1. A vehicle lighting system including a combination switch capable of switching a mode of a lamp for illuminating an outside by changing a set position by rotation, the vehicle lighting system being characterized in that,

the setting position includes an automatic position, a small lamp position and an OFF position,

the vehicle lighting system is provided with a mechanism for returning the setting position to the automatic position when the setting position is rotated to the OFF position or the small lamp position,

the vehicle lamp comprises a low beam lamp and a position indicating lamp,

the automatic position is the set position where the low beam lamp and the position indicator lamp are turned on or off in accordance with the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the light sensor that detects the brightness outside the vehicle of the subject vehicle,

the vehicle lighting system includes a light control unit configured to turn OFF the low beam lamp and turn on the blinker lamp when an operation to move the set position to the low beam position or the OFF position is performed when the set position is the automatic position, the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the light sensor is less than a predetermined value, and the vehicle speed detected by a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is less than a 1 st predetermined speed.

2. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 1,

the light control unit turns on the low beam when the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is equal to or higher than a 2 nd predetermined speed in a state where the low beam is turned off and the position indicator lamp is turned on, wherein the 2 nd speed is equal to or higher than the 1 st predetermined speed.

3. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 1 or 2,

a travel distance calculation unit that detects a travel distance of the host vehicle from a time point when the low beam is turned off when the light sensor detects a luminance smaller than a predetermined value,

the light control unit turns on the low beam when the travel distance calculation unit calculates the predetermined distance in a state where the low beam is turned off and the position indicator lamp is turned on.

4. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 1 or 2,

the light control unit turns on the low beam when the set position is the low beam position in a state where the low beam is turned off and the position indicator lamp is turned on.

5. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 1 or 2,

the parking brake control device is provided with a function of inputting a signal from a parking brake sensor for detecting ON/OFF of a parking brake of the vehicle and a signal from a parking range sensor for detecting ON/OFF of a parking range of the vehicle,

the light control unit turns OFF the low beam lamp and turns on the position lamp when at least one of a case where the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is equal to or higher than a 3 rd predetermined speed, which is a speed slower than the 1 st predetermined speed, and a case where both the parking brake and the parking position detected by the parking brake sensor and the parking position sensor are OFF is satisfied in a state where the low beam lamp is turned OFF and the position lamp is turned on.

6. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 5,

when the set position is in the automatic position, the light control unit turns OFF the low beam light and the position indicator light if the light sensor detects a brightness smaller than the predetermined value, the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor is smaller than the 3 rd predetermined speed, at least one of the parking brake sensor and the parking position sensor is ON, and the set position is set to the OFF position.

7. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 5,

the light control unit turns on the position light and turns off the low beam light when the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor becomes a 4 th predetermined speed or higher, in a state where the low beam light and the position light are turned off, wherein the 4 th predetermined speed is the 3 rd predetermined speed or higher and is slower than the 1 st predetermined speed.

8. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 5,

the light control unit turns on the position indicator lamp and turns OFF the low beam lamp when the parking brake sensor and the parking range sensor are turned OFF in a state where the low beam lamp and the position indicator lamp are turned OFF.

9. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 5,

the light control unit turns on the low beam light and the position light when the set position is set to the OFF position in a state where the low beam light and the position light are turned OFF.

10. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 1 or 2,

the light control unit turns on the low beam light and the position indicator light when the light sensor detects a luminance smaller than the predetermined value and a failure of the vehicle speed sensor.

11. The lighting system for a vehicle as set forth in claim 5,

the light control unit turns on the low beam light and the position indicating light when the light sensor detects a brightness smaller than the predetermined value and detects a failure of at least one of the parking brake sensor and the parking range sensor.

Background

Patent document 1 discloses a light switch having an automatic light operation position in which an automatic light function of a light device for automatically turning on and off a vehicle according to illuminance outside the vehicle is enabled.

In addition, in a vehicle distributed in the market, there is a switch configured as follows as a combination switch of a light switch. That is, the light switch can be switched to each setting position (position) of OFF, AUTO, SMALL light, and HEAD LIGHT (head light). In this light switch, when the switch is switched to "automatic", a low beam light and a position indicator light (so-called small light) are turned on or off in accordance with illuminance outside the vehicle. In such a vehicle, when the light switch is turned OFF (the low beam light and the position light are turned OFF), the following operation is performed. That is, the light switch is automatically returned from the OFF position to the automatic position by the snap mechanism. That is, this is a form in which the vehicle cannot be driven with the light switch held in the OFF position.

