Irradiation control device and irradiation control method

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a technology capable of appropriately spot-illuminating a guide sign. This illumination control device includes an acquisition unit and a control unit. The acquisition unit acquires guide sign information, which is information on a guide sign in front of a vehicle, a route of the vehicle, and a position of the vehicle. The control unit determines whether or not there is a necessity to spot-illuminate a guide sign from the vehicle on the basis of the guide sign information, the route, and the position. When it is determined that there is a necessity to spot-illuminate the guide sign from the vehicle, the control unit controls spot illumination.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an irradiation control device and an irradiation control method.

Background Art

[0002] Various techniques have been proposed for a device that controls the irradiation of vehicle lamps such as headlamps. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a technique that enables a driver to easily notice a guide sign by irradiating the guide sign with the vehicle's headlamp when the guide sign indicates the destination of the vehicle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the prior art, all guide signs indicating the destination of the vehicle are irradiation targets regardless of whether they are guide signs that the driver has little need to notice. For this reason, the driver's attention is directed to guide signs that the driver has little need to notice, resulting in a problem that the driver's attention is dispersed more than necessary.

[0005] Therefore, in view of the above problems, the present disclosure has been made, and an object thereof is to provide a technique capable of appropriately spot-irradiating a guide sign.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The irradiation control device according to the present disclosure includes an acquisition unit that acquires guide sign information, which is information on a guide sign in front of a vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle, and a control unit that controls spot irradiation when it is determined based on the guide sign information, the route, and the position that spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guide sign is necessary. The route is a predetermined route. The control unit makes a first determination as to whether the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position. The control unit makes a second determination as to whether the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than a threshold value, based on the route and the position. Based on the results of the first determination and the second determination, the control unit determines whether spot irradiation is necessary. It has.

Advantages of the Invention

[0007] According to the present disclosure, when it is determined based on the guide sign information, the route, and the position that spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guide sign is necessary, spot irradiation is controlled. With such a configuration, the guide sign can be appropriately irradiated.

[0008] The object, features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will become clearer from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] <Embodiment 1> FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the irradiation control device 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The irradiation control device 1 may be provided in a vehicle or may be provided in a server as described later.

[0011] The irradiation control device 1 in FIG. 1 is connected to a camera 31, a navigation device 32, a lamp 33, and a HUD (Head-Up Display) 34 provided in the vehicle.

[0012] The camera 31 captures an image in front of the vehicle. The navigation device 32 detects the position of the vehicle based on a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) signal and searches for a route to the destination of the vehicle. The position of the vehicle detected by the navigation device 32 is substantially the same as the current position of the vehicle. The route of the vehicle searched by the navigation device 32 is a route searched based on the position of the vehicle at the time of route search and the destination of the vehicle, and is a predetermined route that is not changed even if the position of the vehicle is changed after the route search.

[0013] The lamp 33 is a lamp for performing spot irradiation from the vehicle to a guiding sign in front of the vehicle. The guiding sign is a sign including an arrow indicating the direction in which the road proceeds and aspects such as the name of the municipality and the name of the prefecture corresponding to the direction. The spot irradiation is not accidental irradiation of the guiding sign by a headlamp or the like, but irradiation accompanied by control of aligning the lamp 33 with the guiding sign. The lamp 33 may be a headlamp, may be a lamp that uses a part of the light from the headlamp, or may be a lamp that uses the light of a light source different from the headlamp.

[0014] The HUD 34 is a display device that projects and displays a display object on the vehicle's windshield (also referred to as the front glass), thereby attaching the display object to the scenery outside the vehicle.

[0015] Next, the configuration of the irradiation control device 1 in FIG. 1 will be described. The irradiation control device 1 in FIG. 1 includes a guidance sign acquisition unit 11a, a route acquisition unit 11b, a position acquisition unit 11c, an irradiation necessity determination unit 12a, a lamp control unit 12b, and a HUD control unit 12c. The guidance sign acquisition unit 11a, the route acquisition unit 11b, and the position acquisition unit 11c are included in the concept of the acquisition unit 11, and the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a, the lamp control unit 12b, and the HUD control unit 12c are included in the concept of the control unit 12.

[0016] The guidance sign acquisition unit 11a is a detection device that acquires an image in front of the vehicle from the camera 31 and performs image recognition processing on the image to detect and acquire guidance sign information, which is information on the guidance sign, when the guidance sign is included in the image. The guidance sign information includes, for example, the direction indicated by the guidance sign. Note that the guidance sign acquisition unit 11a may include both the camera 31 and the detection device, or may be an interface that acquires guidance sign information from a detection device provided outside the irradiation control device 1.

