JP2010097400A - Collision prevention device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a collision prevention device weakening collision possibility when one's own vehicle tries to enter a curve to improve safety. <P>SOLUTION: The collision prevention device 10 predicting whether one's own vehicle V and an oncoming vehicle C collide or not, and executing collision avoidance control to avoid the collision according to a result of the prediction includes: a curve distinction part 31 distinguishing whether a forward road present in front of one's own vehicle V on which the oncoming vehicle C travels is a right curve or a left curve; and a condition setting part 32 changing and setting an execution condition for making the collision avoidance control be executed according to the case that it is distinguished by the curve distinction part 31 that the forward road is the right curve, or the case that it is distinguished that the forward road is the left curve. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a collision prevention apparatus that predicts whether or not a host vehicle and an oncoming vehicle collide, and executes collision avoidance control for avoiding a collision according to a result of the prediction.

  Conventionally, an apparatus for recognizing a front obstacle such as an oncoming vehicle that has a high possibility of a collision with the host vehicle, avoiding a collision between the obstacle and the host vehicle, and reducing a collision damage has been proposed. . In such a device, it is required to recognize an obstacle at an early stage and to quickly perform an operation for preventing a collision. On the other hand, if a roadside object on a curve is erroneously recognized as an obstacle, an unnecessary collision prevention is performed. There is a possibility of moving.

  For this reason, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a traveling safety device for preventing an erroneous determination of the possibility of collision with an obstacle at an exit portion of a curve. In this travel safety device, the relative lateral deviation between the own vehicle and the oncoming vehicle is calculated based on the state of the oncoming vehicle and the future movement trajectory of the own vehicle, and when the relative lateral deviation is within a predetermined range, It is determined that there is a possibility of contact between the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle, and contact avoidance steering is performed to prevent contact.

Here, in this travel safety device, when it is detected that the host vehicle has approached the exit portion of the curve, the relative lateral deviation is corrected in a decreasing direction, so that the host vehicle can contact the oncoming vehicle at the exit portion of the curve. It prevents the misjudgment to be high.
JP 2000-67398 A

  The travel safety device described above prevents erroneous determination of the possibility of collision between the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle at the exit portion of the curve.

  However, since no consideration is given to the details of the control method for avoiding a collision when the host vehicle is about to enter the curve, the possibility of collision when the host vehicle is about to enter the curve is reduced. There is room for improving safety.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a collision prevention device that can improve the safety by reducing the possibility of collision when the host vehicle is about to enter a curve.

  A collision prevention apparatus according to the present invention that solves the above problems predicts whether or not the host vehicle and an oncoming vehicle collide, and performs collision avoidance control that avoids a collision according to the result of the prediction. In addition, a curve discriminating means for discriminating whether a forward road existing ahead of the host vehicle on which the oncoming vehicle is traveling is a right curve or a left curve, and the front road is a right curve by the curve discriminating means. And a condition setting means for changing and setting an execution condition for executing collision avoidance control depending on whether it is determined that there is a left curve when the front road is determined to be a left curve. And

  In the collision prevention apparatus according to the present invention, the collision avoidance control is performed depending on whether the oncoming vehicle is traveling and the front road is determined to be a right curve and the front road is determined to be a left curve. Change and set the execution conditions for executing. For this reason, the above-mentioned collision avoidance according to how the relative positional relationship between the own vehicle and the oncoming vehicle changes depending on whether the oncoming road is a right curve or a left curve while the oncoming vehicle is traveling. It becomes possible to execute control appropriately. As a result, it is possible to improve the safety by reducing the possibility of collision when the host vehicle is about to enter the curve.

  Further, the condition setting means has an execution condition that makes it difficult to perform the collision avoidance control when the curve determination means determines that the front road is a right curve compared to when the front road is determined to be a left curve. It is also preferable to set. Thereby, when it is determined that the front road on which the oncoming vehicle is traveling is a left curve, the collision avoidance control is more easily performed than when it is determined that the front road is a right curve.