When the light switch is switched to the "small light", the low beam light is turned off and the position indicating light is turned on. When the light switch is switched to the "headlight", the low beam light and the position indicating light are turned on.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2005-170217

Disclosure of Invention

In the background art described above, the vehicle cannot keep the light switch in the OFF position and thus the vehicle continues to run, and it is effective to forget to turn on the light. However, in this technique, the vehicle may continue to run with the light switch kept at the low beam position, and it is also conceivable that the vehicle will run with the low beam light turned off, and there is room for improvement in forgetting to turn on the low beam light.

Therefore, it is also considered to design the vehicle so that the low beam is always turned on when the vehicle is running (at least when the vehicle exterior is dimmed to such an extent that the low beam needs to be turned on).

However, with such a design, for example, when the vehicle enters a garage, the low beam lights are turned on even when the vehicle speed is low. When a vehicle is driven at a low vehicle speed, it is assumed that various objects such as walls and obstacles are present around or near the vehicle. In such a case, there is a risk that the light of the low beam lamp is reflected by the object and interferes with driving the vehicle, and it is desirable that the low beam lamp can be turned on in accordance with the situation in which the vehicle is located.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle lighting system capable of preventing forgetting to turn on a low beam lamp when a vehicle is traveling and turning off the low beam lamp when not necessary.

The present invention is a vehicle lighting system including a combination switch that changes a set position by rotation to switch a mode of a lamp for illuminating an outside, the vehicle lighting system including an automatic position, a low beam position, and an OFF position as the set position, the vehicle lighting system including a mechanism for returning the set position to the automatic position when the set position is rotated to the OFF position or the low beam position, the automatic position including a low beam lamp and a position indicator lamp as the lamp, the automatic position being the set position at which the low beam lamp and the position indicator lamp are turned on or OFF based on brightness outside a vehicle detected by a light sensor that detects brightness outside the vehicle, the vehicle lighting system including a lamp control unit that is positioned at the automatic position, the lamp control unit being positioned at the set position, And when the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the optical sensor is less than a predetermined value and the vehicle speed detected by a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is less than a 1 st predetermined speed, if an operation to move the set position to the low beam position or the OFF position is performed, the low beam is turned OFF and the position indicator is turned on.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle lighting system that can prevent forgetting to turn on a low beam lamp when a vehicle is traveling and can turn off the low beam lamp when not needed.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle lighting system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a flowchart showing the 1 st process executed by the vehicle lighting system as one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing the process 2 executed by the vehicle lighting system as one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the process 3 executed by the vehicle lighting system as one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing the 4 th process executed by the vehicle lighting system as one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the 4 th process executed by the vehicle lighting system as one embodiment of the present invention.

Description of the reference numerals

Lighting system for vehicle

11 light switch

12 OFF position

13 automatic position

14 small lamp position

15 headlamp position

16 reference position

21 low beam lamp

22 position indicating lamp

24 optical sensor

33 vehicle speed sensor

36 instant mechanism

41 light control part

42 travel distance calculation unit

61 travel distance sensor

63 parking brake sensor

65 parking gear sensor

Detailed Description

One embodiment of the present invention is explained below.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle lighting system according to the present embodiment. The vehicle lighting system 1 is mounted on a vehicle (host vehicle) and used. The vehicle lighting system 1 includes a light switch 11 provided at a predetermined position of a driver's seat of the vehicle. The light switch 11 is a combination switch that can switch the mode of a lamp that illuminates the outside from the host vehicle among a plurality of modes by rotating. That is, the light switch 11 has a nearly cylindrical shape. The light switch 11 is manually rotated in the circumferential direction thereof, so that the mode of the vehicle lamp can be switched among a plurality of stages, four stages in this example.

The vehicle lighting system 1 includes four kinds of setting positions, i.e., an OFF position 12, an AUTO (automatic) position 13, a SMALL lamp position 14, and a head lamp position HEAD LIGHT (head lamp) position 15. Characters or patterns indicating four setting positions, that is, the OFF position 12, the auto position 13, the small lamp position 14, and the headlight position 15, are displayed on the peripheral surface of the light switch 11. The characters or patterns are displayed on the circumferential surface of the light switch 11 in a circumferential direction. That is, the headlight position 15, the automatic position 13, the blinker position 14, and the OFF position 12 are displayed in order from the front side of the driver. When the lamp switch 11 is manually rotated in the circumferential direction to align a predetermined set position with the reference position 16, a mode of the set position aligned with the reference position 16 functions. For example, as illustrated in fig. 1, the "auto" mode functions when the automatic position 13 is aligned with the reference position 16. Further, the "small light" mode functions when the small light position 14 is aligned with the reference position 16. The "OFF" mode functions if the OFF position 12 is aligned with the reference position 16. The "headlight" mode functions if the headlight position 15 is aligned with the reference position 16.

