JP4249037B2 - Peripheral vehicle display device, navigation device, and vehicle display method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a surrounding vehicle display device, a navigation device, and a vehicle display method. In particular, the present invention relates to a surrounding vehicle display device, a navigation device, and a vehicle display method for detecting and displaying vehicles existing around the host vehicle.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for detecting a vehicle existing around a host vehicle using a radar device and an imaging device using millimeter waves or the like.

  In Patent Document 1, an imaging device 101 and a radar 102 are provided, and image information on the traveling direction of the vehicle is obtained from the imaging device 101, and the distance and direction from the radar 102 to a preceding vehicle or a stationary object in front of the vehicle. obtain. The image processing apparatus 100 easily performs image signal processing necessary for recognition of the preceding vehicle by associating the preceding vehicle with the distance and direction obtained from the radar 102 in the image obtained from the imaging apparatus 101. ing.

JP-A-10-187930

  However, since the radio wave used as a radar has a very high frequency, the straightness is very good. For this reason, if a preceding vehicle turns right or left at an intersection or if there is a slope on the road, the vehicle cannot be detected and the driver is expected to be in the vicinity. This causes a problem that vehicle information cannot be provided.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a peripheral vehicle display device, a navigation device, and a vehicle display method that can accurately display vehicles existing in the vicinity.

In order to achieve such an object, a surrounding vehicle display device according to the present invention is photographed by a radar device that radiates a radar wave and identifies the position of a vehicle existing in the vicinity, a camera device that photographs the front, and the camera device. A database that stores the map information, a control unit that cuts out an image of the position detected by the radar device from the image, identifies the vehicle, and displays the vehicle on the display unit, a vehicle position detection unit that detects the current position of the vehicle, When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can not be captured, the control unit refers to the map information read from the database, obtains geographical information including the current position, When it is determined from geographical information that the vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle, the display of the vehicle is continued until a predetermined time elapses.

  When the vehicle captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the display unit continues to display the vehicle until a predetermined time has elapsed. The radar device may not be able to detect the vehicle due to a road gradient or a left or right turn at an intersection, but at this time, by continuing to display the vehicle for a predetermined time, the vehicle will not suddenly disappear from the display screen. .

  When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, it is determined whether or not the vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the host vehicle based on the geographical information obtained from the map information. And when it determines with a vehicle existing in the advancing direction, appropriate information can be provided to a driver | operator by continuing the display of this vehicle.

  Further, the surrounding vehicle display device having the above-described configuration includes a vehicle-to-vehicle communication device that performs vehicle-to-vehicle communication between vehicles, and when the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device cannot be captured, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication is performed. Communication with the vehicle is performed by an apparatus, and when it is determined that the vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle, the display of the vehicle is continued.

  When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device is used to communicate with the vehicle. When it is determined that a vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle, appropriate information can be provided to the driver by continuing the display of the vehicle.

  In the surrounding vehicle display device having the above-described configuration, the control unit displays a vehicle that is not captured by the radar device but is determined to be present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle on the display unit in a different display form. It is composed.

  By displaying the vehicles that are not captured by the radar device but are determined to be present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle in different display forms, the vehicle that can be visually recognized by the driver and the vehicle that cannot be displayed are displayed separately. be able to.

  Further, in the surrounding vehicle display device configured as described above, the control unit is configured not to display on the display unit a vehicle that cannot be captured by the radar device and is determined to exist in a direction different from the traveling direction of the host vehicle. ing.

  By not displaying a vehicle that cannot be captured by the radar device and is determined to be present in a direction different from the traveling direction of the host vehicle, information that does not affect driving can be deleted.

A navigation device according to the present invention is a navigation device that includes the peripheral vehicle display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and that guides a guide route to a destination, the guide route to a set destination. Is displayed so that the vehicle detected by the radar device and the camera device is superimposed on the map image.

  By displaying the surrounding vehicle detected by the radar device and the camera device on the map image displaying the guidance route to the set destination, the surrounding image necessary for driving can be obtained. The surrounding situation can be accurately grasped.

The vehicle display method of the present invention includes a step of detecting a position of a vehicle existing in the vicinity using a radar device, and identifying a vehicle by cutting out an image of the position detected by the radar device from an image taken by the camera device. And displaying the identified vehicle on the display unit, and when the vehicle captured by the radar device cannot be captured, the map information is read out from the database in which the map information is recorded and referred to, and the current position is included. A step of obtaining geographical information of the surroundings, and when it is determined from the geographical information that the vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle, the display of the vehicle is continued until a predetermined time elapses. Yes.

