Patent Description:
A device that suppress a vehicle from traveling at night with no light has been proposed in <CIT> (<CIT>). In the case of the device described in <CIT>, if head lights are temporarily turned off with a vehicle waiting for a traffic signal or the like at the time of nighttime driving and the head lights are not turned on when the vehicle starts to move thereafter, a warning sound is output to warn a driver.

Further, patent document <CIT> discloses a light switch unit for controlling the exterior lighting (such as headlights) of a motor vehicle. A rotary actuator can be rotated from a predefined home position into at least one deflected position, different lighting modes being assigned to the home position and to the at least one deflected position; the rotary actuator being mechanically biased to return automatically, after the rotation into the at least one deflected position, to the home position after which the lighting mode which is assigned to the respective deflected position initially remains activated.

However, in the case of the device described in <CIT>, if the driver does not notice the warning sound for warning the driver which is output from the device when the vehicle starts to move with the head lights turned off, an operation of turning the head lights on may not be performed and the vehicle may travel with no light.

The above problem and the related object are solved by the subject-matters of claims <NUM> and <NUM>. Further advantageous configurations of the invention can be drawn from the dependent claims.

The invention provides a lever switch capable of performing light control with which a vehicle can be suppressed from traveling with no light and an automatic light control device including the lever switch.

A firs aspect of the present invention relates to a lever switch according to claim <NUM> including a lever main body and a rotary operation element rotatably provided at a tip end portion of the lever main body. The rotary operation element is provided with a light ON switch position at which an instruction to cause head lights and small lights installed in a vehicle to be on at all times is issued, an automatic light switch position at which an instruction to set an automatic light mode, in which a turned-on state of the head lights and the small lights is controlled based on the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle, is issued, and a light OFF switch position at which an instruction to turn the head lights off is issued, the light ON switch position, the automatic light switch position, and the light OFF switch position being arranged in an order along a rotation direction. The rotary operation element is provided with a momentary mechanism with which the rotary operation element automatically returns to the automatic light switch position when there is no rotation operation force in a state where the rotary operation element is at a position between the automatic light switch position and the light OFF switch position.

A second aspect of the present invention relates to an automatic light control device according to claim <NUM> including a lever switch and a controller. The lever switch includes a lever main body and a rotary operation element provided with a light ON switch position at which an instruction to cause head lights and small lights installed in a vehicle to be on at all times is issued, an automatic light switch position at which an instruction to set an automatic light mode, in which a turned-on state of the head lights and the small lights is controlled based on the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle, is issued, and a light OFF switch position at which an instruction to turn the head lights off is issued, the light ON switch position, the automatic light switch position, and the light OFF switch position being arranged in an order along a rotation direction. The rotary operation element is provided with a momentary mechanism with which the rotary operation element automatically returns to the automatic light switch position when there is no rotation operation force in a state where the rotary operation element is at a position between the automatic light switch position and the light OFF switch position. The controller is configured to acquire information about the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle, the traveling state of the vehicle, and the switch position of the rotary operation element of the lever switch and to control the turning on and off of the head lights and the small lights based on the acquired information, and the controller is configured to turn the head lights and the small lights on when the rotary operation element is at the automatic light switch position and the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than a predetermined value.

In the automatic light control device according to the second aspect, the controller may be configured to turn the head lights off when all of the following conditions i) to iv) are satisfied and the rotary operation element is rotated to the light OFF switch position, i) the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value, ii) the rotary operation element is at the automatic light switch position, iii) the vehicle is in a stopped state, and iv) the head lights and the small lights are in a turned-on state.

In the automatic light control device according to the second aspect, the controller may be configured to turn the small lights off in a case where a state where the rotary operation element is held at the light OFF switch position continues for a predetermined time after the head lights are turned off.

In the automatic light control device according to the second aspect, the controller may be configured to turn the head lights and the small lights on in a case where all of the following conditions i) to iv) are satisfied and the vehicle is in a traveling state or in a case where all of the following conditions i) to iv) are satisfied and a state where the rotary operation element is held at the light OFF switch position does not continue for a predetermined time after the rotary operation element is operated from the automatic light switch position, i) the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value, ii) the rotary operation element is at the automatic light switch position, iii) the vehicle is in a stopped state, and iv) the head lights are in a turned-off state.