Here, the contents of the mode based on each set position will be described. First, the host vehicle includes headlamps arranged on a front surface of the vehicle to illuminate the front of the host vehicle. The headlamps are composed of low beam lamps 21 and high beam lamps 23. The high beam 23 irradiates a longer distance than the low beam 21. The host vehicle includes position lamps 22 that are disposed on the front surface and the rear surface of the vehicle and irradiate the surroundings of the vehicle. The position indicator lamp 22 has a shorter irradiation distance than the low beam lamp 21. Note that, although only one low beam lamp 21 and one high beam lamp 23 are illustrated in fig. 1 for convenience, in general, a plurality of low beam lamps and a plurality of high beam lamps are provided for each vehicle (the same applies to the position indicator lamp 22). First, the "OFF" mode is a mode in which both the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 mounted on the vehicle are turned OFF in principle. Even in the "OFF" mode, the turning on and OFF of the low beam lamps 21 and the position indicator lamps 22 are controlled variously as described later.

In the present description, the low beam lamp 21 is described to be turned on and off, but the high beam lamp 23 is also mounted on a normal vehicle. The low beam 21 and the high beam 23 are switched by a switch, not shown, different from the light switch 11. When the switch, not shown, is set to the setting of the high beam 23, the switch described in this specification is to turn on or off the low beam 21 so as to turn on or off the high beam 23.

In recent years, there are also vehicles in which the low beam headlights 21 and the high beam headlights 23 are automatically switched by the control device automatically determining the situation ahead of the vehicle (whether or not there is an oncoming vehicle, etc.). In the case of such a vehicle, the description in this specification indicates that the low beam headlight 21 or the high beam headlight 23 is turned on or off, which is automatically selected by the control device, even if the low beam headlight 21 is turned on or off.

The description of the mode is continued. In the "automatic" mode, various controls are performed for turning on and off the low beam lamps 21 and the position indicator lamps 22 as described below. Specifically, the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 are turned on and off according to whether or not the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the photosensor 24 is less than the "predetermined value" as will be described later.

Further, two-step thresholds may be set for the brightness detected by the light sensor 24, and only the blinker 22 may be turned on when the brightness is lower than the bright threshold, and both the low beam lamp 21 and the blinker 22 may be turned on when the brightness is lower than the dim threshold.

In the "small light" mode, the low beam light 21 is turned off and the position light 22 is turned on in principle. In the "headlight" mode, both the low beam light 21 and the position light 22 are basically illuminated. In the "small light" mode, the low beam light 21 and the position indicator light 22 are controlled to be turned on and off in various ways as described later.

The light switches 11 that can be switched to the respective modes are arranged in the following manner at the respective setting positions at which the respective modes are set. That is, the automatic position 13 is displayed on the circumferential surface of the light switch 11. Further, a small lamp position 14 is disposed on the circumferential surface of the lamp switch 11 on the side in the circumferential direction from the automatic position 13, in this example, on the side opposite to the driver side. Further, the OFF position 12 is disposed at a position farther from the driver when viewed from the headlight position 14. Further, a headlight position 15 is disposed on the other side in the circumferential direction from the automatic position 13, in this example, on the driver side. When the light switch 11 is switched to each of these set positions, the light switch 11 gives a click feeling to the driver's hand by a known means.

The light switch 11 is provided with a snap mechanism 36 (mechanism). The snap mechanism 36 is a known structure including a torsion spring and the like. When the driver switches the light switch 11 to the OFF position 12 or the small light position 14, the snap mechanism 36 returns the light switch 11 to the automatic position 13 by the elastic force of the torsion spring or the like. However, even if the driver switches the light switch 11 to the headlight position 15, the snap mechanism 36 does not operate, and the light switch 11 maintains the headlight position 15.

The light switch 11 is connected to a drive circuit 32. The drive circuit 32 is a circuit for notifying the control unit 31 of which set position among the headlight position 15, the automatic position 13, the small light position 14, and the OFF position 12 is located at the reference position 16 by a control signal. The control unit 31 is a control device configured mainly by a microcomputer, for example.

The control unit 31 is connected to a vehicle speed sensor 33 for detecting the vehicle speed of the host vehicle, in addition to the optical sensor 24, via sensor circuits 34 and 35 serving as interfaces, respectively. A parking brake sensor 63 for detecting ON/OFF of a parking brake (not shown) of the vehicle is connected to the control unit 31 via a sensor circuit 64. The control unit 31 is connected to a parking position sensor 65 for detecting ON and OFF of a parking position of a shift lever (not shown) of the vehicle through a sensor circuit 66. Note that these sensors and the control unit 31 may not be directly connected, and may communicate via a CAN (Controller Area Network).

