JP2018060562A - Driving support system and data structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide techniques of supporting the driving of a vehicle in accordance with a traffic light associated with a traveling lane even when there are multiple traffic lights in a traveling direction of a vehicle.SOLUTION: A driving support system 10 comprises: a detector 340 that detects a present position of a vehicle; a memory 56 that stores lane information on a traveling lane and traffic light information in association with each other, the traffic light information including existing position information on a traffic light disposed to inform the vehicle traveling along the traveling lane about whether to be allowed to pass through; and a controller 300 that specifies the traveling lane on which the vehicle is traveling based on the present position and that supports the driving of the vehicle in accordance with the traffic light associated with the traveling lane.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a driving support system.

  Conventionally, driving support methods for supporting driving of vehicles are known. As a certain prior art, there is a method of supporting driving in accordance with an instruction of an arrow signal lamp of a traffic signal, including a step of detecting a traveling lane of the host vehicle and a step of photographing a traffic signal ahead of the host vehicle (Patent Document 1). ).

JP 2008-242986 A

  However, in the above-described prior art, when a plurality of traffic lights can be confirmed from the host vehicle travel lane, there is a possibility that a signal other than the traffic signal corresponding to the host vehicle travel lane may be mistaken as a traffic signal of the host vehicle travel lane. As a result, in the above-described prior art, there is a risk of erroneous driving assistance. In addition, in the conventional driving support system, it has been desired to simplify the operation, improve the usability, improve the processing speed, reduce the cost, and save resources.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

(1) According to one aspect of the present invention, a driving support system that supports driving of a vehicle is provided. The driving support system includes a detection unit that detects a current position of a vehicle, lane information about a traveling lane, and presence information on a traffic signal that is installed to notify a vehicle traveling in the traveling lane whether the vehicle is allowed to pass. And a traffic signal associated with the travel lane, while specifying a travel lane on which the vehicle is traveling based on the current position And a control unit for supporting driving of the vehicle according to the above. According to the driving support system of this aspect, even when there are a plurality of traffic lights in the traveling direction of the vehicle, it is possible to support driving of the vehicle according to the traffic lights associated with the traveling lane.

(2) According to another aspect of the present invention, a driving support system that supports driving of a vehicle is provided. The driving support system includes a detection unit that detects a current position of a vehicle, lane information about a traveling lane, and presence information on a traffic signal that is installed to notify a vehicle traveling in the traveling lane whether the vehicle is allowed to pass. A storage unit that is stored in a state in which traffic signal information including the traffic signal is associated, a recognition unit that recognizes display contents of the traffic signal, and a travel lane in which the vehicle is traveling based on the current position And a control unit that supports driving of the vehicle according to the display content of the traffic light associated with the travel lane. According to the driving system of this aspect, even when there are a plurality of traffic lights in the traveling direction of the vehicle, it is possible to support driving of the vehicle according to the display contents of the traffic lights associated with the traveling lane.

(3) In the driving support system of the above aspect, the storage unit further stores stop line position information indicating the position of the stop line associated with the traffic signal, and the control unit displays the display content of the traffic signal. However, when the recognition unit identifies that the display content prompts the vehicle to stop, the driving of the vehicle may be supported so that the vehicle stops at the position of the stop line associated with the traffic light. . According to the driving support system of this aspect, when the display content of the traffic light associated with the traveling lane is the display content prompting the vehicle to stop, the vehicle is stopped at the position of the stop line associated with the traffic light. It is possible to assist in driving the vehicle.

(4) According to another aspect of the present invention, a data structure of road network data used for vehicle driving assistance is provided. This data structure is associated with the lane information related to the travel lane and the lane information, and the presence position information of the traffic signal installed to notify the vehicle traveling in the travel lane of whether or not the vehicle is allowed to pass is provided. Signal information included. According to the data structure of this form, the presence position of the traffic signal associated with the lane can be specified based on the lane information.

