JP5056515B2 - Switch system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a switching system having an LED for illumination.

  Conventional switches having LEDs for illumination include those shown in FIGS. In the switch 8 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the indicator LED 83 and the switch illumination LED 85 on the printed circuit board 86 are covered by the knob 81, and the light emitted from the indicator LED 83 passes through the indicator lens 82 and passes through the knob 81. Released to the outside. The light emitted from the switch illumination LED 85 passes through the switch illumination lens 84 and illuminates the knob 81.

  In the switch 9 shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the indicator LED 93 on the printed circuit board 96 is covered by the knob 91, and the switch illumination LED 95 on the printed circuit board 96 is covered by the panel 97. Is emitted to the outside of the knob 91 through the indicator lens 92. Further, the light emitted from the switch illumination LED 95 passes through the switch illumination lens 94 and leaks from the gap between the knob 91 and the panel 97.

  These conventional switches 8 and 9 are each provided with two LEDs, but one LED is used for an indicator and the other LED is used for knob illumination. Therefore, the illumination color of the switch does not change.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to make Oite the switching system having a plurality of LED, illumination color is variable.

The invention described in claim 1 for achieving the above object includes a switch (10) for accepting a user operation, an HMI (23) provided separately from the switch (10) and accepting an operation by the user, and a control. vessel (25), a switch system comprising a switch is, a first LED (3), a second LED emitting a different color from the emission color of the first LED (3) ( 4), the knob (1) covering the first LED (3) and the second LED (4), the light from the first LED (3) and the light from the second LED (4) are mixed Then, the lens (2) that emits to the outside of the knob (1) (through the knob or from the gap of the knob), the light emission luminance of the first LED (3), and the light emission of the second LED (4) It includes a circuit (7) for changing the ratio of the luminance, wherein the controller (25), Yu When the user selects a color using the HMI (23), the circuit (7) calculates the ratio of the light emission luminance of the first LED (3) and the light emission luminance of the second LED (4) corresponding to the color. This is a switch system characterized by being realized in (1) .

  Thus, by changing the luminance distribution of the LEDs (3, 4) having different emission colors in the circuit (7), the mixed color in the lens (2) is changed, and the illumination color of the switch is changed. Therefore, the illumination color is variable in the switch having a plurality of LEDs.

The circuit (7), based on the operation of the user, may be adapted to vary the emission luminance ratio. In this way, the user can select a favorite color from various color variations in which the emission colors of at least two LEDs are appropriately combined . Further, as described in claim 2, the switch system includes an image display device (20) having the HMI (23) and the controller (25) ,
The switch system according to claim 1, wherein the switch (10) is for controlling the operation content of the vehicle interior temperature adjusting device or the navigation device .

Further, as described in claim 3, the switch system may be mounted on a vehicle. In that case, the circuit (7) may change the light emission luminance ratio based on the type of the vehicle occupant.

  In this way, the switch can be illuminated with a color scheme according to the occupant's atmosphere in the vehicle among various color variations in which the emission colors of at least two LEDs are appropriately combined.

Further, as described in claim 4, the switch system may be mounted on a vehicle. In this case, the circuit (7) may change the light emission luminance ratio based on the running state of the vehicle.

  This makes it possible to switch the switch with a color scheme according to the driving condition in the vehicle (for example, whether it is an emergency) among various color variations appropriately combining the emission colors of at least two LEDs. Can shine. Therefore, the vehicle occupant can more strongly feel the traveling state of the vehicle.

  In addition, the code | symbol in the bracket | parenthesis in the said and the claim shows the correspondence of the term described in the claim, and the concrete thing etc. which illustrate the said term described in embodiment mentioned later. .

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 schematically shows the overall configuration of the in-vehicle system according to the present embodiment. This in-vehicle system includes an image display device 20 and a plurality of switches 10a to 10q that are disposed in the vicinity of the image display device 20 and are disposed on an instrument panel or the like in the vehicle.

