JP6923335B2 - Notification device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a notification device that notifies a driver of the presence of an object located around a vehicle.

Patent Document 1 discloses an obstacle warning device that detects an obstacle within a predetermined range around the vehicle and outputs a warning sound corresponding to the direction in which the obstacle exists. This obstacle warning device includes an obstacle detecting means for detecting an obstacle, an acoustic control circuit for controlling to change the localization of a musical tone signal according to the position of the obstacle, and a plurality of speakers for generating a warning sound. Be prepared. The plurality of speakers are provided at front, rear, left, and right positions in the vehicle interior, and output a warning sound to the driver so that the sound image is located at the position of an obstacle.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-58219

In the technique of Patent Document 1, the position of an obstacle is indicated to the driver by using the localization of the sound image, but the driver may feel uncomfortable at the position of the obstacle indicated by the sound image depending on the change in the position of the vehicle and the obstacle. There is.

The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object of the present invention is to provide a notification device capable of outputting appropriate notification information when outputting notification information indicating the position of an object around the vehicle. ..

In order to solve the above problems, the notification device of a certain aspect of the present invention obtains the position information of the object based on the object detection unit that detects the object around the own vehicle and the detection result of the object detection unit. The object information acquisition unit to be acquired and the position information of the object acquired by the object information acquisition unit are the course center area set in the vehicle traveling direction, the left area set to the left of the course center area, and the object. When it is determined which of the right regions set on the right side of the course center region is located and the object is located in the course center region, the notification information indicating that the object is located in the course center. It includes a notification determination unit that determines output and an output unit that outputs notification information determined by the notification determination unit. The object information acquisition unit acquires directional information indicating whether the object approaches or leaves the vehicle center line extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and the notification determination unit approaches the vehicle center line. When the object is separated from the vehicle center line by widening the left and right width of the course center area and narrowing the left and right width of the left area and the right area as compared with the case where the object is separated from the vehicle center line. Narrows the left-right width of the course center region and widens the left-right region and the right region, as compared with the case where the object does not change its position with respect to the vehicle center line.

When the object is close to the vehicle center line, the driver tends to determine that the object is located in the center of the vehicle's path. It is possible to easily output the notification information indicating that the vehicle is located in the center of the course and output appropriate notification information. In addition, when the object is close to the vehicle center line, there is a high possibility that it will hinder the vehicle running, and the output unit can easily output notification information indicating that the object is located in the center of the vehicle's course. By doing so, the driver can be appropriately alerted.

When the notification determination unit indicates that the position information of the object is located in the left area or the right area set on the left side or the right side of the course center area, the notification determination unit determines that the object is located on the left side or the right side of the course. The output of the indicated broadcast information may be determined. As a result, it is possible to indicate to the driver whether the object is in the center of the course or on the left and right sides, and it is possible to distinguish the position of the object to the driver.

The notification determination unit determines the output of notification information when the object is located in the warning area set in the vehicle traveling direction, and even if the course center area, left area, and right area are set in the warning area, respectively. good. As a result, the left-right width of the central area is changed in the caution area.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a notification device capable of outputting appropriate notification information when outputting notification information indicating the position of an object around the vehicle.

It is a figure for demonstrating the functional structure of the notification device of an Example. It is a figure for demonstrating the warning area of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the notification processing. It is a figure which shows the flowchart of the notification process which outputs the notification information.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a functional configuration of the notification device 10 of the embodiment. The notification device 10 outputs notification information indicating the position of the object around the vehicle to make the driver recognize the existence of the object. The notification device 10 includes an object detection sensor 12, a vehicle state detection sensor 14, a speaker 16, and a processing unit 18.

The object detection sensor 12 detects an object around the vehicle and sends the detection result to the processing unit 18. The object detection sensor 12 captures an image of a sound wave sensor that outputs a sound wave and detects an object by its reflected wave, a millimeter wave sensor that outputs a millimeter wave and detects an object by its reflected wave, and a vehicle periphery. It may be any of the image sensors that acquire the captured image, or a combination thereof. Based on the detection result of the object detection sensor 12, the processing unit 18 can acquire information indicating the distance and direction of the object. Objects include objects such as people, vehicles, guardrails, and walls that can interfere with driving.

