JP2010221797A - Direction indicator - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a direction indicator capable of attaining lighting or non-lighting control of a turn signal by manual operation of a turn lever when the operation of the turn lever is performed by a momentary switch. <P>SOLUTION: The direction indicator has: the turn lever 20 rocking-operably supported and automatically reset to a neutral position after rocking operation; a turn switch 10 operated by rocking operation of the turn lever 20, lighting the turn signal in a predetermined direction for informing a traveling direction of the vehicle and setting an automatic turn cancel mode for automatically releasing lighting of the turn signal; and a turn signal control part 30 for performing automatic releasing of lighting of the turn signal based on the set automatic turn cancel mode, manually releasing lighting of the turn signal based on the action state of the turn switch 10 and performing manual control of the turn signal for lighting the turn signal in a predetermined direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a direction indicating device.

  Conventionally, in a vehicle, a turn indicator provided in the vicinity of a steering wheel is operated to turn on direction indicator lamps provided at the front and rear of the vehicle, for example, when turning left or right or changing to a lane to an adjacent lane, etc. A direction indicating device that indicates the traveling direction of the vehicle intended by the driver is provided.

  The direction indicating device includes a turn switch that activates a direction indicating lamp in a traveling direction by operating the turn lever in a direction corresponding to the traveling direction of the vehicle, and a steering wheel in a direction opposite to the operating direction of the turn lever. In many cases, it is provided with a release mechanism that returns the turn lever to its original position when it returns to its original position after being rotated by an angle or more, and automatically releases the direction indication. In such a direction indicating device, when the operation switch is operated in a direction corresponding to the traveling direction of the vehicle, the direction indicating lamp in the traveling direction is turned on. When the turn of the vehicle is completed 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 direction indicator lamp is turned off.

  On the other hand, the vehicle includes a direction indication lamp that informs the steering direction of the vehicle, direction indication means that turns on the direction indication lamp by an input operation, and a turn-off means that turns off the lighted direction indication lamp. A first turn-off means for detecting a steering direction and outputting a turn-off signal to turn off the direction indication lamp when the steering direction is opposite to the direction input by the direction instruction means; There has been proposed a vehicular direction indicating device that includes a second extinguishing unit that outputs an extinguishing signal after a predetermined time has elapsed to extinguish a direction indicating lamp (see Patent Document 1). Then, the turn instruction control means in the auto mode has a structure (momentary switch) that automatically returns to the neutral state after tilting to the left or right by the input operation of the turn lever.

  According to the direction indicating device of Patent Document 1 shown above, since the direction indicating means is configured to automatically return, an operation for manually returning the direction indicating means is unnecessary, and the driver's operation is saved. It is said that driving operation can be performed safely.

JP 2000-355246 A

  However, according to the direction indicating device of Patent Document 1, the turn canceling control in the auto mode is performed, so that it is not necessary to manually return the direction indicating means. However, depending on the situation, there is a case where it is desired to cancel by the manual operation. is there. Also. On the other hand, there are times when you want to give a turn signal in reverse to the turn signal that has already been issued.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a direction indicating device capable of turning on / off a turn signal by manually operating a turn lever when the turn lever is operated by a momentary switch. .

  [1] The present invention is supported so as to be able to perform a swing operation, and a turn lever that automatically returns to a neutral position after the swing operation, and a predetermined direction that is operated by the swing operation of the turn lever to notify the traveling direction of the vehicle. The turn signal is turned on, a turn switch for setting an auto turn cancel mode for automatically canceling the turn signal lighting, and the turn signal lighting is automatically canceled based on the set auto turn cancel mode, A turn signal control unit for manually canceling turning on of the turn signal based on an operation state of the turn switch and performing manual control of the turn signal for turning on a turn signal in a predetermined direction, A direction indicating device is provided.

  [2] The turn signal control unit turns off the turn signal by operating the turn lever in the same direction as or in the reverse direction of the turn signal in the auto turn cancel mode. The direction indicating device according to [1] may be used.

  [3] In addition, the turn signal control unit may operate the turn signal by pressing and holding the turn lever in a direction opposite to the turn signal lighting direction when the turn signal lights in a predetermined direction. The direction indication device according to the above [1], which is turned on in a direction opposite to the predetermined direction.

