JP2010127846A - Laser radar control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a laser radar control device that further improves safety by decreasing the effect to human eyes due to a laser light. <P>SOLUTION: The device includes an irradiation detection part 10 which is prepared in a bottom B on surface of car body of an own vehicle C, and irradiates the laser light L around, and detects the reflected light, a gradient detection part 20 which detects existence of gradient variation of front road R ahead of the own vehicle C, and an output control part 30 which inhibits the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection part 10, when the gradient variation is detected by the gradient detection part 20. When the gradient variation of front road R is detected, the irradiation output of the laser light L is inhibited, accordingly, in the situation that there is gradient variation and human H exists in the front road R such that front road R is uphill or downward slope, the laser light L can give smaller effect to human H eyes, thereby improving the safety. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a laser radar control apparatus that detects reflected light by irradiating a laser beam to the surroundings.

Conventionally, there has been proposed a laser scanning device that ensures safety so that a human face is not irradiated with laser light when scanning is performed by irradiating the surroundings with laser light from a host vehicle and detecting reflected light with a sensor. ing. For example, in Patent Document 1, when an image of a scan range acquired by a camera is analyzed and a human face is recognized in this image, the laser beam irradiation output near the recognized face position is suppressed. Technology for ensuring safety is disclosed.
JP 2006-258457 A

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, a laser irradiation unit that irradiates a laser beam to the surroundings and a camera that acquires an image of a scan range are below a predetermined height from the road surface, such as a bottom portion of the body surface of the host vehicle. It is also conceivable that the laser beam is arranged at the position and irradiated toward the front of the host vehicle.

  Here, in a situation where the road ahead of the host vehicle has a slope such as uphill or downhill, and there are people on this road, there is a person on a flat road with no slope. Therefore, it is difficult to recognize a human face in an image acquired by a camera. As a result, even in the situation where a human is present on the road ahead, the possibility that the laser beam irradiation output is suppressed is extremely low. For this reason, there is still room for further improving safety by reducing the influence of laser light on the human eye.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a laser radar control device that can further improve safety by reducing the influence of laser light on human eyes.

  The laser radar control device according to the present invention includes an irradiation detection unit that is provided at the bottom of the vehicle body surface of the host vehicle and detects reflected light by irradiating a laser beam to the surroundings, and a gradient change of a front road existing ahead of the host vehicle A gradient detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the laser beam; and an output control means for suppressing the irradiation output of the laser light emitted by the irradiation detecting means when a gradient change is detected by the gradient detecting means. .

  In the laser radar control device of the present invention, when a change in the gradient of the front road existing ahead of the host vehicle is detected, the laser beam irradiation is performed by the irradiation detecting means provided at the bottom of the vehicle body surface of the host vehicle. Output is suppressed. For this reason, in a situation where there is a change in gradient, such as the road ahead is uphill or downhill, and there is a person on the road ahead, there is a person on a flat road with no gradient change. Although the height of the face differs from the situation, in this case, the irradiation output of the laser light is suppressed. As a result, compared to a configuration in which the possibility of suppressing the irradiation output of laser light is extremely low even in situations where the height of the face is different from the situation where a human is present on a flat road without a gradient, The influence of the laser light on the human eye can be made smaller and the safety can be further improved.

  Further, the gradient detection means detects the presence or absence of a downward gradient change on the road ahead, and the output control means suppresses the irradiation output of the laser beam when the downward gradient change is detected by the gradient detection means. preferable.

  As a result, when a downward gradient change is detected by the gradient detection means for detecting the presence or absence of the downward gradient change on the front road, the irradiation output of the laser light is suppressed. For this reason, in a situation where the front road is a downhill and a human is present on the front road, the laser light emitted by the irradiation detection means provided at the bottom of the vehicle body surface of the vehicle enters the human eye. In this case, the laser beam irradiation output is suppressed. As a result, the influence of the laser beam on the human eye can be reduced and the safety can be further improved.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it is possible to provide the laser radar control apparatus which can make the influence which a laser beam gives to human eyes smaller, and can improve safety | security more.

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

(First embodiment)
First, the configuration and function of the laser radar control apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a laser radar control device 101 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining functions of the laser radar control device 101. As shown in FIG. 2A, the laser radar control device 101 is a device that is attached to a vehicle such as an automobile (hereinafter referred to as the host vehicle C), and emits a laser beam L indicated by a broken line. The surrounding obstacles are detected by detecting the reflected light by irradiating the surroundings. The laser light L is, for example, the foot of a human H located on the front road R existing in front of the host vehicle C traveling in the direction of the white arrow A (or the body of another vehicle that the human H is driving). When the reflected light is detected by the irradiation detection unit 10, the presence of an obstacle in the direction of the white arrow A is detected.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 2B, the laser radar control device 101 suppresses the irradiation output of the laser light L when detecting that the front road R has a gradient change. Therefore, in a situation where the front road R is a downhill and the human H is present on the front road R, the position where the laser light L emitted from the irradiation detection unit 10 is likely to enter the eyes of the face F of the human H In this case, the irradiation output of the laser beam is suppressed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the laser radar control device 101 includes an irradiation detection unit 10 (irradiation detection unit), a gradient detection unit 20 (gradient detection unit), and an output control unit 30 (output control unit). The gradient detection unit 20 and the output control unit 30 are integrated and controlled by an ECU that is an electronic control device mounted inside the host vehicle C.