The vehicle state detection sensor 14 detects vehicle state information such as the vehicle speed and the shift lever position, and sends the detection result to the processing unit 18. Based on the detection result of the vehicle state detection sensor 14, the processing unit 18 can acquire the vehicle speed and the vehicle traveling direction.

The speaker 16 outputs notification information indicating the position of the object by voice, and causes the driver to recognize the existence of the object and its position. The notification information output from the speaker 16 includes notification information indicating that the object is in the center of the course of the vehicle and notification information indicating that the object is on the left side of the course or the right side of the course of the vehicle. The notification information is not limited to the one output by voice from the speaker 16, and may be displayed on the in-vehicle display.

The processing unit 18 receives the detection result from the object detection sensor 12 and the vehicle state detection sensor 14, determines the notification information indicating the position of the object, and outputs the notification information to the speaker 16. The processing unit 18 can be composed of a circuit block, a memory, and other LSIs in terms of hardware, and is realized by a program loaded in the memory in terms of software. Therefore, it is understood by those skilled in the art that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms by hardware only, software only, or a combination thereof, and is not limited to any of them.

The processing unit 18 includes an object information acquisition unit 20, a vehicle state acquisition unit 22, a notification determination unit 24, and an output unit 28. The object information acquisition unit 20 acquires the position information of the object based on the detection result of the object detection sensor 12, tracks the position of the object, and acquires the direction information of the object with respect to the vehicle center line. The vehicle center line extends in the front-rear direction of the vehicle and passes approximately in the center of the vehicle.

The direction information of the object with respect to the vehicle center line indicates whether the object approaches or moves away from the vehicle center line, and is based on the position information of the object and the direction of the position change of the object in the left-right direction of the vehicle. Calculated. When the object is moving to the right in the left-right direction of the vehicle, it is closer to the vehicle center line when it is located on the left side of the vehicle center line, and is away from the vehicle center line when it is located on the right side of the vehicle center line. .. Therefore, the direction information of the object is calculated from the direction of the position change of the object in the vehicle left-right direction and the position information of the vehicle. The position of the object may be the position of the center of the object. The object information acquisition unit 20 sends the acquired position information and direction information of the object to the notification determination unit 24.

The vehicle state acquisition unit 22 acquires the traveling direction and vehicle speed of the vehicle as vehicle state information based on the detection result of the vehicle state detection sensor 14. The vehicle state acquisition unit 22 sends the vehicle state information to the notification determination unit 24.

The notification determination unit 24 determines the presence or absence of notification based on the position information of the object. Specifically, it is determined to output the notification information when the predetermined notification processing start condition is satisfied and the object enters the warning area 30. The predetermined notification output start condition is satisfied when it is detected that the vehicle is parked, and is satisfied, for example, when the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than the predetermined speed. The predetermined speed is, for example, 10 kilometers per hour.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the warning area 30 of the vehicle. FIG. 2 shows a warning area 30 set in front of the vehicle because the vehicle is traveling, but a warning area 30 is provided in the rear of the vehicle when the vehicle is moving backward. The traveling direction of the vehicle is derived from the position of the shift lever.

The length of the warning area 30 in the front-rear direction of the vehicle is set to be about 1 to 2 meters, and the left-right width is set to be the same as or slightly larger than the vehicle width. The length of the warning area 30 in the vehicle front-rear direction is adjusted based on the vehicle speed, and is set so that the longer the vehicle speed, the longer the length. In this way, the notification determination unit 24 sets the warning area 30 in the course of the vehicle based on the traveling direction and the vehicle speed of the vehicle.

The caution area 30 is divided into a central area 32 located in the center of the course, a left area 34a located on the left side of the central area 32, and a right area 34b located on the right side of the central area 32. When the left region 34a and the right region 34b are not distinguished, they are referred to as left and right regions 34. The central region 32 and the left and right regions 34 are set in the alert region 30, respectively.

