Headlamp control device, headlamp control method, and headlamp system

Abstract

The present invention further improves front visibility of a host vehicle while reducing glare to a vehicle in front.　Provided is a headlamp control device in which a controller controls a headlamp so as to emit a selective high beam including a dimmed region corresponding to the position of a vehicle in front, and controls the headlamp so as to dim a partial region within the emission region of a low beam when the vehicle in front is an oncoming vehicle, an opposite lane path is on a first side based on the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved path curving to a second side. The low beam has an upper end at a position at the same height as or lower than a horizontal line based on the position of the headlamp. The partial region is a region from the upper end to a position higher than a lower end of the low beam, and is set in a region at least on the second side with respect to a vertical line based on the position of the headlamp.

Description

Headlight control device, headlight control method, and headlight system

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a headlamp control device, a headlamp control method, and a headlamp system.

[0002] International Publication No. 2022 / 131044 (Patent Document 1) describes a vehicle lighting system that includes a low beam unit that is capable of forming a low beam light distribution pattern having a cutoff line and that is capable of independently adjusting the illuminance of multiple partial areas that are arranged below and along the cutoff line in the low beam light distribution pattern, and a light distribution control device that controls the low beam unit to form a first illuminance reduction section in a partial area among the multiple partial areas whose position in the vehicle width direction overlaps the position of a vehicle ahead in the vehicle width direction.

[0003] International Publication No. 2022 / 131044

[0004] One of the objectives of a specific aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a technology that can further improve forward visibility in a vehicle while reducing glare to a vehicle ahead.

[0005] [1] A headlamp control device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a device for controlling the operation of a headlamp capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam, comprising: a controller connected to the headlamp; and a forward monitoring sensor connected to the controller and configured to detect a forward vehicle present ahead of a host vehicle, wherein the controller: controls the headlamp to emit the selective high beam including a dimming range according to the position of the forward vehicle detected by the forward monitoring sensor; and controls the headlamp to dim a partial range within the low beam illumination range when the forward vehicle is an oncoming vehicle, an oncoming lane is present on a first side, which is either the left or right side of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that curves to a second side opposite to the first side; wherein the low beam has an upper end at a position equal to or lower than the height of a horizontal line based on the position of the headlamp, and the partial range is a range from the upper end to a position higher than the lower end of the low beam, and is set to at least the range on the second side with respect to a vertical line based on the position of the headlamp. [2] A headlamp control method according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a method executed by a controller connected to the headlamp to control operation of a headlamp capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam, the method comprising: controlling the headlamp to emit the selective high beam including a dimming range according to the position of a forward vehicle ahead of the host vehicle; and controlling the headlamp to dim a partial range within the low beam illumination range when the forward vehicle is an oncoming vehicle, an oncoming lane is present on a first side that is either the left or right side of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that curves to a second side opposite the first side, wherein the low beam has an upper end at a position equal to or lower than the height of a horizontal line based on the position of the headlamp, and the partial range is a range from the upper end to a position higher than the lower end of the low beam, and is set to at least the range on the second side with respect to a vertical line based on the position of the headlamp.[3] A headlamp system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes the control device described in [1] above, and a headlamp capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam, the operation of which is controlled by the control device.

[0006] In this specification, the concept of "dimming" includes reducing the brightness of the irradiated light to 0, that is, turning off the light.

[0007] According to the above configuration, it is possible to further improve forward visibility in the host vehicle while reducing glare to the vehicle ahead.

[0008] FIG. 1(A) is a diagram showing the configuration of a headlamp system according to an embodiment. FIG. 1(B) is a diagram illustrating an example of a computer system. FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing an example of the configuration of a headlamp. FIG. 3(A) is a diagram showing specific examples of the illumination ranges of a low beam, a high beam, and an additional beam. FIG. 3(B) is a diagram showing a modified example of the illumination range of an additional beam. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic example of the positional relationship between a vehicle and an oncoming vehicle on a curved road. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the headlamp system. FIG. 6(A) is a diagram showing a schematic example of illumination of each beam when an oncoming vehicle is present. FIG. 6(B) is a diagram showing a schematic example of illumination of each beam when a leading vehicle is present.