[0017] The route acquisition unit 11b is an interface that acquires the route of the vehicle searched by the navigation device 32, and the position acquisition unit 11c is an interface that acquires the position of the vehicle detected by the navigation device 32. Note that the route acquisition unit 11b and the position acquisition unit 11c may include the navigation device 32.

[0018] The acquisition unit 11 including the guidance sign acquisition unit 11a, the route acquisition unit 11b, and the position acquisition unit 11c described above acquires guidance sign information, which is information on the guidance sign in front of the vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle.

[0019] Based on the guidance sign information, route, and position respectively obtained by the guidance sign acquisition unit 11a, route acquisition unit 11b, and position acquisition unit 11c, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines whether it is necessary to perform spot irradiation from the vehicle's lamp 33 to the guidance sign of the guidance sign information.

[0020] In the first embodiment, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a makes a first determination as to whether the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route that the vehicle should travel based on the guidance sign information, route, and position. That is, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a extracts the route portion that is the portion from the vehicle's position to the destination among the routes searched during route search, and determines whether the direction indicated by the guidance sign of the guidance sign information is the same as or substantially the same as the direction included in the route portion.

[0021] For example, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a extracts the name of the municipality or prefecture included in the route portion. And when the guidance sign indicates the name of the municipality or prefecture included in the route portion, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route that the vehicle should travel. On the other hand, when the guidance sign indicates only the name of a municipality or prefecture different from the name of the municipality or prefecture included in the route portion, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that the direction indicated by the guidance sign does not correspond to the route that the vehicle should travel.

[0022] In addition, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a makes a second determination as to whether the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than the threshold value based on the route and position. The guidance point does not include the point where the vehicle should travel straight, and includes, for example, the point where the vehicle should turn right or left, and the point such as a branch point that involves an operation of the direction indicator. The threshold value may be changed based on the type of road on which the vehicle is traveling (for example, general road and highway, etc.).

[0023] The irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines whether there is a need to perform spot irradiation based on the result of the first determination and the result of the second determination. When the result of the first determination that the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel and the result of the second determination that the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than the threshold value are obtained, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that there is a need to perform spot irradiation.

[0024] On the other hand, when at least one of the result of the first determination that the direction indicated by the guidance sign does not correspond to the route along which the vehicle should travel and the result of the second determination that the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is not less than the threshold value is obtained, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that there is no need to perform spot irradiation. In this specification, for example, at least any one of A, B, C, …, and Z means any one of all combinations obtained by extracting one or more from the group of A, B, C, …, and Z.

[0025] When the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that there is a need to perform spot irradiation, the lamp control unit 12b performs control to cause the lamp 33 to perform spot irradiation of light onto the guidance sign. On the other hand, when the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that there is no need to perform spot irradiation, the lamp control unit 12b prohibits spot irradiation onto the guidance sign.

[0026] When the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that there is a need to perform spot irradiation, the HUD control unit 12c performs control to cause the HUD 34 to emphasize the guidance sign that has been spot-irradiated. On the other hand, when the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that there is no need to perform spot irradiation, the lamp control unit 12b prohibits the emphasis of the HUD 34.

[0027] The control unit 12 including the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a and the lamp control unit 12b described above controls spot irradiation when it is determined based on the guidance sign information, route, and position that spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guidance sign is necessary. Then, the control unit 12 including the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a, the lamp control unit 12b, and the HUD control unit 12c controls spot irradiation when it is determined based on the guidance sign information, route, and precedence that spot irradiation is necessary, and also controls to emphasize the guidance sign irradiated by spot irradiation on the HUD 34.

[0028] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of spot irradiation of the lamp 33 and emphasis of the HUD 34 when the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that spot irradiation is necessary. A, B, and C are letters indicating directions. As shown in FIG. 2, the irradiation range 33a of the spot irradiation of the lamp 33 includes a plurality of directions of the guidance sign 41. And the frame-shaped display object 34a of the HUD 34 surrounds and emphasizes the guidance sign 41.