In the automatic light control device according to the second aspect, the controller may be configured to turn the small lights off in a case where all of the following conditions i) to iii) are satisfied and a state where the rotary operation element is held at the light OFF switch position continues for a predetermined time after the rotary operation element is operated from the automatic light switch position, i) the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value, ii) a vehicle is in a stopped state, and iii) the head lights are in a turned-off state.

In the automatic light control device according to the second aspect, the controller may be configured to turn the head lights and the small lights on in a case where all of the following conditions i) to iii) are satisfied and the vehicle is in a traveling state or in a case where all of the following conditions i) to iii) are satisfied and the rotary operation element is rotated to the light OFF switch position, i) the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value, ii) the rotary operation element is at the automatic light switch position, and iii) the head lights and the small lights are in a turned-off state.

According to the invention, even when the rotary operation element is operated to the light OFF switch position by an operator, the rotary operation element automatically returns to the automatic light switch position. Therefore, it is possible to cause the vehicle to enter an automatic light control state after the head lights are turned off and the head lights are automatically turned on when the vehicle travels. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress the vehicle from traveling with no light.

In the case of a lever switch according to the embodiment of the invention which controls lights provided in a vehicle, a rotary operation element (knob) that is provided at a tip end portion of the lever switch and that operates the turning on and off of the lights automatically returns to an automatic light switch position due to a momentary mechanism without being fixed at a light OFF switch position at which an instruction to turn the lights off is issued. Therefore, since an automatic light control state can be entered even after head lights are turned off, the head lights are automatically turned on when a vehicle travels and thus it is possible to suppress the vehicle from traveling with no light.

Hereinafter, a lever switch according to an embodiment of the invention will be described in detail with reference to drawings.

<FIG> is a schematic view of the inside of a vehicle cabin in which a lever switch <NUM> according to the embodiment of the invention is provided and <FIG> is an enlarged view of a tip end portion of the lever switch <NUM> shown in <FIG>. In a right-hand drive vehicle shown in <FIG>, the lever switch <NUM> according to the embodiment is disposed on a right side portion of a steering column <NUM> of the vehicle such that the lever switch <NUM> protrudes from the steering column <NUM>. In the case of a left-hand drive vehicle, the lever switch <NUM> may be disposed on the right side portion of the steering column <NUM> of the vehicle in the same manner as in the right-hand drive vehicle or the lever switch <NUM> may be disposed on a left side portion of the steering column <NUM> of the vehicle while being laterally inverted. The lever switch <NUM> is provided with a lever main body <NUM> and a rotary operation element <NUM>.

The lever main body <NUM> is a rod-shaped member and is supported by the right side portion of the steering column <NUM> of the vehicle such that the lever main body <NUM> can be inclined in a front-rear direction and a vertical direction. The lever main body <NUM> is configured such that optical axes of head lights can be switched or turning signal lamps can be turned on and off by inclining an axis of the lever main body <NUM>. For example, by operating the lever main body <NUM> in a frontward direction (direction away from operator), it is possible to switch from low beams to high beams in a case where the head lights are in a turned-on state. In addition, by operating the lever main body <NUM> in a rearward direction (direction toward operator), it is possible to cause the head lights to be turned on such that the high beams are turned on while the lever main body <NUM> is being operated. In addition, by operating the lever main body <NUM> in an upward direction (counter-clockwise direction around axis of steering column <NUM>), it is possible to operate a left turning signal lamp. In addition, by operating the lever main body <NUM> in a downward direction (clockwise direction around axis of steering column <NUM>), it is possible to operate a right turning signal lamp.

The switching between the low beams and high beams of the head lights and the operating of the turning signal lamps are performed when a predetermined operation signal (electric signal) corresponding to a direction in which the lever main body <NUM> is operated is output from the lever switch <NUM> to a controller <NUM> which will be described later and the controller <NUM> controls the head lights and the turning signal lamps based on the operation signal received from the lever switch <NUM>.

