JP2008296759A - Information processor, method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate dazzling of a driver of another vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: The information processor determines whether or not it is in the circumstance of traveling that a head light of the vehicle should be lighted (S12), determines whether or not a road on which the vehicle travels is a bent road (S14), and detects the other vehicle traveling at a periphery of the vehicle (S17, S20) when it is determined that it is in the circumstance of traveling that the head light should be lighted and it is determined that the road is the bent road. The information processor outputs a signal for switching light-distribution from high beam to low beam (S19) when the other vehicle is detected and the light-distribution of the head light is the high beam, and outputs the signal for switching the light-distribution from low beam to high beam (S22) when the other vehicle is not detected and the light-distribution is the low beam. The information processor can be applied to a lighting control device for controlling lighting of the head light. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, method, and program, and more particularly, to an information processing apparatus, method, and program that can control a headlight so as not to dazzle drivers of other vehicles.

  A driver of a vehicle traveling on a suburban road, especially a mountain road at night, for example, quickly switches the light distribution of the headlight from a high beam to a low beam when an oncoming vehicle hidden in a curve approaches. It is necessary to avoid dazzling the driver.

For example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 are known as techniques for adjusting the irradiation range of a headlight of a vehicle so as not to dazzle the driver of a preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle.
JP 2004-161082 A JP 2004-98819 A

  However, the conventional techniques including Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 have a problem of dazzling drivers of other vehicles.

  Patent Document 1 discloses that a preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle is detected and the headlight is controlled in accordance with the detected position of the oncoming vehicle. However, if there is a curve between the oncoming vehicle on a mountain road, etc., the oncoming vehicle cannot be detected in advance because the lane to the oncoming vehicle cannot be seen. Will be dazzled.

  Patent Document 2 shows that the navigation system apparatus performs control to switch from a high beam to a low beam by a curve using road information acquired by road-to-vehicle communication. However, this method has the following two problems.

  That is, first, the method of switching to a low beam regardless of the presence or absence of an oncoming vehicle on a curve has a problem that meaningless switching is frequently performed even when there is no oncoming vehicle and there is no need to switch. Secondly, the method of switching to the low beam when an oncoming vehicle is detected in a curve has a problem that the driver of the oncoming vehicle has already been dazzled by irradiating the oncoming vehicle with high beam light before switching.

  For example, on a curved road that is a curved road, when there is no preceding vehicle, driving in a high beam state makes it easier to see the state of the road surface ahead, but on the other hand, when the oncoming vehicle comes, the light distribution of the headlights Need to switch to low beam. In particular, since a line of sight such as a mountain road and a curved road with a continuous curve cannot be seen, the ratio of the time during which the headlight of an own vehicle irradiates an oncoming vehicle is low. Therefore, the driver needs to frequently perform an operation of switching between the high beam and the low beam every time the oncoming vehicle passes, and the operation feels troublesome.

  On curved roads, oncoming vehicles are often hidden behind curves, and other vehicles approaching from the other side of the curve while the driver's eyes are used to dark surroundings at night when the surroundings are dark. It is a problem because it is easy to be dazzled when it is irradiated with a high beam.

  Like the techniques disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, in the method of detecting the headlight of an oncoming vehicle on the road ahead of the host vehicle, when passing by near the curve, The driver of the oncoming vehicle will be illuminated with the headlight.

  As described above, in the inventions described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, since the light distribution of the headlights is not optimally switched, there is a risk of dazzling the driver of another vehicle.

  By the way, in general, an experienced driver finds the light of the headlight of an oncoming vehicle that is far away on a dark curved road, detects the presence of the oncoming vehicle, and before the oncoming vehicle crosses the curve and enters the field of view For example, at the timing when the headlight light of the oncoming vehicle reflected on the road surface ahead is found, an operation of switching the light distribution of the headlight from the high beam to the low beam is performed. It is ideal to perform such a headlight light distribution switching operation.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation. For example, a headlight switching operation is optimally performed by a veteran driver, and driving of other vehicles is performed. It does not dazzle the person.

  An information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing apparatus mounted on a vehicle, wherein the headlight includes a traveling state determination unit that determines whether or not the vehicle headlight is in a traveling state. If it is determined that the vehicle is in a state to be lit, a curved road determination unit that determines whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road that is a curved road, and the curved road When it is determined, when the other vehicle is detected and the surrounding vehicle detection means for detecting another vehicle running around the vehicle, and the light distribution of the headlight is a high beam When the light distribution of the headlight is switched from a high beam to a low beam and the other vehicle is not detected, and the light distribution of the headlight is a low beam, the light distribution of the headlight is switched to a low beam. And a headlight control unit for the control of switching from the over beam to high beam.

  In the information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is in a traveling state in which the headlights are to be turned on. It is determined whether or not the road being bent is a curved road, and if it is determined that the road is a curved road, another vehicle traveling around the vehicle is detected and another vehicle is detected. Is detected and the light distribution of the headlight is a high beam, the light distribution of the headlight is switched from the high beam to the low beam, and no other vehicle is detected, and the light distribution of the headlight When is a low beam, the light distribution of the headlight is controlled to be switched from the low beam to the high beam.

  Therefore, it is possible to optimally switch the headlights, such as a headlight switching operation by a veteran driver, so as not to dazzle drivers of other vehicles.

  The information processing apparatus is configured by a vehicle lighting control apparatus that controls lighting of a headlight, for example.

  The vehicle is composed of, for example, various automobiles and motorcycles.

  For example, the traveling state determination unit includes a night traveling determination unit included in a program executed by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or the like. The night traveling determination unit determines whether or not the vehicle is in a traveling state in which the headlight of the vehicle is to be turned on.

  The bending path determination means is configured by, for example, a bending path determination unit included in a program executed by the CPU or the like. The curved road determination unit determines whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road.

  The surrounding vehicle detection means is constituted by, for example, a surrounding vehicle detection unit included in a program executed by the CPU or the like. The surrounding vehicle detection unit detects other vehicles that are traveling around the vehicle.

  The headlight control means is configured by a control determination unit included in a program executed by the CPU or the like, for example. The control determination unit is a case where another vehicle is detected and the headlight light distribution is a high beam, the headlight light distribution is switched from a high beam to a low beam, and no other vehicle is detected. If the light distribution of the headlight is a low beam, control is performed to switch the light distribution of the headlight from the low beam to the high beam.

  The surrounding vehicle detection means detects an oncoming vehicle that is traveling on the other side of the curve where the vehicle traveling on the curved road has not yet passed, and the headlight control means detects the oncoming vehicle. When the oncoming vehicle approaches the vehicle, the light distribution of the headlight can be switched from a high beam to a low beam.

  Therefore, even if the oncoming vehicle suddenly appears from the other side of the curve, the light distribution of the headlight can be switched to the low beam, so that the driver of the oncoming vehicle can be prevented from being dazzled.

  The surrounding vehicle detection means detects an on-field oncoming vehicle traveling within the field of view of the driver of the vehicle and an off-field oncoming vehicle traveling outside the field of view of the driver, and the headlight The control means can switch the light distribution of the headlight from a high beam to a low beam when the oncoming vehicle is not detected and the oncoming vehicle is not detected.

  The surrounding vehicle detection means detects a preceding vehicle in sight traveling within the field of view of the driver of the vehicle and an out-of-sight preceding vehicle traveling outside the field of view of the driver, and the headlight The control means can switch the light distribution of the headlight from a high beam to a low beam when the preceding vehicle in the visual field is not detected and the preceding vehicle outside the visual field is detected.

  Therefore, the driver of the oncoming vehicle or the preceding vehicle can be prevented from being dazzled.

  When it is determined that the headlight is in a state to be turned on, and when it is determined that the headlight is in a curved path, the headlight has a curved path mode that switches a light distribution of the headlight, and The curved road determination means can determine whether or not the road on which the vehicle is traveling is the curved road when in the curved road mode.

  Accordingly, it is possible to suppress unnecessary switching operation such as a normal road from a curved road or a curved road from a normal road.