  The present invention can be realized in various modes other than the driving support system and the data structure. For example, the present invention can be realized in the form of a driving support device, a driving support method, a computer program for realizing the method, a non-temporary recording medium recording the computer program, or the like.

The figure for demonstrating the structure of the driving assistance system 10 as one Embodiment of this invention. The figure for demonstrating the lane information 562. FIG. The flowchart for demonstrating the driving assistance process in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the example of the screen of the display part 320 at the time of driving assistance. The flowchart for demonstrating the driving assistance process in 2nd Embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the structure of the driving assistance system 110 of 3rd Embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the stop line position information 568. FIG. The flowchart for demonstrating the driving assistance process in 3rd Embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the driving assistance in 3rd Embodiment.

A. First embodiment:
A1. System configuration:
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a configuration of a driving support system 10 as an embodiment of the present invention. The driving support system 10 is a driving support system that supports driving of the vehicle 30 and includes a server 50 and a vehicle 30. The vehicle 30 and the server 50 are communicably connected to each other via the Internet INT as a communication line. The communication carrier BS includes a transmission / reception antenna, a radio base station, and an exchange station.

  The vehicle 30 includes a control unit 300, a vehicle side communication unit 310, a display unit 320, and a voice communication unit 330. The control unit 300 includes a RAM and a ROM. The control unit 300 controls each unit of the vehicle 30 by developing and executing a control program stored in the ROM on the RAM. More specifically, the control unit 300 executes control of an accelerator, a brake, etc. in addition to the vehicle side communication unit 310, the display unit 320, and the voice communication unit 330.

  The vehicle-side communication unit 310 is a device that communicates with the vehicle 30 of the server 50 via the Internet INT under the control of the control unit 300. The display unit 320 is a device that displays various images such as a map image. The audio communication unit 330 includes a speaker for outputting sound, a microphone for inputting sound, a circuit for driving these, and the like. The detection unit 340 detects the current position of the vehicle 30 based on radio waves received from artificial satellites that constitute a GPS (Global Positioning System). The recognition unit 350 is a device that recognizes the display content of the traffic light, and uses a CCD camera in this embodiment.

  The server 50 includes a communication unit 52, a control unit 54, and a storage unit 56. The control unit 54 includes a RAM and a ROM, and controls each unit of the server 50 by expanding and executing a control program stored in the ROM on the RAM. The communication unit 52 is a device that communicates with the vehicle 30 via the Internet INT under the control of the control unit 54. The storage unit 56 is configured by a hard disk in the present embodiment.

  The storage unit 56 stores lane information 562 and traffic signal information 564 in a state of being associated with each other. The lane information 562 is information related to the traveling lane. The traffic signal information 564 includes presence position information 566 that indicates the position of a traffic signal that is installed to notify the vehicle traveling in the traveling lane whether or not the vehicle is allowed to pass. This data structure is a data structure of road network data used for driving support of a vehicle. According to this data structure, it is possible to specify the position of a traffic signal associated with the lane based on the lane information.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the lane information 562. In FIG. 2, a total of 4 lanes, each with 2 lanes on one side, are shown. Lane information 562 indicates information for each lane. Specifically, the storage unit 56 has information on each of the lanes 42, 44, 46, and 48 as the lane information 562. In the present embodiment, the lane information 562 includes position information for each predetermined interval of a virtual line (center line) that defines the center of each lane. Further, the storage unit 56 stores the position information of the traffic lights 62 and 64 as the traffic signal presence position information 566. The traffic signal information 564 and the lane information 562 are associated with each other. Specifically, the lane information of the lane 42 and the lane 44 is associated with the presence position information of the traffic light 62. That is, the traffic signals corresponding to the lanes 42 and 44 are associated with the information on the traffic lanes 42 and 44 and the location information of the traffic signal 62 so that the traffic signal 62 can be seen. The lane information of the lane 46 and the lane 48 is associated with the presence position information of the traffic light 64. That is, the traffic signals corresponding to the lanes 46 and 48 are associated with the information on the lanes 46 and 48 and the presence position information of the traffic signal 64 so that the traffic signal 64 can be seen.
In addition to the latitude / longitude information, the location information of the traffic signal includes height information indicating the installed height.

