JP6920984B2 - Driving support device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a driving support device.

Conventionally, when the own vehicle changes lanes to an adjacent lane, the direction of changing lanes is transmitted to the rear vehicle by operating a direction indicator (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-13209 Japanese Patent No. 4281589

By the way, in order to enter the branch road of the route, the lane may be changed before the own vehicle reaches the branch point. However, if the rear vehicle traveling in the lane to which the lane is changed does not give way in a situation where the road is congested or congested only by operating the direction indicator of the own vehicle, the own vehicle changes lanes. There is not enough space in the lane ahead to change lanes, and you cannot change lanes before you reach the fork.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a driving support device capable of accurately transmitting the intention of changing lanes to a vehicle behind the lane to which the lane is changed.

In order to achieve the above object, the driving support device of the present invention is a driving support device that assists the lane change of the own vehicle to enter the branch road of the route, and is a driving support device of the branch road from the position of the own vehicle. It is necessary to calculate the degree of necessity of changing lanes based on the traveling time to the branch point, the mileage required for detouring when the own vehicle does not enter the branch road, and the degree of congestion at the branch point. The vehicle control signal generation unit includes a degree calculation unit and a vehicle control signal generation unit that generates a vehicle control signal for executing vehicle control for transmitting the intention of changing lanes to a vehicle behind the lane to which the lane is changed. It is characterized in that the vehicle control signal for executing the vehicle control is generated so that the degree of necessity of the lane change is transmitted to the rear vehicle.
In the present invention, the branch point includes not only a branch point where the road is divided into two or more, but also an intersection where the roads intersect. Further, in the present invention, the branch road also includes an intersection road that intersects at an intersection.

Further, the necessity degree calculation unit calculates the urgency of the lane change based on the influence degree when the lane change cannot be made based on the mileage required for the detour and the traveling time, and the urgency degree and the congestion degree. The required degree may be calculated based on the degree.

Further, the degree of influence may be a time that is increased by the detour calculated based on the mileage required for the detour.

In addition, the necessity calculation unit determines the presence or absence of a vehicle in a parallel running region set to the side of the own vehicle in the lane to which the lane is changed, and a vehicle in the front region set in front of the parallel running region. The degree of congestion may be acquired based on the presence / absence and the presence / absence of a vehicle in the rear region set behind the parallel running region.

Further, the necessity degree calculation unit may be configured to calculate the traveling time based on the distance from the position of the own vehicle to the branch point and the vehicle speed of the own vehicle.

Further, the vehicle control is a width adjustment control to the lane side of the lane change destination, and the vehicle control signal generation unit moves the own vehicle by the width adjustment control as the degree of necessity of the lane change increases. The travel distance may be set long and the vehicle control signal including the set travel distance may be generated.

Further, the vehicle control signal generation unit sets a higher movement speed when moving the movement distance by the width adjustment control as the degree of necessity of changing the lane increases, and the vehicle control signal including the set movement speed. May be configured to generate.

Further, the vehicle control signal generation unit generates a vehicle control signal that activates a direction indicator indicating the direction of the lane change when the own vehicle changes the lane to enter the branch road. May be.

According to the present invention, the intention to change lanes can be accurately transmitted to the vehicle behind the lane to which the lane is changed.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the driving support device. The figure which shows typically the vehicle condition at a fork road. Explanatory drawing of the calculation method of the degree of congestion. The figure which shows the degree of necessity of lane change and the correspondence relation with each control. The figure which shows typically the width-aligned state of own vehicle. A flowchart showing a series of operations of the driving support device.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of the driving support device 10 of the present embodiment.
The driving support device 10 of the present embodiment is mounted on the own vehicle 1 and used. In addition to the driving support device 10, the own vehicle 1 includes a direction indicator 11, an ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance System) unit 12, a navigation device 40, a vehicle speed sensor 41, and a camera 42.

