JP6760231B2 - Collision avoidance support device - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to collision avoidance support.

Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for preventing unnecessary collision possibility determination processing from being executed when it is determined that there is an intersection with a traffic light in front of the own vehicle.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-76006

In the case of the above prior art, it is assumed that the driver is visually recognizing the traffic light. However, it is possible if the driver is not looking at the traffic light. In such a case, it is preferable to provide collision avoidance support more appropriately. Based on the above, the present disclosure aims to appropriately provide collision avoidance support when it is difficult for the driver to visually recognize the traffic light.

One form of the present disclosure approaches a support unit (S120 to S170) that executes a support process for avoiding the collision and a traffic light that the vehicle should follow, depending on the degree of possibility of a collision with an obstacle. to which if (S210, YES), and, if it is visible difficult situation the traffic for the driver (S220, YES), the degree of the possibility of how to execute the support processing This is a collision avoidance support device including a setting unit (S210 to S260) for setting an operating condition , which is a condition for determining the relationship between the two, to a condition different from the initial condition. The support unit, when the operating condition is set to the initial condition, and the degree of the potential when a predetermined degree, running the first support processing. The setting unit, when the traffic from entering the intersection is prohibited (S240, NO), and, when the degree of the likelihood is said predetermined order, stronger than the first support processing The operating condition is set to a condition different from the initial condition so that the second support process to be supported is executed.
Further, in another form of the present disclosure, the support unit (S120 to S170) that executes the support process for avoiding the collision and the own vehicle should follow according to the degree of possibility of the collision with the obstacle. If you are approaching the traffic signal (S210, YES), and, (S220, YES) when it is visually difficult situation the traffic for the driver, executes the support process how the degree of the possibility The collision avoidance support device includes setting units (S210 to S260) that set operating conditions that are conditions for determining the relationship with the vehicle to conditions different from the initial conditions. The support unit executes the first support process when the initial conditions are set and the degree of possibility is a predetermined degree. The setting unit, when the traffic from entering the intersection is allowed (S240, YES), and, when the degree of the likelihood is said predetermined order, weaker than the first support processing The operating condition is set to a condition different from the initial condition so that the second support process to be supported is executed.

According to this form, when it is difficult for the driver to visually recognize the traffic light, collision avoidance support can be appropriately provided.

Block block diagram showing an automobile. A flowchart showing a collision avoidance support process. A flowchart showing a condition setting process. The figure which shows the state at the intersection where the traffic light is installed.

The automobile 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes an information acquisition device group 20, a control device 30, a touch panel 40, and an actuator group 50. The information acquisition device group 20 includes a communication device 21, a GNSS receiver 22, a driver status monitor 23, a camera 24, a millimeter wave sensor 25, a vehicle speed sensor 26, an ultrasonic sensor 27, a laser sensor 28, and the like. It includes an infrared sensor 29.

The communication device 21 communicates with the roadside unit. The communication between the communication device 21 and the roadside unit is executed for road-to-vehicle communication. The GNSS receiver 22 receives a navigation signal in order to acquire the current location.

The driver status monitor 23 is a device for detecting a driving state from a driver's face image. The driver status monitor 23 includes a camera, an ECU, and a speaker. This camera is a near-infrared camera.

The driver status monitor 23 is mounted under the meter visor of the automobile 10. The driver status monitor 23 analyzes the orientation of the face, the degree of opening of the eyes, etc. based on the face image taken by the camera, and keeps the state of closing the eyes or not facing the front for a predetermined time. If this happens, a warning sound will be output from the built-in speaker. The driver status monitor 23 inputs the analysis result of the above-mentioned face orientation to the control device 30.

The camera 24 in this embodiment is a monocular camera. The camera 24 images the front of the automobile 10.

The millimeter wave sensor 25 is configured as an FMCW type so-called millimeter wave radar. The millimeter wave sensor 25 can transmit and receive radar waves in the frequency-modulated millimeter wave band to detect the presence, azimuth, and distance of a target that reflects the millimeter waves. The region where the millimeter wave sensor 25 transmits millimeter waves includes the front of the automobile 10.

The vehicle speed sensor 26 detects the vehicle speed of the automobile 10. The ultrasonic sensor 27, the laser sensor 28, and the infrared sensor 29 are sensors having well-known configurations. Similar to the millimeter wave sensor 25, these sensors can also detect a target existing in front of the automobile 10.

The touch panel 40 functions as an input / output interface for a route guidance device, an audio device, and the like.

The actuator group 50 includes a braking device 51, a wiper 53, and a warning device 54. The braking device 51 includes a brake pedal 52. The braking device 51 applies a brake having a strength corresponding to the amount of depression of the brake pedal 52.

