Information presentation controlling apparatus and method

• US 20030182028A1
• Filed: 02/14/2003
• Published: 09/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Takahashi, Toshiaki, Seto, Fumio, Yamamoto, Yasuhide
• Granted Patent: US 7,054,723 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3641 Personalized guidance, e.g. limited guidance on previously travelled routes

Abstract

In information presentation controlling apparatus and method, a detecting section detects a running state of a mobile body and a running environment thereof, a mental fatigue calculating section calculates a mental fatigue that an operator of the mobile body (specifically, a vehicle driver) suffers due to an operation of the mobile body (an automotive vehicle) from a result of detection by the detecting section, a producing section produces the information to the operator of the mobile body, and an information presentation controlling section controls the information to be produced to the operator of the mobile body through the producing section in accordance with the mental fatigue calculated by the mental fatigue calculating section.

Claims

1. An information presentation controlling apparatus, comprising:

a detecting section that detects a running state of a mobile body and a running environment thereof;

a mental fatigue calculating section that calculates a mental fatigue that an operator of the mobile body suffers due to an operation of the mobile body from a result of detection by the detecting section;

a producing section that produces the information to the operator of the mobile body; and

an information presentation controlling section that controls the information to be produced to the operator of the mobile body through the producing section in accordance with the mental fatigue calculated by the mental fatigue calculating section.

2. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the detecting section detects property and kind of a road on which the mobile body is running.

3. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the detecting section detects a shape of a road segment on which the mobile body is running.

4. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the detecting section detects a brake manipulation by the operator.

5. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the detecting section detects a steering operation by the operator.

6. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the detecting section detects a distance between a surrounding another mobile body and the mobile body.

7. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the detecting section detects an accelerator manipulated variable of an accelerator.

8. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mental fatigue calculating section calculates the mental fatigue for each predetermined time.

9. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mental fatigue calculating section calculates the mental fatigue for each predetermined distance of travel of the mobile body.

10. An information presentation controlling apparatus for a mobile body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mobile body is an automotive vehicle, the operator includes a vehicle driver, and the information producing section includes at least one of speaker and display.

11. An information presentation controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle, comprising:

a running environment information retrieving section that retrieves an information on a running environment of the vehicle and estimates a degree of a mental fatigue that the vehicle driver would normally suffer during a drive of the vehicle from the retrieved running environment for each predetermined time interval;

a vehicular running situation detecting section that detects a vehicular running situation and estimates a corrective mental fatigue that the vehicle driver would suffer due to a sudden happening during the drive of the vehicle from the detected vehicular running situation for each predetermined time interval;

an accumulated mental fatigue calculating section that adds the corrective mental fatigue estimated by the vehicular running situation detecting section to the mental fatigue estimated from the running environment information retrieving section so as to determine an accumulated mental fatigue; and

an information presentation controlling section that controls a quantity of information to be presented to the vehicle driver through a producing section in accordance with a magnitude of the accumulated mental fatigue.

12. An information presentation controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein, as the accumulated mental fatigue determined by the accumulated mental fatigue calculating section becomes increased, the quantity of the information to be presented to the vehicle driver becomes reduced.

13. An information presentation controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein a plurality of information to be produced to the vehicle driver have priorities and, as the accumulated mental fatigue calculating section becomes increased, any information having low priorities are not produced.

14. An information presentation controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein the information presentation controlling apparatus further comprises:

a vehicular power supply off determining section that determines whether a vehicular power supply is turned off and wherein the accumulated mental fatigue value is reduced when the vehicular power supply off determining section determines that the vehicular power supply is turned off.

15. An information presentation controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein the running environment information retrieving section retrieves property and kind of a road on which the vehicle is running and a vehicular velocity, a road shape, a time, a day of a week, and weather.

16. An information presentation controlling apparatus for an automotive vehicle as claimed in claim 11, wherein the running situation detecting section detects whether a brake is suddenly manipulated so as to exceed a predetermined velocity, or whether a steering wheel of the vehicle is steered at a velocity exceeding a predetermined velocity, whether an accelerator is suddenly manipulated, or whether a distance between another vehicle and the vehicle which is running ahead of the vehicle is equal to or below a predetermined distance.

17. An information presentation controlling method, comprising:

detecting a running state of a mobile body and a running environment thereof;

calculating a mental fatigue that an operator of the mobile body suffers due to an operation of the mobile body from a result of detecting the running state of the mobile body and the running environment thereof;

producing the information to the operator of the mobile body through a producing section; and

controlling the information to be produced to the operator of the mobile body through the producing section in accordance with the calculated mental fatigue.

18. An information presentation controlling method for an automotive vehicle, comprising:

retrieving an information on a running environment of the vehicle;

estimating a degree of a mental fatigue that the vehicle driver would normally suffer during a drive of the vehicle from the retrieved running environment for each predetermined time interval;

detecting a vehicular running situation;

estimating a corrective mental fatigue that the vehicle driver would suffer due to a sudden happening during the drive of the vehicle from the detected vehicular running situation for each predetermined time interval;

adding the estimated corrective mental fatigue to the estimated mental fatigue so as to determine an accumulated mental fatigue; and

controlling a quantity of information to be presented to the vehicle driver through a producing section in accordance with a magnitude of the accumulated mental fatigue.

19. An information presentation controlling apparatus, comprising:

detecting means for detecting a running state of a mobile body and a running environment thereof;

mental fatigue calculating means for calculating a mental fatigue that an operator of the mobile body suffers due to an operation of the mobile body from a result of detection by the detecting means;

producing means for producing the information to the operator of the mobile body; and

information presentation controlling means for controlling the information to be produced to the operator of the mobile body through the producing means in accordance with the mental fatigue calculated by the mental fatigue calculating means.