JP2009162691A - On-vehicle information terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an on-vehicle information terminal for making a user easily recognize which menu is a menu capable of being operated by sound input. <P>SOLUTION: This on-vehicle information terminal 1 comprises a plurality of arranged operation buttons, a display for displaying a plurality of menus allowing manual operation with the operation buttons, a display controlling means for controlling the displaying of the display, and a voice inputting means. The plurality of menus allowing manual operation with the operation buttons include a first type of menus allowing voice operation with the voice inputting means and a second type of menus that do not allow voice operation with the voice inputting means. The display controlling means simultaneously displays the first type of menus in an aspect identifiably different from the second type of menus on the display. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle information terminal that supports manual operation by an operation button and operation by voice input.

Conventionally, a display unit for displaying map information, a coordinate input unit for inputting coordinates on the map information, an input determination unit for determining an input mode in the coordinate input unit, and speaking to the input mode A display control unit for displaying a plurality of instruction items on the display unit, a voice recognition unit for voice recognition of the spoken instruction items, and an instruction execution unit for executing the instruction items voice-recognized by the voice recognition unit (See, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-69425 A

  By the way, in a system that can be operated manually by operating buttons and operated by voice input, menus that can be operated manually by operating buttons and menus that can be operated by voice input can be mixed, so operations by voice input are possible. There is a possibility that the user cannot easily recognize which menu is the correct menu.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle information terminal that allows a user to easily recognize which menu is a menu that can be operated by voice input.

In order to achieve the above object, an in-vehicle information terminal according to the first invention comprises a plurality of operation buttons,
A display on which a plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons are displayed;
Display control means for controlling display of the display;
Voice input means,
The plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons include a first type menu that allows voice operation by the voice input unit and a second type menu that does not allow voice operation by the voice input unit,
The display control means simultaneously displays the first type menu on the display in a different manner distinguishable from the second type menu. The second type of menu that cannot be operated by the voice input means corresponds to a menu that can only be operated manually by the operation button.

2nd invention is the vehicle-mounted information terminal which concerns on 1st invention,
The display control means displays the first type menu and the second type menu in the first display mode when the voice input means is in an off state, and the voice input means is in an on state. In this case, the first type menu is displayed in a second display mode different from the first display mode, and the second type menu is displayed in the first display mode.

A third invention is the in-vehicle information terminal according to the first invention in which a large number of menus are divided into a plurality of layers and displayed on the display.
The plurality of menus in the first hierarchy include the first class menu and the second class menu, and the plurality of menus in the second hierarchy different from the first hierarchy are the first class. Including only the menu
The display control means maintains the configuration and arrangement of the plurality of menus displayed on the display when the voice input means is changed from an off state to an on state in the first hierarchy. Change the display mode of only the first type of menu among a plurality of menus,
The display control means maintains the configuration and arrangement of the plurality of menus displayed on the display when the voice input means is switched from an off state to an on state in the second hierarchy. The display mode of each of the plurality of menus is changed. The relationship between the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy is arbitrary, the upper layer of the first hierarchy may be the second hierarchy, and the upper layer of the second hierarchy is the first hierarchy. Also good.

In order to achieve the above object, an in-vehicle information terminal according to the fourth invention comprises a plurality of operation buttons,
A display on which a plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons are displayed;
Display control means for controlling display of the display;
Voice input means,
The plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons are menus that can also be operated by the voice input means,
The display controller is configured to display each of the plurality of menus while maintaining the type and arrangement of the plurality of menus displayed on the display when the voice input unit is switched from an off state to an on state. The aspect is changed.

The fifth invention is the in-vehicle information terminal according to any one of the first to fourth inventions,
The operation button includes a touch switch provided on the display.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the vehicle-mounted information terminal which can make a user recognize easily which menu is a menu which can be operated by an audio | voice input is obtained.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a main configuration of an embodiment of an in-vehicle information terminal 1 according to the present invention and a configuration related thereto. The in-vehicle information terminal 1 according to the present embodiment is configured around an electronic control unit 10 (hereinafter referred to as “control ECU 70”). The control ECU 70 is configured by a microcomputer and includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an I / O, and the like. The control ECU 70 may be embodied as a navigation ECU that controls the navigation device, may be embodied as another new ECU, or may be realized in cooperation with two or more ECUs. Good.

  The operating device 20 is connected to the control ECU 70 via an appropriate communication line. The operation device 20 includes a plurality of operation switches that are manually operated by a user. The operating device 20 is disposed at a position where the user can easily operate, preferably at a position where the driver can operate by simply reaching out. For example, the operating device 20 may be disposed on the instrument panel or the center console unit, or may be disposed on the steering wheel. Further, the controller device 20 may be distributed and arranged in a plurality of different places. The operation device 20 supplies various operation signals according to the operation mode of the operation switch by the user to the control ECU 70.