  According to the present invention, when the operation of the turn lever is performed by a momentary switch, it is possible to provide a direction indicating device that can turn on or off the turn signal by manually operating the turn lever.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a direction indicating device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of the turn lever mounted on the back side of the steering wheel as seen from the driver side. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the direction indicating device.

(Embodiment of the present invention)
A direction indicating device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is supported so as to be swingable, and is operated by a swing lever 20 that automatically returns to a neutral position after the swing operation, and a swing operation of the turn lever 20. A turn switch 10 for setting an auto turn cancel mode for automatically turning off a turn signal in a predetermined direction informing a traveling direction and automatically canceling the turn signal lighting, and an automatic turn signal lighting based on the set auto turn cancel mode. And a turn signal control unit 30 that manually releases the turn signal based on the operating state of the turn switch 10 and manually controls the turn signal to turn on the turn signal in a predetermined direction. Configured.

  The direction indicating device 1 performs a direction indicating operation for notifying a driver of another vehicle or the like of the traveling direction of the vehicle to be driven by turning on a pair of left and right turn lamps 50 provided respectively in front and rear of the vehicle.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the direction indicating device 1 is operated through a turn lever 20 provided in a steering column 101 of a vehicle. The turn lever 20 is disposed on the back side of the steering wheel 102 indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2 when viewed from the driver. The base end portion of the turn lever 20 is rotatably supported inside the steering column 101, and the turn lever 20 protrudes outside the steering column 101. The base end portion of the turn lever 20 is swingable by a predetermined angle in the direction along the rotation direction of the steering wheel 102 around the rotation shaft 103 of the turn lever 20 disposed therein with respect to the steering column 101. It is supported.

  The center axis of the turn lever 20 is held at the operation neutral position C shown in FIG. When the turn lever 20 is swung counterclockwise from the state where it is held at the operation neutral position C, the turn lever 20 swings to the left turn operation position A about the rotation shaft 103 of the turn lever 20. Thereby, the left turn lamps 50 respectively provided on the front and rear of the vehicle are turned on. When the operating force by the swing operation is released, the turn lever 20 automatically returns to the operation neutral position C by the action of a return mechanism (not shown). That is, the turn lever 20 is configured as a momentary switch that is a momentary type lever that always returns to the operation neutral position C. Even after the turn lever 20 returns to the operation neutral position C, the left turn lamp 50 continues to be lit.

  The return mechanism of the turn lever 20 can be a momentary type momentary switch that automatically returns to the operation neutral position C by a spring. However, the return mechanism is not limited to a spring, but is a rubber, polymer It may be an elastic body such as resin, or may be other means.

  When the turn lever 20 is swung as described above, the turn switch 10 shown in FIG. 1 provided at the position swung to the left turn operation position A is turned ON. As shown in FIG. 1, the output of the turn switch 10 is input to the turn signal control unit 30, and an auto turn cancel mode for automatically canceling the turn signal is set. When the operation force due to the swing operation to the left turn operation position A is released, the turn lever 20 automatically returns to the operation neutral position C by the action of a return mechanism (not shown).

  Similarly, when the turn lever 20 is swung clockwise from the state held at the operation neutral position C, the turn lever 20 swings to the right turn operation position B about the rotation shaft 103 of the turn lever 20. Thereby, the right turn lamps 50 respectively provided on the front and rear of the vehicle are turned on. When the operating force by the swing operation is released, the turn lever 20 automatically returns to the operation neutral position C by the action of a return mechanism (not shown). Even after the turn lever 20 returns to the operation neutral position C, the lighting display of the right turn lamp 50 is continued.

  When the turn lever 20 is swung as described above, the turn switch 10 shown in FIG. 1 provided at the position swung to the right turn operation position B is turned ON. As shown in FIG. 1, the output of the turn switch 10 is input to the turn signal control unit 30, and an auto turn cancel mode for automatically canceling the turn signal is set. When the operation force due to the swing operation to the right turn operation position B is released, the turn lever 20 automatically returns to the operation neutral position C by the action of a return mechanism (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the turn switch 10 provided in correspondence with the left turn operation position A and the right turn operation position B shown in FIG. Connected to the unit 30. The turn signal control unit 30 includes a control unit for controlling lighting of the left turn lamp and the right turn lamp 50 as turn signals based on the switch operation of the turn switch 10 by the left turn operation or the right turn operation of the turn lever 20.