  Usually, the host vehicle travels in the left lane of the road as viewed from the host vehicle, and the oncoming vehicle travels in the right lane of the road as viewed from the host vehicle. For this reason, when the front road on which the oncoming vehicle is traveling is a right curve when viewed from the own vehicle, the own vehicle is included in the traveling direction of the oncoming vehicle before the oncoming vehicle finishes traveling on the right curve. On the other hand, if the front road where the oncoming vehicle is traveling is a left curve when viewed from the host vehicle, the host vehicle is not included in the traveling direction of the oncoming vehicle until the oncoming vehicle finishes driving the left curve. As a result, the collision avoidance control is less likely to operate than when driving on the right curve. Here, the condition setting means is an execution condition that makes it easier to execute the collision avoidance control when the front road is determined to be a left curve by the curve determination means than when the front road is determined to be a right curve. Set to. As a result, the possibility of collision when the host vehicle is about to enter the curve can be more reliably reduced and the safety can be further improved.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the collision prevention apparatus which can reduce the possibility of a collision when the own vehicle is going to enter a curve and can improve safety can be provided.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In order to facilitate understanding of the description, the same components in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals as much as possible, and redundant description will be omitted.

  First, the configuration of the collision preventing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a collision prevention apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. The collision prevention device 10 is attached to a vehicle (hereinafter referred to as an own vehicle), predicts whether or not the own vehicle and an oncoming vehicle (hereinafter referred to as an oncoming vehicle) collide, and performs a collision according to a result of the prediction. It is an apparatus for executing collision avoidance control to avoid. As shown in FIG. 1, the collision prevention device 10 includes a millimeter wave radar sensor 11, an image sensor 12, a yaw rate sensor 13, a positioning unit 21, a collision prevention ECU (Engine Control Unit) 30, a display 41, A speaker 42, an occupant protection device 43, and a vehicle control actuator 44 are provided.

  The millimeter wave radar sensor 11 is attached to the front part of the host vehicle, transmits a millimeter wave in front of the host vehicle, and receives a reflected wave from an obstacle on the road such as an oncoming vehicle. This is a sensor that detects the presence or absence of a front obstacle, the distance to this obstacle, and the relative position.

  The image sensor 12 is a sensor that detects the presence or absence of an obstacle ahead of the host vehicle, the distance from the obstacle, the relative position, and the position of the white line on the road by a stereo camera or the like attached to the front of the host vehicle. It is.

  The yaw rate sensor 13 is a sensor that detects a rotational angular velocity and a turning radius around the center of gravity of the host vehicle as a yaw rate.

  The positioning unit 21 is a system that measures an absolute position on the ground surface of the host vehicle by using a GPS (Global Positioning System). The absolute position on the ground surface of the host vehicle measured by GPS is collated with map information stored in a storage area in the collision prevention ECU 30. Thereby, the positioning part 21 pinpoints the position on the map of the own vehicle.

  The collision prevention ECU 30 includes a curve determination unit 31, a condition setting unit 32, and a collision prevention control unit 33. Based on the detection signals output from the millimeter wave radar sensor 11, the image sensor 12, the yaw rate sensor 13, and the positioning unit 21, the curve discriminating unit 31 is traveling on the opposite vehicle and ahead of the host vehicle (for example, several hundreds). This is a part for determining whether the road ahead in the meter ahead) has a right curve shape or a left curve shape. The curve determination unit 31 functions as a curve determination unit described in the claims.

  The condition setting unit 32 executes the above-described collision avoidance control when the curve determination unit 31 determines that the front road is a right curve and when the front road is determined to be a left curve. This is the part to change and set the execution conditions. This collision avoidance control is executed by a collision prevention control unit 33 described later.

  For example, the condition setting unit 32 is less likely to execute the collision avoidance control when the curve determination unit 31 determines that the front road is a right curve than when the front road is determined to be a left curve. Set the condition. In other words, the condition setting unit 32 makes it easier to execute collision avoidance control when the curve determination unit 31 determines that the front road is a left curve than when the front road is determined to be a right curve. Set the execution condition. The condition setting unit 32 functions as condition setting means described in the claims.