The rotary operation element <NUM> is provided at a tip end portion of the lever main body <NUM> such that the rotary operation element <NUM> can be rotated around the axis of the lever main body <NUM>. The rotary operation element <NUM> is configured such that the rotary operation element <NUM> can operate the turning on and off of the head lights and small lights based on predetermined rotation positions provided on the lever main body <NUM>. As the rotation positions of the rotary operation element <NUM>, a light ON switch position (HEAD) at which an instruction to cause the head lights and the small lights to be on at all times is issued, the automatic light switch position (AUTO) at which an automatic light mode, in which a turned-on state of the head lights and the small lights is controlled based on the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle, is set, and the light OFF switch position (OFF) at which an instruction to turn the head lights off is issued are provided in an order along a rotation direction as shown in <FIG>.

Even when there is no operating force by which the operator performs a rotation operation, the rotary operation element <NUM> can be held at the light ON switch position (HEAD). In a case where the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the light ON switch position (HEAD), a "fully turned-on state" in which all of the head lights and the small lights of the vehicle are turned on is entered regardless of the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle (daytime, nighttime, or like). When the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the light ON switch position (HEAD), the rotary operation element <NUM> is allowed to rotate to the automatic light switch position (AUTO) from the light ON switch position (HEAD) and is restricted from rotating in a direction opposite to the automatic light switch position (AUTO) by a stopper mechanism or the like (not shown).

In addition, even when there is no operating force by which the operator performs the rotation operation, the rotary operation element <NUM> can be held at the automatic light switch position (AUTO). In a case where the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO), a "fully turned-off state" in which all of the head lights and the small lights of the vehicle are turned off is entered when the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle exceeds a predetermined value (daytime or like) and the "fully turned-on state" in which all of the head lights and the small lights of the vehicle are turned on is entered when the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value. When the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO), the rotary operation element <NUM> is allowed to rotate to the light ON switch position (HEAD) from the automatic light switch position (AUTO) and to rotate to the light OFF switch position (OFF) from the automatic light switch position (AUTO).

Meanwhile, the rotary operation element <NUM> is configured to automatically return to the automatic light switch position (AUTO when the rotary operation element <NUM> is at a position between the automatic light switch position (AUTO) and the light OFF switch position (OFF) and there is no operating force by which the operator performs the rotation operation (to rotate in direction shown by arrow in <FIG> which is enlarged view of E part). That is, the rotary operation element <NUM> has a structure in which a momentary mechanism is provided at the automatic light switch position (AUTO). The momentary mechanism can be realized by applying an urging force toward the automatic light switch position (AUTO) side to the rotary operation element <NUM> at the light OFF switch position (OFF) to an extent the operator can perform the rotation operation, at all times. In a case where the rotary operation element <NUM> is rotated to the light OFF switch position (OFF), the head lights are turned off or the small lights are turned off based on the state of the vehicle. Light control based on the light OFF switch position (OFF) will be described later. While the rotary operation element <NUM> can be rotated to the light OFF switch position (OFF) from the automatic light switch position (AUTO), the rotary operation element <NUM> is restricted from rotating beyond the light OFF switch position (OFF) by the stopper mechanism or the like (not shown).

The turning on and off of the head lights and the small lights are performed when a predetermined operation signal (electric signal) corresponding to a rotation position (HEAD, AUTO, and OFF) of the rotary operation element <NUM> is output from the lever switch <NUM> to the controller <NUM> which will be described later and the controller <NUM> controls the turning on and off of the head lights and the turning signal lamps based on the operation signal received from the lever switch <NUM>.

<FIG> is a schematic configuration diagram of an automatic light control device <NUM> including the lever switch <NUM> according to the embodiment. The automatic light control device <NUM> shown in <FIG> is configured to include the lever switch <NUM>, an illumination intensity sensor <NUM>, a vehicle speed sensor <NUM>, the controller <NUM>, and light devices <NUM>.

The illumination intensity sensor <NUM> is a sensor that can measure the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle. For the illumination intensity sensor <NUM>, for example, a phototransistor or a photodiode is used. The illumination intensity sensor <NUM> is provided at a predetermined position in the vehicle such that the illumination intensity sensor <NUM> can receive external light through a windshield, examples of the predetermined position including a position on an installment panel or a position on a rear dashboard. A signal (illumination intensity signal) indicating the intensity of illumination measured by the illumination intensity sensor <NUM> is output to the controller <NUM>.

The vehicle speed sensor <NUM> is a sensor that can acquire the traveling speed of the vehicle (vehicle speed). As the vehicle speed sensor <NUM>, a sensor or the like that detects the number of times of rotation of an output shaft of a transmission (not shown) can be used. A signal (vehicle speed signal) indicating the vehicle speed measured by the vehicle speed sensor <NUM> is output to the controller <NUM>.

