JP2007213228A - Driving assistance system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a driving assistance system reducing the number of times of carrying out unnecessary arousal of attention. <P>SOLUTION: The driving assistance system arouses attention of a driver in response to one's vehicle position in a vehicle. It is provided with an attention arousing means for detecting the position of one's vehicle, and arousing attention of the driver of one's vehicle when the detected one's vehicle position is included in an attention arousal necessary area set in a periphery of an area with a collection of people needing attention, and a changing means for changing a range of the attention arousal necessary area in response to an existence probability distribution of the people needing attention in the attention arousal necessary area. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention generally relates to a driving support device that alerts a driver in accordance with the position of the host vehicle in a vehicle, and more particularly to a driving support device that reduces unnecessary alerting.

  Conventionally, in a vehicle, a driving support device that alerts a driver according to the position of the host vehicle is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).

In Patent Document 1, a circle within a predetermined radius centered on the school is regarded as a school zone based on the location information of the school, and the driver is informed when the vehicle approaches the school zone and enters the inside. An apparatus for alerting with a voice message is disclosed.
JP 2002-250632 A

  However, the conventional device disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 is where the children / students to be paid attention to when driving in the school zone are located in the school zone (presence distribution) and the children / students. Are not paying any attention to which direction they move as a whole trend (temporal change in existence distribution), so the probability that there is a child / student who should be careful depending on the time of day is very low There is a risk that the school zone will be set up to the area and alerts considered to be less necessary.

  For example, even during school attendance hours, most of the students are located in the school or in the immediate vicinity of the school in the time zone immediately before the start time or immediately after the end time, and near the outermost part of the school zone. It is thought that there will be a situation where there are almost no children. In such a situation, in the area near the outermost part of the school zone where the probability of the existence of a child / student is very low, the meaning to be set as a school zone is relatively thin, and a low-necessity alert is implemented It can be a cause.

  Conversely, if the radius of the school zone circle is made too small, focusing on the existence distribution of children / students just before the start time or just after the end time, children / students will be in the early school hours and late school hours. There is a risk that the school zone may not include an area that is slightly distant from a school that is considered to exist in large numbers.

  In other words, it is considered that the appropriate radius of the school zone circle is different between the beginning and end of the school hours.

  Patent Document 1 discloses that the size of the school zone is 1) narrow for elementary schools, wide for junior high schools, 2) narrow for main roads such as national roads, wide for narrow streets, etc. 3) urban areas, etc. It is disclosed that the road density is narrow when the road density is high, widening when the road density is low in suburbs, etc., and 4) it is narrow in densely populated areas and widened in depopulated areas, There is no disclosure about the setting of the school zone range according to the temporal change in the distribution of children and students in the school zone in the time zone.

  The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and a main object thereof is to provide a driving support device in which unnecessary alerting is reduced.

  A first aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is a driving support device that alerts a driver in accordance with the position of the host vehicle in the vehicle, and detects the position of the host vehicle and detects the detected host vehicle. Alerting means for alerting the driver of the vehicle when the vehicle position is within the alerting area set around the gathering area where the subject of attention gathers, and the target of attention in the alerting area And a changing means for changing the range of the attention required area in accordance with the presence probability distribution of the person.

  In the first aspect, the attention-requiring area is a geographical area where it is preferable to alert the driver to drive with particular attention in the area, for example, a school zone. It is. That is, the attention target person is a school attendant such as a child or a student, and the collective area is a school facility site area, for example. Because it is generally considered that the potential probability of a child jumping from the sidewalk to the roadway is generally higher than in other areas, so it may be said that you should pay particular attention to driving. is there.

  Also, in the first aspect, the changing means may be configured to change the presence probability distribution that can change dynamically such that a region having the presence probability distribution equal to or greater than a predetermined value becomes the attention-requiring area. , Change the range of the area requiring attention. In this case, for example, the driving support device is further provided with information acquisition means for acquiring information (e.g., start time, end time, variation in school time, etc.) regarding the entry / exit of the attention target person to the gathering area, The change means estimates the existence probability distribution from the information acquired by the information acquisition means.

  According to the first aspect, since the range of the attention required area is changed according to the presence probability distribution of the attention target person, an area with a relatively low probability that the attention target person exists is included in the attention required area. Therefore, a situation where a warning that is considered to be relatively low is implemented is appropriately avoided.