The own vehicle 1 can execute automatic driving control and manual driving control. The own vehicle 1 executes automatic driving control only when it is traveling in a preset automatic driving section (a section in which execution of automatic driving control is permitted), and executes automatic driving control in a section other than the automatic driving section (section other than the automatic driving section). When traveling in a non-automatic driving section), execution of automatic driving control is prohibited. In the present embodiment, for example, an expressway is set as an automatic driving section, and a general road other than the expressway is set as a non-autonomous driving section. It is also applicable when there is no non-autonomous driving section and automatic driving sections are set on all roads including general roads.
The own vehicle 1 does not always perform automatic driving control when traveling in the automatic driving section, and controls driving by automatic driving control according to the operation of executing and stopping the automatic driving control by the driver. It is possible to switch between a state and a state in which automatic driving control is prohibited and driving is controlled by manual driving control.

The driving support device 10 is traveling in the rear lane of the lane change destination when it is necessary to change lanes in order to enter a branch road along the route during automatic driving on a road having two or more lanes on each side. Provide driving support to convey the intention to change lanes to the vehicle. The driving support device 10 provides this driving support by using the direction indicator 11 and the ADAS unit (drive mechanism, braking mechanism, steering mechanism, etc.) 12. The control of the driving support device 10 will be described in detail later.

The direction indicator 11 is provided for the right direction and the left direction, and is provided at the front end portion and the rear end portion of the own vehicle 1. The direction indicator 11 operates (blinks) when it receives an operation control signal from the driving support device 10.

The ADAS unit 12 has functions such as automatic driving, automatic braking, and automatic steering while avoiding a collision with another vehicle. When the ADAS unit 12 receives each vehicle control signal from the driving support device 10, the ADAS unit 12 operates based on the received vehicle control signal.

The navigation device 40 has a function of detecting the current position, the traveling direction, and the like of the own vehicle 1. The navigation device 40 transmits a current position signal including information on the current position and the traveling direction of the own vehicle 1 to the driving support device 10. Further, the navigation device 40 has a function of searching for a route to the destination and a function of guiding the searched route when the destination is set by the occupant of the own vehicle 1. The navigation device 40 transmits a route signal including information on the route to the destination to the driving support device 10. The navigation device 40 includes a map database (not shown) that stores various road information and the like. The navigation device 40 transmits a road information signal including the road information on which the own vehicle 1 is traveling and the road information around the vehicle 1 to the driving support device 10 from the map database.

The vehicle speed sensor 41 detects the vehicle speed of the own vehicle 1. The vehicle speed sensor 41 transmits a vehicle speed signal including vehicle speed information to the driving support device 10.

The camera 42 includes a plurality of cameras that capture images in each direction such as the front, the rear, the left side, and the right side of the own vehicle 1. The camera 42 in each direction transmits an captured image signal including information on the captured image to the driving support device 10.

The operation support device 10 includes an electronic circuit unit including a CPU 20, a memory 30, and various interface circuits (not shown), and the CPU 20 reads and executes a control program 31 of the operation support device 10 stored in the memory 30. , It functions as a necessity degree calculation unit 21 and a vehicle control signal generation unit 22. The driving support device 10 receives the above-mentioned current position signal, route signal, road information signal, vehicle speed signal, and captured image signal, and controls using each of these signals.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a vehicle condition on a branch road.
As shown in FIG. 2, the driving support device 10 is on the right when the own vehicle 1 is traveling in the left lane LL of a road having two lanes on each side and the route to the destination includes a branch road BL. It is necessary to change lanes to lane RL. In this case, if the right lane RL of the lane change destination is congested or congested, it is difficult for the own vehicle 1 to secure a space for changing lanes in the right lane RL. At this time, the own vehicle 1 needs to have the rear vehicle 2 traveling in the right lane RL give way to secure the space. If the rear vehicle 2 slows down and gives way, the own vehicle 1 can change lanes to the right lane RL using the vacant space and enter the branch road BL from the right lane RL. FIG. 2 shows an example of the traveling locus of the own vehicle 1 when the lane is changed to the right lane RL by the broken line TL and the vehicle enters the branch road BL.