  Note that the operation device 20 may be configured by, for example, a push button type operation switch on a so-called remote controller, and / or may be configured by a push button type operation switch incorporated in an instrument panel or the like. Further, the operation device 20 may be configured by a touch switch configured on the display device 40 described later instead of or in addition to the mechanical switch. In this case, the touch switch of the operation device 20 is configured in a display portion of each menu of an operation menu image displayed on the display device 40 described later. Further, in this case, the function of the touch switch of the operation device 20 corresponds to each menu of an operation menu image displayed on the display device 40 to be described later, and can change as the contents of each menu change.

  Upon receiving various operation signals from the operation device 20, the control ECU 70 performs switching of the display screen (switching of various operation menu images described later) on the display device 40 according to the various operation signals, and other control ECUs. A predetermined instruction signal is sent to (for example, an audio ECU and an air conditioner ECU). The other control ECU responds to the instruction signal from the control ECU 70 and controls the in-vehicle device (for example, audio and air conditioner) so as to realize a function (menu) according to various operation signals.

  The display device 40 is connected to the control ECU 70 via an appropriate communication line. The display device 40 is configured by a liquid crystal display or the like, and is disposed at a position that is easy for the user to see. For example, the display device 40 may be disposed in the center of the upper surface of the instrument panel, or may be disposed in a meter. Further, the display device 40 may be shared with the display of the navigation device, or may be realized using a HUD (head-up display). The image output or video output displayed on the display device 40 is controlled by the control ECU 70. The control ECU 70 may be, for example, a navigation ECU (including a drawing processor) of a navigation device. In this case, a map image or the like may be displayed on the display device 40 in addition to an operation menu image described later.

  The voice recognition device 24 is connected to the control ECU 70. The voice recognition device 24 analyzes a voice signal (speech content) picked up by a microphone (microphone) provided in the passenger compartment, and performs predetermined processing corresponding to each menu of an operation menu image displayed on the display device 40 described later. Detects voice input (instruction content). For example, the voice recognition device 24 extracts a feature amount from a voice signal that has been subjected to predetermined processing such as amplification processing and noise removal by a microphone amplifier, and then performs predetermined processing by matching processing using a given acoustic / language model. A voice input may be detected. still. As described above, the present invention does not specify the details of the speech recognition processing, and may be based on any speech recognition technology.

  Connected to the control ECU 70 is a talk switch 74 for switching the voice recognition device 24 between on and off states. The talk switch 74 may be provided at an arbitrary location in the vehicle compartment, and may be disposed near the microphone of the voice recognition device 24, for example. When a user desires an operation by voice, the user presses the talk switch 74 to turn on the microphone of the voice recognition device 24 and then speaks toward the microphone.

  When the control ECU 70 receives various recognition results (or various operation signals corresponding thereto) from the voice recognition device 24, the control ECU 70 performs switching of the display screen on the display device 40 according to the various recognition results, and other control ECUs. A predetermined instruction signal is sent to. The other control ECU responds to the instruction signal from the control ECU 70 and controls the in-vehicle device so as to realize a function (menu) according to various operation signals.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a flow of an example of main processing realized by the control ECU 70 of the present embodiment. The process shown in FIG. 2 may be started when an operation of the navigation device is started (for example, when an entrance switch for operating the navigation device is operated).

  In step 100, the control ECU 70 determines whether or not the microphone of the voice recognition device 24 is turned on based on information from the talk switch 74. When the talk switch 74 is pressed down and the microphone is on, the process proceeds to step 104. When the microphone is not on (when the microphone of the voice recognition device 24 is off), step 102 is performed. Proceed to

  In step 102, the control ECU 70 displays an operation menu image representing a menu that can be operated by the operation device 20 on the display device 40 in a normal manner. Here, the “normal mode” may be an arbitrary display mode as long as it is a display mode that can be distinguished from a later-described voice operation assistance mode. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation menu image displayed in the normal mode. This operation menu image is an operation menu image for setting the destination of the navigation device, and includes various menus (for example, “name” and “address”) that are useful when setting the destination. When the user desires to set the destination by name, the user appropriately operates the operation switch of the controller device 20 to realize the selection / determination operation of the menu “name”. When the operation device 20 is a touch switch of the display device 40, the display portion of the menu “name” is the touch switch portion, and the user touches the display portion of the menu “name”. In this case, in response to an operation signal from the operation device 20, the control ECU 70 includes, for example, a menu of input characters such as name input on the display device 40, for example, a name input operation menu image that is a lower layer. Image) in a normal manner.