  The traveling state determining means determines whether the brightness around the vehicle exceeds a predetermined threshold or whether a predetermined time has elapsed, so that the headlight should be turned on. It can be determined whether it is in the situation of.

  According to an information processing method of an aspect of the present invention, in the information processing method of the information processing device mounted on a vehicle, it is determined whether or not the vehicle headlight is in a running state and the headlight is turned on. When it is determined that the vehicle is in a state to be lit, it is determined whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road that is a curved road, and if it is determined that the road is a curved road, When another vehicle traveling around the vehicle is detected and the other vehicle is detected, and the light distribution of the headlight is a high beam, the light distribution of the headlight is changed from a high beam to a low beam. When the other vehicle is not detected and the light distribution of the headlight is a low beam, control is performed to switch the light distribution of the headlight from a low beam to a high beam. Including the step.

  In the information processing method according to the first aspect of the present invention, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is in a traveling state in which the headlights are to be turned on. It is determined whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road that is a curved road, and if it is determined that the road is a curved road, other vehicles traveling around the vehicle are detected, If the headlight distribution is high beam, the headlight distribution is switched from high beam to low beam, and no other vehicle is detected. When the light distribution is a low beam, control is performed to switch the light distribution of the headlight from the low beam to the high beam.

  The program according to one aspect of the present invention is recorded on a predetermined recording medium, read by a drive, for example, and installed in the information processing apparatus. The recording medium is a magnetic disk made of floppy disk (registered trademark), an optical disk made of CD (Compact Disk), DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), etc., a magneto-optical disk made of MD (Mini Disk) (registered trademark), or the like. It is composed of removable media such as semiconductor memory.

  As described above, according to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a driver of another vehicle from being dazzled.

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

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a lighting control apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

  The lighting control device 1 is mounted on a vehicle and controls the lighting state of the headlight.

  The lighting control device 1 is configured to include a CPU 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, an image input unit 15, and a communication unit 16, which are connected to each other via a bus 14. Has been.

  In the lamp control device 1 of the example of FIG. 1, the CPU 11 executes various processes according to a program loaded in the RAM 13 from a program recorded in the ROM 12 and controls each part of the lamp control device 1. The RAM 13 also appropriately stores data necessary for the CPU 11 to execute various processes.

  The image input unit 15 inputs, as image data, an image captured by a front monitoring camera (front monitoring camera 38 in FIG. 2 to be described later) that images the front of the vehicle on which the lighting control device 1 is mounted. To supply. In addition, you may make it the image input part 15 itself have a function which images the front of the own vehicle.

  The communication unit 16 is connected to a predetermined network (an in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network) 31 described later) and other devices, and communicates with devices connected to the network.

  In addition, a drive 17 is connected to the bus 14 as necessary, and a removable medium 18 such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or a semiconductor memory is appropriately mounted, and a computer program read from them is necessary. Is installed in the ROM 12 accordingly. Note that the communication unit 16 may acquire a predetermined program by communicating with an external device via a communication network, the Internet, another network, or a communication medium, and record the program in the ROM 12.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a system (hereinafter referred to as a vehicle system) using the lighting control device 1 of FIG.

  The vehicle system includes, for example, a navigation device 32, an external communication device 33, a travel state sensor 34, a night travel instruction device 35, a curved road instruction device 36, an automatic control instruction device 37, and the like in addition to the light control device 1 of FIG. And are connected to each other via the in-vehicle LAN 31.

  The navigation device 32 provides information on the road to the lighting control device 1 via the in-vehicle LAN 31.

  The external communication device 33 communicates with an external device via a predetermined network. The external communication device 33 provides information transmitted from a device installed on the road or a device installed in another vehicle to the lighting control device 1 via the in-vehicle LAN 31.

  The traveling state sensor 34 provides information related to the traveling state of the host vehicle to the lighting control device 1 via the in-vehicle LAN 31. The traveling state sensor 34 is configured to include, for example, an acceleration sensor, each speed sensor, an angular speed sensor, a speed sensor, or the like.

  In addition, as the traveling state sensor 34, it is also possible to use a device equipped with the own vehicle. In this case, for example, operation amounts of a brake pedal, an accelerator pedal, a steering wheel, and the like are used as travel state information. Further, a radar device such as a laser radar or a radio wave radar can be used as the traveling state sensor 34.

  The night travel instruction device 35 is configured, for example, as an operation switch, and in response to an operation of the operation switch by the driver, a signal for instructing to control as night travel (a travel to turn on a headlight 40a described later), Notify the lighting control device 1.

  The curved road indicating device 36 is, for example, a device having a bending degree detection function for detecting a curved road that is a curved road. Alternatively, the curved road indicating device 36 is configured as, for example, an operation switch, and a signal instructing whether or not to perform control according to the curved road traveling according to the operation of the operation switch by the driver is sent to the lamp control device 1. Output.

  The automatic control instruction device 37 is configured as an operation switch, for example, and outputs a signal instructing whether or not to automatically control the lighting of the headlight to the lighting control device 1 in accordance with the operation of the operation switch by the driver. .

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the front monitoring camera 38 and the lamp driving unit 39 are connected to the lamp control device 1, and the lamp unit 40 is connected to the lamp driving unit 39.

  The front monitoring camera 38 is attached, for example, in the vicinity of a room mirror in the vehicle interior, captures an image in front of the vehicle, and outputs the image to the lighting control device 1.

  The lamp driving unit 39 drives and turns on the lamp unit 40 composed of a lamp such as a headlight 40a. In response to the control signal from the lamp control device 1, the lamp drive unit 39 turns on the headlight 40a so that the light distribution is low beam or high beam.

  In addition, the lamp driving unit 39 can be driven so that the lamp unit 40 is in a plurality of lighting states according to the control signal from the lamp control device 1. That is, the lamp driving unit 39 can control the brightness of the lamp unit 40 in accordance with the control signal of the lamp control device 1. Further, the lamp driving unit 39 can control the irradiation range of the lamp unit 40 in accordance with the control signal of the lamp control device 1. That is, the lamp driving unit 39 can control the irradiation direction of the lamp unit 40 in accordance with the control signal of the lamp control device 1.

  In addition, the light drive part 39 can be made into the structure which combined one or more of the said structures. Moreover, it is good also as a structure which includes the lighting drive part 39 in the lighting control apparatus 1. FIG.

  The lamp unit 40 is lit in response to a control signal from the lamp control device 1. The lamp unit 40 includes a headlight 40a, and the headlight 40a can be lit in a low beam state and a high beam state. The headlight 40a can be lit in a plurality of states including a low beam state and a high beam state. Furthermore, the headlight 40a can be continuously changed in lighting state including brightness, irradiation range, and irradiation direction.

  The lamp unit 40 can be configured by combining any one or a plurality of the above configurations. The headlight 40a of the lamp unit 40 is, for example, any one of a halogen headlight, a shield beam headlight, a projector headlight, a discharge headlight, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) light, and the like. The lamp unit 40 and the lamp driving unit 39 may be integrated.

  As described above, in the vehicle system of FIG. 2, various information is supplied to the lighting control device 1 from the navigation device 32 or the automatic control instruction device 37 via the in-vehicle LAN 31, and therefore the lighting control device 1 And a predetermined process for controlling the headlight 40a using the information and the image captured by the front monitoring camera 38, and outputting the control signal obtained thereby to the lamp drive unit 39, the head The lighting of the light 40a is controlled.

  By the way, the hardware configuration of the lighting control device 1 is not limited to the example of FIG. 1, and may have at least the functional configuration of FIG. 3 to be described later.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of the lighting control device 1.

  The lighting control device 1 includes a control unit 41, an operation input unit 42, an imaging unit 51, an image processing unit 52, a night driving determination unit 53, a curved road determination unit 54, a surrounding vehicle detection unit 55, a control determination unit 56, and a control signal. An output unit 57 is included.