The driving support device 10 uses the ADAS unit 12 in the left lane LL in addition to the operation control of the right direction indicator 11 in order to convey the intention to change lanes to the vehicle 2 behind the right lane RL. In, the width adjustment control to the right lane RL side is performed. The driving support device 10 quantifies the degree of urgency of lane change and the degree of congestion of vehicles in the right lane RL of the lane change destination, and according to the degree of necessity of lane change based on each of these quantified values. Determines the presence or absence of width adjustment control and the control amount of width adjustment control.

Returning to FIG. 1 above, the necessity degree calculation unit 21 calculates the necessity degree of lane change for entering the branch road BL. Therefore, the necessity degree calculation unit 21 includes a peripheral vehicle detection unit 21a, a margin calculation unit 21b, an influence degree calculation unit 21c, an urgency calculation unit 21d, and a congestion degree calculation unit 21e.

The peripheral vehicle detection unit 21a detects other vehicles existing around the own vehicle 1 based on the captured image signals of the cameras 42 in each direction. As a method for detecting another vehicle, for example, a pattern indicating the outer shape of the vehicle (for example, a passenger car, a truck, a bus) is stored in a memory 30 or the like in advance, and pattern matching using this pattern is performed in the captured image. A method of searching for a vehicle is used.

The margin calculation unit 21b calculates the traveling time required for the own vehicle 1 to reach the branch point BP. Specifically, the margin calculation unit 21b calculates the distance L (see FIG. 2) from the current position of the own vehicle 1 to the branch point BP of the branch road BL based on the current position signal and the road information signal. The margin calculation unit 21b acquires the vehicle speed V of the own vehicle 1 based on the vehicle speed signal. Then, the margin calculation unit 21b divides the distance L to the branch point BP by the vehicle speed V to calculate the traveling time. The calculated travel time indicates the degree of time allowance for the own vehicle 1 to the branch point BP, and the travel time calculated by the margin calculation unit 21b is hereinafter referred to as "margin". The larger the value, the more margin there is before reaching the branch point BP.

For example, when the branch point BP is several hundred meters ahead on the expressway, but the vehicle speed of the own vehicle 1 is as high as the speed limit of the expressway, the traveling time required to reach the branch point BP is several seconds. The margin is low. In addition, although the intersection of a general road is several tens of meters away, if the vehicle speed of the own vehicle 1 is very low due to traffic congestion, the traveling time required to reach the intersection is several tens to several tens of seconds, and there is a margin. high.

The impact calculation unit 21c calculates the impact on the arrival time when the vehicle deviates from the route and detours when the lane cannot be changed and the branch road BL is not entered. Specifically, the influence degree calculation unit 21c acquires the mileage until returning to the route to the destination by detouring when the vehicle goes straight without branching the branch road BL based on the route signal and the road information signal. do. The influence degree calculation unit 21c calculates the increment time of the arrival time at the time of detour based on the acquired mileage and the vehicle speed (for example, the average vehicle speed of the own vehicle 1 and the restricted vehicle speed of the road currently being traveled). .. The time of this increment of arrival time is hereinafter referred to as "impact". As for the degree of influence, the larger the value, the greater the influence when the branch road BL cannot be entered.

For example, in the case of an expressway, you cannot enter the branch road BL included in the route to the destination, and if you pass the exit (interchange), you will exit the expressway at the next exit, so the arrival time will be significantly delayed. The degree of influence becomes large. Also, in the case of a general road, it was not possible to turn right at an intersection included in the route to the destination, but if you turn right at the next intersection, you can return to the route immediately, so the arrival time does not increase so much and the degree of influence is small.

