JP4571071B2 - On-vehicle other vehicle detection device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle-mounted other vehicle detection device.

  Conventionally, a system (also referred to as an “image radar system”) adapted to detect other vehicles by combining an in-vehicle camera and an in-vehicle radar has been proposed. This image radar system displays an image in front of the vehicle, an image in the rear of the vehicle, etc. captured by a camera installed at a required location of the host vehicle on a display screen such as an in-vehicle monitor, while another vehicle (oncoming vehicle or A mark that emphasizes the presence of the following vehicle on the camera image (on the screen) corresponding to the captured vehicle (such as a vehicle approaching from behind in a two-lane road, etc.) with a millimeter wave radar, etc. (Hereinafter referred to as “highlighting”) to alert the driver.

  FIG. 1 schematically shows an example of a screen display with the highlighted display. In the illustrated example, a front image 40 captured by the in-vehicle camera is displayed on the screen, and the front image 40 includes three oncoming vehicles (images) C1, C2, and C3, of which two oncoming vehicles C1, A display example is shown in the case where emphasis display is given in which C2 is enclosed by square frames M1 and M2, respectively. For simplification of illustration, the preceding vehicle ahead of the host vehicle is omitted. In the example of FIG. 1, “square frame” is highlighted, but as other forms, the vehicle is displayed differently from other vehicles (for example, the display brightness is increased or blinked). Or the like).

As a technique related to the above-described prior art, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, a captured image obtained by capturing a landscape in front of the vehicle is displayed, and the current position and traveling direction of the vehicle are acquired. Based on the current position and traveling direction, and the three-dimensional geographic information, a route instruction figure related to the feature in the photographed image is generated, and the route instruction figure is additionally displayed in the vicinity of the feature on the photographed image. There is something like that.
JP-A-9-35177

  As described above, in the conventional technology, an image radar system that detects other vehicles using an in-vehicle camera and an in-vehicle radar has been proposed. In this system, an oncoming vehicle or a vehicle approaching from behind is detected by the in-vehicle radar. By highlighting data (data such as the direction of the vehicle, relative speed, and distance) on the camera image displayed on the screen, highlighting is performed to alert the driver. In this case, if all the vehicles existing within the radiation range of the radio signal transmitted from the in-vehicle radar can be reliably detected as “other vehicles”, it is possible to highlight all the detected vehicles. There is no problem.

  However, general radars, not limited to in-vehicle use, may have the following disadvantages due to their normal functions.

  That is, the radar scans and transmits a signal such as a radio wave in the direction in which the object to be detected exists, and receives a reflected wave that is reflected by the object and returns from the reflected wave signal to the object. The distance, direction, relative speed with respect to the object are detected. At that time, the reflected wave received by the radar includes a signal transmitted from other objects (vehicles, etc.) other than the detection target and a signal including some noise component. In order to prevent detection as a reflected wave from the target, a “threshold value” is set as a determination reference value. And the reflected wave signal which showed the intensity | strength which is less than this set threshold value is discarded as noise.

  Therefore, depending on the distance to the object to be detected (in this case, the other vehicle), its shape, the size of the facing area (the area of the front surface of the vehicle as viewed from the host vehicle), etc., the threshold value is not necessarily set. There may be a problem that a reflected wave having an intensity exceeding the above cannot be obtained. In other words, although the reflected wave signal from another vehicle is received, the reflected wave intensity is less than the threshold value, so that the reflected wave is regarded as noise and the other vehicle cannot be detected. It was. For example, a strong reflected wave (a signal with a large electric field strength) can be obtained for a vehicle having a large facing area such as a truck, but a weak reflected wave (the electric field strength is small) for a vehicle having a small facing area such as a sports car. Signal) can be obtained, and depending on the set threshold value, there may occur a case where a track car can be detected but a sports car cannot be detected.