  When the vehicle captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the display unit continues to display the vehicle until a predetermined time has elapsed. The radar device may not be able to detect the vehicle due to road gradients or right / left turns at intersections. At this time, by continuing to display the vehicle for a predetermined time, it does not cause an erroneous display that the vehicle suddenly disappears from the display screen. .

  When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, it is determined whether or not the vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the host vehicle based on the geographical information obtained from the map information. And when it determines with a vehicle existing in the advancing direction, appropriate information can be provided to a driver | operator by continuing the display of this vehicle.

  The vehicle display method may further include a step of communicating with the vehicle using an inter-vehicle communication device when the vehicle captured by the radar device cannot be captured, and the communication by the inter-vehicle communication device When it is determined that the vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the host vehicle, the display of the vehicle may be continued.

  When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device is used to communicate with the vehicle. When it is determined that a vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle, appropriate information can be provided to the driver by continuing the display of the vehicle.

  The present invention can provide a surrounding vehicle display device, a navigation device, and a vehicle display method capable of accurately monitoring and displaying a vehicle existing around the host vehicle.

  Next, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  First, the configuration of the surrounding vehicle display device 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. A peripheral vehicle display device 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a camera 2, a wide directional radar 3, an inter-vehicle communication device 6, a control unit 7, an image processing unit 10, a vehicle database 14, and a vehicle display data acquisition unit. 15, a vehicle coloring unit 16, a vehicle stereoscopic image generation unit 17, a vehicle orientation calculation unit 18, and a monitor 21. Hereinafter, a vehicle equipped with the surrounding vehicle display device 1 is referred to as a host vehicle 50.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the camera 2 is attached at a position where the front landscape of the host vehicle 50 can be seen, and takes an image in front of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 2, the wide directional radar 3 is also provided in front of the host vehicle 50, and detects the position and direction of a vehicle (hereinafter referred to as a surrounding vehicle) existing around the host vehicle 50. It is. As shown in FIG. 2, the imageable range of the camera 2 and the detection range of the wide directional radar 3 are set to be substantially the same. 2A shows a view of a vehicle equipped with a surrounding vehicle display device as viewed from above, and FIG. 2B shows a view of this vehicle as viewed from the side.

  The inter-vehicle communication device 6 transmits and receives route information by wireless communication using laser light, millimeter waves, or the like between vehicles within a predetermined distance. The route information transmitted / received between the vehicles includes vehicle brake information, steering information, acceleration information, and the like.

  The image processing unit 10 includes a vehicle image cutout processing unit 11, a vehicle color specifying unit 12, and a vehicle type specifying unit 13. The image processing unit 10 cuts out a vehicle image from an image taken by the camera 2 and specifies the color and type of the vehicle. . The vehicle image cutout processing unit 11 holds image data captured by the camera 2 in a memory (not shown). Further, an area including the vehicle image is determined based on the other vehicle position signal (distance, direction) input from the wide directivity radar 3, and the vehicle image portion is cut out from the stored image data to obtain the vehicle color. The data is output to the specifying unit 12 and the vehicle type specifying unit 13. The vehicle color specifying unit 12 analyzes the input vehicle image to determine the vehicle color, and outputs a vehicle color instruction signal to the vehicle coloring unit 16. The vehicle type identification unit 13 extracts the vehicle outer shape from the vehicle image portion, compares the extracted vehicle outer shape with the outer shape of each vehicle type included in the vehicle database 14, and compares the vehicle type (truck, bus, sedan, box car, wagon, minicar). Etc.). The vehicle type information specified by the vehicle type specifying unit 13 is output to the vehicle database 14.

  The vehicle database 14 stores three-dimensional shape data of each vehicle type. When vehicle type information is input, the vehicle three-dimensional shape data corresponding to the vehicle type information is output to the vehicle display data acquisition unit 15. The vehicle display data acquisition unit 15 acquires three-dimensional shape data from the vehicle database 14 and outputs it to the vehicle coloring unit 16. The vehicle coloring unit 16 adds the color data to the three-dimensional shape data of the vehicle and outputs it to the vehicle stereoscopic image generation unit 17.

