JP2010023583A - Direction indicator control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a direction indicator control device capable of completing an operation of a direction indicator at a proper timing according to a will of a driver. <P>SOLUTION: A vision line detection ECU 16 for detecting a vision line of a driver from an image of a head of the driver picked up by a camera 16a is connected to a direction indicator control device 11. The direction indicator control device 11 determines whether there is possibility that its own vehicle changes a course to an indicating direction of a direction indicator 10 or not. Then, when there is possibility, a direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 is continued, and when there is no possibility, the operation of the direction indicator 10 is completed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a direction indicator control device that controls a direction indication operation of a direction indicator.

  Conventionally, when a turn lever provided near the steering wheel is operated on a vehicle to blink a turn lamp provided before and after the vehicle, for example, when turning right or left or changing lanes to adjacent lanes The direction indicator which shows the advancing direction of the own vehicle which a driver | operator intends around is provided.

  The direction indicator includes a turn switch that activates a turn lamp in a traveling direction when the turn lever is operated in a direction corresponding to the traveling direction of the host vehicle, and a steering wheel is set in a direction opposite to the operating direction of the turn lever. And a release mechanism for automatically releasing the direction indication by returning the turn lever to the original position when the angle is rotated by more than the angle and returned to the original position. When the turn lever is operated in the direction corresponding to the traveling direction of the host vehicle and the turn switch is activated, the turn lamp in the traveling direction flashes. Then, when the turn of the host vehicle is finished and the steering wheel is returned to the straight traveling position, the turn lever is returned to the original position by the release mechanism, and the turn lamp is turned off.

  However, with this configuration, if the steering angle of the steering wheel in the direction of operation of the turn lever is small, such as when the host vehicle changes lanes to an adjacent lane, the direction indication The direction indication operation of the container may not be completed.

  Therefore, in order to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator at an appropriate timing even when the lane change is completed in this way, a direction indicator control device as shown in Patent Document 1, for example, has been conventionally proposed. .

  The direction indicator control device includes a camera that captures an image of the rear of the host vehicle and detects a traveling lane of the host vehicle, and detects a lane change of the host vehicle in the direction indicated by the direction indicator through the camera. The direction indicating operation of the indicator is terminated. Thereby, the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator is terminated at an appropriate timing regardless of the steering angle.

In addition, a navigation device is connected to the direction indicator control device. The navigation device includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver for detecting the current position of the host vehicle, and a map database that holds map data on a storage medium such as a hard disk. The direction indicator control device acquires road information such as the presence or absence of intersections around the host vehicle and the number of lanes of the road from the navigation device, and changes the course from the acquired road information around the host vehicle to the direction indicated by the direction indicator. Whether or not there is a possibility is determined, and if it is determined that there is such a possibility, even if it is determined that the lane change has been completed through the camera, the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator is continued. .
JP 2007-223382 A

  However, the direction indicator control device of Patent Document 1 determines whether or not there is a possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator based on road information ahead of the host vehicle. Is not reflected. For this reason, there exists a possibility that operation | movement of a direction indicator may be continued irrespective of a driver | operator's intent.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a direction indicator control device capable of terminating the operation of the direction indicator at an appropriate timing according to the driver's intention. There is.

  The invention according to claim 1 is a direction indicator control device for controlling the operating state of the direction indicator provided in the host vehicle, the operating state detecting means for detecting the operating state of the direction indicator, and imaging. Visual line detection means for detecting the driver's line of sight from the captured image of the driver's head imaged by the vehicle, and the operation state detection means detects the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator. The vehicle determines whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator based on the driver's line of sight detected through the line-of-sight detection means. The gist is to continue the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator when it is determined that there is a possibility, and to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator when it is determined that there is no possibility.

  Usually, for example, when changing lanes to adjacent lanes or turning right or left at an intersection, the driver turns his / her line of sight in the course direction in order to confirm the presence or absence of a vehicle or the like in the course of the host vehicle. In other words, the driver's line of sight is directed in the direction of the route that the driver wants to take. Thus, as in the present invention, it is possible to determine whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator based on the driver's line of sight. For example, when the driver's line of sight is directed in the direction indicated by the direction indicator and there is a possibility of changing the course in the indicated direction, the direction indication operation of the direction indicator is continued. On the other hand, for example, when the driver's line of sight is directed forward and there is no possibility of changing the course in the indicated direction, the operation of the direction indicator is terminated. For this reason, the driver's intention is reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation. Therefore, the operation of the direction indicator can be terminated at an appropriate timing according to the driver's intention.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the operation state detecting means detects a direction indicating operation of the direction indicator, the end determination is made to end the direction indicating operation based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. When the direction indicator operation of the direction indicator is detected by the operation state detection unit, the host vehicle is connected to the direction indicator immediately after the end determination is made by the end determination unit. Whether or not there is a possibility of changing the course in the indicated direction is determined based on the driver's line of sight, and if it is determined that there is such a possibility, the end determination by the end determination means is invalidated and the end The gist of the present invention is to continue the direction indicating operation and to perform an effective / invalid determination to validate the end determination and end the direction indicating operation when it is determined that there is no possibility.

