JPH0664458A - Device for preventing vehicle drive while dozing - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an inexpensive for preventing vehicle driving while dozing, which does not hurt driver's feeling but is effective to prevent vehicle driving while dozing by extending the due time of a warning medium in proportion to time having elapsed since a vehicle driving while dozing prevention switch was turned on, and concurrently shortening the due interval of the warning medium in reverse proportion to time having elapsed. CONSTITUTION:A CPU 8 allows time (t1) allocated for blasting cool air by a timer 6 to be reset so as to be started, when the CPU judges that a switch 5 has been tuned on by reading the output of the vehicle driving while dozing prevention switch 5. A signal 81 for quick cooling is outputted to a control means, if the first duration time (t1) allocated for blasting cool air is within a specified duration time, an evaporator allows cool air which is cooled the most, to be blasted out of a spit hole toward a driver. And the output of the signal 81 for quick cooling is suspended, if it is judged that the first duration time for blasting cool air exceeds a specified duration time. In this case, the time allocated for a cool air blasting timer 6 is made longer as the number of times for air blasting is increased, on the contrary, time (t2) allocated for a cool air blasting timer 7 is made shorter.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a drowsy driving prevention device, and more particularly to a device for preventing a drowsy driving by generating various alarm media (stimulation media) such as cold air by an air conditioning means.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a device for preventing a drowsy driving by blowing cold air from an air-conditioning means, for example
There is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-72116, and in this device, various sensors for inputting information related to air conditioning in the vehicle, operation switches for inputting a passenger's request for the air conditioning, and based on the sensor and the switch A control device for controlling an air conditioner that air-conditions the interior of the vehicle, a drowsy driving prevention switch that is turned on when an occupant feels drowsiness, and various sensors and operation switches of the drowsiness driving prevention switch when the drowsiness driving prevention switch is turned on. Regardless of what, it has a control means for outputting to the controller a quenching signal that maximizes the capacity of the air conditioner.

Then, as shown in FIG. 17, the control means outputs a rapid cooling signal at a constant time (t1) and at a constant interval (t2) while the drowsy driving prevention switch is on, In other words, the control of blowing cold air from the air conditioner for time t1, stopping it for time t2, and blowing it again for time t1 has prevented the dozing operation.

Here, it is known that the risk of drowsy driving when a vehicle or the like is continuously driven for a long distance or for a long time increases with the passage of time (that is, the awakening degree of the driver decreases). In FIG. 17, this means that the risk of occurrence of drowsiness driving (or a decrease in driver's awakening level) increases with the passage of time from when the drowsiness driving prevention switch is turned on to when it is turned off. Nothing else.

However, in the device disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 2-72116, the output time (t1) and the output interval (t) of the quenching signal are set.
Since 2) was kept constant, the control did not match the occurrence risk or the driver's awakening degree, and specifically, there were the following problems.

(1) If the rapid cooling signal output time (t1) is short (that is, the cool air blowing time is short, for example, 2 seconds),
Although it is good when the driver turns on the doze-driving prevention switch (see FIG. 17), it takes a long time to turn off the dozing-driving prevention switch because a sufficient awakening effect cannot be obtained.

On the other hand, if the output time (t1) is long (for example, 3 minutes), the wakefulness is high at the time when the switch is turned on, but this time the driver feels very uncomfortable and, therefore, is necessary. You will hesitate to use it at any time.

(2) If the rapid cooling signal output interval (t2) is short (for example, 1 minute), the cold air will frequently blow out even when the awakening level is low at the time when the switch is turned on, and the driver will feel uncomfortable. On the contrary, if the output interval (t2) is long (for example, 10 minutes), the cold air does not easily blow out, and there is a risk of falling asleep while driving.

Therefore, a device for performing a drowsy driving prevention control suitable for increasing the risk of occurrence of a drowsiness driving or decreasing the awakening degree of a driver is required. There is an apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-85031.

In this apparatus, an instruction means for instructing the driver to press a designated button with a synthetic voice, and a response detecting means for checking whether or not the driver has pressed the correct button in response to the instruction. A warning means for giving a warning by a buzzer to the driver, a judgment means for judging whether or not the response is made within a predetermined time, and a control means for exercising the warning means based on the output of the judgment means. I have it.