  A second aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is a driving support device that alerts a driver in accordance with the position of the host vehicle in the vehicle, and detects the position of the host vehicle and detects the detected host vehicle. When the vehicle position falls within the attention-requiring area (eg, school zone) set around the gathering area (eg, school facility site area) where persons to be alerted (eg, children, students, etc.) gather Based on the alerting means for alerting the driver and information on the entry / exit of the person to be alerted to the gathering area (for example, variations in start time, end time, school leaving time, etc.) It is a driving assistance device which has a change means which changes a range.

  In the second aspect, the attention-requiring area is a geographical area where it is preferable to alert the driver to drive with particular attention within the area, for example, a school zone. It is. That is, the attention target person is a school attendant such as a child or a student, and the collective area is a school facility site area, for example. Because it is generally considered that the potential probability of a child jumping from the sidewalk to the roadway is generally higher than in other areas, so it may be said that you should pay particular attention to driving. is there.

  Further, in the second aspect, the changing means, for example, based on the information, when the attention target is gradually gathered to the gathering area, gradually reduce the range of the attention required area, When the attention target is gradually separated from the gathering area, the range of the attention requiring area is gradually expanded.

  According to the second aspect, the range of the alert area requiring attention is changed based on how the attention target person enters and exits the collection area, so the probability that the attention target person exists The situation where the alerting that is considered to be relatively low due to the relatively low area being included in the alerting required area is appropriately avoided.

  In the first and second aspects, it is preferable that the changing means changes the range of the area requiring attention at a speed corresponding to the moving speed of the person to be watched.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the driving assistance device in which the unnecessary alerting was reduced can be provided.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In one embodiment described below, children / students are taken as an example of an attention target person who should pay attention during driving, and an example of a gathering area where the attention target persons often gather Although elementary and junior high schools are listed here, the target person and the gathering area are not limited to this example.

  Hereinafter, a driving support apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a driving support apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. The driving support device 100 is a device that is mounted on a vehicle (not shown) and has a main function of alerting the own vehicle driver according to the position of the own vehicle.

  The driving support apparatus 100 includes a host vehicle position detection unit 101 that detects the position of the host vehicle using, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System). The detection accuracy (resolution) of the own vehicle position detection unit 101 is preferably as high as possible (fine). For example, it is preferable to use a high-accuracy GPS such as RTK (Real Time Kinematic) -GPS.

  The driving support apparatus 100 further includes an entrance / exit information acquisition unit 102 that acquires entrance / exit information of children / students at elementary and junior high schools. Here, the entry / exit information refers to all information related to the appearance of children / students entering and exiting elementary and junior high schools, such as start time, end time, and school leave time (child / student). Variation / distribution (eg, number of children / students who return home immediately after closing time, number / percentage of children / students who return home after performing club activities after closing time, etc.) Activity end time, etc.), school attendance speed (child / student walking speed), etc.

  In the present embodiment, the entry / exit information acquisition unit 102 has a wireless communication function, for example, from outside the vehicle via at least one of vehicle-to-vehicle communication, road-to-vehicle communication, or satellite communication as described above. Get access information. In this case, for the entry / exit information, for example, the latest information is acquired by communication only for information on elementary and junior high schools within a predetermined distance range from the own vehicle according to the traveling of the own vehicle.

  The driving support apparatus 100 further includes a storage unit 103 that stores elementary school / junior high school location data. In the present embodiment, the storage unit 103 may be an arbitrary storage medium. Moreover, it is preferable that the elementary and junior high school location data memorize | stored and hold | maintained at the memory | storage part 103 are suitably updated to the newest data, for example using communication.

  The driving support device 100 further includes a warning part 104 that alerts the driver to drive with particular care. The alerting by the alerting unit 104 includes, for example, a) a liquid crystal display for a navigation system or the like that displays visual information such as characters and / or charts indicating that the host vehicle has entered an area to be driven with particular care. It may be done by displaying on a vehicle-mounted display such as a head-up display, or b) illuminating or flashing a dedicated indicator that indicates that the vehicle has entered an area to be driven with particular care Or c) by providing audio information from a dedicated or audio speaker indicating that the vehicle has entered the area to be driven with particular care, Or d) may be performed by any combination thereof.

  The driving support device 100 further includes a main control unit 105 that comprehensively controls each component of the driving support device 100. The main control unit 105 is, for example, an ECU (Electronic Control Unit).