  Conventionally, a vehicle is provided with an end determination unit that performs an end determination to end a direction indication operation based on the traveling state of the host vehicle when the direction indication operation of the direction indicator is detected by the operation state detection unit. It has been. According to the present invention, based on the driver's line of sight, it is determined whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator. If there is such a possibility, the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is invalidated, and the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator is thereby continued. If there is no such possibility, the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is validated, and the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator is thereby ended. For this reason, the driver's intention is also reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. Therefore, the operation of the direction indicator can be terminated at an appropriate timing according to the driver's intention and the traveling state of the host vehicle.

  The invention according to claim 3 includes road condition acquisition means for acquiring a road condition in front of the host vehicle, and based on the road condition, the course can be changed continuously in the direction indicated by the direction indicator. The gist is to perform the validity / invalidity determination based on the driver's line of sight when it is determined whether or not there is a possibility.

  According to the present invention, based on the road condition, in order to perform the valid / invalid determination based on the driver's line of sight only when it is determined that there is a possibility of changing the course continuously in the direction indicated by the direction indicator, The road condition is also added to the end determination of the direction indicating operation, and the end determination can be made more reliable.

  In the invention according to claim 4, when it is determined that there is a possibility that the course is continuously changed based on the road state, the driving is performed immediately after the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is performed. The gist is to provide a determination period for performing validity / invalidity determination of the end determination based on the person's line of sight.

  For example, when changing lanes in the same direction in two steps, such as when changing lanes in one direction, depending on the end determination condition based on the traveling state of the host vehicle, the driver may The line of sight may be directed forward, and the line of sight may not be directed in the direction indicated by the direction indicator. For this reason, in such a case, it is difficult to read the driver's intention to further change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator from the driver's line of sight immediately after the end determination is made. According to the present invention, the determination period for performing the validity determination of the end determination based on the driver's line of sight is provided immediately after the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is performed. For this reason, the driver's intention can be reliably reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the direction indicator control apparatus which can complete | finish operation | movement of a direction indicator at the appropriate timing according to a driver | operator's intent can be obtained.

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is embodied in a turn indicator for a four-wheeled vehicle will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1 (a), the direction indicator indicates the traveling direction of the host vehicle by driving the pair of left and right turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b provided on the front and rear sides of the vehicle 1, respectively. A direction indicating operation to notify a person or the like is performed.

<Overview of direction indicator operation>
The direction indicator is operated through an operation lever 4 provided on the steering column C of the vehicle 1 as shown in FIG. The operation lever 4 is disposed on the back side of the steering wheel W indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. The base end portion of the operation lever 4 is cantilevered inside the steering column C, and the distal end portion of the operation lever 4 protrudes outside the steering column C. The base end portion of the operation lever 4 can be tilted with respect to the steering column C by a predetermined angle in a direction along the rotational direction of the steering wheel W around a rotation shaft (not shown) disposed inside the steering column C. It is supported.

  The central axis of the operation lever 4 is held at an operation neutral position P indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. When the operation lever 4 is held at the operation neutral position P and applied with an operation force in the counterclockwise direction indicated by the arrow AL, the operation lever 4 is centered on the rotation axis as shown in FIG. Tilt to the left turn operation position PL indicated by the chain line. As a result, the left turn lamps 2a and 2b (see FIG. 1A) provided on the front and rear sides of the vehicle 1 blink. When the operating force in the direction of the arrow AL is released, the operation lever 4 returns to the operation neutral position P by the action of a return mechanism (not shown). Even when the operation lever 4 returns to the operation neutral position P, the left turn lamps 2a and 2b continue to blink. Further, as shown in FIG. 1B, when the operation force in the clockwise direction indicated by the arrow AR is applied while the operation lever 4 is held at the operation neutral position P, the operation lever 4 is centered on the rotation axis. As shown in FIG. 1 (b), it tilts to the right turn operation position PR indicated by a one-dot chain line. As a result, the right turn lamps 3a and 3b (FIG. 1B) provided on the front and rear sides of the vehicle 1 blink. When the operation force in the direction of the arrow AR is released, the operation lever 4 returns to the operation neutral position P by the action of the return mechanism. Even when the operation lever 4 returns to the operation neutral position P, the right turn lamps 3a and 3b continue to flash.

<Electrical configuration>
Next, the electrical configuration of the direction indicator operated through the operation lever 4 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the direction indicator 10 includes a direction indicator control device 11 as an end determination unit composed of a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like (not shown). The ROM of the direction indicator control device 11 stores various control programs and data for comprehensively controlling the entire direction indicator 10. The control program includes a lighting control program for performing lighting control of the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, for example. The RAM is a data storage area, that is, a work area for the microcomputer to execute various processes by developing a control program stored in the ROM.

A vehicle speed sensor 12, a steering angle sensor 13, and a yaw rate sensor 14 are connected to the direction indicator control device 11.
The vehicle speed sensor 12 detects the traveling speed of the vehicle 1 and outputs a vehicle speed detection signal SV corresponding to the detected speed to the direction indicator control device 11.