A2. Driving support processing:
FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the driving support process in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, it starts when the engine of the vehicle 30 is started.

  When the driving support process is started, the control unit 300 of the vehicle 30 specifies the current position of the vehicle 30 by the detection unit 340 in step S110. Thereafter, in step S120, the control unit 300 refers to the lane information 562 in the storage unit 56 to identify the lane on the road closest to the current position as the travel lane in which the vehicle 30 is traveling.

  After the travel lane in which the vehicle 30 is traveling is specified, in step S130, the control unit 300 refers to the traffic signal information 564 in the storage unit 56, and is associated with the lane in which the vehicle 30 is traveling. Check for traffic lights.

  If there is a traffic signal associated with the travel lane in which the vehicle 30 is traveling, the control unit 300 provides driving support according to the traffic signal in step S140.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen of the display unit 320 when driving assistance is performed. It is assumed that the vehicle 30 is currently traveling in the second lane 190 from the left in FIG. In this case, the signal to be seen by the driver of the vehicle is not the traffic light 191 on the left side of the drawing but the traffic light 192 on the right side of the drawing. For this reason, the control part 300 performs a driving | operation assistance by processing a part of the image obtained from the detection part 340, and making a driver | operator recognize the traffic signal which should be seen. In FIG. 4, the driver is alerted by surrounding the signal light portion of the traffic light 192 to be seen with a circle 200. By doing in this way, even when there are a plurality of traffic lights in the traveling direction of the vehicle, it is possible to support driving of the vehicle according to the traffic lights associated with the travel lane. In addition, even when there are traffic lights for pedestrians or streetcars in the direction of travel of the vehicle, the vehicle is driven according to the traffic lights associated with the travel lane, regardless of the display contents of those traffic lights. Can be supported.

  Note that the driving support method is not limited to the display on the display unit 320, and the control unit 300 may control the voice communication unit 330 so as to give a voice alert. Moreover, the image obtained from the detection unit 340 may not be used as the image of the display unit 320 when driving assistance is performed. For example, the driver may be alerted by displaying an image created using the lane information 562 and the location information 566 stored in the storage unit 56 on the display unit 320.

  The driving support process ends when the engine of the vehicle 30 is turned off. On the other hand, when the engine of the vehicle 30 is not off (step S150: NO), the flow returns to step S110 to continue the driving support process.

B. Second embodiment:
The driving support system 10 of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. The driving support process of the second embodiment is different from the driving support process of the first embodiment in the process after specifying the traffic light (the process after step S130), but is otherwise the same. That is, in the second embodiment, the processes of step S240 and step S245 are performed instead of the process of step S140 (driving support) in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the driving support process in the second embodiment. When there is a traffic signal associated with the travel lane in which the vehicle 30 is traveling, the control unit 300 recognizes the display content of the traffic signal with the recognition unit 350 in step S240.

  Thereafter, in step S245, control unit 300 provides driving assistance for the vehicle according to the display content of the traffic light. Specifically, when the display content of the traffic light corresponding to the lane in which the vehicle 30 is traveling is the display content that prompts the vehicle to pass (when the green light is lit), the control unit 300 controls the accelerator. By doing so, the vehicle 30 is moved in the traveling direction. On the other hand, when the display content of the traffic light is the display content that prompts the vehicle to stop (when the red signal is lit), the controller 300 prompts the vehicle 30 to stop by controlling the brake. In addition, when the arrow signal lamp which shows the advancing direction which can pass at an intersection is attached to the signal apparatus, the driving assistance of the vehicle according to the display content of an arrow signal lamp is performed. By doing in this way, even when there are a plurality of traffic lights in the traveling direction of the vehicle, it is possible to support driving of the vehicle according to the display contents of the traffic lights associated with the traveling lane.

