JP2020190506A - Traveling supporting device and computer program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a traveling supporting device and a computer program that can accurately identify a state in which a vehicle equipped therewith is travelling on an express highway.SOLUTION: A travelling supporting device is configured to acquire feature information in which a continuation distance being a distance from a feature provided on an express highway to a next interchange along a travelling direction is associated with the feature, and to estimate that a vehicle is in a state of travelling on the express highway in a period where the vehicle is from now travelling a continuation distance associated with the detected feature, when the feature is detected around the vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

The present invention relates to a travel support device and a computer program that support the travel of a vehicle.

In addition to narrow general roads, some roads such as expressways, urban expressways, motorways, general toll roads, and national roads that can be driven at high speeds are divided according to the direction of travel. There is a section in which the vehicle can travel only in a fixed direction. However, if the traveling direction is not clearly specified, the vehicle may travel in the opposite direction to the traveling direction defined in the traveling section by making a mistake in the traveling direction, which is a so-called reverse driving state. For example, as a cause of such a reverse driving state of a vehicle, when the vehicle travels on a road (for example, a highway) in a one-way section consisting of a plurality of lanes, the lane on the right side of the driver is the oncoming lane. It may be mistakenly recognized as a U-turn. In addition, if a vehicle mistakenly enters the entrance road and the exit road at an IC (interchange) such as an expressway, the vehicle will run in reverse. In addition, when a vehicle returns from a parking lot in a service area (SA) or a parking area (PA) to the main line, the vehicle may enter the wrong entrance road and exit road, resulting in a reverse driving state.

When the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state due to the above reasons, it is extremely important to accurately detect that the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state and promptly warn the driver to that effect. Here, among the above reasons, as a means for detecting that the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state by making a U-turn, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-204748 describes a case where the own vehicle is traveling on an expressway. , A technique for detecting that a reverse-way driving state has occurred when the turning angle or yaw angle of the own vehicle exceeds the threshold value, that is, when a U-turn is performed, has been proposed.

JP-A-2010-204748 (pages 6-8)

Here, in order to detect that the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state due to a U-turn as in Patent Document 1, the own vehicle is traveling on a one-way section road consisting of a plurality of lanes as a premise. It is necessary to identify that it is in a state. A typical example of a one-way road consisting of multiple lanes is an expressway. That is, in order to detect that the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state by making a U-turn, it is important to accurately identify whether or not the own vehicle is in a state of traveling on a highway.

For example, in Patent Document 1, the road on which the own vehicle travels is specified by map matching using the detection result of the current position of the own vehicle. However, in the identification of the driving road by map matching, the general road is running even though the highway is running in the section where the highway and the general road run side by side, or vice versa. There was a risk of being mistakenly recognized as traveling on the highway even though it was traveling.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and by using the detection result of a feature provided on the road, it is possible to accurately identify that the own vehicle is in a state of traveling on the highway. It is an object of the present invention to provide a driving support device and a computer program that make it possible to do so.

In order to achieve the above object, the traveling support device according to the present invention associates a feature provided on an expressway with a continuous distance, which is the distance from the feature to the next interchange along the traveling direction. The feature information acquisition means for acquiring the feature information, the feature detection means for detecting the feature located around the vehicle, and the detected feature when the feature is detected by the feature detection means. It has a traveling road estimation means that estimates that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on an expressway while the vehicle travels for the continuous distance associated with the feature in the future.
In addition, "expressway" includes at least one of expressway national highway, general national highway motorway (high-standard highway), Honshu-Shikoku connecting road, urban expressway (regional high-standard highway), and other motorways. ..

Further, the computer program according to the present invention is a program for supporting the traveling of a vehicle. Specifically, a computer acquires feature information that links a feature provided on an expressway with a continuous distance that is the distance from the feature to the next interchange along the direction of travel. When the feature is detected by the feature information acquisition means, the feature detection means for detecting the feature located around the vehicle, and the feature detection means, the feature is associated with the detected feature. The continuous distance is made to function as a traveling road estimation means for estimating that the vehicle is traveling on the highway while the vehicle is traveling in the future.

According to the traveling support device and the computer program according to the present invention having the above-described configuration, a distance that guarantees that the expressway continues from the position where the feature is detected in advance is linked to the feature provided on the expressway. By attaching it, it is possible to accurately identify that the vehicle that has detected the feature is in a state of traveling on the highway after that. As a result, for example, when applied to a reverse-way driving detecting means, it is possible to accurately detect a reverse-way driving state due to a U-turn.

It is a block diagram which showed the navigation device which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which showed an example of the storage area of a feature DB. It is a figure which showed the installation example of the road marking of the arrow on the highway. It is a figure which showed the installation example of the road marking of the arrow on the highway. It is a figure explaining the continuation distance. It is a flowchart of the driving support processing program which concerns on this embodiment. It is a flowchart of the sub-processing program of the 1st driving road type determination processing. It is a flowchart of the sub-processing program of the 2nd driving road type determination processing. It is a figure explaining the road type determination method of the road on which a vehicle travels. It is a flowchart of the sub-processing program of the reverse run detection processing.