The urgency calculation unit 21d calculates the urgency of changing lanes to enter the branch road BL. Specifically, the urgency calculation unit 21d divides the influence degree (time) calculated by the influence degree calculation unit 21c by the margin degree (time) calculated by the margin calculation unit 21b to calculate the urgency. The degree of urgency increases as the time of increment of the arrival time of the degree of influence increases. Further, the degree of urgency increases as the time required to reach the branch point BP decreases. As for the degree of urgency, the larger the value, the higher the urgency of changing lanes for entering the branch road BL. The higher the urgency, the stronger the intention to change lanes is required for the vehicle 2 behind the lane to which the lane is changed.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a method for calculating the degree of congestion.
The congestion degree calculation unit 21e acquires the congestion degree of the vehicle in the lane to which the lane is changed. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, in the lane to which the lane is changed, the congestion degree calculation unit 21e has a parallel running region PA on the side of the own vehicle 1 and a front region FA in front of the parallel running region PA. , The rear region BA is set behind the parallel running region PA. The length of each region PA, FA, BA is set by, for example, the speed limit of the road on which the vehicle is traveling. Based on the detection result of other vehicles in the peripheral vehicle detection unit 21a, the congestion degree calculation unit 21e gives two points when another vehicle exists in the parallel running area PA, and when another vehicle exists in the front area FA, the congestion degree calculation unit 21e gives two points. Is 1 point, 1 point when there is another vehicle in the rear area BA, 0 point when there is no other vehicle in the areas PA, FA, BA, and the points of each area PA, FA, BA. Let the total score of be the degree of congestion. In this case, the degree of congestion is 0 to 4 points. As for the degree of congestion, the higher the score, the more congested the lane to which the lane is changed. The more congested the lane of the lane change destination, the more difficult it is to secure a space for changing lanes. Therefore, it is necessary to show a strong intention to change lanes to the vehicle 2 behind the lane of the lane change destination.
In the case of the example shown in FIG. 3, another vehicle 3 exists in the parallel running region PA, another vehicle 4 exists in the front region FA, and another vehicle 5 exists in the rear region BA, so 2 points + 1 point. With +1 point, the degree of congestion becomes 4 points.
The number of areas to be set in the lane to which the lane is changed, the length of the areas, and the like can be changed as appropriate. In addition, the method of setting the score in each area can be changed as appropriate. For example, the score of each area may be changed according to the number of other vehicles existing in the area.

Returning to FIG. 1 above, the necessity degree calculation unit 21 needs to change the lane of the own vehicle 1 by multiplying the urgency calculated by the urgency calculation unit 21d by the congestion degree calculated by the congestion degree calculation unit 21e. Calculate the degree. As for the degree of necessity, the larger the value, the higher the need to change lanes to enter the branch road BL, and the higher the need to inform the rear vehicle traveling in the lane to which the lane is changed of the intention to change lanes. show.

When the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 determines that it is necessary to change lanes in order to enter the branch road BL of the route based on the current position signal, the route signal, and the road information signal, the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 uses the direction indicator 11 on the lane change side. An operation control signal for operation is generated, and the operation control signal is transmitted to the direction indicator 11.

Further, when the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 similarly determines that it is necessary to change lanes in order to enter the branch road BL of the route, the own vehicle 1 travels according to the degree of necessity calculated by the degree of necessity calculation unit 21. A width adjustment control signal for performing width adjustment to the lane side of the lane change destination in the own lane is generated, and this width adjustment control signal is transmitted to the ADAS unit 12. In the width adjustment control, the movement distance of the own vehicle 1 in the width direction (left-right direction) and the movement speed for moving the distance corresponding to the movement distance in the left-right direction are set, and the movement distance is set by the movement speed of the own vehicle. Control is performed so that 1 moves. The moving distance is, for example, several tens of centimeters. The moving speed is, for example, several km / h.

The vehicle control signal generation unit 22 determines the degree of necessity based on, for example, two threshold values, a first threshold value and a second threshold value. The first threshold is a threshold smaller than the second threshold. The first threshold value and the second threshold value are set by experiments and the like, and are stored in advance in, for example, the memory 30. When the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 determines that the degree of necessity is less than the first threshold value, it determines that the width adjustment control is not performed. When the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 determines that the degree of necessity is equal to or greater than the first threshold value and is equal to or less than the second threshold value, the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 determines that weak width adjustment control is performed as width adjustment control. When the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 determines that the degree of necessity is larger than the second threshold value, it determines that strong width adjustment control is performed as width adjustment control. The strong width adjustment control has a longer movement distance and a higher movement speed than the weak width adjustment control.