[0029] Here, when the route that the vehicle should travel is the direction “B” in FIG. 2, the result of the first determination that the direction indicated by the guidance sign 41 corresponds to the route that the vehicle should travel is obtained. However, since the direction of the direction “B” is the direction in which the vehicle travels straight, the result of the second determination that the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is not less than the threshold value is obtained. Based on the above results, when the route that the vehicle should travel is the direction “B”, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that spot irradiation is not necessary, so the spot irradiation of the lamp 33 and the emphasis of the HUD 34 as shown in FIG. 2 are prohibited.

[0030] <Operation> FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the irradiation control device 1 according to the first embodiment. The operation in FIG. 3 is repeatedly performed while the vehicle is running.

[0031] In step S1, the guidance sign acquisition unit 11a acquires guidance sign information. In step S2, the route acquisition unit 11b acquires the vehicle's route. In step S3, the position acquisition unit 11c acquires the vehicle's position.

[0032] In step S4, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a performs a first determination as to whether or not the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position. If it is determined that the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, the process proceeds to step S5. If it is determined that the direction indicated by the guidance sign does not correspond to the route along which the vehicle should travel, the operation of FIG. 3 ends.

[0033] In step S5, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a performs a second determination as to whether or not the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than a threshold value, based on the route and the position. If it is determined that the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than the threshold value, the process proceeds to step S6. If it is determined that the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is not less than the threshold value, i.e., is greater than or equal to the threshold value, the operation of FIG. 3 ends.

[0034] In step S6, the lamp control unit 12b performs control to cause the lamp 33 to perform spot irradiation on the guidance sign. In step S7, the HUD control unit 12c performs control to emphasize the guidance sign that has been spot-irradiated on the HUD 34. Thereafter, the operation of FIG. 3 ends.

[0035] Note that step S1 may be repeatedly performed until the guidance sign information is acquired. Also, the order of the processes in steps S1 to S3 is not limited to that in FIG. 3. For example, the processes in steps S1 to S3 may be performed in parallel. Further, when the guidance sign acquisition unit 11a acquires guidance sign information about a plurality of guidance signs, the processes after step S4 may be performed for each of the plurality of guidance signs, or may be preferentially performed for the guidance sign closest to the vehicle.

[0036] <Summary of Embodiment 1> According to the irradiation control device 1 according to the first embodiment as described above, when it is determined that spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guiding sign in front of the vehicle is necessary based on the guiding sign information, the route, and the position, the control of the spot irradiation is performed. According to such a configuration, it is possible to prohibit spot irradiation for guiding signs that require little attention from the driver, so that it is possible to suppress the driver's attention from being dispersed more than necessary. In addition, a reduction in the power used for spot irradiation can also be expected.

[0037] Also according to the first embodiment, when it is determined that spot irradiation is necessary based on the guiding sign information, the route, and the front position, the control of the spot irradiation is performed, and the control of emphasizing the guiding sign irradiated with the spot irradiation on the HUD 34 is performed. According to such a configuration, it is possible to attract the driver's attention to the guiding sign that the driver should pay attention to. In addition, when a plurality of vehicles are performing spot irradiation, the driver can distinguish whether his or her own vehicle is performing spot irradiation depending on whether the HUD 34 is emphasizing.

[0038] <Modification Example 1> In the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the irradiation range 33a of the spot irradiation of the lamp 33 includes a plurality of aspects of the guiding sign 41, and the display object 34a used for emphasizing on the HUD 34 surrounds the guiding sign 41, but it is not limited to this.

[0039] Figures 4 to 6 are diagrams showing an example of spot irradiation of the lamp 33 and highlighting of the HUD 34. A, B, and C in FIG. 4 are characters indicating directions, and D, E, and F in FIGS. 5 and 6 are characters indicating directions. As shown in FIG. 4, the irradiation range 33a of the spot irradiation of the lamp 33 may correspond to any one of a plurality of directions shown in the guidance sign 41, and the display object 34a used for highlighting the HUD 34 may surround one direction that has been spot-irradiated. That is, the control unit 12 including the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a, the lamp control unit 12b, and the HUD control unit 12c, when determining that spot irradiation needs to be performed based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position, may control the spot irradiation in one direction and also perform control to highlight the one direction on the HUD 34. According to such a configuration, when the road branches to the left and right, the driver can confirm which direction to go.