  The switches 10a to 10q are push buttons for controlling the operation contents of various devices (vehicle interior temperature adjusting device, navigation device) mounted on the vehicle. The image display device 20 displays various types of information to passengers (for example, drivers) in the vehicle. Each of these switches 10a-q emits light by the light of the LED.

  Hereinafter, the configuration of each of the switches 10a to 10q (simply referred to as the switch 10) will be described. 2 is a view of the switch 10 as viewed from the front (that is, the occupant side), and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.

  As shown in these drawings, the switch 10 includes a knob 1, an indicator lens 2, an indicator LED 3, an indicator LED 4, a printed circuit board 5, and a circuit unit 7.

  The printed circuit board 5 is fixed to the vehicle via a housing (not shown). The indicator LED 3, the indicator LED 4, and the circuit unit 7 are fixed to the front surface of the printed board 5.

  The knob 1 is a member made of a resin having a certain degree of translucency. The knob 1 is attached to the printed circuit board 5 or the above-described casing, and moves backward by receiving a user's pressing operation directly. When the knob 1 is pushed and moved rearward, a knob pressing sensor (not shown) detects this, and outputs a signal indicating that the switch 10 is pressed to a device to be controlled by the switch 10.

  The knob 1 is disposed so as to cover the front surfaces of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4. However, a hole for allowing the light from the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 to be emitted to the outside of the knob 1 is provided at the center of the front end portion of the knob 1.

  The indicator lens 2 has translucency, is fitted in a hole at the center of the front end of the knob 1, is divided into two branches in the knob 1, and each leg extends in the direction of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4.

  The indicator LED 3 is an LED that emits light in a first color (for example, green). The indicator LED 4 is an LED that emits light in a second color (for example, amber) different from the first color.

  The light emitted from the indicator LED 3 is introduced into the indicator lens 2 from the end of one leg of the indicator lens 2, and the light emitted from the indicator LED 4 is introduced from the end of the other leg of the indicator lens 2. It is introduced into the indicator lens 2. Then, in the indicator lens 2, the light from the indicator LED 3 and the light from the indicator LED 4 are mixed, and the mixed light is from the front end portion of the indicator lens 2, that is, from the hole at the center portion of the front end of the knob 1. Released to the outside of the knob 1. The color of the mixed light (that is, the mixed color) is determined by the luminance distribution of the first color and the second color.

  A part of the light mixed by the indicator lens 2 passes through the knob 1 and goes out of the knob 1. Therefore, the knob 1 is also illuminated by the light mixed by the indicator lens 2.

  The circuit unit 7 is a device that controls the light emission luminance of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the circuit unit 7. The circuit unit 7 includes a communication module 71, a storage medium 72, and a distribution circuit 73. The communication module 71 is a circuit for communicating with the image display device 20 or the like by wire or wireless. The storage medium 72 is a writable nonvolatile storage medium for storing information for various controls.

The distribution circuit 73 is a circuit that changes the luminance distribution of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 based on the recorded contents of the storage medium 72. When the luminance distribution of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 changes, the color of light mixed by the indicator lens 2 and emitted from the knob 1 changes. Thus, each switch 10 emits light from the indicator LED 3 and the indicator LED 3. The indicator LED 4 that emits light of a color different from the color, the knob 1 that covers the indicator LEDs 3 and 4, the light from the indicator LED 3 and the light from the indicator LED 4 are mixed to the outside of the knob 1 (through the knob) In addition, the indicator lens 2 that emits light (from the gap of the knob) and the circuit unit 7 that changes the ratio of the light emission luminance of the indicator LED 3 and the light emission luminance of the indicator LED 4 are provided.

  As described above, by changing the luminance distribution of the LEDs 3 and 4 having different emission colors in the circuit unit 7, the mixed color changes and the illumination color of the switch changes.

