Patent Publication Number: US-2016243986-A1

Title: Display device and driving support device

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a display device and a driving support device. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     There is known a technique of displaying, on a display device that is provided at a front pillar, the image of a dead angle region of a driver that is formed by the front pillar (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2011-234095). 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
     In the above-described technique, the display portion is disposed so as to span over the corner portion (the ridgeline) at the vehicle cabin side of the front pillar, and there is room for improvement from the standpoint of the viewability due to distortion of the image. 
     An object of the present disclosure is to provide a display device and a driving support device that can suppress the feeling of strangeness that is given to a vehicle occupant and is caused by distortion of the image displayed on a display portion of a front pillar. 
     Solution to Problem 
     A display device relating to a first aspect of the present invention comprises: a front pillar having a curved surface that is convex toward a vehicle cabin side, a curvature of the curved surface being smaller at a lower side in a vehicle vertical direction than at an upper side; and a display portion provided at least at a lower portion in the vehicle vertical direction at the curved surface of the front pillar, an image being displayed on the display portion. 
     In this display device, because the curvature of the lower portion of the curved surface, that is convex toward the vehicle cabin side, at the front pillar is small, there is little distortion of the image that is displayed on the display portion provided at that lower portion. Here, the region that a vehicle occupant gazes upon at the front pillar is the lower portion, and, because there is little distortion of the displayed image of the display portion that is provided at that lower portion, the feeling of strangeness given to the vehicle occupant can be suppressed. On the other hand, at the upper portion of the front pillar, a shape that corresponds to the requirements of the vehicle (e.g., the energy absorbing performance) can be employed. 
     In this way, the driving support device of the first aspect can suppress the feeling of strangeness that is given to a vehicle occupant due to distortion of the image displayed on the display portion of the front pillar. 
     In the above-described aspect, there may be a structure in which the display portion is provided so as to extend from the lower portion to an upper portion in the vehicle vertical direction at the curved surface of the front pillar. 
     In this display device, the display portion is provided so as to extend from the lower portion to the upper portion at the curved surface of the front pillar. Therefore, an image can be displayed on the wide surface, that faces the vehicle cabin side, of the front pillar. 
     In the above-described aspect, there may be a structure in which a portion of a curtain airbag is accommodated at an upper portion in the vehicle vertical direction of an interior of the front pillar. 
     In this display device, the curtain airbag is accommodated where the curvature of the curved surface at the front pillar is large, or, in other words, at the upper portion of the front pillar that protrudes-out greatly toward the vehicle cabin side. Due thereto, both the ability to accommodate the curtain airbag, and suppressing of the feeling of strangeness that is given to the vehicle occupant due to the above-described distortion of the image, can both be achieved. 
     In the above-described aspect, there may be a structure in which the curvature of the curved surface is gradually decreased from the upper side toward the lower side in the vehicle vertical direction. 
     In this display device, the curvature of the curved surface is gradually decreased (gently decreased, continuously decreased) from the upper side toward the lower side in the vertical direction. Therefore, the display portion, at which the feeling of strangeness given to the vehicle occupant due to the above-described distortion of the image is suppressed, can be formed without marring the appearance of the front pillar. 
     A driving support device relating to a second aspect comprises: an imaging unit capturing a region that is a dead angle for a driver due to the front pillar; and the display device of any of the above-described respective aspects that has a projecting unit projecting an image captured by the imaging unit toward the display portion, and that projects and displays a projected image of the projecting unit onto the display portion. 
     In this driving support device, at least a portion of the vehicle outer side region, that is a dead angle to the driver who is a vehicle occupant, is captured by the imaging unit, and the image that is captured by the imaging unit is displayed by being projected onto the display portion that is provided at the driver&#39;s side of the front pillar that gives rise to this dead angle. Here, because the display device of any of Claim  1  through Claim  4  is utilized, the feeling of strangeness, that is given to the driver due to distortion of dead angle image that is displayed on the display portion of the front pillar, can be suppressed. 