The operation signal from the lever switch <NUM>, the illumination intensity signal from the illumination intensity sensor <NUM>, and the vehicle speed signal from the vehicle speed sensor <NUM> are input to the controller <NUM>. Based on information about the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle, the traveling state of the vehicle, and the switch position of the rotary operation element <NUM> of the lever switch <NUM> which is obtained from the operation signal, the illumination intensity signal, and the vehicle speed signal, the controller <NUM> controls the light devices <NUM> such as head lights and small lights provided in the vehicle.

The entire controller <NUM> or part of the controller <NUM> may be typically configured as an electronic control unit (ECU) including a central processing unit (CPU), a memory, and an input and output interface. In the electronic control unit, a function of automatic light control which will be described later is realized when a program stored in the memory is read and executed by the CPU. In an example shown in <FIG>, the controller <NUM> is configured independently of the lever switch <NUM>. However, the controller <NUM> may be integrated with the lever switch <NUM> by being incorporated in the lever switch <NUM>.

With reference to <FIG>, control in the automatic light mode performed by the automatic light control device <NUM> including the lever switch <NUM> according to the embodiment will be described. <FIG> is a control flowchart at the time of the fully turned-on state in which all of the head lights and the small lights are turned on (ON). <FIG> is a control flowchart at the time of a side-marker light turned-on state in which the head lights are turned off (OFF) and the small lights are turned on (ON). <FIG> is a control flowchart at the time of the fully turned-off state in which all of the head lights and the small lights are turned off (OFF). <FIG> is an on/off state transition diagram of the head lights and the small lights based on the flowcharts in <FIG>.

In the case of the control in the automatic light mode which is set when the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO), the head lights and the small lights are turned on when the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle becomes equal to or lower than the predetermined value (for example, value with which it is possible to determine whether vehicle is traveling at night or in tunnel or not) set in advance, in principle. In the following description, light control in the automatic light mode that is unusually performed when the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value will be described.

In a case where the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO) in the fully turned-on state in which the head lights are turned on (ON) and the small lights are turned on (ON), the following control is performed.

Step S31: The controller <NUM> determines whether an operation (hereinafter, referred to as "turning-on operation") of rotating the rotary operation element <NUM> from the automatic light switch position (AUTO) to the light ON switch position (HEAD) has been performed or not based on the operation signal. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-on operation has been performed, the fully turned-on state is maintained. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-on operation has not been performed, the process proceeds to step S32.

Step S32: The controller <NUM> determines whether an operation (hereinafter, referred to as "turning-off operation") of rotating the rotary operation element <NUM> from the automatic light switch position (AUTO) to the light OFF switch position (OFF) has been performed or not based on the operation signal. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-off operation has not been performed, the fully turned-on state is maintained. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-off operation has been performed, the process proceeds to step S33.

Step S33: The controller <NUM> determines whether the vehicle is traveling or not based on the vehicle speed signal. The determination can be performed by determining whether the traveling speed (vehicle speed) of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a predetermined value or not. The predetermined value is desirably set to <NUM>/h at which the vehicle is completely stopped. By determining whether the vehicle is stopped or not in this manner, it is possible to suppress the vehicle from traveling with no light. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle is traveling (Yes in S33 of <FIG>), the turning-off operation in step S32 is overridden and the fully turned-on state is maintained. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle is stopped without traveling (No in S33 of <FIG>), the process proceeds to step S34.

Step S34: The controller <NUM> determines whether a time for which the turning-off operation performed on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been continued is long or short based on the operation signal. Whether a time for which the turning-off operation has been continued is long or short can be determined by determining whether a time for which the rotary operation element <NUM> has been held at the light OFF switch position (OFF) exceeds a predetermined time set in advance or not. The predetermined time can be randomly set and can be set to a time sufficient to confirm an operation intention of the operator, for example. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that a time for which the turning-off operation has been continued is short, transition from the fully turned-on state to the side-marker light turned-on state (transition of [A] → [B] shown in <FIG>) is performed in accordance with the turning-off operation in step S32. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that a time for which the turning-off operation has been continued is long, transition from the fully turned-on state to the fully turned-off state via the side-marker light turned-on state (transition of [A] → [B] → [C] shown in <FIG>) is performed in accordance with the turning-off operation in step S32.