  In FIG. 3, for example, the control unit 41 corresponds to the CPU 11 in FIG. 1, the operation input unit 42 and the control signal output unit 57 correspond to the communication unit 16 in FIG. 1, and the imaging unit 51 and the image processing unit. Reference numeral 52 corresponds to the image input unit 15 in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, since the lighting control device 1 has the hardware configuration shown in FIG. 1 described above, the night driving determination unit 53, the curved road determination unit 54, the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55, and the control determination The unit 56 is configured, for example, as software that is loaded into the RAM 13 and executed by the CPU 11 of FIG.

  However, by making the hardware configuration of the lighting control device 1 different from the configuration of FIG. 1, each of the night driving determination unit 53, the curved road determination unit 54, the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55, and the control determination unit 56 It can be configured as a single unit, or can be configured as a combination of software and hardware.

  Referring to FIG. 3 in random order, a signal corresponding to a user instruction is input to the operation input unit 42 from the night travel instruction device 35 to the automatic control instruction device 37 of FIG. 2, and the signal is input to the control unit 41. Supplied.

  The control unit 41 controls the operation of each unit of the lighting control device 1 based on a signal supplied from the operation input unit 42.

  The imaging part 51 is comprised by the moving image camera which images the front of the own vehicle, for example. This moving image camera is composed of, for example, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensor or a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image sensor.

  Note that it is preferable to use HDRC (High Dynamic Range CMOS (registered trademark)) as an imaging element because a wide luminance range can be imaged. HDRC is a logarithmic conversion type image sensor that outputs image data consisting of luminance values (or pixel values) that are almost proportional to the logarithm of the incident light quantity, so even if the incident light quantity increases, the logarithmic conversion is performed. Capacitance of elements such as photodiodes and MOSFETs (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistors) that make up a flat-panel image sensor, and the current flowing through each element and the applied voltage output according to the input of each element Does not exceed the possible range. Accordingly, it is possible to obtain a luminance value (or pixel value) according to the change in the amount of incident light almost accurately within the range of luminance that can be imaged. That is, the intensity of incident light from the subject with a dynamic range of about 170 dB, which is wider than the human eye, for example, from about 1 millilux to about 500 kilolux, which is higher than the brightness of sunlight. It is possible to capture an image consisting of a luminance value (or pixel value) that reflects the above accurately. Note that the dynamic range of the logarithmic conversion type imaging device used for the imaging unit 51 is not limited to the above-described 170 dB, and uses one corresponding to the required dynamic range such as about 100 dB or 200 dB depending on the purpose of use. What should I do?

  The image processing unit 52 obtains image data in front of the host vehicle imaged by the imaging unit 51 and performs predetermined image processing on the image data to analyze the scene. The contents of this scene analysis include, for example, lane detection, road area detection, preceding vehicle detection, oncoming vehicle detection, pedestrian detection, obstacle detection, and the like. Hereinafter, the detected information is referred to as road state information.

  The image processing unit 52 supplies the detected road state information to the night driving determination unit 53, the curved road determination unit 54, and the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55.

  The road condition information is supplied from the image processing unit 52 to the night driving determination unit 53. The night travel determination unit 53 determines whether or not the vicinity of the road on which the vehicle is traveling is dark.

  This determination is performed in order to determine whether or not the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 of the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55 described later is in a state where the logic for detecting the hidden oncoming vehicle running on the other side of the curve works effectively. To be done. Accordingly, the night travel determination unit 53 determines, for example, whether or not the captured scene is a dark night scene based on road state information that is scene data analyzed by the image processing unit 52.

  Although it is the determination method, the night driving | running | working determination part 53 calculates the average brightness | luminance of the road area ahead, for example, and determines that it is night when the value is darker than a predetermined threshold value. That is, it is not necessarily limited that the time zone is night by the night running determination unit 53 determining that it is night. For example, even if it is daytime, even if it is temporarily dark due to heavy road rain or heavy volcanic ash when traveling on an overpass road or tunnel, it may be determined that it is nighttime. Good. Further, for example, depending on the season, it may be determined that it is not nighttime in a bright state at night, for example, in the case of white night.

  In consideration of these conditions, the night travel determination unit 53 does not determine whether it is nighttime based on a temporal factor, but based on the brightness around the own vehicle, whether the situation is nighttime. Determine whether or not. Of course, it may be determined whether or not it is nighttime based on a temporal factor. For example, it may be determined whether or not the time is nighttime using time information and calendar information. Alternatively, for example, by providing the vehicle with the above-described operation switch (night travel instruction switch), when the operation switch is turned on by the driver's operation, it is determined that the vehicle is at night (night travel). Good.

  In other words, it can be said that the night travel determination unit 53 determines whether the traveling state of the vehicle is a traveling state in which the headlight 40a should be turned on.

  The night travel determination unit 53 can determine whether it is night by selecting any one of the above methods, or by combining one or more methods.

  Road state information is supplied from the image processing unit 52 to the curved road determination unit 54. The curved road determination unit 54 determines whether or not the road near the position where the vehicle is traveling is a section where curves are continuous, that is, a curved road (bent road). This determination of the bending path is performed in order to determine whether or not control corresponding to a section where curves are continuous is necessary.

  The curved road determination unit 54 determines whether or not the road on which the host vehicle is traveling is a curved road. If it is determined that the road is not a curved road, the vehicle is located on the other side of the curve and is not directly visible. The corresponding action can be prevented. In other words, this determination means that a bright light source is detected, for example, when a bright store illumination enters the field of view when driving in an urban area, and erroneously determining that an oncoming vehicle is approaching. Can be prevented. That is, it is possible to prevent a malfunction that switches to the low beam when the high beam should be maintained.

  This determination of the bending path can be realized by the methods (A1) to (A7) as shown below, for example. The following determination method is an example, and other methods may be used.

(A1) A method of detecting an acceleration pattern peculiar to a vehicle passing through a curve detected by an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, or the like.

(A2) A method of detecting that a curve is continuous using a pattern of an operation amount obtained by operating a steering.

(A3) A method of judging using the pattern of the operating amount of the suspension. With this method, for example, in the right corner, the right suspension operates in the extending direction and the left suspension operates in the contracting direction. That is, it is possible to determine that the left and right corners are continuous by the extension pattern of the left and right suspensions.

(A4) A method of detecting that a curve is continuous based on the degree to which the road is bent and the number of roads using information on the road ahead of the host vehicle provided from the navigation device 32.

(A5) A method of determining that the road is a curved road when, for example, the driver is requested to control the vehicle by a method corresponding to the curved road, with an operation switch such as a curved road mode instruction switch. The bent road mode instruction switch is a mode for switching the light distribution of the headlight 40a in a situation where the headlight 40a is to be turned on and the vehicle is traveling on the bent road, for example. It is provided as the bending path indicating device 36 of FIG. 2 which is an operation switch for instructing a mode.

(A6) A method for determining whether or not a road is a curved road by using, for example, information about a road notified wirelessly from a predetermined information providing apparatus installed on the road.

(A7) A method of receiving traveling history information from a nearby vehicle such as an oncoming vehicle using inter-vehicle communication, and determining whether or not the road is a curved road based on information on a road to travel next.

  Note that the determination operation by the bending path determination unit 54 may be canceled. That is, a driver's instruction (for example, a switch operation such as a curved road mode instruction switch) according to the state of the traveling road, or a normal road from a curved road according to information of an external device such as the navigation device 32, Alternatively, it is possible to prevent an unnecessary switching operation from being performed by determining a curved road from a normal road.

  In addition, the curved road determination unit 54 can determine the curved road based on information notified from a predetermined device installed on the road using a communication means such as wireless communication. Furthermore, when using a method capable of detecting one curve based on the information of the navigation device 32 or the like, the determination of the curved road is not limited to a case where a plurality of curves are continuous, and even one curve is a curved road. May be determined.

  The bending path determination unit 54 can determine whether or not it is a bending path by selecting any one of the above methods or one of the other methods or combining a plurality of methods.