C. Third embodiment:
FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the driving support system 110 according to the third embodiment. In addition to the driving support system 10 of the second embodiment, the driving support system 110 further stores stop line position information 568 indicating the position of the stop line associated with the traffic light. Other than that, the driving support system 10 and the driving support system 110 are the same.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the stop line position information 568. In FIG. 7, a lane 49, a traffic light 66, and a stop line 80 are shown. The traffic light 66 is a traffic light that is installed to notify a vehicle traveling in the lane 49 of whether or not traffic is permitted. The stop line 80 is a line that indicates a position where the vehicle should stop when the display content of the traffic light 66 is display content that prompts the vehicle to stop. Assuming that the position information of the traffic light 66 is (X, Y, Z), the position information of the traffic light 66 is associated with the position information of the stop line 80 in the stop line position information 568.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the driving support process in the third embodiment. The driving support process of the third embodiment is different from the driving support process of the second embodiment in that the process of step S345 is performed instead of the process of step S245 (driving support) in the first embodiment. But otherwise it is the same.

  Driving assistance (step S345) in the third embodiment is performed as follows. When the display content of the traffic light is identified by the recognition unit 350 as the display content that prompts the vehicle 30 to stop, the control unit 300 applies the brake so that the vehicle 30 stops at the position of the stop line associated with the traffic light. The driving of the vehicle 30 is supported by controlling. In addition, when the display content of the traffic light is not the content that prompts the vehicle to stop, the same driving assistance as the driving assistance in the second embodiment is performed.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining driving support in the third embodiment. In FIG. 9, a stop line 82 and traffic lights 68 and 69 are shown. The traffic light 69 is a traffic light showing the same notification content as the traffic light 68 and is also called a warning signal light. If the place where the original traffic light 68 is installed is a place where the line of sight is poor, it may not be in time even if it tries to stop by accepting a red light. For this reason, in such a place, there may be a case where a traffic light 69 is preliminarily installed as a warning signal light in a place with a good view before the intersection. It is assumed that the vehicle 30 in the present embodiment is traveling in a lane corresponding to the traffic light 68.

  In the present embodiment, the traffic light 68 and the traffic light 69 are both associated with the stop line 82. For this reason, the vehicle 30 in this embodiment can stop at the correct stop position (position of the vehicle 36) without stopping at the position (position of the vehicle 34) in front of the traffic light 69.

D. Variations:
In addition, this invention is not restricted to said embodiment, In the range which does not deviate from the summary, it can be implemented in a various aspect, For example, the following deformation | transformation is also possible.

D1. Modification 1:
In the driving support system of the present embodiment, the display unit 320 and the voice communication unit 330 are part of the vehicle 30. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The functions of the display unit 320 and the voice communication unit 330 may be provided by, for example, a navigation device, and may be provided by a mobile phone, a notebook computer, a tablet terminal, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable music player, a portable game machine, or the like. Also good.

D2. Modification 2:
The recognition unit 350 may be a laser scanner. A laser scanner is a type of optical wave rangefinder. The near-infrared pulse laser beam is irradiated while rotating the irradiation direction by the rotating mirror inside the laser header, and the reflected light reflected at the measurement target point is detected, and the pulse propagation time of the laser light is detected by the phase comparison method etc. To measure the distance to the measurement target point. At the same time, it refers to a measuring device that acquires the coordinates of a measurement target point by measuring the direction of irradiation with a pulsed laser beam. A feature such as a traffic light is recognized from a group of coordinate points acquired by the laser scanner.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Driving assistance system 30 ... Vehicle 34 ... Vehicle 36 ... Vehicle 42 ... Lane 44 ... Lane 46 ... Lane 48 ... Lane 49 ... Lane 50 ... Server 52 ... Communication part 54 ... Control part 56 ... Memory | storage part 62 ... Traffic light 64 ... Traffic light 66 ... traffic light 68 ... traffic light 69 ... traffic light 80 ... stop line 82 ... stop line 110 ... driving support system 156 ... storage unit 200 ... circle 300 ... control unit 310 ... vehicle side communication unit 320 ... display unit 330 ... voice communication unit 340 ... Detection unit 350 ... Recognition unit 562 ... Lane information 564 ... Traffic signal information 566 ... Presence position information 568 ... Stop line position information BS ... Communication carrier INT ... Internet