  The ECU includes a microprocessor that performs calculations, a ROM that stores a program for causing the microprocessor to execute each process, a RAM that stores various data such as calculation results, and a backup RAM in which the stored contents are held by a battery. It is comprised by.

  The irradiation detection unit 10 is provided at the bottom B (that is, the lower floor) of the vehicle body surface of the host vehicle C, and irradiates the front periphery with the laser light L substantially in parallel with the traveling road surface (that is, substantially horizontally). This is a laser radar unit with an irradiation and sensor function for detecting the reflected light of the laser beam L. The irradiation detection unit 10 detects the presence of obstacles and surrounding objects around the host vehicle C by detecting the reflected light.

  The gradient detection unit 20 is a portion that detects the presence or absence of a gradient change such as ascending or descending of the forward road R that exists ahead of the traveling direction of the host vehicle C and is scheduled to pass. The gradient detection unit 20 includes a map reading unit 21 and a route generation unit 22. The route generation unit 22 is a portion that reads and stores the road R ahead of the host vehicle C as a planned route. The map reading unit 21 also maps data corresponding to the planned route (particularly map data necessary to determine whether there is a gradient change) from a map database storing map data such as road maps. It is a part to read.

  The output control unit 30 is a part that performs control to decrease or increase the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10. The output control unit 30 increases the irradiation output of the laser beam L or maintains it at a relatively high value when the gradient detection unit 20 detects that there is no gradient change of the front road R in the traveling direction of the host vehicle C. Control whether to do.

  Here, when the gradient detection unit 20 detects that there is a gradient change of the front road R in the traveling direction of the host vehicle C, the output control unit 30 reduces and suppresses the irradiation output of the laser light L. For example, the output control unit 30 suppresses the irradiation output of the laser light L when the gradient detection unit 20 detects a downward gradient change of the front road R.

  Next, internal processing performed in the laser radar control apparatus 101 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of internal processing performed in the laser radar control apparatus 101. This process is repeatedly executed at a predetermined timing by the ECU or the like until the laser radar control apparatus 101 is turned on and then turned off.

  First, the route generation unit 22 performs a reading process of reading the front road R on which the host vehicle C is scheduled to travel as a planned route (step S01).

  Next, the map reading unit 21 obtains map data (particularly map data necessary for determining whether or not there is a gradient change) from the map database in which the map data is stored, corresponding to the planned route. A reading process for reading is performed (step S02).

  Next, the gradient detection unit 20 determines whether or not there is a downward gradient change with respect to the forward road R as the planned route, using the read planned route and map data (step S03). Here, as an example, the presence or absence of a downward gradient change is detected, but the presence or absence of an upward gradient change may be detected instead of downward. When it is determined that there is no downward gradient change regarding the forward road R as the planned route, the process proceeds to step S04 described later. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is a downward gradient change regarding the forward road R as the planned route, the process proceeds to step S05 described later.

  In step S04, the output control unit 30 increases the irradiation output (that is, irradiation intensity) of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 by a predetermined output and strengthens it. Then, this series of processing procedures ends.

  In step S05, the output control unit 30 suppresses the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 by lowering it by a predetermined output. Then, this series of processing procedures ends.

(Second embodiment)
Next, the configuration and function of the laser radar control apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of the laser radar control apparatus 102 according to the present embodiment. Similar to the laser radar control device 101, the laser radar control device 102 is attached to the host vehicle C, and detects surrounding obstacles by irradiating the laser light L around and detecting this reflected light.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the configuration of the laser radar control device 102 uses a gradient detection unit 23 instead of the gradient detection unit 20 as compared with the configuration of the laser radar control device 101 (see FIG. 1). Is different. The gradient detection unit 23 is a portion that detects the presence or absence of a gradient change such as ascending or descending of the forward road R that exists ahead of the traveling direction of the host vehicle C and is scheduled to pass. The gradient detection unit 23 includes a route generation unit 22, a first map reading unit 24, and a second map reading unit 25.