[0009] 1A is a diagram showing the configuration of a headlamp system according to one embodiment. The illustrated headlamp system includes a controller (control device) 10, a forward monitoring sensor 11, a steering angle sensor 12, and a pair of headlamp 13L, 13R. This headlamp system is installed on a vehicle and is used to illuminate the area ahead of the vehicle. In this embodiment, the controller 10 and the forward monitoring sensor 11 are assumed to be installed on the vehicle side, but one or both of the controller 10 and the forward monitoring sensor 11 may be installed inside the housing of the headlamp 13L and / or the headlamp 13R.

[0010] The controller 10 is connected to each of the headlights 13L, 13R, controls various operations in the headlight system, and is also connected to each of the forward monitoring sensor 11 and the steering angle sensor 12. For example, the controller 10 detects the operating state of a lamp switch 14 provided in the driver's seat of the vehicle, and transmits a control signal according to the detected state to each of the headlights 13L, 13R.

[0011] The forward monitoring sensor 11 is connected to the controller 10 and detects the position, size, type, etc. of an object present in front of the vehicle. Examples of objects to be detected and their types include vehicles ahead (leading vehicles, oncoming vehicles), pedestrians, bicycles, road signs, obstacles, etc. As an example, the forward monitoring sensor 11 can be configured using a camera that captures an image of the space ahead of the vehicle and an information processing device such as an image processor that determines the position, etc. of an object by performing image processing using the image captured by the camera.

[0012] The type of vehicle ahead, i.e., whether it is a leading vehicle or an oncoming vehicle, can be identified based on the color of its lamp. For example, if a pair of white or similar light spots is detected, it is an oncoming vehicle, and if a pair of red or similar light spots is detected, it is a leading vehicle.

[0013] The forward monitoring sensor 11 may be, for example, an optical distance measuring sensor such as LiDAR, or a radar or ultrasonic sensor, or these may be used in combination with the image processing described above.

[0014] The steering angle sensor 12 detects the steering angle of the vehicle. Based on the steering angle detected by the steering angle sensor 12, it is possible to estimate the traveling state of the vehicle, specifically, whether the vehicle is traveling on a straight road or a curved road, and if the vehicle is traveling on a curved road, the radius of curvature of the curved road.

[0015] The headlights 13L, 13R are capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam to the space ahead of the vehicle, and include a low beam unit 30, an ADB unit 31, and an additional beam unit 32. As shown in the schematic front view of FIG. 2, each headlight 13L, 13R has, for example, an integrated low beam unit 30 and an ADB unit 31, and a separate additional beam unit 32, which are arranged adjacent to each other in the vehicle width direction. Note that each unit may be configured as a separate unit, or all units may be configured as an integrated unit. In other words, there are no particular limitations on the configuration of each unit.

[0016] Each low beam unit 30 is configured to be able to emit a low beam (low beam) into the space ahead of the vehicle based on a control signal supplied from the control signal generating unit 21 of the controller 10. One low beam unit 30 is installed on the front left side of the vehicle, and the other low beam unit 30 is installed on the front right side of the vehicle. The low beam is formed by combining the light emitted from each low beam unit 30 towards the front of the vehicle.

[0017] Each ADB unit 31 is configured to emit high beams into the space ahead of the vehicle based on a control signal supplied from the control signal generating unit 21 of the controller 10. One ADB unit 31 is installed on the front left side of the vehicle, and the other ADB unit 31 is installed on the front right side of the vehicle. The high beams are formed when the lights emitted by the ADB units 31 overlap in front of the vehicle. The ADB unit 31 is also a variable light distribution unit, and when an object such as a preceding vehicle is present, a dimming range is set within the high beam illumination range according to the position of the object, thereby forming a selective high beam (adaptive driving beam).