When the control means determines that a predetermined time (for example, 30 minutes) has elapsed after the start of the operation, the instruction means instructs the driver to press a designated button, and the driver has a predetermined time (for example, 2 minutes). Check if the correct button was pressed within the), and if it is determined that the button was not pressed within the predetermined time, it is determined that the driver's arousal level is low, that is, there is a high possibility of drowsy driving, and a buzzer sounds to the driver. I was giving a warning.

Further, the control means determines the time until the next instruction is generated by determining that the driver's arousal level is high when the time is short depending on the time from issuing the instruction to pressing the button (instruction). If the interval between occurrences is long and the time until the button is pressed is long, on the contrary, it is determined that the driver's arousal level is low even within a predetermined time, and the time until the next instruction is issued is controlled to be short.

Further, when it is determined that the driver's arousal level is low as described above, the buzzer sounds longer or the volume is increased because the button has not been pressed within a predetermined time, and conversely If it is determined to be high, the control is made to shorten the time or reduce the volume.

[0014]

However, the alarm issued by the buzzer in the device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Sho 60-85031 mentioned above does not give a continuous and repeated alarm once it has been issued, but only on an ad hoc basis. However, there is a problem that the effect of drastic dozing driving prevention is small.

Further, in this device, since the driver is instructed to press the designated button in order to judge the awakening degree of the driver, there is a risk of being careless in the front when pressing the button. . Further, since this button operation is originally not necessary for driving, there is a problem in that the driver who is forced to do this feels very uncomfortable.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive doze-driving prevention device which does not give a driver an unpleasant feeling and has a great effect of preventing the drowsy driving.

[0017]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a drowsy driving prevention apparatus according to the present invention is provided in a passenger compartment to provide a driver with an alarm medium (for example, cold wind, aroma gas, voice, vibration, Alarm medium generating means for giving hot air, alarm water, lamp light, display light, contact cold temperature, or contact pressure), a drowsy driving prevention switch operated by the driver, and a proportion of time elapsed since the switch was operated And a control means for controlling the alarm medium generating means so that the generation time of the alarm medium is extended and the generation interval of the alarm medium is shortened in inverse proportion to the elapsed time.

Further, according to the present invention, the alarm medium generating means is an air conditioning means provided in the passenger compartment so that the cold air is blown near the driver's face neck, and further, necessary information is inputted to the air conditioning means. Various detecting means, an operation switch for inputting a driver's request to the air conditioning means, and a control device for controlling the air conditioning means based on the outputs of the detecting means and the operation switch, the control means including the alarm It is also possible to provide the control device with a quench signal which maximizes the cooling capacity of the air conditioning means irrespective of the outputs of the detection means and the switch when the medium is generated.

[0019]

In the doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention, when the control means determines that the driver has operated the doze-driving prevention switch, the control means generates an alarm medium (for example, an air conditioner) from the alarm medium generating means to awaken the driver's drowsiness. Cold wind from the means)
Generate.

In this case, the control means extends the output time (that is, the time when the alarm medium is generated) every time the alarm medium is generated in proportion to the elapsed time from the time when the drowsy driving prevention switch is operated. On the contrary, by controlling the alarm medium generation means so as to shorten the output interval (that is, the alarm medium generation interval) in inverse proportion to the elapsed time, the stimulus for awakening the driver and the effect of lowering the room temperature are increased. is doing.

Further, in the case where the alarm medium generating means is an in-vehicle air conditioning means equipped in a normal fully automatic air conditioner so that the cold air is blown near the driver's face, the information necessary for this air conditioning means. The control device for controlling the air conditioner sends a quenching signal for maximizing the cooling capacity of the air conditioner regardless of the output of the operation switch for inputting the request of the driver to the air conditioner or various detecting means for inputting the air conditioner. It is possible to eliminate sleep-driving prevention with a simple structure by repeatedly outputting to.

As described above, in the doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention, the dozing-driving prevention suitable for increasing the risk of occurrence of the dozing-driving over time or decreasing the awakening degree of the driver is achieved.