     Advantageous Effects of Invention 
     As described above, the display device and the driving support device relating to the present disclosure have the excellent effect of being able to suppress the feeling of strangeness that is given to a vehicle occupant due to distortion of the image displayed on the display portion of the front pillar. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1A  is a plan view that schematically shows, in an enlarged manner, main portions of a visual information supplementing device relating to an embodiment, and is a cross-sectional view along line  1 A- 1 A of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 1B  is a plan view that schematically shows, in an enlarged manner, main portions of the visual information supplementing device relating to the embodiment, and is a cross-sectional view along line  1 B- 1 B of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 1C  is a plan view that schematically shows, in an enlarged manner, main portions of the visual information supplementing device relating to the embodiment, and is a cross-sectional view along line  1 C- 1 C of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 2  is a side view schematically showing the overall structure of the visual information supplementing device relating to the embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a plan view schematically showing the overall structure of the visual information supplementing device relating to the embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view schematically showing a state of displaying a dead angle image on a screen of the visual information supplementing device relating to the embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     A visual information supplementing device  10 , that serves as an example of a driving support device relating to an embodiment of the present disclosure, is described on the basis of the drawings. Note that arrow FR, arrow UP, arrow RH and arrow LH that are marked appropriately in the respective drawings indicate, respectively, the frontward direction, the upward direction, and the rightward direction and the leftward direction in a case of facing in the frontward direction of an automobile to which the visual information supplementing device  10  is applied. Hereinafter, when simply longitudinal, vertical and left-right directions are used, they mean the longitudinal of the vehicle longitudinal direction, the vertical of the vehicle vertical direction, and the left and the right in a case of facing in the frontward direction, unless otherwise indicated. 
     [General Structure of Vehicle] 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , a driver&#39;s seat  12  and a front passenger&#39;s seat  14  are provided within a cabin C that is the vehicle cabin of an automobile V that serves as an example of a vehicle to which the visual information supplementing device  10  is applied. In this embodiment, the driver&#39;s seat  12  is disposed at the left side with respect to the vehicle transverse direction center of the automobile V. A windshield glass  16  and an instrument panel  18  are disposed in front of the driver&#39;s seat  12 . Further, side window glasses  20  are respectively disposed at the vehicle transverse direction outer sides of the driver&#39;s seat  12  and the front passenger&#39;s seat  14 . 
     Further, front pillars  22  (and unillustrated door frames) are disposed between the windshield glass  16  and the left and right side window glasses  20 . These left and right front pillars  22 , together with a roof header portion and a cowl portion, structure the window frame at which the visual field is ensured by the windshield glass  16 . Further, the left and right front pillars  22 , together with door frames of side doors and the like, respectively structure window frames at which the visual field is ensured by the side window glasses  20 . These left and right front pillars  22  can be considered to be skeleton (window frame) members that create (give rise to) dead angles with respect to the vehicle occupant seated in the driver&#39;s seat  12 , i.e., a driver D. 
     [Visual Information Supplementing Device] 
     The visual information supplementing device  10  is structured so as to cause the driver D to see visual information of the vehicle outer side regions, that become dead angles to the driver D due to the front pillars  22 , by displaying the visual information on the front pillars  22 . Concrete description is given hereinafter. 
     The visual information supplementing device  10  is structured to include CCD cameras  24  that serve as examples of an imaging unit, and a display device  11 . Further, the display device  11  is structured to include projectors  26  that serve as examples of projecting unit, and screens  28  that serve as examples of display portions that form projected-on surfaces at the front pillars  22 . Note that the CCD cameras  24 , the projectors  26 , and the screens  28  are respectively provided as left/right pairs. In the following description, when differentiating between the CCD cameras  24 , the projectors  26  and the screens  28  at the left and the right, “L” is added to the end of the reference numeral of that on the left side, and “R” is added to the end of the reference numeral of that on the right side. 
