JP3145531B2 - Vehicle control device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To control a vehicle in consideration of the internal demand of a driver under various travelling environments based on the actual heart rate of the driver by effectively detecting heart beat signals from the driver during travelling. CONSTITUTION:A control device for vehicle is provided with a control means 1 for a vehicle, an actual heart rate detecting means 2 for taking out heart beat signals from a driver and measuring the actual heart rate of the driver, and a control gain changing means 3 for changing the control gain of the control means based on the actual heart rate. The actual heart rate detecting means is provided with a measuring unit 2a for measuring the time intervals at which heart beat signals are generated, and a cancelling unit 2b for cancelling the heart rate based on a value newly obtained, when the fluctuation range of the time interval exceeds a preset fluctuation range. The control gain changing means is provided with a deviation calculation unit 3a for calculating the deviation of the actual number of heart rate from a standard heart rate to change the control gain in response to the deviation. The control gain changing means can be provided with a calculation unit 3c for calculating the amount of heart beat fluctuation to change the control gain in response to the amount of heart beat fluctuation. The actual heart rate detecting means can be provided with a fluctuation range setting unit for changing preset fluctuation range after the lapse of time for a long time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for changing the motion characteristics of a vehicle in accordance with the mental state of a driver.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Hitherto, there has been proposed an apparatus in which the kinetic characteristics of a vehicle are changed according to the driving environment of the vehicle so as to change and control the kinetic characteristics of the vehicle to meet the requirements of the driver. As a control device for such a vehicle, a device that changes the throttle gain according to the road condition has been proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-24193).
No. 5). The control device classifies road conditions into urban roads, highways, uphill roads, and congested roads, stores a throttle opening determined according to various road conditions in a throttle opening characteristic storage unit in advance, and sets a road condition setting. By selecting and specifying a specific road condition from the road conditions set in advance in the means, the throttle opening is to be changed every time the selection is specified.

[0003]

However, the driving environment of a car is not determined only by the above-mentioned various road conditions, but variously changes even in the same road conditions depending on the traffic flow at that time. For this reason, even if the vehicle is controlled only based on various road conditions, the actual running environment cannot always be reflected on the vehicle motion characteristics. In addition, the motion characteristics of the vehicle desired by the driver with respect to the driving environment, that is, the driver's requirements are expressed not only in the driving environment state but also in the degree of tension of the driver operating in the driving environment at that time. It changes depending on the state of mind.
This psychological state is different for each driver mainly due to the difference in the degree of driving proficiency of the driver. Therefore, even if the driving environment is grasped using various sensors, etc., it is difficult to control the vehicle's internal characteristics simply by uniformly controlling the vehicle's kinetic characteristics based on detection information only from the vehicle or the road side. Does not necessarily match, and for each individual driver, the kinetic characteristics of the vehicle cannot always be adapted to the actual running environment.

For this reason, it is conceivable to detect a request of a driver who is a living body in an actual driving environment and change the motion characteristics of the vehicle in response to such a request. It is difficult to detect a biological signal indicating a driver's mental state and input the detected biological signal to a control computer, which has not been realized conventionally.

Meanwhile, a heart rate is one of the biological signals indicating the mental state of the driver, and it is conceivable to detect a driver's request using the heart rate. In this case, it is impractical to attach the measuring device for detecting the heart rate to the driver every time the vehicle runs, since this places an excessive burden on the driver and cannot be adopted. For this reason,
During running, a cardiac potential is detected from the palm of the driver's hand by using the steering wheel, which is in direct contact with the driver, which is a living body, as an electrode. It is conceivable to take out the R wave as a signal and measure the heart rate. That is,
The number of R waves appearing in one minute is defined as the heart rate.

[0006] However, the driver's hand and the steering wheel are not always in contact with each other, but the contact with the steering wheel may be temporarily interrupted due to a turning operation or the like. The R wave may be temporarily interrupted in the electrocardiogram. If the heart rate is measured based on the information including such breaks, it becomes difficult to accurately measure the actual heart rate. In addition, the above-mentioned cardiac potential is a weak biological signal, and is liable to be disturbed by noise. Therefore, erroneous detection of the R wave is likely to occur, and it is difficult to accurately measure the actual heart rate as in the case of the above-mentioned discontinuity. Becomes