  When the steering wheel W is rotated by the driver, the steering angle sensor 13 detects a steering angle that is the rotation angle, and controls the steering angle detection signal Sθ according to the detected steering angle by a direction indicator. Output to the device 11. More specifically, the rudder angle sensor 13 detects whether the steering wheel W has been rotated in the left or right direction with respect to the rudder angle midpoint (steering angle when the vehicle 1 is traveling straight), and in either case. Steering angle information having a positive value with respect to the steering angle midpoint is output as the steering angle detection signal Sθ. Note that the steering angle information includes steering direction information indicating whether the steering wheel W is steered in the left or right direction.

  The yaw rate sensor 14 detects, for example, the yaw rate (behavior in the rotational direction of the vehicle 1) when the host vehicle turns right or left or changes lanes, and controls the yaw rate detection signal SY corresponding to the detected yaw rate with a direction indicator. Output to the device 11.

  Further, a body ECU (Electronic control unit) 15 is connected to the direction indicator control device 11. The body ECU 15 is connected with a turn switch 15a as an operation state detecting means that is turned on and off in conjunction with the operation of the operation lever 4. When the body ECU 15 detects that the operation lever 4 is tilted from the operation neutral position P to the left turn operation position PL through the turn switch 15a, the body ECU 15 outputs an operation position detection signal SP indicating that to the direction indicator control device 11. . When the body ECU 15 detects that the operation lever 4 is turned to the right turn operation position PR through the turn switch 15a, the body ECU 15 outputs an operation position detection signal SP indicating that to the direction indicator control device 11. The body ECU 15 is connected with two left turn lamps 2a and 2b and two right turn lamps 3a and 3b.

  When the direction indicator control device 11 detects an operation of the operation lever 4 to each of the operation positions PL and PR based on the operation position detection signal SP from the body ECU 15, the direction instruction device signals the traveling direction of the vehicle 1 to the periphery. An instruction start signal Ss for starting the operation is output to the body ECU 15. The body ECU 15 intermittently supplies drive current to the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b based on the instruction start signal Ss from the direction indicator control device 11, and blinks them. Specifically, when the direction indicator control device 11 detects that the operation lever 4 is tilted from the operation neutral position P to the left turn operation position PL based on the operation position detection signal SP from the body ECU 15, An instruction start signal Ss for flashing the two left turn lamps 2a and 2b is output to the ECU 15. Based on the instruction start signal Ss, the body ECU 15 intermittently supplies drive currents to the two left turn lamps 2a and 2b and blinks them. Further, when the direction indicator control device 11 detects that the operation lever 4 has been turned to the right turn operation position PR based on the operation position detection signal SP from the body ECU 15, the right turn control device 11 performs two right turn operations on the body ECU 15. An instruction start signal Ss for blinking the lamps 3a and 3b is output. Based on the instruction start signal Ss, the body ECU 15 intermittently supplies drive currents to the two right turn lamps 3a and 3b and causes them to blink.

  Further, the direction indicator control device 11 detects the traveling state of the host vehicle from the elapsed time from the starting time, the traveling speed of the host vehicle, the steering angle, the yaw rate, and the like when the direction instruction operation is started. Based on the running state, an end determination is made to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10. Then, based on the end determination, the direction indicating operation by the direction indicator 10 is ended.

  Specifically, when the direction indicator control device 11 starts a direction indication operation to signal the traveling direction of the vehicle 1 to the periphery through blinking of the left turn lamps 2a, 2b or the right turn lamps 3a, 3b, in other words, The elapsed time from when the instruction start signal Ss is output is counted by a timer provided therein. A certain amount of time has passed since the start of the direction indicating operation, in a state where the steering operation is not performed and the vehicle is traveling at a certain speed or more, exceeding the normally assumed duration of the direction indicating operation. In this case, the direction indicator control device 11 determines that a condition (end determination condition) for ending the direction indication operation is satisfied, and performs an end determination to end the direction indication operation of the direction indicator 10. Based on this end determination, the direction indicator control device 11 outputs to the body ECU 15 an instruction end signal Se for ending the direction indicating operation. The body ECU 15 stops the supply of drive current to the two left turn lamps 2a, 2b or the two right turn lamps 3a, 3b based on the instruction end signal Se, and turns them off.

  The ROM of the direction indicator control device 11 stores a cancel preparation angle θ1 and a cancel angle θ2 smaller than the cancel preparation angle θ1. When the direction indicator control device 11 starts the direction indication operation, it detects a change in the steering angle θ of the steering wheel W through the steering angle sensor 13. When the steering angle θ reaches the cancel preparation angle θ1 (θ> θ1) and falls within the range of the cancel angle θ2 (θ <θ2), the direction indicator control device 11 ends the direction indication operation. It is determined that the condition (end determination condition) is satisfied, and an end determination is made to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10. As a result, the steering wheel W reaches the cancel preparation angle θ1 in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 as in the case where the vehicle turns straight after turning right or left at an intersection or the like. Is returned to within the range, the end instruction of the direction indicating operation is determined based on the steering angle θ, and the direction indicating operation is automatically ended.

