JP2005134231A - Radar installation and malfunction judgment method for radar installation - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radar installation simply judging a change in distance detection performance caused by a deterioration of a component part etc. <P>SOLUTION: The radar installation provided with a distance computing means for finding a distance with respect to a detected object from a transmitted electric wave and a received reflected wave, is equipped with an information acquisition means for acquiring from outside, information which is utilized for judging its distance sensing performance, and a sensing performance judgment means for judging whether or not a distance sensing performance is within a normal range, on the basis of information acquired by the information acquisition means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

The present invention relates to a radar apparatus and a radar apparatus abnormality determination method, and more particularly to a radar apparatus and a radar apparatus abnormality determination method capable of obtaining a distance from a detected object from transmitted radio waves and received reflected waves.

In recent years, in order to prevent rear-end collisions and personal accidents caused by automobiles, an object existing in the front or rear side of the vehicle is detected by a radar device to perform inter-vehicle distance control, pedestrian protection control, or occupant protection control. Various safety support systems are being developed.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram schematically showing a main part of a conventional radar device that is mounted on a vehicle and monitors an object existing in front of the host vehicle. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a radar apparatus. The radar apparatus 1 includes a microcomputer 2, a transmission antenna 3, a signal transmission means 4, a reception antenna 5, and a delay detection means 6.

The signal transmission means 4 emits a signal (for example, an electromagnetic pulse or a code) from the transmission antenna 3, and the electromagnetic wave radiated from the transmission antenna 3 and hits the object T in all directions on all sides of the object T. Re-radiated (ie, reflected) and a small portion of the electromagnetic wave returns to its original direction. The receiving antenna 5 receives this very small reflected signal (for example, a reflected pulse or a code).

The delay detection means 6 is connected to the signal transmission means 4 to grasp the timing at which the signal is emitted,
In addition, it is connected to the receiving antenna 5 so as to grasp the timing at which the reflected signal is received, and to detect the time (that is, the delay time) until the signal is radiated and the reflected signal is received. .

The microcomputer 2 is connected to the delay detection means 6 so as to be able to acquire data related to the delay time, and includes a distance calculation means 2a and a relative speed calculation means 2b. The distance calculation means 2a obtains the distance R to the object T based on the delay time data obtained from the delay detection means 6, and the relative speed calculation means 2b obtains the distance R obtained by the distance calculation means 2a. Monitoring is performed over time, and the relative speed of the object T is obtained based on the time change of the distance R. In this way, the radar apparatus 1 is applied by applying the radar technology.
Is mounted on the vehicle, and an object around the vehicle is monitored to realize a safety support system.

However, the conventional radar device 1 has no function of confirming whether the distance R obtained by the distance calculation means 2a is a truly accurate value, that is, whether the distance detection performance is normal. For this reason, if the distance detection performance deteriorates due to aging deterioration of each component, etc., there is a possibility that the calculation distance to the detection object may be different from the actual distance, and such an accurate distance can be calculated. If it is used in an incapable state, the system using the radar apparatus 1 cannot be operated accurately, and there is a risk that the reliability of the system is lowered.

In order to eliminate the risk of lowering the reliability of such a system, a radar apparatus that can confirm that no abnormality has occurred in the radar apparatus has been proposed.
Discloses a radar apparatus capable of detecting an abnormality caused by deterioration or damage of a transmission / reception circuit constituting the apparatus.

However, in the radar apparatus (multi-beam type radar apparatus) disclosed in Patent Document 1, the sensitivity for each combination of the beam transmitting means and the beam receiving means is compared, and the beam transmitting means or the beam is based on the comparison result. Since it is configured to determine the abnormality of the receiving means, there is a problem that the processing for sensitivity comparison calculation becomes complicated. In addition, there has been no such thing as using information from an external device in order to determine the abnormality of the radar device.
JP 2000-227474 A

Means for solving the problems and their effects

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and can easily determine a change in distance detection performance due to deterioration of components and the like, and can confirm a change in distance detection performance over time. An object of the present invention is to provide a radar apparatus capable of evaluating deterioration at the time of inspection, investigating the cause of an accident, and the like, and an abnormality determination method for the radar apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, a radar apparatus (1) according to the present invention is a radar apparatus having distance calculation means for obtaining a distance from a detected object from a transmitted radio wave and a received reflected wave. Information acquisition means for acquiring information to be used from outside, and detection performance determination means for determining whether or not the distance detection performance is within a normal range based on the information acquired by the information acquisition means It is characterized by having.