In view of such circumstances, the present invention has been made by paying attention to the experimental result that the maximum change rate of the heartbeat variability of the driver has an upper limit and is within a predetermined value or less. The purpose of this is to obtain an accurate actual heart rate by detecting an effective heart rate signal in detecting a real heart rate of a running driver by extracting a heart rate signal from the driver. In addition, it is another object of the present invention to reflect the driver's internal demands in various driving environments on the basis of the actual heart rate of the driver in controlling the kinetic characteristics of the vehicle.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control means for controlling a vehicle, and a heart rate signal is extracted from a driver to drive the vehicle, as shown in FIG. Heart rate detecting means 2 for measuring the actual heart rate of the person
And a control gain changing means 3 for changing the control gain of the control means 1 based on the actual heart rate. The actual heart rate detecting means 2 is connected to a measuring unit 2a for measuring a time interval at which the heartbeat signal is generated, and a measuring unit 2a
In a structure and a cancellation portion 2b for canceling the heart rate measurement based on the current value when the fluctuation range between the present value and the previous value of the measured time interval exceeds the set fluctuation range, the
The actual heart rate and a predetermined reference
A deviation calculator 3a for calculating a deviation from the heart rate;
The above control according to the deviation calculated by the deviation calculation unit 3a
It is an arrangement to change the gain.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a vehicle is controlled.
Control means 1 for extracting heart rate signals from the driver and operating
An actual heart rate detecting means 2 for measuring the actual heart rate of the diver;
The control gain of the control means 1 is calculated based on the actual heart rate.
And control gain changing means 3 for changing. And on
When the actual heart rate detecting means 2 generates the heart rate signal,
Measurement unit 2a for measuring the interval, and measurement by this measurement unit 2a
Fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the set time interval
Cancel heart rate measurement based on this value when exceeding the width
And a control gain changing means , wherein the control gain changing means includes a heartbeat fluctuation amount calculation unit for calculating the heartbeat fluctuation amount which is the fluctuation amount of the actual heart rate, and the heartbeat calculated by the heartbeat fluctuation amount calculation unit. The control gain is changed according to the fluctuation amount.

Further, the invention according to claim 3 controls the vehicle.
Control means 1 for controlling and taking out the heartbeat signal from the driver
Actual heart rate detecting means 2 for measuring the actual heart rate of the driver
And the control gay of the control means 1 based on the actual heart rate.
And a control gain changing means 3 for changing the control gain. Soshi
The actual heart rate detecting means 2 is used to generate the heart rate signal.
Measuring unit 2a for measuring a time interval to perform, and measuring unit 2a
The fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the time interval measured in
When the fluctuation range is exceeded, the heart rate measurement based on this value is calibrated.
And a cancel unit 2b which Nseru, as set variation width in the cancellation portion, in which a structure and a fluctuation range setting unit for setting to change long accordance time.

[0011]

According to the above-mentioned structure, according to the first aspect of the present invention,
When the heart rate detection means 2 extracts a heart rate signal from the driver, if the variation between the current value and the previous value of the time interval between the heart rate signals measured by the measuring unit 2a exceeds the set variation range, The value is canceled this time and is not used as data for heart rate measurement. In other words, if the time fluctuation width between the preceding and following heartbeat signals exceeds the set fluctuation width, the time interval detected this time is not due to the time fluctuation between the heartbeat signals based on the actual fluctuation of the actual heart rate of the driver. This is due to a discontinuity or noise in the detection of the cardiac potential, and is canceled and invalidated. And
The heart rate is measured based only on the valid time interval data within the range of the set fluctuation range, whereby the erroneous measurement of the heart rate based on the invalid data is eliminated, and the actual heart rate of the driver is obtained. Correct measurement values can be obtained. Then, the control gain is changed by the control gain changing means on the basis of the actual heart rate, and the motion characteristics of the vehicle are changed and controlled. As a result, the degree of tension of the driver, which is a living body represented by the heart rate, is reflected in the control of the vehicle, and the vehicle can be controlled in accordance with the internal requirements of the individual driver under various driving environments.

In particular, in the control gain changing means, a deviation between the actual heart rate obtained by the actual heart rate detecting means and the reference heart rate is obtained by the deviation calculating section, and the control gain is changed according to this deviation. Therefore, a change in the degree of tension of the driver while traveling is more objectively determined. As a result, the internal demands of the driver are more accurately reflected on the movement of the vehicle.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the operation of the first aspect of the present invention, the control gain changing means sets a certain time range based on the actual heart rate obtained by the actual heart rate detecting means. The calculation of the heartbeat fluctuation amount, which is the fluctuation amount in which the actual heart rate within a small range fluctuates, is performed by the fluctuation amount calculation unit. When the driver is in a nervous state, the function of the parasympathetic nerve is reduced to a relatively small value, while in a relaxed state, the function of the parasympathetic nerve is increased to a relatively large value. Therefore, it is possible to grasp a change in the driver's mental state according to the magnitude of the heartbeat fluctuation amount within a certain time range. Therefore, by changing the control gain in accordance with the magnitude of the fluctuation amount, a change in the degree of tension of the traveling driver is more objectively determined. This makes it possible to more accurately reflect the internal demands of the driver in the movement of the vehicle.

Furthermore, according to the invention of claim 3, wherein, in addition to the operation according to the invention described in claim 1, in fact the heart rate detecting means, for canceling the invalid data in the time interval between heartbeat signals Since the set fluctuation range is changed by the fluctuation range setting unit so as to become a longer value as time elapses, a heart rate signal taking into account the fluctuation characteristics of the actual heart rate of the driver who has been running since the start of driving is extracted. Therefore, the actual heart rate of the driver can be obtained more accurately.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a vehicle in which the control device according to the first embodiment of the present invention is applied to a four-wheel steering vehicle.