  The collision prevention control unit 33 executes the above collision avoidance control under the execution condition set by the condition setting unit 32 when the curve determination unit 31 determines that the road ahead is a right curve or a left curve. It is. The collision prevention control unit 33 causes the collision prevention system including the display 41, the speaker 42, the occupant protection device 43, and the vehicle control actuator 44 to execute the above collision avoidance control.

  The display 41 is a display screen for notifying that the oncoming vehicle may collide with the host vehicle by displaying an image to the driver of the host vehicle.

  The speaker 42 is an alarm device that notifies the driver of the host vehicle that the oncoming vehicle may collide with the host vehicle by emitting a sound.

  The occupant protection device 43 is a device for reducing damage caused by a collision with the occupant or the host vehicle when the vehicle collides with an oncoming vehicle. The occupant protection device 43 includes a seatbelt device that prevents the occupant from leaving the seat at the time of a collision with an oncoming vehicle, a device such as an air bag for reducing the impact on the occupant, a device that changes the shock energy absorption load, It consists of a device that moves the position of the operation pedal, a device that cuts off the power supply to the vehicle other than the traveling control system, and the like.

  The vehicle control actuator 44 is a brake actuator that automatically decelerates the vehicle speed of the host vehicle, a device that assists the driver's braking force during sudden braking, and an operation that automatically avoids obstacles such as the oncoming vehicle. It consists of a steering actuator.

  Next, the execution conditions for the collision avoidance control set in the condition setting unit 32 will be described with reference to FIGS. Each of FIGS. 2 to 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the execution conditions of the collision avoidance control set in the condition setting unit 32.

  First, as shown in FIG. 2, when the host vehicle V is about to enter a front road that is a left curve, the curve determination unit 31 includes a millimeter wave radar sensor 11, an image sensor 12, a yaw rate sensor 13, and a positioning unit 21. Based on the detection signal output from, it is determined that the road ahead is a left curve.

  Here, it is assumed that the oncoming vehicle C is traveling on the road ahead, and the oncoming vehicle C is passing the positions indicated by C1, C2, C3, and C4 in order. When the oncoming vehicle C is passing the position indicated by C1, the host vehicle V is not included in the range of the traveling direction A1 of the oncoming vehicle C. Similarly, the oncoming vehicle C is passing the position indicated by C2. In some cases, the host vehicle V is not included in the range of the oncoming vehicle C in the traveling direction A2. Similarly, when the oncoming vehicle C is passing the position indicated by C3, the host vehicle V is not included in the range of the traveling direction A3 of the oncoming vehicle C, and similarly, the oncoming vehicle C has the position indicated by C4. When the vehicle is passing, the host vehicle V is not included within the range of the traveling direction A4 of the oncoming vehicle C.

  In this way, when the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a left curve when viewed from the own vehicle V, the oncoming road C will automatically move in the traveling directions A1 to A4 until the oncoming vehicle C has finished traveling on this curve. Since the vehicle V is not included, the situation in which the oncoming vehicle C needs to execute the collision avoidance control except when the oncoming vehicle C enters the traveling lane of the own vehicle V in an emergency as shown in FIG. However, it will remain unexecuted. Here, the condition setting unit 32 in the present embodiment has completed the setting of the execution condition that makes it easier to execute the collision avoidance control compared to the case where it is determined that the road ahead is a right curve. For this reason, the collision prevention control unit 33 executes the above-described collision avoidance control that is easy to execute, thereby reducing the possibility of collision when the host vehicle V is about to enter the left curve and improving safety. Can be made.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, when the host vehicle V is about to enter a forward road that is a right curve, the curve determination unit 31 includes a millimeter wave radar sensor 11, an image sensor 12, a yaw rate sensor 13, and a positioning unit 21. Based on the detection signal output from, it is determined that the road ahead is a right curve.

