In-vehicle equipment control device

• US 8,229,603 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2008
• Issued: 07/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai RIKA Denki Seisakusho
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai RIKA Denki Seisakusho
• Inventors: Miyata, Masahiko, Kumagai, Katsuhide, Yamamoto, Norio, Kitagawa, Nozomi
• Primary Examiner(s): Dager, Jonathan M
• Application Number:
  US12/099,510
• Publication Number:
  US 20080249668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,568 Days
• Field of Search: None
• 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. 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,

wherein the force sense imparting type input device comprises an operating knob that is only allowed to move along a predetermined operation route pattern defined as the operation route data after the rational transformation, and

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.

3. The method for controlling the in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, 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.

4. The method for controlling the in-vehicle equipment control device according to claim 1, 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.

2. 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,

wherein the force sense imparting type input device comprises an operating knob that is only allowed to move along a predetermined operation route pattern defined as the operation route data after the rational transformation, and

wherein the rotational transformation step comprises a judgment step of judging as to whether the vehicle is running or stopping.