First, the configuration of the four-wheel steering vehicle will be described. In the figure, 4 is a steering wheel, Fw
Is a left and right front wheel, Rw is a left and right rear wheel, 10 is a front wheel steering device that steers the left and right front wheels Fw, Fw by operating the steering wheel 4, and 20 is a steering of the front wheels Fw, Fw by the front wheel steering device 10. The left and right rear wheels Rw, Rw
Is a rear wheel steering device that steers the vehicle.

The front wheel steering device 10 has a relay rod 11 arranged in the vehicle width direction, and both ends of the rod 11 are tie rods 12, 12 and a knuckle arm 1 respectively.
The wheels are connected to the left and right front wheels Fw, Fw via 3, 13. The relay rod 11 includes the relay rod 11
And a rack-and-pinion mechanism 14 for moving the front and rear wheels Fw, Fw by an angle corresponding to the amount of operation when the steering wheel 1 is operated. It is designed to steer.

On the other hand, the rear wheel steering device 20 has a relay rod 21 arranged in the vehicle width direction similarly to the case of the front wheel steering device 10, and both ends of the rod 21 are tie rods 22, 22 respectively. And left and right rear wheels Rw, Rw via knuckle arms 23, 23. The relay rod 21 is provided with a centering spring 24 for urging the rod 21 to a neutral position and a rack and pinion mechanism 25. A clutch 26, a speed reduction mechanism 27, and a motor 28 are linked to the mechanism 25. When the clutch 26 is engaged, the relay rod 21 is moved in the vehicle width direction via the rack and pinion mechanism 25 by the rotation of the motor 28. By moving, the rear wheels Rw and Rw are steered by an angle corresponding to the rotation amount of the motor 28. The motor 28 is driven by a predetermined amount of rotation according to a control signal from a control unit 29.

The control unit 29 includes control means 30 for controlling the four-wheel steering characteristics of the vehicle by controlling the driving of the motor 28.
0 is a vehicle speed sensor 31 for detecting the vehicle speed, and front wheels Fw and Fw.
The front wheel steering angle sensor 32 detects the steering angle of the rear wheel Rw, and the rear wheel steering angle detects the steering angle of the rear wheels Rw and Rw by detecting the amount of movement of the relay rod 21 moved by the motor 28. The sensor 33 is connected.

The control means 30 internally stores a reference characteristic map of the movement amount SA of the relay rod 21 with respect to the front wheel turning angle θF, that is, a reference turning ratio of the rear wheel turning angle θR to the front wheel turning angle θF. A characteristic map is input and stored in advance, and a movement amount SA of the relay rod 21 corresponding to a predetermined steering ratio fv is calculated based on a vehicle speed detection value from the vehicle speed sensor 31, and corresponds to the movement amount SA. A drive control signal is output to the motor 28.
Specifically, a steering ratio fv corresponding to the vehicle speed detection value is selected, and based on this fv, θR = fv · θF · k (where k is a control gain; usually k = 1.0). The rear wheel turning angle θR is calculated.

In the reference turning ratio characteristic map, the rear wheels Rw, Rw have opposite phases to the front wheels Fw, Fw in a low vehicle speed region where the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than a predetermined set speed VO, as shown by a solid line in FIG. The vehicle speed is set to be the same in the middle and high speed ranges higher than VO. In other words, in the low vehicle speed range, the turning radius of the vehicle is reduced so that the vehicle can be turned easily and the vehicle can be easily stored in the garage. (Lane change) and gentle turning can be performed stably.

Next, a configuration for changing the control of the four-wheel steering characteristics by the control means 30 based on the actual heart rate of the driver will be described.

The control unit 29 includes a control gain changing means 50 for changing the control gain of the control means 30 based on the actual heart rate of the driver detected by the actual heart rate detecting means 40, in addition to the control means 30. (See FIG. 2).

The actual heart rate detecting means 40 is provided at each predetermined portion of the steering wheel 4 and detects a potential difference between the left and right hands of the driver.
Electrode 4 composed of 1a, 41a and negative poles 41b, 41b
1, an amplifier 42 connected to the electrode 41 for amplifying the potential difference, a band-pass filter 43 for removing a predetermined frequency signal component other than cardiac potential from the potential difference amplified by the amplifier 42, and a band-pass filter A measuring unit 44 for measuring a heart rate based on a time interval at which an R-wave, which is a heartbeat signal, appears from a cardiac potential passing through 43, and a change between the current heart rate and the previous heart rate measured by the measuring unit 44 A canceling unit 45 for canceling the heart rate measurement value exceeding the set fluctuation range by looking at the width and outputting the previous value as the current effective heart rate to the control gain changing unit 50; and a fluctuation for changing the set fluctuation range in the cancel unit 45. Width setting part 4
6 is provided.

