JP5716945B2 - Vehicle control device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle control device, and more particularly to a vehicle control device that is mounted on a vehicle and can warn a driver of the vehicle.

  Conventionally, a lane marking on the road surface on which the vehicle is traveling is detected by a camera mounted on the vehicle, and a steering operation performed by the driver based on the detection result is supported, or the vehicle deviates from the lane marking. Devices that warn drivers when there is a high probability of doing so have been put into practical use.

  Specifically, the vehicle lane (the area between the right lane marking and the left lane marking) that the vehicle should travel from is recognized by an image captured by a camera mounted on the vehicle, and the driver of the vehicle does not intend. In addition, when it is determined that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the lane, or when it is determined that the vehicle will deviate, the vehicle driver is warned in advance via a warning device or the like (hereinafter referred to as LDW (Lane Departure Warning) Sometimes referred to as control).

  For example, there is an apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 as an example of an apparatus that detects a white line on a road surface on which the vehicle is traveling from an image captured by a camera mounted on the vehicle.

JP 2003-178399 A

  The device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a device that detects a boundary position of a white line provided in a traveling lane. Specifically, the apparatus disclosed in Patent Literature 1 describes a boundary line (white line serving as a warning reference) of a traveling road surface on which the vehicle is traveling from an image captured by a camera mounted on the vehicle. When a plurality of white lines (white line group) are detected during detection, the innermost white line in the white line group is used as a boundary line, or the barycentric position of the white line group is used as a boundary line.

  However, the apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 detects a line drawn on the traveling road surface on which the vehicle is traveling, and recognizes the line as a white line. In other words, since it is assumed that only the white line on the road surface can be accurately detected, for example, a non-original white line such as a repair mark or tire mark on the road surface is erroneously recognized as a white line, and The boundary line (white line used as a reference for warning) was determined including those that were not recognized white lines. Therefore, although the vehicle does not travel deviating from the boundary line, a warning indicating that the vehicle deviates from the boundary line is given, and stable LDW control cannot be performed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle control apparatus capable of performing stable LDW control by a simple method.

  In order to achieve the above object, the first invention employs the following configuration. That is, the present invention is a vehicle control device that is mounted on a vehicle and supports driving along a traveling lane. The vehicle control device includes: an imaging unit that images the front of the vehicle; a detection unit that detects lines drawn on the right side and the left side of the travel lane from the images captured by the imaging unit; and the detection unit Warning means for warning when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the detected lane line, and there are a plurality of lane lines detected by the detection means on either the right side or the left side of the travel lane A prohibiting means for prohibiting the warning performed when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the plurality of lane markings. Note that the prohibiting means of the present invention is such that, for example, when the detection means detects one lane marking on the right side of the travel lane and detects a plurality of lane markings on the left side of the travel lane, the vehicle may deviate. For warnings that are expected, a warning that uses the plurality of lane markings is not performed. Also, as an example, for example, when the prohibiting means of the present invention has a plurality of lane markings detected by the detecting means on either the right side or the left side of the traveling lane, a virtual lane marking is set for the one side. May be. In this case, since the warning may be performed based on the virtual lane marking, the prohibiting unit may not prohibit the warning on the one side.

  According to a second aspect, in the first aspect, the detection unit detects the lane marking from at least one image of the vicinity of the vehicle and the distance from the vehicle captured by the imaging unit. .

  According to a third invention, in the first or second invention, the prohibiting means has a plurality of lane markings on one of the right side and the left side of the travel lane, and among the plurality of lane markings When there is a positional relationship where at least one pair intersects, the warning performed when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the plurality of lane markings is prohibited.

  In a fourth aspect based on the first aspect or the second aspect, the prohibiting means includes a plurality of lane markings on either one of the right side and the left side of the traveling lane, and a branching section or a merging section on the one side. If there is, the warning that is performed when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the plurality of lane markings is prohibited.