  The main control unit 105 sets a circular attention required area centered on the elementary and junior high school location stored and stored in the storage unit 103, and the own vehicle position detected by the own vehicle position detection unit 101 is set to the necessary information. When it is determined that it is included in the alerting area, the alerting unit 204 is instructed to perform alerting, and the elementary / junior high school acquired by the access information acquiring unit 102 It is configured to dynamically change the radius of the area requiring attention based on the entry / exit information to reduce or expand the range.

  Next, the attention-required area range changing process in the driving assistance apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment having such a configuration will be described more specifically with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 2 shows a basic concept of a method of changing the radius of attention required area by the driving support device 100 according to the present embodiment.

In this embodiment, the main control unit 105, the minimum radius and caution arouse area _{S MIN} covering the narrowest range with a _{R MIN,} and the widest scope careful covering arouse area _{S MAX} with a maximum radius _{R MAX} Is set in advance, and the movement of children / students during school hours so that the area with a relatively low probability of the presence of children / students who are subject to attention is not included in the attention required area S Depending on the direction, the radius R of the attention required area is changed between R _{MIN and} R _MAX to change the range of the attention required area S to an appropriate size.

Specifically, during school hours, children and students move from various directions toward elementary / junior high school (site area) A located in the center of the alert area S. The closer the students are, the higher the probability that they will be near elementary and junior high school A. Therefore, the main control unit 105 gradually reduces the size of the area requiring attention S, which was initially set as the maximum area S _MAX , in accordance with the movement flow of the child / student during the school attendance period. Is the minimum area S _MIN .

On the other hand, since children and students move in various directions from elementary and junior high school A during school hours, children and students move away from elementary and junior high school A as time passes from the end of work hours. High probability of existence. Therefore, the main control unit 105 gradually expands the size of the attention-requiring area S that was initially set as the minimum area S _MIN in accordance with the flow of movement of the child / student during the school hours. Is the maximum area S _MAX .

  In the present embodiment, the probability that the children / students are present is lower than a predetermined level by reducing / enlarging the caution area S in accordance with the moving direction of the children / students during the school attendance time period. The area is not included in the attention required area S. In other words, an area where the existence probability of children / students is equal to or higher than a predetermined level is set as an attention required area S.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the timing and rate of change of the reduction / enlargement of the area requiring attention S in this embodiment will be described. 3 shows the time change of the radius R of the attention required area S in the school attendance time zone, and FIG. 4 shows the time change of the radius R of the attention required area S in the school attendance time zone.

As shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the variation in the time when the children / students who go to elementary / junior high school A first enter the attention requiring area S set as the maximum area S _MAX is 3σ. The time change rate (slope) of the radius R at the time of reduction (time t ₂ → t ₃ ) is made equal to the moving speed α of the students.

That is, in this embodiment, calculated back from opening time t _3, careful evoked at time t ₂ as the radius R of caution evoked area S obtained by reduction in the gradient α is a minimum value R _MIN the opening time t ₃ It starts the reduction of area S, from the time length 3σ before time t ₁ from time t ₂ to time t ₂ to maintain the radius R of caution evoked area S to the maximum value R _MAX.

As described above, in this embodiment, information such as the start time (t ₃ ), the moving speed (α) of the child / student, and the variation in school time (3σ) is used, and most of the children / students use the time t _1. enters the maximum range caution stimulate area S _MAX of between ~t _2, based on the insight that will reach the primary and secondary school a by time t _3, a relatively low existence probability of students The area is not included in the attention required area S.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the time variation of the time when the children leaving the school leave the elementary and junior high school A is assumed to be 3σ, and the children / students leaving the school are greatly returned to the home without club activities. Divided into two groups (here, 0 <a <1, 0 <b <1, a + b = 1), and “group returning home after club activities (ratio b)”, The time change rate (slope) of the radius R at the time of enlargement (time t ₁ → t ₃ and time t ₂ → t ₄ ) is made equal to the moving speed α of the students.

In this embodiment, first, focusing only on the group of students is not performed club activities like, arriving from earliest elementary and junior high schools students not performing finishing time t ₁ rear activities to the point of the distance R _MAX The attention required area S starts to be expanded from the time t _{1 with the} inclination α so that the radius R of the attention requiring area S reaches the maximum value R _{MAX by the} time t ₃ to be obtained, and corresponds to the variation 3σ of school attendance time. During the time length (time t ₃ → t ₅ ), the area requiring attention S is maintained in the maximum range S _MAX (the upper part of FIG. 4).