As shown in detail in FIG. 4, the electrode 41 has four insulating portions 4a, 4a,... Having a predetermined width at upper, lower, left and right positions of the steering wheel 4. Are divided into four regions (regions indicated by a mesh pattern in the figure) 4b, 4c, 4d, and 4e of upper left, lower left, lower right, and upper right, and each region 4b, 4c,. 41b are arranged alternately. That is, the left and right regions 4b, 4e or 4c, 4d of the steering wheel 4 in a state where the driver faces each other, that is, one of the right and left regions 4b, 4b,
4d is disposed so as to be a positive pole 41a, and the other 4c and 4e is disposed so as to be a negative pole 41b, whereby a potential difference between the left and right hands of the driver holding the steering wheel 4 is detected. The electrodes 41 are provided by forming a film on the surface of each of the regions 4b, 4c,... Of the steering wheel 4 using a conductive rubber or a conductive plastic.
The insulator portion is formed by the material of the steering wheel 4 itself because a is an unprocessed portion.

The electrodes 41a and 41b are connected to an impedance conversion amplifier 42 via a slip ring 47 (see FIG. 2) interposed between the steering shaft and the steering column. A heartbeat signal having an extremely high impedance from a certain driver is amplified, and the amplified heartbeat signal is sent to the measurement unit 44 via the bandpass filter 43.

The band-pass filter 43 has a cut-off frequency set at a predetermined value on the high frequency side and a low value on the low frequency side, respectively, and allows passage in a frequency band between these two set values. . That is,
The cut-off frequency on the high frequency side is set to a value that can cut the myoelectric potential, which is a high-frequency signal component mixed into the cardiac potential due to the muscle activity of the hand when the driver grips the electrode 41 of the steering wheel 4 with the hand. The cutoff frequency on the low frequency side is set to a value that can cut a low frequency signal component mixed in the heartbeat signal due to poor contact between the driver's hand and the electrode 41.

The principle of heart rate measurement by the measuring unit 44 is as follows.
A trigger level in which the R wave of the P, Q, R, S, T, and U waves, which appear sequentially in the electrocardiogram (see FIG. 5), which is a waveform of the temporal change in the cardiac potential, is set higher than the base potential by a predetermined amount. The number of times per minute exceeding the number is measured, and this number is used as the actual heart rate of the driver. And
The actual processing in the measuring unit 44 detects the time interval dt between the previous R wave exceeding the trigger level and the current R wave, and calculates the heart rate hr per minute from this time interval dt. This is the actual heart rate.

The cancel unit 45 is provided with the measuring unit 44
The fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the heart rate hr based on the time interval dt measured at the time is set to a predetermined fluctuation range Clm (for example, ± 5).
(bpm; beat per minute), the heart rate hr based on the current value is canceled as invalid data, while if it is within the set fluctuation range Clm, the heart rate hr based on the current value is enabled. Effective heart rate Hr which is data
To the control gain changing means 50.

The fluctuation width setting section 46 stores a map which is predetermined as a relationship between the setting fluctuation width Clm and time shown in FIG. 6, and based on this map, the above-mentioned setting fluctuation width Clm.
Is changed to a longer value as time elapses from the detection of the effective heart rate. The set fluctuation range Clm is determined in accordance with the maximum value of the actual heart rate of the living body as a driver with respect to the heart rate fluctuation amount per unit time.

Hereinafter, the measuring unit 44 and the canceling unit 45 will be described.
Will be specifically described based on the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, it is repeated until it is detected in step SA1 whether or not the R wave exceeding the trigger level is detected, and when it is detected, in step SA2, the timer value at that time is read and stored in the present value t (n). Then, at step SA3, the time interval dt is obtained by subtracting the previous value t (n-1) from the current value t (n), and the reciprocal of the time interval dt is multiplied by 60 to obtain the current value of the heart rate hr per minute. Find the value hr (n).

Next, at step SA4, it is determined whether or not the value obtained by subtracting the previous value hr (n-1) from the current value hr (n) of the heart rate hr (the heart rate fluctuation range) is within the range of the set fluctuation range Clm. If the value is within the range, the current value hr (n) is set as the current effective heart rate Hr at step SA5. If the value is outside the range, the current value hr (n) is canceled at step SA6 and the previous value hr (n) is canceled. Let -1) be the current effective heart rate Hr. Then, in step SA7, the current effective heart rate Hr is output to the control gain changing means 50. In step SA8, the timer reading value t (n) and the heart rate detection value hr (N) are updated and the routine returns.

The steps SA1 to SA3 constitute the measuring section 44, and the steps SA4 to SA8 constitute the canceling section 45.

The control gain changing means 50 calculates the effective heart rate Hr input from the actual heart rate detecting means 40,
A deviation calculating unit 51 for calculating a deviation from a predetermined reference heart rate set in advance, and a reference turning ratio characteristic indicated by a solid line in FIG. 3 according to the magnitude of the deviation calculated by the deviation calculating unit 51 are the same. The more stable side as shown by the dashed line in the figure, that is,
And a control gain changing unit 52 that changes the control gain k so as to be changed to the same phase side. That is, the actual heart rate in a state where the driver continues the driving operation in a relaxed state is set as the reference heart rate in the deviation calculating section 51, and the control gain changing section 52 sets the deviation in the deviation. Is larger, the control gain k is calculated to shift the reference turning ratio characteristic to the same phase side more assuming that the driver is in a more tense state, and the control gain k is output to the control means 30. Has become.