[0040] In addition, in the case of FIG. 5, one direction of the guidance sign is spot-irradiated but not highlighted by the display object 34a of the HUD 34. In such a case, the driver can confirm that the spot irradiation to one direction in FIG. 5 is from another vehicle. Also, in the case of FIG. 6, two directions of the guidance sign are spot-irradiated, but the left direction is highlighted by the display object 34a of the HUD 34. In this case, the driver can confirm that the spot irradiation to the left direction in FIG. 6 is from the vehicle they are driving, and the spot irradiation to the right direction is from another vehicle. As described above, according to the configuration of the first modification example, the driver can distinguish whether their own vehicle is performing spot irradiation in one direction.

[0041] <Modification Example 2> In Embodiment 1, the route acquired by the route acquisition unit 11b is a route searched based on the position of the vehicle at the time of route search and the destination of the vehicle, and is a predetermined route that does not change even if the position of the vehicle changes after route search. Then, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a makes a first determination as to whether the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position. However, the route and the first determination are not limited to the above.

[0042] The route acquired by the route acquisition unit 11b may be a route that is sequentially searched and sequentially updated based on the position of the vehicle and the destination of the vehicle. Then, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a may make a first determination as to whether the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information and the route that is sequentially updated, without using the position of the vehicle.

[0043] For example, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a extracts the name of the municipality or prefecture included in the route, that is, the route from the position of the vehicle to the destination, which is sequentially updated. Then, when the guidance sign indicates the name of the municipality or prefecture included in the route section, the irradiation necessity determination unit 12a determines that the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel. Even with such a configuration, the same effects as in Embodiment 1 can be obtained.

[0044] <Other Modification Examples> The acquisition unit 11 and the control unit 12 in FIG. 1 described above are hereinafter referred to as the "acquisition unit etc.". The acquisition unit etc. is realized by the processing circuit 81 shown in FIG. 7. That is, the processing circuit 81 includes an acquisition unit 11 that acquires guide sign information, which is information on a guide sign in front of the vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle, and a control unit 12 that controls spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guide sign when it is determined that spot irradiation is necessary for the guide sign based on the guide sign information, the route, and the position. For the processing circuit 81, dedicated hardware may be applied, or a processor that executes a program stored in a memory may be applied. Examples of the processor include a central processing unit, a processing device, an arithmetic device, a microprocessor, a microcomputer, and a DSP (Digital Signal Processor).

[0045] When the processing circuit 81 is dedicated hardware, the processing circuit 81 corresponds to, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or a combination thereof. The functions of each part of the acquisition unit etc. may be realized by a circuit in which the processing circuit is distributed, or the functions of each part may be realized by one processing circuit together.

[0046] When the processing circuit 81 is a processor, functions such as the acquisition unit are realized in combination with software or the like. Note that the software or the like includes, for example, software, firmware, or software and firmware. The software or the like is described as a program and stored in a memory. As shown in FIG. 8, the processor 82 applied to the processing circuit 81 reads and executes the program stored in the memory 83 to realize the functions of each unit. That is, when executed by the processing circuit 81, the irradiation control device 1 acquires guide sign information, which is information on a guide sign in front of the vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle; and controls spot irradiation when it is determined that spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guide sign is necessary based on the guide sign information, the route, and the position. The irradiation control device 1 includes a memory 83 for storing a program that will be executed as a result. In other words, this program can be said to cause a computer to execute procedures and methods such as the acquisition unit. Here, the memory 83 may be, for example, a non-volatile or volatile semiconductor memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), or an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a magnetic disk, a flexible disk, an optical disk, a compact disk, a mini disk, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), their drive devices, or any storage medium to be used in the future.

[0047] The above has described the configuration in which each function of the acquisition unit and the like is realized by either hardware or software. However, it is not limited to this, and a configuration in which a part of the acquisition unit and the like is realized by dedicated hardware and another part is realized by software or the like may be used. For example, for the acquisition unit, its function can be realized by a processing circuit 81 as dedicated hardware, and for the rest, the processing circuit 81 as a processor 82 reads and executes a program stored in a memory 83 to realize its function.

[0048] As described above, the processing circuit 81 can realize each of the above functions by hardware, software, or a combination thereof.

[0049] Also, the irradiation control device described above can also be applied to an irradiation control system constructed as a system by appropriately combining a vehicle device, a communication terminal, the functions of an application installed in at least one of the vehicle device and the communication terminal, and a server. The communication terminal includes, for example, mobile phones, smartphones, tablets, and the like. Each function or each component of the irradiation control device described above may be distributed and arranged in each device constructing the system, or may be concentrated and arranged in any one device.

[0050] FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a server 91 according to this modification. The server 91 in FIG. 9 includes a communication unit 91a and a control unit 91b, and is capable of performing wireless communication with a vehicle device 93 of a vehicle 92.

