JP5082426B2 - Information providing apparatus and information providing system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an information providing apparatus and an information providing system for providing information on traffic to a driver of a vehicle.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an information providing device that provides information related to traffic, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-82692, a device that provides information related to other vehicles to the driver of the own vehicle, It is known that the driver's intention to pass is estimated and information is provided according to the estimated driver's intention. This device estimates the intention to pass between the driver of the own vehicle and the other vehicle, and tries not to provide information when it is not necessary.
JP 2006-82692 A

  However, in such a device, since information is provided according to the driver's intention to pass, the reliability of information varies greatly depending on the opponent vehicle encountered. For this reason, it is desirable that information is provided by objective information regardless of the driving operation of the driver. Further, in this type of apparatus, inter-vehicle communication is performed in order to acquire position information of other vehicles. Furthermore, depending on the information provision system, it may be possible to obtain traffic information by performing road-to-vehicle communication in addition to vehicle-to-vehicle communication. In this case, if road-to-vehicle communication is performed with priority over vehicle-to-vehicle communication, position information of other vehicles may not be obtained accurately through vehicle-to-vehicle communication.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve such problems, and information that can appropriately provide information on traffic even when inter-vehicle communication is not performed due to road-to-vehicle communication. It is an object to provide a providing device and an information providing system.

That is, the information providing apparatus according to the present invention is installed in a vehicle and provides information related to traffic to a driver of the vehicle. The information providing apparatus is an other vehicle within a predetermined distance range from the own vehicle. To communicate with other vehicles and receive the position information of other vehicles.If the other vehicle is traveling within the road-to-vehicle communication service area, it is determined that the other vehicle is communicating between the vehicles. When other vehicles that have the possibility of crossing with the own vehicle stop the reception function of inter-vehicle communication and prioritize road-to-vehicle communication with communication equipment installed on the road rather than inter-vehicle communication with the own vehicle, An informing means for informing the driver of the own vehicle of the presence of another vehicle is provided.

  According to this invention, when the other vehicle communicates with priority on the road-to-vehicle communication over the inter-vehicle communication with the own vehicle, the other vehicle notifies the driver of the other vehicle by the presence of the other vehicle. Even if the vehicle is not aware of the presence of the vehicle, it is possible to raise the driving safety by alerting the driver of the vehicle about the approach of another vehicle.

  Further, in the information providing apparatus according to the present invention, the notification means notifies the driver of the own vehicle of the existence of the other vehicle when the traveling road of the own vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the other vehicle. It is preferable.

  According to this invention, when the traveling road of the own vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the other vehicle, the presence of the other vehicle is noticed by notifying the driver of the own vehicle of the existence of the other vehicle. It is possible to alert the driver of the vehicle when entering an intersection without entering.

  Further, in the information providing apparatus according to the present invention, the notifying means performs road-to-vehicle communication even when the own vehicle is traveling on a priority road with respect to a road on which the other vehicle is traveling. If not, it is preferable not to notify the driver of the own vehicle of the presence of the other vehicle.

  According to this invention, even when the host vehicle is traveling on the priority road, if the other vehicle is not performing road-to-vehicle communication, the driver of the host vehicle is not notified of the presence of the other vehicle. Unnecessary notification is suppressed, and it can be avoided that the driver of the vehicle feels bothered by the unnecessary notification. Therefore, comfortable driving can be performed.

The information providing system according to the present invention uses a communication system that stops the reception function of inter-vehicle communication while road-to-vehicle communication is being performed, and provides information on traffic to the driver of the vehicle based on information acquired by inter-vehicle communication. In the information providing system for providing the second vehicle, the information providing system performs inter-vehicle communication with a second vehicle within a predetermined distance range from the first vehicle to receive position information of the second vehicle, Is traveling within the road-to-vehicle communication service area, it is determined that the second vehicle is in road-to-vehicle communication, and the information providing system has a possibility of crossing between the first vehicle and the second vehicle. There, if the second vehicle is performed with priority road-vehicle communication with the communication equipment installed in the road than the inter-vehicle communication with the first vehicle to stop the receiving function of the car-to-car communication, first vehicle the second vehicle in the driver's It is configured to include a notification means for notifying the existence.

  According to the present invention, there is a possibility that the first vehicle and the second vehicle are mixed, and when the first vehicle performs road-to-vehicle communication, the driver of the second vehicle has the first vehicle. Can alert the driver of the second vehicle about the approach of the first vehicle. For this reason, when the first vehicle communicates prioritizing road-to-vehicle communication over vehicle-to-vehicle communication and is not aware of the presence of the second vehicle, it alerts the driver of the second vehicle to driving safety. Can increase the sex.