(1) According to one aspect of the present invention, a driving support system that supports driving of a vehicle is provided. The driving support system includes first traffic signal information including presence position information of a first traffic signal that is installed to notify a vehicle traveling in a traveling lane whether the vehicle is allowed to pass, and a vehicle traveling in the traveling lane. The second traffic signal information including the presence position information of the second traffic signal installed for notifying whether or not the traffic can be passed, and stop line information indicating the position of the stop line, the stop line information Is stored in a state associated with the first traffic signal information and the second traffic signal information, and the first traffic signal and the second traffic signal indicate the same notification content to the vehicle. And a control unit that assists driving so that the vehicle stops at the position of the stop line based on the stop line information associated with the first traffic signal information and the second traffic signal information.

(2) In the driving support system of the above aspect, the first traffic light and the second traffic light are installed in the front-rear direction with respect to the same traveling direction.

(3) According to another aspect of the present invention, a data structure of data used for driving support of a vehicle is provided. This data structure is used for the first traffic signal information including the presence position information of the first traffic signal installed to notify the vehicle traveling in the traveling lane whether the vehicle is allowed to pass, and the vehicle traveling in the traveling lane. The second traffic signal information including the presence information of the second traffic signal installed to notify the passage of the traffic and stop line information indicating the position of the stop line, and the stop line information It is stored in a state associated with the first traffic signal information and the second traffic signal information, and the first traffic signal and the second traffic signal indicate the same notification content to the vehicle, and the control unit , Based on the stop line information associated with the first traffic signal information and the second traffic signal information, used for the process of assisting driving so that the vehicle stops at the position of the stop line.

(4) In the data structure of the above aspect, the first traffic signal and the second traffic signal are installed in the front and rear with respect to the same traveling direction.

Claims (4)

A driving support system for supporting driving of a vehicle,
A detection unit for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
Lane information related to the travel lane is stored in association with traffic signal information including the location information of a traffic signal installed to notify the vehicle traveling in the travel lane whether or not the vehicle is allowed to pass. A storage unit;
A driving support system comprising: a control unit that identifies a traveling lane in which the vehicle is traveling based on the current position and that assists driving of the vehicle according to a traffic signal associated with the traveling lane. A driving support system for supporting driving of a vehicle,
A detection unit for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
Lane information related to the travel lane is stored in association with traffic signal information including the location information of a traffic signal installed to notify the vehicle traveling in the travel lane whether or not the vehicle is allowed to pass. A storage unit;
A recognition unit for recognizing display contents of the traffic light;
A driving support comprising: a control unit that identifies a traveling lane in which the vehicle is traveling based on the current position and that assists driving of the vehicle according to display contents of a traffic signal associated with the traveling lane system. The driving support system according to claim 2,
The storage unit further stores stop line position information indicating the position of the stop line associated with the traffic light,
When the display content of the traffic light is identified as the display content prompting the vehicle to stop by the recognition unit, the control unit causes the vehicle to stop at the position of the stop line associated with the traffic light. A driving support system for supporting driving of the vehicle. A data structure of road network data used for driving support of a vehicle,
Lane information about the driving lane,
Road network data data, which is associated with the lane information and includes traffic signal information including presence position information of traffic signals installed to notify the vehicle traveling in the travel lane whether or not the vehicle is allowed to pass. Construction.

Images