Assistance system, vehicle and method for assisting the driver of a vehicle when the driver glass when the lateral guidance of the

Abstract

The invention relates to an assistance system (2) for assisting a driver of a vehicle (1) during lateral guidance of the vehicle (1), the assistance system (2) being designed to perform automatic lateral guidance of the vehicle (1) on a road; providing a release operation during automatic lateral guidance, in which the driver can continuously move his hands away from the steering wheel of the vehicle (1); receiving fatigue data, the fatigue data describing eyelids of the driver; determining the fatigue degree of the driver according to the fatigue data; if the fatigue degree exceeds a preset fatigue limit value, the release operation is stopped; estimating a current glare of the driver; and additionally performing a deactivation of the release operation as a function of the estimated glare.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The invention relates to an assistance system for assisting a driver of a vehicle when driving the vehicle laterally. Furthermore, the invention relates to a vehicle having such an assistance system. Moreover, the invention also relates to a method for assisting a driver of a vehicle when driving the vehicle laterally. BACKGROUND

[0002] Lane guide assistants for vehicles are known from the prior art. Such lane guide assistants, also known as steering and lane guide assistants or active lane keeping assistants, are used, inter alia, to keep a vehicle in a lane or in its own lane. Such a lane guide assistant uses environmental data of at least one environmental sensor of the vehicle to recognize a delimitation of a lane or a road marking. By means of the lane guide assistant, an automatic steering intervention can be carried out in order to keep the vehicle in the lane.

[0003] Furthermore, from the prior art, assistance systems are known which enable a so-called hands-off operation. Such an assistance system allows the driver to continuously remove his hands from the steering wheel during lateral guidance. In order to maintain the function, it is required that the driver is attentive, observes the traffic situation and is ready to intervene at any time. The driver's attentiveness is monitored here by means of a driver monitoring device or interior space camera. In the event of an error in the automatic lateral guidance, it is assumed that the driver can intervene immediately and can turn the vehicle back into the lane itself.

[0004] Additionally, such a hands-off system also monitors the driver for fatigue. Here, fatigue is determined on the basis of the movement and / or position of the eyelids of the driver. For example, the extent to which the driver's eyes are open or closed is ascertained. From the extent to which the eyes are open, it can thus be determined that the driver is tired. If it is recognized that the driver is tired, the hands-off operation is immediately deactivated and the function is only offered to the driver again when it is recognized that the driver is awake. Only then is the function offered to the driver again and the driver can use the function again.

[0005] When driving towards the sun and when the sun is at the same time very low, the driver is dazzled by the sun. This causes the driver to close or squint his eyes. It can be deduced in the evaluation of the driver's fatigue that the driver has closed his eyes and is tired. Thus, in this case, an unauthorized detection of the driver's fatigue often results. The hands-off operation is then deactivated and the driver can use the operation again only when the driver is recognized as being awake. However, this can last for a longer period of time in the case of a very low sun. Thus, as long as the driver drives towards a very low sun, the driver cannot use the function for a longer period of time. SUMMARY

[0006] It is the task of the present invention to provide a solution as to how the driver can be more reliably assisted when automatically laterally guiding a vehicle.

[0007] According to the invention, this task is solved by an assistance system, a vehicle and a method having the features of the independent claims. Advantageous refinements of the invention are specified in the dependent claims.

[0008] The assistance system according to the invention serves to assist a driver of a vehicle when laterally guiding the vehicle. The assistance system is designed to perform an automatic lateral guidance of the vehicle on a road. Furthermore, the assistance system is designed to provide a hands-off operation when automatically laterally guiding, wherein the driver can continuously remove his hands from a steering wheel of the vehicle. Furthermore, the assistance system is designed to receive fatigue data, wherein the fatigue data describe eyelids of the driver. Furthermore, the assistance system is also designed to determine a degree of fatigue of the driver from the fatigue data. Furthermore, the assistance system is designed to deactivate the hands-off operation if the degree of fatigue exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit value. Furthermore, the assistance system is designed to estimate a current glare of the driver and additionally to perform the deactivation of the hands-off operation depending on the estimated glare.

[0009] With the assistance system, the vehicle driver should be assisted when laterally guiding the vehicle. In particular, it is provided that a function of a lane guide assistant is provided with the assistance system, a function of an automatic lane guidance. Here, the driver of the vehicle can be assisted in terms of steering tasks. In particular, the steering can be intervened with the assistance system, so that the vehicle remains in a lane of the road or in a current traffic lane.