  The vehicle direction calculation unit 18 specifies the outer shape of the vehicle detected from the output of the wide directivity radar 3 and calculates the direction of the vehicle based on the specified outer shape. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the wide directional radar 3 can detect the position of the vehicle (the position of the round portion) for each predetermined scan angle, so the vehicle direction calculation unit 18 calculates the rear outline of the vehicle. It grasps | ascertains and outputs as the direction of the vehicle which detected angle (eta) which this outline and horizontal line make. The vehicle position information and the vehicle orientation η are output to the vehicle stereoscopic image generation unit 17.

  The vehicle stereoscopic image generation unit 17 is a vehicle stereoscopic image rotated by a predetermined size and a predetermined angle from the colored three-dimensional shape data of the vehicle output from the vehicle coloring unit 16 and the direction of the vehicle output from the vehicle direction calculation unit 18. Is generated. On the monitor 21, a stereoscopic image of a vehicle located around the host vehicle is displayed. In addition, a stereoscopic image of the surrounding vehicle whose size has been changed according to the distance from the host vehicle 50 is displayed.

  Here, the wide directivity radar 3 will be described in more detail. As shown in FIG. 3, the wide directional radar 3 includes one radar wave transmitting antenna 3a and a radar wave receiving antenna 3b. The radar wave transmitting antenna 3a does not need to control the irradiation direction, and the emitted radar wave diffuses and irradiates a range of about 120 degrees. The radar wave receiving antenna 3b is composed of seven radar wave receiving antenna elements AT1 to AT7. The more antenna elements there are, the more complex the resolution becomes. Therefore, the balance between the detection range and the resolution is set to an optimum value depending on the detection object. For example, if the detectable range is 120 degrees and the resolution is 5 degrees, there are 24 antennas. In the case of FIG. 3, assuming that the detection range is 120 degrees and the antenna orientation is 8 degrees, each of the radar wave receiving antenna elements AT1 to AT7 has a detection direction of a predetermined angle in a range of −θ to + θ (for example, θ = 8.5 degrees). To detect the distance, direction, and size to the surrounding vehicle in each of the directions -θ to + θ.

  Since the wide directivity radar 3 is configured as described above, only one radar wave transmitting / irradiating element is required, and the directivity may be wide. Therefore, the accuracy of the radar wave transmitting antenna may be low, and the cost may be reduced. Moreover, since the directivity can be expanded by combining the radar wave receiving antenna elements, a mechanical device such as rotating the radar device becomes unnecessary.

  The operation of the wide directivity radar 3 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows a vehicle 50 (own vehicle) equipped with a wide directional radar, peripheral vehicles 61 to 63 positioned in front of the vehicle 50, a guard rail 65, a travel lane separation line 66, a center separation band 67, and the like. For the sake of explanation, the wide directional radar 3 is shown greatly. Radar waves transmitted from the radar wave transmitting antenna 3a are irradiated radially in front of the vehicle, and the surrounding vehicles 61 to 63 existing within the receivable range reflect radio waves. α1 to α7 are reception ranges of the seven radar wave receiving antenna elements AT1 to AT7, the A car 61 is detected by the radar wave receiving antenna element AT4, and the B car 62 is detected by the radar wave receiving antenna elements AT6 to AT7. The C car 63 is detected by radar wave receiving antenna elements AT5 to AT6.

  FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the detection signal of the wide directional radar 3 and the camera image. FIG. 6 shows a camera image 71 photographed by the camera 2 and detection signals 72 </ b> A to 72 </ b> C of surrounding vehicles detected by the wide directional radar 3. The wide directional radar 3 obtains position and intensity detection signals 72A to 72C shown in FIG. 6 and a camera image 71 from the camera 2. The detection signals 72A to 72C and the camera image 71 coincide with each other in a parallel positional relationship with the car.

  The detection signal 72A indicates the detection signal position and signal strength of the A car 61. Since the radar wave hits and reflects at a substantially right angle from the back, and the distance is not relatively far, the signal intensity is high. The detection signal 72A is detected by the radar wave receiving antenna element AT4. The detection signal 72B indicates the detection signal position and signal strength of the B car 62. Since the radar wave hits and reflects from an oblique direction, the signal intensity of the portion detected by the radar wave receiving antenna element AT6 is weak. However, the signal strength of the portion detected by the radar wave receiving antenna element AT7 is strong because the distance is close. The detection signal 72C indicates the detection signal position and signal strength of the C wheel 63. Since the radar wave hits and reflects from an oblique direction and is far away, the signal intensity of the portion detected by the radar wave receiving antenna elements AT5 and AT6 is weak.