Next, the operation and effect of the first embodiment having the above configuration will be described.

While the vehicle is running, the driver's left and right hands
The steering wheel 4 is held by holding the steering wheel 4 at a neutral rotation position by gripping either the upper left or right region 4b or 4e on the upper half or the lower half on the left or right region 4c or 4d. I have. That is, when gripping the upper half of the steering wheel 4, the right hand is used to grip the upper right area 4e, and the left hand is used to grip the upper left area 4b.
When grasping the lower half of the steering wheel 4, the lower right region 4d is grasped with the right hand and the lower left region 4c is grasped with the left hand. Therefore, even when grasping either the upper half or the lower half, one of the left and right hands contacts the positive pole 41a,
The other comes into contact with the negative pole 41b. Further, the steering wheel 4 is used to steer from the neutral rotation position.
Are rotated, the respective regions 4b, 4c,
Since the positive poles 41a and the negative poles 41b are alternately arranged in 4d and 4e, one of the left and right hands contacts the positive pole 41a, and the other contacts the negative pole 41b. For this reason, the potential difference between the left and right hands of the driver is detected by the two electrodes 41 a and 41 b, and after this potential difference is amplified by the amplifier 42, the bandpass filter 43 removes an extra frequency range other than the cardiac potential. Is sent to the measuring unit 44. The measurement unit 44 extracts the R wave from the electrocardiogram, calculates the heart rate from the time interval, and detects the effective heart rate Hr of the driver from the heart rate by the cancel unit 45. The detection result is sent to the control gain changing unit 50, and the control gain k is changed by the control gain changing unit 52 based on the calculation result of the deviation by the deviation calculating unit 51, and the control unit k is changed based on the control gain k. At 30, the control of the rear wheel turning angle is performed.

In detecting the actual heart rate of the driver, in the present embodiment, the actual heart rate of the driver is detected by detecting the potential difference between both hands of the driver via the electrodes 41 provided on the steering wheel 4. Thus, the actual heart rate of the driver can be easily detected without imposing a burden such as forcing the driver to attach a special measuring device to the driver. Moreover,
Since the electrode 41 is provided so as to be covered by the steering wheel 4, the potential difference can be detected without impairing the function of the steering wheel 4 and without making the driver conscious.

A signal having an extremely high impedance from a driver (living body) as a signal source is output from the amplifier 42.
, The disadvantage that noise is easily picked up due to high impedance can be solved.
Wave detection can be facilitated and assured. Moreover,
Since the bandpass filter 43 is interposed, it is possible to remove the myoelectric potential (high-frequency signal component) from the palm of the driver's hand from the potential difference detected by each electrode 41 to remove noise accompanying myoelectric potential contamination. On the other hand, the base potential can be stabilized by removing the low frequency signal component caused by the poor contact between the electrode 41 and the driver's hand to prevent the base potential from drifting due to the low frequency mixing. , R wave detection can be facilitated and assured.

Further, upon detecting the heart rate from the detected R wave, the heart rate detection value hr exceeding the set fluctuation range Clm is canceled as invalid data, and the time interval dt within the range of the set fluctuation range Clm is canceled. Since the detected heart rate detection value hr is used as effective data, it is possible to prevent erroneous detection of the heart rate due to interruption of the R-wave or mixing of noise. That is, for example, when the appearance of the R wave is interrupted once, the time interval between them is almost two times the normal value.
As a result, the heart rate calculated based on the time interval becomes almost half of the normal value and sharply decreases from the previous value. Conversely, when noise exceeding the trigger level is mixed between adjacent R waves, the noise causes erroneous detection of the R wave, and the heart rate calculated based on the short time interval sharply increases from the previous value. In such a case, by canceling the detected heart rate outside the range of the set fluctuation range Clm, which is the maximum fluctuation range of the heart rate of the living body, the occurrence of erroneous measurement of the heart rate can be prevented easily and surely, and the driver's actual Heart rate can be accurately detected.

Further, since the set change width Clm, which is a reference for the cancellation, is changed by the change width setting section 46 so as to become longer as time elapses, the driver starts driving and becomes nervous as the running time elapses. The tendency can be matched well with the tendency of the degree of the change to increase.

When the driving environment of the vehicle has a very small variation in traffic flow, for example, on an expressway with relatively few running vehicles, the driver continues the driving operation in a relatively relaxed state. In fact, the heart rate is kept almost at the reference heart rate. For this reason, the control gain k is not changed by the control gain changing means 50 (k
= 1), the rear wheel steering device 20 is controlled to be turned based on the reference turning ratio characteristics.