[0018] Each ADB unit 31 may be, for example, an ADB unit including a plurality of semiconductor light-emitting elements arranged in two directions and a lens that collects the light emitted from these light-emitting elements. Various types of known ADB units may be used as the ADB unit 31, such as an ADB unit that uses a liquid crystal element to control the dimming range and light irradiation range, an ADB unit that uses an optical deflector to scan the light emitted from a laser element and controls the dimming range and light irradiation range by turning the laser element on and off at high speed, or an ADB unit that uses multiple shielding plates selectively to block part of the light emitted from the light source to control the dimming range and light irradiation range.

[0019] Each additional beam unit 32 is configured to be able to irradiate a partial area included in the low beam irradiation area with an additional beam based on a control signal supplied from the control signal generating unit 21 of the controller 10. Specific examples of partial areas irradiated with an additional beam will be described later.

[0020] The functions of the controller 10 will be described using functional blocks to make it easier to understand. As shown in Fig. 1, the controller 10 includes a light distribution pattern setting unit (light distribution pattern setting function) 20 and a control signal generating unit (control signal generating function) 21.

[0021] The light distribution pattern setting unit 20 sets the light reduction range (or light blocking range) and the light irradiation range in the ADB function of the ADB unit 31, depending on the position of a forward vehicle (a preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle) detected by the forward monitoring sensor 11. In addition, the light distribution pattern setting unit 20 variably controls the brightness of the additional beam by the additional beam unit 32.

[0022] The control signal generating unit 21 generates a control signal for causing each ADB unit 31 to form irradiation light according to the light distribution pattern set by the light distribution pattern setting unit 20, and supplies the control signal to each ADB unit 31. The control signal generating unit 21 also generates a control signal for causing each additional beam unit 32 to form irradiation light according to the brightness of the additional beam set by the light distribution pattern setting unit 20, and supplies the control signal to each additional beam unit 32. The control signal generating unit 21 also generates a control signal for causing each low beam unit 30 to emit a low beam according to the operating state of a lamp switch of the host vehicle, and supplies the control signal to each low beam unit 30.

[0023] In addition, if the vehicle is equipped with a function to automatically turn on and off the headlights 13L, 13R depending on the illuminance of the surrounding environment, the function may start lighting up each low beam unit 30, etc.

[0024] 1B is a diagram illustrating an example of a computer system. The illustrated computer system can be configured using a computer system including a processor (CPU: Central Processing Unit) 201, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 202, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 203, a storage device 204 such as a flash memory, an input / output interface 205, and the like. In this computer system, a program 206 stored in advance in the storage device 204 is read and executed by the processor, thereby enabling the computer system to perform various functions. The above-described controller 10 can be realized, for example, using such a computer system.

[0025] 3A shows specific examples of the illumination ranges of the low beam, high beam, and additional beam. The front view of each beam on a virtual vertical screen assumed at a predetermined position (e.g., 25 m ahead) in front of the vehicle is shown. In FIG. 3A, the horizontal line H and the vertical line V are based on the installation positions of the headlights 13L and 13R, respectively (the same applies to FIG. 3B, which will be described later).

[0026] The low beam 50 is irradiated light that is formed with a relatively wide width below the cutoff line CL. In this embodiment, the cutoff line CL corresponds to the upper end of the low beam 50, i.e., the boundary line where the illuminance of the low beam 50 on a virtual vertical screen becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value. The cutoff line CL includes a first portion located to the right of the vertical line V in the drawing and extending in a substantially horizontal direction so as to substantially overlap with the horizontal line H, a second portion located to the left of the vertical line V in the drawing and extending in a substantially horizontal direction below the first portion, and a third portion connecting the ends of the first and second portions and extending obliquely so as to overlap with the vertical line V.