[0023]

Embodiments [1] Embodiments when alarm medium is cold air: FIGS. 1 to 8 FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of a doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention. In this embodiment, an alarm is issued. An air conditioning unit is used as a medium (stimulation medium) generating unit, and cold air is blown as the alarm medium to try to stimulate the driver.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an outside air sensor for detecting an outside air temperature as information necessary for air conditioning inside a vehicle (not shown), a room temperature sensor for detecting an inside temperature of the vehicle, a solar radiation sensor for detecting an amount of insolation incident on the inside of the vehicle, Various sensors, 2 are operation switches for the driver to input a request regarding air conditioning in the vehicle, 3
Is a control device for controlling the air conditioner 3 by reading the outputs of the sensor group 1 and the switch group 2, and these sensor group 1, switch group 2, air conditioner 3, and control device 4. Is a general-purpose so-called fully automatic air conditioner.

On the other hand, 5 is a drowsy driving prevention switch which is turned on when the driver feels drowsy, 6 is a timer for measuring the rapid cooling signal output time t1, 7 is a timer for measuring the rapid cooling signal output interval t2, and 8 is a dozing The outputs of the operation prevention switch 5 and the timers 6 and 7 are read, and the quenching signal 81 is sent to the controller
To the CPU (Central Process
g Unit). The timers 6 and 7 are CP according to the program.
It may be incorporated as an integral part of U8.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the construction of an embodiment of an air conditioner 3 as an air conditioning means used in the drowsy driving prevention system according to the present invention, and 31 is a control unit 4 shown in FIG. Blower that is driven by a signal and sends wind into the vehicle, 3
2 is a duct that is a passage for wind from the blower 31, 33 is an evaporator that cools the wind from the blower 31 installed in the duct 32, and 34 is an instrument panel that blows cold air 35 from the evaporator 33 toward the driver. A blower outlet installed on 91, a damper 36 that is driven by a signal from the control device 4 to open and close the blower outlet 34, and
Reference numeral 92 is a steering wheel operated by the driver.

In this embodiment, the above-mentioned fully automatic air conditioner is provided with a dedicated air outlet 34 for blowing cold air near the driver's face neck, but the conventional fully automatic air conditioner has the maximum cooling capacity. If this is set, cold air will be blown out from the vent outlet, so this vent outlet will be used as a cold air outlet, and there is no need to provide a special outlet, and the orientation of the vent outlet will be automatically adjusted to the driver. You may comprise.

Furthermore, if an air conditioner that generates cold air when receiving a control signal from the CPU 8 is used, it is not always necessary to use the air conditioner shown in FIG.
It is not necessary to combine it with a fully automatic air conditioner as in, but any air conditioner may be used.

Next, FIGS. 3 to 7 show the CPU 8 shown in FIG.
FIG. 9 is a flow chart diagram of a program stored and executed in the cold air blowing time (timer t1) and interval (timer t) based on these figures and shown in FIG.
The operation of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the time chart of 2).

When this program starts, the CPU
8 indicates that flags F, F2 and F3 used below are both "0".
(Step S1 in FIG. 3), the output of the doze driving prevention switch 5 is read (Step S2), and it is checked whether the switch 5 is ON (Step S3).
If it is determined to be OFF, it is determined that the driver's arousal level has increased and the drowsiness driving occurrence risk has decreased, and the output of the quenching signal is stopped (it is initially stopped, so this routine) is exited (step S4). ).

When it is determined to be ON in step S3,
Then, is the flag F above "1" (step S
5), "2" (step S6), or "3"
Is determined (step S7).

As a result, when F = 0, which is the first state, the routine proceeds to routine a in FIG. 4, when F = 1, the routine proceeds to routine b in FIG. 5 as the first cold air blowing, and when F = 2. 6 proceeds to routine c in FIG. 6 as the second cold air blowing, and proceeds to routine d in FIG. 7 as the third cold air blowing when F = 3.

Each of these routines a to d will be described below.

