US 11,900,809 B2
Vehicle notification sound generation system
Tohru Takamura, Toyota (JP); Jun Kokaji, Nagoya (JP); and Masahiro Mori, Toyota (JP)
Assigned to TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA, Toyota (JP)
Filed by Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha, Toyota (JP)
Filed on Jun. 17, 2020, as Appl. No. 16/904,016.
Claims priority of application No. 2019-114278 (JP), filed on Jun. 20, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2020/0402401 A1, Dec. 24, 2020
Int. Cl. G08G 1/133 (2006.01); B60W 60/00 (2020.01); B60R 11/02 (2006.01); B60W 40/08 (2012.01)
CPC G08G 1/133 (2013.01) [B60R 11/0217 (2013.01); B60W 40/08 (2013.01); B60W 60/00 (2020.02); B60W 2300/10 (2013.01)] 7 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A vehicle notification sound generation system mounted on a self-driving capable bus-type vehicle, the system comprising a vehicle interior speaker, a central processing unit, an amplifier, and a camera, wherein:
the vehicle interior speaker outputs a verbal speech, based on a verbal speech signal, about arrival of the vehicle at a destination and a non-verbal sound, based on a non-verbal sound signal, corresponding to a state of acceleration/deceleration or a state of turning of the vehicle before acceleration/deceleration operation, during acceleration/deceleration, before a start of turning, or during turning of the vehicle, the non-verbal sound is a sound that differs from the verbal speech in volume;
the central processing unit is configured to:
generate the verbal speech signal about the arrival of the vehicle at the destination based on travel information of the vehicle input from an automatic driving device of the vehicle; and
generate the non-verbal sound signal corresponding to the state of acceleration/deceleration or the state of turning of the vehicle based on behavior information of the vehicle input from the automatic driving device of the vehicle; and
the amplifier is configured to generate a notification sound signal by synthesizing the verbal speech signal and the non-verbal sound signal, and drive the vehicle interior speaker based on the generated notification sound signal;
the camera, while operating, detects either an absence or a presence of a standing passenger or a wheelchair passenger in a vehicle chamber; and
when the camera is operating and detects the absence of the standing passenger or the wheelchair passenger, the central processing unit prohibits output of the non-verbal sound signal.