[0010] The assistance system can have a computing device, which can be formed by at least one processor, at least one electronic control device, etc. With the computing device of the assistance system, environmental data can be received from at least one environmental sensor of the assistance system. These environmental data can describe an environment of the vehicle or a surrounding of the vehicle. The environmental sensor can be a camera, for example. In this case, the environmental data can be image data. In these environmental data, a respective lane of a road on which the vehicle is currently located can be identified. Furthermore, a lane limit of the respective lane can be identified on the basis of the environmental data. The lane limit can be a road marking, in particular, for example a solid line, a dashed line or a broken line. The lane limit can also be a structural limit, for example a wall, a barrier, etc.

[0011] With the computing device or the assistance system, satellite-supported position data can also be received, which are provided, for example, with the aid of a corresponding receiver for a satellite-supported positioning system. With the receiver, position data can be received, for example, from a global navigation satellite system. In particular, a so-called differential global positioning system is used, which can improve the accuracy of the positioning by transmitting correction data.

[0012] Furthermore, digital map data describing the environment of the vehicle can be received by means of a computing device or an assistance system. In particular, high-resolution map data or a high-definition map can be used as digital map data, so that the current position of the vehicle can be determined. These high-resolution map data can be stored in a memory or storage device of the assistance system and / or received by an external device.

[0013] Furthermore, it is provided that, when the vehicle is automatically laterally guided, a hands-off operation can be implemented by means of the assistance system. In this hands-off operation, the driver can continuously remove his hands from the steering wheel during the automatic lateral guidance. In particular, it is provided that the fatigue of the driver is monitored in order to maintain the hands-off operation. For this purpose, fatigue data from a driver monitoring device or an interior space camera can be used. These fatigue data describe the eyelids of the driver. In particular, the fatigue data can describe the movement and / or the position of the eyelids of the driver. The fatigue data can also describe the degree of opening of the eyes or the eyelids of the driver.

[0014] On the basis of the fatigue data, the degree of fatigue of the driver can be determined. It can thus be determined whether the driver is awake and can monitor the traffic and / or the hands-off operation or whether the driver is tired. If the degree of fatigue exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit value, it can in particular be assumed that the driver is tired and cannot sufficiently monitor the traffic and the hands-off operation. The fatigue limit value can be defined in advance and can describe, for example, the degree of opening of the eyes, the maximum duration of closure of the eyes, etc. If the degree of fatigue exceeds the predetermined fatigue limit value, the hands-off operation can be deactivated. The driver can be required to place his hands back on the steering wheel. It can also be provided that the hands-off operation can only be activated again if the degree of fatigue is identified as being below the fatigue limit value.

[0015] It can also be provided that the attention of the driver is monitored during the hands-off operation. For this purpose, data from a driver monitoring device or an interior space camera can be used, which describe the current gaze direction and / or the head position of the driver. On the basis of the data of the driver monitoring device, it can be checked whether the driver is attentive or turns his attention to the traffic situation. If this is the case, the hands-off operation can in principle be maintained.

[0016] As will be explained in detail later, the current glare of the driver can also be estimated by means of the assistance system or by means of a computing device. It can thus be determined whether and to what extent the driver is dazzled by external influences. For example, the driver can be dazzled by the sun and / or by light sources in the environment of the vehicle.

[0017] According to the application, the current glare of the driver is taken into account when deactivating the hands-off operation due to driver fatigue. If the driver is currently being dazzled, this can in particular result in the driver at least partially closing and even squinting his eyes. This can lead to the fatigue level of the driver being incorrectly assumed to exceed the fatigue limit value. In this case, the hands-off operation is deactivated immediately, even if the driver is not actually tired, but is only dazzled. If the estimated glare of the driver is taken into account when deactivating the hands-off function due to driver fatigue, it is possible to prevent the function from being deactivated incorrectly or prematurely. Overall, the assistance of the driver when driving the vehicle laterally can thus be improved.

[0018] In an embodiment, the assistance system is designed to adapt the duration between the recognition of the fatigue level exceeding the fatigue limit value and the deactivation depending on the estimated glare. It can be provided that, if the fatigue level is recognized to exceed the fatigue limit value and if it is recognized that the driver is not currently dazzled, the hands-off operation is deactivated directly. However, if it is recognized that the driver is currently dazzled, the duration or so-called debounce time between the recognition of the fatigue level exceeding the fatigue limit value and the deactivation of the hands-off operation can be adapted. The duration can be, for example, between a few seconds and a few minutes. The duration can increase with increasing glare. In this way, the point in time of the deactivation can be adapted to the current glare of the driver.

[0019] In a further embodiment, the assistance system is designed to determine the fatigue level depending on the estimated glare. The estimated glare of the driver can thus also be used directly for determining the fatigue of the driver or for determining the fatigue level. For example, the eyelid position or the degree of closure of the eyes of the driver can be estimated depending on the glare. This can be realized individually for the driver. For this purpose, a corresponding neural network and / or machine learning method can be used. Thus, the actual fatigue of the driver can be determined precisely taking into account the current glare of the driver. In this way, it is possible to prevent the hands-off function from being deactivated. It can also be ensured that the function can be activated by the driver. If the driver is considered to be tired, this is not possible in addition.

