JP7062889B2 - Driving support device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a driving support device.

When the driver of the own vehicle is driving with low attention, such as driving indiscriminately, driving when he / she is in poor physical condition, driving on an unfamiliar road, driving during conversation, etc., the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light indicates. There is a possibility that you will misunderstand the direction and enter the intersection in the wrong direction. For example, even though the arrow light indicates the direction to turn left, it is possible to enter the intersection thinking that it is possible to turn right. Therefore, there is a concern that it may develop into a dangerous situation such as a collision with another vehicle or a collision with a pedestrian crossing a pedestrian crossing.

Patent Document 1 describes the latest traffic light installed in front of the vehicle in the traveling direction and the vehicle in order to prevent the vehicle from accidentally entering the branch point even though the latest traffic light is prohibited from traveling. The lighting state of the rear traffic light installed in front of the vehicle and farther than the nearest traffic light is acquired, the lighting state of the latest traffic light is the progress prohibition state, and the lighting state of the rear traffic light is It is described that when the state of prohibition of progress is changed to the state of permission of progress, control is performed to suppress the start of the vehicle from the time when the lighting state of the rear traffic light changes until a certain time elapses.

Further, Patent Document 2 describes that a traffic light is recognized from an image taken by a CCD camera, and the lighting state of the traffic light is determined by the position of a portion having high brightness in the image. Furthermore, when the red light is recognized, it is further investigated whether the arrow displayed at the bottom of the traffic light can be confirmed, and based on the recognition result and the measurement result by the in-vehicle sensor, the driver is notified that the danger is imminent, or the vehicle It is described that the driver can support safe driving by controlling the parts of the vehicle.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-114557 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-149195

However, in both Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, the driver mistakenly recognizes the direction as the right turn direction even though the direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow type traffic light is the left turn direction, and the intersection is in the wrong direction. No specific consideration has been given to preventing attempts to enter.

The present invention has been made in view of this point, and prevents the driver from erroneously recognizing the direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light and accidentally entering an intersection, thereby providing preventive safety performance. One of the purposes is to provide a driving support device that can be improved.

In one aspect of the driving support device of the present invention, the traffic light included in the image is based on the image pickup means for photographing the front of the own vehicle and the image taken by the image pickup means, and the traffic light included in the image is a red signal light, a yellow signal light, and blue from the right side. When it is determined that the traffic light is an arrow-type traffic light that is arranged in the horizontal direction and has an arrow light indicating that a left turn is possible near the left end of the traffic light below them, the first arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light indicates. When the determination means for comparing the direction of the vehicle with the second direction in which the own vehicle is going to move and the determination means determine that the first direction and the second direction do not match. It is equipped with a driving support means for providing predetermined driving support to the driver of the own vehicle and a raindrop detecting means, and when the arrow light indicating the left turn is indicated as the left turn is possible, the driver is at that timing. The driving support is performed according to the presence or absence of raindrops adhering to the front glass of the own vehicle or the shield of the driver's helmet of the own vehicle, which is detected by the raindrop detecting means. It is characterized by changing the timing of implementation of.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the preventive safety in which the driver mistakenly recognizes the direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light and mistakenly enters an intersection.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the intersection where the own vehicle equipped with the driving support device which concerns on this embodiment travels. It is a functional block diagram of the operation support device which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the control flow of the operation support apparatus which concerns on this embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following, an example in which the driving support device according to the present invention is applied to a motorcycle is described, but the application target is not limited to this and can be changed. For example, the driving support device according to the present invention may be applied to other types of vehicles (for example, saddle-mounted vehicles such as motorcycles and tricycles). In the following description, the saddle-mounted vehicle will be described with a motorcycle as a typical example.

<Overview>
The arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light indicates when the driver of the own vehicle is driving in a state of reduced attention such as driving indiscriminately, driving when he / she is in poor physical condition, driving on an unfamiliar road, driving during conversation, etc. There is a possibility that you will misunderstand the direction and enter the intersection in the wrong direction.