  The present invention was created in view of such problems in the prior art, and when detecting another vehicle using a radar, it is reliably detected as another vehicle regardless of the distance to the other vehicle or the size of the facing area. It is an object of the present invention to provide an on-vehicle other vehicle detection device that can do this.

  In order to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, the vehicle-mounted other vehicle detection device according to the present invention is an imaging unit installed at a required location of the host vehicle so as to be able to acquire an image in the direction in which the other vehicle to be detected exists. A radar unit that scans and transmits a signal in the imaging direction of the imaging unit, and that can detect another vehicle based on a comparison process between the intensity of a reflected wave with respect to the signal and a set threshold value, and the imaging Display means for providing a captured image obtained by the means through a screen, input means for inputting a user instruction, and control means operatively connected to the imaging means, radar means, display means, and input means. When the control means detects a user instruction based on the view of another vehicle via the input means, the control means causes the radar means to lower the threshold value and perform the comparison process to detect the other vehicle. Before And controlling so as subjecting the highlight to another vehicle on the captured image corresponding to the detected other vehicle to the display unit.

  According to the on-vehicle other vehicle detection device according to the present invention, when there is a user instruction based on visual recognition of the other vehicle on the screen of the display means by the control means, the input instruction is used as a trigger for the radar means. Since the initial threshold value is temporarily lowered to perform the required comparison process, it could not be captured by the radar means depending on the distance to the other vehicle and the size of the facing area. It becomes possible to reliably detect the “non-detection vehicle” as another vehicle.

  In addition, by emphasizing the vehicle on the captured image corresponding to the detected “non-detected vehicle”, for the user (for example, the driver) who has seen this screen, The position becomes easy to visually recognize, and its presence can be recognized early. This contributes to clear warnings and accident prevention during driving.

  Other structural features of the on-vehicle other vehicle detection device according to the present invention, processing modes thereof, and the like will be described in detail with reference to embodiments of the invention described later.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 2 shows a configuration of an on-vehicle other vehicle detection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The on-vehicle other vehicle detection device 30 according to the present embodiment basically has a configuration equivalent to that of the image radar system used in the current technology, and will be described later. (In this case, the driver) can see a vehicle that is visible through the display screen but cannot be captured by the in-vehicle radar due to the distance, the size of the facing area, etc. (that is, other vehicles that are not highlighted) It has a feature in the processing mode of how to detect.

  The on-vehicle other vehicle detection device 30 of the present embodiment includes a radar 10, a control unit 20, an on-vehicle camera 21 for imaging other vehicles, an image processing unit 22, and an on-vehicle camera 23 for line-of-sight detection, as illustrated. The visual line direction recognition unit 24, the operation unit 25, the display device 26, and the speaker 27 are included. Furthermore, depending on the direction in which the “other vehicle” to be detected exists, a display device 28 with a touch panel may be provided as necessary, as will be described later.

  The radar 10 basically detects an object existing around the host vehicle using radio waves such as millimeter waves and microwaves, and as a functional block related to the present invention, as shown in FIG. A reflected wave receiving unit 12, a threshold setting unit 13, and a determination unit 14. Although not particularly illustrated, the radar 10 is installed at an appropriate position of the host vehicle so that a signal can be emitted in that direction in accordance with the imaging direction of an in-vehicle camera 21 for imaging other vehicles described later. In the radar 10, the transmission unit 11 scans and transmits a radio wave (transmission signal ES) such as a millimeter wave in a direction set based on the control from the control unit 20, and the transmitted signal ES is If there is any object, it is reflected by the object and returns as a reflected wave (reflected signal RS). In addition, the transmitter 11 generates angle information indicating the direction for each direction in which the radio wave is transmitted, and supplies the angle information to the reflected wave receiver 12 although not particularly illustrated. Based on this angle information, the reflected wave receiving unit 12 receives the reflected wave RS from the object in each direction in synchronization with the signal ES scanned and transmitted from the transmitting unit 11. Based on the control from the control unit 20, the threshold value setting unit 13 is set with a threshold value of the electric field strength to be discarded as noise among the reflected waves received by the reflected wave receiving unit 12. The determination unit 14 compares the intensity of the reflected wave received by the reflected wave receiving unit 12 with the threshold value set by the threshold value setting unit 13, and the received reflected wave intensity is equal to or greater than the threshold value. The detected object is identified, and it is determined that the identified detected object is a vehicle (another vehicle). Furthermore, the determination part 14 functions as a sensor which detects the distance and direction to the said other vehicle, the relative speed of the own vehicle with respect to the said other vehicle, etc., when the presence of another vehicle is detected.