[0027] The high beam 51 is a beam of light that is formed mainly above the horizon H and has a narrower width than the low beam 50. In this embodiment, the high beam 51 includes a portion above the horizon H and a portion below the horizon H. The portion of the high beam 51 below the horizon H partially overlaps with the low beam 50 and the additional beam 52. The illumination range of the high beam 51 is partially dimmed depending on the position of the vehicle ahead (see dimming range 53 in FIG. 6 described below).

[0028] The additional beam 52 is an irradiated light beam that is formed over a range that is shorter than the low beam 50 in both width (horizontal length) and height (vertical length). In this embodiment, the additional beam 52 has an upper end that substantially coincides with the cutoff line CL, and a lower end that is located higher in the figure than the lower end of the low beam 50, and is formed to have a width narrower than the low beam 50. As illustrated in FIG. 3B , the additional beam 52 may be formed only over a range that substantially coincides with the first portion (the highest portion in the vertical direction) of the cutoff line CL to the right of the vertical line V in the figure. The height of the additional beam 52 is preferably set to, for example, one-third or less of the height of the low beam 50. This allows the range to be reduced even when the additional beam 52 is dimmed, thereby suppressing a decrease in forward visibility.

[0029] In this embodiment, the low beam 50 is supplemented by the additional beam 52, thereby achieving illumination light with an illuminance distribution equivalent to that of a typical low beam. Furthermore, when the additional beam 52 is dimmed (or turned off), a portion of the low beam (the illumination range of the additional beam 52) is dimmed.

[0030] FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the positional relationship between a host vehicle and an oncoming vehicle on a curved road. As illustrated, in this embodiment, it is assumed that traffic regulations stipulate that an oncoming vehicle 110 travels on the left side of a host vehicle 100. In other words, it is assumed that traffic regulations stipulate that, when viewed from the traveling direction of the host vehicle, an oncoming lane, in which an oncoming vehicle travels, is located relatively to the left of a host lane, in which the host vehicle travels. The curved road illustrated is a curved road that curves to the right. That is, in this embodiment, the left side corresponds to the "first side" and the right side corresponds to the "second side." Note that, in a case where traffic regulations stipulate that an oncoming vehicle travels on the right side of a host vehicle, it is sufficient to use low beams 50, high beams 51, and additional beams 52 with shapes that are inverted from those shown in FIGS. 3(A) and 3(B). In this case, the right side corresponds to the "first side" and the left side corresponds to the "second side." Therefore, in this embodiment, the relative position of the oncoming lane where an oncoming vehicle exists is determined to be on the right or left side according to the traffic laws of each country.

[0031] 5 is a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the headlamp system. Note that the order of the processes shown here can be changed as long as no contradictions or inconsistencies occur in the results of the information processing, and other processes not explicitly shown here can also be added.

[0032] When the lamp switch 14 is on, i.e., in a state instructing the operation of the headlights 13L, 13R (step S11; YES), and in a state instructing the irradiation of selective high beam (ADB) (step S12; YES), the light distribution pattern setting unit 20 of the controller 10 instructs the control signal generating unit 21 to emit a low beam and an additional beam. In response to this instruction, the control signal generating unit 21 supplies control signals to each low beam unit 30 and each additional beam unit 32, thereby emitting a low beam and an additional beam.

[0033] If the lamp switch 14 is not on (step S11; NO), or if the state is not one in which selective high beam irradiation is instructed (step S12; NO), the process returns to step S11.

[0034] Furthermore, the light distribution pattern setting unit 20 instructs the control signal generating unit 21 to perform selective high beam illumination using a light distribution pattern having a light reduction range according to the position of a forward vehicle (an oncoming vehicle or a leading vehicle) detected by the forward monitoring sensor 11. In response to this instruction, the control signal generating unit 21 supplies a control signal to each ADB unit 31, thereby performing selective high beam illumination (step S13).

