JPS629072B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

The present invention relates to a vehicular load control device that controls a vehicular load using a control signal outputted by operating a steering switch provided on a steering wheel and supplied via an optical transmission line. ASCD (Automatic
There is a vehicle speed control device called a speed cruise control device. 1A and 1B show this vehicle speed control device, and slip rings 10a, 10b, 1
0c and slip contacts 11a, 11b, 11
slip contacts 12a, 12 each consisting of c.
It has a steering switch section 14 provided on the steering wheel 13 located on both sides of the steering wheel 13b and 12c, and a control circuit section 16 provided on the steering post 15 side. The steering switch section 14 includes a main switch 17a connected to the slip contact 12a, a resume switch 17b connected to the slip contact 12b and the main switch 17a, a coast contact a and an accelerate contact. b, and has a slip contact 12
b and an accelerate/coast selection switch 17c connected to the main switch 17a, and both contacts a and b of the lithium switch 17b and the accelerate/coast selection switch 17c, respectively, and a common connection point is connected to the slip contact 12c. It has resistors R ₁ , R ₂ , and R ₃ . On the other hand, the control circuit section 16 includes a power supply 18 and a resistor R ₀ located between the power supply 18 and the slip contact 12a.
and a terminal 19a, which is connected to the slip contacts 12b and 12c, detects the voltage between points A and B, determines which steering switch 17b and 17c is pressed, and outputs a control signal to each actuator.
19b, . . . control amplifier 19. In the above configuration, when the main switch 17a is turned on and the lithium switch 17b or the accelerate/coast selection switch 17c is operated, the following voltage V _AB appears between points A and B (the potential of the power supply 18 is set to V _D ). (1) Rhythium switch 17b turned on (ON) V _AB =R ₁ /R ₀ +R ₁ V _D (2) Accelerate/coast selection switch 17c
to coast contact a (ON) V _AB = R ₂ / R ₀ + R ₂ V _D (3) Accelerate/coast selection switch 17c
Turn on (ON) V _AB = R ₃ / R ₀ + R ₃ V _D to the accelerating contact b.
(3) By detecting the voltage, the contents commanded by the lithium switch 17b or the acceleration/coast selection switch 17c are determined,
A control signal is output to the corresponding terminal of the terminals 19a, 19b, . . . to drive the corresponding actuator. However, according to this conventional device, as mentioned above, for example, a sliding mechanism having three slip rings is required to operate the four steering switches, and in addition, a sliding mechanism having three slip rings is required to operate the four steering switches. Adding a slip ring to supply requires four sliding mechanisms. Currently, it is difficult to increase the number of sliding mechanisms such as slip rings any further, considering the limited space of the steering wheel and operating conditions that involve rotational movement and vibration, so it is difficult to increase the number of control signals any further. Can not do it. Furthermore, according to the conventional device, as mentioned above, the content of the command is determined based on the voltage division method, so if fluctuations in the power supply voltage, instantaneous disconnection and chatter of the contacts in the sliding mechanism, etc. are taken into consideration,
Also from this point of view, there is a limit to the increase in the number of control signals. The present invention has been made in view of the above,
In order to increase the number of control signals for controlling vehicle loads, the control signals output by operating a steering switch provided on the steering wheel are supplied via an optical transmission line. A load control device for a vehicle that controls a load is provided. That is, the vehicle load control device according to the present invention includes a plurality of steering switches provided on a steering wheel, a plurality of steering switches provided on the steering wheel side, inputting switch signals from the steering switches, and generating pulse encoded signals corresponding to the signals. a circuit that outputs a signal, a circuit that includes a light emitting element fixed to the steering wheel side and converts the pulse encoded signal into an optical signal, and a circuit that is located between the steering wheel side and the steering post side and that is connected to the steering wheel side. an optical transmission line that is a light guiding ring provided on either side of the steering post and inputting the optical signal and transmitting the signal;
It includes a light receiving element fixed to the steering post side, a circuit that inputs an optical signal transmitted from the optical transmission line and converts it into an electrical signal, and a circuit that decodes the electrical signal to control the vehicle load. The light emitting device is characterized in that it is embedded in a light guiding ring or protruding into a groove serving as a light guiding ring. The vehicle load control device according to the present invention will be explained in detail below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 10. FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the present invention, in which eleven steering switches 17a, 17 provided on a switch board 13a of a steering wheel 13 are shown.