For example, when the degree of urgency is high but no other vehicle is detected in the lane to which the lane is changed (congestion degree is 0 point), the degree of necessity for changing lanes is low and the degree of necessity is smaller than the first threshold value. In this case, since it is less necessary to convey the intention to change lanes, the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 only controls the operation of the direction indicator 11. Even if the degree of urgency is low, if the lane to which the lane is changed is congested or congested (the degree of congestion is 3 or 4 points), the degree of necessity for changing lanes increases. In this case, since it is highly necessary to convey the intention to change lanes to the rear vehicle traveling in the lane to which the lane is changed, the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 performs width adjustment control in addition to the operation control of the direction indicator 11. conduct.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a correspondence relationship between the degree of necessity of changing lanes and each control.
In FIG. 4, the ON control B of the direction indicator 11 and the movement distance C and the movement speed D, which are the control amounts of the width adjustment control, are associated with each other with respect to the degree of necessity A for changing lanes. The degree of necessity A for changing lanes is divided into three levels: a low level below the first threshold value, a medium level above the first threshold value and below the second threshold value, and a high level above the second threshold value. When the degree of necessity A is low, the driving support device 10 performs ON control of the direction indicator 11 and does not perform width adjustment control. When the degree of necessity A is medium level, the driving support device 10 performs ON control of the direction indicator 11 and weak width adjustment control with a short movement distance and a slow movement speed as control quantities. When the degree of necessity A is high, the driving support device 10 executes ON control of the direction indicator 11 and performs strong width adjustment control with a long travel distance and a fast travel speed as control quantities. In this way, the driving support device 10 changes the control content according to the degree of necessity of changing lanes.

An example of the movement distance and the movement speed, which are the control amounts of the width adjustment control, will be described.
For example, it is assumed that the lane width of the lane in which the own vehicle 1 travels is 3.5 m, the vehicle width of the own vehicle 1 is 2 m, and the own vehicle 1 is traveling in the center of the lane. In the case of this example, the distance between the own vehicle 1 and the left and right lane markings in the lane in which the own vehicle 1 travels is 0.75 m, respectively. In the case of weak width adjustment control, the moving distance is set to 0.25 m and the moving speed is set to 1 km / h. In this case, the own vehicle 1 moves slightly to the lane side of the lane change destination while blinking the direction indicator 11. In the case of strong width adjustment control, the maximum moving distance is 0.75 m (for example, 0.5 m), and the moving speed is 3 km / h. In this case, the own vehicle 1 quickly moves to the vicinity of one lane marking of the lane to which the lane is changed while blinking the turn signal 11.
As for the moving distance and moving speed of the width adjustment control, the above-mentioned one is an example and can be set appropriately. For example, the moving distance may be set according to the lane width of the lane in which the own vehicle 1 is traveling.

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing the width-aligned state of the own vehicle 1. In FIG. 5, the state after the width of the own vehicle 1 is adjusted is shown as the broken line own vehicle 1'.
In the case of the example shown in FIG. 5, the own vehicle 1 adjusts the width by the movement distance MD to the right lane RL side of the lane change destination by the strong width adjustment control. The own vehicle 1'after the width adjustment is in the left lane LL in which the vehicle is traveling, but has moved to the vicinity of the lane marking SL on the left side of the right lane RL to which the lane is changed. The driver of the rear vehicle 2 traveling in the right lane RL can change the strong lane of the own vehicle 1'by visually recognizing this width adjustment in addition to the blinking of the direction indicator 11 on the right side of the own vehicle 1'. There is a high possibility that you will feel the intention of. As a result, for example, the driver of the rear vehicle 2 performs a braking operation and gives way to the own vehicle 1. By decelerating the rear vehicle 2, the distance between the rear vehicle 2 and the other vehicle 6 in front of the rear vehicle 2 is widened, and the space required for changing lanes is secured.