  The control unit 20 is configured by a microcomputer or the like, and is used to control processing related to other vehicle detection performed in the device 30. Specifically, as will be described later, the control unit 20 uses a vehicle-mounted camera 21 with respect to the display device 26. The captured image has a function of controlling the vehicle on the camera image (on the screen) corresponding to the “other vehicle” captured by the radar 10 to be highlighted. Further, as processing related to the present invention, the vehicle on the camera image corresponding to the “non-detected vehicle” that could not be captured by the radar 10 because the threshold value initially set for the display device 26 was too high. Similarly, control is performed so that highlighting is added.

  Although not shown in particular, the vehicle-mounted camera 21 for imaging another vehicle is installed at an appropriate location so that an image in the direction in which the other vehicle to be detected exists can be acquired. For example, in the case of detecting an oncoming vehicle, the lens of the in-vehicle camera 21 is installed at an appropriate location on the front of the host vehicle (for example, in the vicinity of a room mirror in the vehicle interior) with the front of the vehicle facing. Further, when detecting a vehicle approaching from behind in a following vehicle or a two-lane road, the vehicle-mounted camera 21 is placed at an appropriate location on the rear of the host vehicle (for example, in the vicinity of the ceiling behind the rear seat). Install the lens facing the rear of the vehicle. In addition, when detecting a vehicle that is present on the left or right side, the lens of the in-vehicle camera 21 is installed in an appropriate location on the left side or right side of the host vehicle (for example, below the door mirror) in the direction. To do. In addition, although the other vehicle (image) imaged by the vehicle-mounted camera 21 can be confirmed on the screen of the display device 26 as will be described later, the presence of the vehicle is not necessarily detected by the radar 10 in the device 30. Is not limited. As explained in the section “Problems to be Solved by the Invention”, depending on the size of the “threshold value” that is a criterion value for detecting other vehicles by the on-vehicle radar, This is because even a reflected wave may be discarded as noise (that is, the presence of another vehicle cannot be detected).

  The image processing unit 22 is a functional block for recognizing a signal of an image obtained by photographing with the in-vehicle camera 21 as a sign around the own vehicle, another vehicle, a road surface condition, and the like. It also has the function of amplifying the image signal, digitizing it, and outputting it. In this image processing unit 22, processing similar to that performed in a general image recognition apparatus is performed, and for example, noise of an image acquired by the in-vehicle camera 21 is removed, binarization or white line detection is performed. Using a technique such as edge detection, a characteristic image is identified from the acquired images, and the identified image is collated with a plurality of matching pattern images prepared in advance. .

  The in-vehicle camera 23 for line-of-sight detection is for acquiring an image of the face of a vehicle occupant (in this case, a driver), and although not particularly illustrated, an appropriate location in the vehicle interior (for example, a front seat) It is installed near the front ceiling). The driver's face image (data) taken by the in-vehicle camera 23 is input to the line-of-sight direction recognition unit 24.

  The line-of-sight direction recognizing unit 24 detects the positions of a plurality of feature points (for example, the eyes, the corners of the eyes, and the nostrils) included in the image from the input image (data), and based on the detected positions, The direction in which the face is directed on the image is specified, and the direction is recognized as the “line-of-sight direction”.