Hereinafter, the traveling support device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings based on an embodiment embodied in a navigation device. First, the schematic configuration of the navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1, the navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment includes a current position detection unit 11 that detects the current position of a vehicle on which the navigation device 1 is mounted, a data recording unit 12 in which various data are recorded, and a data recording unit 12. A navigation ECU 13 that performs various arithmetic processes based on the input information, an operation unit 14 that accepts operations from the user, a liquid crystal display 15 that displays a map or a guide route to the destination to the user, and a route. Communication that communicates between a speaker 16 that outputs voice guidance related to guidance, a DVD drive 17 that reads a DVD as a storage medium, and an information center such as a probe center or a VICS (registered trademark: Vehicle Information and Communication System) center. It has a module 18 and. Further, the navigation device 1 is connected to an external camera 19 and various sensors installed for the vehicle on which the navigation device 1 is mounted via an in-vehicle network such as CAN.

Hereinafter, each component of the navigation device 1 will be described in order.
The current position detection unit 11 includes a GPS 21, a vehicle speed sensor 22, a steering sensor 23, a gyro sensor 24, and the like, and can detect the current position, direction, vehicle running speed, current time, and the like of the vehicle. .. Here, in particular, the vehicle speed sensor 22 is a sensor for detecting the moving distance and the vehicle speed of the vehicle, generates a pulse according to the rotation of the driving wheels of the vehicle, and outputs the pulse signal to the navigation ECU 13. Then, the navigation ECU 13 calculates the rotation speed and the moving distance of the drive wheels by counting the generated pulses. It is not necessary for the navigation device 1 to include all of the above four types of sensors, and the navigation device 1 may include only one or a plurality of of these sensors.

Further, the data recording unit 12 reads out an external storage device and a hard disk as a recording medium (not shown), a map information DB 31 and a feature DB 32 recorded on the hard disk, a predetermined program, and the like, and outputs predetermined data to the hard disk. It is equipped with a recording head (not shown) that is a driver for writing. The data recording unit 12 may be configured by a flash memory, a memory card, or an optical disk such as a CD or DVD instead of the hard disk. Further, the map information DB 31 and the feature DB 32 may be stored in an external server and acquired by the navigation device 1 by communication.

Here, the map information DB 31 is, for example, link data 33 related to a road (link), node data 34 related to a node point, point data 35 related to a point such as a facility, intersection data related to each intersection, and map display data for displaying a map. , Search data for searching a route, search data for searching a point, and the like are stored as a storage means.

Further, the link data 33 includes the width of the road to which the link belongs, the width of the road, the cant, the bank, the condition of the road surface, the number of lanes of the road, the place where the number of lanes decreases, and the width of each link constituting the road. Data representing narrowed points, crossings, etc., data representing corners such as radius of curvature, intersections, T-shaped roads, corner entrances and exits, and road attributes, data representing downhill roads, uphill roads, etc. For each type, data representing highways and general roads (national roads, prefectural roads, narrow streets, etc.) are recorded. The expressways include expressways, general national highways (high-standard highways), Honshu-Shikoku connecting roads, urban expressways (regional high-standard highways), and other expressways. Further, the link data 33 also includes information for identifying a link included in a road connecting an expressway and a general road and a road connecting different expressways (so-called ramp) as a connecting road link.

Further, as the node data 34, the coordinates (positions) of the actual road branch points (including intersections, T-shaped roads, etc.) and the node points set for each predetermined distance according to the radius of curvature of each road, etc. A node attribute that indicates whether a node is a node corresponding to an intersection, a connection link number list that is a list of link numbers of links that connect to a node, and an adjacency that is a list of node numbers of nodes that are adjacent to a node via a link. A list of node numbers, data related to the height (altitude) of each node point, etc. are recorded.

Further, as the point data 35, information about a starting point, a destination, a guidance target, and the like in the navigation device 1 is stored. For example, accommodation facilities such as hotels and inns, refueling facilities such as gas stations, commercial facilities such as shopping malls, supermarkets, shopping centers, convenience stores, entertainment facilities such as theme parks and game centers, restaurants, bars, taverns, etc. Information on facilities, parking facilities such as public parking lots, transportation facilities, religious facilities such as temples and churches, and public facilities such as museums and museums is applicable. In particular, in the present embodiment, information on facilities on the expressway (hereinafter referred to as expressway facilities) is also stored. Here, as an expressway facility, in addition to a facility (that is, a part of the expressway) on the expressway (that is, an interchange, a junction), the expressway is connected to another road such as an access road. It also includes facilities (for example, service areas, parking areas) that can be entered and exited from the expressway by being connected.

On the other hand, the feature DB 32 is a DB that stores information about features provided on the expressway. Here, as features, there are road markings (white lines, broken lines, arrows) drawn on the road surface, and structures installed along the road (road signs, tollhouses, antiglare boards, electronic bulletin boards, lighting, poles). .. In addition, road signs include speed signs, guide signs that guide directions at branches, guide signs that guide exits, kilometer posts, and no-entry regulatory signs. However, in the following description, the feature DB 32 of the present embodiment is a DB that stores information related to road markings of arrows, among various features provided on the expressway.

Note that the feature DB 32 may store information about features provided on the expressway other than the road markings indicated by the arrows. However, the navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment detects the feature whose information is stored in the feature DB 32 by using the captured image of the periphery of the own vehicle as described later, so that the own vehicle is on the highway. Identify that you are in a state of driving. Therefore, the feature to be stored in the feature DB 32 is a feature that is easy to recognize by image recognition (has a simple and characteristic appearance) and does not exist as much as possible on a general road. desirable. In addition to the road markings indicated by the arrows, the applicable features include guide signs that guide directions at branches, and restricted signs that prohibit entry.

