Vehicular input device and vehicular cockpit module

• US 9,511,669 B2
• Filed: 06/23/2015
• Issued: 12/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Mazda Motor Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Mazda Motor Corporation
• Inventors: Oda, Yusuke, Hisada, Seiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Butler, Rodney
• Assistant Examiner(s): BRUSHABER, FREDERICK M
• Application Number:
  US14/747,245
• Publication Number:
  US 20150367729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 532 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/113 Scrolling through menu items
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/115 Selection of menu items
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/146 Instrument input by gesture
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/1464 3D-gesture
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/149 Instrument input by detecting viewing direction not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• 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 35/81 for controlling displays
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a vehicular input device, which is arranged in a vehicle having a meter hood protruding toward a driving seat from an instrument panel and surrounding a meter, for detecting an operation of a driver based on an input screen image displayed on a display device arranged on the instrument panel at a side of the meter hood. The vehicular input device includes: a detection unit that is arranged at a side surface of the meter hood and is arranged between the display device and the driving seat; and a display control unit that changes a display mode of the display device in response to an output of the detection unit.

Claims

1. A vehicular input device, which is arranged in a vehicle having a meter hood protruding toward a driving seat from an instrument panel and surrounding a meter, for detecting an operation of a driver based on an input screen image displayed on a display device, which is arranged on the instrument panel at a side of the meter hood, the vehicular input device comprising:

a detector that is arranged at a side surface of the meter hood in space between the display device and the driving seat and configured to detect a spatial hand movement; and

a display controller that changes a display mode of the display device in response to an output concerning the detected spatial hand movement of the detector.

2. The vehicular input device according to claim 1,

wherein the display controller:

controls the display device to display a plurality of icon images lined up vertically as the input screen image;

estimates a vertical position of a driver'"'"'s finger and a distance between the detector and the driver'"'"'s finger based on an output of the detector;

selects one icon image from the plurality of icon images lined up vertically based on an estimated vertical position;

confirms an input to the one icon image under selection after determining that the distance between the detector and the driver'"'"'s finger is shorter than a predetermined threshold value; and

changes the display mode of the display device.

3. The vehicular input device according to claim 1,

wherein the display controller:

controls the display device to display a plurality of icon images lined up two-dimensionally as the input screen image;

sets a virtual input plane in the space between the display device and the driving seat;

estimates a position of a driver'"'"'s finger on the virtual input plane based on an output of the detector; and

selects one icon image from the plurality of icon images in response to the position of the driver'"'"'s finger.

4. The vehicular input device according to claim 3,

wherein the display controller:

determines whether a distance between the display device and the driver'"'"'s finger is shorter than a predetermined range;

confirms an input to the one icon image selected in response to a position of the driver'"'"'s finger on the virtual input plane when the distance is shorter than the predetermined range; and

changes a display mode of the display device.

5. The vehicular input device according to claim 1,

wherein the detector is a capacitance sensor, and

wherein the display controller estimates a position of a driver'"'"'s finger in the space between the display device and the driving seat based on a change in capacitance of the capacitance sensor, and changes the display mode of the display device based on a change in an estimated position of the driver'"'"'s finger.

6. The vehicular input device according to claim 5,

wherein the capacitance sensor includes a plurality of conductors arranged at least in a vehicular front-back direction, and

wherein the display controller estimates a distance between the capacitance sensor and the driver'"'"'s finger based on an amount of an electrical charge stored in a part of the conductors, which are arranged at a back side of a vehicle.

7. A vehicular cockpit module comprising:

a meter hood that protrudes toward a driving seat from an instrument panel and surrounds a meter;

a display device that is disposed at a side of the meter hood and arranged near a center of a vehicle in a width direction on the instrument panel; and

a vehicular input device that detects an operation of a driver based on an input screen image displayed on the display device,

wherein the vehicular input device includes;

a detector that is arranged at a side of the meter hood in space between the display device and the driving seat and configured to detect a spatial hand movement; and

a display controller that changes a display mode of the display device in response to an output concerning the detected spatial hand movement of the detector.

8. The vehicular cockpit module according to claim 7,

wherein the detector is a capacitance sensor, and

wherein the display controller estimates a position of a driver'"'"'s finger in the space between the display device and the driving seat based on a change in capacitance of the capacitance sensor, and changes a display mode of the display device based on a change in an estimated position of the driver'"'"'s finger.

9. The vehicular cockpit module according to claim 8,

wherein the meter hood has a side surface that protrudes toward a steering wheel of the vehicle in comparison with other parts of the meter hood, and

wherein the detector is arranged at a protruded side surface.

10. The vehicular cockpit module according to claim 8,

wherein the detector is a capacitance sensor including a plurality of conductors arranged at least in a vehicular front-back direction, and

wherein the display controller:

estimates a distance between the capacitance sensor and the driver'"'"'s finger based on an amount of an electrical charge in a part of the plurality of conductors, which are arranged in a back side of a vehicle; and

changes a display mode of the display device based on the change in the estimated position of the driver'"'"'s finger.

11. A vehicular cockpit module comprising:

a meter hood that protrudes toward a driving seat from an instrument panel and surrounds a meter;

a display device that is disposed at a side of the meter hood and arranged near a center of a vehicle in a width direction on the instrument panel; and

a vehicular input device that detects an operation of a driver based on an input screen image displayed on the display device,

wherein the vehicular input device includes;

a detector that is arranged at a side of the meter hood in space between the display device and the driving seat to detect a spatial hand movement; and

a display controller that changes a display mode of the display device in response to an output of the detector,

wherein the detector is a capacitance sensor, and

wherein the display controller estimates a position of a driver'"'"'s finger in the space between the display device and the driving seat based on a change in capacitance of the capacitance sensor, and changes a display mode of the display device based on a change in an estimated position of the driver'"'"'s finger.