Patent ID: 8639414

Claim:
An operation apparatus for on-board devices in an automobile, comprising: an image capturing device which captures images of a plurality of mark members provided on an assembled member in a compartment of the automobile; a determining means for determining individually whether each of the mark members is or is not shielded on the basis of image data outputted by said image capturing device; an operation instructing means for outputting an operation command to the on-board devices in accordance with a result of the determining by said determining means; a recognizing means for recognizing a hand of the driver of the automobile based on image data outputted by said image capturing device; and a vehicle-speed sensor which detects a speed of the automobile; and an operation portion which controls the on-board devices, said operation portion being operable by a non-driver occupant of the automobile, wherein said plurality of mark members are positioned so that a hand of the driver of the automobile can shield the mark members from said image capturing device, and wherein when said operation instructing means determines that the automobile is running based on a detection signal of said vehicle-speed sensor, said operation instructing means invalidates at least a part of an operation signal from said operation portion unless said recognizing means recognizes that two hands of the driver are on a steering wheel of the automobile.