  As can be seen from FIG. 6, from the detection signals 72 </ b> A to 72 </ b> C of the wide directivity radar 3, a range to be focused on image processing can be found. For this reason, the image processing only needs to process the focused range, and the resolution may be small. Also, the processing time is greatly reduced and shortened. For example, the detected image processing of the A car 61 may be performed only on the reception range of the radar wave receiving antenna element AT4.

  The surrounding vehicle display device 1 of this embodiment detects the position (distance and direction) of surrounding vehicles existing around the host vehicle 50 using the wide directional radar 3 as shown in FIG. . In addition, from the distance and direction specified by the wide directivity radar 3, a corresponding region of the image captured by the camera 2 is cut out and a vehicle image is extracted. However, since the radar wave generated by the wide directional radar 3 has high straightness, when the road has a gradient as shown in FIG. 7B, or when the surrounding vehicle turns right as shown in FIG. If you make a left turn, you will not be able to detect nearby vehicles.

  Even if the surrounding vehicle cannot be detected due to the road gradient, the surrounding vehicle exists in front of the host vehicle 50. Even if the surrounding vehicle makes a right turn or a left turn, if the own vehicle 50 makes a right turn or a left turn in accordance with the surrounding vehicle, the surrounding vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the own vehicle 50. For this reason, in the present embodiment, when the surrounding vehicle cannot be detected by the wide directivity radar 3, the display of the surrounding vehicle while maintaining the distance between the own vehicle 50 and the surrounding vehicle immediately before the surrounding vehicle cannot be detected is predetermined. Continue to display time. By continuing the display of the vehicle for a predetermined time, an erroneous display that the vehicle suddenly disappears from the display screen does not occur.

  When the surrounding vehicle detected by the wide directional radar 3 can no longer be detected, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 6 is used to perform wireless communication with the surrounding vehicle. Route information is acquired from surrounding vehicles through inter-vehicle communication, and the course of surrounding vehicles is determined. When it is determined that there is a surrounding vehicle in the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50, the display form is changed from the normal display without erasing the surrounding vehicle from the display on the monitor 21. For example, when the road is downhill, the vehicle may be displayed in a shaded display 51 as shown in FIG. 8 through the road. Further, the vehicle may be displayed in a blinking manner, or may be displayed in a color different from normal. Similarly, the vehicle may be shaded or blinked on an uphill road. As described above, in this embodiment, the route information of the surrounding vehicle is acquired using the surrounding vehicle that cannot be detected by the wide directional radar 3 and the inter-vehicle communication device 6. When it is determined that there is a surrounding vehicle in the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50 based on this route information, appropriate information can be provided to the driver by displaying the surrounding vehicle in a display form different from the normal display mode. . The traveling direction of the host vehicle can be determined from information such as a direction indicator.

  Further, when it is determined from the route information obtained through the inter-vehicle communication that the surrounding vehicle is traveling in a direction different from the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50, the display of the surrounding vehicle is deleted from the monitor screen. To do. Erasing may be performed immediately, may be performed after a predetermined distance from the host vehicle 50, or may be performed after a predetermined time has elapsed. By deleting a vehicle that is not in the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50 from the monitor screen, unnecessary information is organized, and only valid information can be provided to the driver.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, various sensors 4, a GPS receiver 5, a database 22, a disk driver 23, a buffer memory 24, a map drawing unit 25, and a combining unit 19 are newly provided. ing. The description of the same components as those in the first embodiment is omitted.

  Various sensors 4 include a gyro sensor for detecting the direction of the vehicle, a VICS sensor that receives traffic information transmitted from the VICS center, a reverse sensor that outputs a signal indicating the reverse of the vehicle, and is generated at every fixed travel distance. The vehicle speed sensor etc. which output the vehicle speed according to the pulse to perform are included.

  The GPS receiver 5 receives a GPS signal transmitted from a GPS satellite and detects the current vehicle position and vehicle direction. More specifically, the GPS receiver 5 receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites, performs three-dimensional positioning processing or two-dimensional positioning processing, calculates the absolute position and direction of the vehicle, and Is output together with the positioning time.