Here, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the storage area of the feature DB 32. As shown in FIG. 2, the feature DB 32 includes the name of the road on which the road markings are installed, the name of the interchange or junction where the road markings are installed, and the progress of the road on which the road markings are installed. Direction (up or down), coordinate data (latitude, longitude) that identifies the installation position, road type of the place where the road marking of the arrow is installed, and the next along the direction of travel from the road marking of the arrow The distance to the interchange of is stored in association with it.

Here, on the expressway, the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow is a connection section (confluence section) in which the main line 51 and the lamp 52 are connected as shown in FIG. 3, and a plurality of lamps 53 and 54 are connected to each other as shown in FIG. It is generally drawn on the road surface of the connecting section (merging section) to be connected, and is a road marking indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle. That is, the road marking of the arrow basically exists at the interchange which is the connection point between the expressway and the general road, or at the junction which is the connection point between a plurality of expressways. However, it may exist on the main line other than the interchange or the junction, and the information regarding the road marking of such an arrow may be stored in the feature DB 32. When drawn on the main lane, it may be drawn on all lanes, or as shown in FIG. 3, it may be drawn on only a part of the lanes (for example, the outermost lane with respect to the lamp). ..

For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, it is shown that the coordinates (x1, y1) in the downward direction of the Atsugi IC on the Tomei Expressway are provided with arrow road markings in the confluence section of the main line and the ramp. Further, it is linked and stored that the distance from the road marking of the arrow to the next interchange (that is, Hadano-Nakai IC) along the traveling direction is 14.9 km. Here, the distance to the next interchange along the traveling direction (hereinafter referred to as the continuation distance) is more accurately determined from the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow as shown in FIG. 5, and the branch of the next interchange along the traveling direction. It is the distance to (the connection point of the lamp leaving the main line). That is, in other words, the continuation distance also corresponds to the distance that guarantees that the vehicle that has detected the road marking of the arrow is subsequently traveling on the highway.

Further, in the example shown in FIG. 2, it is shown that the coordinates (x2, y2) of the Atsugi IC on the Tomei Expressway are provided with arrow road markings in the confluence section of the ramps. The continuation distance is not linked to the road markings indicated by the arrows in the confluence section of the ramps. This is because there is basically no interchange in the direction of travel (exit to the general road).

Then, when the navigation ECU 13 detects the road marking of any arrow recorded in the feature DB 32 from the captured image captured by the external camera 19 as described later, whether or not the vehicle is in a state of traveling on the highway. Is determined. Further, when the road marking of the arrow associated with the continuation distance is detected, it is estimated that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on the highway while the vehicle is traveling for the associated continuation distance in the future. Details will be described later.

On the other hand, the navigation ECU (electronic control unit) 13 is an electronic control unit that controls the entire navigation device 1, and is a computing device, a CPU 41 as a control device, and a working memory when the CPU 41 performs various arithmetic processes. In addition to being used as a RAM 42 for storing route data when a route is searched for, a control program, and a traveling support processing program (FIG. 6) described later are recorded in the ROM 43 and ROM 43. It is provided with an internal storage device such as a flash memory 44 for storing a program. The navigation ECU 13 has various means as a processing algorithm. For example, the feature information acquisition means acquires feature information in which a feature provided on an expressway is associated with a continuous distance, which is the distance from the feature to the next interchange along the direction of travel. .. The feature detection means detects features located around the vehicle. When a feature is detected by the feature detection means, the driving road estimation means puts the vehicle on the highway while the vehicle travels for a continuous distance associated with the detected feature in the future. Presumed to be.

The operation unit 14 is operated when inputting a starting point as a traveling start point and a destination as a traveling end point, and has a plurality of operation switches (not shown) such as various keys and buttons. Then, the navigation ECU 13 controls to execute the corresponding various operations based on the switch signals output by pressing each switch or the like. The operation unit 14 may have a touch panel provided on the front surface of the liquid crystal display 15. Further, the configuration may include a microphone and a voice recognition device.

In addition, the liquid crystal display 15 has a map image including roads, traffic information, operation guidance, operation menus, key guidance, guidance routes from the departure point to the destination, guidance information along the guidance routes, news, weather forecasts, etc. The time, mail, TV program, etc. are displayed. Further, particularly in the present embodiment, when it is detected that the own vehicle is in the reverse driving state, a warning about the reverse driving state is also displayed.

Further, the speaker 16 outputs voice guidance for guiding the traveling along the guidance route and traffic information guidance based on the instruction from the navigation ECU 13. Further, particularly in the present embodiment, when it is detected that the own vehicle is in the reverse-way driving state, a warning voice for the reverse-way driving state is also output.

Further, the DVD drive 17 is a drive capable of reading data recorded on a recording medium such as a DVD or a CD. Then, based on the read data, music or video is reproduced, the map information DB 31 is updated, and the like. A card slot for reading and writing a memory card may be provided instead of the DVD drive 17.

Further, the communication module 18 is a communication device for receiving traffic information including various information such as traffic jam information, regulation information, and traffic accident information transmitted from a traffic information center, for example, a VICS center or a probe center. For example, mobile phones and DCM.