In particular, arrow-type traffic lights with one arrow light attached to the red, blue, and yellow three-color lights (hereinafter referred to as "this signal light") of ordinary traffic lights are those in which the direction indicated by the arrow light is the right turn direction. In other words, it generally indicates that it is possible to turn right (hereinafter referred to as "arrow type traffic light (right)"), and the direction indicated by the arrow light is the direction of turning left, in other words, it indicates that it is possible to turn left (hereinafter, it indicates that it is possible to turn left. Hereinafter, there are few "arrow type traffic lights (left)").

For this reason, for example, if an arrow-type traffic light (right) and an arrow-type traffic light (left) are mixed on a commuting route, safety awareness tends to decrease on a familiar route, and misrecognition is likely to occur. Likely to happen.

In particular, since the time during which the arrow light is lit is shorter than the green light of this signal light, some drivers have a habit of reflexively starting intervals when the arrow light is lit.

In addition, elderly drivers can easily assume that they can turn right if the arrow light turns on.

Also, if the windshield or helmet shield gets wet due to weather, especially rain or snow, the reflection of light increases the possibility of misrecognition. Also, depending on the road surface conditions (eg, freezing, sand), the stopping distance may need to be longer than usual.

In addition, the automatic transmission vehicle (automatic vehicle) automatically advances when the brake is released, and the vehicle starts to run forward only by the driver slightly opening the accelerator. For this reason, some measures are required assuming driving in a state of reduced attention.

Furthermore, there is a possibility that the driver may be in a hurry and mistakenly operate the accelerator or brake to start the vehicle incorrectly.

The present inventor assumes that the arrow-type traffic light (left) is an arrow-type traffic light (right) when driving with reduced attention, and prevents accidentally entering an intersection in the right turn direction. Will contribute to the improvement of preventive safety performance.

Therefore, when the inventor determines that the traffic light included in the image is an arrow-type traffic light based on the image taken by the imaging means, the first direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light and the own vehicle are determined. In contrast to the second direction in which the vehicle is about to proceed, if the first and second directions do not match, the driver predicts that "inadvertently, inadvertently starts, and inadvertently enters" will occur. We have found that the preventive safety performance can be improved, and have completed the present invention.

That is, the driving support device according to the present embodiment determines that the traffic light included in the image is an arrow type traffic light based on the image pickup means for photographing the front of the own vehicle and the image taken by the image pickup means. In this case, the determination means for comparing the first direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light with the second direction in which the own vehicle is about to travel, and the determination means are the first direction and the first direction. It is characterized in that it is provided with a driving support means for providing a predetermined driving support to the driver of the own vehicle when it is determined that the directions of the two do not match.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings. First, an intersection in which an arrow-type traffic light according to the present embodiment is installed will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an intersection in which the own vehicle equipped with the driving support device according to the present embodiment travels. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the own vehicle 1 approaches the intersection 2. The intersection 2 is composed of a road 3 on which the own vehicle 1 travels and a road 4 intersecting the road 3. A traffic light 5 is installed in front of the intersection 2 in the traveling direction of the own vehicle 1.

In the traffic light 5, the red signal light 5a, the yellow signal light 5b, and the green signal light 5c are arranged in the horizontal direction (left-right direction shown in FIG. The including arrow light 5d is arranged.

The own vehicle 1 travels on the road 3, approaches the intersection 2, and tries to make a right turn, and enters the right turn lane 3b from the main lane 3a. Further approaching the intersection 2, the driver turns on the turn signal indicating a right turn. At this time, when the red signal light 5a of the traffic light 5 is lit, the driver stops the own vehicle 1. After that, when the arrow light 5d of the traffic light 5 is turned on, the driver should normally stop the own vehicle 1 as it is. However, when driving with reduced attention, it is assumed that the arrow light 5d indicates that a right turn is possible, the brake is released, the accelerator is depressed, and the vehicle enters the intersection 2 in the right turn direction.