Routine a: FIG. 4 First, the CPU 8 determines whether or not the above-mentioned flag F2 is "0" (step Sa1), and initially F2 in step S1.
Since F = 0, F2 = 1 is set in step Sa2, and the timer (time) t1 for blowing cold air by the timer 6 is reset and started (step Sa3). Therefore, when this routine a is executed next time, steps Sa2 and Sa3 are skipped and the timer t1 continues to count time.

After resetting and starting the timer t1 in this way, it is checked whether or not the first cold air blowing time (t1) has exceeded a predetermined time T11 (for example, 5 seconds) (step Sa4), and the time is exceeded. If not (t1
<T11) The quenching signal 81 is output to the control device 4 (step Sa5).

When the quench signal 81 is received, the controller 4
Controls to maximize the cooling capacity of the air conditioner 3 regardless of the outputs of the various sensors 1 and the operation switch 2. Then, at this time, the damper 36 is in the open position as shown in FIG. 2, and the cool air 35 maximally cooled by the evaporator 33 is blown toward the driver from the air outlet 34 (step S6).

This rapid cooling operation returns to step S2 of FIG. 3 after step Sa5, and steps S3 → S5 → Sa1.
→ Sa4 → Sa5 is repeated until t1 ≧ T11.

When it is determined that t1 ≧ T11 and the first cold air blowing time exceeds the predetermined time T11, the output of the rapid cooling signal 81 is stopped (step Sa6). still,
As long as F2 ≠ 0, this timer t1 continues the time counting operation thereafter.

When the CPU 8 stops sending the quench signal 81, the operating condition of the air conditioner 3 is determined by the various sensors 1 at that time.
And the normal state based on the output of the operation switch 2 is restored.

After the first cold air blowing is finished in this way, it is judged whether or not the above-mentioned flag F3 is "0" (step Sa7). Since F3 = 0 was initially set in step S1, step Sa8 Then, F3 = 1 is set, and the time for stopping the cold air blowing of the timer 7, that is, the timer (time) t2 of the cold air blowing interval is reset and started (step Sa9). Therefore, when the next routine a is executed, steps Sa8 and Sa9 are skipped and the timer t2 continues to count time.

After resetting and starting the timer t2 in this way, it is checked whether or not the time interval (t2) between the first and second cool air blowing operations exceeds a predetermined time T21 (for example, 5 minutes). Do (step Sa10),
If not exceeded (t2 <T21), the process returns to step S2.

Then, returning to step S2, steps S3 → S5 → Sa1 → Sa4 (since F2 ≠ 0) →
Sa6 (Timer t1 still keeps time, and t1 ≧ T1
1) → Sa7 → Sa10 (because F3 ≠ 0) → S2 is repeated until t2 ≧ T21.

When it is determined that t2 ≧ T21 and the cool air blowing interval exceeds the predetermined time T21, the flag F is determined.
Is incremented by "1" (step Sa11), both flags F2 and F3 are reset to "0" (step Sa12), and the process returns to step S2.

Here, the control in this routine a will be described based on FIG. 8. This control corresponds to the first blow of cold air in FIG. In this case, since it is the first control after the driver turns on the drowsiness driving prevention switch 5, it is considered that the driver's awakening degree is not lowered and the drowsiness driving occurrence risk is small. Cold air blowing timer t for lowering
1 is set to a short value of t11 = 5 seconds, and when the driver does not turn off the drowsiness prevention switch 5, the timer interval t2 until the second cold air blow is set to a long value of t21 = 5 minutes. I understand.

When the driver turns off the doze-driving prevention switch 5 by the first cold air blowing control, the output of the rapid cooling signal is stopped in steps S2 and S3 (step S4). As a result, the operating state of the air conditioner 3 returns to the normal state based on the outputs of the various sensors 1 and the operation switch 2 at that time.

Doze driving prevention switch 5 is still O
When N, the process proceeds to step S6 through step S5, but F = F + at step Sa11 of routine a.
Since 1 = 0 + 1 = 1, the routine proceeds to routine b in FIG.

Routine b: FIG. 5 This routine b is for setting the second cold air blowing time and interval, and steps Sb1 to Sb12 correspond to steps Sa1 to Sa12 of routine a, respectively.