b,...17k and steering switch 17
an encoder circuit 21 that inputs switch information output by the operations of switches a, 17b, . . . 17k and outputs a pulse encoded signal corresponding to each switch;
, an electro-optical conversion circuit 22 that inputs a pulse encoded signal and outputs an optical signal from a light emitting element 22a made of, for example, a light emitting diode; A light guide ring 23 made of acrylic resin, U polymer, polycarbonate, or the like having an amplifier circuit 25 that amplifies the amplified signal, a threshold circuit 26 that cuts the amplified signal at a certain level and reshapes it to the original pulse waveform, and a threshold circuit 26 that decodes the pulse encoded signal output by the threshold circuit 26 and determines which steering switch was pressed. Decoder circuit 2 that determines
7, and a drive circuit 28 which receives a drive signal outputted based on the judgment of the decoder circuit 27 and drives a selected switch of a corresponding load. Switch board 1 of steering wheel 13
11 steering switches 1 installed in 3a
The command contents (switch information) of 7a, 17b, . . . 17k and the code strings representing them are as follows.

[Table] In this example, in order to output 11 control signals,
11 steering switches 17a, 17b...1
7k is provided and this is discriminated by a 4-bit information code, but by increasing the number of bits n, control signals up to 2 ⁿ can be output. 3A and 3B show an example of the relative positional relationship between the light guiding ring 23, the steering wheel 13, and the steering post 15 in the embodiment shown in FIG. steering switches 17d, 17f, 17k (other switches are not shown) and switch board 13a.
a light-emitting element 22a connected to the encoder circuit 21 and the electro-optical conversion circuit 22 (FIG. 2) housed in the interior of the steering wheel 13; Slip rings 31 are arranged concentrically and fixed to the steering wheel 13 and the combination switch body 35, respectively, for supplying power to the encoder circuit 21, etc.
and a first slip contact consisting of a slip contact 32, a second slip contact consisting of a slip ring 33 and a slip contact 34 having a configuration similar to the first contact for supplying power to the horn switch, and a light guiding ring. Combination switch body 3 facing the bottom of 23
5, a receiving circuit 36 connected to the light receiving element 24, a control circuit 37 connected to the receiving circuit 36, and a device controlled by the control circuit 37, such as an electronic amplifier, an automatic It also has a load 38 such as an air conditioner. Here, the receiving circuit 36 consists of the amplifier circuit 25 and the threshold circuit 26 shown in FIG. 2, and the control circuit 37 consists of the decoder circuit 2
7 and a drive circuit 28. In the configuration shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, A and B, the operation thereof is as follows. That is, when the steering switch 17d is pressed to select three radio channels, the encoder circuit 21 inputs the switch information and outputs the transmission code S shown in FIG. Transmission code S is start signal S ₁
and the information code string S ₂ shown in the table above, the start signal S ₁ is represented by a pulse of 3t and a pause of 2t, and the information code string S ₂ is represented by a pulse of 3t and a pause of 2t.