[0035] When the traveling state of the vehicle estimated based on the steering angle output from the steering angle sensor 12 is that the vehicle is traveling on a road that curves to the right with respect to the vehicle (a right-curve road) (step S14; YES), and when the type of the forward vehicle output from the forward monitoring sensor 11 is an oncoming vehicle (step S15; YES), the light distribution pattern setting unit 20 instructs the control signal generating unit 21 to dim the additional beams. In response to this instruction, the control signal generating unit 21 supplies control signals to each additional beam unit 32, thereby dimming the additional beams (step S16). When step S16 is completed, the process returns to step S11.

[0036] On the other hand, if the vehicle is not traveling on a right curve (step S14; NO), or if the vehicle ahead is not an oncoming vehicle (step S15; NO), the light distribution pattern setting unit 20 instructs the control signal generating unit 21 to maintain the additional beam as it is. In response to this instruction, the control signal generating unit 21 supplies a control signal to each additional beam unit 32, thereby maintaining the additional beam as it is, i.e., in an undimmed state (step S17). When step S17 is completed, the process returns to step S11.

[0037] Here, as a method of estimating whether or not the host vehicle is traveling on a right-curving road in step S14, for example, the host vehicle may be determined (estimated) to be traveling on a right-curving road when the steering angle value is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold θth and has a sign (positive or negative) corresponding to a rightward direction. As an example, the threshold θth may be set to a steering angle value corresponding to a curvature radius R of the right-curving road being equal to or less than 7,332 m. This criterion of R = 7,332 m is a criterion that makes it possible to prevent glare from being caused to drivers of oncoming vehicles within 220 m of the host vehicle's position.

[0038] More preferably, in addition to the value and sign of the steering angle, the vehicle may be determined to be traveling on a right curve if the duration of that state is equal to or longer than a predetermined threshold value Tth. In this case, the threshold value Tth relating to the duration may be variably set based on the radius of curvature R of the right curve and the vehicle speed V of the vehicle. For example, the threshold value Tth can be set to 0.9 seconds when traveling on a right curve with a radius of 210 m at 72.4 km / h, and the threshold value Tth can be set to 3.5 seconds when traveling on a right curve with a radius of 7,332 m at 112.7 km / h. The vehicle speed V can be obtained, for example, from a vehicle speed sensor (not shown) provided on the vehicle. The threshold value Tth can be generalized as follows: Tth = arccos{{(R / (R+3.3))×π×R} / 100} / V

[0039] Whether or not the vehicle is traveling on a curved road may be determined (estimated) based on the steering angle as described above, or may be determined by detecting white lines on the road through image recognition processing by the forward monitoring sensor 11, by referring to the type of road at the current location included in map data provided by a navigation device (not shown) or based on acceleration in the yaw direction and roll direction of the vehicle obtained using output from an acceleration sensor. The radius of curvature R may be determined from the magnitude of the steering angle, or by determining the radius of curvature of white lines on the road through image recognition processing by the forward monitoring sensor 11. The radius of curvature R may be determined by referring to map data provided by a navigation device (not shown) or based on acceleration in the yaw direction and roll direction of the vehicle obtained using output from an acceleration sensor.

[0040] 6A is a diagram showing a schematic example of the illumination of each beam when an oncoming vehicle is present, showing the front view shapes of each beam on a virtual vertical screen similar to that described above. When an oncoming vehicle 110 is present while traveling on a right-curving road, a dimming range 53 is provided within the illumination range of the selective high beam 51 according to the position of the oncoming vehicle 110. In addition, the low beam 50 is illuminated, but the additional beam 52 provided within that illumination range is dimmed. This reduces the glare to the driver of the oncoming vehicle 110.

[0041] 6(B) is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the illumination of each beam when a preceding vehicle is present, showing the front-view shapes of each beam on a virtual vertical screen similar to that described above. When a preceding vehicle 120 is present while traveling on a right-curving road, a dimming range 53 is provided within the illumination range of the selective high beam 51 according to the position of the preceding vehicle 120. Furthermore, the low beam 50 is illuminated, and the additional beam 52 provided within the illumination range is not dimmed, maintaining a predetermined illuminance. This reduces glare for the driver of the preceding vehicle 120, while the additional beam 52 is illuminated below the horizon H without being dimmed until it is close to the horizon H, thereby improving long-distance visibility for the driver of the vehicle.