  According to the first aspect, it is possible to provide a vehicle control device capable of performing stable LDW control by a simple method. That is, in general, when there are a plurality of lane markings on one side (right side or left side) of the traveling lane in which the host vehicle mv is traveling, a boundary line (LDW control It is necessary to select a lane marking as a reference). Further, for example, a non-original lane marking such as repair marks or tire marks on the road surface is recognized as a lane marking, and a boundary line (LDW control) is formed from a plurality of lane markings including the lane marking that is not the original lane marking. You may have to select the lane markings that serve as the basis for According to the present invention, when there are a plurality of lane markings on one side of the road surface, stable LDW control can be performed by not using the lane markings as lane markings that serve as a reference for LDW control. Can do.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, it can be determined whether there are a plurality of lane markings in the vicinity of the vehicle and in the distance.

  According to the third aspect, it is possible to more accurately determine a line that is not the original lane marking.

  According to the fourth aspect of the invention, in addition to whether or not there are a plurality of lane markings on one side, it is determined whether or not there is a branching section or a merging section on the one side. It can be carried out.

The block diagram which shows an example of a structure of the vehicle control apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which showed an example of the flow of the process performed in each part of camera ECU2 of the vehicle control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. The flowchart which showed an example of the process which camera ECU2 performs in step S15 of FIG. The figure which showed an example of the driving | running | working road surface which has a branch area on the right side (right side of the lane which the own vehicle mv should drive) of the driving | running | working road surface The figure which performed the projective transformation process about the area | region S of FIG. The figure which performed edge line processing about FIG. A diagram showing the branching section seen in Europe The figure which performed edge line processing about FIG.

  Hereinafter, a vehicle control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, as an example, an example will be described in which the vehicle control device is mounted on a vehicle (specifically, a passenger vehicle is assumed and is hereinafter referred to as a host vehicle mv).

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a vehicle control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle control device according to an embodiment includes a camera 1, a camera ECU (Electrical Control Unit) 2, a vehicle control ECU 3, and a warning device 4. The camera 1 corresponds to an example of the detection means described in the claims, the camera ECU 2 corresponds to an example of the prohibition means described in the claims, and the warning device 4 corresponds to an example of the warning means described in the claims.

  In the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment, for example, the host vehicle mv travels in the travel lane (the area between the right lane line and the left lane line) based on the lane marker on the road surface detected by the camera 1. Thus, the vehicle control ECU 3 controls the host vehicle mv (sometimes referred to as LKA (Lane keep Assist) control).

  On the other hand, the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment is based on the lane marker on the road surface detected by the camera 1, and the driver of the host vehicle mv does not intend to use the host vehicle mv. When it is determined that the vehicle is about to deviate from the lane to be traveled (the area between the right lane line and the left lane line), or when it is determined that the vehicle is deviating, a warning device described later is given to the driver of the vehicle vv 4 is used to issue a warning (sometimes referred to as LDW (Lane Departure Warning) control). Note that the vehicle control apparatus according to the present embodiment performs the above-described LDW control based on the detected line when the line drawn on the traveling road surface detected by the camera 1 satisfies a predetermined condition. Is not to be performed.

  In the following description, lane keeping control may be referred to as a general term for LKA control and LDW control.

  Proceeding to the description of FIG. 1, the camera 1 of FIG. 1 is, for example, a CCD camera, a CMOS camera, an infrared camera, or the like, and images the front of the host vehicle mv. Then, for example, the camera 1 images the front of the host vehicle mv at a predetermined time interval, and outputs the captured image to the camera ECU 2. Note that the position where the camera 1 is installed is directed in the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv in order to image the front of the host vehicle mv, and does not interfere with the driving of the driver. It is preferable.

  The camera ECU 2 includes a detection unit 21, a determination unit 22, a selection unit 23, and the like. The detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects a line drawn on the road surface (specifically, a white line or a yellow line drawn on the road surface) from the image captured by the camera 1. Based on the line, information on the road on the road surface on which the host vehicle mv is traveling (for example, road parameters described later) is calculated.