     The CCD camera  24 L at the left side is disposed so as to face in the sightline direction from the driver D toward the left side front pillar  22  side, and captures the region that is obliquely forward and to the left of the cabin C, and outputs image information of the captured image to the projector  26 L. The CCD camera  24 R at the right side is disposed so as to face in the sightline direction from the driver D toward the right side front pillar  22  side, and captures the region that is obliquely forward and to the right of the cabin C, and outputs image information of the captured image to the projector  26 R. The left and right CCD cameras  24  are disposed, for example, within door mirror devices  32  or within the lower portions of the front pillars  22 , at the sides corresponding to the left and the right respectively 
     Image information is inputted wirelessly or by wires from the CCD camera  24 L to the projector  26 L at the left side, and the projector  26 L at the left side projects an image, that is based on this image information, toward the screen  28 L. Image information is inputted wirelessly or by wires from the CCD camera  24 R to the projector  26 R at the right side, and the projector  26 R at the right side projects an image, that is based on this image information, toward the screen  28 R. Note that, although not illustrated, the left and right projectors  26  are mounted to the roof portion of the automobile V (between the roof and the roof head lining, or at an overhead console, or the like). 
     The images that the corresponding projectors  26  project are projected onto the left and right screens  28 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , these screens  28  are provided at the surfaces of pillar garnishes  30  that serve as examples of interior finishing parts and that structure the front pillars  22 , or these screens  28  structure the surfaces of the pillar garnishes  30  (are formed integrally with the surfaces). In this embodiment, the screen  28 L at the left side is provided at the surface of the pillar garnish  30  at the left side, and the screen  28 R at the right side is provided at the surface of the pillar garnish  30  at the right side. 
     Further, in this embodiment, the screen  28  is provided over substantially the entire region in the transverse direction at the front pillar  22  including the pillar garnish  30 , when viewed from the driver D. In other words, the screen  28  is made to be a structure that occupies a range extending over substantially the entire width of the front pillar  22  as seen from the driver D (overlaps from a transverse direction one end to the other end of the front pillar  22 ). Due thereto, as shown in  FIG. 4 , the visual information supplementing device  10  is structured so as to cause the driver D to view the image of the region, that is a dead angle for the driver D, and the actual view continuously and substantially without breaks. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the screen  28 R at the right side reaches from a vicinity of the upper end of the pillar garnish  30  to a vicinity of the lower end, and is disposed so as to occupy a wide range of that pillar garnish  30  in the vertical direction. Although not illustrated, the screen  28 L at the left side reaches from a vicinity of the upper end of the pillar garnish  30  to a vicinity of the lower end, and is disposed so as to occupy a wide range of that pillar garnish  30  in the vertical direction. 
     (Detailed Structures of Front Pillar and Screen) 
     The screen  28  that structures the above-described visual information supplementing device  10 , and the front pillar  22  at which the screen  28  is provided, are described in detail. Note that, because the structures (the design concepts) of the left and right screens  28 L,  28 R are basically similar, in the following description, the screen  28  will be described in the singular without distinguishing between the left and right screens  28 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1A  through  FIG. 1C , the front pillar  22  is structured to include a pillar main body  34  that is a skeleton member of the vehicle body, and the pillar garnish  30  that covers the pillar main body  34  from the cabin C side. The pillar main body  34  is formed from a steel material, and is a closed cross-sectional structural body at which the cross-section orthogonal to the length direction is a closed cross-sectional shape. A space R is formed between the pillar garnish  30  and the pillar main body  34  in a state in which the pillar garnish  30  is mounted to the pillar main body  34  by a mounting structure  42  and the like that are described later. 
     In this embodiment, a wire harness  36  for electrical wiring, and a drain hose  38  for discharging rain water and the like, are passed-through the interior of the space R. Further, as shown in  FIG. 1A , the front portion of a curtain airbag  40  is accommodated within the space R at the upper portion of the front pillar  22 . The curtain airbag  40  is structured to include a portion that is accommodated along an unillustrated roof side rail. 
