HEAD-UP DISPLAY AND HEAD-UP DISPLAY PROGRAM PRODUCT

• US 20160152184A1
• Filed: 06/03/2014
• Published: 06/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ogawa, Hiroaki, Sakai, Makoto, Ando, Hiroshi, Fujikawa, Takayuki
• Application Number:
  US14/899,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20160152184A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/177 Augmented reality
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/178 Warnings
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/179 Distances to obstacles or vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/23 Head-up displays [HUD] optical aspects of head-up displays G02B27/01
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/28 characterised by the type of the output information, e.g. video entertainment or vehicle dynamics information; characterised by the purpose of the output information, e.g. for attracting the attention of the driver
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/205 using a head-up display
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/012 comprising devices for attenuating parasitic image effects
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0127 comprising devices increasing the depth of field
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/014 comprising information/image processing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0141 characterised by the informative content of the display
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0101 characterised by optical features G02B27/0172 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/006 Mixed reality object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/16 Anti-collision systems road vehicle drive control systems for predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision otherwise than by control of a particular sub-unit B60W30/08
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/10 Intensity circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/373 for modifying the size of the graphic pattern

Abstract

A head-up display (10) equipped to a vehicle includes a front view information acquisition unit (22, S110, S120), a virtual image display unit (22, S180), and a size adjustment unit (22, S140-S160). The front view information acquisition unit acquires front view information indicative of an object existing on a travelling road of the vehicle. The virtual image display unit controls lights generated for displaying an object marker corresponding to the object indicated by the front view information acquired by the front view information acquisition unit to be reflected on a windshield (6) and displays the object marker as a virtual image in front of the vehicle. When the object is positioned ahead of the virtual image of the object marker in a traveling direction of the vehicle, the size adjustment unit adjusts a size of the object marker so that a length of the object marker in a width direction of the vehicle is at least equal to or longer than a display reference length, which is defined as a length of a line segment that connects, along the width direction of the vehicle and passing through the position where the virtual image of the object marker is formed, a straight line connecting a right eye of a driver of the vehicle with the object and another straight line connecting a left eye of the driver with the object.

Claims

1. A head-up display equipped to a vehicle comprising:

a front view information acquisition unit acquiring front view information indicative of an object existing on a road along which the vehicle travels;

a virtual image display unit controlling lights, which are generated for displaying an object marker corresponding to the object indicated by the front view information acquired by the front view information acquisition unit, to be reflected on a windshield of the vehicle and displaying the object marker representing the object as a virtual image in front of the vehicle; and

a size adjustment unit adjusting a size of the object marker displayed by the virtual image display unit when a position where the object exists is ahead of a position where the virtual image of the object marker is formed in a traveling direction of the vehicle, wherein the size adjustment unit adjusts the size of the object marker so that a length of the object marker in a width direction of the vehicle is at least equal to or longer than a display reference length, and the display reference length is defined as a length of a line segment that connects, along the width direction of the vehicle and passing through the position where the virtual image of the object marker is formed, a straight line connecting a right eye of a driver of the vehicle with the object and another straight line connecting a left eye of the driver with the object.

2. The head-up display according to claim 1, wherein

the virtual image display unit defines a shape of the object marker so that an upper side and a lower side of the shape of the object marker are parallel to the width direction of the vehicle and a shorter one between the upper side and the lower side of the shape of the object marker has a length equal to or longer than the length of the display reference length.

3. The head-up display according to claim 2, wherein

the object marker displayed by the virtual image display unit has an elongated shape which is longer in the width direction of the vehicle than in a height direction of the vehicle.

4. The head-up display according to claim 1, further comprising:

a brightness adjustment unit adjusting a brightness of the object marker displayed by the virtual image display unit so that the brightness at a central portion of the object marker in the width direction of the vehicle is higher than the brightness at both end portions of the object marker in the width direction of the vehicle.

5. A computer-readable head-up display program product comprising instructions to be executed by a computer included in a head-up display equipped to a vehicle, the instructions for implementing:

acquiring front view information indicative of an object existing on a road along which the vehicle travels;

controlling lights, which are generated for displaying an object marker corresponding to the object indicated by the front view information acquired in an acquiring step of the front view information, to be reflected on a windshield of the vehicle and displaying the object marker representing the object as a virtual image in front of the vehicle; and

adjusting a size of the object marker displayed in a displaying step of the object marker when a position where the object exists is ahead of a position where the virtual image of the object marker is formed in a traveling direction of the vehicle, wherein the size of the object marker is adjusted so that a length of the object marker in a width direction of the vehicle is at least equal to or longer than a length of a line segment that connects, along the width direction of the vehicle and passing through the position where the virtual image of the object marker is formed, a straight line connecting a right eye of a driver of the vehicle with the object and another straight line connecting a left eye of the driver with the object.