According to the radar apparatus (1), information used for determination of distance detection performance is acquired from the outside (for example, an external device such as a sensor or a control device mounted on a vehicle) by the information acquisition unit, and the acquired information is acquired. Since it is determined based on the information whether the distance detection performance is within the normal range, the distance detection performance can be easily diagnosed without complicated processing. Also,
It is possible to prevent use in a state where the distance detection performance is deteriorated (that is, in an abnormal state), and it is possible to improve the reliability of the system using the radar apparatus.

The radar apparatus (2) according to the present invention includes determination position information indicating a position for determining the distance detection performance and reference distance information for determination corresponding to the position in the radar apparatus (1). A storage unit that is stored; and an execution determination unit that determines whether or not to execute the determination of the distance detection performance based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit. When it is determined by the execution determining means that the determination is to be performed, the calculated distance obtained by the distance calculating means is compared with the reference distance corresponding to the current position stored in the storage means to detect the distance It is characterized by determining whether or not the performance is within a normal range.

According to the radar device (2), when the execution determination unit determines that the determination is to be performed, the distance detection performance is within a normal range by comparing the calculation distance with the reference distance. It is determined whether or not. Therefore, for example, the difference between the calculation distance and the reference distance is compared, and if these differences are within the error range (within the normal range), it is determined to be normal. By using the information stored in the storage means, the distance detection performance can be easily diagnosed without complicated processing.

In the radar apparatus (3) according to the present invention, in the radar apparatus (2), the information acquisition means can detect the position information detected by the position detection means and the stop state of the own vehicle. The execution determination means executes the determination when the host vehicle is in a stopped state and the current position is a position for performing the determination. The feature is that it is judged.

According to the radar device (3), the position information and the vehicle state signal are acquired, and when the host vehicle is in a stopped state and the current position is a position for performing the determination, Since the determination is performed, the distance detection performance when the vehicle is stopped at a preset location by setting the location for performing the determination to a parking location that is often used, such as a parking lot at home. Can be diagnosed.

In the radar device (4) according to the present invention, in the radar device (2) or (3), the information acquisition means detects the position information detected by the position detection means and the distance input via the input means. Information, and includes first determination information storage means for storing the acquired position information and distance information in the storage means.

According to the radar apparatus (4), the position information detected by the position detection means is used as the determination position information, and the distance information input via the input means is used as the reference distance information in the storage means. Since it is stored, an arbitrary place can be registered in advance as a position for performing the determination, and an accurate actual measurement value input by the user can be registered as a reference distance. Therefore, the distance detection performance can be diagnosed at a place designated by the user and based on accurate distance information input by the user.

In the radar apparatus (5) according to the present invention, in the radar apparatus (2) or (3), the information acquisition unit is configured to automatically detect position information detected by the position detection unit, current position data, and map data. Distance information with respect to the building calculated by a navigation device provided with a peripheral distance calculating means for calculating a distance to a building around the vehicle, and the acquired position information and the building And second distance information storage means for storing the distance information in the storage means.

According to the radar apparatus (5), the position information detected by the position detecting means is the determination position information, and the distance information calculated by the navigation apparatus is the reference distance information. Since it is stored in the storage means, an arbitrary place can be registered in advance as a position for performing the determination, and a distance from the building calculated by the navigation device can be registered as a reference distance. Therefore, the distance detection performance can be diagnosed at a place designated by the user and based on accurate distance information calculated by the navigation device.

In the radar device (6) according to the present invention, in the radar device (2) or (3), the information acquisition unit acquires position information detected by the position detection unit. It is characterized by comprising third determination information storage means for storing position information and normal distance information obtained by the distance calculation means in the storage means.

According to the radar apparatus (6), the position information detected by the position detection unit is stored as the determination position information, and the normal distance information obtained by the distance calculation unit is stored as the reference distance information. Since it is stored in the means, an arbitrary place can be registered in advance as a position for performing the determination, and a normal calculation distance obtained by the distance calculation means can be registered as a reference distance. Accordingly, the distance detection performance can be diagnosed at a place designated by the user and based on accurate distance information obtained by the distance calculation means.

In the radar device (7) according to the present invention, in the radar device (1), the information acquisition unit calculates a distance to a building around the host vehicle from current position data and map data. The distance information with respect to the building calculated by the navigation device comprising: the detection performance determination means is obtained by the distance information with respect to the acquired building and the distance calculation means It is characterized by comparing the calculated distance and determining whether or not the distance detection performance is within a normal range.

According to the radar device (7), the distance information with respect to the building calculated by the navigation device is acquired, and the distance information with respect to the building is compared with the calculated distance obtained by the distance calculating means. Then, since it is determined whether or not the distance detection performance is within the normal range, the distance detection performance can be easily obtained at any point by using the distance information with the building acquired from the navigation device. Can be diagnosed.