  Further, the direction indicator control device 11 starts changing the yaw rate based on the yaw rate detection signal SY when the direction start operation is started, in other words, from the time when the instruction start signal Ss is output (the turning direction of the host vehicle). Change amount of rotation angle per unit time). In the ROM of the direction indicator control device 11, a determination reference value serving as a determination reference for determining the end of the direction indicating operation is stored for each speed region of the host vehicle. Usually, the yaw rate changes so as to take a maximum value and a minimum value between the start and end of the course of the host vehicle such as turning left and right or changing lanes. The direction indicator control device 11 is configured to terminate the direction indicating operation when the yaw rate reaches a maximum value and then falls below the determination reference value, or exceeds the determination reference value after a minimum value (end) It is determined that (determination condition) is satisfied. Further, the direction indicator control device 11 detects (calculates) a change amount of the steering angle θ based on the steering angle detection signal Sθ. In the ROM of the direction indicator control device 11, a determination reference value serving as a determination reference for determining the end of the direction indicating operation is stored for each speed region of the host vehicle. Normally, the steering angle θ changes so as to take the maximum value and the minimum value during the period from when the own vehicle starts changing the course to when it ends, like the yaw rate. The direction indicator control device 11 terminates the direction indicating operation when the steering angle θ is below the determination reference value after taking the maximum value or when the steering angle θ exceeds the determination reference value after taking the minimum value. It is determined that (end determination condition) is satisfied. The direction indicator control device 11 performs an end determination to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 when either one of the end determination condition based on the yaw rate and the end determination condition based on the steering angle θ is satisfied. Do. Accordingly, even when the steering angle θ of the steering wheel W in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 is small and the steering angle θ does not reach the cancel preparation angle θ1, for example, when the lane is changed to an adjacent lane. Based on the change in the yaw rate, it is determined whether or not the direction indicating operation is finished. That is, even when the above-described end determination condition based on the steering angle θ is not satisfied, if the end determination condition based on the yaw rate is satisfied, an end determination is made to end the direction indicating operation, and only when turning right or left at an intersection or the like. For example, even when the lane is changed to an adjacent lane, the direction indicating operation is automatically ended.

  The direction indicator control device 11 is connected to a line-of-sight detection ECU (Electronic control unit) 16 constituting a line-of-sight detection means. The line-of-sight detection ECU 16 is connected to a camera 16a as an image pickup unit that also constitutes a line-of-sight detection unit. The camera 16a is provided, for example, on the rearview mirror of the vehicle 1 and images the driver's head. The line-of-sight detection ECU 16 detects the position coordinates of the driver's face and eyeball from the captured image captured by the camera 16a using pattern matching, a neural network, or the like from, for example, the density (luminance) or shape characteristics of the captured image, The driver's line of sight is detected based on the above. Then, the line-of-sight detection ECU 16 outputs a line-of-sight detection signal Sa including the detection result to the direction indicator control device 11. The direction indicator control device 11 follows the detection result (line-of-sight detection signal Sa) from the line-of-sight detection ECU 16 and immediately after the end determination based on the running state is made, the host vehicle travels in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10. It is determined whether or not there is a possibility of change. In this determination, the driver's line of sight is usually directed in the direction of the route that the driver wants to take, and even when the host vehicle changes the direction in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10, the driver Based on the assumption that a line of sight is directed in the course direction in order to confirm the presence or absence of a vehicle or the like in the course of the host vehicle.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, normally, in a straight traveling state, the driver's line of sight is directed forward, which is the traveling direction of the host vehicle, and the line-of-sight detection ECU 16 is as shown in FIG. A captured image G1 of the driver's head H is acquired. Here, for example, when changing the lane to the adjacent right lane, as shown in FIG. 4A, the driver's line of sight is directed in the direction of the side mirror 1a or the own vehicle. As shown in FIG. 4B, a captured image G2 in which the position XR of the eyeball is shifted to the right side from the position X of the eyeball in the captured image G1 when the driver is facing forward is acquired. To do. When the distance d between the position XR of the eyeball acquired from the captured image G2 and the position X of the eyeball when the driver is facing forward is larger than a predetermined threshold value α, the line-of-sight detection ECU 16 It is determined that the line of sight is directed to the right, which is the designated direction of 10, and a line-of-sight detection signal Sa indicating that is output to the direction indicator control device 11. The direction indicator control device 11 determines that the own vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the line-of-sight detection signal Sa, and the end determination based on the traveling state of the own vehicle. Disable.