  The road condition information is supplied from the image processing unit 52 to the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55. The surrounding vehicle detection unit 55 detects other vehicles running around the own vehicle. As other vehicles, for example, there are oncoming vehicles and preceding vehicles, and the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55 detects these vehicles.

  The surrounding vehicle detection unit 55 is configured to include an oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 and a preceding vehicle detection unit 62. The oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 and the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 may be a radar device such as a laser radar or a radio wave radar.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a detailed configuration of the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61.

  The oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 is configured to include, for example, a road area detection unit 71, a light detection unit 72, and an oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73.

  The road area detection unit 71 detects a road area in the scene analyzed by the image processing unit 52 based on the road state information. The road area detection unit 71 supplies the detection result to the lamp detection unit 72.

  Based on the road state information, the lamp detection unit 72 detects a lamp area brighter than a predetermined luminance from the road areas detected by the road area detection unit 71. The light detection unit 72 supplies the detection result to the oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73.

  The oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73 discriminates and detects the headlight of the oncoming vehicle and the light source other than the oncoming vehicle from the lighting area detected by the lighting detection unit 72 based on the road state information. Then, the approach of the oncoming vehicle is detected. The oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73 supplies the detection result to the control determination unit 56.

  In other words, the oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73 detects that an oncoming vehicle that is not in the field of view is approaching before the oncoming vehicle enters the field of view. Therefore, by using the detection result of the oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73, a control signal corresponding to the approach of the oncoming vehicle can be output before the oncoming vehicle enters the field of view. Thereby, for example, before the oncoming vehicle enters the field of view, the light distribution of the headlight 40a can be switched from the high beam to the low beam according to the approach of the oncoming vehicle.

  That is, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 detects the presence state of the oncoming vehicle based on the detection results by the road area detection unit 71 to the oncoming vehicle approach detection unit 73 and road state information, and determines the oncoming vehicle detection result as a control determination. To the unit 56. The oncoming vehicle presence state includes, for example, the following three states ((B1) to (B3)).

(B1) A state in which an oncoming vehicle is present directly in the field of view.
(B2) A state in which there is an oncoming vehicle out of sight that is hidden behind curves and buildings.
(B3) There is no oncoming vehicle in a predetermined range near the vehicle.

  The predetermined range is, for example, a range in which the headlight of the own vehicle is illuminated with a predetermined brightness or more. Further, the predetermined range is not limited to the above, and may be a range where the vicinity of the driver's seat of the oncoming vehicle is illuminated with a predetermined brightness or a range where the face of the driver of the oncoming vehicle is illuminated with a predetermined brightness or more. Or it is good also as a range defined near the own vehicle based on the positional relationship with the own vehicle. Or it is good also as a range from which the brightness more than predetermined is detected with the illumination intensity sensor attached to the driver's seat vicinity of an oncoming vehicle. You may make it set as a range defined so that the driver of an oncoming vehicle may not be dazzled by methods other than these.

  In order to detect these states, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 is not limited to the configuration illustrated in FIG. 4, and may have, for example, at least a functional configuration illustrated in FIG.

  As shown in the example of FIG. 5, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 can be configured by an in-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 and an out of view oncoming vehicle detection unit 82. Since the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 has this configuration, for example, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 does not detect an oncoming vehicle, and the oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 detects an oncoming vehicle. It can be determined that there is no oncoming vehicle.

  The in-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 detects an oncoming vehicle that exists in the view, that is, an oncoming vehicle that can be seen in the field of view of the driver of the own vehicle or the imaging means. For example, the in-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 is brighter than a predetermined luminance corresponding to the brightness of the headlight in a predetermined region on the road of the scene analyzed by the image processing unit 52, and corresponds to the size of the headlight. When an image area to be detected is detected, it is determined that there is an oncoming vehicle that can be seen directly, and is detected. Alternatively, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 may recognize an object pattern shaped like a vehicle, and may detect and detect that an oncoming vehicle exists when the pattern is detected. There are many known methods for detecting an oncoming vehicle that can be seen directly, and any of these methods may be used.

  Moreover, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 can identify the headlight of the oncoming vehicle and the light source other than the vehicle, such as a streetlight, using light characteristics. Accordingly, since the headlight of the oncoming vehicle and the light source other than the vehicle can be identified, it is possible to prevent unnecessary switching from the high beam to the low beam when the light source other than the vehicle approaches.

  In addition, the on-field vehicle detection unit 81 can determine whether there is an on-field vehicle by selecting one of the above methods, another method, or a combination thereof.

  The out-of-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 detects an oncoming vehicle that does not exist in the view, that is, an oncoming vehicle that cannot be seen in the field of view of the driver of the own vehicle or the imaging means. Further, for example, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 may detect an oncoming vehicle that is far away and has a small apparent size, or that cannot detect radio waves, light, sound waves, or the like.

  By the way, on a mountain road with continuous curves, the headlight of an oncoming vehicle existing in a distant position and an area illuminated by the headlight may appear in an image obtained by imaging the front of the host vehicle. Therefore, in the conventional technique for detecting an oncoming vehicle on the road on which the host vehicle is traveling, the oncoming vehicle cannot be detected when the tip of the curve is not visible. Therefore, in the present embodiment, since the night travel determination unit 53 determines that it is nighttime, and the curved road determination unit 54 determines that it is a curved road, it is night and is a curved road. If it is determined that a bright area is detected in the forward direction, it can be determined that there is a distant oncoming vehicle.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the information on the road shape that can be acquired from the navigation device 32 is used to obtain the direction in which the oncoming vehicle may exist, and based on whether there is a bright area in the direction. The oncoming vehicle can be detected. In the present embodiment, the accuracy can also be improved by determining the oncoming vehicle depending on whether or not the bright area detected in the direction of the road ahead is moving along the road.

  If the oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 detects that an oncoming vehicle is present at a distant position by the above-described method and starts to detect the approaching of the oncoming vehicle described below, the oncoming vehicle The accuracy of proximity detection can be improved. For example, when it is detected that there are three oncoming vehicles, it is possible to perform control to switch from the low beam to the high beam after the third oncoming vehicle has passed.

  Further, the out-of-sight oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 can also detect a vehicle that cannot be seen directly by acquiring information related to the oncoming vehicle from another device using wireless communication means. Furthermore, the oncoming vehicle is provided with presence notification means for transmitting presence notification information to the vicinity using radio waves, so that the vehicle's out-of-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 (or the oncoming vehicle approaching detection unit 73 in FIG. 4) The vehicle presence information can be received and the oncoming vehicle can be inspected. For example, when the approaching vehicle includes presence notification means that uses near-infrared communication and presence notification means that uses radio waves, the out-of-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 can detect the vehicle.

  Or you may make it the out-of-sight oncoming vehicle detection part 82 detect the sound wave which an oncoming vehicle generate | occur | produces. For example, a characteristic pattern of the engine sound of the oncoming vehicle and the sound generated by the tire can be detected and determined by the out-of-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 82. Specifically, an oncoming vehicle outputs a specific sound, for example, an ultrasonic wave having a specific waveform, and the on-vehicle oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 of the own vehicle detects the ultrasonic wave having the specific waveform and approaches. The presence or absence of an oncoming vehicle can be determined.

  The out-of-view oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 can determine whether or not there is an out-of-view oncoming vehicle by selecting any one of the above methods or one of the other methods or combining a plurality of them.

  As described above, there are various oncoming vehicle detection methods. Hereinafter, a more detailed method of oncoming vehicle detection performed by the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 will be described. First, a method for detecting an oncoming vehicle at a distant position will be described.

  A state where it is necessary to switch from a high beam to a low beam by detecting an approaching oncoming vehicle is a dark state such as at night. An oncoming vehicle at a distant position with a dark surrounding can be detected as follows, for example.

  When the vehicle body is dark enough to be seen, an object whose apparent size is less than or equal to a predetermined size is recognized by image processing using features related to the shape of the object in an image of the front. can do.