However, the difference is that the set value of the cold air blowing time in step Sb4 is T12, which is 10 seconds, for example. Further, the set value of the cool air blowing interval in step Sb10 is T22,
This is, for example, 3 minutes.

The control state in this routine b is shown in FIG. 8, which is the second cold air blowing control after the driver turns on the drowsiness prevention switch 5, and the driver's arousal level is slightly lowered. This is because it is considered that the risk of occurrence of drowsiness and drowsiness is increasing.

Routine c: FIG. 6 This routine c is for setting the time and interval for blowing the cold air for the third time, and when the doze-driving prevention switch 5 is still ON, the process goes through steps S5 and S6 to step S7. Go to step Sb11 of routine b
In F., F = F + 1 = 1 + 1 = 2, so it is executed after the “NO” determination in step S7.

Steps Sc1 to Sc1 of this routine c
2 corresponds to steps Sa1 to Sa12 of routine a, respectively. However, the difference is that the set value of the cold air blowing time in step Sc4 is T13,
This is, for example, 20 seconds. The set value of the cool air blowing interval in step Sc10 is T23, which is 1 minute, for example.

As shown in FIG. 8, the control state in this routine c is the third cold air blowing control after the driver has turned on the drowsiness prevention switch 5, and the driver's awakening level has fallen considerably and he fell asleep. This is because it is considered that the risk of driving occurrence is also increasing.

Routine d: FIG. 7 This routine d is for setting the cool air blowing time and interval for the fourth time, and when the doze-driving prevention switch 5 is still ON, the process goes through steps S5 and S6 to step S7. Go to step Sc11 of routine c
In F, F = F + 1 = 2 + 1 = 3, and therefore, it is executed after the “YES” determination in step S7.

Steps Sd1 to Sd1 of this routine d
2 corresponds to steps Sa1 to Sa12 of routine a, respectively. However, the difference is that the set value of the cold air blowing time in step Sd4 is T14,
This is 25 seconds, for example. Further, the set value of the cool air blowing interval in step Sd10 is T24, which is, for example, 50 seconds.

As shown in FIG. 8, the control state in this routine d is the cold air blowing control for the fourth time after the driver has turned on the drowsiness prevention switch 5, and the driver's awakening level has fallen significantly and he fell asleep. This is because it is considered that the vehicle is in a dangerous state where driving is occurring.

In the above embodiment, the four flags F = 0, F = 1, F = 2, F = 3 indicating the number of cool air blowouts in the timer in which the dozing driving prevention switch 5 continues to be in the ON state.
Although the timer value for the above is given as an example, it is needless to say that various timer values are not limited to this and can be compared.

That is, in the present invention, the cold air blowing timer t1 is set to T11 (5) as the cold air blowing number flag F increases as F = 1, F = 2, F = 3, ...
Seconds), T12 (10 seconds), T13 (20 seconds), T14
(25 seconds), and so on, and on the contrary, the cool air blowing interval t2 is T21 (5 minutes), T22 (3
Minutes), T23 (1 minute), T24 (50 seconds), and so on, the warning to the driver and the effect of lowering the room temperature can be increased according to the driving duration.

[2] Another Embodiment of Alarm Medium: FIGS. 9 to 1
6 As described above, as the alarm medium (stimulation medium), there is cold air generated by the air conditioning means, and it is also possible to use the following various alarm media. Therefore, the above-mentioned FIG.
The "cold air" described in the embodiment of FIG. 8 can be replaced with each other as follows. Further, the air conditioner drive circuit 7 in FIG. 1 is replaced with the following means (devices) for generating alarm media, and C
The control signal from PU8 will be received.

(1) In the case of scent: FIG. 9 In this modified example, a cylinder 11 filled with an aromatic gas is connected to a solenoid valve 12, and the CPU 8 controls opening / closing of the solenoid valve 12 to output the aromatic gas 13. And driver 1
Awakens to 0. In this case, the cylinder 11 and the solenoid valve 12 constitute an alarm medium generating means.

At this time, the CPU 8 controls the solenoid valve 12 at the continuation timer (t3) and the timer interval (t2) as shown in FIG. Therefore, the stimulus to the driver 10 becomes stronger if the duration timer of the aroma gas 13 is increased.