  Here, the turn signal control unit 30 performs turn signal release control based on the operating state of the turn switch 10. The turn signal control unit 30 has an auto turn cancellation determination ECU (Electric Control Unit) 60 that automatically cancels the turn signal by determining a predetermined condition after the turn signal is generated by the swinging operation of the turn lever 20. ing. A vehicle speed sensor 70, a rudder angle sensor 71, and a yaw rate sensor 72 are connected to the auto turn cancel determination ECU 60, and an auto turn for automatically canceling a turn signal by determining a predetermined condition based on these sensor outputs. Cancel mode is set.

  The vehicle speed sensor 70 detects the traveling speed of the vehicle to be driven and outputs a vehicle speed detection signal corresponding to the detected speed to the turn signal control unit 30.

  When the steering wheel 102 is rotated by the driver, the steering angle sensor 71 detects a steering angle (steering angle) that is the rotation angle, and turns a steering angle detection signal according to the detected steering angle. Output to the signal control unit 30. That is, the rudder angle sensor 71 detects whether the steering wheel 102 has been rotated in the left or right direction with respect to the rudder angle midpoint (the rudder angle when the vehicle is traveling straight), and the rudder is steered in any case. The steering angle information of a positive value with reference to the midpoint of the angle is output as a steering angle detection signal. The steering angle information includes steering direction information indicating whether the steering wheel 102 is steered in the left or right direction.

  The yaw rate sensor 72 detects, for example, the yaw rate (behavior in the rotational direction of the vehicle) when the driving vehicle turns right or left or changes lanes, and outputs a yaw rate detection signal corresponding to the detected yaw rate to the turn signal control unit 30. Output to.

(Operation of direction indicator)
The operation of the direction indicating device will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. When the vehicle is in a driving state, the auto turn cancellation determination ECU 60 constantly monitors whether the turn switch 10 is turned on at a predetermined time interval (Step 1). If it is determined that the turn switch 10 is turned on, the process proceeds to Step 2, and if it is not determined that the turn switch 10 is turned on, Step 1 is repeated.

  If it is determined that the turn switch 10 has been turned ON, the turn signal control unit 30 controls lighting of the left turn lamp and the right turn lamp 50 corresponding to the left turn operation position A and the right turn operation position B shown in FIG. Step 2).

  After the turn lamp 50 is turned on in Step 2, an auto turn cancel mode for automatically canceling the turn signal is set (Step 3).

  After the turn lamp 50 is turned on and the auto turn cancel mode is set, the auto turn cancel determination ECU (Electric Control Unit) 60 determines whether or not the auto turn cancel condition is satisfied (Step 4). If it is determined that the auto turn cancel condition is satisfied, the process proceeds to Step 5, and the turn lamp 50 is turned off by the auto turn cancel. The auto turn cancel operation in Step 5 will be described later.

  If it is determined that the auto turn cancel condition is not satisfied, the process proceeds to Step 6 and subsequent steps, and the turn signal can be manually controlled in the manual mode. That is, when the driver swings the turn lever 20 to the left turn operation position A or the right turn operation position B, the turn switch 10 is turned on, and the turn signal can be manually controlled based on the turn switch 10 being turned on.

  When the turn signal control unit 30 determines that the turn switch 10 is turned on by the swinging operation of the turn lever 20, the turn lamp 50 is turned off in the manual mode (Step 7). Here, the signal pulse generated when the turn switch 10 is turned on has a predetermined time width, for example, 0.5 s or less. When the turn switch 10 is turned on by swinging the turn lever 20 to the left turn operation position A while the left turn lamp 50 is lit, the turn lever 20 is swung to the right turn operation position B while the right turn lamp 50 is lit. When the turn switch 10 is turned on by a dynamic operation, the turn signal control unit 30 turns off the turn lamp 50 using the signal pulse as a trigger. That is, the turn lamp 50 is turned off by swinging the turn lever 20 in the same direction as the turn lamp is turned on or blinking.