  When the vehicle body is dark enough to be invisible, the oncoming vehicle lights up the light, so the brightness of the light is below a predetermined threshold and the area is below a predetermined size according to the distance. By detecting a bright area, an oncoming vehicle can be detected.

  On the road with continuous curves, oncoming vehicles are visible and hidden, so the detection result is held for a predetermined time (for example, 30 seconds). When the position of the oncoming vehicle detected on the image moves continuously, it can be determined that the oncoming vehicle is the same. A plurality of oncoming vehicles may be individually identified as well as the presence or absence of the oncoming vehicle. In that case, a history of position information can also be used to identify the oncoming vehicle.

  The detection of the oncoming vehicle at a distant position performed by the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 can be made by selecting any one of the above methods, or one of the other methods, or a combination thereof.

  Next, a method of detecting an approaching oncoming vehicle or a passing oncoming vehicle will be described.

  When it is detected that the brightness gradually increases, it can be determined that the oncoming vehicle is approaching. Accordingly, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 determines that the vehicle is approaching when the headlight of the oncoming vehicle detected in the image exceeds a predetermined luminance, and detects the oncoming vehicle. Similarly, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 determines that the oncoming vehicle has passed when the headlight of the oncoming vehicle is detected, gradually becomes brighter, and is no longer detected after approaching.

  Note that if the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 identifies a plurality of oncoming vehicles individually, it can determine the passage individually. Accordingly, since the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 individually determines the passing of the oncoming vehicle, it is possible to determine whether all the oncoming vehicles detected before have passed. As a result, control according to the presence or absence of the remaining oncoming vehicle can be performed.

  Further, by detecting an approaching object using a radar device, approach and passage can be detected more accurately.

  The approach and passage can be detected by selecting any one of the methods described above or one of the other methods, or by combining a plurality of methods.

  Next, an approach detection method for an oncoming vehicle hidden behind a curve will be described.

  Oncoming vehicles hidden behind objects that obstruct the field of view, such as mountains, trees, and buildings near the curve, can be detected by the methods (C1) to (C5) as shown below, for example. The following detection method is an example, and other methods may be used.

(C1) Based on the results obtained by scene analysis of an image of the front of the vehicle in a dark environment, the road surface near the curve or the road surface around the lane where the vehicle is traveling A method of determining that the oncoming vehicle has approached when a brighter state is detected than when the light of the headlight 40a of the own vehicle is reflected. At this time, if the headlight 40a of the own vehicle is blinked and detected in the off state, the detection can be made more accurately.

(C2) Based on the results obtained by scene analysis of the image taken in front of the vehicle, at the moment when a light source with a predetermined brightness or higher appears near the dark curve ahead of the lane in which the vehicle is traveling A method of determining that the tip portion of the oncoming vehicle has been detected.

(C3) A method for detecting the light of the headlight reflected on the curved mirror. For example, the curve mirror is installed on the side of the road opposite to the lane of the oncoming vehicle in the lane of the host vehicle. Therefore, if strong light is detected in an area where a curve mirror may exist, it is determined that the oncoming vehicle is approaching. In the image of the area where the curve mirror may exist, the curve mirror is detected using the characteristic of the shape of the curve mirror illuminated by the headlight 40a of the own vehicle, and strong light is detected in the mirror portion. The accuracy can be improved by determining that the oncoming vehicle is approaching.

(C4) A method of notifying the vehicle by radio. In the following, examples of a method for wireless notification are shown in (a1) to (a3). Note that the notification means for notifying the approaching oncoming vehicle may be a means attached to the vehicle for other purposes. For example, it is possible to use wireless communication of an external communication unit that communicates with the outside, such as illumination of a front monitoring unit, laser light of a laser radar device, and radio waves emitted by a radio wave radar.

(A1) Notification method using light (near infrared light). Near-infrared light is invisible to the human eye and does not affect other car drivers. Therefore, if a relatively strong near-infrared light is irradiated over a wide range in addition to the light from the headlight, the oncoming vehicle can be easily detected. Note that strong near-infrared light is used as auxiliary illumination for laser radar devices and front monitoring cameras, so in the case of such an oncoming vehicle, it can be detected without adding near-infrared illumination to the vehicle. .

(A2) Notification method using radio waves. The oncoming vehicle can be detected using the carrier of the radio wave output by the oncoming vehicle or the information superimposed on the radio wave.

(A3) A method of notifying by communication means. Vehicle-to-vehicle communication may be used for the notification. By using position information, wide area communication can be used. Note that, for example, communication via an information center in which a predetermined device is installed may be used. Alternatively, communication via the Internet may be used.

  With the method as described above, the approaching oncoming vehicle can be notified by radio.

(C5) A method of notifying from a predetermined device installed on the road. For example, an oncoming vehicle approach notification device (not shown) provided with a sensor for detecting a vehicle on a road near a curve is installed and notified by a display means such as characters, a two-dimensional barcode, a picture, or a wireless notification means. You can The oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 can detect the approach of the oncoming vehicle by receiving a notification from the oncoming vehicle approach notification device installed on the road. The notification of the oncoming vehicle approach notification device can be detected by an image recognition unit for displaying contents or a wireless communication unit.

  The approach detection of the oncoming vehicle hidden behind the curve can be determined by selecting any one of the methods described above or one of the other methods, or by combining a plurality of methods.

  Next, a method for detecting an oncoming vehicle using a prior detection result will be described.

  On mountain roads with continuous curves, oncoming vehicles may be repeatedly blocked by the curve or enter view. Therefore, by using this state, an oncoming vehicle traveling far can be detected. That is, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 stores information on the detection of a distant oncoming vehicle and detects the oncoming vehicle, thereby enabling control performed by a human driver.

  In addition, it is determined whether the vehicle is traveling on the same road, the oncoming vehicle, or the preceding vehicle by using the information regarding the presence state of the nearby road obtained from the navigation device 32, and according to the determination result More accurate control can be performed.

  The details of the oncoming vehicle detection by the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 have been described above. Next, returning to FIG. 3, details of the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 constituting the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55 will be described.

  The preceding vehicle detection unit 62 detects a preceding vehicle traveling in the same direction in front of the host vehicle. The preceding vehicle is detected in order to control the light distribution of the headlight 40a so as not to switch from the low beam to the high beam when there is a preceding vehicle traveling ahead.

  It should be noted that, on a curved road with continuous curves, the preceding vehicle is visible and hidden by the curve, so when a preceding vehicle is detected, it is determined that there is a preceding vehicle for a predetermined period even if the preceding vehicle is temporarily not detected. Is desirable.

  For example, the preceding vehicle can be detected as follows. The preceding vehicle detection unit 62 detects the presence state of the preceding vehicle. The presence state of the preceding vehicle can include, for example, the following three states ((D1 to D3)).

(D1) A state in which the preceding vehicle exists in a state where it can be seen directly in the field of view.
(D2) A state in which there is a vehicle outside the field of view that is hidden behind curves and buildings.
(D3) There is no preceding vehicle in a predetermined range near the vehicle.

  In order to detect these states, the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 can be composed of, for example, an in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 and an out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92 as shown in FIG. That is, in the preceding vehicle detection unit 62, when the preceding vehicle detection unit 91 in the sight does not detect the preceding vehicle and the preceding vehicle detection unit 92 outside the sight detects the preceding vehicle, there is a preceding vehicle that is not visible. Can be determined. As the preceding vehicle detection unit 62, for example, a radar device such as a laser radar or a radio wave radar can be used.

  The in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 detects a preceding vehicle that exists in the view and can be seen in the view of the driver of the own vehicle or the imaging means. For example, the in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 is brighter than a predetermined luminance corresponding to the color and brightness of the taillight in the area on the road of the scene analyzed by the image processing unit 52, and the size of the taillight of the preceding vehicle is large. When an image area corresponding to is detected, it is determined that there is a preceding vehicle that can be seen directly, and is detected. Or you may make it the in-view preceding vehicle detection part 91 recognize the pattern of the object of the shape like a vehicle. In addition, since there are many known methods for detecting a preceding vehicle that can be directly seen, any of these methods may be used.

