Patent ID: 9045077
Filing Date: 2015-06-02
Classification: B06B,B60L,B60Q,H04R,Y02T

Abstract:
1. A vehicle approach warning apparatus for emitting a vehicle approach warning sound from a sounding body mounted to a vehicle to warn about approach of the vehicle, the vehicle approach warning apparatus comprising: an approach warning sound waveform creation portion that generates a sound generator output corresponding to an approach warning sound waveform for creating the vehicle approach warning sound emitted from the sounding body; a power amplifier that generates an input voltage, which depends on the sound generator output; a high pass filter that outputs an output voltage by filtering a low frequency component of the input voltage inputted to the high pass filter, and that applies the output voltage to the sounding body; a voltage sensor circuit that includes an integration circuit for integrating the output voltage, and that outputs as an integration circuit voltage the output voltage integrated with the integration circuit; and an abnormality monitor portion that monitors the integration circuit voltage outputted from the voltage sensor circuit, and that performs abnormality detection in the sounding body based on the integration circuit voltage, wherein: when an abnormality of the sounding body is detected with the abnormality monitor portion, the vehicle approach warning apparatus vehicle alerts it via an alarm device; at a time of the abnormality detection, the approach warning sound waveform creation portion generates, as a check usage output, the sound generator output whose frequency is lower than a resonance frequency in a resonance frequency band of the sounding body; and when the output voltage is applied to the sounding body via the power amplifier and the high pass filter based on the sound generator output generated as the check usage output at the time of the abnormality detection, the abnormality monitor portion performs the abnormality detection in the sounding body by making a comparison between a prestored abnormality determination threshold and an input of the integration circuit voltage, which is the output voltage integrated with the integration circuit.