  Here, it is assumed that the oncoming vehicle C is traveling on the road ahead, and the oncoming vehicle C is passing the positions indicated by D1, D2, D3, and D4 in order. When the oncoming vehicle C is passing the position indicated by D1, the own vehicle V is not included in the range of the traveling direction B1 of the oncoming vehicle C. Similarly, the oncoming vehicle C is passing the position indicated by D2. In some cases, the host vehicle V is not included within the range of the oncoming vehicle C in the traveling direction B2. Similarly, when the oncoming vehicle C is passing the position indicated by D3, the host vehicle V is included in the range of the traveling direction B3 of the oncoming vehicle C. Similarly, the oncoming vehicle C has the position indicated by D4. When the vehicle is passing, the host vehicle V is included in the range of the traveling direction B4 of the oncoming vehicle C.

  In this way, when the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a right curve when viewed from the own vehicle V, the oncoming road C will automatically move in the traveling directions B3 and B4 until the oncoming vehicle C has finished traveling on this curve. Since the vehicle V is included, the vehicle V is executed even in a situation where it is not necessary to execute the collision avoidance control. Here, the condition setting unit 32 in the present embodiment has completed the setting of the execution condition that makes it difficult to execute the collision avoidance control as compared with the case where it is determined that the road ahead is a left curve. For this reason, by preventing the collision prevention control unit 33 from executing the above-described collision avoidance control that has become difficult to execute, unnecessary collision prevention control is executed when the host vehicle V is about to enter the right curve. It can prevent and improve safety.

  Next, a series of processes executed by the collision prevention apparatus 10 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining a series of this process.

  First, a measured value is input from each sensor to the curve determination unit 31 of the collision prevention ECU 30 (step S01). More specifically, the presence / absence of an obstacle, a distance from the obstacle, and a relative position with the obstacle are input from the millimeter wave radar sensor 11 and the image sensor 12. Further, the vehicle speed, the steering angle, and the yaw rate of the host vehicle V are input from the yaw rate sensor 13. Further, the position of the host vehicle V on the map is input from the positioning unit 21.

  Next, the curve discriminating unit 31 discriminates the road shape of the forward road existing ahead of the host vehicle V based on the measurement values acquired by the sensors (step S02). When the road shape of the front road is a left curve when viewed from the host vehicle V, the process proceeds to step S11 described later. On the other hand, when the road shape of the front road is a right curve when viewed from the host vehicle V, the process proceeds to step S31 described later. If the road shape of the front road is not a curve such as a straight road, the process proceeds to step S21 described later.

  In step S <b> 11, whether the oncoming vehicle C collides with the host vehicle V when the oncoming vehicle C traveling on the road ahead exists based on the measurement values acquired by the sensors. It is discovered as a target to be monitored (hereinafter referred to as a target). Next, the curve discriminating unit 31 calculates an estimated travel locus based on the relative movement history viewed from the host vehicle V of the oncoming vehicle C as the target (step S12). The estimated travel trajectory is a trajectory estimated by the curve discriminating unit 31 when formed by the oncoming vehicle C as a target object traveling. When the estimated travel locus is calculated, the process proceeds to step S13 described later.

  In step S13, the curve determination unit 31 predicts whether or not the host vehicle V and the oncoming vehicle C may collide based on the calculated estimated travel locus, and predicts that there is a possibility of collision. When it is, the oncoming vehicle C as the target is stored in the storage area in the collision prevention ECU 30 as a collision candidate target. If the oncoming vehicle C is memorize | stored as a collision candidate target, it will transfer to step S14 mentioned later.

  In step S14, since almost no history as a target is accumulated in the collision prevention ECU 30 and it is difficult to determine the possibility of collision, it is estimated that the possibility of collision is relatively high for safety. The unit 32 sets execution conditions that make it easier to execute the collision avoidance control than when it is determined that the road ahead is a right curve. The set execution condition is stored in a storage area in the collision prevention ECU 30. When the execution condition is set, the process proceeds to step S41 described later.