On the other hand, if the driving environment changes from the above case to a state in which the number of running vehicles is increased and the inter-vehicle distance becomes extremely small, or the traffic flow fluctuates greatly, the driver is required to make the above-mentioned operation. The state shifts from a relaxed state to a tense state, and the actual heart rate of the driver increases accordingly. As a result, the measured value of the actual heart rate input to the control gain changing means 50 also increases, and a deviation from the reference heart rate occurs. Then, the control gain k is changed in accordance with the deviation, and the reference turning ratio characteristic is further changed to the same phase side. That is, the steering angle of the rear wheels Rw, Rw up to that point is changed to the same phase side irrespective of whether the steering angle is the opposite phase side or the same phase side. The turning motion characteristic of the vehicle with respect to the turning operation can be changed to a more stable side. In other words, the steering characteristics of the vehicle can be changed to a more stable side for the steering operation performed by the driver who is in a state of tension, and it is possible to avoid the sudden movement of the vehicle and to meet the driver's request. it can.

The higher the driver's tension state, the higher the actual heart rate (the larger the deviation). As a result, the control gain k is changed to a larger value, and the change to the in-phase side is performed. Is made larger. For this reason, the vehicle's kinetic characteristics can be changed to a more stable side in accordance with the degree of driver's tension during traveling, that is, the degree of change in the driver's psychological state that changes in accordance with the traveling environment. The driver's demand for the vehicle's motion characteristics, which changes based on the degree of acceleration, can be accurately reflected in the vehicle, and a more advanced safe driving state can be realized. As described above, in the present embodiment, the request based on the mental state of the driver can be directly reflected in the control of the vehicle. As compared with a conventional device that indirectly controls the change by estimating the vehicle speed, it is possible to directly grasp the driver's motion characteristics and control the change to the one that matches the driver's request.

FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment of an engine control device provided with another embodiment of the control gain changing means 50 in the first embodiment. Reference numeral 60 denotes an actual heart rate detecting means, and 61 denotes an actual heart rate detecting means. A canceling unit provided in the heart rate detecting unit, 70 is a control gain changing unit, and 80 is a control unit including the control gain changing unit 70 and the control unit 30.

The actual heart rate detecting means 60 is provided at each predetermined portion of the steering wheel 4 and detects a potential difference between the left and right hands of the driver.
Electrode 4 composed of 1a, 41a and negative poles 41b, 41b
1, an amplifier 42 connected to the electrode 41 for amplifying the potential difference, a band-pass filter 43 for removing a predetermined frequency signal component from the potential difference amplified by the amplifier 42 and extracting a cardiac potential, Filter 4
3, a measurement unit 44 for measuring a heart rate from a time interval at which an R wave, which is a heartbeat signal, appears from the cardiac potential extracted by passing through the heart rate sensor 3, a current heart rate measured by the measurement unit 44, and a previous heart rate A canceling unit 61 for canceling the heart rate measurement value exceeding the set fluctuation range by looking at the fluctuation range with the number and outputting only the effective heart rate to the control gain changing unit 70, and changing the set fluctuation range in the cancel unit 61. And a fluctuation range setting unit 46.

Hereinafter, the measuring unit 44 and the canceling unit 61
Is specifically described based on the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, in step SB1, the detection of the detection of the R wave is confirmed. In step SB2, the timer value t (n) at that time is read.
In step SB3, the time interval dt based on the timer value t (n) and the current value hr (n) of the heart rate hr based on the time interval dt
Are performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

Next, at step SB4, it is determined whether or not a value obtained by subtracting the previous value hr (n-1) from the current value hr (n) of the heart rate hr is within the range of the set fluctuation range Clm. If there is, in step SB5, the current value hr (n) is set as the current effective heart rate Hr, and in step SB6, the effective heart rate Hr is output to the control gain changing means 70. If not, step S
At B7, the current value hr (n) is canceled and the previous value hr (n-
1) is set as the current value hr (n). Then, in step SB8, the timer reading value t (n) and the heart rate detection value hr (n) are updated, and the process returns.

The steps SB1 to SB3 constitute the measuring section 44, and the steps SB4 to SAB constitute the canceling section 61.

The control gain changing means 70 comprises a heart rate fluctuation calculating section 71 for calculating a heart rate fluctuation amount which is a fluctuation amount of the actual heart rate based on the effective heart rate Hr inputted from the actual heart rate detecting means 60, This heartbeat fluctuation amount calculation unit 71
The control gain k is changed so that the reference steering ratio characteristic indicated by the solid line in FIG. 3 is changed to the same phase side as indicated by the one-dot chain line in FIG. 3 in accordance with the magnitude of the heartbeat fluctuation amount calculated by And a change unit 72. Then, the control gain changing section 72 calculates the control gain k for shifting the reference turning ratio characteristic to the same phase side more assuming that the driver is in a more nervous state as the fluctuation amount is smaller, The control gain k is output to the control means 30.

Hereinafter, the processing in the fluctuation amount calculating section 71 and the control gain changing section 72 will be specifically described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.