A series of operations of the driving support device 10 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The series of operations shown below starts when the own vehicle 1 reaches a point a predetermined distance before the branch point BP, and ends when the vehicle 1 passes the branch point BP and goes straight or enters the branch road BL. It is repeated from the start to the end.

The peripheral vehicle detection unit 21a detects the state of other vehicles in the vicinity based on the image captured by the camera 42 (step S1). The margin calculation unit 21b calculates the margin based on the distance from the own vehicle 1 to the branch point BP and the vehicle speed of the own vehicle 1 (step S2). The impact degree calculation unit 21c calculates the impact degree based on the route to the destination and the road information (step S3). The urgency calculation unit 21d calculates the urgency by dividing the influence degree by the margin degree (step S4).

The congestion degree calculation unit 21e calculates the congestion degree of the branch point BP based on the state of other vehicles in the vicinity detected in step S1 (step S5). The necessity degree calculation unit 21 calculates the necessity degree of lane change by multiplying the urgency calculated in step S4 and the congestion degree calculated in step S5 (step S6). This degree of necessity is updated in real time according to the situation of the own vehicle 1 and the situation of surrounding vehicles.

The vehicle control signal generation unit 22 transmits an operation control signal to the direction indicator 11 on the lane change side to operate the direction indicator 11 (step S7). The vehicle control signal generation unit 22 transmits a width adjustment control signal according to the degree of necessity calculated in step S6 to the ADAS unit 12, and causes the ADAS unit 12 to align the own vehicle 1 to the lane side of the lane change destination (step). S8). As a result, the driving support device 10 conveys the intention of changing lanes to the rear vehicle 2 traveling in the lane to which the lane is changed by blinking the direction indicator 11 and adjusting the width according to the degree of necessity for changing lanes. At this time, if the degree of necessity is low, only the blinking of the direction indicator 11 is performed, and the width adjustment is not performed.

The driving support device 10 determines whether or not a space capable of changing lanes has been created in the lane to which the lane is changed (step S9). When it is determined that there is no space in the lane to which the lane is changed (step S9: NO), the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 transmits a deceleration control signal to the ADAS unit 12, and the ADAS unit 12 causes the own vehicle 1 to move. Decelerate (step S10). As a result, the driving support device 10 sees off one rear vehicle 2 traveling in the lane to which the lane is changed, and returns to the process of step S1 (step S10).

When it is determined that a space has been created in the lane to be changed (step S9: YES), the vehicle control signal generation unit 22 transmits a lane change control signal to the ADAS unit 12, and the ADAS unit 12 keeps the own vehicle 1 in the lane. Change (step S11). After this lane change, when the own vehicle 1 reaches the branch point BP, it enters the branch road BL.

According to the driving support device 10, the degree of necessity of lane change is calculated, and the width adjustment control is executed to the lane side of the lane change destination according to this degree of necessity, so that the vehicle 2 behind the lane change destination lane is subjected to. The intention to change lanes can be accurately communicated. As a result, for example, even when the lane to which the lane is changed is congested or congested, if the rear vehicle 2 gives way, a space where the lane can be changed can be secured and the lane can be changed.

According to the driving support device 10, the degree of urgency based on the margin of the own vehicle 1 and the degree of influence when the lane is not changed, and the degree of lane change necessity are calculated using the degree of congestion at the branch point. The degree of necessity of changing lanes can be accurately obtained.

According to the driving support device 10, by acquiring the time increased by the detour based on the mileage required for the detour, it is possible to accurately acquire the degree of influence when the lane cannot be changed.

According to the driving support device 10, the degree of congestion at the branch point BP is determined by detecting the presence or absence of a vehicle traveling in each of the parallel running area PA, the front area FA, and the rear area BA set in the lane to which the lane is changed. Can be obtained with high accuracy.