  In step S31, when the oncoming vehicle C traveling on the front road exists based on the measurement values acquired by the sensors, the curve determining unit 31 finds the oncoming vehicle C as the above-described target. . Next, the curve discriminating unit 31 calculates an estimated travel locus based on the relative movement history viewed from the host vehicle V of the oncoming vehicle C as the target (step S32). The estimated travel trajectory is a trajectory estimated by the curve discriminating unit 31 when formed by the oncoming vehicle C as the target target traveling as described above. When the estimated travel locus is calculated, the process proceeds to step S33 described later.

  In step S33, the curve determination unit 31 predicts whether or not the host vehicle V and the oncoming vehicle C may collide based on the calculated estimated travel locus, and predicts that there is a possibility of collision. When it is, the oncoming vehicle C as the target is stored in the storage area in the collision prevention ECU 30 as a collision candidate target. If the oncoming vehicle C is memorize | stored as a collision candidate target, it will transfer to below-mentioned step S34.

  In step S34, since the history as the target is accumulated in the collision prevention ECU 30 and it is easy to determine the possibility of collision, it is estimated that the possibility of collision is relatively low. The execution condition is set such that the collision avoidance control is less likely to be executed than when the road is determined to be a left curve. The set execution condition is stored in a storage area in the collision prevention ECU 30. When the execution condition is set, the process proceeds to step S41 described later.

  In step S21, since the road ahead is not a curve like a straight road, the condition setting unit 32 sets normal execution conditions. The set execution condition is stored in a storage area in the collision prevention ECU 30. When the execution condition is set, the process proceeds to step S41 described later.

  In step S41, when the oncoming vehicle C as the collision candidate target approaches the host vehicle V within a predetermined distance, the collision prevention control unit 33 is based on the execution condition set by the condition setting unit 32. The execution of the collision avoidance control is started (that is, the collision prevention system is activated). When the execution of the collision avoidance control is started, the process proceeds to step S42 described later.

  In step S42, the collision prevention control unit 33 causes the display 41, the speaker 42 as an alarm device, the occupant protection device 43, and the vehicle control actuator 44 to execute the above collision avoidance control. Thereby, the speaker 42 as an alarm device, the occupant protection device 43 and the like are activated. When the collision avoidance control is executed in this way, the process returns to the above-described step S01 and shifts.

  According to the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, when it is determined that the front road where the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a right curve, it is determined that the front road is a left curve. Depending on the situation, the execution condition for executing the collision avoidance control is changed and set. Note that since the relative positional relationship between the host vehicle V and the oncoming vehicle C changes depending on whether the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a right curve or a left curve, The way the vehicle V is seen is also different.

  Here, the collision avoidance control is executed when it is determined that the shape of the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a right curve and when the shape of the front road is determined to be a left curve. Since the execution condition (that is, the operation condition of the above-described collision prevention system) is changed and set, the above-described collision avoidance control according to different views of the host vehicle V viewed from the oncoming vehicle C is performed. It is possible to ensure safety by executing appropriately. As a result, it is possible to improve the safety by reducing the possibility of collision when the host vehicle V is about to enter the curve.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, when it is determined that the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a right curve, the collision avoidance control is more effective than when the front road is determined to be a left curve. It becomes difficult to execute. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 2, when it is determined that the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a left curve, the collision avoidance control is performed as compared with the case where the front road is determined to be a right curve. Are relatively easy to execute.

  Normally, the host vehicle V travels in the left lane of the road as viewed from the host vehicle V, and the oncoming vehicle C travels in the right lane of the road as viewed from the host vehicle V in accordance with traffic regulations. For this reason, when the front road on which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a right curve when viewed from the host vehicle V, the oncoming vehicle C is finished before the oncoming vehicle C finishes traveling on the right curve as shown in FIG. The traveling directions B3 and B4 include the own vehicle V, and the traveling directions B3 and B4 of the oncoming vehicle C (that is, the estimated traveling locus) intersect with the traveling direction of the own vehicle V. In other words, this estimated traveling locus tends to be directed toward the host vehicle V. As a result, the history as the target is accumulated in the collision prevention ECU 30 (that is, the likelihood of collision is improved), and it is predicted that there is a possibility of collision, and the execution of collision avoidance control is unnecessary. Even so, it will malfunction and be executed.