It is composed of a code string in which a pulse of 2t represents "0" and a pulse of 2t represents a "1". Therefore, the encoder circuit 21 detects the operation of the steering switch 17d and outputs "0",
A transmission code S including an information code string _S2 of "1", "0", and "0" is output, and this is converted into an optical signal by the light emitting element 22a. The converted optical signal propagates inside the light guide ring 23 while being reflected on the wall surface, and the light receiving element 24 receives the output light of the light guide ring 23 and responds to the light reception signal regardless of the steering angle of the steering wheel 13. Outputs an electrical signal. This electrical signal is amplified by an amplifier circuit 25 and then input to a threshold circuit 26, where signals exceeding a predetermined level are cut out and output as the original pulse-encoded signal that has been shaped. This pulse signal is input to a decoding circuit 27, where it is decoded, detects that the steering switch 17d has been pressed, and outputs a control signal to a drive circuit 28 assigned to select three channels of the radio. Since the control signal becomes the base voltage and the drive circuit 28 is turned on, for example, the switch signal input terminal of the electronic tuner becomes the ground potential and the channel selection state is controlled to be switched. Generally, the time to press the switch continues for 100 msec or more, so in order to transmit the transmission code S twice as shown in Fig. 4 to ensure reliability, the time length of the transmission code S must be adjusted within this time. is 50msec
becomes. Therefore, the unit pulse width t is t=50÷18 bits=2.78 msec, and it is sufficient to transmit a pulse of 180 hertz and a duty ratio of 50%. In the above embodiment, since a light emitting diode and a photodiode are used, it is possible to sufficiently cope with a transmission speed of 1 Mbit/s. Also, when using a vehicle battery as a power source for encoder circuits, etc.,
In order to prevent voltage fluctuations, it is preferable to insert a constant voltage regulator. Furthermore, in order to prevent the S/N ratio from decreasing, it is preferable that the light receiving element 24, the amplifier circuit 25, and the threshold circuit 26 be arranged as close together as possible. 5A and 5B show the light guide ring 23 provided on the steering wheel 13, the light emitting element 22a that provides an optical signal to the light guide ring 23, and the light receiving element 2 provided on the combination switch body 35.
4, and in order to increase the amount of light output from the light output surface 23d of the light guide ring 23, the other three surfaces 23
A, 23b, and 23c are coated with a white paint having a high reflectance, or plated or vapor-deposited with silver or aluminum. At least the tip of the light emitting element 22a is embedded in the light guiding ring 23 as shown. FIG. 6A shows another embodiment of the present invention, which includes a steering wheel 13, a light emitting element 22a, and a light emitting element 22a provided on the steering wheel 13.
The light guide ring 23 in which a is embedded, and the light guide ring 23
, a support member 60 extending along the steering post to support the light receiving element 24 , and a receiving circuit 36 connected to the light receiving element 24 . In the above configuration, because the light guide ring 23 outputs a larger amount of light in the side direction due to its shape than other surfaces, the light receiving element 24 can input a large amount of light and provides excellent transmission characteristics. be able to. FIG. 6B shows still another embodiment, in which a ring-shaped groove 11 is provided in the combination switch body 35.
0 is formed and used as an optical transmission line.
The light emitting element 2 is placed so that the light emitting part is located within the groove 110.
2a is fixed to the steering wheel 13, and a light receiving element 24 is installed on the bottom wall of the groove 110.
As shown in the figure, the light emitting element 22a is connected to the light guiding ring 2.
3 (that is, the combination body 35 made of a material with high light transmittance). Light from the light emitting element is reflected between the walls of the groove 110 and transmitted around the entire groove, and is transmitted to the light receiving element 24.
The light is received by In order to improve light transmission, the inner wall surface of the groove 110 and the steering wheel 1
The surface corresponding to the groove 110 of No. 3 can be coated with a highly reflective white paint, silver plating, aluminum vapor deposition, or the like. Although not shown in the drawings, the combination switch body 35 shown in FIG. The same effect as the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 can be obtained. FIG. 7 shows another embodiment for increasing the output light amount of the light emitting surface, in which the incident angle of the light 70 entering the light emitting surface 23d inside the light guide member 23 is
When the light guide member 23 is made of acrylic resin, it is designed to output even if its critical angle of 42 degrees is exceeded, and the light emitting surface 23d is roughened with sandpaper or the like. . Therefore,
Since the surface 23d serves as a diffusing surface and most of the incident light is diffused regardless of the incident angle of the transmitted light, the amount of light input to the light receiving element 24 increases. Note that it is desirable that the light emitting element has a wide directional characteristic and a high luminance. When using a light emitting element with narrow directional characteristics, the thickness of the light guiding member is preferably large. Furthermore, in order to obtain a sufficient amount of light over the entire circumference of the light guide ring, a plurality of light emitting elements may be used, for example by arranging the light emitting elements at target (180°) positions. 8A, 8B, and 8C show an embodiment in which the optical signal output from the light emitting element 22a is efficiently incident on the light guide ring 23, and 8A shows a light guide having an isosceles triangular notch 80 with a notch angle θ. ring 23
and a light emitting element 22a provided so as to face the notch 80, and B shows a light emitting element 22a.