In this case, if there are other vehicles in the intersection 2 or pedestrians crossing the pedestrian crossing 4a provided on the road 4, there is a risk of developing into a collision accident or the like.

<Driving support device>
Hereinafter, the driving support device according to the present embodiment will be described by taking driving support for the driver of the own vehicle 1 in such a situation as an example.

First, the configuration of the driving support device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the driving support device 100 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, for convenience of explanation, only the configuration related to the present invention is shown. It should be noted that the own vehicle 1 to which the driving support device 100 according to the present embodiment is applied is assumed to have a configuration (engine, tire, etc.) normally provided for a four-wheeled vehicle, and the description thereof will be omitted. ..

The driving support device 100 according to the present embodiment is mounted on the own vehicle 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation support device 100 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101 that controls the entire device. The CPU 101 is composed of, for example, a processor that executes various processes. The CPU 101 is configured to be able to realize the first determination means 121, the second determination means 122, the third determination means 123, and the driving support means 124, which will be described later, by executing a program stored in a storage unit (not shown). ..

A front camera 102, a raindrop amount sensor 103, a road surface sensor 104, a steering sensor 105, an accelerator position sensor (APS) 106, and a turn signal 108 are connected to the CPU 101. A steering 107 is connected to the steering sensor 105. The front camera 102, the raindrop amount sensor 103, the road surface sensor 104, the steering sensor 105, the accelerator position sensor (APS) 106, and the direction indicator 108 mutually send and receive signals to and from the CPU 101, or transmit signals in one direction. Alternatively, it is electrically connected to the CPU 101 so that it can be received.

The front camera 102 constitutes an example of the image pickup means, and captures a predetermined range in front of the own vehicle 1. More specifically, the front camera 102 captures a predetermined range including the traffic light 5 in front of the own vehicle 1 (see the alternate long and short dash line shown in FIG. 1). The front camera 102 outputs the captured image (photographed image) to the CPU 101. This captured image is stored in a storage unit (not shown) arranged inside or outside the CPU 101, and is used for determination processing by the first determination means 121, as will be described in detail later.

The raindrop amount sensor 103 constitutes an example of the raindrop detecting means, and is composed of, for example, an infrared sensor. The raindrop amount sensor 103 has a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit, and detects the amount of raindrops based on the reflected amount of infrared rays that fluctuates depending on the presence or absence of adhesion of raindrops to the windshield. The raindrop amount sensor 103 outputs the detected raindrop amount to the CPU 101.

The road surface sensor 104 constitutes an example of the road surface condition confirmation means, and is composed of, for example, an ultrasonic detection type sensor. The road surface sensor 104 includes an ultrasonic oscillator that outputs ultrasonic waves to the road surface and a detection unit that detects ultrasonic waves reflected from the road surface, and detects the road surface state based on the amount of ultrasonic waves reflected from the road surface. .. For example, the road surface sensor 104 can detect the unevenness of the road surface and the presence or absence of foreign matter (gravel, etc.) on the road surface. The road surface sensor 104 outputs the detected road surface state to the CPU 101.

The steering sensor 105 detects the amount of change in the steering 107 steered by the driver, and calculates the steering angle from the detected amount of change. The steering sensor 105 outputs a signal (steering angle signal) corresponding to the calculated steering angle to the CPU 101.

The accelerator position sensor (APS) 106 detects the accelerator opening degree according to the position of the accelerator pedal depressed by the driver. The accelerator position sensor 106 outputs a signal (accelerator opening signal) corresponding to the detected accelerator opening to the CPU 101.

The direction indicator 108 outputs a signal (direction instruction signal) indicating the traveling direction (either left or right) instructed by the driver's operation to the CPU 101.

Further, the alarm generation means 109, the steering vibration means 110, and the deceleration control means 111 are connected to the CPU 101. A deceleration means 112 is connected to the deceleration control means 111. The alarm generating means 109, the steering vibration means 110, and the deceleration control means 111 form a part of the driving support means. The alarm generation means 109, the steering vibration means 110, and the deceleration control means 111 are electrically connected to the CPU 101 so that they can transmit and receive signals to and from the CPU 101, or can transmit or receive signals in one direction. There is.