  In step 104, the control ECU 70 displays an operation menu image representing a menu that can be operated by the operation device 20 on the display device 40 in a mode different from the normal mode. This normal mode is different from the normal mode in that the menu allows voice operation through the microphone of the voice recognition device 24 and the menu incapable of voice operation through the microphone of the voice recognition device 24 (only operation by the operation switch of the operation device 20). Menu) that can be distinguished from each other, and is also referred to as a voice operation assisting mode.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in FIG. 2, the display mode of the menu allowing voice operation of the operation menu image changes between the normal mode and the voice operation assisting mode according to the on / off state of the talk switch 74. Is done. Note that the display mode of the menu that cannot be operated by voice in the operation menu image is not changed according to the on / off state of the talk switch 74, and the normal mode is maintained.

  FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation menu image displayed in a voice operation assisting mode. In the example shown in FIG. 4A, only a part of the plurality of menus in the operation menu image is a menu that can be operated by voice. That is, in this example, there are only four menus that can be operated by voice: “name”, “address”, “facility”, and “telephone number”, and these four menus are different from the same menu in the normal mode. Therefore, it is displayed in a different manner from other menus (menus that can be operated only by the operation device 20). For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4A, the colors of the four menus “name”, “address”, “facility”, and “telephone number” are changed as compared with the normal mode shown in FIG. (In the figure, the difference in color is indicated by the difference in hatching.) Thereby, the user can easily grasp the menu that can be operated by voice. In particular, since the display mode of the menu capable of voice operation changes when the talk switch 74 is pressed, the menu can be grasped visually immediately.

  FIG. 4B is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation menu image displayed in a voice operation assisting mode. The example shown in FIG. 4B shows a case where all the menus of the operation menu image are menus that can be operated by voice. Therefore, in the example shown in FIG. 4B, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the colors of all the menus in the operation menu image are changed from the normal colors shown in FIG. 3 to other predetermined colors. The Thereby, the user can easily grasp the menu that can be operated by voice. In particular, since the display mode of the menu capable of voice operation changes when the talk switch 74 is pressed, the menu can be grasped visually immediately.

  When the operation menu image is displayed in the voice operation assisting mode as shown in FIG. 4A or 4B, the user can select a menu that can be operated by voice (or a menu that can be operated only by the operation device 20). It can be easily grasped. Then, for example, when the user speaks “jujusho” in order to operate the menu “address” by voice from a menu that can be operated by voice, the control ECU 70 receives, for example, on the display device 40. For example, an operation menu image for address input which is a lower layer is displayed. Alternatively, the control ECU 70 outputs a message to the effect such as “jutsusha wa taku tech dasai” via a speaker (not shown), requests the user to speak the address, and the voice recognition device 24 receives the address from the user. It may be in a state of waiting for input of voice.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing several variations of a preferable combination of the normal mode and the voice operation assisting mode. In FIGS. 5A to 5E, the display mode of the menu “name” is shown as a representative example, the normal mode is shown on the left side, and the voice operation assisting mode is shown on the right side.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5A, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the frame color of the menu is changed from the frame color in the normal mode. Further, from the same viewpoint, the thickness of the menu frame may be changed.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5B, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, a voice utterable icon is displayed (appears) in the menu display. As shown in the figure, the voice utterance enabled icon may be an arbitrary display that gives an image of a person's utterance.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5C, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the shape of the menu frame is changed. That is, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the shape of the menu frame is changed from the square with the corner in the normal mode to the square with the corner in the voice operation assisting mode. In addition, the shape change mode can be considered in various other modes.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5D, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the font and / or thickness of the character displaying the menu function is changed. Further, from the same viewpoint, the size of the character for displaying the menu function may be changed (enlarged).

  In addition, although illustration is omitted, in the voice operation assisting mode, a menu capable of voice operation may be displayed in a blinking manner, and the luminance and color tone may be changed with respect to the normal mode.

  According to the in-vehicle information terminal 1 of the present embodiment described above, the following excellent effects are achieved, among others.