According to the driving support device 10, the margin to the branch point BP of the own vehicle 1 can be accurately acquired based on the distance from the own vehicle 1 to the branch point BP and the vehicle speed of the own vehicle 1.

According to the driving support device 10, the greater the necessity of changing lanes, the longer the moving distance of the width adjustment control, thereby accurately communicating the strength of the intention to change lanes to the vehicle behind the lane to which the lane is changed. be able to.

According to the driving support device 10, the greater the necessity of changing lanes, the higher the moving speed of the width adjustment control, thereby accurately communicating the strength of the intention to change lanes to the vehicle behind the lane to which the lane is changed. be able to.

According to the driving support device 10, the intention to change lanes can be more accurately communicated to the vehicle behind the lane to which the lane is changed by performing the width adjustment control while operating the direction indicator.

The above embodiment shows a specific example to which the present invention is applied, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

For example, in the above embodiment, the own vehicle 1 is applied when entering the branch road BL at the branch point BP, but it can also be applied to a right or left turn to the intersection at the intersection.

Further, in the above embodiment, the width adjustment control is performed as the vehicle control for transmitting the intention to change lanes to the rear vehicle, but other control may be performed as the vehicle control. For example, the inter-vehicle distance due to congestion. If is very short, the direction of the own vehicle 1 may be tilted with respect to the lane, and vehicle control may be performed so that the front end portion of the own vehicle 1 is gradually brought closer to the vehicle side of the lane to which the lane is changed.

Further, in the above embodiment, the other vehicles around the own vehicle 1 are detected by using the image captured by the camera 42, but other vehicles around the own vehicle 1 may be detected by using other means. Often, for example, it may be detected by using radar information of a radar such as a millimeter wave radar, or it may be detected by using information received from another vehicle by using vehicle-to-vehicle communication.

Further, in the present embodiment, the information on the branch point, the branch road, etc. is acquired by using the road information of the navigation device 40, but even if the information on the branch point, the branch road, etc. is acquired by using other means. Often, for example, it may be configured to acquire information such as a branch point, a branch road, an intersection, and an intersection from a roadside device by using road-to-vehicle communication.

Further, in the present embodiment, the degree of influence is calculated by calculating the increment time from the mileage required for the detour when the own vehicle 1 does not enter the branch road BL, and the degree of urgency is calculated using this degree of influence. However, the urgency may be calculated by using the mileage required for the detour as it is.

Further, in the above embodiment, points are given to each area based on the presence or absence of vehicles in each of the parallel running area PA, the front area FA, and the rear area BA in the lane to which the lane of the own vehicle 1 is changed, and the points in each area are given. Although the total number of points in the above is used as the degree of congestion, the degree of congestion may be calculated by a method other than this. For example, the degree of congestion may be calculated from the inter-vehicle distance between vehicles in the lane to which the lane is changed. , The degree of congestion may be calculated based on the vehicle speed of each vehicle in the lane to which the lane is changed. Further, the degree of congestion may be acquired by receiving traffic congestion information or the like from the roadside device using road-to-vehicle communication.

Further, in the above embodiment, the degree of influence is divided by the degree of margin to calculate the degree of urgency, and the degree of urgency is multiplied by the degree of congestion to calculate the degree of necessity for changing lanes. The degree and the degree of congestion may be weighted to calculate the degree of necessity of changing lanes. For example, when the driver is in a hurry to the destination, the degree of influence is multiplied by a weight greater than 1, and the degree of urgency is calculated using the weighted degree of influence. In addition, each parameter for calculating the margin, impact, urgency, and congestion may be weighted.

Further, in the above embodiment, the movement distance and the movement speed are used as the control amount of the width adjustment control, but another control amount may be used as the control amount of the width adjustment control, for example, instead of the movement speed. , The time from the start of the width adjustment to the end of the width adjustment may be used.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the width-alignment control is set to three stages of width-alignment control, which is not performed according to the degree of necessity, weak width-alignment control, and strong width-alignment control, but width-alignment control is performed or not performed according to the degree of necessity. It may be divided into two stages, or it may be divided into four or more stages according to the degree of necessity.