In this manner, in a case where a time for which the turning-off operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been continued with the vehicle stopped in the fully turned-on state is long, a switch from the fully turned-on state to the side-marker light turned-on state ([A] → [B] in <FIG>) is performed first and a switch from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-off state ([B] → [C] in <FIG>) is performed thereafter such that transition from the fully turned-on state to the fully turned-off state is performed. Note that, in a case where a time for which the turning-off operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been continued with the vehicle stopped in the fully turned-on state is long, a switch from the fully turned-on state to the fully turned-off state may be performed directly not via the side-marker light turned-on state at a time at which a long-time turning-off operation is confirmed ([A] → [C] represented by dotted line in <FIG>).

In a case where the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO) in the side-marker light turned-on state in which the head lights are turned off (OFF) and the small lights are turned on (ON), the following control is performed.

Step S41: The controller <NUM> determines whether the turning-on operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been performed or not based on the operation signal. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-on operation has been performed, transition from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-on state (transition of [B] → [A] shown in <FIG>) is performed. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-on operation has not been performed, the process proceeds to step S42.

Step S42: The controller <NUM> determines whether the vehicle is traveling or not based on the vehicle speed signal. The determination is performed in the same manner as that in step S33. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle is traveling (Yes in S42 of <FIG>), transition from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-on state (transition of [B] → [A] shown in <FIG>) is performed to suppress the vehicle from traveling with no light. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle is stopped without traveling (No in S42 of <FIG>), the process proceeds to step S43.

Step S43: The controller <NUM> determines whether the turning-off operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been performed or not based on the operation signal. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-off operation has not been performed, the side-marker light turned-on state is maintained. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-off operation has been performed, the process proceeds to step S44.

Step S44: The controller <NUM> determines whether a time for which the turning-off operation performed on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been continued is long or short based on the operation signal. The determination on whether a time for which the turning-off operation has been continued is long or short is performed in the same manner as that in step S34. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that a time for which the turning-off operation has been continued is short, transition from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-on state (transition of [B] → [A] shown in <FIG>) is performed in accordance with the turning-off operation in step S43. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that a time for which the turning-off operation has been continued is long, transition from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-off state (transition of [B] → [C] shown in <FIG>) is performed in accordance with the turning-off operation in step S43.

In a case where the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO) in the fully turned-off state in which the head lights are turned off (OFF) and the small lights are turned off (OFF), the following control is performed.

Step S51: The controller <NUM> determines whether the turning-on operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been performed or not based on the operation signal. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-on operation has been performed, transition from the fully turned-off state to the fully turned-on state (transition of [C] → [A] shown in <FIG>) is performed. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-on operation has not been performed, the process proceeds to step S52.

Step S52: The controller <NUM> determines whether the vehicle is traveling or not based on the vehicle speed signal. The determination is performed in the same manner as that in step S33. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle is traveling (Yes in S52 of <FIG>), transition from the fully turned-off state to the fully turned-on state (transition of [C] → [A] shown in <FIG>) is performed to suppress the vehicle from traveling with no light. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle is stopped without traveling (No in S52 of <FIG>), the process proceeds to step S53.

Step S53: The controller <NUM> determines whether the turning-off operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been performed or not based on the operation signal. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-off operation has not been performed, the fully turned-off state is maintained. In a case where the controller <NUM> determines that the turning-off operation has been performed, transition from the fully turned-off state to the fully turned-on state (transition of [C] → [A] shown in <FIG>) is performed.

<FIG> is a table illustrating a relationship between the turning-off operation, the vehicle speed, and the on/off states of the head lights and the small lights in the control in the automatic light mode which is performed when the intensity of illumination in the vicinity of the vehicle is equal to or lower than the predetermined value. [A], [B], and [C] in <FIG> coincide with [A], [B], and [C] in a state transition diagram in <FIG>. As understood from <FIG>, with the automatic light control according to the embodiment, it is possible to cause the head lights and the small lights to enter the fully turned-on state in a case where the vehicle is in a traveling state and to cause the head lights and the small lights to enter the side-marker light turned-on state or the fully turned-off state in a case where the vehicle is in a stopped state.