(2) In the case of audio: FIGS. 10 and 11 In this modification, the tape recorder 14 and the speaker 15 are prepared, and the CPU 8 controls the tape recorder 14 to output the audio as an alarm medium output from the speaker 15. Change the duration timer and timer interval of. In this case, the tape recorder 14 and the speaker 15 constitute an alarm medium generating means.

In this case, the sound continuation timer is increased for a sound with a constant voice (buzzer, alarm, etc.), but in the case of a human voice, a single alarm message is repeated as shown in FIG. 11 (a). There are two cases, one is when the number of times increases and the other is that the content of the warning message gradually changes as shown in FIG.

As for the audio continuation timer, the audio reproduction timer prerecorded in the tape recorder 14 in both FIGS. 9 (a) and 9 (b) may be gradually lengthened.

(3) In the case of vibration: FIG. 12 In this modification, the CPU 8 sends a control signal to the vibration generator 17 as an alarm medium generating means such as a massager or body sonic provided on the seat of the seat 16. By giving the vibration, vibration as an alarm medium can be given to the driver 10 as shown in FIG. 8 similarly to the above.

(4) Outside Air by Opening Windows: In this modification, the air conditioner 3 and the control device 4 in FIG.
Instead of this, a "window glass opening / closing device drive circuit" normally provided in the vehicle is used as the alarm medium generating means.

The above continuation timer refers to the window opening timer, and the timer interval refers to the timer interval for opening the window.

(5) In the case of hot air: In this modification, hot air is used instead of cold air, and the air conditioner shown in FIG. 2 is switched by the temperature setting or the like so as not to be in the cooling state but to be in the heating state. If this is done, the driver can be provided with hot air as an alarm medium.

(6) In the case of alarm water: FIG. 13 In this modified example, as shown in FIG. 13A , the tank 18 in which the ceiling 30a of the vehicle 30 is filled with alarm water as an alarm medium
The tank 18 is installed as shown in FIG.
An electromagnetic valve 19 is provided in the lower part of the.

The CPU 8 controls the solenoid valve 19 to sprinkle the alarm water 20 on the driver 10 to wake up the driver.

In this case, as the timer elapses, one drop of the alarm water is increased to correspond to the increase of the continuation timer, and further increase of the number of drops of the alarm water corresponds to shortening of the timer interval.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 7C, a water spray 21 is provided, and the solenoid valve 22 controls the continuation timer and the timer interval by the CPU 8 so that the alarm water 23 is applied near the driver's face and neck. Good.

(7) In case of lamp lighting: FIG. 14 In this modification, as shown in the figure, the transistor 24 connected to the CPU 8 and the lamp 25 lighted by this transistor 24 are used as the alarm medium generating means.
The lamp lighting timer (continuation timer) is lengthened and the lighting interval (timer interval) is shortened as the timer elapses, as in the case where the lamp light when the lamp 25 is lit is cold air as an alarm medium. .

(8) In the case of display light: In this modification, the characters corresponding to the voice alarm shown in the above modification (2) are also displayed on the display provided in the instrument panel of the vehicle. Then, the continuation timer and the timer interval are controlled by using the light displayed by the display as an alarm medium.

(9) In case of contact cold temperature: FIG. 15 In this modification, the Peltier element 28 connected to the power source 26 and the switch 27 is used as the alarm medium generating means, and the seat 1
6, the Peltier element 28 heats or cools by applying the voltage of the power source 26, and directly touches the hips or back of the driver 10 to provide cool air or seat belts. Attach it to the chest and give a cold contact to the chest to give an alarm.

For the cooling effect in this case, the ON / OFF continuation timer and the interval of the switch 27 may be controlled by the CPU 8.

(10) In the case of contact pressure: FIG. 16 In this modification, the compressor 40, the solenoid valve 41, and the air bladder 42 incorporated in the seat 16 serve as alarm medium generating means.
The solenoid valve 41 is turned ON / O by the CPU 8.
Compressed air generated by the compressor 40 is supplied to the air bladder 42 by FF control.

As a result, the driver 10 can be stimulated by applying contact pressure with the air.