In FIG. 2, the first boundary line 36a of the left region 34a and the central region 32 and the second boundary line 36b of the central region 32 and the right region 34b are set in a straight line parallel to the vehicle front-rear direction, but in the vehicle front-rear direction. It may be tilted or curved. For example, the first boundary line 36a and the second boundary line 36b may be set to expand as they move away from the vehicle in the front-rear direction, and may be set so as to approach each other as they move away from the vehicle in the front-rear direction.

Return to FIG. The notification determination unit 24 determines whether the object is located in the warning area 30 based on the position information of the object and the set warning area 30, and outputs the notification information when the object enters the warning area 30. decide. The notification determination unit 24 may determine to output notification information each time it enters each area of the warning area 30, and for example, when an object crosses the front of the vehicle from the left side to the right side, the left area 34a and the central area 32, it may be decided to output the notification information every time the right region 34b is entered.

After the notification determination unit 24 decides to output the notification, the notification determination unit 24 determines the type of notification information to be output. When the object enters the central region 32, that is, when the position information of the object indicates that the object is located in the central region 32 of the vehicle course, the notification determination unit 24 determines that the object is in the center of the vehicle path. It is decided to output the notification information indicating that the location is located in, for example, the notification information "Be careful ahead".

The notification determination unit 24 determines that the object is in the path of the vehicle when the object enters the left region 34a, that is, when the position information of the object indicates that the object is located in the left region 34a of the vehicle path. It is decided to output the notification information indicating that the position is on the left side, for example, the notification information "Be careful of the left front". When the object enters the right region 34b, that is, when the position information of the object indicates that the object is located in the right region 34b of the vehicle path, the notification determination unit 24 indicates that the object is the vehicle. It is decided to output the notification information indicating that the vehicle is located on the right side of the course, for example, the notification information "Be careful in the front right".

The output unit 28 outputs the type of notification information determined by the notification determination unit 24. The output unit 28 receives the determination result of the notification determination unit 24, reads out the notification signal stored in advance according to the determination result, and sends the read notification signal to the speaker 16. This makes it possible to notify the driver of the position of the object.

Here, the position of the notified object and the position recognized by the driver may be misaligned, and the driver may feel uncomfortable, and the inventor causes the deviation depending on the direction of the position change of the object. Found to get. For example, when the object is close to the vehicle center line, the driver is more likely to recognize that the object is located in the center of the vehicle's path than when it is far from the vehicle center line. Therefore, when the object is close to the vehicle center line, the notification determination unit 24 widens the left-right width of the central region 32 so that it is easy to determine that the object is in the central region 32. In this way, the notification determination unit 24 can reduce the deviation between the position and the driver's recognition due to the notification information by switching the criteria for determining that the object is in the central region 32. The notification process for changing the left-right width of the central region 32 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a notification process for changing the left-right width of the central region 32. FIG. 3A shows a situation in which the object 40 is moving to the left or the vehicle is turning to the right, and the position of the object 40 is changed so as to be away from the vehicle center line C.

The object information acquisition unit 20 calculates that the position of the object 40 is away from the vehicle center line C based on the detection result of the object detection sensor 12, and uses the calculation result as the direction information of the object 40. It is sent to the notification determination unit 24 together with the position information. The direction information of the object 40 indicates whether the object approaches or leaves the vehicle center line C, and is calculated by the position of the object 40 and the direction of the position change of the object 40 in the left-right direction of the vehicle. ..

The notification determination unit 24 determines to output the notification information when the predetermined notification start condition is satisfied and the object 40 is located in the warning area 30. The notification determination unit 24 determines whether the object approaches or leaves the vehicle center line C based on the direction information of the object received from the object information acquisition unit 20, and responds to the determination result. It is determined that the left-right width of the central region 32 is set and the broadcast information corresponding to the region where the object is located is output.

Since the object 40 is away from the vehicle center line C, the notification determination unit 24 sets the left-right width W1 of the central region 32 to be relatively narrow, and the object 40 is located in the left region 34a. Therefore, it is decided to output the notification information indicating that the object is in the area on the left side of the vehicle.

Since the object 40 is separated from the center to the left side, the driver can easily recognize that the position of the object 40 is on the left side. Therefore, when the position change of the object 40 is in the direction away from the vehicle center line C, the left-right width W1 of the central region 32 is set to be relatively narrow, so that information in line with the driver's recognition is output. can do.