  Next, the image display device 20 will be described. The image display device 20 displays an image to the user, interactively accepts an operation using the display from the user, and transmits various signals to the circuit unit 7 by wire or wireless according to the user's operation. .

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image display device 20. The image display device 20 includes a communication module 21, a display device 22, an HMI 23, a storage medium 24, and an HMI controller 25.

  The communication module 21 is a circuit for communicating with the circuit unit 7 in a wired or wireless manner. The display 22 is a part that displays an image. The HMI 23 includes a mechanical switch and a touch panel overlaid on the display surface of the display 22 and detects a touch position on the display screen by the user. The storage medium 24 is a writable nonvolatile storage medium that stores various programs executed by the HMI controller 25 and various data used by the HMI controller 25. The HMI controller 25 is a normal microcomputer.

  Hereinafter, the operation of setting the light emission luminance by the image display device 20 will be described. When the user performs an operation for starting the setting process on the HMI 23, the HMI controller 25 executes the setting program recorded in the storage medium 24 to change the illumination color of each switch 10. Whether to set is determined based on the user's operation.

  Specifically, when the setting program is executed, an operation setting screen 30 as shown in FIG. 6 is first read from the storage medium 24 and displayed on the display 22. The operation setting screen 30 is an image of one display panel including the image display device 20 and the switches 10a to 10q illustrated in FIG. Then, the user can designate a portion corresponding to the switch in the operation setting screen 30 using the HMI 23.

  For example, when the user designates the switch selection button 31 (or its outline) and further designates a color setting button (not shown) in the operation setting screen 30, the HMI controller 25 sets the switch for the designated switch. A color control screen for allowing the user to select an illumination color is read from the storage medium 24 and displayed on the display 22.

  FIG. 7 shows an example 40 of the color control screen. The color control screen 40 is a diagram showing a distribution of combinations of colors and brightness in a two-dimensional display. For example, when the indicator LED 3 emits light in green and the indicator LED 4 emits light in amber, the user can specify a color range 43 that can be expressed by mixing the green 42 and the amber 441. It has become.

  When the user selects any position in the settable range 41, the HMI controller 25 causes the luminance distribution of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 corresponding to the color (for example, 100 to 0, 50 to 50, etc., 30 to 70). Etc.) and brightness are specified based on the information of the light emission colors of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 in the storage medium 24, and the specified luminance distribution is determined by using the communication module 21. 7 to send.

  Then, the communication module 21 of the circuit unit 7 receives the luminance distribution and brightness information and records them in the storage medium 72. The distribution circuit 73 adjusts the brightness of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 according to the recorded distribution and brightness when the vehicle is started (for example, when the engine is turned on) or received.

  As described above, the circuit unit 7 and the image display device 20 are configured to change the light emission luminance ratio based on a user operation. In this way, the user can select a favorite color from various color variations in which the emission colors of at least two LEDs are appropriately combined.

  In addition, when the user operates the HMI 23 and designates the blinking timing of the light (for example, it is always lit, repeats blinking every other second, and flashes once every second for 0.1 second). The HMI controller 25 may cause the communication module 21 to transmit a signal according to the designation, and the communication module 71 of the circuit unit 7 may receive the signal and record it in the storage medium 72.

  When there is not only one display panel as described above but a plurality of display panels are mounted on one vehicle, the HMI controller 25 first displays the images of all the display panels on the display device. When the user selects one of the display panels using the HMI 23, the operation setting screen 30 shown in FIG. 6 is displayed for the selected display panel, and then the same as above. The illumination color setting may be received in steps.

  Note that the HMI controller 25 does not allow the user to individually set the color scheme, brightness, and blinking timing of each switch 10 in the display panel, as described above, but a plurality of typical color scheme patterns prepared in advance. Then, by letting the user select one of the brightness pattern and the blinking pattern, the color arrangement of each switch 10 is determined according to the selected color arrangement pattern, and the determination result is transmitted to each circuit unit 7. May be. In this way, the user can select one color arrangement pattern, lightness pattern, and blinking pattern, and set the colors of a plurality of switches in the entire display panel in a short time (that is, in one step). Can do.