  That is, in general, a human visual field is roughly divided into a region of interest (central vision) when viewed with the eyes and the periphery (peripheral vision), and the cognitive ability differs between central vision and peripheral vision. In other words, people can recognize what they are looking at in central vision, but it is difficult to recognize what they are in peripheral vision, and the tendency becomes stronger as they move away from central vision. . Therefore, when recognizing an object, a person turns his / her face toward the object to be recognized so that the object is located in the central vision. Accordingly, it is possible to specify the line-of-sight direction of the object that the driver is looking at (in this embodiment, “another vehicle” to be highlighted as described later). Note that the line-of-sight direction is, for example, the position of the eye with respect to the vehicle coordinate system that is centered on the position of the center of gravity of the vehicle and is configured by the coordinate axes of the front and rear (X axis), left and right (Y axis), and height (Z axis). And the angle with respect to each coordinate axis in the line-of-sight direction at this eye position.

  The operation unit 25 is for inputting information instructed by the user, and has, for example, a hand switch attached to the steering wheel, a remote control transmitter, or the like. The operation unit 25 gives an instruction based on visual recognition of “another vehicle” on the screen of the display device 26 as will be described later as an input instruction related to the present invention. The “other vehicle” here refers to a vehicle that cannot be detected by the device, that is, a vehicle that cannot be captured by the radar 10 and is not highlighted.

  The display device 26 is composed of an LCD monitor or the like, and is installed at a substantially middle position of the center console in the passenger compartment so that the display screen can be viewed from the driver's seat. On the screen of the display device 26, based on control from the control unit 20, an image with highlighting as described later is displayed as information related to the present invention. That is, an image displayed in front of the vehicle captured by the in-vehicle camera 21 is highlighted on the vehicle on the camera image (on the screen) corresponding to the “other vehicle” captured by the radar 10 (as illustrated in FIG. An image with a “square frame” or the like is displayed, and the vehicle on the camera image corresponding to the “non-detected vehicle” that could not be captured by the radar 10 due to the distance, the size of the facing area, etc. is also emphasized. An image with a display is displayed.

  The speaker 27 appropriately outputs the guidance information based on the control from the control unit 20, and as the guidance information related to the present invention, an image including the other vehicle (image) with the above highlighted display is provided. When displayed on the screen of the display device 26, a warning message related to the other vehicle is output as a voice. For example, when making a right turn at an intersection without a traffic light, a message such as “An oncoming vehicle is approaching ahead. Please be careful.” Or “A new oncoming vehicle has been detected. Output.

  Moreover, the display device 28 with a touch panel provided as necessary is arranged on the center console in the vehicle interior instead of the display device 26. The touch panel-equipped display device 28 includes an LCD panel as a display unit, and a touch panel (resistive pressure sensitive method, capacitive coupling method, etc.) made up of a transparent electrode disposed on the LCD panel. A touch position detection unit (not shown) that detects the position (touch position) touched by the operator's (driver in this case) finger and outputs the result to the control unit 20 is provided.

  In the on-vehicle other vehicle detection device 30 of the present embodiment configured as described above, the radar 10 is the “radar means”, the control unit 20 is the “control means”, and the on-vehicle camera 21 is the “imaging means”. The camera 23 and the line-of-sight direction recognition unit 24 cooperate to display on the display unit 26 or the touch panel-equipped display device 28 as a “line-of-sight specifying unit”, a touch panel attached to the operation unit 25 or the display device 28 as an “input unit”. The sections correspond to “display means”, respectively.

  Hereinafter, the process related to other vehicle detection performed in the vehicle other vehicle detection device 30 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3 showing an example of the process flow. In addition, the screen display example shown in FIG. 5 is also referred to.

  First, as an initial state of the device 30, the in-vehicle camera 21 is installed with the lens facing the front of the vehicle, and the radar 10 is installed so that the signal radiation direction faces the front of the vehicle. It is assumed that the vehicle is traveling on the road.

