IN-VEHICLE EQUIPMENT CONTROL DEVICE

• US 20080249668A1
• Filed: 04/08/2008
• Published: 10/09/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai RIKA Denki Seisakusho
• Original Assignee: C/O Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai-Rika-Denki-Seisakusho, DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: KUMAGAI, Katsuhide, YAMAMOTO, Norio, KITAGAWA, Nozomi, MIYATA, Masahiko
• Granted Patent: US 8,229,603 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/782 on the steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/10 Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/60 Instruments characterised by their location or relative disposition in or on vehicles arrangements of lighting devices on dashboards B60Q3/10
• CPC Class Codes: G05G 2009/04714 with orthogonal axes
• CPC Class Codes: G05G 2009/04748 Position sensor for rotary movement, e.g. potentiometer
• CPC Class Codes: G05G 2009/04751 Position sensor for linear movement
• CPC Class Codes: G05G 2009/04766 providing feel, e.g. indexing means, means to create counterforce
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/2084 Knob or dial

Abstract

An in-vehicle equipment control device includes a force sense imparting type input device mounted on a steering of a vehicle, for remotely operating an in-vehicle equipment mounted on the vehicle according to a predetermined operation route while imparting a force sense, a storage unit for storing an operation route data to conduct an input operation of the force sense imparting type input device with a predetermined operation route, and a control unit for conducting an arithmetic process to transform the predetermined operation route of the force sense imparting type input device based on a rotation angle detection signal which is output in accordance with the rotation of the steering of the vehicle and the operation route data stored in the storage unit, to impart the force sense to the force sense imparting type input device based on a result of the arithmetic process.

Claims

1. An in-vehicle equipment control device comprising:

a force sense imparting type input device mounted on a steering of a vehicle, for remotely operating an in-vehicle equipment mounted on the vehicle according to a predetermined operation route while imparting a force sense;

a storage unit for storing an operation route data to conduct an input operation of the force sense imparting type input device with a predetermined operation route; and

a control unit for conducting an arithmetic process to transform the predetermined operation route of the force sense imparting type input device based on a rotation angle detection signal which is output in accordance with the rotation of the steering of the vehicle and the operation route data stored in the storage unit, to impart the force sense to the force sense imparting type input device based on a result of the arithmetic process.

2. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit comprises a judgment unit which compares the rotation angle detection signal with a threshold angle and judges whether or not to conduct the arithmetic process based on a result of the comparison.

3. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 2, wherein the judgment unit judges whether the rotation detection angle is greater or less than the threshold angle.

4. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit comprises a judgment unit which compares a running speed of the vehicle with a predetermined threshold speed and judges whether or not to conduct the arithmetic process based on a result of the comparison.

5. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 4, wherein the judgment unit judges whether the vehicle running speed is greater or less than the threshold speed.

6. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores a monitor display data for displaying operation patterns of the in-vehicle equipment to be operated on a display monitor, and operation route data in the state that the operation patterns of the force sense imparting type input device are not rotated by a steering shaft.

7. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the rotation angle detection signal represents a rotation detection angle which is input from a rudder angle a sensor of the vehicle.

8. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the force sense imparting type input device is connected to the control unit, and position coordinates input by an operating knob are output to the control unit from the force sense imparting type input device.

9. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the force sense imparting type input device is connected to the control unit, and a drive signal for imparting the force sense is input to the force sense imparting type input device from the control unit.

10. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the in-vehicle equipment to be operated is remotely operated based on information of an input operation of the force sense imparting type input device.

11. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, wherein the force sense imparting type input device comprises:

a knob shaft attached to an operation knob;

an X carriage which butts to the knob shaft in an X direction and slides with the knob shaft in a Y direction to slidably move along the X direction;

a Y carriage positioned in orthogonal to the X carriage, the Y carriage butting to the knob shaft in the Y direction and sliding with the knob shaft in the X direction to slidably move along the Y direction;

a voice coil motor mounted on each of the X carriage and the Y carriage for imparting the force sense; and

a liner potentiometer for detecting travel distances of the X carriage and Y carriage respectively.

12. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 11, wherein the X carriage and the Y carriage are supported by liner slide guides, and the linear slide guides are installed to the base to be slidably movable in the X and Y directions, respectively.

13. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 11, wherein the voice coil motor comprises a voice coil fixed on the X carriage or Y carriage, and a magnetic circuit comprising a magnet and a yoke made of a soft magnetic material.

14. The in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 13, wherein the voice coil is subjected to an electromagnetic force according to the Fleming'"'"'s left-hand rule by applying the current through the conductive wire and activates the driving force to the X carriage or the Y carriage.

15. A method for controlling an in-vehicle equipment control device by a force sense imparting type input device mounted on a steering of a vehicle, for remotely operating an in-vehicle equipment mounted on the vehicle according to a predetermined operation route while imparting a force sense, comprising:

a rotational transformation step of conducting an arithmetic process for a rotational transformation based on a rotation detection angle that is output in accordance with a rotation of the steering of the vehicle and an operation route data stored in a storage unit, to create a new operation route data (x₁, y₁) after the rotational transformation;

a force sense imparting step of imparting the force sense to the force sense imparting type input device based on the new operation route data; and

an in-vehicle equipment operation step of creating a new operation route data (x′

, y′

) by conducting an arithmetic process for an inverse rotation transformation based on the operation route data (x₁, y₁), thereby remotely operating the in-vehicle equipment.

16. The method for controlling the in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 15, wherein the rotational transformation step proceeds after an angle judgment step of comparing a rotation detection angle that is output in accordance with a rotation of the steering of the vehicle with a threshold angle θ

₀ stored as a judgment data in the storage unit, and a speed judgment step of comparing a running speed of the vehicle and a threshold speed v₀ stored as the judgment data in the storage unit.

17. The method for controlling the in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 15, wherein the rotational transformation step comprises a judgment step of judging as to whether the vehicle is rung or stopping.

18. The method for controlling the in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 16, wherein the rotational transformation step proceeds when the rotation angle is judged to be greater than the threshold angle θ

₀ at the angle judgment step and the running speed is judged to be less than the threshold speed v₀ at the speed judgment step.

19. The method for controlling the in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 16, wherein the in-vehicle equipment operation step proceeds when the rotation detection angle is judged to be less than the threshold angle θ

₀ at the angle judgment step, or when the running speed is judged to be greater than the threshold speed v₀ at the speed judgment step.

20. A method for controlling an in-vehicle equipment control device by a force sense imparting type input device mounted on a steering of a vehicle, for remotely operating an in-vehicle equipment mounted on the vehicle according to a predetermined operation route while imparting a force sense, comprising:

a comparison step of comparing a rotation detection angle that is output in accordance with a rotation of the steering of the vehicle and angles each of which corresponding to a force sense pattern stored a storage unit;

a force sense pattern reading step of reading the force sense pattern corresponding to the angle closest to the rotation detection angle; and

a force sense imparting step of imparting the force sense to the force sense imparting type input device based on the force sense pattern.