[0042] In other words, in the headlight system of this embodiment, the scenes in which the illumination range of the additional beam 52, which is a portion of the low beam 50, should be dimmed are limited to when the vehicle is traveling on a right-hand curve that meets specified conditions and the vehicle ahead is an oncoming vehicle, so the period during which the additional beam 52 does not need to be dimmed, in other words, the period during which the portion of the low beam 50 does not need to be dimmed, can be secured for a longer period.

[0043] An explanation will be given below using specific numerical examples. When the typical installation positions of the headlights 13L and 13R on a standard vehicle are used as a reference, the eye position of the driver of an oncoming vehicle 50 m ahead of the vehicle is, for example, approximately 0.4° above the horizon H, and the position of the road surface 100 m ahead is approximately 0.43° below the horizon H.

[0044] Considering the luminous intensity distribution on the above-mentioned virtual vertical screen, when an undimmed additional beam 52 is irradiated, the luminous intensity at a position 0.4° above the horizontal line H is 450 cd from the low beam 50 and 280 cd from the additional beam 52, totaling 730 cd, and the luminous intensity at a position 0.43° below the horizontal line H is 32,000 cd from the low beam 50 and 14,000 cd from the additional beam 52, totaling 46,000 cd. In contrast, when the additional beam 52 is irradiated with a dimming of, for example, about 80% compared to before dimming, the luminous intensity at a position 0.4° above the horizon H is 450 cd from the low beam 50 and 56 cd from the additional beam 52, for a total of 506 cd, and the luminous intensity at a position 0.43° below the horizon H is 32,000 cd from the low beam and 2,800 cd from the additional beam, for a total of 34,800 cd.

[0045] That is, in the luminous intensity distribution when an oncoming vehicle is present as shown in Figure 6(A) above, the luminous intensity decreases by about 30% at an angle 0.4° above the horizon H, reducing the glare to oncoming vehicles by that amount, and the luminous intensity decreases by about 25% at an angle 0.43° below the horizon H. However, by limiting the scenes in which such dimming is performed, the luminous intensity distribution when a leading vehicle is present as shown in Figure 6(B) can achieve a luminous intensity of 46,000 cd at an angle 0.43° below the horizon H, thereby achieving good forward visibility. That is, in this embodiment, it is possible to both lengthen the period during which forward visibility is possible and reduce the glare to oncoming vehicles.

[0046] According to the above-described embodiment, it is possible to further improve forward visibility in the host vehicle while reducing glare to the vehicle ahead.

[0047] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment and can be modified and implemented in various ways within the scope of the gist of the present disclosure. For example, the above-described embodiment is based on the premise that an oncoming vehicle is traveling on the left side of the host vehicle (see FIG. 4 ). However, the relative relationship between the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle may be reversed. That is, the technical concept of the present disclosure can also be applied to a case where an oncoming vehicle is traveling on the right side of the host vehicle. In this case, the low beam, high beam, and additional beam having shapes that are the inverse of those shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B may be used, as described above, and the above control may be applied when the host vehicle is traveling on a left-hand curve based on the steering angle, etc.

[0048] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the additional beam emitted from the additional beam unit 32 is superimposed on the illumination range of the low beam emitted from the low beam unit 30, but the additional beam unit 32 can be omitted by using a variable light distribution unit as the low beam unit 30. In this case, by selectively dimming a partial range corresponding to the additional beam 52 (see FIGS. 3A and 3B) using the low beam unit 30, which is a variable light distribution unit, it is possible to irradiate the partial range with illumination light corresponding to the dimmed additional beam 52.