FIG. 3B shows a situation in which the object 40 is moving to the right or the vehicle is steering to the left, and the position of the object 40 is the same as that of the object 40 shown in FIG. 3A. , It is changing to approach the vehicle center line C. The notification determination unit 24 determines whether the object approaches or leaves the vehicle center line C based on the direction information of the object received from the object information acquisition unit 20.

Since the object 40 is close to the vehicle center line C, the left-right width W2 of the central region 32 is set to be relatively wide, and the object 40 is located in the central region 32, so that the object is It is determined to output the notification information indicating that the vehicle is located in the center of the course of the vehicle. The left-right width W2 of the central region 32 is widely set by shifting the first boundary line 36a and the second boundary line 36b outward in the left-right direction from the initial position. The left-right width W2 of the relatively wide central region 32 is set to be the same as or slightly smaller than the vehicle width, and the left-right width W1 of the relatively narrow central region 32 is smaller than two-thirds of the vehicle width. Set to width.

As described above, the positions of the objects 40 shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B are the same, but the objects 40 indicating whether the objects approach or move away from the vehicle center line C. Since the direction information is different, the output notification information is different. As shown in FIG. 3B, since the object moves from the left side to the center of the course, the driver can easily recognize that the position of the object 40 is closer to the center than the left side. Therefore, when the object 40 is close to the vehicle center line C, the left and right width W2 of the central region 32 is set to be relatively wide, so that the sound according to the driver's recognition is output. Can be done. Further, when the object 40 approaches the vehicle center line C, there is a high possibility that the vehicle travels in an obstacle, and the notification device 10 makes it easy to output notification information indicating that the vehicle is in the center of the vehicle's course, and drives the vehicle. Can properly alert people.

FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of a notification process for outputting notification information. The vehicle state acquisition unit 22 acquires the traveling direction and vehicle speed of the vehicle as vehicle state information based on the detection result of the vehicle state detection sensor 14 (S10).

The object information acquisition unit 20 acquires the position information of the object and the direction information of the object indicating whether the object approaches or leaves the vehicle center line based on the detection result of the object detection sensor 12. (S12).

The notification determination unit 24 determines whether or not a predetermined notification start condition is satisfied (S14). The predetermined notification start condition is satisfied, for example, when the vehicle speed is 10 km / h or less and the object is located in the caution area 30. If the predetermined notification start condition is not satisfied (N in S14), the notification determination unit 24 ends the notification process. If the predetermined notification start condition is satisfied (Y in S14), it is determined whether the object is displaced in the vehicle left-right direction, that is, whether the object is approaching or away from the vehicle center line C (S16).

When the object is not displaced in the left-right direction of the vehicle (N in S16), the notification determination unit 24 is set so that the left-right width of the central region 32 is relatively narrow (S28). When the position of the object changes in the left-right direction of the vehicle (Y in S16), the notification determination unit 24 determines whether the object is approaching the vehicle center line C (S18). When the object is not close to the vehicle center line C (N in S18), the notification determination unit 24 is set so that the left-right width of the center region 32 is relatively narrow (S28).

The notification determination unit 24 determines whether the object is in the central region 32 set narrowly in the left-right direction of the vehicle (S30). When the object is in the narrowly set central region 32 (Y in S30), the notification determination unit 24 determines to output notification information indicating that the object is in the central region, and the output unit 28 determines, for example, the speaker 16 Outputs a voice saying "Be careful ahead" (S32), and finishes the notification process.

When the object is not in the narrowly set central region 32 (N in S30), the notification determination unit 24 determines to output notification information indicating that the object is in the left and right regions, and the output unit 28 determines, for example, the speaker 16 Outputs a voice saying "Please pay attention to the left front (right front)" (S34), and ends the notification process.

In this way, when the object moves away from the vehicle center line C, or when the object does not change its position with respect to the vehicle center line C, the left-right width of the center region 32 is set relatively narrow to cover the left-right region. Widen the left and right width to make it easier to determine that it is in the left and right area. As a result, it is possible to suppress the deviation between the position of the object indicated by the notification information and the recognition of the driver, and output appropriate notification information.