  Further, the in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 can identify light sources other than vehicles such as a taillight and a streetlight of the preceding vehicle using the characteristics of light. For example, since the taillight includes many regions having a color close to red, the in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 identifies these using the color feature. Or the preceding vehicle detection part 91 in a visual field identifies using the feature of a shape. For example, the in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 can identify the license plate on the image and determine that the vehicle is a preceding vehicle when a high-luminance region having a taillight feature is detected on the left and right of the license plate.

  As described above, the preceding vehicle detection unit 91 in the field of view identifies the tail light of the preceding vehicle and the light source other than the vehicle, and when the light source other than the vehicle approaches, unnecessary switching from the high beam to the low beam occurs. Can be prevented.

  The in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 can determine whether or not there is an in-view preceding vehicle by selecting any one of the methods described above, or by combining one or more methods. Further, for example, a distance to the preceding vehicle may be detected using a laser radar or a radio wave radar, and a control signal corresponding to the distance may be output. By using this control signal, for example, it is possible to perform control so that only the direction in which the driver of the preceding vehicle does not feel dazzled is illuminated with strong light.

  The out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92 detects a preceding vehicle that does not exist in the view and cannot be seen in the view of the driver of the own vehicle or the imaging means.

  The preceding vehicle detection unit 92 may detect a preceding vehicle that is far away and has a small apparent size, or that cannot detect radio waves, light, sound waves, or the like. The out-of-sight preceding vehicle detection unit 92 obtains a direction in which the preceding vehicle may exist using information on the road shape that can be acquired from the navigation device 32, and corresponds to the tail light of the preceding vehicle in that direction. The preceding vehicle may be detected based on whether or not there is a bright area.

  Furthermore, the out-of-sight preceding vehicle detection unit 92 determines the preceding vehicle according to whether a bright area corresponding to the taillight detected in the direction of the road ahead is moving along the road, thereby detecting accuracy. Can be increased.

  That is, if the preceding vehicle detection unit 92 detects that there is a preceding vehicle at a distant position and starts the approach detection of the preceding vehicle by the above method, the preceding vehicle is detected. Accuracy can be increased.

  The out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92 can also detect a vehicle that cannot be seen directly by acquiring information related to the preceding vehicle from other devices using wireless communication means. Furthermore, the preceding vehicle is provided with presence notification means for transmitting presence notification information to the vicinity using radio waves, and the vehicle's out-of-sight preceding vehicle detection unit 92 (preceding vehicle detection unit 62) detects the transmitted radio waves. By doing so, the preceding vehicle can be detected. For example, when the preceding vehicle includes presence notification means using near-infrared communication and presence notification means using radio waves, the out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92 can detect the vehicle.

  Or you may make it the out-of-sight preceding vehicle detection part 92 detect the sound wave which a preceding vehicle generate | occur | produces. For example, the characteristic pattern of the engine sound of the preceding vehicle and the sound generated by the tire can be detected and determined by the out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92. Specifically, the preceding vehicle outputs a specific sound, for example, an ultrasonic wave with a specific waveform, and the vehicle's out-of-sight preceding vehicle detection unit 92 detects the ultrasonic wave with the specific waveform and approaches it. The presence or absence of a preceding vehicle can be determined.

  The out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92 can determine whether or not there is an out-of-view preceding vehicle by selecting any one of the methods described above, or one of the other methods, or combining a plurality of methods.

  By the way, as described above, there are various methods for detecting the preceding vehicle. Hereinafter, of the preceding vehicle detection methods performed by the preceding vehicle detection unit 62, detection of the preceding vehicle at a distant position is performed. A method will be described.

  When the vehicle body is dark enough to be visible, the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 displays a feature related to the shape of the object in an image obtained by capturing the front of an object whose apparent size is a predetermined size or less. And can be recognized by image processing. For example, when the vehicle body is dark enough that the vehicle body is not visible, the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 lights the light so that the brightness of the light is below a predetermined threshold and the area is a distance. A preceding vehicle can be detected by detecting a bright area of a predetermined color that is equal to or smaller than a predetermined size as a taillight.

  In addition, since the preceding vehicle appears and disappears on a road with continuous curves, the detection result is held for a predetermined time (for example, 30 seconds). When the position of the preceding vehicle detected on the image moves continuously, it can be determined that the preceding vehicle is the same. In addition to the presence or absence of a preceding vehicle, a plurality of preceding vehicles may be individually identified.

  The detection of the preceding vehicle at a distant position performed by the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 can be determined by selecting any one of the above methods or one of the other methods, or by combining a plurality of methods.

  In the above-described example, the method of detecting the oncoming vehicle and the preceding vehicle individually and controlling according to the detection result has been described. However, in the present embodiment, the oncoming vehicle and the preceding vehicle are detected in a lump. It is also possible to perform control according to the presence state of surrounding vehicles. In other words, in this case, the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55 that integrates the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 and the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 performs control according to the detection result when detecting the surrounding vehicle. By adopting such a configuration, it is not necessary to identify whether the vehicle is an oncoming vehicle or a preceding vehicle, and a simple configuration can be implemented.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the information detected by the own vehicle is notified to the outside using the wireless communication means (external communication device 33 in FIG. 2), so that the vehicle that has passed the same point later is notified. Can be used.

  Specifically, the communication with the outside can include any one or a combination of four communication modes ((E1) to (E4)) as shown below, for example.

(E1) Direct communication with surrounding vehicles.
(E2) Direct communication with devices installed around the road.
(E3) Communication through a predetermined device provided in the information center.
(E4) Communication connected to the Internet.

  Returning to FIG. 3, the determination (detection) result is supplied to the control determination unit 56 from the night travel determination unit 53, the curved road determination unit 54, and the surrounding vehicle detection unit. The control determination unit 56 makes a determination related to the control of the headlight 40a based on the determination (detection) results.

  Specifically, the control determination unit 56 performs a normal lighting control operation when the night travel determination unit 53 determines that it is not nighttime. In addition, when the night traveling determination unit 53 determines that it is nighttime, the control determination unit 56 performs a normal lighting control operation when the bending road determination unit 54 determines that it is not a curved road.

  That is, the control determination unit 56 determines that the night driving determination unit 53 is night and when the curved road determination unit 54 determines that the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling is a curved road, the following is performed. Judgment ((F1) to (F4)) is performed.

(F1) Determination that the control to switch to the high beam is not performed when a preceding vehicle exists within a predetermined range.
(F2) When the oncoming vehicle is detected within a predetermined range, it is determined not to perform control for switching to the high beam.
(F3) Judgment of performing control to switch to a high beam if it is a low beam when neither a preceding vehicle within a predetermined range and an oncoming vehicle within a predetermined range are detected.
(F4) When an oncoming vehicle hidden behind the curve is detected, it is determined that the oncoming vehicle is approaching and control is performed to switch the high beam to the low beam.

  Details of the determination by the control determination unit 56 will be described with reference to a flowchart of FIG.

  Note that switching between the high beam and the low beam in the headlight 40a is not necessarily limited to two states. Control may be performed in more than two states, or may be changed continuously. For example, the distance to the oncoming vehicle can be calculated using the scene information analyzed by the image processing unit 52, and can be changed stepwise according to the distance that the oncoming vehicle approaches.

  For example, when a large number of hidden oncoming vehicles are detected, it is troublesome if frequent switching is performed. Therefore, it is desirable to perform control so as to suppress the frequency of high beams from low beams. Further, in order for the driver of the oncoming vehicle to notice the presence of the host vehicle, it is desirable to switch from the high beam to the low beam immediately before the driver of the oncoming vehicle can see the host vehicle.

  An example of switching control when the lighting state of the headlight 40a can be performed so as to perform switching control of three or more states is shown below. The multi-state switching control can be controlled to light up in four states ((G1) to (G4)) according to the presence or absence of a preceding vehicle and the presence or absence of an oncoming vehicle, for example.

