit to display a blinking display from the gripping position to an operation position a predetermined time ahead in the control.

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