  Further, in the information providing system according to the present invention, the notification means may be configured so that the driver of the second vehicle even if the traveling road of the second vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the first vehicle. It is preferable to notify the presence of the first vehicle.

  According to this invention, when the traveling road of the second vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the first vehicle, the presence of the first vehicle is notified to the driver of the second vehicle. When the first vehicle enters the intersection without noticing the presence of the second vehicle, the driver of the second vehicle can be alerted.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, even when road-to-vehicle communication is performed and vehicle-to-vehicle communication is not performed, the information regarding traffic can be provided appropriately.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of an information providing apparatus according to the present embodiment. The information providing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is an apparatus that is installed in a vehicle and provides information related to traffic to a driver of the vehicle, and includes a communication unit 2 and a function of performing inter-vehicle communication with other vehicles. Yes. The communication unit 2 is a communication unit for communicating with an information providing device installed in another vehicle, and can transmit and receive information about traffic by wireless communication.

  In addition to the inter-vehicle communication, the communication unit 2 may be one that can perform road-to-vehicle communication with communication equipment installed on the road. In this case, in the information providing apparatus 1, road-to-vehicle communication is executed with priority over vehicle-to-vehicle communication. For example, in a communication system that shares vehicle-to-vehicle communication and road-to-vehicle communication, when an information providing service by road-to-vehicle communication is operated from a communication facility installed on the road, an information providing device 1 for a vehicle traveling on the road is Stop the reception function of inter-vehicle communication and execute road-to-vehicle communication.

  The information providing apparatus 1 further includes a vehicle speed detection unit 3, a position detection unit 4, a notification unit 5, and a control unit 10. The vehicle speed detection part 3 detects the vehicle speed of the own vehicle carrying the information provision apparatus 1, for example, a wheel speed sensor is used. The detection signal of the vehicle speed detection unit 3 is input to the control unit 10 at a predetermined time period and recorded as vehicle speed data.

  The position detection unit 4 detects the position of the vehicle on which the information providing device 1 is mounted, and for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) device is used. The detection signal of the position detection unit 4 is input to the control unit 10 at a predetermined time period and recorded as vehicle position data.

  The notification unit 5 is a notification unit that notifies the presence of another vehicle when the possibility of crossing with the other vehicle is greater than or equal to a predetermined value. For example, the notification unit 5 receives a notification command signal from the control unit 10 and performs a notification operation. For example, the notification unit 5 is a unit that performs notification through the driver's auditory sense, and performs notification by voice and warning sound such as a buzzer. Moreover, the alerting | reporting part 5 may perform alerting | reporting through a driver | operator's vision, such as display lights and warning lights, such as lamp lighting. Furthermore, the alerting | reporting part 5 may perform alerting | reporting through a driver | operator's tactile sense, such as a handle | steering-wheel or a vibration of a driving seat.

  The control unit 10 controls the entire apparatus, and is configured mainly by a computer including a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM, for example. The control unit 10 is connected to the communication unit 2, inputs information received by the communication unit 2, outputs transmission information and a transmission command signal to the communication unit 2, and functions as a communication control unit.

  Further, the control unit 10 has a map database, and recognizes the position on the map of the own vehicle based on the detection signal of the position detection unit 4. Further, the position of the other vehicle on the map can be recognized based on the position information of the other vehicle. Further, the control unit 10 calculates the possibility of intersection between the own vehicle and the other vehicle based on the vehicle speed information and the moving direction of the position of the own vehicle and the other vehicle, and determines whether or not the possibility of the intersection is greater than a predetermined value. Functions as a determination means.

  In addition, the control unit 10 functions as a notification control unit that causes the driver of the own vehicle to notify the notification unit 5 of the presence of the other vehicle when another vehicle that may intersect with the own vehicle is performing road-to-vehicle communication. .

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a configuration outline and operation of the information providing system according to the present embodiment.

  The information providing system according to the present embodiment is configured by information providing apparatuses 1 and 1 installed in a plurality of different vehicles. When these information providing apparatuses 1 and 1 are within a predetermined distance range, they perform inter-vehicle communication, transmit at least the position information of the own vehicle, and receive at least the position information of the other vehicle. Thereby, the information provision apparatus 1 can acquire the positional information and vehicle speed information of the other vehicle within the predetermined distance range, and can determine the possibility of crossing with the other vehicle based on the information. And the information provision apparatus 1 alert | reports the presence of other vehicles to the driver | operator of the own vehicle, when the other vehicle which has a possibility of crossing with the own vehicle is performing road-to-vehicle communication. The notification is performed by the notification unit 5 of the information providing apparatus 1.