  In such a state, in the first step S1, the vehicle front side is imaged by the in-vehicle camera 21. This captured image includes an image of an oncoming vehicle as “another vehicle”.

  In the next step S2, as described above, the road range is determined from the image captured by the in-vehicle camera 21 by using a function such as white line detection or edge detection by the function of the image processing unit 22. The camera image captured by the in-vehicle camera 21 and subjected to image processing through the image processing unit 22 is displayed on the screen of the display device 26 via the control unit 20.

  In the next step S <b> 3, the radar 10 is activated based on the control from the control unit 20 and scans ahead of the vehicle. That is, a radio wave (transmission signal ES) is radiated from the transmitter 11 toward the front of the vehicle.

  In the next step S4, the radar unit 10 determines the intensity of the reflected wave received by the reflected wave receiving unit 12 and the threshold value set by the threshold setting unit 13 (the electric field intensity to be rounded down as noise). The detected object whose reflected wave intensity is equal to or higher than the threshold value is identified, and the identified detected object is determined to be a vehicle (another vehicle).

  In addition, since the imaging by the vehicle-mounted camera 21 and image processing based thereon, the forward scanning by the radar 10 and other vehicle detection based thereon can be performed in parallel, the above steps S1 to S2 and S3 to S4 are processing. The order may be reversed.

  In the next step S5, the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle captured by the radar 10 on the screen of the display device 26 based on the control from the control unit 20 (that is, the “other vehicle” presenting the reflected wave intensity equal to or greater than the threshold value). The vehicle on the camera image to be highlighted is displayed with a “square frame” or the like.

  FIG. 5A shows an example of a screen display with the highlighted display. In the illustrated example, a front image 41 captured by the in-vehicle camera 21 is displayed on the screen, and the front image 41 includes four oncoming vehicles (images) C4, C5, C6, and C7, of which two A display example is shown in which cars C4 and C6 are highlighted with square frames M4 and M6, respectively. As in the display example of FIG. 1, the preceding vehicle ahead of the host vehicle is not shown. In the display example shown in FIG. 5A, the second oncoming vehicle C5 from the front is not highlighted with a “square frame”, but this is because the vehicle C5 has a facing area like a sports car. This is a small vehicle, and the reflected wave intensity does not exceed the set threshold value, and represents a state that the radar 10 cannot capture. Similarly, although the “square frame” is not attached to the oncoming vehicle C7 that is the farthest distance, this indicates that the distance to the vehicle C7 is too far to be captured by the radar 10. ing.

  When an image including another vehicle with a highlighted display (front image 41 in FIG. 5A) is displayed on the screen, for example, “forward” is displayed via the speaker 27 based on the control from the control unit 20. A warning message such as “An oncoming vehicle is approaching. Be careful.” May be output.

  Referring again to FIG. 3, in the next step S <b> 6, the control unit 20 determines whether or not there has been an operation (user instruction) based on other vehicle viewing from the operation unit 25 (YES). That is, the driver sees the front image displayed on the screen of the display device 26 (the front image 41 as illustrated in FIG. 5A), and captures the vehicle that the device cannot detect, that is, the radar 10. If a vehicle not highlighted is displayed as a “non-detected vehicle” that could not be displayed (in the example of FIG. 5A, oncoming vehicles C5 and C7), the vehicle is visually recognized, and then The operation unit 25 (hand switch or the like) is operated while changing the line of sight and watching the “non-detected vehicle” through the windshield. If there is such an operation, the process proceeds to step S7, and if there is no operation, this processing flow is “finished”.

  In step S7, as described above, by the function of the line-of-sight direction recognition unit 24, the line-of-sight direction in which the face is directed from the driver's face image captured by the in-vehicle camera 23, that is, the presence of a “non-detected vehicle”. Specify the direction. This detection result is sent to the control unit 20.