The wiper 53 wipes the windshield of the automobile 10. The warning device 54 warns the driver when there is a possibility of collision with an obstacle or the like. The warning device 54 includes a device for pulling the seat belt (hereinafter referred to as a pulling device) and a speaker. The pulling device alerts the driver by pulling the seatbelt in a direction that winds up the driver's seatbelt. The speaker outputs a warning sound.

The control device 30 is composed of a plurality of ECUs and a storage medium for storing map information 31 and a program. The above program is for realizing the collision avoidance support process and the condition setting process described later.

The control device 30 controls the display of the touch panel 40 and the actuator group 50 based on the information acquired from the information acquisition device group 20 and the touch panel 40. Hereinafter, control of the braking device 51 and the warning device 54 will be described.

The control device 30 repeatedly executes the collision avoidance support process shown in FIG. The control device 30 first reads out the operating conditions as S110. The operating condition is a condition for determining the relationship between the degree of possibility and how the braking device 51 and the warning device 54 are operated. The control device 30 changes the operating conditions by the condition setting process described later. The default operating conditions are called initial conditions.

Next, the control device 30 proceeds to S120 and determines whether the possibility of collision is level 1 or higher. In the present embodiment, four levels of collision possibility levels (hereinafter, simply referred to as levels) are prepared. The likelihood of each level depends on the operating conditions. In the present embodiment, the possibility is determined based on the information acquired by the camera 24, the millimeter wave sensor 25, and the vehicle speed sensor 26. Possibility is determined, for example, by the distance to an obstacle. As will be described later, the higher the level, the stronger the support for collision avoidance.

When the level is 0, the control device 30 determines NO in S120, and repeats the collision avoidance support process from S110.

If the level is 1 or higher, the control device 30 determines YES in S120, proceeds to S130, and issues a warning to the driver using the warning device 54.

After S130, the control device 30 proceeds to S140 and determines whether the possibility of collision is level 2 or higher.

When the control device 30 is level 1, it determines NO in S140 and repeats the collision avoidance support process from S110.

When the level 2 or higher, the control device 30 determines YES in S140, proceeds to S150, controls the braking device 51, and starts the operation of the primary brake. The primary brake is an automatic brake having a weaker braking force than the secondary brake described later.

After S150, the control device 30 proceeds to S160 while continuing the primary braking, and determines whether the possibility of collision is level 3.

When the control device 30 is level 2, the control device 30 determines NO in S160, and repeats the collision avoidance support process from S110.

When the control device 30 is at level 3, the control device 30 determines YES in S160, proceeds to S170, controls the braking device 51, and activates the secondary brake. The secondary brake is an automatic brake that is applied with a strong braking force when the possibility of a collision is imminent.

When S170 is executed, the control device 30 repeats the collision avoidance support process from S110 after the possibility is avoided.

On the other hand, the control device 30 repeatedly executes the condition setting process shown in FIG. The condition setting process is a process for changing the above-mentioned operating conditions.

First, as S210, the control device 30 determines whether the vehicle 10 is approaching the traffic light to be followed by the vehicle 10. The traffic light that the vehicle 10 should follow is a traffic light that is located on the expected travel route. The control device 30 executes S210 based on the map information 31 and the current location of the automobile 10. The map information 31 includes information indicating the position of the traffic light.

The installation position of the traffic light is not limited to the intersection. The traffic light installed at a place other than the intersection is, for example, a push button type traffic light. Push-button traffic lights change the display of traffic lights that vehicles should follow in response to pedestrian crossing requests.

Both the traffic light installed at the intersection and the traffic light installed at other than the intersection are allowed to cross the stop line corresponding to the traffic light by displaying blue, and the traffic light is displayed by displaying red. It is prohibited to cross the stop line corresponding to. However, in the following, taking a traffic light installed at an intersection as an example, crossing the stop line is referred to as approaching the intersection.

The control device 30 determines YES in S210 when it satisfies that the automobile 10 is located in a predetermined region based on the traffic light to be followed by the automobile 10 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a traffic light). The predetermined area is an area from when the mileage to the traffic light becomes less than the predetermined distance until the stop line corresponding to the traffic light is passed.

When the control device 30 determines NO in S210, the control device 30 proceeds to S290 and sets the operating condition as the initial condition. If the operating condition is set to the initial condition before executing S290, the control device 30 does not execute substantially anything in S290. After that, the control device 30 repeats the execution of the condition setting process from S210 again.

If the control device 30 determines YES in S210, the control device 30 proceeds to S220 and determines whether the traffic light is difficult for the driver to see. The determination of S220 in the present embodiment is executed based on the image captured by the camera 24. As shown in FIG. 4, when the heavy-duty truck 200 is traveling in front of the automobile 10, the traffic light may not be reflected in the image captured by the camera 24. When the traffic light is not displayed in this way, the control device 30 determines that the traffic light is difficult for the driver to see. On the other hand, when the traffic light is reflected in the image captured by the camera 24, the control device 30 determines that the traffic light is not difficult for the driver to see.