  In the following description, the lane marker is a lane line indicating a lane on which the vehicle should travel on the road surface. The lane marker on the right side (right lane line) and the lane marker on the left side (left lane line) Unless otherwise specifically distinguished, that is, when the right side and the left side are particularly distinguished, they may be simply referred to as lane markings.

  The determination means 22 of the camera ECU 2 detects a line drawn on the traveling road surface from the image captured by the camera 1 as a lane line, and the lane line is a lane line indicating a branch area. Determine whether or not.

  The selection means 23 of the camera ECU 2 will be described later, but the detection means 21 detects the right lane line or the left lane line that serves as a reference for LDW control (hereinafter, the lane line that serves as a warning reference is particularly referred to as a boundary line). Select from the detected lane markings. As described above, the vehicle control ECU 3 determines that the front wheel of the host vehicle mv reaches the right lane line or the left lane line (specifically, the right boundary line or the left boundary line) after a predetermined time, for example. If this happens, a warning or the like is given. That is, the vehicle control ECU 3 performs LDW control based on the boundary line selected by the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2.

  The vehicle control ECU 3 controls, for example, a steering device (not shown) based on the boundary line detected and selected by the camera ECU 2 and information on the road on which the host vehicle mv is traveling (for example, road parameters described later). When the possibility that the host vehicle mv deviates from the lane to travel is high, the driver's steering operation is supported so that the host vehicle mv travels in the lane to travel.

  Further, the vehicle control ECU 3 determines, for example, that it is likely to deviate from the lane to be traveled based on the boundary line detected and selected by the camera ECU 2 and information on the road on which the host vehicle mv is traveling. If it is determined that the vehicle deviates, a warning is given to the driver of the host vehicle mv in advance via a warning device 4 described later.

  The warning device 4 provides various information to the driver of the host vehicle mv by voice. Specifically, the warning device 4 notifies the driver of warnings and information corresponding to instructions from the vehicle control ECU 3. The warning device 4 is specifically a speaker or the like provided in the host vehicle mv, and is provided at a position that is visible to the driver who is seated in the driver's seat of the host vehicle mv and drives the host vehicle mv. It may be a display medium such as a liquid crystal display, a light emitting diode (LED), or an organic EL display.

  Hereinafter, an example of the flow of processing performed in each part of the camera ECU 2 of the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a flow of processing performed in each part of the camera ECU 2 of the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment.

  In step S11 of FIG. 2, the camera ECU 2 determines whether or not an ignition switch (hereinafter simply referred to as IG) is ON. If it is determined that IG is ON (YES), the process proceeds to the next step S12. On the other hand, when the camera ECU 2 determines that IG is not ON, that is, IG is OFF (NO), the process in the flowchart ends.

  In step S12, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 acquires vehicle information of the host vehicle mv. In this step S12, the vehicle information acquired by the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 is, for example, a switch for performing lane keeping control (for example, an LKA main switch or an LDW main switch (not shown)). Information indicating that the vehicle mv is pressed by the driver. And the detection means 21 of camera ECU2 advances a process to following step S13.

  In step S13, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 determines whether to start the lane keeping control. Specifically, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 refers to the vehicle information acquired in step S12 and determines whether to start lane keeping control. Then, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 affirms the determination based on the vehicle information acquired in step S12, for example, when the LKA main switch or the LDW main switch (each not shown) is pressed by the driver (YES) ), The process proceeds to the next step S14.

  On the other hand, for example, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 denies the determination from the vehicle information acquired in step S12, for example, when the LKA main switch or the LDW main switch (not shown) is not pressed by the driver. (NO), the process is returned to step S12.

  In step S <b> 14 of FIG. 2, the detection unit 21 of the camera ECU 2 acquires an image captured by the camera 1. Specifically, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 acquires an image ahead of the host vehicle mv captured by the camera 1 from the camera 1. And the detection means 21 of camera ECU2 advances a process to following step S15.