  The route generation unit 22 is a portion that reads and stores the road R ahead of the host vehicle C as a planned route. The first map reading unit 24 is a part for reading the first map data corresponding to the planned route from the map database storing the map data such as the road map. The first map data is map data necessary to determine whether or not there is a gradient change. Further, the second map reading unit 25 is a part for reading second map data corresponding to the planned route from the map database. The second map data is map data necessary for calculating the distance from the host vehicle C to the slope start point. The gradient start point is a point where a gradient change such as ascending or descending occurs on the forward road R as a planned route. Details of the gradient start point will be described later.

  Next, internal processing performed in the laser radar control apparatus 102 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of internal processing performed in the laser radar control apparatus 102. This process is repeatedly executed at a predetermined timing by the ECU or the like until the laser radar control apparatus 102 is turned on and then turned off.

  First, the route generation unit 22 performs a reading process of reading the front road R on which the host vehicle C is scheduled to travel as a planned route (step S11).

  Next, the first map reading unit 24 first maps data corresponding to the planned route (map data necessary to determine whether or not there is a gradient change from a map database storing map data. ) Is read out (step S12).

  Next, the gradient detection unit 20 determines whether or not there is a downward gradient change with respect to the forward road R as the planned route, using the read planned route and map data (step S13). Here, as an example, the presence or absence of a downward gradient change is detected, but the presence or absence of an upward gradient change may be detected instead of downward. It is also determined that there is a change in gradient when the uphill or downhill is a flat road, or when the flat road is uphill or downhill. When it is determined that there is no downward gradient change regarding the forward road R as the planned route, the process proceeds to step S14 described later. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is a downward gradient change regarding the forward road R as the planned route, the process proceeds to step S17 described later.

  In step S <b> 17, the output control unit 30 suppresses the irradiation output (that is, irradiation intensity) of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 by lowering it by a predetermined output. Then, this series of processing procedures ends.

  In step S14, the second map reading unit 25 calculates the second map data (the distance from the host vehicle C to the gradient start point) corresponding to the planned route from the map database storing the map data. A reading process for reading out necessary map data) is performed. And it transfers to below-mentioned step S15.

  In step S15, the gradient detection unit 23 calculates the distance from the vehicle C to the gradient start point with respect to the forward road R as the planned route, and determines whether or not the calculated distance is equal to or greater than a predetermined distance. . When it is determined that the distance from the host vehicle C to the slope start point is not equal to or greater than the predetermined distance, the process proceeds to step S17 described above. On the other hand, when it is determined that the distance from the host vehicle C to the gradient start point is equal to or greater than the predetermined distance, the process proceeds to step S16 described later.

  In step S <b> 16, the output control unit 30 increases the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 by a predetermined output and strengthens it. Then, this series of processing procedures ends.

  Next, functions of the laser radar control apparatus 102 that performs the internal processing shown in FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. Each of FIGS. 6 and 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the function of the laser radar control apparatus 102 in which the internal processing shown in FIG. 5 is performed.

  First, a case where the host vehicle C is traveling on a flat front road R will be described. As shown in FIG. 6A, when the host vehicle C to which the laser radar control device 102 is attached is traveling on a flat front road R in the direction of the white arrow A, the front direction of the host vehicle C is It is assumed that human H exists in The forward road R changes from a flat road to a downward slope due to a change in the downward gradient at the gradient start point P1 at a distance D1 forward from the host vehicle C (the front end thereof). At this time, the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 provided on the bottom B of the vehicle body surface of the host vehicle C is in a positional relationship that easily enters the eyes of the face F of the human H.

  Here, when the distance D1 is less than the predetermined distance used for the determination in step S15 described above, the process proceeds to step S17, and the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 is suppressed. As a result, it is possible to further reduce the influence of the laser light L on the eyes of the human H and further improve the safety.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6 (b), the forward road R has a downward slope change at a slope start point P1 at a distance D2 forward from the host vehicle C (the front end thereof). When D2 is greater than or equal to the predetermined distance used for the determination in step S15 described above, the process proceeds to step S16, and the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 is increased. Since the distance between the host vehicle C and the person H is a predetermined distance or more, even if the irradiation output of the laser light L is increased, there is almost no influence on the eyes of the person H. As a result, the sensing distance (that is, the detection distance) is extended, and the accuracy when the obstacle around the host vehicle C is scanned using the laser beam can be increased.

  Next, a case where the host vehicle C is traveling on the front road R where the vehicle is going uphill will be described. As shown in FIG. 7A, when the host vehicle C to which the laser radar control device 102 is attached is traveling on an uphill forward road R in the direction of the white arrow A, It is assumed that a human H is present in the direction. The forward road R changes from an uphill to a flat road due to a change in the gradient at a gradient start point P2 at a distance D1 forward from the host vehicle C (the front end thereof). At this time, the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 provided on the bottom B of the vehicle body surface of the host vehicle C is in a positional relationship that easily enters the eyes of the face F of the human H.