Further, FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the functional configurations of the driving support device 10 classified according to the main processing contents in order to make the invention of the present application easy to understand, and the configuration of the driving support device 10 is processed. Depending on the content, it can be classified into more components. It can also be categorized so that one component performs more processing. Further, the processing of each component may be executed by one hardware or may be executed by a plurality of hardware. Further, the processing of each component may be realized by one program or may be realized by a plurality of programs.

Further, in the operation support device 10 of FIG. 1, the control program 31 executed by the CPU 20 is downloaded from, for example, an external server or the like via a communication network, then loaded onto a memory 30 such as a RAM, and executed by the CPU 20. It may be done. Further, it may be directly loaded from an external server into a memory 30 such as a RAM via a communication network and executed by the CPU 20. Alternatively, the storage medium connected to the driving support device 10 may be loaded onto the memory 30 such as RAM.

Further, the processing unit of the flowchart of FIG. 6 is divided according to the main processing contents in order to facilitate understanding of the processing by the driving support device 10. The invention of the present application is not limited by the method of dividing the processing unit and the name. The processing of the driving support device 10 can be divided into more processing units according to the processing content. It is also possible to divide one processing unit so as to include more processing. Further, as long as the same processing result can be obtained, the processing order of the flowchart of FIG. 6 is not limited to the illustrated example.

1 Own vehicle 2 Rear vehicle 10 Driving support device 11 Direction indicator 12 ADAS unit 20 CPU
21 Necessity calculation unit 21a Peripheral vehicle detection unit 21b Margin calculation unit 21c Impact calculation unit 21d Urgency calculation unit 21e Congestion degree calculation unit 22 Vehicle control signal generation unit 30 Memory 31 Control program 40 Navigation device 41 Vehicle speed sensor 42 Camera

Claims (8)

It is a driving support device that assists the lane change of the own vehicle to enter the branch road of the route.
Based on the travel time from the position of the own vehicle to the branch point of the branch road, the mileage required for the detour when the own vehicle does not enter the branch road, and the degree of congestion at the branch point. The necessity calculation unit that calculates the necessity of changing lanes,
A vehicle control signal generator that generates a vehicle control signal that executes vehicle control to convey the intention to change lanes to vehicles behind the lane to which the lane is changed.
With
The vehicle control signal generation unit is a driving support device that generates the vehicle control signal that executes the vehicle control so that the degree of necessity of the lane change is transmitted to the rear vehicle. The necessity calculation unit calculates the urgency of the lane change based on the influence degree when the lane change cannot be made based on the mileage required for the detour and the mileage, and the urgency degree and the congestion degree. The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein the degree of necessity is calculated based on the above. The driving support device according to claim 2, wherein the degree of influence is a time increased by the detour calculated based on the mileage required for the detour. The necessity calculation unit determines the presence / absence of a vehicle in the parallel running region set to the side of the own vehicle in the lane to which the lane is changed, and the presence / absence of a vehicle in the front region set in front of the parallel running region. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the degree of congestion is acquired based on the presence or absence of a vehicle in the rear region set behind the parallel traveling region. Any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the necessity calculation unit calculates the traveling time based on the distance from the position of the own vehicle to the branch point and the vehicle speed of the own vehicle. The driving support device described in. The vehicle control is a width adjustment control to the lane side of the lane change destination.
The vehicle control signal generation unit sets a longer movement distance of the own vehicle to be moved by the width adjustment control as the degree of necessity of changing the lane increases, and generates the vehicle control signal including the set movement distance. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the driving support device is characterized. The vehicle control signal generation unit sets a higher movement speed when moving the movement distance by the width adjustment control as the degree of necessity of changing the lane increases, and generates the vehicle control signal including the set movement speed. The driving support device according to claim 6, wherein the driver assists the device. The vehicle control signal generation unit is characterized by generating a vehicle control signal that activates a direction indicator indicating the direction of the lane change when the own vehicle changes the lane to enter the branch road. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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