In the radar apparatus (8) according to the present invention, in the radar apparatus (1), the distance calculation means receives a radio wave radiated from a radio wave transmission means installed at a predetermined point and communicates with the radio wave transmission means. A distance is obtained, the information acquisition means acquires distance information with respect to the radio wave transmission means, and the detection performance determination means includes the acquired distance information with respect to the transmission means, and the distance calculation. It is characterized in that it is judged whether or not the distance detection performance is within a normal range by comparing the calculated distance with the radio wave transmission means obtained by the means.

According to the radar apparatus (8), the distance information with respect to the radio wave transmission means is acquired from the outside (for example, a navigation device), and the obtained distance information with respect to the radio wave transmission means and the distance calculation means are obtained. By comparing the calculated distance with the radio wave transmission means, it is determined whether the distance detection performance is within the normal range, so by using the radio wave radiated from the radio wave transmission means, It becomes possible to diagnose the distance detection performance at the installation point of the radio wave transmission means.

A radar device (9) according to the present invention is characterized in that in any one of the radar devices (1) to (8), a determination information storage means for storing the determination information of the distance detection performance is provided. .

According to the radar apparatus (9), since the determination information storage means for storing the determination information of the distance detection performance is provided, the determination information of the distance detection performance is stored. Therefore, for example, by checking the stored determination information (date and time data, position data, calculation distance data, reference distance data, etc.) at the time of maintenance and inspection, it becomes possible to analyze the degree of decrease in the distance detection performance. By checking the determination information at the time of an accident or the like, it is possible to perform post-verification such as whether or not the decrease in the distance detection performance has an influence on the occurrence of the accident.

In addition, the radar device (10) according to the present invention includes any one of the radar devices (1) to (9) including notification means for notifying a determination result of the distance detection performance by the detection performance determination means. It is a feature.

According to the radar device (10), since the notification means for notifying the determination result of the distance detection performance by the detection performance determination means is provided, the determination result of the distance detection performance can be notified to the user. Therefore, the user can quickly grasp that an abnormality has been detected, and can take appropriate measures such as requesting repairs to a repair shop or the like.

A radar apparatus abnormality determination method (1) according to the present invention is a radar apparatus abnormality determination method including distance calculation means for obtaining a distance from a detected object from a transmitted radio wave and a received reflected wave. A process of acquiring information used for determination of detection performance from the outside, a process of determining whether or not to perform the determination based on the acquired information, and the distance calculation means when it is determined to perform the determination And a step of comparing whether or not the distance detection performance is within a normal range by comparing the calculated distance obtained in step 1 and the reference distance for determination corresponding to the set current position. It is characterized by that.

According to the abnormality determination method (1) of the radar device, when it is determined to execute the determination based on the acquired information, the distance between the calculation distance and the reference distance is compared, and the distance detection performance is in a normal range. It is determined whether or not it is contained within. Therefore, for example, the difference between the calculation distance and the reference distance is compared, and if these differences are within a predetermined range, it is determined to be normal, and if they are outside the predetermined range, it is determined to be abnormal. Therefore, the distance detection performance can be easily diagnosed without complicated processing, and the reliability of the system using the radar apparatus can be improved.

A radar apparatus abnormality determination method (2) according to the present invention is a radar apparatus abnormality determination method including distance calculation means for obtaining a distance from a detected object from a transmitted radio wave and a received reflected wave. Whether the distance detection performance is within the normal range by comparing the distance information used for judgment of detection performance from the outside and the obtained distance information and the calculated distance obtained by the distance calculation means And a process for judging whether or not.

According to the abnormality determination method (2) of the radar device, whether the distance detection performance is within a normal range by comparing the acquired distance information with the calculated distance obtained by the distance calculating means. Therefore, by using the acquired distance information, the distance detection performance can be easily diagnosed at an arbitrary point, and the reliability of the system using the radar apparatus can be improved.

In addition, the radar apparatus abnormality determination method (3) according to the present invention includes the process of storing the distance detection performance determination information in the radar apparatus abnormality determination method (1) or (2). It is said.

According to the abnormality determination method (3) of the radar apparatus, since the distance detection performance determination information is stored, the distance detection performance determination information is stored. Therefore, for example, by checking the stored determination information (date and time data, position data, calculation distance data, reference distance data, etc.) at the time of maintenance and inspection, it becomes possible to analyze the degree of decrease in the distance detection performance. By checking the determination information at the time of an accident or the like, it is possible to perform post-verification such as whether or not the decrease in the distance detection performance has an influence on the occurrence of the accident.

In addition, the radar apparatus abnormality determination method (4) according to the present invention includes a process of notifying the determination result of the distance detection performance in any of the above-described radar apparatus abnormality determination methods (1) to (3). It is characterized by that.