[0051] The communication unit 91a, which is an acquisition unit, receives the guidance sign information acquired by the vehicle device 93, the route of the vehicle, and the position information of the vehicle by performing wireless communication with the vehicle device 93.

[0052] The control unit 91b has the same functions as the above-described control unit when a processor (not shown) of the server 91 executes a program stored in a memory (not shown) of the server 91. That is, when the control unit 91b determines that it is necessary to perform spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guidance sign based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position, the control unit 91b generates a control signal for controlling the spot irradiation. Then, the communication unit 91a transmits the control signal of the control unit 91b to the vehicle device 93. According to the server 91 configured in this way, the same effects as those of the irradiation control device 1 described in the first embodiment can be obtained.

[0053] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication terminal 96 according to this modification. The communication terminal 96 in FIG. 10 includes a communication unit 96a similar to the communication unit 91a and a control unit 96b similar to the control unit 91b, and is capable of performing wireless communication with the vehicle device 98 of the vehicle 97. Note that, for example, mobile terminals such as mobile phones, smartphones, and tablets carried by the driver of the vehicle 97 are applied to the communication terminal 96. According to the communication terminal 96 configured in this way, the same effects as those of the irradiation control device 1 described in the first embodiment can be obtained.

[0054] Note that the contents of the embodiments can be appropriately modified and omitted.

[0055] The above descriptions are illustrative and not restrictive in all aspects. Innumerable modifications not illustrated can be assumed.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0056] 1 Irradiation control device, 11 Acquisition unit, 12 Control unit.

Claims

1. An acquisition unit that acquires guidance sign information, which is information on a guidance sign in front of a vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle; A control unit that controls the spot irradiation when it is determined, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position, that it is necessary to perform spot irradiation on the guidance sign from the vehicle. The irradiation control device is provided with: The route is a predetermined route. The control unit: Performs a first determination as to whether or not the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position; Performs a second determination as to whether or not the distance between the vehicle and a guidance point is less than a threshold value, based on the route and the position; An irradiation control device that determines whether or not it is necessary to perform the spot irradiation based on the result of the first determination and the result of the second determination.

2. An acquisition unit that acquires guidance sign information, which is information on a guidance sign in front of a vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle; A control unit that controls the spot irradiation when it is determined, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position, that it is necessary to perform spot irradiation on the guidance sign from the vehicle. The irradiation control device is provided with: The route is a route updated based on the position. The control unit: Performs a first determination as to whether or not the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information and the route; Performs a second determination as to whether or not the distance between the vehicle and a guidance point is less than a threshold value, based on the route and the position; An irradiation control device that determines whether or not it is necessary to perform the spot irradiation based on the result of the first determination and the result of the second determination.

3. The irradiation control device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein: The control unit: When it is determined, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position, that it is necessary to perform the spot irradiation, controls the spot irradiation and performs control to emphasize the guidance sign irradiated with the spot irradiation on a head-up display.

4. The irradiation control device according to claim 3, wherein: The control unit: An irradiation control device that, when it is determined based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position that spot irradiation is necessary, controls the spot irradiation in any one of a plurality of directions indicated by the guidance sign, and performs control to emphasize the one direction on the head-up display.

5. An acquisition unit acquires guidance sign information that is information on a guidance sign in front of the vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle. When a control unit determines based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position that it is necessary to perform spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guidance sign, the control unit controls the spot irradiation. The route is a predetermined route. The control unit makes a first determination as to whether or not the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position. makes a second determination as to whether or not the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than a threshold value, based on the route and the position. An irradiation control method for determining whether or not spot irradiation is necessary based on the result of the first determination and the result of the second determination.

6. An acquisition unit acquires guidance sign information that is information on a guidance sign in front of the vehicle, the route of the vehicle, and the position of the vehicle. When a control unit determines based on the guidance sign information, the route, and the position that it is necessary to perform spot irradiation from the vehicle to the guidance sign, the control unit controls the spot irradiation. The route is a route updated based on the position. The control unit makes a first determination as to whether or not the direction indicated by the guidance sign corresponds to the route along which the vehicle should travel, based on the guidance sign information and the route. makes a second determination as to whether or not the distance between the vehicle and the guidance point is less than a threshold value, based on the route and the position. An irradiation control method for determining whether or not spot irradiation is necessary based on the result of the first determination and the result of the second determination.

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