Alternatively, an actuator (not shown) built in the seat 16 can give the same pressure stimulus as that of the massage machine.

The pressure effect in this case may be controlled by the CPU 8 by controlling the ON / OFF continuation timer and the interval of the solenoid valve 41.

Although the above is described as the drowsy driving prevention device in a vehicle, the present invention is not limited to this, and a drowsy driving prevention device in all transportation equipment such as ships, airplanes and trains, and monitoring at a nuclear power plant. It can also be used as a drowsy driving prevention device for business and indoor work.

[0081]

As described above, in the doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention, the alarm medium generating unit generates the alarm medium in proportion to the elapsed timer after the driver operates the doze-driving prevention switch. Since the alarm medium generating means is controlled such that the time is extended and the generation interval of the alarm medium is shortened in inverse proportion to the elapsed time, the following unique effects can be obtained.

(1) When the driver feels drowsiness, he / she can simply turn on the drowsiness prevention switch to automatically generate an alarm medium such as cold wind to raise the alertness. (2) Since the warning when the driver's wakefulness is high is small and the warning when the driver's wakefulness is low is large, a great effect of preventing the driver from falling asleep can be obtained without giving the driver any discomfort. (3) An alarm is generated by an alarm medium, and at the same time, the room temperature is lowered to continuously create a state in which it is difficult to fall asleep while driving, that is, the effect of preventing drowsiness can be obtained. (4) The cost is low because the conventional air conditioner can be used as the alarm medium generating means as it is or with some modification.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram of an embodiment of a doze driving prevention apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of an air conditioner for a doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart (No. 1) of a program executed by the CPU of the doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart (part 2) of the program executed by the CPU of the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart (No. 3) of the program executed by the CPU of the doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart (No. 4) of the program executed by the CPU of the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart (No. 5) of the program executed by the CPU of the doze-driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a time chart diagram for explaining a cold air blowing control operation executed in the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view showing a modified example of a case where an aroma gas is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the case where a voice is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a time course when voice is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example in the case where vibration is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing a modified example of a case where alarm water is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example in which lamp light is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the case where contact cold temperature is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention device according to the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a schematic view showing a modified example of the case where contact pressure is used as an alarm medium in the doze driving prevention apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a time chart diagram for explaining cold air blowing control that is executed in the conventional drowsy driving prevention apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Various Sensors 2 Operation Switch 3 Air Conditioner 4 Air Conditioning Control Device 5 Dozing Driving Prevention Switch 6, 7 Timer 8 CPU 31 Blower 32 Duct 33 Evaporator 34 Air Outlet 35 Cold Air 36 Damper 11 Aromatic Gas Cylinder 13 Aromatic Gas 14 Tape Recorder 15 Speaker 16 Sheet 17 Vibration Generator 18 Alarm Water Tank 21 Water Spray 25 Lamp 28 Peltier Element 29 Compressor 31 Air Bag In the figure, the same reference numerals indicate the same or corresponding parts.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An alarm medium generating means provided in a vehicle compartment for giving an alarm medium to a driver, a drowsy driving prevention switch operated by the driver, and a time proportional to an elapsed time after the switch is operated. Control means for controlling the alarm medium generating means such that the alarm medium generating time is extended and the alarm medium generating interval is shortened in inverse proportion to the elapsed time. Drowsy driving prevention device. 2. The alarm medium is cold air, aromatic gas, voice,
The drowsiness prevention device according to claim 1, wherein the device is any one of vibration, hot air, alarm water, lamp light, display light, contact cold temperature, and contact pressure. 3. The alarm medium generating means is an air-conditioning means provided in a vehicle compartment so that the cold air hits the driver's face neck, and further various detecting means for inputting necessary information to the air-conditioning means. And an operation switch for inputting a driver's request to the air conditioning means, and a control device for controlling the air conditioning means based on the outputs of the detection means and the operation switch, the control means generating the alarm medium. The doze-driving prevention device according to claim 1, wherein a quenching signal for maximizing the cooling capacity of the air-conditioning device is given to the control device regardless of the outputs of the detection device and the switch.