[0049] The present disclosure has the following additional configurations. (Supplementary Note 1) A headlight control device for controlling the operation of a headlight that can emit a low beam and a selective high beam, comprising: a controller connected to the headlight; and a forward monitoring sensor connected to the controller and that detects a forward vehicle present in front of the host vehicle, wherein the controller: controls the headlight to emit the selective high beam including a dimming range according to the position of the forward vehicle detected by the forward monitoring sensor; and controls the headlight to dim a partial range within the low beam illumination range when the forward vehicle is an oncoming vehicle and an oncoming lane is present on a first side that is either the left or right side of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that curves to a second side opposite the first side, wherein the low beam has an upper end at a position below the height of a horizontal line based on the position of the headlight, and the partial range is a range from the upper end to a position higher than the lower end of the low beam, and is set to at least the range on the second side with respect to a vertical line based on the position of the headlight. (Supplementary Note 2) The headlamp control device according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the controller further controls the headlamp to maintain brightness in the partial range without dimming it when the forward vehicle is a preceding vehicle. (Supplementary Note 3) The headlamp control device according to Supplementary Note 1 or 2, wherein the partial range is set to further include the range on the first side with respect to the vertical line. (Supplementary Note 4) The headlamp control device according to any of Supplements 1 to 3, wherein the upper end of the low beam includes a first portion located on the second side with respect to the vertical line and extending in a substantially horizontal direction so as to substantially overlap with the horizontal line, a second portion located on the first side with respect to the vertical line and extending in a substantially horizontal direction relatively lower than the first portion, and a third portion connecting each end of the first portion and the second portion and obliquely intersecting the vertical line so as to overlap with the vertical line. (Supplementary Note 5) The headlamp control device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, wherein the controller determines that the host vehicle is traveling on the curved road when a steering angle of the host vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold.(Supplementary Note 6) The headlamp control device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, wherein the controller determines that the host vehicle is traveling on the curved road when a state in which a steering angle of the host vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold continues for a certain period of time. (Supplementary Note 7) The headlamp control device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, wherein the controller estimates a radius of curvature of the curved road based on a magnitude of a steering angle of the host vehicle, and determines that the host vehicle is traveling on the curved road when the radius of curvature is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold. (Supplementary Note 8) The headlamp control device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, wherein the controller estimates a radius of curvature of the curved road based on a magnitude of a steering angle of the host vehicle, and determines that the host vehicle is traveling on the curved road when a state in which the radius of curvature is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold continues for a certain period of time. (Supplementary Note 9) The headlamp control device according to Supplementary Note 8, wherein the controller variably sets the length of the certain period of time based on the radius of curvature and the vehicle speed of the host vehicle. (Supplementary Note 10) The headlamp control device according to any of Supplements 1 to 9, wherein the headlamp includes a first unit that irradiates the low beam, a second unit that irradiates the selective high beam, and a third unit that irradiates the partial area with an additional beam, and the controller dims the partial area by dimming the additional beam emitted by the third unit.(Supplementary Note 11) A method for controlling the operation of a headlamp capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam, executed by a controller connected to the headlamp, comprising: controlling the headlamp to emit the selective high beam including a dimming range according to the position of a forward vehicle ahead of the host vehicle; and controlling the headlamp to dim a partial range within the low beam illumination range when the forward vehicle is an oncoming vehicle, an oncoming lane is present on a first side that is either the left or right side of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that curves to a second side opposite the first side; wherein the low beam has an upper end at a position below the height of a horizontal line based on the position of the headlamp, and the partial range is a range from the upper end to a position higher than the lower end of the low beam, and is set to at least the range on the second side with respect to a vertical line based on the position of the headlamp. (Supplementary Note 12) A headlamp system including: the control device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 10; and a headlamp capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam, the operation of which is controlled by the control device.