     This curtain airbag  40  is a structure that, at the time of for example, a front collision, an oblique collision, a side collision, a rollover, or the like of the automobile V, receives a supply of gas from an unillustrated inflator, and is inflated and expanded within the cabin C along the side window glass  20 . When the portion, that is accommodated within the space R of the front pillar  22 , of the curtain airbag  40  is inflated and expanded, this portion prevents the head portion of the vehicle occupant from directly colliding with the front pillar  22 . 
     Further, the mounting structure  42  for mounting the pillar garnish  30  to the pillar main body  34  is disposed within the space R at the upper portion of the front pillar  22 . The mounting structure  42  is structured to include a mounting seat portion  42 A that is provided at the pillar garnish  30 , and a tether clip  42 B that passes-through the pillar main body  34  and is anchored to the mounting seat portion  42 A. The mounting structure  42  is a structure that mounts the pillar garnish  30  to the pillar main body  34  such that separation of the pillar garnish  30  from the pillar main body  34  (expansion of the curtain airbag  40  toward the cabin C) due to the inflation pressure of the curtain airbag  40  is permitted. Further, the mounting structure  42  is a structure at which, due to use of the tether clip  42 B, the pillar garnish  30  that has separated from the pillar main body  34  is prevented from falling-off of the pillar main body  34 . 
     At the upper portion of the front pillar  22  where the curtain airbag  40  is accommodated and the mounting structure  42  is disposed in this way, the (sectional surface area of the) space R is set to be larger than at the lower portion. Therefore, in a cross-sectional view intersecting (orthogonal to) the length direction of the front pillar  22 , the cabin C side surface of the pillar garnish  30  is made to be a curved surface  30 C (see  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 3 ) at which the cabin C side edge portion is a curve that is convex toward the cabin C side. At the upper portion thereof, the curved surface  30 C is curved at a curvature that is larger than at the lower portion, and, at the upper portion thereof, the curved surface  30 C protrudes-out more greatly into the cabin C than at the lower portion. In other words, the curvature of the pillar garnish  30 , i.e., the curved surface  30 C of the front pillar  22 , is smaller at the lower portion thereof than at the upper portion. The curvatures of (the respective portions in the vertical direction of) the curved surface  30 C mean the curvatures of the cabin C side edge portion in cross-sections of the pillar garnish  30  that intersect (are orthogonal to) the length direction of the front pillar  22 . 
     Here, the imaginary lines in  FIG. 1B  and  FIG. 1C  show the protruding shape, toward the vehicle cabin inner side, of the pillar garnish  30  in  FIG. 1A . Further, the one-dot chain line in  FIG. 1C  shows the protruding shape, toward the vehicle cabin inner side, of the pillar garnish  30  in  FIG. 1B . In this way, the curvature of the pillar garnish  30  is gradually decreased (gently decreased, continuously decreased) from the upper side toward the lower side. 
     Moreover, as described above, the screen  28  is formed along the curved surface  30 C that is convex toward the cabin C side at the pillar garnish  30 , or is formed by the curved surface  30 C itself. Accordingly, in the same way as the pillar garnish  30 , the curvature of the screen  28  is made to be smaller at the lower portion thereof than at the upper portion. Namely, as shown in  FIG. 1A , the upper portion of the screen  28  is a curved surface of a large curvature, and, as shown in  FIG. 1C , the lower portion of the screen  28  is a curved surface of a small curvature (that is substantially flat except for the transverse direction end portions). Further, as shown in  FIG. 1B , the intermediate portion of the screen  28  is a curved surface of a curvature between those of the upper portion and the lower portion. 
     [Operation] 
     Operation of the embodiment is described next. 
     The driver D of the automobile V, to which is applied the visual information supplementing device  10  that includes the display device  11 , drives the automobile V while checking safety on the basis of visual information that is seen through the windshield glass  16  and the left and right side window glasses  20 . 