Further, the vehicle exterior camera 19 is composed of a camera using a solid-state image sensor such as a CCD, and is attached to a vehicle bumper, a rear-view mirror, a door mirror, or the like, and has an optical axis so that the surrounding environment of the vehicle can be imaged. The direction is set. The number of external cameras 19 may be singular or plural. Then, the vehicle exterior camera 19 images the front, side, and rear of the vehicle in the traveling direction when the vehicle is traveling. It should be noted that the imaging range does not necessarily have to be all the front, side and rear of the vehicle in the traveling direction, and for example, only the front or the rear of the vehicle in the traveling direction may be the imaging range.

Then, the navigation ECU 13 detects a feature located around the own vehicle by performing an image recognition process on the captured image captured by the external camera 19. The feature detection process may be performed by the vehicle-side ECU instead of the navigation device 1. As a means for detecting other objects, a sensor such as a millimeter wave radar may be used instead of the external camera 19.

Subsequently, a travel support processing program executed by the navigation ECU 13 in the navigation device 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the traveling support processing program according to the present embodiment. Here, the traveling support processing program is repeatedly executed at predetermined time intervals after the ACC power supply (accessory power supply) of the vehicle is turned on, the road type of the road on which the vehicle travels is specified, and the vehicle is in a reverse driving state. It is a program that warns when it detects that. The programs shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 6 to 8 and 10 below are stored in the RAM 42 and ROM 43 included in the navigation device 1 and executed by the CPU 41.

First, in the travel support processing program, in step 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as S) 1, the CPU 41 executes the first travel road type determination process (FIG. 7) described later. In the first driving road type determination process, the vehicle is traveling on an expressway or on a general road (including a narrow street) based on the detection result of a feature located around the own vehicle. It is a process of determining whether or not there is.

Next, in S2, the CPU 41 determines the current travel type of the road on which the vehicle travels, based on the results of the determination of the first driving road type determination processing in S1 and the second driving road type determination processing in S3 described later. Determine if it is estimated to be on a highway or a general road. Specifically, when it is determined in the first driving road type determination processing or the second driving road type determination processing that has been carried out most recently that the vehicle is traveling on a general road, the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling. The driving type of is presumed to be a general road. On the other hand, if it is determined in the first driving road type determination processing or the second driving road type determination processing that has been carried out most recently that the vehicle is traveling on the highway, the traveling type of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling Is presumed to be a highway.

Then, when it is estimated that the driving type of the road on which the vehicle travels at the present time is an expressway (S2: YES), the process proceeds to S3. On the other hand, when it is estimated that the driving type of the road on which the vehicle is traveling at the present time is a general road (S2: NO), the traveling support processing program is terminated.

In S3, the CPU 41 executes the second road type determination process (FIG. 8) described later. In the second driving road type determination process, it is generally determined whether the vehicle is traveling on the expressway based on the detection result of the feature located around the own vehicle and the mileage after the detection of the feature. This is a process for determining whether or not a vehicle is traveling on a road (including a narrow street).

Subsequently, in S4, the CPU 41 determines whether the traveling type of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling is estimated to be either an expressway or a general road, as in S2.

Then, when it is estimated that the driving type of the road on which the vehicle travels at the present time is an expressway (S4: YES), the process proceeds to S5. On the other hand, when it is estimated that the driving type of the road on which the vehicle is traveling at the present time is a general road (S4: NO), the traveling support processing program is terminated.

Subsequently, in S5, the CPU 41 executes the reverse run determination process (FIG. 10) described later. The reverse-way driving determination process is a process for detecting that the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state based on the road type of the road on which the own vehicle travels and whether or not a U-turn is performed.

Next, the sub-processing of the first driving road type determination processing in S1 will be described with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a sub-processing program of the first driving road type determination processing.

First, in S11, the CPU 41 uses GPS 21 to acquire the position coordinates (latitude, longitude) of the current position of the vehicle. In addition to GPS 21, it is also possible to acquire position coordinates using various sensors such as a vehicle speed sensor 22, a steering sensor 23, and a gyro sensor 24. Further, the current position of the vehicle may be specified using high precision location technology. Here, the high-precision location technology is a traveling lane by detecting white lines and road surface paint information captured from the outside camera 19 by image recognition and further collating the white lines and road surface paint information with a map information DB stored in advance. It is a technology that makes it possible to detect the vehicle position with high accuracy. Since the details of the high-precision location technology are already known, they will be omitted.

Next, in S12, the CPU 41 recognizes (detects) features located around the vehicle by performing image processing (for example, binarization processing, pattern matching processing, etc.) on the image captured by the external camera 19. To do. Specifically, the type of feature whose information is stored in the feature DB 32 (FIG. 2) is to be recognized (detected), and in the present embodiment, the road surface (in addition to the road surface in the lane in which the own vehicle travels), the own vehicle The road markings of the arrows drawn on the road surface of the lane other than the lane in which the vehicle is traveling are recognized (detected).

Next, in S13, the CPU 41 recognizes (detects), in particular, a type of feature whose information is stored in the feature DB 32, that is, the road marking of the arrow, based on the detection result of the feature recognition process performed in S12. Judge whether or not.