  In step S <b> 15, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs processing for detecting a lane marking from an image in front of the host vehicle mv captured by the camera 1. Hereinafter, the process performed in step S15 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of processing performed by the camera ECU 2 in step S15 of FIG.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a traveling road surface having a branch section on the right side of the traveling road surface (the right side of the lane on which the host vehicle mv should travel). Note that FIG. 4 and the following description will be described assuming that the vehicle mv is traveling on the road surface of a country where the vehicle is right-hand traffic (for example, the United States, Europe, etc.), but is not limited thereto. Needless to say, the vehicle can also be applied in a left-handed country (for example, Japan).

  As shown in FIG. 4, it is assumed that the host vehicle mv is traveling straight in the direction of the arrow arS in the drawing. More specifically, the host vehicle mv goes straight in the direction of the arrow arS with the area between the right marking line R1 and the left marking line L1 as a lane on which the host vehicle mv should travel. Thereafter, it is assumed that the host vehicle mv travels from position A to position B in FIG. 4 and a branch section exists on the right side of the host vehicle mv. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, in the branch section shown in FIG. 4, the right partition line R1 is bent outward, and the branch section is formed by the partition line Rc and the broken line Rf1 in FIG.

  Proceeding to the description of FIG. 3, in step S <b> 31, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs projective transformation processing on the image captured by the camera 1. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 approximates an image captured by the camera 1 for the region S in FIG. 4 and performs a viewpoint in the vertical direction with respect to the region S on the traveling road surface in FIG. 4. Projective transformation processing is performed so that the image is shifted. Specifically, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 sets the known position of the camera 1 in the host vehicle mv (height, angle, etc. with respect to the road) of the image (not shown) acquired from the camera 1. Based on this, the image is converted into an image looking down on the area S of the traveling road surface. In addition, what is necessary is just to use the known method by those skilled in the art for the conversion process which the detection means 21 of camera ECU2 performs. Note that an image obtained by performing projective transformation processing on an image captured by the camera 1 as shown in FIG. 5 is simply referred to as a camera image im1 hereinafter.

  In step S32, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs processing for extracting edge points. Specifically, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs a Sobel filter process or the like in a predetermined direction of the camera image im1, extracts a plurality of edge points from the camera image im1, and advances the process to the next step S33.

  In step S33, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs line segment detection for the plurality of edge points extracted in step S32. Specifically, as an example, the detection unit 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs processing by curve Hough transform on an edge point that changes from high luminance to low luminance among the plurality of edge points extracted in step S32. . Thereby, a plurality of line segments passing through the edge point can be detected. And the detection means 21 of camera ECU2 advances a process to the following step S34.

  In step S34, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs a process for recognizing a lane marking. Specifically, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects a pair of left and right edges, that is, a pair of edge lines from the edge line extracted in step S33, and uses the detected pair of edge lines as a partition line. recognize.

  Here, the process performed by the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 in step S34 will be briefly described below by taking the above-described camera image im1 (see FIG. 5) as an example. For example, with respect to the camera image im1 (see FIG. 5), it is considered that the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 obtains an image im2 as shown in FIG. 6 when the processes of steps S32 and S33 described above are performed. Note that for the purpose of the following description, the image im2 (FIG. 6) is divided into a near region and a far region, and an arrow arS indicating the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv shown in FIG.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the left partition line L1 is extracted as the edge line L1e, the right partition line R1 is extracted as the edge line R1e, and the partition line Rc is extracted as the edge line Rce. The broken line Rf1 in the camera image im1 (see FIG. 5) is a lane marking indicated by the broken line, but the lane marking is intermittent in a predetermined direction. The detecting means 21 may assume a single dividing line and the broken line Rf1 as the edge line Rf1e.