[0020] It can be provided that a calibration is carried out when determining the driver fatigue or when determining the fatigue level. The fatigue recognition can be calibrated, for example, at the start of the journey. The current glare of the driver can be taken into account in this calibration.

[0021] In a further design, the assistance system is designed to determine an orientation of the vehicle relative to the sun and / or a current sun position and to estimate the glare from the orientation and / or the sun position. As already explained, the assistance system can have a receiver for a global navigation satellite system, in particular a differential global positioning system. On the basis of the position data, the current driving direction of the vehicle and the current position or the geographical position of the vehicle can be determined. Then, on the basis of the current date and the current time, the angle between the vehicle and the sun can be determined. Furthermore, the sun position can be determined on the basis of the date, the time and the geographical position of the vehicle. The sun position can describe the angle of the sun above the horizon. Then, on the basis of the orientation of the vehicle relative to the sun and the sun position, the current glare of the driver can be estimated.

[0022] Current weather data can also be used in estimating the glare of the driver. These weather data can describe, for example, whether there are clouds etc. which can influence the current glare. Furthermore, it can be determined on the basis of digital map data whether there are shadowings due to high buildings etc. Furthermore, it can be provided that data of optical sensors are used in order to determine or verify the current glare of the driver.

[0023] Furthermore, it can be estimated whether the driver is currently dazzled by light sources in the environment of the vehicle. These light sources can be light sources of buildings and / or headlamps of other traffic participants. For this purpose, data of optical sensors, of environment sensors of the vehicle, of sensors of an adaptive headlamp system etc. can be used.

[0024] The vehicle according to the application comprises the assistance system according to the application. The vehicle is in particular configured as a passenger car.

[0025] The method according to the application serves to assist a driver of a vehicle when laterally guiding the vehicle. The method comprises performing an automatic lateral guidance of the vehicle on a road. Furthermore, the method also comprises providing a hands-off operation, wherein the driver can continuously remove his hands from a steering wheel of the vehicle. Furthermore, the method also comprises receiving fatigue data when the automatic lateral guidance is performed, wherein the fatigue data describe eyelids of the driver. Furthermore, the method also comprises determining a fatigue degree of the driver by means of the fatigue data. Furthermore, the method also comprises deactivating the hands-off operation if the fatigue degree exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit value. Furthermore, the method also comprises estimating a current glare of the driver and additionally performing the deactivation of the hands-off operation depending on the estimated glare.

[0026] Further aspects of the present application relate to a computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computing device of an assistance system, cause the computing device to carry out the method according to the present application and advantageous design solutions thereof. Furthermore, the present application relates to a computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when executed by a computing device of an assistance system, cause the computing device to carry out the method according to the present application and advantageous design solutions thereof.

[0027] The preferred embodiments and their advantages with respect to the assistance system according to the present application apply correspondingly to the vehicle according to the present application, the method according to the present application, the computer program according to the present application and the computer-readable storage medium according to the present application.

[0028] Further features of the present application can be gathered from the claims, the drawings and the figures of the description. The features and feature combinations previously mentioned in the description and those subsequently mentioned and / or only shown in the drawings can be used not only in the respectively indicated combinations, but also in other combinations or on their own, without departing from the scope of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0029] The present application is now explained in detail by means of preferred embodiments and with reference to the drawings. Herein:

[0030] Figure 1 A schematic view of a vehicle with an assistance system for assisting a driver of the vehicle when laterally guiding the vehicle is shown;

[0031] Figure 2 A schematic flow chart of a method for assisting a driver when laterally guiding a vehicle, taking into account glare of the driver, according to a first variant is shown; and

[0032] Figure 3 A schematic flow chart of a method for assisting a driver when laterally guiding a vehicle, taking into account glare of the driver, according to a second variant is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] Figure 1 A vehicle 1 is shown in a top view, which vehicle is currently configured as a passenger car. The vehicle 1 comprises an assistance system 2, which is designed for assisting a user or driver of the vehicle 1 when laterally guiding the vehicle 1. In particular, the assistance system 2 is used for taking over the automatic lateral guidance of the vehicle 1. Preferably, the assistance system 2 can assist the driver when laterally guiding the vehicle 1, so that the driver can keep his hands continuously off the steering wheel.

[0034] The assistance system 2 comprises a computing device 3, which can be formed, for example, by at least one electronic control device of the vehicle 1. Furthermore, the assistance system 2 comprises at least one environmental sensor 4, which is currently configured as a camera. With the environmental sensor 4, environmental data or image data can be provided which describe an environment 5 of the vehicle 1. In particular, the environmental data or image data can describe the limits of a lane, in particular of a road marking of a road. The environmental data can be transmitted from the environmental sensor 4 or camera to the computing device 3. It can furthermore be provided that the assistance system 2 has further environmental sensors, for example radar sensors, laser distance sensors, etc.