First, in step SB9, it is determined whether or not the effective heart rate Hr has been input from the cancel unit 61. If so, in step SB10, 1 is added to the measured effective heart rate a (initial value 0). Integrate. In addition, the effective heart rate Hr is converted to effective heart rate data Hm (i) (i = 1 to a).
To accumulate.

Next, at step SB12, it is determined whether or not a predetermined averaging processing time T has elapsed, and steps SB9 to SB12 are repeated until the predetermined averaging processing time T has elapsed. After the averaging process time T has elapsed, the timer count of the time T is set to 0 in step SB13, and the average heart rate Fr (j) is calculated in step SB14. This calculation is based on the effective heart rate data Hm (i) and the effective heart rate measurement number a, Done by Then, at step SB15, the standard deviation S
The calculation of Hr (j) is performed based on the effective heart rate data Hm (i), the effective heart rate measurement number a, and the average heart rate Fr (j).

[0056]

(Equation 1)

Is performed.

Then, in step SB15, it is determined whether or not the variation rate, that is, the value obtained by dividing the standard deviation SHr (j) by the average heart rate Fr (j) is within 10%. 10% change rate
If not, the average heart rate Fr (j) is valid, and the standard deviation SHr (j) based on this Fr (j) is set as the current heartbeat fluctuation amount U (j) in step SB17, and the fluctuation rate is within 10%. If not, the average heart rate Fr (j) is invalid in step SB18, and the standard deviation SHr (j) based on this Fr (j) is canceled, and the previous standard deviation SHr (j-1) is replaced with the current heartbeat fluctuation. Quantity U
(j).

Based on this heartbeat fluctuation amount U (j),
In step SB19, the control gain k is changed to be larger as the current value U (j) is smaller than the previous value U (j-1), and the control gain k is output to the control means 30. In step SB20, the heartbeat fluctuation amount U (j) is updated in step SB20.
At B2, the effective heart rate data Hm (i) and the effective heart rate measurement number a are initialized, and the process returns.

Steps SB9 to SB18 correspond to the fluctuation amount calculating section 71, and step SB19 corresponds to the control gain changing section 7.
2 respectively.

Since the other components of the engine control device are the same as those of the first embodiment, the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

In the case of the second embodiment, the control gain changing means 70 determines the amount of heartbeat fluctuation U (j) based on the effective heart rate Hr obtained by the actual heart rate detecting means 60. Since the control gain k is changed based on (j), it is not necessary to determine the reference heart rate as the reference value as in the first embodiment, and the driver's tension is determined only by the heartbeat fluctuation amount U (j). The degree can be grasped. That is, when the driver is in a nervous state, the function of the parasympathetic nerve is attenuated and becomes a relatively small value. Since it has a physiological characteristic of a large value, a change in the driver's degree of tension can be grasped by a change in the heartbeat fluctuation amount. Therefore, by changing the control gain in accordance with the magnitude of the fluctuation amount, it is possible to more objectively reflect the change in the degree of the driver's tension during traveling on the vehicle. The kinetic characteristics of the vehicle can be changed to those more suitable for various driving environments in consideration of the internal requirements of the driver.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the first and second embodiments, but encompasses various other modifications. That is, in the first and second embodiments, the control target of the control means 30 is the rear wheel turning characteristic of the four-wheel steering device, and the higher the driver's tension state, the more the steering characteristic is changed to a more stable side. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the control target may be as follows. That is, when the hard / soft characteristic of the active suspension is to be controlled, the change control may be performed to a harder side as the deviation increases, that is, to a side where the steering stability is increased. When the drive force transmission characteristic of the power train is to be controlled, the control may be changed to a lower output as the deviation increases. Further, when the output characteristic of the engine with respect to the operation of the accelerator pedal is to be controlled,
The change control may be performed to a lower output side as the deviation increases.

In the first and second embodiments, it is determined whether or not the fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the heart rate obtained from the time interval between the heart rate signals is within the range of the set fluctuation range for the heart rate. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is determined whether or not the fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the time interval exceeds the set fluctuation range for the time interval. The excess may be cancelled. In this case, the set fluctuation range for the time interval may be calculated backward from the set fluctuation range for the heart rate.

In the first and second embodiments, the set fluctuation range is set to a longer value over time, but is not limited to this, and may be a fixed value, for example.

Further, in the first and second embodiments,
Although the heartbeat signal of the driver is detected from the electrode 41 disposed on the steering wheel 4, the invention is not limited to this. For example, electrodes are disposed on a shift knob, a center armrest, a door-side armrest, a parking brake knob, and the like. The detection may be performed based on contact with the driver's hand.

[0067]

As described above, according to the vehicle control apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention, when the heart rate signal is actually extracted from the driver by the heart rate detection means, the heart rate signal measured by the measurement unit is not detected. If the fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the time interval exceeds the set fluctuation range, the current value is canceled and not used as data for heart rate measurement. It is possible to prevent erroneous measurement of the actual heart rate due to the entry of noise, and to accurately measure the actual heart rate of the driver. Since the control gain is changed by the control gain changing means based on such accurate actual heart rate to change the control of the vehicle by the control means, the driver's tension expressed by the actual heart rate is changed. The control of the vehicle can be performed in consideration of the degree, and the vehicle can be controlled in accordance with the internal requirements of each driver under various driving environments.