  Then, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects a pair of left and right edge lines, that is, a pair of edge lines in the traveling direction (arrow arS direction) of the host vehicle mv for each edge line extracted in this way. As shown in FIG. 6, for the host vehicle mv that goes straight in the direction of the arrow arS, a plurality of edge lines (specifically, the edge line R1e, the edge line Rf1e, And edge line Rce) exist. The detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects an edge line that is paired with one edge line L1e on the left side with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv among the edge line R1e, the edge line Rf1e, and the edge line Rce.

  Specifically, for example, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 is based on the distance between the right lane line and the left lane line that indicate the area where the vehicle should travel, which is usually drawn on a general road. It is determined whether or not the combination of edge lines is appropriate. Specifically, whether the distance between the edge lines is within a predetermined range, whether the value of the angle formed by each edge line is equal to or less than a predetermined value (the two edge lines are Judgment is made under conditions such as whether or not they are substantially parallel. The distance between the edge lines, which is a criterion for determining whether or not the distance is within a predetermined range, may be set based on a lane width or the like of a general traveling road surface.

  For example, in the case shown in FIG. 6, the edge line L1e and the edge line R1e are detected as a pair of edge lines, and the edge line L1e and the edge line Rf1e are detected as a pair of edge lines. As a result, the left demarcation line L1, the right demarcation line R1, and the broken line Rf1 are recognized as boundary lines on the traveling road surface shown in FIG. That is, more specifically, the line paired with the edge line L1e is recognized as the edge line R1e and the edge line Rf1e. As a result, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the left partition line L1 and the right partition line The area between the line R1 and the area between the left partition line L1 and the broken line Rf1 are recognized as lanes that the host vehicle mv should travel.

  The detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects, for example, a pair of edge lines paired under the above-described conditions, but the pair of the edge line L1e and the edge line Rce and the edge line Rf1e and the edge shown in FIG. Since the pair with the line Rce is expected not to satisfy the above-described conditions, it is determined that the pair of the edge line L1e and the edge line Rce and the pair of the edge line Rf1e and the edge line Rce are not pairs. The That is, more specifically, the edge line L1e and the edge line Rce are not within a predetermined distance (not a lane width of a general road surface) and are not parallel. It is determined that the pair of the edge line L1e and the edge line Rce is not a pair. The same applies to the edge line Rf1e and the edge line Rce.

  The above is the description of step S34 in FIG. And the detection means 21 of camera ECU2 complete | finishes the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3 after the process of said step S34, and returns a process to step S16 of FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 2, in step S <b> 16 of FIG. 2, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 calculates a road parameter and outputs the road parameter to the vehicle control ECU 3. Specifically, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects the traveling road surface on which the host vehicle mv is traveling based on the edge line detected in step S15 and information indicating the traveling state of the host vehicle mv. A relative relationship between the shape and the host vehicle mv (hereinafter referred to as a road parameter) is estimated.

  Hereinafter, the process performed by the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 in step S16 of FIG. 2 will be briefly described. As an example, in calculating the road parameter in step S16 of FIG. 2, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 can use, for example, a Kalman filter algorithm. For example, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 inputs the edge points to the Kalman filter in a predetermined number and order from among the edge points extracted in step S32. Then, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs a Kalman filter process to thereby obtain road parameters (curvature R of the road surface, pitch angle φ, yaw angle θ, road width W) of the road surface on which the host vehicle mv is traveling. , Offset amount g). Thereby, the shape of the lane marking drawn on the traveling road surface can be estimated. Then, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 outputs the calculated road parameter to the vehicle control ECU 3, and the process proceeds to step S17.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 2, in step S <b> 17 of FIG. 2, the determination unit 22 of the camera ECU 2 performs branch determination on the vicinity region. Specifically, in step S33, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects whether there is an edge line indicating a branch in the vicinity region for the edge line. As a method for detecting an edge line indicating a branch from an image captured by the camera 1, a conventional known method may be used. For example, the following method is also available.

  For example, based on the processing in step S34, it can be determined whether or not the value of the angle formed by the two edge lines is greater than or equal to a predetermined value for a set of two edge lines. In other words, whether or not the two edge lines are branch-shaped edge lines can be determined based on whether or not the two edge lines are V-shaped. In the example shown in FIG. 6, it is determined that the edge line Rf1e and the edge line Rce are a pair of edge lines indicating a branch.