Then, when it is determined that the road marking of the arrow is recognized (detected) (S13: YES), the process proceeds to S14.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the road marking of the arrow is not recognized (detected) (S13: NO), the road type of the road on which the own vehicle travels cannot be specified based on the feature. It shifts to S2 without determining the type of road on which the vehicle travels. In that case, the previous determination result is continuously adopted for the driving type of the road on which the current vehicle is traveling. That is, if it is determined in the previous first driving road type determination processing or the second driving road type determination processing that the vehicle is traveling on a general road, the traveling type of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling continues. It is presumed that it is a general road. On the other hand, if it is determined in the previous first driving road type determination processing or the second driving road type determination processing that the vehicle is traveling on the expressway, the traveling type of the road on which the vehicle is currently traveling continues. It is presumed to be a highway. However, at the time of the first execution immediately after the ACC power supply (accessory power supply) of the vehicle is turned on, it is exceptionally determined that the vehicle is traveling on a general road.

In S14, the CPU 41 has the position coordinates (latitude and longitude) of the feature (road marking of the arrow) detected in the feature recognition process of S12 coincide with the position coordinates of any of the features stored in the feature DB 32. Judge whether or not. It should be noted that the match is not limited to the case where the match is perfect, and it is desirable to consider that the match is within a certain error range in consideration of the detection error and the like, even if the match is not perfect. Further, the position coordinates of the feature may be the position coordinates of the vehicle at the time when the corresponding feature is detected, or the actual position coordinates of the feature may be calculated based on the relative positional relationship with the own vehicle. good.

Then, when it is determined that the position coordinates of the feature detected in the feature recognition process of S12 match the position coordinates of any of the features stored in the feature DB 32 (S14: YES), S16 Move to.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the position coordinates of the feature detected in the feature recognition process of S12 do not match the position coordinates of any of the features stored in the feature DB 32 (S14: NO), the vehicle Can be presumed to have recognized the road markings of the arrows on the general road, not the road markings of the arrows on the highway. Therefore, in S15, the CPU 41 determines that the own vehicle is traveling on a general road. After that, it shifts to S2.

Subsequently, in S16, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the feature detected in the feature recognition process in S12 is the road marking of the arrow located in the main line or the connecting section between the main line and the lamp. The road type of the place where the road markings of the arrows are installed on the expressway is stored in the feature DB 32 (FIG. 2) in advance for each road marking of the arrows. Therefore, the CPU 41 extracts information about the feature determined to have the same position coordinates in S14 from the feature DB 32, and the feature detected by the vehicle based on the extracted information is the main line or the connection between the main line and the lamp. It is determined whether or not the road marking is an arrow located in the section.

Then, when it is determined that the feature detected in the feature recognition process of S12 is the road marking of the arrow located in the main line or the connecting section between the main line and the lamp (S16: YES), the process proceeds to S17. To do.

In S17, the CPU 41 determines that the own vehicle has recognized the feature on the highway, and determines that the vehicle is traveling on the highway. After that, it shifts to S18.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the feature detected in the feature recognition process of S12 is the road marking of the arrow located outside the main line and the connecting section between the main line and the lamp (S16: NO), the vehicle is shown in the figure. As shown in 4, it can be presumed that the road markings of the arrows drawn on the road surface of the connecting section (merging section) where the plurality of lamps are connected are recognized. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the traveling direction of the road markings of the arrows drawn with respect to the road surface of the connecting section (merging section) in which a plurality of lamps are connected is basically an exit route to a general road. .. Therefore, in S15, the CPU 41 determines that the own vehicle is traveling on a general road. After that, it shifts to S2.

Further, in S18, the CPU 41 acquires the continuous distance associated with the feature DB 32 for the feature (road marking indicated by the arrow) detected in the feature recognition process of S12. Here, the continuation distance is the distance from the road marking of the corresponding arrow to the next interchange along the traveling direction as described above. More precisely, as shown in FIG. 5, it is the distance from the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow to the branch of the next interchange (the connection point of the ramp exiting the main line) along the traveling direction. The continuation distance is stored in advance in the feature DB 32 (FIG. 2) for each road marking indicated by the arrow. Therefore, the CPU 41 extracts the continuous distance associated with the feature determined to have the same position coordinates in S14 from the feature DB 32. After that, it shifts to S2.

Next, the sub-processing of the second driving road type determination processing in S3 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a sub-processing program for the second driving road type determination processing.

First, in S21, the mileage of the vehicle after it is determined that the CPU 41 has recognized (detected) the type of feature whose information is stored in the feature DB 32 in the feature recognition process of S12, that is, the road marking of the arrow. Is determined whether or not the continuation distance acquired in S18 or more is exceeded.

Then, when it is determined that the mileage of the vehicle after it is determined that the road marking of the arrow is recognized (detected) is equal to or greater than the continuation distance acquired in S18 (S21: YES), the process proceeds to S22. And migrate.

Here, as shown in FIG. 9, the continuation distance is the distance from the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow to the branch of the next interchange (the connection point of the ramp exiting the main line) along the traveling direction. That is, there is no possibility of leaving the general road at least while traveling the continuous distance after detecting the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow. Therefore, it is estimated that the own vehicle is traveling on the highway during the continuous distance traveling after detecting the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow. On the other hand, after detecting the road marking 50 indicated by the arrow and traveling a continuous distance, there is a possibility of exiting to a general road. Therefore, in S22, the CPU 41 determines that the own vehicle is traveling on a general road. After that, it is estimated that the own vehicle is traveling on a general road until the next recognition (detection) of the road marking of the arrow in which the information is stored in the feature DB 32.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the mileage of the vehicle after it is determined that the road marking of the arrow is recognized (detected) is less than the continuation distance acquired in S18 (S21: NO), the process proceeds to S23. And migrate.