     Further, at the visual information supplementing device  10 , the images captured by the left and right CCD cameras  24 L,  24 R are projected by the projectors  26 , and are projected onto the left and right screens  28 L,  28 R (refer to  FIG. 4  for the screen  28 L at the left side). Then, the images projected on the left and right screens  28 L,  28 R are viewed by the driver D. Namely, the visual information (external view) of the regions (hereinafter called “dead angle regions”), that are dead angles due to the left and right front pillars  22 , are displayed as images on the screens  28  that are provided at the front pillars  22 . 
     Therefore, the driver D faces the direction that should be confirmed (the dead angle region), and can see the image that compensates for the dead angle region. Due thereto, as shown in  FIG. 4  for example, even in a case in which a portion of a pedestrian W is in the dead angle of the front pillar  22 , the visual information of the dead angle region is supplemented by the image projected on the screen  28 L, and therefore, substantially the entire body of that pedestrian W can be seen. Thus, the driver D can notice (easily notice) the existence of the pedestrian W. 
     Here, at the visual information supplementing device  10  and the display device  11 , because the curvature is small at the lower portion of the screen  28 , an image having little distortion can be projected (displayed). Further, because the portion, that the driver D gazes on, of the screen  28  that is provided at the front pillar  22  is the lower portion, the feeling of strangeness that is given to the driver D can be suppressed by placing the display portion that has little distortion, i.e., the lower portion of the screen  28 , at this lower portion. 
     In this way, in the visual information supplementing device  10  and the display device  11  relating to the present embodiment, the feeling of strangeness, that is given to the driver D due to distortion of the image displayed on the screen  28  that is set at the front pillar  22 , can be suppressed. 
     On the other hand, the upper portion of the front pillar  22  is a region that the head portion of the driver D can contact at the time of, for example, a front collision or an oblique collision of the automobile V, and lowering of the injury value to the head portion is required thereof. In this embodiment, a reduction in the injury value to the head portion due to the curtain airbag  40  is devised by making the curvature of the upper portion of the pillar garnish  30  large and ensuring space for accommodating the curtain airbag  40  at the upper portion of the front pillar  22 . From another standpoint, the curtain airbag  40  can be accommodated by effectively utilizing the space R that is wide at the upper portion of the front pillar  22 . 
     Further, at the visual information supplementing device  10  and the display device  11 , the screen  28  is provided so as to extend from the lower portion to the upper portion of the front pillar  22 . Due thereto, visual information of a wide range can be supplemented by projecting the dead angle image onto the screen  28  that extends over a wide range of the front pillar  22  that gives rise to the dead angle region. Here, at the upper portion of the screen  28 , although the displayed image is distorted as shown in  FIG. 4 , the region that the driver D gazes upon is the lower portion of the screen  28  as described above, and therefore, the feeling of strangeness that is given to the driver D is suppressed. To describe further, for example, information relating to safe driving of the automobile V (persons or things that are near the automobile V and are of a height that can interfere with the automobile V) is projected mainly onto the lower portion of the screen  28 , and therefore, the driver D gazes upon the lower portion of the screen  28 . 
     Further, because the dead angle image is displayed on the upper portion of the screen  28 , it is easy for the driver D to receive the impression (the visual effect) that the front pillar  22  does not exist, as compared with a case in which a dead angle image is not displayed on the upper portion of the screen  28 . Namely, by displaying the dead angle image on the wide range of the screen  28  that extends from a vicinity of the upper end to a vicinity of the lower end of the front pillar  22 , the driver D can be made to feel as if there is a window that is continuous from the windshield glass  16  to the side window glass  20 . 
     Moreover, at the visual information supplementing device  10  and the display device  11 , the curvature of the screen  28  is gradually decreased from the upper side toward the lower side. Therefore, the screen  28 , that suppresses the feeling of strangeness given to the driver D due to distortion of the displayed image, can be formed without marring the appearance of the front pillar  22  (the pillar garnish  30 ). For example, the appearance of the front pillar  22  (the pillar garnish  30 ) improves as compared with a structure in which the curvature of the pillar garnish  30  changes in a step-wise manner. 