On the other hand, when attention is paid only to a group of students to carry out extracurricular activities, etc., the time t ₄ when students went to extracurricular activities end time t ₂ rear activities can reach from the earliest elementary and junior high school to the point of distance R _MAX Until the radius R of the attention required area S reaches the maximum value R _MAX , the attention required area S starts to be expanded with the inclination α from the time t ₂ , and the time length corresponding to the variation 3σ of the school attendance time is started. (Time t ₄ → t ₆ ), the attention required area S is maintained in the maximum range S _MAX (middle stage in FIG. 4).

  The time change of the radius R of the actual attention required area S in this embodiment is the sum of these two groups according to the ratio of the number of people, and for the group that does not perform club activities as shown in FIG. If the radius of the attention required area S is R1, and the radius of the attention required area S for the group performing club activities is R2, the actual radius R is expressed as R = aR1 + bR2, and the time change is shown in the lower graph of FIG. As shown.

That is, in the present embodiment, information such as the end time (t ₁ ), the club activity end time (t ₂ ), the moving speed of children / students (α), and the variation in school hours (3σ) are used. children and students out of the elementary and junior high schools a until the time t _4, is in until the time t ₆ based on the insight that will reach the point of distance R _MAX from elementary and junior high school a, the existence probability of children and students A relatively low area is not included in the attention required area S.

  In this way, according to this embodiment, in the school attendance time zone, the start time, the end work time, the end time of club activities, the ratio of the number of people who perform club activities, etc. Based on information about entering and exiting junior high school grounds, the probability that children / students exist is estimated based on where the children / students are as a whole from elementary and junior high schools and in which direction they are moving. To dynamically change the range of the attention required area so that only the area with a relatively high is set as the attention requiring area so that the area with a relatively low existence probability is not included in the attention requiring area The possibility that an unnecessary alert is implemented in an area where the probability of existence of children / students is low can be greatly reduced.

  In the above embodiment, children / students are taken as an example of an attention subject who should pay attention during driving, and elementary and junior high schools (as an example of a gathering area where the attention subjects often gather) However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the attention object and the gathering area where the attention object enters and exits can be arbitrarily set.

  Further, the driving support device according to the present invention can be realized not only as a single device but also as a function built in the navigation system.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for a driving assistance device that alerts a driver according to the position of the host vehicle. The appearance, weight, size, running performance, etc. of the vehicle to be mounted are not limited.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a driving support apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the basic change method of the attention required area radius by the driving assistance device which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a graph which shows an example of the time change in the school attendance time zone of the attention required area radius by the driving assistance device concerning one example of the present invention. It is a graph which shows an example of the time change in the school time zone of the attention required area radius by the driving assistance device which concerns on one Example of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Driving assistance apparatus 101 Own vehicle position detection part 102 Entrance / exit information acquisition part 103 Memory | storage part 104 Warning part

Claims (6)

In a vehicle, a driving support device that alerts the driver according to the position of the host vehicle,
Alert that detects the position of the host vehicle and alerts the driver of the host vehicle when the detected position of the host vehicle is included in the alert area requiring attention set around the gathering area where the target person gathers Means,
A driving support device, comprising: a changing unit that changes a range of the attention required area in accordance with the existence probability distribution of the attention target person in the attention required area. The driving support device according to claim 1,
The said change means changes the range of the said attention required area so that the area | region where the said existence probability distribution is more than predetermined value becomes the said attention required area, The driving assistance apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The driving support device according to claim 1 or 2,
It further comprises information acquisition means for acquiring information related to entering and exiting the attention target person in the gathering area,
The driving means according to claim 1, wherein the changing means estimates the existence probability distribution from the information acquired by the information acquiring means. In a vehicle, a driving support device that alerts the driver according to the position of the host vehicle,
Alert that detects the position of the host vehicle and alerts the driver of the host vehicle when the detected position of the host vehicle is included in the alert area requiring attention set around the gathering area where the target person gathers Means,
And a change unit that changes a range of the attention-requiring area based on information about the entry / exit of the person to be alerted to the gathering area. The driving support device according to claim 4,
Based on the information, the changing means gradually reduces the range of the attention-requiring area when the target person is gradually gathering in the set area, and the target person is gradually separated from the set area. A driving assistance device characterized by gradually expanding the range of the attention-requiring area when the vehicle is performing. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The said change means changes the range of the said attention required area at the speed according to the moving speed of the attention object person, The driving assistance apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.

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