The low beam lamp 21, the position indicator lamp 22, and the high beam lamp 23 (a plurality of lamps, which are different from those shown in the figure) are connected to the control unit 31 via the lighting circuits 51 to 53 serving as interfaces, respectively. The lighting circuits 51 to 53 are supplied with electric power for lighting the lamps from a battery, not shown, mounted on the vehicle.

When the set position of the light switch 11 is at the automatic position 13, each light is turned on and off based on a control signal from the control unit 31. When the set position of the light switch 11 is the OFF position 12, the small light position 14, and the headlight position 15, the lights are turned on and OFF based on the control signal of the control unit 31.

The control unit 31 operates based on a predetermined program to execute the functions of the light control unit 41, the travel distance calculation unit 42, and the failure detection unit 43. The light control unit 41 controls turning on and off of the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 according to the state of the vehicle. The travel distance calculation unit 42 calculates a travel distance from a certain point to another point of the vehicle. The travel distance calculation unit 42 integrates the vehicle speeds received from the vehicle speed sensor 33 at a fixed cycle to determine the travel distance. The failure detection unit 43 detects the presence or absence of a failure in each sensor shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 2 to 6 are flowcharts of the processing executed by the light control unit 41. Fig. 2 to 4 are flowcharts for explaining the 1 st process, the 2 nd process, and the 3 rd process, respectively. Fig. 5 and 6 are flowcharts for explaining the 4 th process. Fig. 5 and 6 are diagrams each made by dividing the 4 th process, which is a series of processes, into two parts, with the connection points indicated by the circled numbers. The 1 st process to the 4 th process are respectively operated in parallel on a microcomputer constituting the control unit 31. When an ignition switch (not shown) of the vehicle is turned on, any one of the processes 1 to 4 is executed to determine turning on and off of the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22, and the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 are turned on and off in accordance with the determination. In the following description, the 2 nd predetermined speed is not less than the 1 st predetermined speed > the 4 th predetermined speed is not less than the 3 rd predetermined speed.

First, the 1 st process shown in fig. 2 is explained. In the process 1, the failure detection unit 43 determines whether or not the vehicle speed sensor 33 has failed (S1). As a method of detecting a failure of the vehicle speed sensor 33, for example, it is possible to determine that the vehicle speed sensor 33 has failed to detect when the predetermined signal to be received from the vehicle speed sensor 33 is not received by the control unit 31 when the vehicle speed sensor 33 is operating normally. When the vehicle speed sensor 33 is not detected as a failure (yes at S1), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the light sensor is smaller than a predetermined value (S2). When the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the light sensor is smaller than the predetermined value (yes at S2), the light control unit 41 determines whether the automatic position 13 is aligned with the reference position 16 in the light switch 11 (S3). When the automatic position 13 is aligned with the reference position 16 (yes at S3), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the current vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor 33 is less than the 1 st predetermined speed (S4). When the vehicle speed is less than the 1 st predetermined speed (yes at S4), the light control unit 41 determines whether the light switch 11 has been moved to the blinker position 14 or the OFF position 12 (S5). When the light switch 11 is moved to the low beam position 14 or the OFF position 12 (yes at S5), the light control unit 41 turns OFF the low beam 21 and turns on the indicator position lamp 22(S6), and the process returns. Further, even if the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 or the OFF position 12, the automatic position 13 is returned to the reference position 16 of the light switch 11 by the snap mechanism 36 as long as the driver takes his hand OFF the light switch 11.

On the other hand, when the brightness outside the vehicle is not less than the predetermined value (no at S2), when the light switch 11 is not switched to the automatic position 13 (no at S3), when the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is not less than the 1 st predetermined speed (no at S4), and when the light switch 11 is not moved to the blinker position 14 or the OFF position 12 (no at S5), the light control unit 41 returns the process to S1. The order of the determinations at S1 to S4 may be reversed.

When the vehicle speed sensor 33 has failed in S1 (no in S1), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the brightness of the outside of the vehicle detected by the light sensor 24 is less than a predetermined value (S66). When the brightness outside the vehicle is less than the predetermined value (yes at S66), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position light 22(S11), and the process returns. Therefore, in this case, even if the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 or the OFF position 12, the low beam light 21 is turned on and the position indicator light 22 is turned on.

When the brightness outside the vehicle is equal to or higher than the predetermined value (no at S66), the light control unit 41 returns the process to S1.