  The database 22 stores various map data and programs necessary for map display and route search. The database 22 can be a recording medium such as a CD-ROM, DVD, or HDD. The disk driver 23 reads map data and programs from the database 22 and writes them in the buffer memory 24.

  The buffer memory 24 temporarily stores map data and programs read from the recording medium by the disk driver 23.

  The control part 7 is comprised, for example with a microcomputer, and controls the surrounding vehicle display apparatus 1 whole. In addition, the control unit 7 processes the GPS signal of the GPS receiver 5 and the output signal of the sensor for autonomous navigation to calculate the vehicle position and the vehicle direction.

  The map drawing unit 25 performs a map image drawing process using the map data read to the buffer memory 24. The map image drawn by the map drawing unit 25 and the vehicle stereoscopic image generated by the vehicle stereoscopic image generating unit 17 are combined by the combining unit 19 and displayed on the monitor 21.

  Here, an example of a synthesis screen synthesized by the synthesis unit 19 and displayed on the monitor 21 will be described. In FIG. 10A, a 2D plane composite screen 73 in which 2D vehicle shapes of the host vehicle 50 and the surrounding vehicles 61 to 63 are arranged on the two-dimensional plane map 74 indicating the current position of the host vehicle is displayed in an overlapping manner. ing. Each vehicle image is generated by identifying the vehicle type from the camera image of the camera 2, reading vehicle shape data corresponding to the identified vehicle type from the vehicle database 14, and using the shape data.

  The ratio of the 2D plane composition screen 73 to the screen is variable, and can be displayed on the full screen or in an appropriate size. The scale of the 2D plane composition screen 73 is also variable. FIG. 10A shows an example in which a narrow area is displayed on an enlarged scale. If vehicle shape data is not prepared in the vehicle database 14, the image portion of the surrounding vehicle is cut out from the camera image and displayed as a 2D plane composite screen 73 as shown in FIG. 10B. You can also.

  FIG. 11 shows another peripheral vehicle display example. As shown in FIG. 11A, a 3D three-dimensional composite screen 75 in which 3D vehicle shapes of the host vehicle 50 and surrounding vehicles 61 to 63 are arranged is displayed on the three-dimensional three-dimensional map 76 indicating the current position of the host vehicle. ing. A vehicle type is identified from an image taken by the camera 2, and 3D vehicle shape data corresponding to the identified vehicle type is read from the vehicle database 14 and generated using the shape data. The ratio of the 3D three-dimensional composition screen 75 to the screen is variable and can be displayed on the full screen or in an appropriate size. Further, the scale of the 3D stereoscopic composition screen 75 is also variable. FIG. 11B shows an example of the 3D three-dimensional composition screen 75.

  In this embodiment, the control unit 7 processes the GPS signal of the GPS receiver 5 and the output signal of the sensor for autonomous navigation to calculate the vehicle position and the vehicle direction. When the vehicle position and the vehicle direction are calculated, the control unit 7 reads the map data from the database 22 and stores it in the buffer memory 24. The read map data is drawn by the map drawing unit 25 and displayed on the monitor 21 on the screen.

  The surrounding vehicle display device 1 of the present embodiment also detects the position (distance and direction) of the vehicle existing around the host vehicle using the wide directional radar 3 as shown in FIG. When there is a slope on the road as shown in FIG. 7B, or when a surrounding vehicle makes a right or left turn at an intersection as shown in FIG. Nearby vehicles cannot be detected. At this time, the control unit 7 refers to the map data read from the database 22 and obtains geographical information ahead of the host vehicle 50. The geographical information includes information such as road gradient information and the presence or absence of intersections. Based on these pieces of information, the state of the vehicle that cannot be detected by the wide directional radar 3 is estimated. For example, as shown in FIG. 7B, when there is a gradient on the road ahead, the wide directional radar 3 cannot detect even if there is a vehicle ahead. Further, when there is an intersection ahead and the surrounding vehicle has made a right turn or a left turn, the wide directional radar 3 cannot detect it.

  If it is determined by geographical information that a road with a slope exists ahead, the vehicle that cannot be detected by the wide directional radar 3 is determined to exist in front of the host vehicle 50 and displayed on the monitor 21. continue. As for the display on the monitor 21 of the vehicle that can no longer be detected, as in the first embodiment described above, a shaded display, a blinking display, a display of a color different from normal, and the like can be applied. Thus, by confirming whether or not there is a surrounding vehicle that cannot be detected by the wide directional radar 3 in the vicinity of the host vehicle 50 using the geographical information, appropriate information is provided to the driver. Does not cause false indications such as suddenly disappearing from the display screen.