  As shown in FIG. 2, when vehicles A and B equipped with the information providing device 1 try to enter an intersection from different directions, there is a possibility that crossing over a predetermined level may occur. In such a case, if the vehicles A and B communicate with each other and recognize the existence of the other vehicle, the possibility of crossing is low, but one vehicle A travels within the road-to-vehicle communication service area 21. When priority is given to the communication equipment 20 and road-to-vehicle communication on the cage road, the presence of the vehicle B may not be confirmed. Further, at that time, when the road 30b on which the vehicle B travels is the priority road with respect to the road 30a on which the vehicle A travels, the possibility of the vehicles A and B crossing increases.

  At this time, the information providing apparatus 1 of the vehicle B can estimate that the vehicle A is performing road-to-vehicle communication based on the position information of the vehicle A. Further, the information providing apparatus 1 for the vehicle B can recognize that the road on which the vehicle B travels is the priority road with respect to the road on which the vehicle A travels with reference to the map database.

  For this reason, the information providing apparatus 1 of the vehicle B notifies the driver of the presence of the vehicle A by the notification unit 5 and calls attention. For example, it is notified by voice “There is a vehicle approaching from the right at the next intersection”.

  Thereby, the driver of the vehicle B can avoid crossing of the vehicles even when the vehicle A does not pause at the intersection by slowing down or temporarily stopping at the intersection.

  Next, operation | movement of the information provision apparatus 1 which concerns on this embodiment is demonstrated with reference to a flowchart.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the information providing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. The control process of FIG. 3 is repeatedly executed by the control unit 10 at a predetermined cycle, for example.

  First, as shown in S10 of FIG. 3, it is determined whether or not data of another vehicle has been acquired by inter-vehicle communication. For example, it is determined whether or not position information data and vehicle speed information data of another vehicle are stored in the memory of the control unit 10 by inter-vehicle communication. If it is determined in S10 that data of another vehicle has not been acquired by inter-vehicle communication, the control process is terminated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S10 that the data of another vehicle has been acquired by inter-vehicle communication, it is determined whether or not the possibility of crossing with another vehicle is greater than or equal to a predetermined value (S12). For example, the traveling direction is calculated based on the displacement of the position data of the own vehicle and the other vehicle, and the possibility of crossing between the own vehicle and the other vehicle is calculated based on the position data and the vehicle speed data. Then, it is determined whether or not the possibility of crossing is a set value or more. If it is determined in S12 that the possibility of crossing with another vehicle is not a predetermined value or more, the control process is terminated.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in S12 that the possibility of crossing with another vehicle is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, priority information acquisition processing is performed (S14). The priority information acquisition process is a process of acquiring information as to which is the priority road for the road on which the host vehicle and the other vehicle are traveling. For example, based on the position data of the own vehicle and the other vehicle, the road on which the own vehicle and the other vehicle travel is specified with reference to the map database, and it is determined which of the roads is the priority road.

  Then, the process proceeds to S16, and it is determined whether or not the road on which the vehicle travels is a priority road. If it is determined that the road on which the vehicle is traveling is not a priority road, the process proceeds to S20. On the other hand, if it is determined in S16 that the road on which the vehicle travels is a priority road, it is determined whether or not another vehicle is communicating between the roads (S18).

  For example, it is determined whether or not the other vehicle is traveling in the road-to-vehicle communication service area based on the position data of the other vehicle. When it is determined that the vehicle is not in road-to-vehicle communication and the other vehicle is traveling in the road-to-vehicle communication service area, it is determined that the other vehicle is in road-to-vehicle communication.

  At that time, if the road-to-vehicle communication service provides temporary stop information or approaching vehicle information, it is possible to recognize the existence of the own vehicle, so it is determined in S18 that the other vehicle is not in road-to-vehicle communication. However, it is preferable not to perform the notification process.

  Even if another vehicle is traveling in the road-to-vehicle communication service area, if the service is not in operation, there is a possibility that the other vehicle has received the inter-vehicle communication information of its own vehicle. Since it is high, it is preferable that it is determined in S18 that the other vehicle is not communicating between the road and vehicle and the notification process is not performed.

  If it is determined in S18 that the other vehicle is not communicating between the road and the vehicle, it is determined that the other vehicle has received the inter-vehicle communication information and recognizes the existence of the own vehicle, and the notification process is not performed. The control process is terminated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S18 that the other vehicle is communicating between the roads and vehicles, it is determined that the other vehicle has not received the inter-vehicle communication information and has not recognized the existence of the own vehicle, and the process proceeds to S20. Then, the notification process is performed.