  In the next step S8, based on the control from the control unit 20, the threshold value setting unit 13 directs the radiation direction of the radio wave ES transmitted from the transmission unit 11 of the radar 10 in the specified line-of-sight direction. The threshold value initially set (step S4) is temporarily lowered.

  In the next step S <b> 9, the “non-detected vehicle” is detected by the tracking process in the radar 10 based on the control from the control unit 20. The “tracking process” here is the same as a known tracking technique, and is performed as follows, for example. That is, the presence or absence of “other vehicle” is determined by tracing the continuously generated noise from the noises that have been discarded until then by the cooperative action of the control unit 20 and the radar 10. If it is noise from another vehicle, the target exists, so the reflected wave (noise) is generated continuously even if it becomes weak or interrupted. For this reason, when radar images for a certain time (about 1 second) are superimposed, the detection noise becomes “linear”. If the linear noise is generated on the road range (step S2) determined by the image processing unit 22 using a method such as white line detection or edge detection, the linear noise is referred to as “other vehicle”. Can be determined.

  In the next step S10, in the same manner as the process performed in step S5, the detected vehicle (detected by the tracking process by lowering the threshold value) on the screen of the display device 26 based on the control from the control unit 20. The same highlighting is also given to the vehicle on the camera image corresponding to “non-detected vehicle”).

  FIG. 5B shows a screen display example with the highlighted display. In the illustrated example, the forward image 41a displayed on the screen includes four oncoming vehicles (images) C4, C5, C6, and C7, and all the oncoming vehicles have square frames M4, M5, M6, and M7, respectively. A display example when highlighting is attached is shown. As in the display example of FIG. 5A, the preceding vehicle ahead of the host vehicle is not shown. In the display example shown in FIG. 5 (a), the vehicle C5 having a small facing area and the vehicle C7 at a long distance cannot be captured by the radar 10, and thus the “square frame” is not attached. In the display example shown in FIG. 5B, since the “non-detected vehicle” can be detected by the processing of steps S8 to S9, “square frame” is attached to all oncoming vehicles.

  Similarly, when an image including another vehicle with a highlighted display (the front image 41a in FIG. 5B) is displayed on the screen, for example, “new” is transmitted via the speaker 27 based on the control from the control unit 20. A warning message such as “An oncoming vehicle has been detected.

  Referring to FIG. 3 again, in the next step S11, based on the control from the control unit 20, in the radar 10, the threshold value setting unit 13 temporarily reduces the threshold value (step S8) to the original set value. Return to. Then, this processing flow is “end”.

  As described above, according to the other vehicle detection process (FIG. 3) performed by the vehicle other vehicle detection device 30 (FIG. 2) according to the present embodiment, on the screen of the display device 26 (front of FIG. 5A). When there is a user instruction based on the visual recognition of another vehicle (on the image 41) (a vehicle that cannot be captured by the radar 10 and is not highlighted), the control unit is triggered by the input instruction. In the radar 10 based on the control from 20, the threshold value initially set by the threshold value setting unit 13 is temporarily lowered. Therefore, the radar 10 can capture the distance or the size of the facing area. It becomes possible to detect a “non-detected vehicle” that could not be made.

  Thus, the vehicle on the camera image corresponding to the detected “non-detected vehicle” can also be highlighted (in the example of FIG. 5B, a square is newly added to each of the oncoming vehicles C5 and C7. For the driver, the position of the “non-detected vehicle” can be easily recognized and the presence of the vehicle can be recognized at an early stage. As a result, it is possible to greatly contribute to a warning with a space (sound output of a warning message from the speaker 27) and prevention of accidents during driving.