and a light guiding ring 23 in which a notch 80 having a notch angle θ formed on the opposite side is formed, and a case where the thickness of the light guiding ring 23 is t ₁ and light enters from outside the ring, and a case where the thickness is _t2 shows the case where the light emitting element 22a is embedded inside the light guiding ring 23, C shows the light emitting element 22a and the light guiding ring 23 having an arc-shaped cut 80, and the light guiding ring 23 is the same as B. Both cases of thickness t ₁ and t ₂ are possible. In each of the above configurations, since the output light of the light emitting element 22a is given a reflection angle θ by the notch 80, the proportion of light that is reflected from the wall surface of the light guide ring 23 without passing through the light guide ring 23 and transmitted inside the light guide ring 23 is reduced. To increase. Therefore, a relatively uniform amount of output light can be obtained not only in the vicinity of the light emitting element 22a but also at a position away from that point. Note that in (a) and (b), if the cutting angle θ exceeds the critical angle, light will not pass through the portion directly facing the light emitting element and it will be difficult to receive the light, so it is desirable that θ be smaller than the critical angle. 9A and 9B show another embodiment of the present invention, in which a steering wheel 13, a light emitting element 22a,
A half donut-shaped light guiding ring 23 and a light receiving element 2 provided on a combination switch body 35
4, in which A shows a state in which the vehicle is running straight ahead, and B shows a state in which the steering angle has changed by 180 degrees from the state in A. In the above configuration, when the steering angle changes by 90 degrees to the left or right from the straight-ahead running state of A,
Since the light receiving element 24 takes a relative position where the output light of the light guide ring 23 cannot be input, the signal cannot be demodulated in the receiving circuit, and the steering switch may be operated by mistake while in the middle of a curve or when parking the garage. However, it is possible to avoid troubles such as changes in the control state of the load due to the change in the control state of the load. In addition, this can be made even more accurate by applying a light-shielding paint to both end surfaces 91 of the light guide ring 23. FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of the present invention, which includes a steering wheel 13 and a steering post 15.
, a light emitting element 22a, a light receiving element 24, a slide ring 101 provided on the steering wheel 13 and made of a light guide material, a combination switch body 35, and a combination switch body 35 provided on the body 35 and made of a light guide material. Slide ring 1
02, the slip rings 31 and 33 supported by the slide ring 101, and the slide ring 102.
The slide contacts 32 and 34 are supported by the slide contacts 32 and 34. The slide rings 101 and 102 have sliding parts 103, and surfaces 10 that are close to each other and face each other.
5 and 106, and further through the sliding portion 103, an optical transmission path is formed between the light emitting element 22a and the light receiving element 24. As shown in the figure, a light emitting element 22
a is embedded in a concave portion (a groove serving as the light guiding ring 23) of the slide ring 101 in a protruding state. In the above configuration, the slide ring 101,
Since 102 forms an optical transmission path, there is no need to provide an independent light guide ring in addition to a holding member such as a slip ring, and the overall space can be reduced. Further, since the sliding portion 103 is located inside the slide rings 101 and 102, there is no intrusion of dust, grease, etc., and deterioration over time can be suppressed. As explained above, according to the vehicle load control device according to the present invention, since the control signal outputted by operating the steering switch provided on the steering wheel is supplied via the optical transmission path, the vehicle load control device The number of signals to control can be increased as needed, and since sliding contact surfaces can be omitted, noise can be reduced, reliability can be increased, and the configuration can be simplified. can. In addition, since the light emitting element 22a is embedded in the light guide ring 23 or protrudes into the groove or recess that is the light transmission path as the light guide ring, the amount of light incident on the inside of the light guide ring etc. is sufficiently large, and the light emitted Reliable signal transmission is possible even if the output of the element is small.