  Conversely, when the distance d between the eyeball position XR acquired from the captured image G1 and the eyeball position X when the driver is facing forward is equal to or smaller than a predetermined threshold value α, It is determined that the line of sight is not directed to the right, which is the direction indicated by the indicator 10, and a line-of-sight detection signal Sa indicating that is output to the direction indicator control device 11. The direction indicator control device 11 determines that there is no possibility that the own vehicle will change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the line-of-sight detection signal Sa, and the end determination based on the traveling state of the own vehicle. Enable That is, the direction indicator control device 11 estimates the driver's intention based on the driver's line of sight, and enables or disables the end determination based on the running state based on the estimation result.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the direction indicator control device 11 is connected to a road state acquisition device (GPS-equipped device) 17 such as a car navigation system mounted on the vehicle 1. The road state acquisition device 17 corresponds to a road state acquisition unit. The direction indicator control device 11 acquires the road state such as the presence or absence of an intersection ahead of the host vehicle and the number of lanes on which the host vehicle is traveling from the road state acquisition device 17, and continuously based on the acquired road state. It is then determined whether there is a possibility of changing the course. When it is determined that there is such a possibility, a line-of-sight detection request signal Sr for requesting detection of the driver's line of sight is output to the line-of-sight detection ECU 16. The line-of-sight detection ECU 16 supplies driving power for imaging the driver's head to the camera 16a based on the line-of-sight detection request signal Sr, and acquires an image of the driver's head through the camera 16a.

  Further, when it is determined that there is a possibility that the course is continuously changed in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the road state, the direction indicator control device 11 is based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. Immediately after the end determination is made, a determination period T is provided for performing the validity determination of the end determination based on the driver's line of sight. During this determination period T, the direction indicator control device 11 detects the driver's line of sight based on the captured images G1 and G2 of the camera 16a, and travels in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the line of sight. Determine whether there is a possibility of change. Note that the end determination based on the traveling state made during the determination period T is invalid, and the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 is continued.

  Next, the processing procedure of the end indicator processing for determining the direction indicator configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. When the direction indicator control device 11 determines that there is a possibility of continuously changing the course based on the road state acquired from the road state acquisition device 17, the processing of this flowchart is the lighting stored in the ROM. It is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle according to the control program.

  As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5, first, in step 101, the direction indicator control device 11 determines whether or not the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b are in an operating state. If it is determined in step 101 that the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b are not in the operating state, the direction indicator control device 11 ends this process. On the other hand, if it is determined in step 101 that the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b are in an operating state, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 102.

  In the next step 102, the direction indicator control device 11 determines whether or not a certain time has elapsed since the start of the direction indication operation. In other words, after starting the direction indicating operation in Step 102, in other words, when it is determined that a certain time has elapsed since the output of the instruction start signal Ss, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to Step 103. In step 103, the direction indicator control device 11 outputs an instruction end signal Se for ending the direction indicating operation to the body ECU 15, resets the timer, and ends the process. That is, when a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the direction indicating operation, the direction indicating operation is automatically ended based on the determination in step 102.

  On the other hand, in step 102, in other words, when it is determined that a certain time has not elapsed since the instruction start signal Ss was output, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 104. To do. In step 104, the direction indicator control device 11 determines whether or not an end determination condition for changing the lane based on the yaw rate is satisfied.

  If it is determined in step 104 that the end determination condition at the time of lane change based on the yaw rate is not satisfied, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 105. In step 105, the direction indicator control device 11 determines whether or not an end determination condition for a right / left turn based on a change in the steering angle θ of the steering wheel W is satisfied. If it is determined in step 105 that the right / left turn end determination condition is satisfied, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 103. In step 103, the direction indicator control device 11 outputs an instruction end signal Se for ending the direction indicating operation to the body ECU 15, resets the timer, and ends the process. That is, when the steering wheel W is operated beyond the cancel preparation angle θ1 at the time of lane change or right / left turn (particularly right / left turn), the direction indicating operation is automatically ended based on the determination in step 105. . On the other hand, if it is determined in step 105 that the right / left turn end determination condition is not satisfied, the direction indicator control device 11 does not output the instruction end signal Se to end the direction indicating operation. The process ends. That is, the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 is continued.

  Here, when it is determined in step 104 that the end determination condition at the time of lane change based on the yaw rate is satisfied, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 106. In step 106, the direction indicator control device 11 determines whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the captured images G1 and G2 of the camera 16a. To do.

  When it is determined in step 106 that there is no possibility that the host vehicle changes the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 103. In step 103, the direction indicator control device 11 outputs an instruction end signal Se for ending the direction indicating operation to the body ECU 15, resets the timer, and ends the process. That is, when the movement of the line of sight in the indicated direction of the direction indicator 10 is not detected, when the lane change is completed, the end determination at the time of the lane change based on the yaw rate is valid based on the determination of step 106, and the direction indicating operation is performed. It is automatically terminated. Note that the processing order of steps 104 and 106 may be reversed. Further, the processing order of steps 104 and 105 may be reversed.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step 106 that the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10, the direction indicator control device 11 proceeds to step 105. That is, when the movement of the line of sight in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 is detected, the end determination at the time of changing the lane based on the yaw rate in step 104 is invalidated based on the determination in step 106, and the direction indicating operation And the timer count continues.