[0050] 10: Controller, 11: Forward monitoring sensor, 12: Steering angle sensor, 13L, 13R: Headlight, 14: Lamp switch, 20: Light distribution pattern setting unit, 21: Control signal generation unit, 30: Low beam unit, 31: ADB unit, 32: Additional beam unit, 50: Low beam, 51: High beam, 52: Additional beam, 53: Dimming range, 100: Vehicle, 110: Oncoming vehicle, 120: Leading vehicle

Claims

1. A device for controlling the operation of a headlight that can emit a low beam and a selective high beam, comprising: a controller connected to the headlight; and a forward monitoring sensor connected to the controller and detecting a forward vehicle ahead of the host vehicle, wherein the controller: controls the headlight to emit the selective high beam including a dimming range according to the position of the forward vehicle detected by the forward monitoring sensor; and controls the headlight to dim a portion of the low beam illumination range when the forward vehicle is an oncoming vehicle and an oncoming lane is present on a first side, which is either the left or right side of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that curves to a second side opposite the first side; wherein the low beam has an upper end at a position below the height of a horizontal line based on the position of the headlight, and the portion of the range is a range from the upper end to a position higher than the lower end of the low beam, and is set to at least the range on the second side of a vertical line based on the position of the headlight.

2. The headlamp control device according to claim 1, wherein the controller further controls the headlamp so as to maintain brightness without dimming the partial range when the forward vehicle is a leading vehicle.

3. The headlamp control device according to claim 1, wherein the partial range is set to further include the range on the first side with respect to the vertical line.

4. A headlamp control device as described in claim 1, wherein the upper end of the low beam includes a first portion located on the second side of the vertical line and extending in a substantially horizontal direction so as to overlap the horizontal line, a second portion located on the first side of the vertical line and extending in a substantially horizontal direction relatively lower than the first portion, and a third portion connecting each end of the first portion and the second portion and intersecting the vertical line obliquely so as to overlap the vertical line.

5. The headlamp control device according to claim 1, wherein the controller determines that the vehicle is traveling on the curved road when the steering angle of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold.

6. The headlamp control device according to claim 1, wherein the controller determines that the vehicle is traveling on the curved road when the steering angle of the vehicle remains equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold for a certain period of time.

7. A headlamp control device as described in claim 1, wherein the controller estimates the radius of curvature of the curved road based on the magnitude of the steering angle of the vehicle, and determines that the vehicle is traveling on the curved road if the radius of curvature is equal to or smaller than a predetermined threshold.

8. A headlamp control device as described in claim 1, wherein the controller estimates the radius of curvature of the curved road based on the magnitude of the steering angle of the vehicle, and determines that the vehicle is traveling on the curved road if the radius of curvature remains below a predetermined threshold for a certain period of time.

9. The headlamp control device according to claim 8, wherein the controller variably sets the length of the certain period of time based on the radius of curvature and the vehicle speed of the host vehicle.

10. A headlamp control device as described in claim 1, wherein the headlamp includes a first unit that irradiates the low beam, a second unit that irradiates the selective high beam, and a third unit that irradiates the partial range with an additional beam, and the controller dims the partial range by dimming the additional beam emitted by the third unit.

11. A method executed by a controller connected to a headlamp to control the operation of a headlamp capable of emitting low beam and selective high beam, comprising: controlling the headlamp to emit the selective high beam including a dimming range according to the position of a forward vehicle ahead of the host vehicle; and controlling the headlamp to dim a portion of the low beam illumination range when the forward vehicle is an oncoming vehicle, an oncoming lane is present on a first side, which is either the left or right side of the host vehicle, and the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that curves to a second side opposite the first side; wherein the low beam has an upper end at a position below the height of a horizontal line based on the position of the headlamp, and the portion of the range is a range from the upper end to a position higher than the lower end of the low beam, and is set to at least the range on the second side with respect to a vertical line based on the position of the headlamp.

12. A headlamp system comprising: the control device according to claim 1; and a headlamp capable of emitting a low beam and a selective high beam, the operation of which is controlled by said control device.

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