     Note that the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which an image is displayed by projecting the projected image from the projector  26  onto the screen  28 , but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, a display, whose curvature is deformable and that is affixed to the curved surface of the pillar garnish  30  (a display means that displays an image generated by itself on the basis of image data), may be employed as the display device. 
     Further, although the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the curtain airbag  40  is accommodated within the space R at the upper portion of the front pillar  22 , the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, there may be a structure in which the pillar garnish  30  itself functions as an energy absorbing member that reduces the injury value to the head portion. In this structure as well, due to the curvature (the amount of protrusion toward the cabin C side) of the upper portion of the pillar garnish  30  being large, it is easy to ensure the energy absorbing stroke, and the (peak of the) load that is applied to the head portion at the time of energy absorption can be kept low. 
     Moreover, although the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the lower portion of the screen  28  is curved, the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, there may be a structure in which (a fixed range of) the lower portion of the screen  28  is flat over the entire width thereof. In other words, the curved surface of the present disclosure may be structured to include, at a portion thereof, a flat surface (a surface whose curvature is 0, or a surface of an infinite radius of curvature). In this case as well, it is preferable that there be a structure in which the curvature is gradually reduced from the upper portion of the screen  28  to the upper end of the flat portion. 
     Still further, although the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the screen  28  is provided so as to extend from the lower portion to the upper portion of the front pillar  22 , the present disclosure is not limited to this. It suffices for the display portion (the screen  28 ) of the present disclosure to be provided at least at the lower portion in the vehicle vertical direction at the curved surface  30 C of the front pillar  22 , and, for example, there may be a structure in which the screen  28  is not provided at the upper portion of the curved surface  30 C of the front pillar  22 . In other words, there may be a structure in which the screen  28  is provided only the lower portion of the curved surface  30 C of the front pillar  22 . 
     Further, the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the display device  11  relating to the present disclosure is applied to the visual information supplementing device  10  that serves as an example of a driving support device that projects a dead angle image onto the front pillar  22 , but the present disclosure is not limited to this. It suffices for an embodiment of the present disclosure to display an image at least on the lower portion of the front pillar  22 , and, for example, may be a structure that projects, onto at least the lower portion of the front pillar  22 , an image in which the region at the rear of the vehicle at the time of reversing is captured, or an image in which the situation in the rear seat is captured. Further, the present disclosure is not limited to a structure that projects, onto an interior fitting part, an image that is captured by an imaging unit that is installed in the automobile, and, for example, the present disclosure may be applied to a structure that projects, onto at least the lower portion of the front pillar  22 , map information or driving information (the vehicle speed or the like). Moreover, for example, the present disclosure may be applied to a structure that projects, onto an interior fitting part, the captured image of a camera that is on the road or that is set in another vehicle. 
     Moreover, although the above-described embodiment illustrates an example in which the CCD camera  24  is used as the imaging unit, the present disclosure is not limited to this and may utilize any imaging unit. Accordingly, for example, a CMOS camera or the like may be used instead of the CCD camera  24 . 
     Still further, although the above-described respective embodiments illustrate an example in which the left and right CCD cameras  24  and projectors  26  and screens  28  are provided, the present disclosure is not limited to this. The visual information supplementing device  10  and the display device  11  may be structured so as to have the CCD camera  24 , the projector  26 , and the screen  28  at only one of the left and right sides for example. 
     In addition, it goes without saying that the present disclosure can be implemented by being modified in various ways within a scope that does not depart from the gist thereof. 
     Further, the disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2014-024388 that was filed on Feb. 12, 2014 is, in its entirety, incorporated by reference into the present specification. 
     The relationships of correspondence between the reference numerals and the names of the respective portions that are used in the present specification are as follows.
       10  visual information supplementing device     11  display device     22  front pillar     24  CCD camera (an example of the imaging unit)     26  projector (an example of the projecting unit)     28  screen (an example of the display portion)     30  pillar garnish (an example of the front pillar)     30 C curved surface     40  curtain airbag   C cabin (vehicle cabin)