  In the description of the present embodiment, the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 detects and determines whether or not the edge line is an edge line indicating a branch, but whether or not it is an edge line indicating a merge is also determined. For example, it can be determined by whether or not the two edge lines are V-shaped. Hereinafter, an example in which the determination unit 22 of the camera ECU 2 performs the branch determination will be described. However, the branch determination may be analogized and used as the merge determination.

  As described above, the branch determination in step S17 in FIG. 2 is based on the processing in step S34, and the value of the angle formed by the two edge lines for the set of two edge lines is determined in advance. It is determined whether or not the value is greater than or equal to the value. For example, when a plurality of edge lines are detected on one side with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv, the plurality of edge lines are divided or merged sections. May be an edge line.

  And the determination means 22 of camera ECU2 affirms determination (YES) in step S18 of FIG. 2, and advances a process to following step S19.

  On the other hand, the determination means 22 of the camera ECU 2 performs the branch determination on the neighboring region. As a result, for example, in step S34, the value of the angle formed by the two edge lines in advance is determined in advance in step S34. In step S18 of FIG. 2, the determination is negative (NO), for example, when it is less than a predetermined value (substantially parallel) or only one edge line is paired with one left edge line L1e. And the process proceeds to the next step S20.

  In step S19, which is the next process in which it is determined that there is a branch section in the neighborhood area, the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2 performs a boundary line selection process. Hereinafter, the boundary line selection process performed by the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2 in step S19 will be described.

  The boundary line selection process in step S19 does not select the edge lines (edge line Rf1e and edge line Rce in the example of FIG. 6) included in the set of edge lines indicating branching as boundary lines on the traveling road surface. As described above, the edge lines included in the set of edge lines indicating the merging are not selected as boundary lines on the traveling road surface.

  Specifically, in step S19, the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2 selects the edge line L1e and the edge line R1e as a boundary line (partition line serving as a reference for LDW control). On the other hand, the selection means 23 of the camera ECU 2 does not select the edge lines (edge line Rf1e and edge line Rce in the example of FIG. 6) included in the set of edge lines indicating branching as boundary lines on the traveling road surface.

  In this case, the edge lines included in the pair of edge lines indicating the branch (in the example of FIG. 6, the edge line Rf1e and the edge line Rce) are not selected as the boundary line by the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2. Therefore, at the position B in FIG. 4, for example, when the driver of the host vehicle mv unintentionally moves to the right side, there is no lane marking serving as a reference for performing LDW control. However, for example, when the selection means 23 of the camera ECU 2 determines that the host vehicle mv has reached the point where the right lane marking R1 cannot be obtained (point P1 in FIGS. 4 and 6), the selection means 23 is obtained so far. On the basis of the edge line R1e, a line obtained by extending the edge line R1e is set as a virtual right lane line R1, or a right lane line estimated from the edge line L1e based on a lane width of a general traveling road surface or the like. What is necessary is just to set as virtual right division line R1.

  In the example described above, it is expected that the virtual right partition line estimated from the edge line L1e is set to be the edge line Rf1e.

  That is, the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2 is configured such that the detection unit 21 has a plurality of edge lines with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv (in the example described above, the edge line R1e, the edge line Rf1e, and the edge line on the right side. Rce) is detected, the plurality of lane markings are not selected as the lane markings that serve as the reference for LDW control, but the virtual lane estimated based on one lane marking in the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv The line (in the example described above, the right lane marking estimated from the edge line L1e) is defined as a lane marking serving as a reference for LDW control.

