Display control device for vehicle and display control method for vehicle

• US 9,701,199 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2013
• Issued: 07/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Miuchi, Yosuke, Miyashita, Naoki, Kashiwaya, Tomoyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Jelani
• Assistant Examiner(s): Martinez Borrero, Luis A
• Application Number:
  US14/760,405
• Publication Number:
  US 20150352956A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,292 Days
• Field of Search: 701 96, 701 36, 701 38, 701 41, 701 45, 701 48, 701 93, 701408, 701470, 701300, 701301, 701469, 345594, 345173, 345419, 345441, 345633, 345632, 345 30, 345420
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/166 Navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/167 Vehicle dynamics information
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/171 Vehicle or relevant part thereof displayed
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/172 Driving mode indication
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/215 characterised by the combination of multiple visual outputs, e.g. combined instruments with analogue meters and additional displays
• 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: 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: B60K 35/81 for controlling displays
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/02 Control of vehicle driving stability
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/143 Speed control B60W30/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/10 related to vehicle motion
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/0295 by overlaying a vehicle path based on present steering angle over an image without processing that image
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/10 Automotive applications
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/02 characterised by the way in which colour is displayed details of colour display specific for CRTs G09G1/28; specific for flat matrix panels other than liquid crystal displays G09G3/2003; specific for liquid crystal displays G09G3/3607
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/36 characterised by the display of a graphic pattern, e.g. using an all-points-addressable [APA] memory

Abstract

Information display is performed, in which recognizability of information regarding a driving support control is relatively good even in a situation where a driving load is relatively large, the information display not annoying a driver. A display controller displays a support state displaying image, which is an image having a configuration in which a vehicle image is superimposed on a mesh image as a mesh-like planar image, on a liquid crystal display device provided in a meter panel of a meter device. In addition, upon having determined that a driving support control implemented by a driving support device is operating, the display controller performs a display control to change a display mode of a mesh image portion of the support state displaying image, which is to be displayed on the liquid crystal display device, to a preset display mode.

Claims

1. A display control device for a vehicle, configured to perform a display control for a display device provided in a meter panel of an automotive meter device, the display control device comprising:

an operation state determination unit configured to detect an operation state of a respective driving support control implemented by a driving support device;

a steering angle sensor configured to detect a steering angle of the vehicle;

the driving support device configured to activate a driving support control, the driving support control configured to be activated while the vehicle is traveling along a road that is a curved road and to control braking/driving force of respective wheels of the vehicle, wherein the road is determined to be curved based on the steering angle; and

a display controller configured to display a support state displaying image on the display device, the support state displaying image being an image of a vehicle image superimposed on a background image that is a planar image with a predetermined shape,

wherein, upon having determined that the driving support control, is activated based on the operation state detected by the operation state determination unit, the display controller changes a shape of a portion of the background image to be displayed on the display device to a curve shape curved in a steering direction determined based on the steering angle.

2. The display control device for a vehicle according to claim 1,

wherein, based on the operation state detected by the operation state determination unit, while the driving support control activated while the vehicle is traveling along the curved road is operating, the display controller performs a display control to superimpose and display images with a wheel shape on wheel positions of the vehicle image in the support state displaying image and to display the images with the wheel shape by a color exerting a preset display effect of allowing the images with the wheel shape to look like emitting light.

5. The display control device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein, upon having determined that the driving support control is activated based on the operation state detected by the operation state determination unit, the display controller performs a display control to change a display color of the portion of the background image within a distance range preset from a portion of the vehicle image in the support state displaying image to a preset display color.

6. The display control device for a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the display controller changes a display color of the portion of the background image within a distance range preset from a portion of the vehicle image to a display color exerting a preset display effect of allowing the portion of the background image to look like emitting light.

7. The display control device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the background image includes a mesh image, which is a mesh-like image, and a gradation image.

8. The display control device for a vehicle according to claim 1,

wherein the vehicle image is an image from a viewpoint of looking down the vehicle from an upper rear of the vehicle, and

the background image is an image with a shape, which is extended in a far and near direction while defining a vehicle longitudinal direction of the vehicle image as the far and near direction and has a wider width in a direction perpendicular to the far and near direction toward a near side and a narrower width in the perpendicular direction toward a far side.

3. A display control device for a vehicle, configured to perform a display control for a display device provided in a meter panel of an automotive meter device, the display control device comprising:

an operation state determination unit configured to detect an operation state of a respective driving support control implemented by a driving support device;

a steering angle sensor configured to detect a steering angle of the vehicle;

the driving support device configured to activate a driving support control, the driving support control configured to be activated while the vehicle is traveling along a road that is a curved road and to control braking/driving force of respective wheels of the vehicle, wherein the road is determined to be curved based on the steering angle; and

a display controller configured to display a support state displaying image on the display device, the support state displaying image being an image of a vehicle image superimposed on a background image that is a planar image with a predetermined shape,

wherein, upon having determined that the driving support control, is activated based on the operation state detected by the operation state determination unit, the display controller changes a shape of a portion of the background image to be displayed on the display device to a curve shape curved in a steering direction determined based on the steering angle.

4. The display control device for a vehicle according to claim 3, wherein, after the shape of the background image is changed to the halfpipe shape, with regard to a plurality of divided regions obtained by dividing an image portion within a distance range preset from the vehicle image in the background image into plural regions in the perpendicular direction, a display control to change a present display color of the plurality of divided regions sequentially to other preset colors from a divided region on a side near the vehicle image toward a divided region on a side far from the vehicle image is performed.

9. A display control method for a vehicle, configured to perform a display control for a display device provided in a meter panel of an automotive meter device, the display control method comprising:

detecting, with a steering angle sensor, a steering angle;

determining a steering direction based on the steering angle;

displaying on the display device a support state displaying image, wherein the image comprises an image of a vehicle superimposed on a background image that is a planar image with a predetermined shape; and

in response to a driving support control detecting based on the steering direction that the vehicle is traveling along a curved road, performing a display control to change a shape of a portion of the background image to a curve shape that is curved in the steering direction.

10. A display control method for a vehicle, configured to perform a display control for a display device provided in a meter panel of an automotive meter device, the display control method comprising:

detecting, with a steering angle sensor, a steering direction;

displaying on the display device a support state displaying image, wherein the image comprises an image of a vehicle superimposed on a background image that is a planar image with a predetermined shape; and

in response to a driving support control detecting based on the steering direction that the vehicle is traveling on a straight road, performing a display control to change a shape of the background image to a halfpipe shape in which both ends of the background image in a direction perpendicular to a far and near direction of the background image are lifted up to form walls surrounding crosswise side surfaces of the vehicle image.