In particular, in the control gain changing means, the deviation between the actual heart rate obtained by the actual heart rate detecting means and the reference heart rate is calculated by the deviation calculating section, and the control gain is changed according to the deviation. Therefore, it is possible to more objectively determine a change in the degree of tension of the driver while traveling, and it is possible to more accurately reflect the internal demands of the driver in the movement of the vehicle.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the present invention, the control gain changing means calculates the actual heart rate from the actual heart rate obtained by the actual heart rate detecting means. The fluctuation amount of the heartbeat, which is the amount of fluctuation in the number, is calculated by the fluctuation amount calculation unit and the control gain is changed according to the magnitude of the heartbeat fluctuation amount. Can be determined more objectively, and the internal demands of the driver can be more accurately reflected in the movement of the vehicle. That is, when the driver is in a nervous state, the function of the parasympathetic nerve is attenuated and becomes a relatively small value. Since the characteristic has a large value, the change in the degree of tension of the driver can be grasped based on the magnitude of the heartbeat fluctuation amount. In this case, the setting of the reference heart rate is omitted as compared with the second aspect of the invention. Therefore, the internal demands of the individual drivers can be more reliably reflected in the control of the vehicle.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the present invention, a setting for canceling invalid data of a time interval between heartbeat signals in the actual heart rate detecting means. Since the fluctuation width is changed by the fluctuation width setting unit so as to become a longer value as time elapses, an effective heartbeat signal can be generated by taking into account the fluctuation characteristics of the actual heart rate of the driver who has been traveling since the start of driving. The actual heart rate of the driver can be obtained more accurately.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall schematic configuration diagram showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a relationship diagram showing a steering ratio characteristic with respect to various vehicle speeds.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the steering wheel of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an electrocardiogram based on a standard electrocardiogram.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a setting fluctuation width and time.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating processing in a measurement unit and a cancellation unit.

FIG. 8 is a view corresponding to FIG. 2 showing a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing in a measurement unit and a cancellation unit in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the first half of the processing by the control gain changing means of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the latter half of the processing by the control gain changing means of FIG. 8;

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 30 control means 2, 40, 60 actual heart rate detecting means 2a, 44 measuring unit 2b, 45, 61 canceling unit 2c, 46 fluctuation range setting unit 3, 50, 70 control gain changing unit 3a, 51 deviation calculating unit 3b , 52 control gain changing unit 3c, 71 fluctuation amount calculating unit 3d, 72 control gain changing unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ identification code FI B62D 113: 00 137: 00 (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B62D 6/00 B62D 7/14 B60K 41/00 B62D 1/04 B60R 21/00

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A control means for controlling a vehicle, an actual heart rate detecting means for extracting a heart rate signal from a driver and measuring an actual heart rate of the driver, and a control gain of the control means based on the actual heart rate. Control gain changing means for changing the actual heart rate detecting means, wherein the actual heart rate detecting means measures a time interval at which the heartbeat signal occurs, and a current value of the time interval measured by the measuring section and a cancellation unit for canceling the heart rate measurement based on the current value when the variation range of the value exceeds the set fluctuation range, the control gain changing means, the fact heart rate and predetermined group
Equipped with a deviation calculation unit that calculates the deviation from the quasi-heart rate,
The above control is performed according to the deviation calculated by the deviation calculation unit.
A control device for a vehicle, wherein the control device is configured to change a gain . 2. A control means for controlling a vehicle, comprising :
The actual measurement of the driver's actual heart rate by extracting the heart rate signal
Heart rate detection means and the above control based on the actual heart rate
Control gain changing means for changing the control gain of the means.
The actual heart rate detecting means detects when the heart rate signal is generated.
The measuring unit that measures the interval, and the time measured by this measuring unit
The fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the interval exceeds the set fluctuation range
The heart rate measurement based on the current value
And the control gain changing means is configured to detect the actual heart rate fluctuation amount.
Equipped with a heartbeat fluctuation calculator that calculates a certain heartbeat fluctuation
The heartbeat calculated by the heartbeat fluctuation amount calculation unit
Configuration to change the above control gain according to the amount of fluctuation
A control device for a vehicle, comprising: 3. A control means for controlling a vehicle and a driver
The actual measurement of the driver's actual heart rate by extracting the heart rate signal
Heart rate detection means and the above control based on the actual heart rate
Control gain changing means for changing the control gain of the means.
The actual heart rate detecting means detects when the heart rate signal is generated.
The measuring unit that measures the interval, and the time measured by this measuring unit
The fluctuation range between the current value and the previous value of the interval exceeds the set fluctuation range
The heart rate measurement based on the current value
Cancel section and the set fluctuation range in the cancel section.
The fluctuation range set to change long over time
A control device for a vehicle, comprising: a setting unit .