  Even if the surrounding vehicle makes a right turn or a left turn at an intersection, the surrounding vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the own vehicle 50 if the own vehicle 50 makes a right turn or a left turn according to the surrounding vehicle. Will be. In this case, the control unit 7 continues to display the display of the surrounding vehicle for a predetermined time while maintaining the distance between the host vehicle 50 and the surrounding vehicle immediately before the surrounding vehicle can no longer be detected. In addition, the control unit 7 performs wireless communication with surrounding vehicles using the inter-vehicle communication device 6. When route information is acquired from the surrounding vehicle by inter-vehicle communication, the course of the surrounding vehicle is determined, and it is determined whether there is a surrounding vehicle in the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50. When it is determined that there is a surrounding vehicle in the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50, the display form is changed from the normal display as described above without erasing the surrounding vehicle from the display on the monitor 21. In this way, appropriate information can be provided to the driver. The traveling direction of the host vehicle can be determined from information such as a direction indicator.

  In addition, when it is determined from the route information obtained through the inter-vehicle communication that the target vehicle is traveling in a direction different from the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50, the display of the surrounding vehicles is deleted from the monitor screen. To do. Erasing may be performed immediately, may be performed after a predetermined distance from the host vehicle, or may be performed after a predetermined time has elapsed.

  Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the peripheral vehicle display device of the second embodiment is mounted on a navigation device. In addition to the configuration of the second embodiment, the navigation device is provided with an operation unit 26, a speaker 37, and the like as shown in FIG. In the navigation controller 20, an operation screen mark generation unit 31, a route storage unit 32, a route drawing unit 33, a mark storage unit 34, a mark drawing unit 35, a voice output unit 36, and the like are provided.

  The operation unit 26 is a remote controller or input keys for the user to input various instructions to the navigation controller 20. Based on the image data output from the navigation controller 20, the monitor 21 displays a map image around the host vehicle together with a vehicle position mark, a departure point mark, a destination mark, and the like, or a guide route or a detour route on this map. Or display a guidance route. The speaker 37 outputs various messages to the user based on the audio data output from the navigation controller 20.

  The operation screen / mark generator 31 provided in the navigation controller 20 generates various menu screens (operation screens) and various marks such as a vehicle position mark and a cursor according to the operation status. The route storage unit 32 stores guidance route data searched by the control unit 7. Specifically, the route storage unit 32 is changed during the search for data on all nodes (coordinates of points displayed in longitude and latitude) from the starting point to the destination of the guidance route searched by the control unit 7. Memorize the guidance route data.

  The route drawing unit 33 reads the guidance route data (node sequence) from the route storage unit 32 and draws the guidance route with a color and line width different from those of other roads. The mark storage unit 34 relates to a predetermined shape icon (brand icon, category icon, etc.) given as information indicating the position of the target property on the map screen and a simple shape mark given instead of this icon. Data is stored in advance. The mark drawing unit 35 performs a drawing process on the data read from the mark storage unit 34 under the control of the control unit 7. The combining unit 19 combines the images output from the map drawing unit 25, the operation screen / mark generation unit 31, the route drawing unit 33, the mark drawing unit 35, and the vehicle stereoscopic image generation unit 17 and outputs the combined image to the monitor 21.

  The control part 7 is comprised, for example with a microcomputer, and controls the navigation controller 20 whole. For example, the control unit 7 processes the GPS signal of the GPS receiver 5 and the output signal of the sensor for autonomous navigation to calculate the vehicle position and vehicle direction, or the search set using the read map data Various processes related to navigation, such as searching for a route from the departure place to the destination, are executed under conditions. Moreover, the control part 7 is provided with the time measuring function, and can also calculate the average vehicle speed of the own vehicle from the output signal from a vehicle speed sensor if necessary.

  The audio output unit 36 outputs an audio signal to the speaker 37 based on the signal from the control unit 7.