If the control device 30 determines NO in S220, the control device 30 proceeds to S290. If the control device 30 determines YES in S220, the control device 30 proceeds to S230 and determines whether the driver is visually recognizing the traffic light. The determination of S230 in the present embodiment is executed based on the face image captured by the driver status monitor 23. Specifically, when the control device 30 determines that the driver is looking ahead based on the face image, the control device 30 determines that the driver is visually recognizing the traffic light, and in other cases, the driver uses the traffic light. Judge that it is not visually recognized.

If the control device 30 determines YES in S230, the control device 30 proceeds to S290. If the control device 30 determines NO in S230, the control device 30 proceeds to S240 and determines whether the traffic light permits the approach to the intersection. Information acquired by road-to-vehicle communication is used for the determination of S240. The information acquired by the road-to-vehicle communication includes information indicating the lighting status of the traffic light. FIG. 4 shows a roadside unit 310 that transmits the lighting status of the traffic light 300.

Permits by traffic lights are based on regulations. For example, in the case of Japan, if the green light of the traffic light is lit, entry to the intersection is permitted. Further, when the arrow of the traffic light is lit, if the automobile 10 is traveling in the lane corresponding to the route following the arrow, the entry to the intersection is permitted.

When the entry to the intersection is prohibited, the control device 30 determines NO in S240 and proceeds to S250. The control device 30 sets the operating condition as the first condition as S250. The first condition is a condition for strongly supporting collision avoidance as compared with the initial condition. For example, a situation determined to be level 2 under the initial condition is determined to be level 3 under the first condition.

If the entry to the intersection is permitted, the control device 30 determines YES in S240 and proceeds to S260. The control device 30 sets the operating condition as the second condition as S260. The second condition is a condition for supporting collision avoidance weakly as compared with the initial condition. For example, a situation determined to be level 2 under the initial condition is determined to be level 1 under the second condition.

After executing S250 or S260, the control device 30 repeats the condition setting process from S210.

According to the embodiment described above, collision avoidance support can be appropriately provided in a situation where it is difficult for the driver to visually recognize the traffic light. For example, in the situation shown in FIG. 4, the driver may decide that he / she may follow the vehicle in front and enter the intersection even though he / she is not visually recognizing the traffic light. In this case, if the traffic light is displaying red, the possibility of collision increases in the intersection. In preparation for such a situation, in this embodiment, the safety is enhanced by setting the first condition.

On the other hand, when the traffic light is displayed in blue in the situation shown in FIG. 4, the safety may be improved by suppressing the operation of the automatic brake in consideration of the possibility of being hit by a following vehicle. In addition, the autobrake may not need to be activated when the vehicle in front is about to turn left or right. Assuming such a situation, in the present embodiment, when the traffic light is displaying blue, the safety is enhanced by setting the second condition.

Further, setting either the first condition or the second condition requires that the driver does not visually recognize the display of the traffic light. Therefore, when the driver is visually recognizing the display of the traffic light. The initial conditions are maintained. This prevents unnecessarily changing conditions.

The correspondence between the embodiment and the claims will be described. The collision avoidance support process corresponds to the support unit, the condition setting process corresponds to the setting unit, and the control device 30 corresponds to the collision avoidance support device.

The present disclosure is not limited to the embodiment of the present specification, and can be realized by various configurations without departing from the spirit thereof. For example, the technical features in the embodiments corresponding to the technical features in each form described in the column of the outline of the invention are for solving a part or all of the above-mentioned problems, or one of the above-mentioned effects. It can be replaced or combined as appropriate to achieve part or all. If the technical features are not described as essential herein, they may be deleted as appropriate. For example, the following is exemplified.

1. 1. Determining the possibility of collision At least one of the ultrasonic sensor 27 and the laser sensor 28 may be used to determine the possibility of collision. Alternatively, a camera 24 changed to a stereo camera may be used.

2. 2. Judgment that the vehicle is approaching a traffic light It may be executed based on the information obtained from the road-to-vehicle communication.
When the pedestrian crossing is detected by the camera 24, it may be determined that the pedestrian crossing is located near the intersection.
It may be determined that the vehicle is located near the intersection from the front image information by a technique such as deep learning or pixel segmentation.

3. 3. Judgment that the traffic light is difficult to see When sunlight is incident from the front of the driver's seat, it may be judged that the traffic light is difficult to see. The camera 24 may be used to determine that sunlight is incident from the front of the driver's seat.

It may be determined that the traffic light is difficult to see in bad weather such as rain or snow. The bad weather may be determined based on the operation of the wiper 53.