  In the above-described embodiment, the “non-detection vehicle” that could not be detected by the radar 10 due to the distance, the size of the facing area, or the like can be detected by temporarily lowering the threshold value of the electric field strength that should be discarded as noise. However, the method or processing form for detecting the “non-detected vehicle” is not limited to this. As is apparent from the gist of the present invention, the point is that when the driver visually recognizes the presence of a vehicle (non-detected vehicle) that could not be detected by the radar 10 on the screen of the display device 26, the visual recognition is performed. It is sufficient if a condition or state is set in the radar 10 so that the “non-detected vehicle” can be detected based on the control from the control unit 20 using the user instruction based on the above as a trigger. For example, the “threshold value” that is the determination reference value when detecting other vehicles is kept at the original set value, and the reflected wave intensity (electric field intensity) that can be detected by the reflected wave receiving unit 12 is temporarily increased. It is also possible to take such a method or processing form. An embodiment in that case will be described below.

  FIG. 4 shows another example of the other vehicle detection process performed by the in-vehicle other vehicle detection device 30 (FIG. 2) according to the present embodiment.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, as an initial state of the apparatus 30, the in-vehicle camera 21 is installed with the lens facing the rear of the vehicle, and the radar 10 is installed so that the signal emission direction faces the rear of the vehicle. It shall be. In this case, the “other vehicle” to be detected exists behind the vehicle, and it is safe to move the line of sight in the direction based on the visual recognition of the “other vehicle” on the screen (that is, look back). Therefore, the display device with a touch panel 28 is used as a means for performing an operation based on the visual recognition of the “other vehicle” on the screen. That is, by touching the image of the “other vehicle” on the display screen via the transparent touch panel, the control unit 20 identifies the direction of the “other vehicle”, that is, the rear vehicle from the touch position. can do. Therefore, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the vehicle-mounted camera 23 for line-of-sight detection and the line-of-sight direction recognition unit 24 are unnecessary.

  Under such conditions, in the same manner as the processing performed in steps S1 to S5 in the above-described embodiment (FIG. 3), the rear of the vehicle is imaged by the in-vehicle camera 21 (step S21), and the road range is determined from the captured image. (Step S22), radio waves are emitted (scanned) from the radar 10 toward the rear of the vehicle (step S23), and the radar 10 detects a detected object whose reflected wave intensity is equal to or greater than a set threshold value. (Other vehicle) is determined (step S24), and on the screen of the display device 28 with a touch panel based on the control from the control unit 20, the vehicle (that is, the reflected wave intensity equal to or higher than the threshold value) captured by the radar 10 is presented. The vehicle on the camera image corresponding to “other vehicle”) is highlighted with “square frame” or the like (step S25).

  Further, in the next step S26, the control unit 20 determines whether or not there has been a touch panel operation based on other vehicle viewing from the display device 28 with a touch panel (YES). That is, when the driver sees a rear image displayed on the screen and a vehicle that cannot be detected by the device is displayed, the driver touches the image of the vehicle. Then, if there is such a touch operation, the process proceeds to step S27, and if there is no touch operation, the process flow ends.

  In step S27, as described above, the control unit 20 specifies the direction of the rear vehicle, that is, the direction in which the “undetected vehicle” exists from the touch position on the image.

  In the next step S 28, based on the control from the control unit 20, the radiation direction of the radio wave ES transmitted from the transmission unit 11 of the radar 10 is directed to the specified “non-detection vehicle” direction to emit signal radiation. Narrow the angle temporarily. That is, the electric field strength per unit area is increased.

  In the next step S29, the reflected wave reception unit 12 of the radar 10 receives the reflected wave RS from the “non-detected vehicle”. The intensity of the reflected wave is increased in electric field strength per unit area. Therefore, the vehicle (non-detected vehicle) can be detected.

  In the next step S30, similar to the processing performed in step S10 in the above-described embodiment (FIG. 3), the detected vehicle (on the screen of the display device with a touch panel 28 based on the control from the control unit 20) ( Similar highlighting is also applied to the vehicle on the camera image corresponding to the “non-detected vehicle” detected by narrowing the radar signal radiation angle.