According to the abnormality determination method (4) of the radar apparatus, since the process of notifying the determination result of the distance detection performance is provided, the determination result of the distance detection performance can be notified to the user.
Therefore, the user can quickly grasp that an abnormality has been detected, and can quickly take appropriate measures such as requesting repairs to a maintenance shop or the like.

Embodiments of a radar apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing a main part of a periphery monitoring system in which a radar apparatus according to an embodiment is employed. However, components having the same functions as those of the radar apparatus 1 shown in FIG.

The periphery monitoring system 10 is a radar device 1 for monitoring an object existing in front of the host vehicle.
1 and a navigation device 30 that performs route guidance to the destination while detecting the current position.

The radar device 11 mounted on the front portion of the vehicle includes a microcomputer 12, a transmission antenna 3, a signal transmission means 4, a reception antenna 5, and a delay detection means 6. The signal transmission means 4 radiates a signal (for example, an electromagnetic pulse or a code) from the transmission antenna 3, and is radiated from the transmission antenna 3 and exists in front of the host vehicle (for example, various obstacles or An electromagnetic wave hitting a building or the like is re-radiated (that is, reflected) in all directions on all sides of the object T, and a small part of the electromagnetic wave returns to the original direction. The receiving antenna 5 receives this very small reflected signal (for example, a reflected pulse or a code).

The delay detection means 6 is connected to the signal transmission means 4 to grasp the timing at which the signal is emitted,
In addition, it is connected to the receiving antenna 5 so as to grasp the timing at which the reflected signal is received, and to detect the time (that is, the delay time) until the signal is radiated and the reflected signal is received. .

The microcomputer 12 is connected to the delay detection means 6 and can acquire data relating to the delay time. The microcomputer 12 is connected to the navigation device 30 and is detected by the position data detected by the GPS receiver 34 or the vehicle speed sensor 32. The speed data of the own vehicle can be acquired. The microcomputer 12 includes a distance calculation means 12a and a relative speed calculation means 1
2b, an execution determination unit 12c, a detection performance determination unit 12d, a notification unit 12e, and a memory 12f.

The distance calculation means 12a calculates the distance R to the object T based on the delay time data obtained from the delay detection means 6, and the relative speed calculation means 12b calculates the distance R calculated by the distance calculation means 12a. Are monitored over time, and the relative speed of the object T is obtained based on the time change of the distance R.

The execution determination unit 12c determines whether or not to execute the determination of the distance detection performance based on the position data and the velocity data acquired from the navigation device 30 at a predetermined timing. The detection performance determination unit 12d When the execution determination unit 12c determines that the distance detection performance determination is to be executed (that is, it is determined that the vehicle is in a stopped state and the current position is a place where the distance detection performance determination is performed in advance). The distance calculation means 12a compares the calculated distance to the object T existing in front of the host vehicle with the reference distance corresponding to the current position stored in the memory 12f. The notification unit 12e outputs the determination result of the detection performance determination unit 12d to the navigation device 30 to display the display unit 3 or not. It is intended to display the determination result.

Further, in the memory 12f, determination position information (a position for determining the distance detection performance) (
Map coordinate data and address data) and reference distance information for determination corresponding to the position are stored in association with each other, and determination information (that is, determination date / time data, position data, calculation distance data, reference distance data, etc.) Various information) is stored. The determination date / time data can be acquired from the navigation device 30.

On the other hand, the navigation device 30 includes a navigation microcomputer 31, a vehicle speed sensor 32, a gyro sensor 33, a GPS receiver 34, a hard disk device (HDD) 35, and an operation unit 36.
And a display unit 37.

A vehicle speed sensor 32 for obtaining a travel distance calculated from the vehicle speed, a gyro sensor 33 for detecting the traveling direction, and a GPS signal received from a satellite via an antenna 34a.
A PS receiver 34 is connected to the navigation microcomputer 31. The navigation microcomputer 31 calculates the travel distance and the traveling direction based on the signals acquired from the vehicle speed sensor 32 and the gyro sensor 33 to determine the position of the host vehicle, and determines the own vehicle based on the GPS signal captured from the GPS receiver 34. The position is determined.

Further, a hard disk device (HDD) 35 in which data, programs, and the like necessary for various processes such as electronic map data, destination search, and route search are stored is connected to the navigation microcomputer 31.

An operation unit 36 for performing various operations and settings is connected to the navigation microcomputer 31. The operation unit 36 includes joysticks and button switches provided on the remote controller and the display unit 37, touch panel switches (none of which are shown) provided on the front surface of the display panel constituting the display unit 37, and the like. The switch signal output from the switch and the coordinate signal from the touch panel are input to the navigation microcomputer 31. In response to the switch signal and the coordinate signal, the navigation microcomputer 31 performs destination setting processing, route search processing, and map display processing. The processes included in various navigation functions are performed.