The alarm generating means 109 constitutes an example of the warning means, and issues an alarm to the driver of the own vehicle 1 under the control of the CPU 101. For example, the alarm generating means 109 is composed of an alarm generator and a speaker. The alarm generating means 109 issues an alarm as an example of driving support for the driver when a predetermined condition is satisfied. The alarm is not limited to the sound, and for example, the indicator lamp provided on the instrument panel (not shown) of the own vehicle 1 is turned on, or the display unit of the navigation device (not shown) is used for warning. A message or the like may be displayed.

The steering vibration means 110 constitutes an example of the vibration generating means, and generates vibration in the steering 107 under the control of the CPU 101. The steering vibration means 110 includes, for example, a vibration device such as a vibration motor built in the steering 107, and an instruction device that gives a vibration instruction to the vibration device.

The deceleration control means 111 constitutes an example of the deceleration control means, and under the control of the CPU 101, the speed of the own vehicle 1 is decelerated by the deceleration means 112 composed of a mechanical brake, an engine brake, or the like.

The CPU 101 includes a first determination unit 121, a second determination unit 122, a third determination unit 123, and a driving support unit 124. The first determination means 121 can detect a traffic light in front of the own vehicle 1 based on a captured image taken by the front camera 102 and determine whether or not the vehicle is an arrow type traffic light. More specifically, the first determination means 121 has a traffic light based on an arrangement pattern of the main signal lamps in the captured image, that is, a pattern in which three main signal lights are arranged in a row in the horizontal direction or the vertical direction. It can be determined that.

Further, the first determination means 121 can determine whether or not the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light is turned on based on the captured image. More specifically, for example, as described above, the traffic light is an arrow type traffic light, provided that the signal lamps project downward or laterally with respect to the signal lamps arranged in a row in the horizontal or vertical direction. Can be determined. Taking the traffic light 5 shown in FIG. 1 as an example, the red signal light 5a, the yellow signal light 5b, and the green signal light 5c are arranged in the horizontal direction, and the arrow light 5d is arranged below them and closer to the left end. ing. Therefore, since the outer shape of the traffic light 5 has a shape such that the L-shape is rotated clockwise by 90 degrees, the traffic light 5 can be pattern-matched, and it can be determined from this outer shape that the traffic light 5 is an arrow type traffic light.

It should be noted that the arrow-type traffic light is not provided with only one arrow light 5d like the traffic light 5 of the present embodiment, but is further provided with an arrow light indicating that the vehicle can go straight and / or an arrow light indicating that the vehicle can turn right. Some are there. In addition, at complex intersections such as five-way roads and six-way roads, some are equipped with arrow lights that indicate diagonal directions. Therefore, it is preferable to perform pattern matching in consideration of these aspects in determining whether or not the traffic light is an arrow type traffic light.

Further, the first determination means 121 can determine the direction indicated by the arrow light (hereinafter referred to as "first direction") based on the captured image. More specifically, for example, when the arrow lamp 5d is turned on, the arrow indicated by the arrow lamp 5d can be pattern-matched, and the direction can be determined based on the outer shape.

Further, the first determination means 121 can determine whether the direction indicated by the road marking on the road on which the own vehicle 1 travels or the road sign attached to the road is a right turn or a left turn. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, when the own vehicle 1 is traveling in the right turn lane 3b, the captured image includes a road display (hereinafter referred to as "right turn arrow") 3c indicating a right turn. Therefore, it is possible to pattern match the right turn arrow 3c and determine that the direction indicated by the right turn arrow 3c is a right turn.

The second determination means 122 can determine the operating state of the own vehicle 1. For example, the second determination means 122 determines whether or not the own vehicle 1 has started or continued running based on the accelerator opening signal from the accelerator position sensor (APS) 106.

Further, the second determination means 122 can determine whether the rotation direction (turning direction) of the own vehicle 1 is right rotation or left rotation based on the steering angle signal from the steering sensor 105.