  Note that the information about the color arrangement pattern, the lightness pattern, and the blinking pattern for one entire display panel (or the entire display panel) may be recorded in advance in the storage medium 24 or may be controlled by HMI. The device 25 may be downloaded to the storage medium 24 from outside the vehicle by wireless communication.

  Further, the HMI controller 25 may determine the color arrangement, brightness, and blinking timing of the switch 10 in the display panel based on the type of passenger in the vehicle. For example, when the driver inputs the current passenger type (for example, male or female, work partner, play partner, family, etc.) using the HMI 23, the color scheme of each switch 10 depends on the type. To decide. For example, if the passenger is a male, it is a cool color (blue color), if it is a female, it is a warm color (red color), if it is a work partner, it is a cool color, if it is a play partner, it is a warm color, if it is a family, it is warm In other cases, a cold color scheme may be adopted.

  As described above, the circuit unit 7 and the image display device 20 may change the light emission luminance ratio based on the type of the vehicle occupant. In this way, the switch can be illuminated with a color scheme according to the occupant's atmosphere in the vehicle among various color variations in which the emission colors of at least two LEDs are appropriately combined.

  The storage medium 72 of the circuit unit 7 records both the luminance distribution, brightness, and blink timing setting data for normal use and the emergency luminance distribution, brightness, and blink timing setting data together. It may be. Only the normal setting data can be changed by a user operation as described above, and the emergency setting data may not be changed. For example, the setting data for emergency may be a setting that blinks rapidly and brightly in red.

  In this case, the distribution circuit 73 uses the communication module 71 to transmit information from the vehicle control ECU (not shown) such as the vehicle speed, the engine speed, the accelerator opening degree, and the acceleration, and the on-vehicle camera (not shown). ), Etc., received information on obstacles outside the vehicle transmitted from the peripheral monitoring system, etc., and based on the received information, the risk of speed exceeding the threshold, engine speed exceeding the threshold, approaching obstacles, etc. When the situation is detected, the emergency setting is applied to the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 from the state in which the normal setting is applied to the indicator LEDs 3 and 4. By doing in this way, the danger of a vehicle and a caution state are known to a user from the change of the color of the switch 10.

  In addition, as described above, the timing for changing the setting to be used from the normal one to the emergency one may be immediately after detecting an instantaneous dangerous situation, or vehicle information (for example, It is also possible to change the setting to the emergency setting when it reaches a certain threshold value (for example, 2 hours) after accumulating (continuous running time).

  Further, the distribution circuit 73 may change the display color corresponding to the eco-driving (that is, the driving that can keep fuel consumption low). For example, it is determined whether or not the accelerator opening (or deceleration) is large enough to exceed the eco-driving range, and if it is large, the luminance distribution of the indicator LEDs 3 and 4 is adjusted so that the illumination color of the switch 10 becomes amber. If not, the luminance distribution is adjusted so that the illumination color of the switch 10 is green. By doing in this way, the user can immediately determine from the illumination color of the switch 10 whether or not his driving is within the range of eco driving.

  Thus, the circuit unit 7 may change the light emission luminance ratio based on the running state of the vehicle. This makes it possible to switch the switch with a color scheme according to the driving condition in the vehicle (for example, whether it is an emergency) among various color variations appropriately combining the emission colors of at least two LEDs. Can shine. Therefore, the vehicle occupant can more strongly feel the traveling state of the vehicle.

  Further, among the switches 10 for the AUTO switch that operates the operation / non-operation of the room temperature adjustment device (or execution / non-execution of automatic control), the distribution circuit 73 operates while the room temperature adjustment device is operating. (Or during automatic control execution), the green indicator LED 3 is turned on and the amber indicator LED 4 is turned off to change the illumination color to green, while it is not in operation (or automatic control is not executed). In the middle), the green indicator LED 3 and the amber indicator LED 4 are turned on with the same luminance, so that the illumination color may be yellow.