In addition, the navigation device 30 can input and set information used for determining the distance detection performance of the radar device 11 through a screen displayed on the display panel. For example, the reference distance information at the current position can be input by the user through the “radar apparatus determination information setting” screen as shown in FIG.
When a “Send” button is input after a predetermined value is input, the reference distance data input by the user and the current position data detected by the GPS receiver 34 or the like are sent to the radar device 11 and the radar device 11 The apparatus 11 acquires these data and stores them in the memory 12f as reference distance information and determination position information.

When the “next menu” button on the screen shown in FIG. 2 is selected, another “menu” shown in FIG.
A radar apparatus determination information setting screen is displayed. In the screen shown in FIG. 3, the user does not input the reference distance data corresponding to the current position, but the distance from the object (building) existing in front of the host vehicle calculated from the map data is determined by the navigation microcomputer. The calculated distance data can be transmitted to the radar apparatus 11 as reference distance information. That is, when the “Send” button is input, the navigation microcomputer 31 first determines whether there is a building in front of the host vehicle based on the current position data and the map data, and if there is a building. If it is determined, the distance to the building is calculated, and the distance data to the building and the current position data are sent to the radar device 11. The radar apparatus 11 acquires these data and stores them in the memory 12f as reference distance information and determination position information. Also, if it is determined that there is no building, a message such as “Distance data cannot be calculated at the current position” is displayed on the screen shown in FIG. 2 to inform the user that the judgment information cannot be set. ing.

In addition, when the “list” button on the screen shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is input, the set determination position information and the reference distance information are displayed in a list, and the information can be deleted or changed through the list display screen. The change data is sent to the radar apparatus 11, and the determination position information and the reference distance information stored in the memory 12f are updated.

Next, the processing operation performed by the microcomputer 12 in the radar apparatus 11 according to the embodiment (1) will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG.
First, in step S1, a process of acquiring vehicle speed data detected by the vehicle speed sensor 32 sent from the navigation device 30 at a predetermined timing and current position data detected by the GPS receiver 34 or the like is performed. Proceed to S2. In step S2, it is determined from the vehicle speed data whether the host vehicle is in a stopped state (that is, the vehicle speed is 0), and is not in a stopped state (
That is, if it is determined that the vehicle speed is not 0), the process returns to step S1, while if it is determined that the vehicle is in a stopped state, the process proceeds to step S3.

In step S3, based on the acquired current position data and the determined position information stored in the memory 12f, it is determined whether or not the current position is a place for determining the distance detection performance, and the current position is the distance detection. If it is determined that the place is for performance determination, the process proceeds to step S4.

In step S4, a process for obtaining a distance from an object existing in front of the host vehicle based on data relating to the delay time obtained from the delay detection means 6 is performed a plurality of times (for example, around 10 times),
Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S5. In step S5, statistical processing (for example, average value calculation processing) of the calculated distance data is performed, and then the process proceeds to step S6.

In step S6, a comparison process between the calculated distance (statistical value) obtained by the statistical process and the reference distance corresponding to the current position read from the memory 12f is performed (that is, the difference between the calculated distance and the reference distance). After that, the process proceeds to step S7. In step S7, it is determined whether or not the difference between the calculated distance and the reference distance is within the error range (that is, within the normal range). If it is determined that the difference is within the error range, the process proceeds to step S8.

In step S8, a notification process that the distance detection performance is normal (for example, a process for displaying that the distance detection performance of the radar device 11 is normal on the display unit 37) is performed. If not, the process proceeds to step S9. In step S9, a process for notifying that the distance detection performance is abnormal (for example, a process for displaying that the radar device 11 is abnormal on the display unit 37) is performed. Proceed to step S10.

In step S10, the determination information (determination date / time data, position data, calculation distance data, reference distance data, difference data between the calculation distance and reference distance, etc.) obtained by the above processing is stored in the memory 12f.
Is stored, and then the process ends.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3 that the current position is not a place for determining the distance detection performance, the process proceeds to step S11. In step S11, it is determined whether or not an operation for setting the current position as the determination location of the distance detection performance is detected through the “radar apparatus determination information setting” screen shown in FIGS. Whether or not the “Send” button on the screen has been input), and if it is determined that the determination location setting operation has not been detected, step S
On the other hand, if it is determined that the determination location setting operation has been detected, the process proceeds to step S12.

In step S12, the reference distance data and the current position data are acquired from the navigation device 30, that is, the reference distance data input by the user through the screen shown in FIG. 2 and the detected current position data, or the data shown in FIG. The reference distance data calculated by the navigation device 30 through the screen and the detected current position data are acquired, and step S
Proceed to step 13.
In step S13, the acquired reference distance data and current position data are stored in the memory 12f as reference distance information and determination position information, and then the process ends.