  For example, when the turn switch 10 is turned on by swinging the turn lever 20 to the right turn operation position B while the left turn lamp 50 is lit, or when the turn switch 20 is turned on while the right turn lamp 50 is lit. When the turn switch 10 is turned on by swinging to the position A, the turn lamp 50 is turned off. That is, the turn lamp 50 is turned off by swinging the turn lever 20 in the direction opposite to the turning on or blinking direction of the turn lamp.

  In Step 6, when it is not determined that the turn switch 10 is turned on by a short press (ON operation for a predetermined time of 0.5 s or less), the process proceeds to Step 8. In Step 8, it is determined whether or not the turn switch 10 is turned on by long pressing. When it is determined that the turn switch 10 is turned on by long press, the process proceeds to Step 9, and when it is not determined that the turn switch 10 is turned on by long press, the process returns to Step 4.

  In Step 9, the turn lamp 50 is turned on in the reverse direction using a signal pulse generated by long pressing of the turn switch 10 as a trigger. That is, when the turn lever 20 is swung to the right turn operation position B while the left turn lamp 50 is lit and the turn switch 10 is turned on by long press, the right turn lamp 50 is turned on. When the turn lever 20 is swung to the left turn operation position A and the turn switch 10 is turned on by long pressing while the light is on, the left turn lamp 50 is turned on. After turning on the turn lamp 50, the process returns to Step 4.

(Auto turn cancel operation)
The auto turn canceling operation in Step 5 is as follows. The auto turn cancellation determination ECU 60 provided in the turn signal control unit 30 detects the traveling state of the vehicle from the elapsed time from the starting time, the traveling speed of the vehicle, the steering angle, the yaw rate and the like when the direction instruction operation is started. Based on the running state, the auto turn cancel determination is made to end the direction indicating operation of the direction indicating device 1. Then, based on this auto turn cancellation determination, the direction indicating operation by turning on the turn lamp 50 is automatically terminated.

  In addition, the ROM connected to the auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 stores a cancel preparation angle θ1 and a cancel angle θ2 smaller than the cancel preparation angle θ1. The auto turn cancellation determination ECU 60 detects a change in the steering angle θ of the steering wheel 102 through the steering angle sensor 71 after the start of the direction indicating operation. 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 auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 determines that the auto turn cancel condition is satisfied. The determination is made to end the direction indicating operation of the turn lamp 50. As a result, the steering wheel 102 falls within the range of the cancel angle θ2 after the steering wheel 102 reaches the cancel preparation angle θ1 in the direction indicated by the turn ramp 50, for example, when the vehicle turns straight after turning right or left at an intersection. When it returns, the auto turn cancel determination is made based on the steering angle θ, and the direction indicating operation is automatically terminated.

  The auto turn cancellation determination ECU 60 detects a change in yaw rate (a change amount per unit time of the rotation angle in the turning direction of the vehicle) based on a yaw rate detection signal from the yaw rate sensor 72 after the turn lamp 50 is turned on. The ROM of the auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 stores a determination reference value serving as a reference for the auto turn cancel determination. Usually, the yaw rate changes so that the vehicle takes a maximum value and a minimum value from the start to the end of the course change such as a left / right turn or a lane change. The auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 converts the amount of change in the yaw rate into the amount of vehicle movement, and determines that the auto turn cancel condition is satisfied when the converted value exceeds the determination reference value.

  Further, the auto-turn cancel determination ECU 60 detects (calculates) a change amount of the steering angle θ based on the steering angle detection signal of the steering angle sensor 71. The auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 calculates a determination reference value that is a determination reference for performing the auto turn cancel determination based on the change amount of the steering angle θ. Normally, the steering angle θ changes so as to take the maximum value and the minimum value during the period from when the vehicle starts changing the course to when it ends, like the yaw rate. The auto-turn cancel determination ECU 60 determines that the auto-turn cancel condition is satisfied when the steering angle θ is below the determination reference value after taking the maximum value or exceeds the determination reference value after taking the minimum value. . The auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 determines that the direction indicating operation of the turn lamp 50 is to be terminated when either the auto turn cancel condition based on the yaw rate or the auto turn cancel condition based on the steering angle θ is satisfied. I do.