Next, the 2 nd process shown in fig. 3 is explained. The light control unit 41 first determines whether or not the low beam lamp 21 is off and the blinker 22 is on by the processing of S6 described above or S27 or S36 described later (S51). For example, when the low beam lamp 21 is turned off and the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on in S6 (yes in S51), the light control unit 41 proceeds to S7. On the other hand, when the low beam lamp 21 is not turned off and the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on (no in S51), the light control unit 41 returns to S51.

In S7, the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the current vehicle speed of the host vehicle detected by the vehicle speed sensor 33 is equal to or higher than the 2 nd predetermined speed. The 2 nd prescribed speed is a threshold value that determines whether the vehicle is accelerating from a slow speed to a running speed. The 2 nd predetermined speed is a value equal to or higher than the 1 st predetermined speed. When the vehicle speed is equal to or higher than the 2 nd predetermined speed (yes at S7), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position light 22 (S52). When the vehicle speed is less than the 2 nd predetermined speed (no at S7), the travel distance calculation unit 42 calculates the travel distance immediately after the low beam light 21 is turned off (for example, immediately after the low beam light 21 is turned off at S6), and determines whether or not the travel distance is equal to or greater than the predetermined distance (S8). Before the predetermined distance is reached, the travel distance is accumulated regardless of the number of times the host vehicle stops. When the predetermined distance is reached (yes at S8), the value of the accumulated running distance is reset when an ignition switch (not shown) of the host vehicle is turned off. When the travel distance is equal to or longer than the predetermined distance (yes at S8), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position light 22 (S52).

When the travel distance is less than the predetermined distance (no at S8), the light control unit 41 determines whether it is clear that the low beam 21 is turned off (S6) according to the yes at S5 shown in fig. 2, but the light switch 11 immediately moves to the low beam position 14 again (S9). When the light switch 11 moves to the low beam position 14 (yes at S9), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam 21 and also turns on the position light 22 (S52). When the light switch 11 has not moved to the small light position 14 (no at S9), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 has moved to the OFF position 12 (S10). When the vehicle moves to the OFF position 12 (yes at S10), the light control unit 41 turns OFF the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position indicating lamp 22 (S53). If the vehicle has not moved to the OFF position 12 (no at S10), the process returns to the 2 nd process. Further, even if the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 or the OFF position 12, the reference position 16 of the light switch 11 is returned to the automatic position 13 by the snap mechanism 36 as long as the driver takes his or her hand away from the light switch 11.

Next, the 3 rd process shown in fig. 4 is explained. First, the light control unit 41 determines whether the current vehicle speed of the host vehicle is less than the 3 rd predetermined speed (S12). The 3 rd predetermined speed is a threshold value for determining whether or not the own vehicle is in a substantially stopped state from a cruising speed, and is a value smaller than the 1 st predetermined speed and the 2 nd predetermined speed. When the vehicle speed is less than the 3 rd predetermined speed (yes at S12), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not at least one of the parking brake and the parking range is ON by the parking brake sensor 63 and the parking range sensor 65 (S13). When at least one of the parking brake and the parking position is ON (yes at S13), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the brightness outside the vehicle detected by the photosensor 24 is smaller than a predetermined value (S14). When the brightness outside the vehicle is smaller than the predetermined value (yes at S14), the light control unit 41 determines whether the light switch 11 aligns the automatic position 13 with the reference position 16 (S15). When the automatic position 13 is aligned with the reference position 16 (yes at S15), the failure detection unit 43 determines whether or not there is a failure detection in the parking brake sensor 63 or the parking range sensor 65 (S16). These failure detections can be determined by whether or not signals input from these sensors are input to the control unit 31 when these sensors are operating normally. When determining that any one of these sensors has failed (no at S16), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position indicator light 22 (S17). The order of the determinations at S12 to S16 may be reversed.

When determining that none of the sensors has failed (yes at S16), the light control unit 41 determines whether the low beam light 21 is turned off and the position indicator light 22 is turned on in either of S6 and S53 (S18). When the low beam lamp 21 is turned off and the position indicating lamp 22 is turned on in either of S6 and S53 (yes in S18), the light control unit 41 turns off the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position indicating lamp 22 (S54). If not (no in S18), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and turns on the position light 22 (S55). After the processing at S54 and S55, the process returns to step 3.

Next, the 4 th process shown in fig. 5 and 6 will be described. First, the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the low beam light 21 and the position light 22 are turned on in S54 (S56). When the low beam lamp 21 is turned on and the blinker 22 is turned on in S54 (yes in S56), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 has been moved to the low lamp position 14 (S20). When the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 (yes at S20), the light control unit 41 turns off the low beam light 21 and turns on the position light 22 (S21). On the other hand, when the light switch 11 is not moved to the small light position 14 in S20 (no in S20), the light controller 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 is moved to the OFF position 12 (S29).