According to the radar device according to the above embodiment (1), the current position data and the vehicle speed data are acquired from the navigation device 30, and the own vehicle is in a stopped state, and the current position determines the distance detection performance. When it is determined that the location is to be performed, the difference between the calculated distance obtained by the radar apparatus 11 and the reference distance corresponding to the current position stored in advance in the memory 12f is compared. Is within the error range, it can be determined that the distance detection performance is normal, and if it is outside the error range, it is abnormal. Therefore, it is possible to easily diagnose the detection distance performance without complicated processing by acquiring information necessary for determination from the outside and using the determination position information and the reference distance information stored in the memory 12f in advance. Therefore, it is possible to prevent use in a state where the distance detection performance is deteriorated (that is, in an abnormal state), and the reliability of the system using the radar apparatus can be improved.

Further, by registering in advance a parking place that is frequently used, such as a parking lot at home, as the determination position information to be stored in the memory 12f, the detection distance performance can be regularly diagnosed, and the stop state Therefore, the distance from the object ahead of the host vehicle, which is obtained by the radar apparatus 11, can be obtained with high accuracy, and the determination accuracy of the detection distance performance can be improved.

Further, the distance information input through the setting screen shown in FIG. 2 can be stored in the memory 12f as the reference distance information, and the position information detected by the GPS receiver 34 or the like can be stored as the determination position information in the memory 12f. The distance detection performance can be diagnosed at the designated location based on the accurate actual measurement value input by the user.

Further, the distance information with the building ahead of the host vehicle calculated by the navigation device 30 through the setting screen shown in FIG. 3 is used as reference distance information, and the position information detected by the GPS receiver 34 or the like is used as the determination position. The information can be stored in the memory 12f as information, and the distance detection performance is diagnosed based on the distance (reference distance) to the building ahead of the host vehicle calculated by the navigation device 30 at the location specified by the user. Can do.

In the radar device 11 according to the above embodiment (1), vehicle speed data and position data are acquired from the navigation device 30, but vehicle speed data and position are directly obtained from the vehicle speed sensor 32 and the GPS receiver 34. Data may be acquired. Further, it may be detected that the shift position of the automatic transmission is parked instead of the vehicle speed sensor 32 in order to confirm the stop state.

In the radar device 11 according to the above embodiment (1), the distance data input by the user or the distance data calculated by the navigation device 30 is stored as reference distance information through the screens shown in FIGS. However, the normal distance data obtained by the distance calculator 12a of the radar apparatus 11 may be stored in the memory 12f as reference distance information.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically showing a main part of the periphery monitoring system in which the radar apparatus according to the embodiment (2) is employed. However, components having the same functions as those of the periphery monitoring system 10 shown in FIG.

The periphery monitoring system 10A includes a radar device 21 for monitoring an object existing in front of the host vehicle, and a navigation device 30 that performs route guidance to a destination while detecting the current position.
A.

The radar device 21 includes a microcomputer 22, a transmission antenna 3, a signal transmission unit 4, a reception antenna 5, and a delay detection unit 6. The microcomputer 21 includes delay detection means 6
Is connected to the navigation device 30A and can acquire data relating to the delay time, and is connected to the navigation device 30A and is located in front of the host vehicle calculated based on the current position data and the map data in the navigation device 30A. Distance data (navigation calculation distance data) can be acquired. Further, the microcomputer 21 has a distance calculating means 22a.
And a relative speed calculation means 22b, a detection performance judgment means 22c, a notification means 22d, and a memory 22e.

The distance calculation means 22a obtains the distance R to the object T based on the data relating to the delay time obtained from the delay detection means 6, and the relative speed calculation means 22b is the distance calculation means 2.
The distance R obtained by 2a is monitored over time, and the object T is determined based on the time change of the distance R.
The relative speed of is obtained.

When the detection start instruction for the distance detection performance from the user is detected, the detection performance determination means 22c is a distance (navigation calculation distance) to the building existing in front of the host vehicle acquired from the navigation device 30A. The distance to the object T existing in front of the host vehicle (radar calculation distance) obtained by the calculation means 22a is compared to determine whether or not the distance detection performance is normal, and the notification means 22d. Is for notifying the user that there is an abnormality by turning on a warning lamp 40 provided in the instrument panel when the detection performance determination means 22c determines that the distance detection performance is abnormal In addition, the memory 22e stores distance detection performance determination information (date and time data, position data, calculation distance data, various data such as reference distance data). It has become the jar.

On the other hand, the navigation device 30A includes a navigation microcomputer 31A, a vehicle speed sensor 32, a gyro sensor 33, a GPS receiver 34, an HDD 35, an operation unit 36, and a display unit 37.