  The notification process is a process of notifying the driver of the own vehicle of the presence of another vehicle. For example, a notification command signal is output from the control unit 10 to the notification unit 5. The notification unit 5 receives the notification command signal and notifies the driver of the own vehicle of the presence of another vehicle. By this notification processing, the driver of the own vehicle is alerted to other vehicles approaching the own vehicle, and can safely travel by slow driving or the like. When the notification process of S20 is completed, a series of control processes are terminated.

  As described above, according to the information providing apparatus 1 and the information providing system according to the present embodiment, when another vehicle that may be crossed with the own vehicle is performing road-to-vehicle communication, the driver of the own vehicle By notifying the presence of the vehicle, it is possible to alert the driver of the vehicle about the approach of another vehicle. For this reason, when other vehicles are communicating with each other by giving priority to road-to-vehicle communication over vehicle-to-vehicle communication, and they are not aware of the existence of their own vehicle, they will call attention to the driver of the vehicle and increase driving safety. Can be increased. In addition, it is possible to determine whether or not to provide information based on objective information regardless of the driver operation, and it is possible to accurately provide information to the driver.

  Further, in the information providing apparatus 1 and the information providing system according to the present embodiment, when the traveling road of the own vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the other vehicle, the presence of the other vehicle is notified to the driver of the own vehicle. Thus, when the other vehicle enters the intersection without noticing the presence of the own vehicle, the driver of the own vehicle can be alerted.

  Further, in the information providing apparatus 1 and the information providing system according to the present embodiment, even when the own vehicle is traveling on the priority road, if the other vehicle is not performing road-to-vehicle communication, the driving of the own vehicle is performed. By not notifying the person of the presence of the other vehicle, unnecessary notification is suppressed, and it is possible to avoid the driver from feeling uncomfortable due to unnecessary notification. Therefore, comfortable driving can be performed.

  The above-described embodiment describes the best embodiment of the information providing apparatus and the information providing system according to the present invention, and the information providing apparatus and the information providing system according to the present invention are the same as those described in the present embodiment. It is not limited. The information providing apparatus and the information providing system according to the present invention may be modified from the vehicle control apparatus according to the embodiment or applied to other things so as not to change the gist described in each claim.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an information providing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing about the structure outline | summary and operation | movement of the information provision system which concern on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart about operation | movement of the information provision apparatus of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Information provision apparatus, 2 ... Communication part, 3 ... Vehicle speed detection part, 4 ... Position detection part, 5 ... Notification part, 10 ... Control part.

Claims (5)

In an information providing apparatus that is installed in a vehicle and provides information on traffic to the driver of the vehicle,
The information providing device performs inter-vehicle communication with another vehicle within a predetermined distance range from the own vehicle to receive position information of the other vehicle, and the other vehicle is traveling in a road-to-vehicle communication service area. In this case, it is determined that the other vehicle is communicating between the road and vehicle,
The information supply device, preferentially a road-vehicle communication with the communication equipment in which the other vehicle with a crossing possibility between the vehicle is installed on a road than the inter-vehicle communication with the vehicle to stop receiving function of the inter-vehicle communication If you are going to be, with a notification means for notifying the presence of the other vehicle to the vehicle driver,
An information providing apparatus characterized by the above. The informing means, when the traveling road of the own vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the other vehicle, informing the driver of the own vehicle of the presence of the other vehicle;
The information providing apparatus according to claim 1. Even if the vehicle is traveling on a priority road with respect to the road on which the other vehicle is traveling, the notification means may be a driver of the own vehicle if the other vehicle is not performing road-to-vehicle communication. Not to inform the existence of the other vehicle
The information providing apparatus according to claim 2. In the information providing system that provides traffic information to the driver of the vehicle based on the information acquired by the inter-vehicle communication using the communication system that stops the reception function of the inter-vehicle communication while the road-to-vehicle communication is performed.
The information providing system performs inter-vehicle communication with a second vehicle within a predetermined distance range from the first vehicle to receive position information of the second vehicle, and the second vehicle performs road-to-vehicle communication. When traveling in the service area, the second vehicle is determined to be in road-to-vehicle communication,
The information providing system, the first vehicle and may intersect potential to the second vehicle, the second vehicle is a road than the inter-vehicle communication with the first vehicle to stop the receiving function of the inter-vehicle communication the road-vehicle communication with the communication equipment installed if performed with priority, further comprising a notification means for notifying the presence of the second vehicle to the driver of the first vehicle,
An information provision system characterized by The informing means informs the driver of the second vehicle of the presence of the first vehicle even when the traveling road of the second vehicle is a priority road with respect to the traveling road of the first vehicle. To do,
The information providing system according to claim 4.

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