  The boundary lines on the traveling road surface shown in FIG. 4 are the left lane line L1 and the right lane line R1, and the vehicle control ECU 3 to which the information indicating the left lane line L1 and the virtual right lane line is output is predetermined. If it is determined that the front wheels of the host vehicle mv will reach the left lane line L1, the right lane line R1, and the virtual right lane line after a time, a warning or the like is given (LDW control). In other words, the vehicle control ECU 3 has a plurality of edge lines that are not selected by the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2 with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv (in the above example, the edge line R1e, Instead of performing LDW control based on the line Rf1e and the edge line Rce), the LDW control is performed based on the virtual lane marking set by the selection means 23 of the camera ECU 2.

  In the above-described example, the host vehicle mv travels with respect to a plurality of edge lines (specifically, the edge line R1e, the edge line Rf1e, and the edge line Rce) on the right side with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv. Although a pair of edge lines paired with one edge line Le on the left side in the direction is detected, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when a plurality of edge lines are detected on the right side with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv without detecting a pair as a pair, the dividing lines indicated by the plurality of edge lines are It does not have to indicate a boundary line (a division line serving as a reference for LDW control). That is, when a plurality of lane markings are drawn on one of the right side and the left side with respect to the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv, the plurality of lane markings on the one side are boundaries on the road surface (LDW control). It may not indicate the lane markings that serve as the reference for In this case as well, when one lane line is detected in the traveling direction of the host vehicle mv, a virtual lane line estimated based on the one line is used as a reference for LDW control. It may be set as a line and LDW control may be performed.

  Thus, a pair of edge lines determined not to be a pair, more specifically, an edge line included in a pair of edge lines indicating a branch (in the example of FIG. 6, the edge line Rf1e and the edge line Rce ) May not indicate a boundary line on the road surface (a division line serving as a reference for LDW control). Note that the vehicle control ECU 3 determines that the host vehicle mv is likely to deviate from the lane marking that is not determined as the LDW control reference by the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2, for example, in the case of an audio warning. The volume or the like may be reduced as compared with a normal warning, or LDW control may be limited.

  Thereby, stable LDW control can be performed by a simple method. That is, generally, when there are a plurality of lane markings on one side (right side in the above description) on which the host vehicle mv is traveling, the boundary lines (LDW) It is necessary to select the lane markings that serve as the basis for control. Further, for example, a non-original lane marking such as repair marks or tire marks on the road surface is recognized as a lane marking, and a boundary line (LDW control) is formed from a plurality of lane markings including the lane marking that is not the original lane marking. You may have to select the lane markings that serve as the basis for At this time, for example, when a boundary line (partition line serving as a reference for LDW control) is selected as a partition line that is not the original partition line, LDW control is performed using the partition line that is not the original partition line as a reference. Thus, the LDW control cannot be performed stably.

  When a plurality of lane markings exist on one side (right side in the above description) of the traveling road surface, the vehicle control device according to the present embodiment displays the lane marking as an LDW, particularly when a lane marking indicating a branch section exists. Stable LDW control can be performed by not using it as a lane marking as a reference for control.

  By the way, the lane marker (specifically, a line such as a white line or a yellow line drawn on the traveling road surface) indicating the branch section drawn on the traveling road surface may differ depending on the region or the like.

  Specifically, it is a branch section as shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a camera image im3 obtained by performing a projective transformation process on an image obtained by the camera 1 of the host vehicle mv in a branch section seen particularly in Europe. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, there is a branch section in which no lane line (broken line) exists from the point where the right lane line R1 can no longer be obtained (point P2 in FIG. 7) until the broken line Rf2 appears. .

  Further, with respect to the camera image im3 (see FIG. 7), when the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2 performs the processes of step S32 and step S33 described above, an image im4 as shown in FIG. 8 is obtained. For this reason, as a result of performing the branch determination as described above for the neighboring region, it may be determined that the branch is not a branch. That is, when considering the far region, the edge line Rce and the edge line Rf2e are determined to be a pair of edge lines indicating branching, but as a result of branch determination in the neighboring region, there is no pair of edge lines indicating branching. As a result, in step S18, the determination is negative (NO).