When another light source exists in the vicinity of the traffic light, it may be determined that the traffic light is difficult to see. Whether or not another light source exists in the vicinity of the traffic light may be determined by using the camera 24. Other light sources include, for example, street lights and pedestrian signals.

At least one of "height, distance of the preceding vehicle", "position, width, height information of the traffic light" and "information whether the driver's seat is to the right or left of the center of the car" is acquired, and the traffic light is The accuracy in geometrically determining whether or not to enter the field of view may be improved. The "height and distance of the preceding vehicle" may be acquired by vehicle-to-vehicle communication. "Traffic light position, width, height information" may be acquired by road-to-vehicle communication. The control device 30 may store "information on whether the driver's seat is to the right or left of the center of the vehicle" in advance.

4. Determining whether the driver is visually recognizing the display of the traffic light When an accident vehicle or an emergency vehicle is traveling near the vehicle 10, it may be determined that the driver has looked away and that the traffic light has been overlooked. The emergency vehicle is, for example, a police vehicle, an ambulance, a fire engine, or the like.

When the operation of the touch panel 40 is detected, it may be determined that the user has looked away and that the traffic light has been overlooked. The operation of the touch panel 40 is executed, for example, for the operation of the route guidance function and the audio function.

Based on the relationship between the display of the traffic light and the behavior of the automobile 10, it may be determined whether or not the display of the traffic light can be visually recognized. For example, when decelerating in the case of a green light, it may be determined that the driver is not visually recognizing the display of the traffic light. Alternatively, it may be determined that the driver is not visually recognizing the display of the traffic light when accelerating or maintaining the speed in the case of a red light.

5. Condition setting The content of the support for changing the condition from the initial condition may be at least one of warning and automatic braking.
When changing both the warning and the automatic braking, unlike the embodiment, the degree of support change may be set individually.

The degree of relaxation of the collision determination and the possibility of relaxation may be changed based on the information indicating the timing at which the signal display is switched. For example, if the time it takes for the traffic light display to switch from red to blue is short, it is not necessary to issue a warning or brake. The above information may be acquired by road-to-vehicle communication.

Conditions may be set according to the consistency between the display of the traffic light and the behavior of the automobile. For example, when decelerating in the case of a green light, the initial condition may be set. Alternatively, when the speed is maintained in the case of a red light, the second condition may be set.

The display of the traffic light may be detected by the camera 24, may be detected by using road-to-vehicle communication, or may be detected by using vehicle-to-vehicle communication.

Depending on the method of determining the display of the traffic light, it may be determined how much the strength of the support is changed. For example, in the case of the camera 24, since the possibility of erroneous determination is higher than in the case of communication, the degree of change in support may be suppressed.

In the above embodiment, some or all of the functions and processes realized by the software may be realized by the hardware. In addition, some or all of the functions and processes realized by the hardware may be realized by the software. As the hardware, various circuits such as an integrated circuit, a discrete circuit, or a circuit module in which these circuits are combined may be used.

30 Control device

Claims (4)

Support units (S120 to S170) that execute support processing for avoiding the collision according to the degree of possibility of collision with an obstacle, and
If you are approaching the traffic signal to the vehicle to follow (S210, YES), and, if it is difficult situation viewing the traffic for the driver (S220, YES), how the degree of the possibility A setting unit (S210 to S260) that sets the operating condition , which is a condition for determining the relationship with whether to execute the support process, to a condition different from the initial condition.
With
The support unit, when the operating condition is set to the initial condition, and, when the degree of the likelihood is a predetermined order, to perform a first support processing,
The setting unit, when the traffic from entering the intersection is prohibited (S240, NO), and, when the degree of the likelihood is said predetermined order, stronger than the first support processing A collision avoidance support device that sets the operating conditions to conditions different from the initial conditions so that the second support process to be supported is executed. Support units (S120 to S170) that execute support processing for avoiding the collision according to the degree of possibility of collision with an obstacle, and
If you are approaching the traffic signal to the vehicle to follow (S210, YES), and, if it is difficult situation viewing the traffic for the driver (S220, YES), how the degree of the possibility A setting unit (S210 to S260) that sets the operating condition , which is a condition for determining the relationship with whether to execute the support process, to a condition different from the initial condition.
With
The support unit executes the first support process when the initial conditions are set and the degree of possibility is a predetermined degree.
The setting unit, when the traffic from entering the intersection is allowed (S240, YES), and, when the degree of the likelihood is said predetermined order, weaker than the first support processing A collision avoidance support device that sets the operating condition to a condition different from the initial condition so that the second support process to be supported is executed. According to claim 1 or 2, the setting unit sets the operating condition to a condition different from the initial condition, on the condition that the driver does not visually recognize the display of the traffic light (S230, YES). The described collision avoidance support device. The collision avoidance support device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the setting unit acquires whether the traffic light permits or prohibits entry into an intersection by road-to-vehicle communication. ..

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