In the navigation device 30A, an operation for determining the distance detection performance of the radar device 21 can be performed through a screen displayed on the display panel. For example, the distance detection performance determination process can be started through the “radar apparatus diagnosis menu” screen shown in FIG. 6, and when the “diagnosis start” button is input, the navigation microcomputer 31A First, an input detection signal indicating that the “diagnosis start” button has been input is sent to the radar apparatus 21, and then the current position data detected by the GPS receiver 34 and the HDD
It is determined whether there is a building in front of the host vehicle from the map data stored in 35, and if it is determined that there is a building in front of the host vehicle, the distance to the building is calculated. The current position data and the distance data between the buildings (navigation calculation distance data) can be sent to the radar device 21. If it is determined that there is no building (distance cannot be calculated), a message indicating that distance data cannot be calculated is displayed on the screen to inform the user that the radar device 21 cannot be diagnosed at the current position. Be able to.

Next, processing operations performed by the microcomputer 22 in the radar device 21 according to the embodiment (2) will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. This processing operation is executed when the input of the “diagnosis start” button on the screen shown in FIG. 6 is detected.

First, in step S21, it is determined whether or not the “diagnosis start” button on the screen shown in FIG. 6 has been input. If it is determined that the “diagnosis start” button has not been input, the process ends. When it is determined that there is an input of the “button”, the process proceeds to step S22. In step S22, a process of obtaining distance data (navigation calculation distance data) with a building existing in front of the host vehicle calculated by the navigation device 30A is performed, and then the process proceeds to step S23.

In step S23, it is determined whether or not the navigation calculation distance data can be acquired. If it is determined that the navigation calculation distance data cannot be acquired (that is, the navigation calculation distance data is not calculated), the process ends. If it is determined that the navigation calculation distance data has been acquired, step S
Proceed to 24.

In step S24, the process of calculating the distance to the object existing ahead of the host vehicle is performed a plurality of times (for example, around 10 times) based on the data relating to the delay time obtained from the delay detection means 6, and then the process proceeds to step S25. . In step S25, statistical processing (for example, average value calculation processing) of these calculation processing data is performed, and then the process proceeds to step S26.

In step S26, the calculated distance obtained by statistical processing (radar calculated distance) is compared with the distance acquired from the navigation device 30A (navigation calculated distance) (that is, the difference between the radar calculated distance and the navigation calculated distance is calculated). After that, the process proceeds to step S27. In step S27, it is determined whether or not the difference between the radar calculation distance and the navigation calculation distance is within the error range (that is, within the normal range). If it is determined that the difference is within the error range, the process proceeds to step S29. If not, the process proceeds to step S28.

In step S28, a process for turning on the warning lamp 40 is performed, and then step S29.
Proceed to In step S29, the determination information (date and time data, position data,
Radar calculation distance data, navigation calculation distance data, difference data, etc.) is stored in the memory 22e, and then the process ends.

According to the radar device 21 according to the above embodiment (2), the distance data (navigation calculation distance data) with respect to the building calculated by the navigation device 30A is acquired and obtained by the navigation calculation distance and distance calculation means 22a. Since it is determined whether or not the distance detection performance is normal by comparing with the calculated radar calculation distance, the distance detection performance can be easily obtained at any point by using the navigation calculation distance data acquired from the navigation device 30A. Can be diagnosed.

In addition, as a radar apparatus according to another embodiment, radio wave transmitting means (
For example, it is possible to receive radio waves radiated from a facility such as a beacon installed on a side road, and distance (radar calculation distance) data with the radio wave transmission means can be obtained by the distance calculation means 22a. Thus, the distance (navigation calculation distance) data with the radio wave transmission means calculated by the navigation device 30A is acquired, and the radar between the acquired navigation calculation distance and the radio wave transmission means obtained by the distance calculation means 22a. It is also possible to compare the calculated distance and determine whether the distance detection performance is normal. According to such a configuration, it is possible to automatically diagnose the distance detection performance when passing through the installation place of the radio wave transmission means by using the radio wave radiated from the radio wave transmission means installed at the predetermined point. Become.

Further, in the radar device according to the above-described embodiments (1) and (2), the case where it is applied to a radar device that obtains a distance from an object existing in front of the host vehicle has been described. The present invention can also be applied to a radar apparatus that can determine the distance to an existing object.

The radar apparatus according to the above embodiments (1) and (2) is not limited to a pulse radar that transmits an electromagnetic pulse as a transmission radio wave (transmission signal), and is not limited to UWB (Ultra Wide Ban).
It can also be applied to a spread spectrum radar device using d).