Furthermore, since the light emitting element is embedded within the light guide ring, the axial height dimension of the light conversion and light transmission mechanism can be reduced. Therefore, it can be installed compactly even in the narrow space of the steering wheel post mounting portion.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1A and 1B show a conventional vehicle speed control device, A is a circuit diagram, and B is an exploded view showing the configuration. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 3A and 3B are a cross-sectional view of an optical transmission section, and FIG. 3B is an exploded view of the optical transmission section in one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a transmission code in the present invention. FIGS. 5A and 5B show other embodiments of the optical transmission section, in which A is a sectional view and B is a partially cutaway perspective view. FIG. 6A is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the optical transmission line. FIG. 6B is an explanatory diagram showing still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the light emitting surface of the light guide member. FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C are explanatory diagrams showing an example of the configuration of a light emitting element and a light guiding ring. FIGS. 9A and 9B are explanatory diagrams showing other embodiments of the present invention. 1st
FIG. 0 is a sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention. Explanation of symbols: 10a, 10b, 10c...Slip ring, 11a, 11b, 11c...Slip contact, 12a, 12b, 12c...Slip contact, 13...Steering wheel, 14
... Steering switch section, 15 ... Steering post, 16 ... Control circuit section, 17a, 17
b, 17c... Steering switch, 18...
Power supply, 19...Control amplifier, 21...Encoder circuit, 22...Electronic conversion circuit, 22a...
...Light emitting element, 23... Light guiding ring, 24... Light receiving element, 25... Amplifying circuit, 26... Threshold circuit, 2
7... Decoder circuit, 28... Drive circuit, 31,
33... Slip ring, 32, 34... Slip contact, 35... Combination switch chip, 36... Receiving circuit, 37... Control circuit, 38... Load, 101, 102... Slide ring, 110 ……groove.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A plurality of steering switches provided on a steering wheel, and a device provided on the steering wheel side that inputs a switch signal from the steering switch and outputs a pulse encoded signal corresponding to the signal. a circuit that includes a light emitting element fixed to the steering wheel side and converts the pulse encoded signal into an optical signal; and a circuit that is located between the steering wheel side and the steering post side, and is located between the steering wheel side and the steering post side. an optical transmission line which is an optical guide ring provided on one side of the steering column for inputting the optical signal and transmitting the signal; and a light receiving element fixed to the steering post side; a circuit that inputs an optical signal and converts it into an electrical signal; and a circuit that decodes the electrical signal and outputs a signal for controlling a vehicle load; A load control device for a vehicle, characterized in that the device is protruded into a groove. 2. The vehicle load control device according to claim 1, wherein the optical transmission line, which is a light guiding ring that inputs an optical signal and transmits the signal, is formed of a material with high light transmittance or a groove having a reflective surface. . 3. The vehicle load control device according to claim 1, wherein the light receiving element fixed to the steering post side is provided facing the outer peripheral surface of the light guide ring. 4. The load control device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the light guide ring has a partial ring shape and is configured to cut off light transmission when the steering wheel rotates by a predetermined angle. 5. The vehicle load control device according to claim 1, wherein the light guiding ring is provided on the steering wheel side, and a notch is formed at a position corresponding to the light emitting element. 6 a plurality of steering switches provided on the steering wheel; a circuit provided on the steering wheel side that inputs a switch signal from the steering switch and outputs a pulse encoded signal corresponding to the signal; and a circuit provided on the steering wheel side; A circuit that includes a fixed light emitting element and converts the pulse encoded signal into an optical signal; and an optical transmission line that transmits the optical signal and is located between the steering wheel side and the steering post side, and the optical transmission line that transmits the optical signal is connected to the steering wheel side. A vehicle load comprising a slide ring made of a light guide material and a slide ring made of a light guide material provided on the steering post side, both slide rings having surfaces that face each other in close proximity. Control device.