When the low beam lamp 21 is not turned on and the position indicator lamp 22 is not turned on in S54 (no in S56), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the low beam lamp 21 is turned off and the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on in S55 in S57 (S57). When it is determined in S57 that the low beam light 21 is turned OFF and the position light 22 is turned on (yes in S57), and when it is determined in S21 that the low beam light 21 is turned OFF and the position light 22 is turned on, the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 has been moved to the OFF position 12 (S22).

When the light switch 11 is moved to the OFF position 12 in S29 and S22 (yes in S29 and yes in S22), the light control unit 41 turns OFF the low beam lamp 21 and also turns OFF the position indicator lamp 22 (S23). When the light switch 11 is not moved to the OFF position 12 in S29 (no in S29), the light controller 41 proceeds to S30 (fig. 6). When the light switch 11 is not moved to the OFF position 12 in S22 (no in S22), the light controller 41 proceeds to S33 (fig. 6). Further, the determinations of S20 and S29 may be reversed.

Next to S23, the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 has been moved to the small light position 14 (S24). When the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 (yes at S24), the light control unit 41 returns the process to S21. When the light switch 11 is not moved to the small light position 14 (no at S24), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not both the parking brake and the parking shift position are OFF by the parking brake sensor 63 and the parking shift position sensor 65 (S25). When the parking brake and the parking position are both OFF (yes at S25), the light control unit 41 turns OFF the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position indicator lamp 22 (S27).

When at least one of the parking brake and the parking position is ON (no at S25), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the current vehicle speed of the host vehicle is equal to or higher than the 4 th predetermined speed using the vehicle speed sensor 33 (S26). The "4 th predetermined speed" is a threshold value for determining whether or not the own vehicle has shifted from the substantially stopped state to the cruising speed, and is a value smaller than the "1 st predetermined speed" and the "2 nd predetermined speed" but equal to or greater than the "3 rd predetermined speed". When the vehicle speed is not less than the 4 th predetermined speed (yes at S26), the light control unit 41 turns off the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position indicating lamp 22 (S27).

When the vehicle speed is less than the 4 th predetermined speed (no at S26), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 has been moved to the OFF position (S28). When the light switch 11 is moved to the OFF position (yes at S28), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position light 22 (S60). In this case, the light control unit 41 returns the process to S20 (fig. 5). When the light switch 11 is not moved to the OFF position (no in S28), the light control unit 41 returns the process to S24. Further, the order of the determinations at S25 and S26 may be reversed. The order of determination at S24, (S25, S26) and S28 may be reversed.

In fig. 6, when the light switch 11 is not moved to the OFF position in S29 of fig. 5 (no in S29), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the parking brake and the parking shift position are all OFF by the parking brake sensor 63 and the parking shift position sensor 65 (S30). When the parking brake and the parking range are all OFF (yes at S30), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam lamp 21 and also turns on the position lamp 22(S32), and the process returns.

When at least one of the parking brake and the parking position is ON (no at S30), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the current vehicle speed of the host vehicle is equal to or higher than the 4 th predetermined speed using the vehicle speed sensor 33 (S31). Further, the order of the determinations at S30 and S31 may be reversed. When the vehicle speed is equal to or higher than the 4 th predetermined speed (yes at S31), the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 are turned on (S32), and the process returns. When the vehicle speed is less than the 4 th predetermined speed (no at S31), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position light 22(S58), and the process returns to S20 of fig. 5.

On the other hand, if the light switch 11 is not moved to the OFF position 12 in S22 described above in fig. 5 (no in S22), the light controller 41 determines whether or not the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 in fig. 6 (S33). Further, the order of the determinations at S22 and S33 may be reversed. When the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 (yes at S33), the light control unit 41 turns on the low beam light 21 and also turns on the position light 22(S59), and the process returns to S20 in fig. 5.

When the light switch 11 is not moved to the small light position 14 and the automatic position 13 is the set position (no at S33), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the parking brake and the parking range are all OFF by the parking brake sensor 63 and the parking range sensor 65 (S34). When the parking brake and the parking range are all OFF (yes at S34), the light control unit 41 turns OFF the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position lamp 22(S36), and the process returns. When at least one of the parking brake and the parking position is ON (no at S34), the light control unit 41 determines whether or not the current vehicle speed of the host vehicle is equal to or higher than the 4 th predetermined speed using the vehicle speed sensor 33 (S35). Further, the order of the determinations at S34 and S35 may be reversed. When the vehicle speed is not less than the 4 th predetermined speed (yes at S35), the light control unit 41 turns off the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position indicating lamp 22(S36), and the process returns. When the vehicle speed is less than the 4 th predetermined speed (no at S35), light control unit 41 returns the process to S21 of fig. 5.