Further, the second determination means 122 can determine whether the direction indicator 108 of the own vehicle 1 indicates a right turn or a left turn based on the direction indicator signal from the direction indicator 108.

The third determination means 123 can determine the direction in which the own vehicle 1 is going (hereinafter, referred to as "second direction") based on the determination results by the first determination means 121 and the second determination means 122. can. The details of the determination in the second direction will be described later.

Further, the third determination means 123 compares the first direction indicated by the arrow light 5d of the traffic light 5 determined by the first determination means 121 with the second direction in which the own vehicle 1 is going to move, and both of them. It is determined whether or not they do not match, in other words, whether or not they do not match.

The driving support means 124 constitutes a part of the driving support means, and provides predetermined driving support to the driver of the own vehicle 1 based on the determination result of the third determination means 123.

More specifically, when the driving support means 124 determines that the first direction and the second direction do not match with the third determination means 123, and / or further, the second determination means 122 owns the vehicle. When it is determined that 1 has started or continued running, the predetermined driving support is provided.

The driving support means 124 cooperates with the alarm generating means 109, the steering vibration means 110, and the deceleration control means 111 to provide the driver with driving support according to the functions of the means 109, 110, 111. The driving support means 124 can change the timing of providing driving support to the driver based on the detection results from the raindrop amount sensor 103 and the road surface sensor 104.

Next, the control flow of the operation support device 100 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a control flow of the operation support device 100 according to the present embodiment.

First, the first determination means 121 (see FIG. 2) determines whether or not there is a traffic light in front of the vehicle 1 based on the captured image in front of the own vehicle 1 captured by the front camera 102 (step (hereinafter, "ST"). ") 101).

When there is a traffic light 5 (see FIG. 1) ahead (ST101: YES), the first determination means 121 determines whether or not the traffic light 5 is an arrow type signal based on the captured image (ST102).

When the traffic light 5 is an arrow type signal (ST102: YES), the first determination means 121 determines whether the own vehicle 1 is stopped in the right turn lane 3b of the road 3 at the intersection 2 (ST103). In this determination, for example, the first determination means 121 can determine whether or not the vehicle is stopped in the right turn lane 3b based on the captured image taken by the front camera 102. For example, the first determination means 121 determines the stop in the right turn lane 3b when the right turn arrow drawn on the road surface is detected by pattern matching. The determination of ST103 can be omitted when there is no right turn lane 3b at the intersection 2.

When the own vehicle 1 is stopped in the right turn lane 3b (ST103: YES), the first determination means 121 determines whether or not the arrow light 5d of the traffic light 5 is turned on based on the captured image taken by the front camera 102. (ST104). The lighting of the arrow light 5d can be determined based on, for example, a change in the brightness of the arrow light 5d, but is not particularly limited.

When the arrow light 5d is lit (ST104: YES), the second determination means 122 determines whether the control for starting the own vehicle 1 is performed (ST105). The second determination means 122 can determine the presence / absence of start control of the own vehicle 1 based on the accelerator opening signal from the accelerator position sensor (APS) 106. By determining the presence / absence of start control of the own vehicle 1 in ST105, it is possible to grasp the increase in the risk of a collision accident that directly exists.

When there is start control (ST105: YES), the third determination means 123 is in the direction of the arrow indicated by the arrow light 5d, that is, the first direction and the direction in which the own vehicle 1 is going to move, that is, the second direction. By comparing with the directions, it is determined whether or not the first direction and the second direction do not match, in other words, they do not match (ST106).

More specifically, in the present embodiment, the third determination means 123 has the direction of the arrow indicated by the arrow light 5d of the traffic light 5 determined by the first determination means 121, that is, the left turn direction as the first direction.