(G1) There is no preceding vehicle or oncoming vehicle.
(G2) There is a preceding vehicle and no oncoming vehicle.
(G3) There is no preceding vehicle and there is an oncoming vehicle.
(G4) There is a preceding vehicle and an oncoming vehicle.

  That is, the control determination unit 56 can control to illuminate a wider range when there is no preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle, and can control to illuminate brighter when there is no preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle. Moreover, the control determination part 56 can be controlled so that the driver of the preceding vehicle does not become dazzled when there is a preceding vehicle, and the driver of the oncoming vehicle does not become dazzled when there is an oncoming vehicle. It can be controlled to light up.

  That is, by combining these states, the control determination unit 56 can be controlled to light up in 16 states depending on whether there is a preceding vehicle, whether there is an oncoming vehicle, at night, or on a curved road. For example, when there is neither a preceding vehicle nor an oncoming vehicle on a curved road, the control determination unit 56 can control to illuminate a wider range than when there is neither a preceding vehicle nor an oncoming vehicle on a curved road. Alternatively, for example, when there is a preceding vehicle on a curved road and there is no oncoming vehicle, the control determination unit 56 has a preceding vehicle instead of a curved road, and the driver of the preceding vehicle does not become dazzling as compared with the case where there is no oncoming vehicle. The range can be controlled to illuminate a wide range mainly on the left and right.

  In addition, the control determination unit 56 turns on the headlights 40a that are fixedly installed on the left and right of the front portion of the vehicle based on the determination results (detection results) from the night travel determination unit 53 to the surrounding vehicle detection unit 55. The state can also be controlled independently on the left and right.

  Specifically, the control determination unit 56 determines whether there is a preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle and whether the location is the irradiation range of the right headlight 40a or the irradiation range of the left headlight 40a. Thus, the lighting state can be controlled independently on the left and right sides so that the presence position of the preceding vehicle or the oncoming vehicle is not illuminated with strong light. For example, when the oncoming lane is on the right in the right curve, the right headlight 40a may feel dazzling to the driver of the oncoming vehicle, but the left headlight 40a may not feel dazzling. In this case, the control determination unit 56 may switch to the low beam if only the right headlight 40a is a high beam.

  The control signal output unit 57 outputs a control signal for controlling the headlight 40a to be in either the high beam state or the low beam state according to the determination result of the control determination unit 56 to the lamp driving unit 39 in FIG. . Or you may make it the control signal output part 57 output the control signal for controlling the change of the light distribution pattern of the headlight 40a. As described above, the lamp driving unit 39 drives the headlight 40a so as to be in a lighting state according to the control signal from the control signal output unit 57.

  Next, the headlight control process executed by the lighting control device 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S <b> 11, the control unit 41 determines whether to automatically control the headlight 40 a based on the operation signal from the operation input unit 42.

  If it is determined in step S11 that automatic control is not performed, the process returns to step S111, and the determination process is repeated until it is determined that automatic control is performed. Then, when it determines with performing automatic control in step S11, the night driving | running | working determination part 53 determines whether it is nighttime in step S12. If it is determined in step S12 that it is not nighttime, the process returns to step S12.

  That is, the night travel determination unit 53 determines whether or not the situation in which the vehicle is traveling is a travel situation in which the headlight 40a should be turned on, such as at night. The driving situation to be lit is determined by, for example, the brightness around the host vehicle, time factors, and the like.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S12 that it is nighttime, in step S13, the control unit 41 determines whether or not the vehicle is in the curved road mode based on the operation signal from the operation input unit 42. If it is determined in step S13 that the mode is not the curved road mode, the lighting control of the headlight 40a is not performed, and the process returns to step S12. Thereafter, when it is determined in step S13 that the vehicle is in the curved road mode, in step S14, the curved road determination unit 54 determines whether or not the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road. If it is determined in step S14 that the road is a curved road, the process proceeds to step S17.

  Note that, for example, the above-described various determination methods such as a determination method based on values detected by various sensors are used as the determination method of the bending path.

  If it is determined in step S14 that the road is not a curved road, in step S15, the control determination unit 56 performs lighting control in the normal mode. Here, the normal mode is, for example, a mode in which the light distribution of the headlight 40a is set to a low beam when the surrounding of the own vehicle is bright, and the light distribution of the headlight 40a is set to a high beam when the surrounding of the own vehicle is dark. is there. Further, in the normal mode, instead of the light control device 1 controlling the headlight 40a, the driver may manually switch between the high beam and the low beam.

  In step S <b> 16, the bending path determination unit 54 determines whether or not it is a bending path. If it is determined in step S16 that the road is not a curved road, the process returns to step S15 and the above-described processing is repeated.

  That is, in step S15 and step S16, the lighting control device 1 performs the lighting control process in the normal mode until it is determined that the road is a curved road. Thereafter, when it is determined in step S16 that the road is a curved road, the process proceeds to step S17.

  In step S17, the preceding vehicle detection unit 62 determines whether the preceding vehicle is traveling.

  In this method of determining the preceding vehicle, for example, the preceding vehicle that is not visible when the in-view preceding vehicle detection unit 91 does not detect the preceding vehicle and the out-of-view preceding vehicle detection unit 92 detects the preceding vehicle. The various determination methods described above, such as a method for determining that a vehicle is present, are used.

  When it is determined in step S17 that the preceding vehicle is traveling, in step S18, the control determination unit 56 determines whether or not the light distribution of the headlight 40a is a high beam.

  If it is determined in step S18 that the light distribution of the headlight 40a is a high beam, in step S19, the control signal output unit 57 outputs a control signal for switching the light distribution of the headlight 40a from the high beam to the low beam. Output to the drive unit 39. Thereby, the light drive part 39 switches the light distribution of the headlight 40a to a low beam.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S18 that the headlight 40a has a low beam, there is no need to switch to the low beam, so the process of step S19 is skipped, and the process returns to step S17.

  When it is determined in step S17 that the preceding vehicle is not traveling, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 determines whether or not the oncoming vehicle is traveling in step S20.

  In this oncoming vehicle determination method, for example, an oncoming vehicle that is not visible when the oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 does not detect an oncoming vehicle and the outside vehicle detection unit 82 detects an oncoming vehicle. The various determination methods described above, such as a method for determining the presence, are used.

  If it is determined in step S20 that the oncoming vehicle is traveling, the process proceeds to step S18. As described above, in step S18 and step S19, when the light distribution of the headlight 40a is a high beam, there is an oncoming vehicle by the control determination unit 56, so that the light distribution of the headlight 40a is switched from the high beam to the low beam. A signal is output.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S20 that the oncoming vehicle is not traveling, in step S21, the control determination unit 56 determines whether or not the light distribution of the headlight 40a is a low beam.

  When it is determined in step S21 that the light distribution of the headlight 40a is a low beam, in step S22, the control signal output unit 57 determines that the light distribution of the headlight 40a is from the low beam because there is no preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle. A control signal for switching to the high beam is output to the lamp driving unit 39. Thereby, the light drive part 39 switches the light distribution of the headlight 40a to a high beam.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S21 that the headlight 40a has a high beam, there is no need to switch to the high beam, so the process of step S22 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S23.

  In step S23, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 determines whether there is an oncoming vehicle on the other side of the curve.

  In this oncoming vehicle determination method, for example, when the oncoming vehicle detection unit 81 does not detect an oncoming vehicle and the oncoming vehicle detection unit 82 detects an oncoming vehicle, the oncoming vehicle appears on the other side of the curve. Various determination methods described above, such as a method of determining that there is an oncoming vehicle that is not present, are used.

  If it is determined in step S23 that there is no oncoming vehicle on the other side of the curve, since the oncoming vehicle is not traveling, there is no need to switch the high beam to the low beam, so the process returns to step S17, and the above-described processing is performed. Repeated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S23 that there is an oncoming vehicle on the other side of the curve, the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 determines whether or not the detected oncoming vehicle has approached in step S24.