It is the block diagram which showed roughly the principal part of the periphery monitoring system by which the radar apparatus concerning Embodiment (1) of this invention was employ | adopted. It is the figure which showed the example of a display of the determination information setting screen of the radar apparatus displayed on a display part. It is the figure which showed another example of a display of the determination information setting screen of the radar apparatus displayed on a display part. It is the flowchart which showed the processing operation which the microcomputer of the radar apparatus concerning embodiment (1) performs. It is the block diagram which showed roughly the principal part of the periphery monitoring system by which the radar apparatus which concerns on embodiment (2) was employ | adopted. It is the figure which showed the example of a display of the diagnostic menu screen of the radar apparatus displayed on a display part. It is the flowchart which showed the processing operation which the microcomputer of the radar apparatus concerning Embodiment (2) performs. It is the block diagram which showed the principal part of the conventional radar apparatus roughly.

Explanation of symbols

11, 21 Radar equipment
12, 22 Microcomputer 12a, 22a Distance calculation means 12d, 22c Detection performance judgment means

Claims (14)

In a radar apparatus provided with a distance calculation means for obtaining a distance from a detected object from a transmitted radio wave and a received reflected wave,
Information acquisition means for acquiring information used for determination of distance detection performance from the outside;
A radar apparatus comprising: a detection performance determination unit that determines whether or not the distance detection performance is within a normal range based on information acquired by the information acquisition unit. Storage means for storing determination position information indicating a position for determining the distance detection performance, and reference distance information for determination corresponding to the position;
Execution determination means for determining whether or not to execute the determination of the distance detection performance based on the information acquired by the information acquisition means;
When the detection performance determination means determines that the determination is performed by the execution determination means, the calculation distance obtained by the distance calculation means and the reference distance corresponding to the current position stored in the storage means The radar apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the distance detection performance is determined to be within a normal range. The information acquisition means acquires position information detected by the position detection means and a vehicle state signal detected by the vehicle state detection means capable of detecting the stop state of the host vehicle,
The execution determination means determines that the determination is to be performed when the host vehicle is in a stopped state and the current position is a position for performing the determination. Radar equipment. The information acquisition means acquires position information detected by the position detection means and distance information input via the input means;
The radar apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a first determination information storage unit that stores the acquired position information and the distance information in the storage unit. The information acquisition means is calculated by a navigation device provided with a peripheral distance calculation means for calculating the distance from the position information detected by the position detection means, the current position data, and the map data to a building around the host vehicle. Obtaining distance information with the building,
A second storage unit that stores the acquired position information and distance information about the building in the storage unit.
The radar apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a determination information storage unit. The information acquisition means acquires position information detected by the position detection means;
3. A third determination information storage unit that stores the acquired position information and normal distance information obtained by the distance calculation unit in the storage unit. Item 4. The radar device according to item 3. The information acquisition means acquires distance information with respect to the building calculated by a navigation device provided with a peripheral distance calculation means for calculating a distance to the building around the host vehicle from current position data and map data. And
The detection performance determination means compares the acquired distance information with the building and the calculated distance obtained by the distance calculation means to determine whether the distance detection performance is within a normal range. The radar apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: The distance calculation means receives a radio wave radiated from a radio wave transmission means installed at a predetermined point and obtains a distance from the radio wave transmission means,
The information acquisition means acquires distance information with the radio wave transmission means from the outside,
The detection performance judgment means compares the acquired distance information with the radio wave transmission means and the calculated distance with the radio wave transmission means obtained by the distance calculation means, and the distance detection performance is within a normal range. The radar apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the radar apparatus is configured to determine whether it is accommodated. The radar apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising determination information storage means for storing determination information of the distance detection performance. The radar apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising notification means for notifying a determination result of distance detection performance by the detection performance determination means. A radar apparatus abnormality determination method comprising a distance calculation means for obtaining a distance from a detected object from a transmitted radio wave and a received reflected wave,
The process of acquiring information used for determining the distance detection performance from the outside,
Determining whether to perform the determination based on the acquired information;
When it is determined that the determination is performed, the distance detection performance is within a normal range by comparing the calculation distance obtained by the distance calculation means with the reference distance for determination corresponding to the set current position. A method for determining abnormality of a radar device, comprising: a step of determining whether or not the device is accommodated. A radar apparatus abnormality determination method comprising a distance calculation means for obtaining a distance from a detected object from a transmitted radio wave and a received reflected wave,
The process of acquiring distance information used for determining the distance detection performance from the outside,
A radar comprising: comparing the acquired distance information with the calculated distance obtained by the distance calculating means to determine whether or not the distance detection performance is within a normal range. A method for determining an abnormality of a device. 12. A process for storing determination information of the distance detection performance is provided.
Or the abnormality determination method of the radar apparatus of Claim 12. 12. A step of notifying a determination result of the distance detection performance is provided.
14. The radar apparatus abnormality determination method according to any one of items 13 to 13.

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