  On the other hand, when the front road in which the oncoming vehicle C is traveling is a left curve when viewed from the host vehicle V, as shown in FIG. The traveling direction A1 to A4 does not include the host vehicle V, and the traveling direction A1 to A4 (that is, the estimated traveling locus) of the oncoming vehicle C and the traveling direction of the host vehicle V do not intersect. In other words, the estimated travel locus tends to deviate on the right side of the host vehicle V. As a result, it is predicted that there is no possibility of a collision due to the fact that the history as a target is hardly accumulated in the collision prevention ECU 30 (that is, the likelihood of collision is not improved), and it is necessary to execute collision avoidance control. Even so, it will remain unexecuted.

  Here, the condition setting unit 32, when the curve determination unit 31 determines that the road ahead is a left curve, as shown in FIG. 2, compared to the case where the road ahead is determined to be a right curve. Appropriate execution conditions are set such that the collision avoidance control is easy to execute (that is, the operation threshold is lowered and relaxed). Thereby, even when it is necessary to execute the collision avoidance control, it is possible to prevent a situation in which there is an operation leak that is not executed at an earlier appropriate timing.

  As a result, the possibility of collision when the host vehicle V is about to enter the curve can be more reliably lowered and the safety can be further improved. Furthermore, since collision avoidance control can be easily performed, even when the oncoming vehicle C gets into the traveling lane of the host vehicle V and approaches suddenly as shown in FIG. Therefore, the possibility of collision can be reduced more reliably and the safety can be further improved.

  On the other hand, the condition setting unit 32, when the curve determination unit 31 determines that the front road is a right curve, as shown in FIG. 4, when the front road is determined to be a left curve. Compared to the execution condition, the collision avoidance control is set to an appropriate execution condition that is difficult to execute (that is, the operation threshold is raised and becomes strict). Thereby, even if it is a case where execution of collision avoidance control is unnecessary, it can prevent being in the situation where it will be performed. As a result, it is possible to more reliably lower the possibility of collision caused by executing unnecessary collision avoidance control and to improve safety more.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, the occupant protection device 43 is provided. However, instead of the occupant protection device 43, a seat belt control device that controls the tightening force of the seat belt may be provided.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a collision prevention apparatus according to an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the execution conditions of the collision avoidance control set in a condition setting part. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the execution conditions of the collision avoidance control set in a condition setting part. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the execution conditions of the collision avoidance control set in a condition setting part. It is a flowchart for demonstrating a series of flows of the process performed with a collision prevention apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Collision prevention apparatus, 11 ... Millimeter wave radar sensor, 12 ... Image sensor, 13 ... Yaw rate sensor, 21 ... Positioning part, 31 ... Curve discrimination | determination part, 32 ... Condition setting part, 33 ... Collision prevention control part, 41 ... Display , 42 ... speaker, 43 ... occupant protection device, 44 ... vehicle control actuator, A1 to A4, B1 to B4 ... traveling direction, C ... oncoming vehicle, 30 ... collision prevention ECU, V ... own vehicle.

Claims (2)

A collision prevention device that predicts whether or not the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle collide, and executes collision avoidance control that avoids a collision according to the result of the prediction,
A curve discriminating means for discriminating whether a forward road existing in front of the host vehicle in which the oncoming vehicle is traveling is a right curve or a left curve;
The execution condition for executing the collision avoidance control is changed depending on whether the front road is determined to be a right curve by the curve determination means or a case where the front road is determined to be a left curve. Condition setting means for setting,
An anti-collision device comprising: The condition setting unit is more difficult to execute the collision avoidance control when the curve determination unit determines that the front road is a right curve than when the front road is determined to be a left curve. The collision preventing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the collision preventing apparatus is set to an execution condition.

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