Display control apparatus, display device, and display control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018090002-A1
Application number	US-201515567926-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 3, 2015
Priority date	Aug 3, 2015
Publication date	Mar 29, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a technique that enables to adequately alert a driver to an attention target. The display control apparatus is provided with: an information acquisition unit for acquiring attention information that includes at least any one of a property of an attention target to which a driver of a vehicle that is traveling should be alerted, a relative position and a relative direction, with respect to the vehicle, of the attention target; and a control unit. The control unit controls, on the basis of the attention information acquired by the information acquisition unit, at least a virtual image distance from between the virtual image distance and a virtual image direction of a corresponding display object that is a display object corresponding to the attention target.

First claim

1 . A display control apparatus that controls a virtual image display unit,
said virtual image display being capable of displaying a display object, which is a virtual image that can be visually recognized from a driver seat of a vehicle through a windshield of said vehicle, at a virtual image position that is defined by a virtual image direction that is a direction of said virtual image with respect to a specific position of said vehicle, and by a virtual image distance that is a distance to said virtual image, with respect to said specific position the display control apparatus comprising: an information receiver for acquiring attention information that includes at least any one of a property of an attention target to which a driver of said vehicle that is traveling should be alerted, a relative position and a relative direction, with respect to said vehicle, of said attention target; and a controller for controlling displaying by said virtual image display, wherein said controller controls, on the basis of said attention information acquired by said information receiver, at least said virtual image distance from between said virtual image distance and said virtual image direction of a corresponding display object that is said display object corresponding to said attention target.

2 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said attention information includes a relative position or a relative direction of said attention target around said vehicle, and said controller increases said virtual image distance of said corresponding display object with a decrease in angle formed by a forward direction of said vehicle and said relative direction based on said attention information acquired by said information receiver.

3 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said attention information includes a relative position or a relative direction of said attention target around said vehicle, and when it is determined, on the basis of said attention information acquired by said information receiver that a position of said attention target viewed from said driver seat is outside a displayable area of said virtual image display, said controller controls said virtual image display in such a manner that said corresponding display object of the attention target is displayed in an end part of said displayable area.

4 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said information receiver further acquires a color and a hue of said attention target, and said controller causes a color and a hue of said corresponding display object to correspond to the color and the hue of said attention target acquired by said information receiver.

5 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said attention information includes, as a property of said attention target, an attention degree indicating a degree to which said driver should be alerted to said attention target around said vehicle, and said controller controls said virtual image distance of said corresponding display object on the basis of said attention degree included in said attention information acquired by said information receiver.

6 . The display control apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein
said attention degree of attention to said attention target increases with an increase in influence exerted on a human body when the vehicle hits said attention target.

7 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said information receiver further acquires a traveling direction of said vehicle, said attention information includes a relative position or a relative direction of said attention target around said vehicle, and said controller determines, on the basis of said attention information and said traveling direction acquired by said information receiver, whether or not said attention target influences traveling of said vehicle, and makes said virtual image distance of said corresponding display object of said attention target that has been determined to influence shorter than said virtual image distance of said corresponding display object of said attention target that has not been determined to influence.

8 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said information receiver further acquires a traveling direction of said vehicle, a current position of said vehicle, and map information in which specific road points including an intersection and a pedestrian crossing are set said attention information includes a relative position or a relative direction of said attention target around said vehicle, and when it is determined, on the basis of said attention information, said traveling direction, said current position and said map information that have been acquired by said information receiver, that said attention target exists in proximity to said specific road point through which said vehicle travels or is traveling, said controller makes said virtual image distance of said corresponding display object of said attention target that has been determined to exist in proximity to said specific road point shorter than said virtual image distance of said corresponding display object of said attention target that has not been determined to exist in proximity to said specific road point.

9 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said information receiver acquires said attention information that includes, as a relative position or a relative direction of said attention target, a relative position or a relative direction, with respect to said vehicle, of said attention target point around said vehicle among a plurality of attention target points set beforehand as points to which said driver should be alerted.

10 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said information receiver acquires said attention information for each of the plurality of attention targets, and said controller individually controls said virtual image distance of each of said corresponding display object of each of said attention target on the basis of said attention information of said plurality of attention targets acquired by said information receiver.

11 . The display control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
said corresponding display object includes a symbol warning object and a character warning object, said attention information includes a relative position of said attention target around said vehicle, and said controller calculates a distance between said vehicle and said attention target on the basis of the relative position included in said attention information acquired by said information receiver, and individually controls, on the basis of said distance, at least any one of a display size and said virtual image distance of said symbol warning object of said attention target, and said at least any one of said character warning object of said attention target.

12 . The display control apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein
said controller individually controls, on the basis of said distance, said display size of said symbol warning object of said attention target, and said display size of said character warning object of said attention target, a difference in said virtual image distance between said symbol warning object and said character warning object is the same irrespective of said distance, and a degree to which said display size of said character warning object decreases with an increase in said distance is smaller than a degree to which said display size of said symbol warning object decreases with an increase in said distance.

13 . The dis

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp

Inventors

• Arita Hidekazu
• Shimotani Mitsuo

Classifications

• G08G1/09626

  where the origin of the information is within the own vehicle, e.g. a local storage device, digital map · CPC title

• G02B27/0101

  characterised by optical features (G02B27/0172 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G02B2027/0141

  characterised by the informative content of the display · CPC title

• G06F3/013

  Eye tracking input arrangements (G06F3/015 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G02B27/01

  Head-up displays · CPC title