Although not mentioned in the above flowchart, when the set position of the light switch 11 is the headlight position 15, the control unit 31 maintains the state in which the low beam light 21 is turned on and the position light 22 is turned on. This can be achieved by switching of a predetermined switching circuit without being based on the processing executed by the control section 31.

The operational effects of the vehicle lighting system 1 described above will be described.

The light switch 11 of the vehicle lighting system 1 is provided with a snap mechanism 36, and even if the set position of the light switch 11 is switched to the OFF position 12 or the small light position 14, the set position is returned to the automatic position 13 as long as the driver takes his hand OFF the light switch 11. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the necessary lamp from being continuously turned OFF while the set position of the lamp switch 11 is held at the OFF position 12 or the small lamp position 14.

However, it is also conceivable that the driver keeps the set position at the OFF position 12 or the small lamp position 14 by pressing the light switch 11 with his or her hand. Therefore, the control unit 31 controls the turning on and OFF of the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 as described above when the set position of the light switch 11 is the OFF position 12 or the small lamp position 14.

That is, when the automatic position 13 is at the reference position 16 (yes at S3), the brightness outside the vehicle is less than the predetermined value (yes at S2), the vehicle speed is less than the 1 st predetermined speed (yes at S4), and the set position of the light switch 11 is the low beam position 14 or the OFF position (yes at S5), the light control unit 41 turns OFF the low beam lamp 21 and turns on the position lamp (S6) with respect to the set position of the light switch 11. Thus, when the driver sets the setting position of the light switch 11 to the OFF position 12 or the low beam position 14 while the vehicle is traveling slowly while the vehicle is still outside the vehicle in a dim state, the unnecessary low beam 21 can be turned OFF.

In this case, when the low beam lamp 21 is turned off and the position indicating lamp 22 is turned on in S6, S27, and S36 (yes in S51), and when the vehicle speed is equal to or higher than the 2 nd predetermined speed (yes in S7), the low beam lamp 21 is turned on and the position indicating lamp 22 is also turned on (S52). That is, even if the low beam light 21 is turned off in S6, S27, and S36, the low beam light 21 is turned on again when the host vehicle increases the vehicle speed from the creep speed to the traveling speed, and therefore the host vehicle can be prevented from traveling in a state where the low beam light 21 is forgotten to be turned on again.

Even if the low beam light 21 is turned off and the position light 22 is turned on in S6 of fig. 2, S27 of fig. 5, and S36 of fig. 6 (yes in S51), the low beam light 21 and the position light 22 are turned on (S52 of fig. 3) when the travel distance from when the low beam light is turned off becomes equal to or more than the predetermined distance (yes in S8). That is, even at the creep speed (yes at S4 in fig. 2), if the vehicle is traveling in a very dark state (yes at S2 in fig. 2), the driver may have difficulty driving the vehicle while the low beam 21 is off. Therefore, when the vehicle travels a certain distance in the turned-off state of the low beam lamps 21, the low beam lamps 21 are turned on again. This can limit the traveling of the vehicle in the low beam lamp 21 off state to the minimum necessary, and prevent forgetting to turn on the low beam lamp 21.

When the low beam lamp is turned off and the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on in S6 of fig. 2, S27 of fig. 5, and S36 of fig. 6 (yes in S51), the low beam lamp 21 is turned on and the position indicator lamp 22 is also turned on when the set position of the lamp switch 11 is switched to the low lamp position 14 (yes in S9) (S52). That is, it is desirable from the viewpoint of ease of driving that the low beam lamps 21 can be turned on again at a timing desired by the driver from the turned-off state of the low beam lamps 21. The light switch 11 is provided with a headlight position 15, and when the headlight position 15 is set to the set position of the light switch 11, the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 can be always turned on. However, the headlight position 15 may be an unintended setting position for a driver who drives the vehicle by always setting the light switch 11 to the automatic position 13. Therefore, the turning on and off of the low beam can be switched by the same operation (yes at S5 in fig. 2 and yes at S9 in fig. 3) as the switching operation from the automatic position 13 to the small lamp position 14, and thus the operability of the light switch 11 is improved.

