On-vehicle acoustic control system and method

• US 20060074684A1
• Filed: 09/20/2005
• Published: 04/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Yoshida, Ichiro, Yamada, Kazunao
• Granted Patent: US 7,636,663 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/271
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/36 Input/output arrangements for on-board computers

Abstract

An on-vehicle acoustic control system determines which one of sounds of an audio device and a navigation device should be generated with priority, when both devices are requested to generate respective sounds. The control system further detects a user'"'"'s physical condition based on an interaction with the user, a picture of the user and biometric information of the user. The control system generates sound in the order of determined priority, and varies the manner of sound generation based on the user'"'"'s physical condition.

Claims

1. An on-vehicle acoustic control system comprising:

on-vehicle devices including at least one of on-vehicle ECUs and on-vehicle systems that output a command representative of a request to output sound data and the sound data to a sound management ECU;

a sound management means that, when a command is inputted from the on-vehicle devices, analyzes the command to determine priority of the sound data, and when sound data is inputted from the on-vehicle devices, outputs a sound corresponding to the inputted sound data in an order of the priority of the sound data; and

an AI agent that can selectively execute a user mode and a vehicle mode, wherein the user mode detects user'"'"'s physical condition, and the vehicle mode outputs from the sound output means a sound corresponding to sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices,

wherein, when executing the vehicle mode, the AI agent acoustically controls a sound corresponding to the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices based on the user'"'"'s physical condition detected in the user mode thereby outputting the controlled sound from the sound output means.

2. The on-vehicle acoustic control system according to claim 1,

wherein the AI agent has a function to interact with a user, detects the user'"'"'s physical condition based on a result of interaction with the user at executing the user mode, and acoustically controls, at executing the vehicle mode, a sound corresponding to the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices based on the result of interaction with the user thereby outputting the controlled sound from the sound output means.

3. The on-vehicle acoustic control system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a photographing means for photographing a user,

wherein the AI agent has a function to analyze a user'"'"'s photographic image photographed by a photographing means, detects the user'"'"'s physical condition based on the user'"'"'s photographic image at executing the user mode, and acoustically controls, at executing the vehicle mode, a sound corresponding to the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices based on the user'"'"'s photographic image thereby outputting the controlled sound from the sound output means.

4. The on-vehicle acoustic control system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a biometric information measuring means for measuring user'"'"'s biometric information,

wherein the AI agent has a function to analyze user'"'"'s biometric information measured by the biometric information measuring means, detects user'"'"'s physical condition based on the user'"'"'s biometric information at executing the user mode, and acoustically controls, at executing the vehicle mode, a sound corresponding to the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices based on the user'"'"'s biometric information thereby outputting the controlled sound from the sound output means.

5. The on-vehicle acoustic control system according to claim 1,

wherein, when executing the vehicle mode, the AI agent acoustically controls a sound corresponding to the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices in conjunction with travel control operation, thereby outputting the controlled sound from the sound output means.

6. The on-vehicle acoustic control system according to claim 1,

wherein the AI agent periodically monitors whether a command is outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices, and when a command is outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices in a monitoring timing, executes the vehicle mode, and when a command is not outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices in the monitoring timing, executes the user mode.

7. The on-vehicle acoustic control system according to claim 1,

wherein, when timing is reached that periodically monitors whether a command is outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle ECUs or the on-vehicle systems when the vehicle mode is being executed, the AI agent determines whether sound data not processed exists in the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle ECUs or the on-vehicle systems in the monitoring timing, if sound data not processed exists, stores the sound data not processed as history, and at the time of next execution of the vehicle mode, processes the sound data not processed that is stored as the history.

8. An AI agent used in an on-vehicle acoustic control system comprising on-vehicle devices including at least one of on-vehicle ECUs and on-vehicle systems that output a command representative of a request to output sound data and the sound data to a sound management means, and a sound management means that analyzes a command inputted from the on-vehicle devices to determine the priority of sound data, and outputs from the sound output means a sound corresponding to the sound data inputted from the on-vehicle devices based on the priority of the sound data,

wherein the AI agent, is programmed to

selectively execute a user mode that detects user'"'"'s physical condition and a vehicle mode that outputs from the sound output means a sound corresponding to sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicle devices;

and

acoustically control, when executing the vehicle mode, a sound corresponding to the sound data outputted to the sound management means from the on-vehicles devices based on a user'"'"'s physical condition detected in the user mode, thereby outputting a controlled sound from the sound output means.

9. An acoustic control method for a vehicle having a plurality of sound generating devices, the method comprising steps of:

determining priority of sound generation of the sound generating devices when at least two sound generating devices are requested to generate respective sounds;

detecting indirectly a physical condition of a user in a vehicle;

generating requested sound in the vehicle in an order of the priority determined by the determining step and in a manner variable with the physical condition of a user detected by the detecting step.

10. The acoustic control method according to claim 9, wherein:

the sound generating devices include an audio device and a voice message generating device for providing information about travel path of the vehicle;

the determining step determines that the voice message generating device has a higher priority over the audio device; and

the generating step generates the voice message while reducing a volume of output sound of the audio device in a case that the voice message is requested while the audio device is in a sound generating operation.

11. The acoustic control method according to claim 10, wherein:

the generating step increases a volume of the voice message and decreases speed of the voice message when the detecting step detects that the user is tired than normal.