  The determination as to whether or not the oncoming vehicle has approached is made, for example, by detecting that the oncoming vehicle that is not in the field of view, which is detected by the oncoming vehicle detection unit 61 (or the oncoming vehicle proximity detection unit 73), is approaching. Is determined based on information informing the user before entering the field of view.

  If it is determined in step S24 that the detected oncoming vehicle is not approaching, it is not necessary to switch the high beam to the low beam because the oncoming vehicle is not approaching yet, so the process returns to step S17 and described above. The process is repeated.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S24 that the detected oncoming vehicle has approached, in step S25, the control signal output unit 57 drives the control signal for switching the light distribution of the headlight 40a from the high beam to the low beam. To the unit 39. Thereby, the light drive part 39 switches the light distribution of the headlight 40a to a low beam.

  In step S26, the control unit 41 determines whether or not to end the automatic control of the headlight 40a based on the operation signal from the operation input unit 42. If it is determined in step S26 that automatic control is not terminated, the process returns to step S12 and the above-described processing is repeated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S26 that the automatic control of the headlight 40a is to be terminated, the headlight control process in FIG. 7 is terminated.

  As described above, for example, when it is determined that the environment is not an urban area at night and the environment is dark, the oncoming vehicle detection method is switched from an urban area to a non-urban area, and the front of the vehicle is imaged. The lighting is controlled according to the light source with high brightness detected by the image, and when it is detected that the road is a curved road such as a mountain road, the control logic is switched to the curved road, When the headlight beam of an oncoming vehicle that is not directly visible in the image taken in front is detected and the approaching vehicle is detected by detecting a direct beam, the presence of the headlight of the approaching oncoming vehicle is detected. Control for switching from a high beam to a low beam or control for changing a light distribution pattern can be performed.

  Thereby, for example, drivers of other vehicles such as an oncoming vehicle and a preceding vehicle can be prevented from being dazzled.

  In the present embodiment, the vehicle on which the lighting control device 1 is mounted may be a vehicle having a headlight, such as various automobiles and motorcycles.

  The series of processes described above can be executed by hardware or can be executed by software. When a series of processing is executed by software, a program constituting the software may execute various functions by installing a computer incorporated in dedicated hardware or various programs. For example, it is installed from a recording medium in a general-purpose personal computer or the like.

  This recording medium is distributed to provide a program to the user separately from the computer, such as a magnetic disk (including a flexible disk) on which the program is recorded, an optical disk (CD-ROM (CD-Read Only Memory), 1) including a removable medium 18 shown in FIG. 1 including a DVD, a magneto-optical disk (including MD (Mini-Disk) (trademark)), or a semiconductor memory, etc. 1 includes the ROM 12 of FIG. 1 in which a program is recorded, a recording unit (not shown), and the like.

  The program for executing the series of processes described above is installed in a computer via a wired or wireless communication medium such as a local area network, the Internet, or digital satellite broadcasting via an interface such as a router or a modem as necessary. You may be made to do.

  In the present specification, the step of describing the program stored in the recording medium is not limited to the processing performed in chronological order according to the described order, but is not necessarily performed in chronological order. It also includes processes that are executed individually.

  Further, in this specification, the system represents the entire apparatus constituted by a plurality of apparatuses.

  Furthermore, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

It is a block diagram which shows the example of a hardware structure of the lighting control apparatus to which this invention is applied. It is a block diagram which shows the example of a structure of the vehicle system using the lighting control apparatus of FIG. It is a block diagram explaining the functional structural example of a lighting control apparatus. It is a block diagram explaining the detail of the oncoming vehicle detection part of FIG. It is a block diagram explaining the detail of the oncoming vehicle detection part of FIG. It is a block diagram explaining the detail of the preceding vehicle detection part of FIG. It is a flowchart explaining a headlight control process.

Explanation of symbols

  1 Light control device, 11 CPU, 12 ROM, 15 Image input unit, 16 Communication unit, 18 Removable media, 32 Navigation device, 33 External communication device, 34 Running state sensor, 35 Night travel indicator device, 36 Curved road indicator device, 37 automatic control instruction device, 38 forward monitoring camera, 39 lamp drive unit, 40 lamp unit, 40a headlight, 41 control unit, 42 operation input unit, 51 image pickup unit, 52 image processing unit, 53 night driving determination unit, 54 bending Road determination unit, 55 surrounding vehicle detection unit, 56 control determination unit, 57 control signal output unit, 61 oncoming vehicle detection unit, 62 preceding vehicle detection unit, 71 road area detection unit, 72 light detection unit, 73 oncoming vehicle approach detection unit , 81 In-view oncoming vehicle detection unit, 82 Out-of-view oncoming vehicle detection unit, 91 View Inner preceding vehicle detection unit, 92 Out of sight preceding vehicle detection unit

Claims (8)

In an information processing apparatus mounted on a vehicle,
A traveling condition determining means for determining whether or not the vehicle headlight is in a traveling condition;
When it is determined that the headlight is to be turned on, a curved road determination unit that determines whether or not the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road that is a curved road;
When it is determined that the vehicle is on the curved road, surrounding vehicle detection means for detecting other vehicles traveling around the vehicle;
When the other vehicle is detected and the headlight light distribution is a high beam, the light distribution of the headlight is switched from a high beam to a low beam, and the other vehicle is not detected. An information processing apparatus comprising: a headlight control unit configured to control the light distribution of the headlight from a low beam to a high beam when the light distribution of the headlight is a low beam. The surrounding vehicle detection means detects an oncoming vehicle that is traveling on the other side of the curve on which the vehicle traveling on the curved road has not yet passed,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the headlight control unit switches the light distribution of the headlight from a high beam to a low beam when the detected oncoming vehicle approaches the vehicle. The surrounding vehicle detection means detects an on-field vehicle that is traveling within the field of view of the driver of the vehicle and an on-vehicle vehicle that is traveling outside the field of view of the driver,
2. The information according to claim 1, wherein the headlight control means switches the light distribution of the headlight from a high beam to a low beam when the oncoming vehicle in the field of view is not detected and the oncoming vehicle outside the field of view is detected. Processing equipment. The surrounding vehicle detection means detects an in-view preceding vehicle that is traveling within the field of view of the driver of the vehicle, and an out-of-sight preceding vehicle that is traveling outside the driver's field of view,
The information according to claim 1, wherein the headlight control means switches the light distribution of the headlight from a high beam to a low beam when the preceding vehicle in sight is not detected and the preceding vehicle outside the sight is detected. Processing equipment. When it is determined that the headlight is in a state to be turned on, and when it is determined that the headlight is in a curved path, the headlight has a curved path mode that switches a light distribution of the headlight;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the curved road determination unit determines whether or not a road on which the vehicle is traveling is the curved road when in the curved road mode. The traveling state determination means determines whether the brightness of the surroundings of the vehicle exceeds a predetermined threshold or whether a predetermined time has elapsed, so that the headlight is turned on. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein it is determined whether or not the situation is present. In an information processing method of an information processing device mounted on a vehicle,
Determine whether the vehicle headlights are in a driving situation or not,
When it is determined that the headlights are to be turned on, it is determined whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road that is a curved road;
If it is determined that the road is a curved road, the other vehicle traveling around the vehicle is detected,
When the other vehicle is detected and the headlight light distribution is a high beam, the light distribution of the headlight is switched from a high beam to a low beam, and the other vehicle is not detected. An information processing method including a step of controlling the light distribution of the headlight from a low beam to a high beam when the light distribution of the headlight is a low beam. In a program for causing a computer to perform information processing for controlling lighting of a vehicle headlight,
Determine whether the vehicle headlights are in a driving situation or not,
When it is determined that the headlights are to be turned on, it is determined whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is a curved road that is a curved road;
If it is determined that the road is a curved road, the other vehicle traveling around the vehicle is detected,
When the other vehicle is detected and the headlight light distribution is a high beam, the light distribution of the headlight is switched from a high beam to a low beam, and the other vehicle is not detected. And controlling the switching of the light distribution of the headlight from the low beam to the high beam when the light distribution of the headlight is a low beam.

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