  According to the present embodiment, as described above, the menu capable of voice operation is displayed in a display mode different from the menu incapable of voice operation (that is, the same menu when displayed in the normal mode). The menu can be easily grasped. In particular, since the display mode of a menu that can be operated by voice changes when the talk switch 74 is pressed, the menu can be grasped visually.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, as described above, when the talk switch 74 is pressed, the arrangement and configuration of the menus including the menus that can be operated by voice are not changed, and the menus that can be operated by voice are displayed. Only the aspect changes. As a result, the arrangement and configuration of each menu does not change between manual operation and voice operation, so there is no sense of incongruity for the user, and the operability is due to the common arrangement and configuration of each menu in both manual operation and voice operation It becomes good.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, as described above, when there is a menu suitable for voice input and a menu that is not so, only a part of the menu that can be operated by the operation device 20 is a menu that can be operated by voice. Even in the case (see FIG. 4A), the menu capable of voice operation is displayed in a display mode different from the menu incapable of voice operation, so that the menu capable of voice operation can be easily grasped. At this time, a menu that cannot be operated by voice can still be manually operated by the operation device 20, and the number of menus that can be operated is not reduced by pressing the talk switch 74.

  By the way, many operation menu images are prepared for each layer in addition to the operation menu image for destination setting shown in FIG. At this time, in some operation menu images, all menus are menus that can be operated by voice, but in other operation menu images, only some menus may be menus that can be operated by voice. Therefore, in such a case, the voice operation assisting mode shown in FIG. 4B is realized for an operation menu image in which all menus are voice-operable menus, and only a part of the menus is voiced. For the operation menu image that is an operable menu, the voice operation assisting mode shown in FIG. 4A may be realized. However, the voice operation assistance mode shown in FIG. 4B has a configuration in which all menus are voice-operable menus in any hierarchy, or there is only one hierarchy and all menus can be voice-operated in the hierarchy. It can also be applied to configurations that are menus. Further, when there are two or more layers and all menus in the certain layer are menus that cannot be operated by voice, the display mode of the operation menu image in the layer is independent of the on / off state of the talk switch 74. May be maintained in a normal manner.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Can be added.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, it is assumed that a large number of menus are displayed in a plurality of layers. However, the present invention has only one layer, and all or some of the menus can be operated by voice in the layer. It is applicable to a configuration that is a simple menu.

  In the embodiment described above, as a preferred embodiment, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the display mode of only the menu that can be operated by voice is changed, so that the menu that can be operated by voice and the menu that cannot be operated by voice are changed. Can be identified. However, for an operation menu image in which only a part of the menus can be operated by voice, when the talk switch 74 is turned on, the display mode of only the menu that cannot be operated by voice is changed, so that An operable menu and a menu incapable of voice operation may be distinguishable.

It is a figure which shows the main structure of one Example of the vehicle-mounted information terminal 1 by this invention, and the structure relevant to it. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of an example of the main processes implement | achieved by control ECU70 of a present Example. It is a figure which shows an example of the operation menu image displayed by the normal mode. FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation menu image displayed in the voice operation assisting mode, and FIG. 4B is another example of the operation menu image displayed in the voice operation assisting mode. FIG. It is a figure which shows some variations about the preferable combination of the normal mode and the mode for voice operation assistance.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 In-vehicle information terminal 20 Operating device 24 Voice recognition device 40 Display device 70 Control ECU
74 Talk switch

Claims (5)

Multiple operation buttons,
A display on which a plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons are displayed;
Display control means for controlling display of the display;
Voice input means,
The plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons include a first type menu that allows voice operation by the voice input unit and a second type menu that does not allow voice operation by the voice input unit,
The in-vehicle information terminal characterized in that the display control means simultaneously displays the first type menu on the display in a different manner distinguishable from the second type menu.   The display control means displays the first type menu and the second type menu in the first display mode when the voice input means is in an off state, and the voice input means is in an on state. In the case, the first type menu is displayed in a second display mode different from the first display mode, and the second type menu is displayed in the first display mode. In-vehicle information terminal. The in-vehicle information terminal according to claim 1, wherein a large number of menus are displayed on the display in a plurality of layers.
The plurality of menus in the first hierarchy include the first class menu and the second class menu, and the plurality of menus in the second hierarchy different from the first hierarchy are the first class. Including only the menu
The display control means maintains the configuration and arrangement of the plurality of menus displayed on the display when the voice input means is changed from an off state to an on state in the first hierarchy. Change the display mode of only the first type of menu among a plurality of menus,
The display control means maintains the configuration and arrangement of the plurality of menus displayed on the display when the voice input means is switched from an off state to an on state in the second hierarchy. An in-vehicle information terminal that changes a display mode of each of a plurality of menus. Multiple operation buttons,
A display on which a plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons are displayed;
Display control means for controlling display of the display;
Voice input means,
The plurality of menus that can be manually operated by the operation buttons are menus that can also be operated by the voice input means,
The display controller is configured to display each of the plurality of menus while maintaining the type and arrangement of the plurality of menus displayed on the display when the voice input unit is switched from an off state to an on state. An in-vehicle information terminal characterized by changing the mode.   The in-vehicle information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the operation button includes a touch switch provided on the display.

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