Further, the third determination means 123 determines the second direction in which the own vehicle 1 is going to move based on at least one of the following determinations (a) to (c). In the following cases, the right turn direction is determined to be the second direction.
(A) The first determination means 121 determines that the own vehicle 1 is stopped in the right turn lane 3b (ST103: YES).
(B) The second determination means 122 determines that the direction indicator 108 of the own vehicle 1 indicates a right turn based on the direction indicator signal from the direction indicator 108, and
(C) The second determination means 122 determines that the rotation direction of the steering 107 is clockwise rotation based on the steering angle signal from the steering sensor 105.

When the first direction and the second direction do not match (ST106: YES), the driving support means 124 performs control to call the driver's attention (hereinafter referred to as “attention control”) (ST107). In this alert control, the driving support means 124 generates an alarm by the alarm generating means 109, or causes the steering 107 to vibrate by the steering vibration means 110. Both alarm and vibration may be performed at the same time. By performing the attention alert control in this way, it is possible to suppress a situation in which the driver of the own vehicle 1 loses his or her attention, and it is possible to prevent the left turn possible indicated by the arrow light 5d from being erroneously recognized as a right turn possible.

The content executed by the alert control is not limited to these, and can be changed as appropriate.

After performing the attention alert control, the second determination means 122 determines whether the own vehicle 1 continues to enter the intersection 2 (ST108). The second determination means 122 can determine the continuation of the approach to the intersection 2 in the same manner as the determination of the start control of the own vehicle 1 (ST105). By determining the continuation of the approach to the intersection 2 in ST108, it is possible to determine the behavior of the driver after the alert control.

When the approach to the intersection 2 is continued (ST108: YES), the driving support means 124 performs deceleration control for the own vehicle 1 (ST109). In this deceleration control, the driving support means 124 operates the deceleration means 112 by the deceleration control means 111 to decelerate the speed of the own vehicle 1. As a result, the own vehicle 1 that continues to enter the intersection 2 can be decelerated or stopped even though the attention alert control is performed.

In the determination of ST101 to ST106 and ST108, if the determination result is NO, the processing is returned to ST101, and the processing after ST101 is repeated.

Further, when the own vehicle 1 resumes traveling after the deceleration control is performed in ST109, the process shown in FIG. 3 is repeated again.

In the flow shown in FIG. 3, the case where the own vehicle 1 is stopped in the right turn lane 3b before the intersection 2 is described (ST103). However, the flow shown in FIG. 3 is not limited to the case where the own vehicle 1 is stopped, and is also applied to the case where the vehicle is traveling in the right turn lane 3b. In this case, for example, in ST103, it is determined whether or not the own vehicle 1 is in the right turn lane 3b.

As described above, in the driving support device 100 according to the present embodiment, when it is determined that the signal device 5 included in the captured image is an arrow type signal device based on the captured image captured by the front camera 102, The driver compares the first direction indicated by the arrow light 5d with the second direction in which the own vehicle 1 is going, and if the first direction and the second direction do not match (ST106: YES), the driver. In anticipation of the occurrence of "inadvertently, start, and approach", the alert control (ST107) was implemented, and the arrow light 5d indicates to the driver that the driver can turn left while driving in a state of reduced attention. Despite this, it is possible to make people aware that they are mistakenly recognizing that it is possible to turn right, prevent them from entering the intersection 2, and improve preventive safety performance.

Further, when the approach to the intersection 2 is continued (ST108: YES) despite the attention alert control (ST107), the deceleration control (ST109) is executed and the own vehicle 1 goes further to the intersection 2. It is possible to prevent entry and further improve preventive safety performance.

In particular, in the driving support device 100, since the front camera 102, the steering sensor 105, and the direction indicator 108 are used for each of the determination ST101 to ST104 and ST106, no special detection means is added, and even in a manned driving vehicle. Since it can be easily realized, the preventive safety performance can be economically improved.

Further, in the driving support device 100, the driving support means 124 changes the timing of execution of driving support (for example, attention alert control, deceleration control) according to the detection result from the raindrop amount sensor 103 and / or the road surface sensor 104. Is preferable as an embodiment. In this case, since the implementation timing of the driving support is changed according to the amount of raindrops and the road surface condition, it is possible to implement appropriate driving support according to the environment in which the own vehicle 1 travels.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be modified in various ways. In the above embodiment, the size, shape, and the like shown in the accompanying drawings are not limited to this, and can be appropriately changed within the range in which the effects of the present invention are exhibited. In addition, it can be appropriately modified and implemented as long as it does not deviate from the scope of the object of the present invention.