In S23, the CPU 41 determines whether or not a stop line or a traffic light is recognized around the vehicle by performing image processing (for example, binarization processing, pattern matching processing, etc.) on the image captured by the external camera 19. To do. In S23, the determination target may be a feature other than a stop line or a traffic light. However, it is desirable to use features that exist only on general roads or features that are extremely few on expressways.

Then, when it is determined that the stop line or the traffic light is recognized around the vehicle (S23: YES), the judgment result regarding the road type of the road on which the own vehicle travels last time is corrected, and the own vehicle is a general road. Is determined to be running. After that, it shifts to S4. On the other hand, when it is determined that the stop line and the traffic light are not recognized around the vehicle (S23: NO), the process shifts to S4 without newly determining the type of road on which the own vehicle travels. In that case, it is presumed that the vehicle is continuously traveling on the expressway for the driving type of the road on which the current vehicle is traveling.

Next, the sub-processing of the reverse-way driving determination processing in S5 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a sub-processing program for the reverse-way driving determination processing.

First, in S31, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the following conditions (A) to (C) are satisfied.
(A) The vehicle speed is 10 km / h or more.
(B) The direction of the vehicle has changed by 25 degrees or more as compared with the case where the position of the vehicle is 10 m before the current position.
(C) The turning radius of the vehicle is equal to or less than the threshold value (for example, 10 m).

When it is determined that all of the above conditions (A) to (C) are satisfied (S31: YES), it can be estimated that the vehicle is making a U-turn or has made a U-turn. Here, when a vehicle makes a U-turn in a state where the vehicle is traveling on a road in a one-way section composed of a plurality of lanes such as an expressway, it is highly possible that the own vehicle is in a reverse driving state.

Then, in the present embodiment, the reverse driving determination process (S5) is performed only when it is estimated that the own vehicle is traveling on the highway. Therefore, in S32, the CPU 41 states that the vehicle is in the reverse driving state. judge. Further, in S33, the CPU 41 outputs a sentence or a voice warning that the driver is in the reverse running state to the liquid crystal display 15 or the speaker 16. Specifically, the message "Please note that you are currently driving in the opposite direction on the road" is displayed on the liquid crystal display 15, and the same sound is output from the speaker 16. This warns the user that the vehicle is running in reverse. Further, the reverse driving may be stopped by controlling the vehicle.

In S31, when it is determined that all the conditions (A) to (C) are satisfied, it is determined that the vehicle is making a U-turn or has made a U-turn, but (A) and (B) or When the conditions (B) and (C) are satisfied, it may be determined that the vehicle is making a U-turn or has made a U-turn. Further, each numerical value included in the conditions (A) to (C) can be changed as appropriate. For example, the threshold value of the turning radius in (C) may be a value smaller than the minimum turning radius of the curve recognized on the highway.

On the other hand, if it is determined that any of the above conditions (A) to (C) is not satisfied (S31: NO), the process proceeds to S34.

In S34, the CPU 41 determines whether or not the following condition (D) is satisfied.
(D) The direction of the vehicle has changed by 90 degrees or more as compared with the case where the position of the vehicle is a predetermined distance before (for example, 20 m before) from the current position.

Then, when it is determined that the condition of the above (D) is satisfied (S34: YES), it can be estimated that the vehicle is making a U-turn or has made a U-turn. After that, the process shifts to S32, and it is determined that the vehicle is in the reverse driving state. Each numerical value included in the condition (D) can be changed as appropriate.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the condition (D) above is not satisfied (S34: NO), it is determined that the vehicle is not in the reverse driving state, and the traveling support processing program is terminated without giving a warning.

As described in detail above, according to the navigation device 1 and the computer program executed by the navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment, the feature provided on the highway is along the traveling direction from the feature. Acquires feature information linked to the continuous distance, which is the distance to the next interchange (S18), and when a feature is detected around the vehicle, the continuous distance linked to the detected feature is used for the vehicle. Since it is estimated that the vehicle is traveling on the expressway while the vehicle is traveling in the future (S17, S21), the expressway moves from the position where the feature is detected in advance with respect to the feature provided on the expressway. By associating the distance that guarantees continuation, it is possible to accurately identify that the vehicle that detected the feature is in a state of traveling on the highway thereafter. As a result, for example, when applied to a reverse-way driving detecting means, it is possible to accurately detect a reverse-way driving state due to a U-turn.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.
For example, in the present embodiment, the conditions (A) to (D) above are used as the conditions for determining that the vehicle has made a U-turn, but conditions other than the above (A) to (D) are used. Is also good. For example, it may be a condition that the angular velocity of the own vehicle exceeds the threshold value.

Further, in the present embodiment, it is presumed that the road marking of the arrow in which the information is stored in the feature DB 32 is detected, and that the vehicle is traveling on a general road after traveling the continuous distance associated with the detected feature. (S22), but it may be estimated that the vehicle is traveling on the highway until the next detection of some feature. Further, in the present embodiment, it is estimated whether the road on which the vehicle is traveling is an expressway or a general road, but it is finally warned that the vehicle is in a reverse driving state on the expressway. It is not always necessary to presume that you are driving on a general road if you want to do so. For example, only the fact that the vehicle is traveling on the expressway may be managed by the flag, and the reverse driving warning (S33) may be issued only when the expressway traveling flag is ON.