  Here, when the distance D1 is less than the predetermined distance used for the determination in step S15, the process proceeds to step S17, and the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detection unit 10 is suppressed. As a result, it is possible to further reduce the influence of the laser light L on the eyes of the human H and further improve the safety.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7 (b), the forward road R has a change in gradient such that it becomes a flat road from an uphill at a gradient start point P2 at a distance D2 forward from the host vehicle C (the front end thereof). If the distance D2 is greater than or equal to the predetermined distance used for the determination in step S15, the process proceeds to step S16, and the irradiation output of the laser light L irradiated by the irradiation detector 10 is increased. Since the distance between the host vehicle C and the person H is a predetermined distance or more, even if the irradiation output of the laser light L is increased, there is almost no influence on the eyes of the person H. As a result, the accuracy at the time of scanning the obstacle around the own vehicle C using a laser beam can be improved.

(Function and effect)
Subsequently, functions and effects of the first embodiment and the second embodiment will be described. According to each of 1st embodiment and 2nd embodiment, when the gradient change of the front road R which exists ahead of the own vehicle C is detected, the irradiation output of the laser beam L irradiated by the irradiation detection part 10 Is suppressed. For this reason, for example, in a situation where there is a gradient change such that the flat front road R is uphill or downhill ahead, and there is a human H on the front road R, there is no flat change. Compared to a situation where a person H is present on a simple road, the height of the face F is different and position recognition of the face F is difficult, but in this case, the irradiation output of the laser light L is suppressed.

  As a result, the configuration in which the possibility that the irradiation output of the laser light L is suppressed is extremely low even in a situation where the height of the face F is different from the situation where the human H is present on a flat road having no gradient is present. In comparison, the influence of the laser light L on the human eye is made smaller, and the possibility of injury by the laser light L (ie, the risk) is further reduced, so that safety can be further improved.

  Further, when it is determined that there is no downward gradient change with respect to the forward road R as the planned route, the output control unit 30 increases the irradiation intensity (that is, the irradiation output) of the laser light L by a predetermined output to increase the sensing. The distance (ie the detection distance) can be extended. As a result, the irradiation detection unit 10 is provided at a relatively low height such as the bottom B of the vehicle body surface of the host vehicle C, thereby preventing the human H from being injured by the eyes and ensuring safety while widening the periphery of the host vehicle C. It becomes possible to acquire more information such as whether or not an obstacle exists in the range more accurately.

  In addition, when the gradient detection unit 20 (or 23) that detects whether there is a gradient change in the downward direction of the front road R detects a gradient change in the downward direction, the irradiation output of the laser light L is suppressed. For this reason, in a situation where the front road R is a downhill and a human H is present on the front road R, the laser light L emitted by the irradiation detection unit 10 provided at the bottom B of the vehicle body surface of the own vehicle C However, in this case, the irradiation output of the laser light L is suppressed. As a result, the influence of the laser light L on the eyes of the face F of the human H can be further reduced and the safety can be further improved.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the output control unit 30 performs the increase control and the decrease control of the output of the laser beam L. However, instead of the output control unit 30, the output control unit 30 performs the increase control of the output of the laser beam L. It is good also as a structure provided with a control part and the descent | fall control part which performs descent | fall control of the output of the laser beam L. FIG.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a laser radar control device according to a first embodiment. It is explanatory drawing explaining the function by a laser radar control apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the internal process performed in a laser radar control apparatus. FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a laser radar control device according to a second embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the internal process performed in a laser radar control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing explaining the function by a laser radar control apparatus. It is explanatory drawing explaining the function by a laser radar control apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Irradiation detection part, 20, 23 ... Gradient detection part, 21 ... Map reading part, 22 ... Route generation part, 24 ... First map reading part, 25 ... Second map reading part, 30 ... Output control part, 101, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 102 ... Laser radar control apparatus, A ... White arrow, B ... Bottom part, C ... Own vehicle, D1, D2 ... Distance, F ... Face, H ... Human, L ... Laser beam, P1, P2 ... Gradient start point, R ... The road ahead.

Claims (2)

An irradiation detection means provided at the bottom of the surface of the vehicle body of the host vehicle for detecting reflected light by irradiating a laser beam to the surroundings;
Gradient detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a gradient change of a forward road existing ahead of the host vehicle;
An output control unit that suppresses an irradiation output of the laser beam irradiated by the irradiation detection unit when the gradient change is detected by the gradient detection unit;
A laser radar control device comprising: The slope detection means detects the presence or absence of a slope change on the road ahead,
The output control means suppresses the irradiation output of the laser light when the downward slope change is detected by the slope detection means.
The laser radar control device according to claim 1.

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