Further, in the above embodiment, as a misrecognition of the direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow type traffic light, the left turn direction (left turn possible) indicated by the arrow light 5d of the arrow type traffic light (left) 5 (see FIG. 1) is changed to the right turn direction (left turn possible). The case of erroneous recognition (right turn possible) was explained as an example. However, although it is a rare example, for a driver who sees the arrow light 5d of the arrow type traffic light (left) 5 on a daily basis, the right turn direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow type traffic light (right) is changed to the left turn direction. There is a possibility of misrecognition. Therefore, the present invention makes it possible to deal with such a case.

Further, for example, in the above embodiment, the attention alert control is performed for the first time when the first direction and the second direction do not match (ST106: YES). However, when the traffic light 5 is an arrow-type traffic light and the arrow light 5d indicates that a left turn is possible, the warning control may be performed at that timing. The arrow-type signal (left), which has an arrow light indicating that it is possible to turn left, has a smaller number of installations than the arrow-type signal (right), and is more likely to be misrecognized by the driver. It is possible to enhance the effect of preventing entry into the area. The alert at this timing may be a simple one, for example, an alarm only, and the alert at ST107 may be both an alarm and vibration of the steering 107.

Further, in the above embodiment, the steering vibration means 110 (see FIG. 2) has been described as an example of the vibration generating means, but the vibration that vibrates the seat surface of the driver's seat on which the driver sits other than the steering 107. It may be a means of generation, and is not particularly limited.

As described above, the present invention has the effect of preventing the driver from erroneously recognizing the direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light and accidentally entering the intersection, and improving the preventive safety performance. It has, and is particularly useful for driving support devices such as motorcycles and saddle-mounted vehicles.

1 Own vehicle 2 Intersection 5 Traffic light 5d Arrow light 100 Driving support device 102 Front camera (imaging means)
103 Raindrop amount sensor (raindrop detection means)
104 Road surface sensor (road surface condition confirmation means)
105 Steering sensor 107 Steering 108 Direction indicator 109 Alarm generation means (alarm means)
110 Steering vibration means (vibration generating means)
111 Deceleration control means 121 First determination means 122 Second determination means 123 Third determination means (determination means)
124 Driving support means

Claims (7)

An imaging means that captures the front of the vehicle and
Based on the image taken by the imaging means, the traffic light included in the image has red signal lights, yellow signal lights, and green signal lights arranged horizontally from the right side, and it is possible to turn left below them and toward the left end. When it is determined that the traffic light is an arrow-type traffic light, the determination means for comparing the first direction indicated by the arrow light of the arrow-type traffic light with the second direction in which the own vehicle is about to travel. ,
When the determination means determines that the first direction and the second direction do not match, the driving support means for providing predetermined driving support to the driver of the own vehicle and the driving support means.
Raindrop detection means and
Equipped with
When the arrow light indicating that the left turn is possible indicates that the left turn is possible, the control is performed to call the driver's attention at that timing, and the windshield of the own vehicle or the own vehicle detected by the raindrop detecting means is performed. A driving support device characterized in that the timing of implementation of the driving support is changed according to the presence or absence of raindrops adhering to the shield of the driver's helmet. The driving support device according to claim 1 , wherein the determination means has a direction indicated by a road sign on the road on which the own vehicle travels or a road sign attached to the road as the second direction. .. The driving support device according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the determination means has the direction indicated by the direction indicator of the own vehicle as the second direction. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the determination means recognizes the second direction based on the steering angle of the steering of the own vehicle. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the driving support means includes an alarm means. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the driving support means includes a vibration generating means that attracts the driver's attention by vibration. The driving support device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the driving support means is a deceleration control means for decelerating the speed of the own vehicle.

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