<Operation of direction indicator>
Next, the operation of the direction indicator configured as described above will be described.
First, as shown in FIG. 6A, it is assumed that the vehicle 1 traveling on a two-lane road changes lanes. In this case, there is a possibility that the direction indicator control device 11 continuously changes the course in the indicated direction of the direction indicator 10 based on the road state (in this case, the number of lanes) acquired from the road state acquisition device 17. Judge that there is no. Therefore, the direction indicator control device 11 does not perform the validity / invalidity determination based on the driver's line of sight.

  Normally, the operation lever 4 is held at the operation neutral position P, and the left turn lamps 2a, 2b and the right turn lamps 3a, 3b are kept in the extinguished state. First, the driver moves his / her line of sight to confirm whether there is a vehicle in the adjacent lane at time t0, and tilts the operation lever 4 at time t1. Thereby, the direction indicator control device 11 starts the direction indicating operation through the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b (FIG. 6B, turn lamp = ON). When the lane change is started, the yaw rate of the host vehicle increases, and the yaw rate decreases as the vehicle goes straight ahead. Based on the change in the yaw rate, the direction indicator control device 11 determines that the end determination condition at the time of lane change is satisfied at time t2 (FIG. 6B, end determination at the time of lane change = ON). In this case, the direction indicator control device 11 does not perform the validity / invalidity determination based on the driver's line of sight (FIG. 6B, the validity / invalidity determination = valid). Therefore, an end determination is made based on the fact that the end determination condition at the time of lane change is satisfied at time t2 (FIG. 6 (b) end determination = ON), and the direction indicating operation is automatically ended (FIG. 6 (b) turn). (Lamp = OFF).

  Next, as shown in FIG. 7A, it is assumed that the vehicle 1 traveling on a three-lane road changes in two stages. In this case, there is a possibility that the direction indicator control device 11 continuously changes the course in the indicated direction of the direction indicator 10 based on the road state (in this case, the number of lanes) acquired from the road state acquisition device 17. Judge that there is. Therefore, the direction indicator control device 11 performs the validity / invalidity determination based on the driver's line of sight. For this reason, the direction indicating operation is continued until the determination period T elapses at the time t2 when the end determination condition at the time of the first lane change is satisfied. The driver confirms whether there is a vehicle in the adjacent lane at time t3 during the determination period T in order to start the second-stage lane change. Therefore, the distance d between the eyeball position XR acquired from the captured image at this time (in this case, the captured image G2) and the eyeball position X when the driver is facing forward is based on the threshold α. Also grows. Based on the driver's line of sight from this time t3, the direction indicator control device 11 determines that the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 immediately after the end determination is made. The termination determination based on the first-stage lane change is invalidated (FIG. 7B valid / invalid determination = invalid). When the second stage lane change is completed, the vehicle 1 thereafter travels straight, so that the driver's line of sight is directed forward at time t4. Accordingly, the distance d between the eyeball position X acquired from the captured image at this time (in this case, the captured image G1) and the eyeball position X when the driver is facing forward is equal to or less than the threshold value α. It becomes. Based on the driver's line of sight, the direction indicator control device 11 determines that the host vehicle has no possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10, and makes the end determination effective (FIG. 7). (B) Valid / invalid determination = valid). Thereby, in this case, an end determination is made at time t4 (FIG. 7B end determination = ON), and the direction indicating operation is automatically ended (FIG. 7B turn lamp = OFF). That is, the direction operation of the direction indicator 10 is continued while performing the two-stage lane change.

  For example, when the vehicle 1 traveling on a three-lane road changes one lane, when the first lane change is completed, the vehicle 1 goes straight thereafter, so that the driver's line of sight at time t2 Is pointed forward. Based on the driver's line of sight, the direction indicator control device 11 determines that the host vehicle has no possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 and validates the end determination. Thereby, an end determination is made and the direction indicating operation is automatically ended.

  In this way, by grasping the driver's line of sight based on the captured images G1 and G2 of the camera 16a, it becomes possible to estimate the driver's intention, and immediately after the end determination is made, the host vehicle gives a direction indication. It is possible to determine whether or not there is a possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the device 10. Then, when it is determined that there is such a possibility, the direction determination operation of the direction indicator 10 can be accurately continued according to the driver's intention by invalidating the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. it can. For this reason, for example, in the case of turning left at the intersection immediately after changing to the left lane, the direction indicating operation is continued even after the end determination condition at the time of changing the lane is satisfied, and the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 is performed. It can be avoided that it is terminated unnecessarily. Therefore, in such a case, it is possible to save the trouble of operating the operation lever 4 when changing the lane and when turning left.

  In the present embodiment, the direction indicator control device 11 only determines that there is a possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the road condition ahead of the host vehicle. Since the validity / invalidity determination based on the driver's line of sight is performed, the invalidity determination becomes more reliable.

Next, the operational effects of the above embodiment will be described below.
(1) Normally, for example, when changing lanes to adjacent lanes or turning left and right at an intersection, the driver turns his gaze in the direction of the track to check whether there is a vehicle or the like in the route of the host vehicle. . In other words, the driver's line of sight is directed in the direction of the route that the driver wants to take. Therefore, as in the present embodiment, the direction indicator control device 11 determines whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the driver's line of sight. Can be judged. For example, when the driver's line of sight is directed in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 and there is a possibility of changing the course in the indicated direction, the direction indication operation of the direction indicator 10 is continued. On the other hand, for example, when the driver's line of sight is directed forward and there is no possibility of changing the course in the indicated direction, the operation of the direction indicator 10 is terminated. For this reason, the driver's intention is reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation. Therefore, the operation of the direction indicator 10 can be terminated at an appropriate timing according to the driver's intention.