  In the next step S31, the signal radiation angle (step S28), which is temporarily narrowed, is returned to the original radiation angle in the radar 10 based on the control from the control unit 20. Then, this processing flow is “end”.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the operation unit 25 (hand switch or the like) is used as a means for performing an operation based on the visual recognition of the “other vehicle” on the screen, and the “other” is based on the operation. The case where the vehicle-mounted camera 23 for line-of-sight detection and the line-of-sight direction recognition unit 24 are used as the means for specifying the direction in which the “car” exists has been described as an example. Of course, the combination of the means for specifying the direction is not limited thereto.

It is a figure which shows roughly an example of the screen display which attached | subjected the highlight display. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the vehicle other vehicle detection apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process which concerns on the other vehicle detection performed in the apparatus of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the other example of the process which concerns on the other vehicle detection performed in the apparatus of FIG. 2. Screen table with highlighting before lowering the radar threshold (or before narrowing the signal radiation angle) and after lowering the radar threshold (or after narrowing the signal radiation angle) in the apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example schematically.

Explanation of symbols

10: Radar (radar means),
11 ... transmitter
12 ... Reflected wave receiver,
13 Threshold value setting unit,
14 ... determination part,
20 ... control unit (control means),
21 ... In-vehicle camera (imaging means),
23. In-vehicle camera (gaze direction specifying means),
24 ... Gaze direction recognition unit (gaze direction identification means),
25 ... operation unit (input means),
26 ... display device (display means),
27 ... Speaker,
28 ... Display device with touch panel (input means and display means),
30 ... Other vehicle detection device for in-vehicle use,
40, 41, 41a ... forward image (image taken by vehicle-mounted camera),
ES: Transmission signal (radio wave such as millimeter wave or microwave),
RS: Reflected signal (reflected wave),
C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 ... Oncoming vehicle (other vehicle to be detected),
M1, M2, M4, M5, M6, M7... Square frame (highlighted).

Claims (5)

Imaging means installed at a required location of the host vehicle so that an image in the direction in which the other vehicle to be detected exists can be acquired;
Radar means capable of scanning and transmitting a signal in the imaging direction of the imaging means, and detecting other vehicles based on a comparison process between the intensity of the reflected wave with respect to the signal and a set threshold value;
Display means for providing a captured image acquired by the imaging means through a screen;
Input means for inputting user instructions;
A control means operatively connected to the imaging means, radar means, display means and input means,
When the control means detects a user instruction based on other vehicle viewing via the input means, the control means causes the radar means to lower the threshold value and perform the comparison process, and detects the other vehicle. Sometimes, the on-vehicle other vehicle detection apparatus controls the display means to highlight the other vehicle on the captured image corresponding to the detected other vehicle.   The control unit causes the radar unit to narrow the radiation angle of the signal and perform the comparison process instead of causing the radar unit to perform the comparison process by lowering the threshold value. The on-vehicle other vehicle detection device according to claim 1. Further, the image processing device further comprises gaze direction identifying means for acquiring an image of an occupant's face that gives the user instruction and identifying a direction in which the sightline of the occupant is directed based on the image.
The control means directs the radiation direction of the signal in the specified line-of-sight direction to the radar means when detecting a user instruction based on other vehicle viewing via the input means. The on-vehicle other vehicle detection device according to claim 1. The input means is a touch panel arranged on the screen of the display means,
When the control means detects a touch panel operation based on other vehicle visual recognition, the control means specifies the direction in which the other vehicle exists from the operation position on the touch panel, and specifies the radiation direction of the signal to the radar means. The vehicle-mounted other vehicle detection device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle-mounted other vehicle detection device is directed toward the other vehicle.   2. The speaker according to claim 1, further comprising: a speaker for outputting a warning message related to the other vehicle when the control unit highlights the other vehicle on the captured image on the display unit. The vehicle-mounted other vehicle detection device described in 1.

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