  The navigation device of the present embodiment displays the vehicle detected by the wide directional radar 3 and the camera 2 on the map image displaying the guidance route to the set destination. Similarly to the above-described embodiment, when the surrounding vehicle cannot be detected by the wide directional radar 3, the surrounding vehicle that is maintained at the distance between the host vehicle 50 and the surrounding vehicle immediately before the surrounding vehicle cannot be detected is detected. The display continues to be displayed for a predetermined time. And the geographical information ahead is acquired from map data, the condition of a surrounding vehicle is estimated, or route information is acquired from a surrounding vehicle by the inter-vehicle communication apparatus 6. FIG. If it is determined from these pieces of information that the surrounding vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle 50, the display form is changed from the normal display as described above without erasing the surrounding vehicle from the display on the monitor 21. . Therefore, appropriate information can be provided to the driver.

  The above-described embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of 1st Example. It is a figure which shows the attachment position to the vehicle of the camera 2 and the wide directivity radar 3, and these imaging | photography range and a detection range. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a wide directivity radar 3. FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the direction method of a vehicle. FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory diagram of the wide directivity radar 3. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a relationship between a detection signal of a wide directional radar 3 and a camera image. It is a figure for demonstrating the detection of the surrounding vehicle by the wide directivity radar. 6 is a diagram showing a display example displayed on a monitor 21. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of 2nd Example. 6 is a diagram showing a display example displayed on a monitor 21. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display example displayed on a monitor 21. FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of 3rd Example. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an invention disclosed in Patent Document 1. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Peripheral vehicle display apparatus 2 Camera 3 Wide directional radar 4 Various sensors 5 GPS receiver 6 Inter-vehicle communication apparatus 7 Control part 10 Image processing part 11 Vehicle image cutout part 12 Vehicle color specific part 13 Vehicle type specific part 14 Vehicle database 15 Vehicle display data acquisition unit 16 Vehicle coloring unit 17 Vehicle stereoscopic image generation unit 18 Vehicle orientation calculation unit 20 Navigation controller 21 Monitor 22 Database 23 Disk driver 24 Buffer memory 25 Map drawing unit 26 Operation unit 27 Interface unit 31 Operation screen / mark generation unit 32 Route storage unit 33 Route drawing unit 34 Mark storage unit 35 Mark drawing unit 36 Audio output unit 37 Speaker 73 2D plane synthesis screen 74 2D plane map 75 3D volume synthesis screen 76 3D volume map

Claims (7)

A radar device that radiates a radar wave and identifies the position of a vehicle existing in the vicinity;
A camera device for photographing the front,
A control unit that cuts out an image of a position detected by the radar device from an image captured by the camera device, identifies the vehicle, and causes the display unit to display the vehicle ;
A vehicle position detector for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
A database storing map information ;
When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can not be captured, the control unit,
Until the predetermined time elapses when the geographical information including the current position is obtained with reference to the map information read from the database, and it is determined from the geographical information that the vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the host vehicle Is a display device for a surrounding vehicle that continues to display the vehicle. It has a vehicle-to-vehicle communication device that performs vehicle-to-vehicle communication between vehicles,
When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the control unit communicates with the vehicle by the inter-vehicle communication device, and when it is determined that the vehicle exists in the traveling direction of the own vehicle, peripheral vehicle display device according to claim 1, wherein the to continue the display of the vehicle. Wherein the control unit is not captured by the radar device, the vehicle is determined to be present in the traveling direction of the vehicle, according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the displaying on the display unit in different display forms Peripheral vehicle display device. 3. The peripheral vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is not captured by the radar device, and a vehicle determined to be present in a direction different from a traveling direction of the own vehicle is not displayed on the display unit. Display device. A navigation device comprising the peripheral vehicle display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and guiding a guidance route to a destination,
A navigation device, characterized in that a vehicle image detected by the radar device and the camera device is superimposed and displayed on a map image displaying a guide route to a set destination. Detecting a position of a vehicle existing in the vicinity using a radar device, and cutting out an image of the position detected by the radar device from an image photographed by a camera device;
Displaying the identified vehicle on a display unit ;
When the vehicle that has been captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the map information is read out from the database in which the map information is recorded and referenced, and the geographical information including the current position is obtained .
A vehicle display method characterized by continuing display of the vehicle until a predetermined time elapses when it is determined from the geographical information that the vehicle is present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle . When the vehicle captured by the radar device can no longer be captured, the vehicle has a step of communicating with the vehicle using an inter-vehicle communication device,
The vehicle display method according to claim 6 , wherein when the vehicle is determined to be present in the traveling direction of the host vehicle through communication by the inter-vehicle communication device, the display of the vehicle is continued.

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