Further, in the present embodiment, the reverse driving state is detected (S5) by using the judgment result (S1 to S4) of the road type of the road on which the own vehicle travels, but the road on the road on which the own vehicle travels. The type judgment result can be used for purposes other than detecting the reverse driving state. For example, it may be used for more accurate map matching, or it may be used for providing traffic information (providing traffic information on an expressway when it is presumed that the vehicle is traveling on an expressway).

Further, in the present embodiment, the reverse driving state is detected (S31, S32, S34) only when it is determined that the own vehicle is traveling on the highway, but the reverse driving state is detected by the vehicle. It may be always performed regardless of the type of road on which the vehicle is traveling, and the warning (S33) when it is detected that the vehicle is in a reverse driving state may be issued only when it is determined that the own vehicle is traveling on the highway. ..

In addition to the navigation device, the present invention can be applied to various devices having a function of guiding the traveling of the vehicle. For example, it can be applied to mobile terminals such as mobile phones and smartphones, personal computers, tablet terminals and the like (hereinafter referred to as mobile terminals and the like). In that case, it is desirable to be able to obtain the recognition result of the feature from the vehicle by communication.

Further, it can be applied to a system composed of a navigation device 1 and a server, or a mobile terminal or the like and a server. In that case, each step of the above-mentioned driving support processing program (FIGS. 6 to 8 and 10) may be partially executed by the server. For example, the feature DB 32 may be provided in the server, and the comparison between the feature recognition result and the feature DB 32 may be performed by the server.

Further, although the embodiment in which the driving support device and the computer program according to the present invention are embodied has been described above, the driving support device can also have the following configurations, and in that case, the following effects are obtained.

For example, the first configuration is as follows.
A feature information acquisition means (50) for acquiring feature information associated with a feature (50) provided on an expressway and a continuation distance that is the distance from the feature to the next interchange along the direction of travel. 41), a feature detecting means (41) for detecting the feature located around the vehicle, and when the feature is detected by the feature detecting means, the feature is associated with the detected feature. It also has a traveling road estimation means (41) that estimates that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on an expressway while the vehicle travels for the continuous distance in the future.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, the ground is associated with the feature provided on the highway by associating the distance that guarantees the continuation of the highway from the position where the feature is detected in advance. It makes it possible to accurately identify that the vehicle that detected the object is subsequently in a state of traveling on the highway. As a result, for example, when applied to a reverse-way driving detection means, it is possible to accurately detect a reverse-way driving state due to a U-turn.

The second configuration is as follows.
The feature information is information in which the continuation distance is associated with each place for each place (50) provided on the expressway, and the traveling road estimation means (41) is the place. When any of the features included in the feature information is detected by the object detection means, the vehicle travels on the highway while the vehicle travels for the continuous distance associated with the detected feature. It is estimated that the vehicle is in a state of traveling.
According to the travel support device having the above configuration, a database is created that links the distances that guarantee that the expressway will continue from the position where the feature was detected in advance for the various objects provided on the expressway. By setting it, it is possible to accurately identify that the vehicle that has detected any of the features stored in the database is in a state of subsequently traveling on the highway.

The third configuration is as follows.
The feature information is information for a specific type of feature (50) provided on an expressway, and is also linked to position information for specifying the position where the feature is provided for each place. The driving road estimation means is any one in which the specific type of feature is detected by the feature detecting means and the position where the feature is detected is included in the feature information. When it corresponds to the position information associated with the feature, it is determined that any of the features included in the feature information has been detected by the feature detecting means.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, by creating a database in which the position information of the features is linked to the various objects provided on the expressway, any of the vehicles stored in the database. It is possible to accurately determine whether or not a feature has been detected without making a mistake.

The fourth configuration is as follows.
The traveling road estimation means (41) is a case where the specific type of feature (50) is detected by the feature detection means (41), and the position where the feature is detected is the feature information. If it does not correspond to the position information associated with any of the features included in, it is presumed that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on a general road.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, when the vehicle detects a feature presumed to be on a general road, it is possible to identify that the vehicle that has detected the feature is in a state of traveling on the general road. It becomes.

The fifth configuration is as follows.
The driving road estimation means (41) is a case where the feature (50) is detected by the feature detection means (41) and the feature is located on the main line or a connecting section between the main line and the lamp. In addition, it is presumed that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on the highway while the vehicle is traveling for the continuous distance associated with the detected feature.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, the vehicle that has detected the feature is unlikely to leave the general road after that, and the feature is expected to continue to travel on the highway. By associating the distance that guarantees the continuation of the highway from the detected position, it is possible to accurately identify that the vehicle that detected the feature is in a state of traveling on the highway thereafter. ..

The sixth configuration is as follows.
When the feature (50) is detected by the feature detection means (41) and the feature is located in the connecting section between the lamps, the driving road estimation means (41) is used. It is estimated that the vehicle is running on a general road.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, when the vehicle detects a feature that is likely to leave the general road after that, the vehicle that detects the feature goes on the general road. It is possible to identify that the vehicle is in a running state.