As described above, in the case of the lever switch <NUM> and the automatic light control device <NUM> including the lever switch <NUM> according to the embodiment of the invention, the rotary operation element <NUM> of the lever switch <NUM> is provided with the momentary mechanism with which the rotary operation element <NUM> automatically returns to the automatic light switch position (AUTO) when there is no operating force by which the operator performs the rotation operation even when the operator performs a rotation operation to the light OFF switch position (OFF) such that the head lights are turned off.

Due to the momentary mechanism, the rotary operation element <NUM> returns to the automatic light switch position (AUTO) at which the automatic light mode, in which the automatic light control is performed, at all times unless the rotary operation element <NUM> is at the light ON switch position (HEAD) at which the head lights and the small lights are turned on. Accordingly, even when the vehicle stopped with the head lights turned off starts to travel at night without an operation of turning the head lights on, the controller <NUM> determines that the vehicle speed is greater than zero and thus the head lights can be automatically turned on according to the automatic light control. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the vehicle from traveling with no light.

In addition, even when the controller <NUM> causes the head lights in a turned-off state to be turned on according to the automatic light control, the operator is not confused and the operator does not feel a sense of incompatibility since the rotary operation element <NUM> of the lever switch <NUM> is at the automatic light switch position (AUTO) and the on/off states of the head lights match the position of the rotary operation element <NUM>.

The automatic light control device <NUM> according to the embodiment may be provided with a shift position sensor that can detect which of a parking range (P), a reverse range (R), a neutral range (N), and a drive range (D) a shift position operated by the operator is in. When the shift position sensor is provided, the controller <NUM> can acquire a shift position signal indicating the shift position detected by the shift position sensor and can perform control in an automatic light mode as described below based on the shift position signal.

In the case of the side-marker light turned-on state in which the head lights are turned off (OFF) and the small lights are turned on (ON), the controller <NUM> determines whether the shift position is in the parking range (P) or is in a range other than the parking range (P) based on the shift position signal. In a case where the shift position is in a range other than the parking range (P), there is a possibility that the vehicle moves and thus the controller <NUM> maintains the side-marker light turned-on state. In a case where the shift position is in the parking range (P), there is no possibility that the vehicle moves and thus transition from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-off state is performed. The transition from the side-marker light turned-on state to the fully turned-off state is may be performed in a case where a time for which the turning-off operation on the rotary operation element <NUM> has been continued is long.

In addition, in the case of the fully turned-off state in which the head lights are turned off (OFF) and the small lights are turned off (OFF), the controller <NUM> determines whether the shift position is in the parking range (P) or is in a range other than the parking range (P) based on the shift position signal. In a case where the shift position is in the parking range (P), there is no possibility that the vehicle moves and thus the controller <NUM> maintains the fully turned-off state. In a case where the shift position is in a range other than the parking range (P), there is a possibility that the vehicle moves and thus transition from the fully turned-off state to the fully turned-on state is performed.

Claim 1:
A lever switch (<NUM>) for controlling lights provided in a vehicle, comprising:
a lever main body (<NUM>); and
a rotary operation element (<NUM>) rotatably provided at a tip end portion of the lever main body (<NUM>), wherein:
the rotary operation element (<NUM>) is provided with a light ON switch position at which an instruction to cause head lights and small lights installed in the vehicle to be on at all times is issued, an automatic light switch position at which an instruction to set an automatic light mode, in which a turned-on state of the head lights and the small lights is controlled based on an intensity of illumination in a vicinity of the vehicle, is issued, and a light OFF switch position at which an instruction to turn the head lights off is issued, the light ON switch position, the automatic light switch position, and the light OFF switch position being arranged in an order along a rotation direction, and even when there is no rotation operation force, the rotary operation element (<NUM>) can be held at the automatic light switch position;
wherein
the rotary operation element (<NUM>) is provided with a momentary mechanism with which the rotary operation element (<NUM>) automatically returns to the automatic light switch position when there is no rotation operation force in a state where the rotary operation element (<NUM>) is at a position between the automatic light switch position and the light OFF switch position, and even when the rotary operation element (<NUM>) is operated to the light OFF switch position, the rotary operation element (<NUM>) automatically returns to the automatic light switch position;
characterized in that
even when there is no rotation operation force, the rotary operation element (<NUM>) can be held at the light ON switch position.