  The auto turn cancellation determination ECU 60 detects a change in yaw rate (a change amount per unit time of the rotation angle in the turning direction of the vehicle) based on a yaw rate detection signal from the yaw rate sensor 72 after the turn lamp 50 is turned on. The ROM of the auto turn cancel determination ECU 60 stores a determination reference value serving as a reference for the auto turn cancel determination. Usually, the yaw rate changes so that the vehicle takes a maximum value and a minimum value from the start to the end of the course change such as a left / right turn or a lane change. The yaw rate is used to calculate the lateral movement distance of the vehicle along with the vehicle speed and time, and when the movement distance exceeds the determination criterion, it is determined that the auto turn cancellation condition is satisfied.

  As a result, even when the change in the yaw rate in the direction indicated by the turn lamp 50 is small, such as when the lane is changed to an adjacent lane, the change amount of the steering angle θ is small and the steering angle θ of the steering wheel 102 is small. Even when the angle θ1 is not reached, the auto turn cancellation determination is made based on the change in the yaw rate. That is, even if the auto turn cancel condition based on the yaw rate change steering angle θ described above is not satisfied, if the auto turn cancel condition based on the yaw rate change amount of the steering angle θ is satisfied, the auto turn cancel determination of the direction indicating operation is performed. The direction indicating operation is automatically terminated not only when turning right or left such as at an intersection, but also when changing lanes to adjacent lanes, for example.

(Effect of the embodiment of the present invention)
The embodiment of the present invention has the following effects.
(1) When the direction indicating device 1 is constituted by a momentary switch, it is possible to control turning on / off of the turn signal by manual operation of the turn lever, and the convenience of turning on / off the turn signal can be achieved. Can be secured.
(2) It is possible to control lighting or extinguishing in either the left or right direction by manual operation of the turn lever.
(3) In order to distinguish the manual operation of the above-mentioned turn lever, the ON operation of the turn switch 10 is performed by an ON operation (for example, 0.5 s or less) by short pressing and an ON operation (for example, more than 0.5 s) by long pressing By determining, it is possible to perform control such as turning on the turn lamp 50 that is lit in the reverse direction.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said embodiment, It is possible to implement in a various aspect in the range which does not deviate from the summary. For example, in the operation of the direction indicating device, the turn lamp 50 is turned on in the reverse direction by turning on the turn switch 10 for a predetermined time of 0.5 s or less (short press), and the turn lamp 50 is turned off by long pressing the turn switch 10. You may do it. Also, since the yaw rate information can be substituted by the steering angle sensor 71, a configuration without the yaw rate sensor 72 is also possible.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Direction indication apparatus, 10 ... Turn switch, 20 ... Turn lever, 30 ... Turn signal control part, 50 ... Turn lamp, 60 ... Auto turn cancellation determination ECU, 70 ... Vehicle speed sensor, 71 ... Steering angle sensor, 72 ... Yaw rate Sensor 101 ... Steering column 102 ... Steering wheel 103 ... Rotating shaft

Claims (3)

A turn lever supported so as to be swingable and automatically returning to a neutral position after the swinging operation;
A turn switch that is operated by a swinging operation of the turn lever, turns on a turn signal in a predetermined direction that informs the traveling direction of the vehicle, and sets an auto turn cancel mode that automatically cancels turning on of the turn signal;
The turn signal lighting is automatically canceled based on the set auto turn cancel mode, and the turn signal lighting is manually canceled based on the operation state of the turn switch. A turn signal control unit for performing manual control of the turn signal to light up,
A direction indicating device characterized by comprising:   2. The turn signal controller according to claim 1, wherein the turn signal controller turns off the turn signal by operating the turn lever in the same direction as or opposite to the turn-on direction of the turn signal in the auto turn cancel mode. The direction indicating device described.   When the turn signal is lit in a predetermined direction, the turn signal control unit operates to push the turn lever in a direction opposite to the turn signal lighting direction to reverse the turn signal to the predetermined direction. The direction indicating device according to claim 1, wherein the direction indicating device is turned on.

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