  Therefore, when the destination of the host vehicle mv is particularly Europe, the determination in step S18 described above is negative (NO), that is, in the next step S20 where it is determined that the vehicle is not a branch section, the determination means 22 of the camera ECU 2 Further, branch determination is performed for the far region. Note that the branch determination in the far region, that is, the processing in step S20 and step S21 may be performed in the same manner as in the above-described step S17 and step S18, and thus the description thereof is omitted, but the edge line Rf2e and the edge line Rce is determined to be a set of edge lines indicating branching. In step S19, the selection unit 23 of the camera ECU 2 does not select the edge line Rf2e and the edge line Rce as boundary lines (partition lines serving as a reference for LDW control) on the road surface.

  Also in this case, similarly, the selection means 23 of the camera ECU 2 sets a line obtained by extending the edge line R1e as a virtual right partition line R1 based on the edge line R1e obtained so far, The right lane marking estimated from the edge line L1e based on the lane width of the typical traveling road surface may be set as the virtual right lane marking R1.

  On the other hand, if the determination in step S21 is negative, that is, branch determination is made in the vicinity region and the far region, but if it is determined that the branch is not a branch, the vehicle control ECU 3 is detected by the detection means 21 of the camera ECU 2. The LDW control may be performed using the lane marking as a boundary line (a lane marking serving as a reference for LDW control).

  Thereafter, in step S22, the camera ECU 2 determines whether or not the IG of the host vehicle mv is turned off. If it is determined that IG is OFF (YES), the processing in the flowchart is terminated. On the other hand, when the camera ECU 2 determines that the IG of the host vehicle mv is not turned off (NO), the process returns to step S12.

  The aspect demonstrated by the said embodiment shows a specific example only, and does not limit the technical scope of this invention at all. Therefore, any configuration can be adopted within a range where the effect of the present application is achieved.

  The vehicle control device according to the present invention is useful as a vehicle control device that is mounted on a vehicle and can perform stable LDW control by a simple method.

1 ... Camera 2 ... Camera ECU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 21 ... Detection means 22 ... Determination means 23 ... Selection means 3 ... Vehicle control ECU
4. Warning device

Claims (4)

A vehicle control device that is mounted on a vehicle and supports driving along a traveling lane,
Imaging means for imaging the front of the vehicle;
Detecting means for detecting lines drawn on the right side and the left side of the traveling lane with respect to the traveling direction of the vehicle from the image captured by the imaging unit as a demarcation line;
Warning means for warning when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the lane line detected by the detection means;
When there are a plurality of lane markings detected by the detection means on either the right side or the left side of the travel lane with respect to the traveling direction of the vehicle, the control is included in the control for supporting driving along the travel lane. A prohibiting means for prohibiting the warning that is performed when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the plurality of lane markings by using the plurality of lane markings as a control criterion ;
The lane line detected for the area in the traveling direction of the vehicle by the detection means includes the lane line that has been used as a reference for control for supporting driving along the traveling lane on the one side. When there are a plurality of lines, a reference used for the one side of the control for supporting the driving along the traveling lane with respect to the area in the traveling direction of the vehicle is a virtual one without using the plurality of lane markings. Control means using lane markings,
The virtual lane line estimated from one lane line detected as a boundary line opposite to the one side of the traveling lane is set and used , or included in the plurality of lane lines A vehicle control apparatus comprising: control means for setting and using the virtual lane marking estimated based on the lane marking that is paired with the one lane marking on the opposite side .   The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit detects the lane marking from at least one image of the vicinity of the vehicle and the distance from the vehicle captured by the imaging unit.   The prohibiting means includes a plurality of lane markings on either the right side or the left side of the travel lane, and at least one set of the plurality of lane markings intersects. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the warning performed when the vehicle is expected to deviate from the lane marking is prohibited.   In the case where there are a plurality of lane markings on one of the right side and the left side of the travel lane and there are a branching section or a merging section on the one side, the prohibiting unit deviates from the plurality of lane markings. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the warning that is performed when it is predicted is prohibited.

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