  (2) Conventionally, the vehicle is based on the running state of the vehicle 1 (elapsed time from the start of the direction indicating operation, the running speed of the host vehicle, the steering angle, the yaw rate, etc.) as in the present embodiment. There is one that performs an end determination to end the direction indicating operation. According to this embodiment, based on the driver's line of sight, it is determined whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10. If there is such a possibility, the direction indicator control device 11 invalidates the end determination based on the traveling state and continues the direction indication operation of the direction indicator 10. If there is no such possibility, the direction indicator control device 11 validates the end determination based on the running state and ends the direction indication operation of the direction indicator 10. For this reason, the driver's intention is also reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. Therefore, the operation of the direction indicator 10 can be terminated at an appropriate timing according to the driver's intention and the traveling state of the host vehicle.

  (3) The direction indicator control apparatus 11 is a driver | operator only when it is judged that there is a possibility of changing a course continuously to the direction of the direction indicator 10 based on the road condition ahead of the own vehicle. Since the validity / invalidity determination based on the line of sight is performed, the road condition is also added to the end determination of the direction indicating operation, and the end determination can be made more reliable.

  (4) For example, when changing lanes stepwise in the same direction, such as when changing lanes in two steps in one direction, depending on the end determination condition based on the traveling state of the host vehicle, driving before and after the end determination is made The person's line of sight may be directed forward, and the line of sight may not be directed in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10. Therefore, in such a case, it is difficult to read the driver's intention to further change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 from the driver's line of sight immediately after the end determination is made. In this regard, in the present embodiment, a determination period T is provided for performing validity / invalidity determination of the end determination based on the driver's line of sight immediately after the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is performed. For this reason, the driver's intention can be reliably reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation.

  (5) The line-of-sight detection ECU 16 supplies drive power to the camera 16a only when the direction indicator control device 11 determines that there is a possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator based on the road condition. Therefore, power consumption can be suitably suppressed.

In addition, you may change this Embodiment as follows.
In the above embodiment, the direction indicator control device 11 performs the end determination to end the direction indication operation of the direction indicator 10 based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. It is not limited. For example, step 104 and step 106 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 5 may be omitted, and it may be determined whether to continue or end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 based on the driver's line of sight. Good. In this case, for example, whether or not the movement of the driver's line of sight indicating that the course is changed in the indicated direction is detected for a predetermined time when the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 is detected. Based on this, it is determined whether or not the host vehicle may change the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10. For example, when the movement of the driver's line of sight indicating that the course is changed to the indicated direction is detected, it is determined that the host vehicle may change the course to the indicated direction of the direction indicator 10, and the direction indication The direction indicating operation of the container 10 is continued. On the other hand, if the movement of the driver's line of sight indicating that the course is to be changed in the indicated direction is not detected within a predetermined time, the host vehicle may not change the course in the indicated direction of the direction indicator 10. And the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 is terminated. Even with such a configuration, the intention of the driver is reflected in the end determination of the direction indicating operation.

  In the above embodiment, the direction indicator control device 11 performs the validity / invalidity determination when it is determined that there is a possibility of continuously changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the road condition. However, the present invention is not limited to such a mode, and the validity / invalidity determination may always be performed.

  In the above-described embodiment, the determination period T for performing the validity / invalidity determination is provided after the end determination is made based on the traveling state of the host vehicle. However, the determination period T is omitted and the determination period T before the end determination is made. The validity / invalidity determination may be performed based on the driver's line of sight during a predetermined period. In this case, it is desirable that the end determination condition based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is set so that the end determination is made after the vehicle 1 shifts to the straight traveling state.

  In the above embodiment, when the direction indicator control device 11 determines that there is a possibility of changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator 10 based on the road state acquired from the road state acquisition device 17. The line-of-sight detection request signal Sr for requesting detection of the driver's line of sight is output to the line-of-sight detection ECU 16, but the present invention is not limited to such a mode. For example, the direction indicator control device 11 requests a gaze detection request signal to detect the driver's gaze while the turn lamps 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b are blinking, that is, during the direction indication operation. Sr may be output to the line-of-sight detection ECU 16. The line-of-sight detection ECU 16 may supply driving power to the camera 16a while the line-of-sight detection request signal Sr is input. According to such a configuration, power consumption can be suitably suppressed. In this case, the road condition acquisition device 17 may be omitted.

  The line-of-sight detection ECU 16 may always supply driving power to the camera 16a regardless of the road conditions ahead of the host vehicle. In addition, when the camera which images a driver | operator's head is mounted in the vehicle 1 like the vehicle-mounted system which images the driver | operator's head, for example in order to prevent a driver's dozing, A captured image (image information) may be shared.