The seventh configuration is as follows.
The traveling road estimation means (41) is a case where the feature (50) is detected by the feature detection means (41), and the vehicle uses the continuation distance associated with the detected feature. It is presumed that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on a general road after the vehicle has traveled.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, after traveling a distance that guarantees that the expressway continues from the position where the feature is detected, the vehicle is identified as being in a state of traveling on a general road. , It is possible to prevent erroneous recognition that the vehicle is traveling on an expressway while driving on a general road.

The eighth configuration is as follows.
The traveling road estimation means (41) detects that there is a traffic light or a stop line around the vehicle even before the vehicle travels the continuous distance associated with the detected feature (50). If so, it is presumed that the vehicle is in a state of traveling on a general road.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, when a feature existing on a general road is detected even before traveling a distance that guarantees that the expressway continues from the position where the feature is detected. By identifying the vehicle as traveling on a general road, it is possible to prevent the vehicle from being mistakenly recognized as traveling on an expressway while traveling on the general road.

The ninth configuration is as follows.
While the vehicle is estimated to be traveling on the highway by the driving road estimation means (41), at least one or more of the vehicle speed, the change in the vehicle orientation, and the turning radius of the vehicle are present. It has a reverse-way warning means for warning that the vehicle is in a reverse-way state of running backward on the road when a predetermined condition is satisfied.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, when the vehicle travels on a road in a one-way section consisting of a plurality of lanes, when the vehicle detects a behavior that may cause a reverse driving state, the reverse driving state is detected. It is possible to warn that it has become.

The tenth configuration is as follows.
The predetermined condition is a condition indicating that the vehicle has made a U-turn on the road.
According to the traveling support device having the above configuration, when a vehicle travels on a road in a one-way section consisting of a plurality of lanes, it is possible to detect that the vehicle has made a U-turn and is in a reverse driving state. It becomes.

1 Navigation device 13 Navigation ECU
19 Outside camera 21 GPS
41 CPU
42 ROM
43 RAM
44 Flash memory 50 Arrow road marking 51 Main line 52-54 Lamp

Claims (11)

A feature information acquisition means for acquiring feature information that links a feature provided on an expressway with a continuous distance that is the distance from the feature to the next interchange along the direction of travel.
A feature detecting means for detecting the feature located around the vehicle and
When the feature is detected by the feature detecting means, the vehicle is in a state of traveling on the highway while the vehicle travels for the continuous distance associated with the detected feature in the future. A driving support device having a driving road estimation means for estimating. The feature information is information that links the continuation distance to each place for each place provided on the expressway.
In the driving road estimation means, when any of the features included in the feature information is detected by the feature detecting means, the vehicle will determine the continuation distance associated with the detected feature in the future. The traveling support device according to claim 1, wherein it is estimated that the vehicle is traveling on a highway while traveling. The feature information is information for a specific type of feature provided on an expressway, and is also associated with position information for specifying the position where the feature is provided for each place.
The traveling road estimation means is any feature in which the specific type of feature is detected by the feature detecting means and the position where the feature is detected is included in the feature information. The travel support device according to claim 2, wherein it is determined that any of the features included in the feature information has been detected by the feature detection means when corresponding to the associated position information. The traveling road estimation means is a case where the specific type of feature is detected by the feature detecting means, and the position where the feature is detected is linked to any feature included in the feature information. The travel support device according to claim 3, wherein the vehicle is presumed to be traveling on a general road when it does not correspond to the attached position information. The driving road estimation means is used for the detected feature when the feature is detected by the feature detecting means and the feature is located on the main line or a connecting section between the main line and the lamp. The traveling support device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein it is estimated that the vehicle is traveling on a highway while the vehicle is traveling for the associated continuous distance in the future. When the feature is detected by the feature detecting means and the feature is located in the connecting section between the lamps, the traveling road estimating means puts the vehicle in a state of traveling on a general road. The driving support device according to claim 5, which is presumed to exist. The traveling road estimation means is a case where the feature is detected by the feature detecting means, and the vehicle is generally used after the vehicle has traveled the continuous distance associated with the detected feature. The traveling support device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which is presumed to be in a state of traveling on a road. When the driving road estimation means detects that there is a traffic light or a stop line in the vicinity of the vehicle even before the vehicle travels the continuous distance associated with the detected feature, the vehicle The traveling support device according to claim 7, wherein the vehicle is presumed to be traveling on a general road. While the vehicle is estimated to be traveling on the highway by the driving road estimation means, at least one or more elements of the vehicle speed, the change in the vehicle orientation, and the turning radius of the vehicle are predetermined conditions. The traveling support device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a reverse-way driving warning means for warning that the vehicle is in a reverse-way driving state in which the vehicle runs backward on the road when the condition is satisfied. The traveling support device according to claim 9, wherein the predetermined condition is a condition indicating that the vehicle has made a U-turn on the road. Computer,
A feature information acquisition means for acquiring feature information that links a feature provided on an expressway with a continuous distance that is the distance from the feature to the next interchange along the direction of travel.
A feature detecting means for detecting the feature located around the vehicle and
When the feature is detected by the feature detecting means, the vehicle is in a state of traveling on the highway while the vehicle travels for the continuous distance associated with the detected feature in the future. Estimating driving road estimation means and
A computer program to make it work.

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