When the object is close to the vehicle center line C (Y in S18), the left-right width of the center region 32 is set to be relatively wide (S20). The notification determination unit 24 determines whether the object is in the widely set central region 32 in the left-right direction of the vehicle (S22). When the object is in the widely set central region 32 (Y in S22), the notification determination unit 24 determines to output notification information indicating that the object is in the central region, and the output unit 28 determines, for example, the speaker 16 Outputs a voice saying "Be careful ahead" (S24), and finishes the notification process.

When the object is not in the widely set central region 32 (N in S22), the notification determination unit 24 determines to output notification information indicating that the object is in the left and right regions, and the output unit 28 determines, for example, the speaker 16 Outputs a voice saying "Please pay attention to the left front (right front)" (S26), and ends the notification process.

In this way, when the object approaches the vehicle center line C, the left and right width of the central region 32 is set wider than when the object moves away from the vehicle center line C, so that the object is positioned in the central region 32. This makes it easier to output notification information indicating that the object is located in the center of the path. When the object is close to the vehicle center line C and is likely to interfere with the vehicle running, the driver can be warned that the object is in the center of the course. In addition, it is possible to suppress the deviation between the driver's recognition and the position of the object indicated by the notification information.

The present invention has been described above based on examples. The present invention is not limited to each of the above-described embodiments, and various modifications such as design changes can be added based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art. The configuration shown in each figure is for explaining an example, and can be appropriately changed as long as the configuration can achieve the same function.

In the embodiment, a mode is shown in which the notification device 10 outputs notification information when the object 40 is located in the central region 32 and when the object is located in the left and right regions 34, but the present invention is not limited to this mode. .. For example, the notification device 10 may output the notification information when the object 40 is located in the central region 32, but may not output the notification information when the object 40 is located in the left and right regions 34.

Further, in the embodiment, the notification determination unit 24 sets the central region 32 having the same left-right width in the case where the object 40 is separated from the vehicle center line C and the case where the object 40 does not change its position with respect to the vehicle center line C. The mode to be set is shown, but the mode is not limited to this mode. For example, when the object 40 is separated from the vehicle center line C, the notification determination unit 24 narrows the left-right width of the central region 32 as compared with the case where the object 40 does not change its position with respect to the vehicle center line C. It may be set.

10 Notification device, 12 Object detection sensor, 14 Vehicle condition detection sensor, 16 Speaker, 18 Processing unit, 20 Object information acquisition unit, 22 Vehicle status acquisition unit, 24 Notification determination unit, 28 Output unit, 30 Warning area, 32 Central area, 34a left area, 34b right area, 36a first boundary line, 36b second boundary line, 40 objects.

Claims (3)

An object detection unit that detects objects around the vehicle and
An object information acquisition unit that acquires position information of an object based on the detection result of the object detection unit, and an object information acquisition unit.
The position information of the object acquired by the object information acquisition unit is displayed in the center area of the course set in the vehicle traveling direction, the left area set on the left side of the center area of the course, and the right side of the center area of the course. determining whether located in either the right area set, when the object indicates that positioned in the path central region, the notification decision object determines the output of the notification information indicating that the position in the path center Department and
An output unit that outputs notification information determined by the notification determination unit is provided.
The object information acquisition unit acquires direction information indicating whether the object approaches or leaves the vehicle center line extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle.
When the object approaches the vehicle center line, the notification determination unit widens the left and right width of the course center region as compared with the case where the object moves away from the vehicle center line, and the left region and the notification determination unit When the left-right width of the right region is narrowed and the object is separated from the vehicle center line, the left-right width of the course center region is narrowed as compared with the case where the object does not change its position with respect to the vehicle center line. A notification device characterized in that the left and right widths of the left region and the right region are widened. The notification determining unit, position information of the object, to indicate that located in the left area and the right area, the object is to determine the output of the notification information indicating that positioned on the right track left or track The notification device according to claim 1, wherein the notification device is characterized by the above. The notification determination unit determines the output of notification information when the object is located in the warning area set in the vehicle traveling direction.
The notification device according to claim 2, wherein the path center region, the left region, and the right region are set in the warning region, respectively.

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