  In the above embodiment, the end determination at the time of lane change is performed based on the change in the yaw rate and the steering angle θ. However, the present invention is not limited to such a mode, and the end determination is performed based on only one of them. It may be.

  In the above embodiment, the change in the yaw rate and the steering angle θ is set as the end determination condition in step 104 so that the end determination is made even when the steering angle θ of the steering wheel W is smaller than the cancel preparation angle θ1. It is not limited to such an aspect. For example, the direction determination operation end determination may be made based only on the end determination condition based on the steering angle θ of the steering wheel W, that is, the end determination condition at the time of right / left turn. Even in such a case, it is possible to save time and effort to continuously operate the direction indicator in the same direction when turning right or left in the same direction immediately after turning right or left at the intersection, for example.

  In the above embodiment, the line-of-sight detection ECU 16 as the line-of-sight detection means is provided separately from the direction indicator control device 11 as the end determination means, but these may be provided as one control device. In addition, the existing end determination ECU as an end determination means for determining whether to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator 10 based on the traveling state of the host vehicle, and the end determination based on the captured images G1, G2. A direction indicator control device may be configured from an invalidity determination ECU that determines whether or not to be invalidated. In this case, for example, when the end determination is made while the valid / invalid determination signal indicating that the end determination is valid is input from the invalidity determination ECU, the end determination ECU ends the direction indicating operation.

  In the above embodiment, the automatic return type operation lever 4 that returns to the operation neutral position P when the operation force is released is used. However, the operation lever having a structure that is held at each operation position PL, PR is used. Also good.

Next, the technical idea that can be grasped from the embodiment will be described below.
(A) The line-of-sight detection means includes imaging means for imaging the driver's head, and supplies driving power to the imaging means only during the direction indicating operation. The direction indicator control device according to any one of 1 to 4. According to the present invention, since driving power is supplied to the imaging means only while the direction indicator performs the direction indicating operation, it is possible to suitably suppress power consumption.

(A) is the schematic when the vehicle is seen from the top, (b) is the schematic around the steering wheel. The block diagram which shows the electrical structure of a direction indicator. (A) is the schematic which shows the driver | operator's eyes | visual_axis at the time of a driving | operation, (b) is explanatory drawing which shows the captured image of the camera at that time. (A) is the schematic which shows the driver | operator's eyes | visual_axis at the time of a driving | operation, (b) is explanatory drawing which shows the captured image of the camera at that time. The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the completion | finish determination process of a direction indicator. (A) is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the course of the own vehicle, (b) is a timing chart for demonstrating the effect | action of a direction indicator. (A) is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the course of the own vehicle, (b) is a timing chart for demonstrating the effect | action of a direction indicator.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Direction indicator, 11 ... Direction indicator control apparatus as completion | finish determination means and invalidity determination means, 15a ... Turn switch as operation state detection means, 16 ... Eye-gaze detection ECU as eye-gaze detection means, 16a ... As imaging means , 17... Road condition acquisition device as road condition acquisition means, H... Driver's head, T .. determination period, W... Steering wheel, G1 and G2.

Claims (4)

A direction indicator control device for controlling an operating state of a direction indicator provided in a host vehicle,
An operating state detecting means for detecting an operating state of the direction indicator;
Line-of-sight detection means for detecting the line of sight of the driver from a captured image of the head of the driver of the host vehicle captured by the imaging means,
When the direction indication operation of the direction indicator is detected by the operating state detection unit, the host vehicle travels in the direction indicated by the direction indicator based on the driver's line of sight detected through the line of sight detection unit. If it is determined that there is a possibility to change the direction indicator, the direction indicator operation of the direction indicator is continued, and if it is determined that there is no possibility, the direction indicator The direction indicator control device is characterized in that the direction indicating operation is terminated. An end determining means for determining whether to end the direction indicating operation based on the traveling state of the host vehicle when the direction indicating operation of the direction indicator is detected by the operating state detecting unit;
When the direction indication operation of the direction indicator is detected by the operation state detection means, the host vehicle can change the course to the direction indicated by the direction indicator immediately after the end determination is made by the end determination means. Determining whether or not there is a possibility, based on the driver's line of sight, if it is determined that there is a possibility, invalidate the end determination by the end determination means and continue the direction indicating operation, 2. The direction indicator control device according to claim 1, wherein when it is determined that there is no possibility, the direction indicator control device according to claim 1, wherein valid / invalid determination is performed to validate the end determination and end the direction indicating operation. Road condition acquisition means for acquiring a road condition ahead of the host vehicle,
Based on the road condition, it is determined whether or not there is a possibility of continuously changing the course in the direction indicated by the direction indicator, and when it is determined that the possibility exists, based on the driver's line of sight The direction indicator control device according to claim 2, wherein the validity / invalidity determination is performed.   When it is determined that there is a possibility that the course is continuously changed based on the road state, the end determination based on the driver's line of sight is performed immediately after the end determination based on the traveling state of the host vehicle is performed. The direction indicator control device according to claim 3, further comprising a determination period for performing the validity / invalidity determination.

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