When the low beam lamp 21 is turned OFF and the position indicating lamp 22 is turned on in S6 of fig. 2, S27 of fig. 5, and S36 of fig. 6 (yes in S51), when the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is equal to or higher than the 3 rd predetermined speed in fig. 4 (no in S12), or when either the parking brake or the parking range is OFF (no in S13), the turning on/OFF of the lamp of the host vehicle is not determined in the 3 rd process of fig. 4. At this time, when the light switch 11 is switched to the OFF position 12 in the process 2 of fig. 3 (yes in S10), the low beam light 21 is turned OFF and the position light 22 is kept turned on (S53). That is, when the host vehicle is traveling at a speed (3 rd predetermined speed or higher) which cannot be said to be substantially in a stopped state, or the parking brake and the parking range are released, the host vehicle is in a state where the host vehicle is not stopped or can be immediately dispatched. In this case, even if the light switch 11 is operated to the OFF position 12, the own vehicle is moving or can be immediately started, and thus the lights of the own vehicle are not completely turned OFF. Therefore, when the vehicle is moving or the preparation for departure is made, the position indicator lamp 22 can be reliably turned on, thereby ensuring a certain degree of visibility of the own vehicle with respect to the surroundings.

In fig. 4, when the set position of the light switch 11 is the automatic position 13 (yes in S15), the vehicle exterior has a brightness smaller than the predetermined value (yes in S14), the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is smaller than the 3 rd predetermined speed (yes in S12), at least one of the parking brake and the parking position is ON (yes in S13), and the set position of the light switch 11 is the OFF position 12 in fig. 5 (yes in S22), the low beam lamp 21 is turned OFF and the blinker 22 is also turned OFF (S23). That is, when the vehicle is in a substantially stopped state and at least one of the parking brake and the parking range is set, it is considered that there is no problem even if the exterior lights of the vehicle are all turned OFF only when the set position of the light switch 11 is switched to the OFF position 12 by the driver. Therefore, when the set position of the light switch 11 is switched to the OFF position 12 under this condition, the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 can be turned OFF by the switch operation of the driver, and the exterior lights can be turned OFF all the time as necessary.

In fig. 5, when the vehicle speed of the host vehicle reaches the 4 th predetermined speed (yes in S26) while the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 are off (S23), the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on and the low beam lamp 21 remains off (S27). That is, when the exterior lights of the host vehicle are all turned off in a state where it is considered that there is no problem even if the exterior lights of the host vehicle are all turned off as described above, the indicator lamp 22 is first turned on when the host vehicle shifts from a substantially stopped state to a cruising speed and starts traveling. That is, when the own vehicle is parked, it is also assumed that an obstacle such as a wall exists around or in the vicinity of the own vehicle, and when the own vehicle is later started, it is assumed that the distance to the obstacle or the like is first acquired by slow traveling, and then the traveling speed is increased. At this time, the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on and the low beam lamp 21 is kept off, so that it is possible to prevent the light of the low beam lamp 21 from reflecting on surrounding obstacles or the like and obstructing the driving of the driver. Further, since the position indicator lamp 22 is turned on even when the host vehicle is traveling slowly, it is possible to prevent the host vehicle from traveling with the exterior lamps fully turned off, and to ensure a certain degree of visibility of the host vehicle with respect to the surroundings when the host vehicle is traveling.

In fig. 5, when both the parking brake and the parking position are OFF (yes in S25) while the low beam lamp 21 and the position lamp 22 are OFF (S23), the position lamp 22 is turned on and the low beam lamp 21 remains OFF (S27). That is, when both the parking brake and the parking range are released and the host vehicle is in a state in which the host vehicle can travel, the indicator lamp 22 is turned on, thereby preventing the host vehicle from starting traveling with the exterior lamps of the host vehicle completely turned off.

In fig. 2, when the set position of the light switch 11 is at the automatic position 13 (yes in S65), the brightness outside the vehicle is less than the predetermined value (yes in S66), and a failure of the vehicle speed sensor 33 is detected (no in S1), even if the set position of the light switch 11 is moved to the small light position 14 or the OFF position 12(S67), the low beam light 21 is turned on and the position light 22 is also turned on (S11). That is, by turning on the low beam lamp 21 and the position indicator lamp 22 when a failure of the vehicle speed sensor 33 is detected, and then maintaining the turning on even when the set position of the lamp switch 11 is moved to the low lamp position 14 or the OFF position 12, a fail-safe mechanism (fail safe) can be set when the vehicle speed sensor 33 fails, and the vehicle can be prevented from traveling in the OFF state of the low beam lamp 21.

In fig. 4, when the set position of the light switch 11 is at the automatic position 13 (yes at S15), the brightness outside the vehicle is less than the predetermined value (yes at S14), and at least one of the parking brake sensor 63 and the parking position sensor 65 has failed (no at S16), the low beam lamp 21 is turned on and the position indicator lamp 22 is also turned on (S17). That is, by turning on the low beam lamp 21 and the blinker 22 when at least one of the parking brake sensor 63 and the parking position sensor 65 fails, it is possible to prevent the vehicle from traveling without turning on the low beam lamp 21 even when these sensors fail.