  In this way, when the indoor temperature control device is operating (or when automatic control is being executed), the passenger can easily know that, and when it is not operating (or automatically When the control is not executed), the occupant can easily confirm the position of the knob of the switch.

  Among the switches 10, for the diff switch for operating the defroster, the distribution circuit 73 turns off the green indicator LED 3 and turns off the amber indicator LED 4 while the defroster is operating. By turning on the light, the illumination color is amber, and while the defroster is not operating, the green indicator LED 3 and the amber indicator LED 4 may be lit at the same luminance, so that the illumination color may be yellow.

  By doing so, the occupant can easily know when the defroster is operating, and the occupant can easily confirm the position of the knob of the switch when the defroster is not operating. it can.

(Other embodiments)
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, the scope of the present invention is not limited only to the said embodiment, The various form which can implement | achieve the function of each invention specific matter of this invention is included. It is.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the illumination color of the switch 10 is changed by mixing the two LEDs 3 and 4 that emit light of different colors with the indicator lens 2. However, as shown in FIG. 8, three LEDs 3, 4, and 6 each emitting light of different colors (for example, green, amber, blue) are mixed by the indicator lens 2, and the circuit unit 7 distributes the luminance of the mixture. By adjusting as described above, more various colors can be adopted as the illumination color of the switch 10.

  In addition, the HMI controller 25 may periodically change the color arrangement pattern of all the switches 10 in the display panel by periodically transmitting luminance distribution information to each circuit unit 7. .

  In the above-described embodiment, each function realized by the HMI controller 25 executing a program uses hardware having those functions (for example, an FPGA capable of programming a circuit configuration). It may be realized.

It is a mimetic diagram showing the whole vehicle-mounted system composition concerning the embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a front view of the switch 10. FIG. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a circuit unit 7. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image display device 20. FIG. It is a figure which shows the operation setting screen 30 by the display of the display machine. It is a figure which shows the color control screen. It is sectional drawing of the switch 10 in other embodiment. It is a front view which shows an example of the conventional switch. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. It is a front view which shows an example of the conventional switch. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 Knob 2 Indicator lens 3, 4, 6 LED for indicator
7 Circuit unit 8, 9, 10 Switch 20 Image display device 21 Communication module 22 Display device 23 HMI
24 Storage medium 25 HMI controller 30 Operation setting screen 31 Switch selection button 40 Color control screen 71 Communication module 72 Storage medium 73 Distribution circuit

Claims (4)

A switch (10) for accepting a user operation;
An HMI (23) that is provided separately from the switch (10) and receives an operation by a user;
A switch system comprising a controller (25),
The switch (10)
A first LED (3);
A second LED (4) that emits light in a color different from the emission color of the first LED (3);
A knob (1) covering the first LED (3) and the second LED (4);
A lens (2) that mixes the light from the first LED (3) and the light from the second LED (4) and emits it outside the knob (1);
A circuit (7) for changing a ratio of the light emission luminance of the first LED (3) and the light emission luminance of the second LED (4) ;
When the user selects a color using the HMI (23), the controller (25) emits light from the first LED (3) and the light emitted from the second LED (4) corresponding to the color. A switch system characterized by causing the circuit (7) to realize a luminance ratio. An image display device (20) having the HMI (23) and the controller (25) ;
The switch system according to claim 1, wherein the switch (10) is for controlling the operation content of the vehicle interior temperature adjusting device or the navigation device . The switch system is mounted on the vehicle,
The switch system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the circuit (7) changes the ratio based on a type of an occupant of the vehicle . The switch system is mounted on the vehicle,
The switch system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the circuit (7) changes the ratio based on a running state of the vehicle .

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