[0035] Furthermore, the assistance system 2 comprises a receiver 7 for a satellite- assisted positioning system. With the aid of the receiver 7, satellite-assisted position data can be received which describe a position of the vehicle 1. Furthermore, the assistance system 2 comprises a storage device 8, on which high-resolution map data or so-called high-definition maps are stored. Furthermore, the assistance system 2 comprises an output device 9, with the aid of which an output can be output to a driver of the vehicle 1. The output can in principle be output in a visual, acoustic and / or haptic manner.

[0036] Furthermore, the assistance system 2 comprises a driver monitoring device 6, with the aid of which the attention of the driver can be monitored. In particular, data describing the gaze direction and / or orientation of the head of the driver can be determined with the aid of the driver monitoring device 6. Furthermore, fatigue data can be provided with the aid of the driver monitoring device 6 and transmitted to the computing device 3. The fatigue data describe the eyelid position or the degree of opening of the eyes of the driver. With the aid of the computing device 3, it can be determined on the basis of the fatigue data whether the driver is tired. In particular, it can be checked whether the degree of fatigue exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit value.

[0037] Furthermore, the computing device 3 is designed to actuate a currently only schematically illustrated steering system 10 of the vehicle 1. By actuating the steering system 10, the driver of the vehicle 1 can be assisted in the lateral guidance. Here, the steerable wheels 11 of the vehicle 1 can be moved by actuating the steering system 10. It is furthermore preferably provided that, with the aid of the computing device 3, the drive motor and / or the brake system of the vehicle 1 can also be actuated in order to also intervene in the longitudinal guidance of the vehicle 1.

[0038] It is also provided here that, during the automated lateral guidance of the vehicle 1, a hands-off operation can be realized, in which the driver can continuously remove his hands from the steering wheel. During the hands-off operation, the attention and fatigue of the driver are monitored, in particular with the aid of the data of the driver monitoring device 6. If it is recognized that the driver is tired, the hands-off operation is deactivated.

[0039] Figure 2A schematic flow chart of a method for assisting a driver when laterally guiding a vehicle 1 according to a first variant is shown. In step S1 the current orientation of the vehicle 1 is determined by means of position data received by the receiver 7. In step S2 the current position or geographical position of the vehicle 1 is determined based on the position data. In step S3 the current date and the current time are determined. For this purpose data is received from the clock 12 of the vehicle 1.

[0040] In step S4 the angle between the vehicle 1 and the sun is determined depending on the geographical position of the vehicle 1 and depending on the date and time by means of the orientation of the vehicle 1. Furthermore, in step S5 the sun position or the angle of the sun above the horizon is determined depending on the geographical position of the vehicle 1 and depending on the date and time. For determining the angle between the vehicle 1 and the sun and for determining the sun position respective data or calculation rules can be used which are for example stored on the storage means 8.

[0041] Then, in step S6 the degree of fatigue of the driver is determined depending on the fatigue data of the driver monitoring device 6. If it is identified that the degree of fatigue exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit, then in step S7 the hands-off operation is deactivated.

[0042] In step S8 the duration between the identification of the driver fatigue or the exceeding of the fatigue limit and the deactivation of the hands-off operation is determined. This duration or dithering time is determined depending on the relative position of the vehicle 1 to the sun and depending on the sun position. If for example it is identified that the vehicle 1 is moving directly towards the sun with an angle of 0° and the angle of the sun above the horizon is less than 20°, then the fatigue is for example dithered for more than 2 minutes before the function is deactivated. On the other hand, if it is identified that the vehicle 1 is moving towards the sun with an angle of 45° and the angle of the sun above the horizon is less than 20°, then the fatigue is for example dithered for more than 1 minute before the function is deactivated. On the other hand, if it is identified that the vehicle 1 is moving away from the sun with an angle of 180°, then the fatigue is immediately identified and the hands-off operation is deactivated. In this case the angle of the sun above the horizon is not important because the vehicle 1 is just moving in the opposite direction.

[0043] Figure 3 A schematic flow chart of a method for assisting a driver when laterally guiding a vehicle 1 according to a second variant is shown. Here, in contrast to the method according to Figure 2 the angle between the vehicle 1 and the sun and the angle of the sun above the horizon are directly used for calculating the fatigue or the degree of fatigue depending on step S6’ of the method. For this purpose for example a neural network can be used.

Claims

1. An assistance system (2) for assisting a driver of a vehicle (1) when laterally guiding the vehicle (1), wherein The assistance system (2) is designed for: - performing an automatic lateral guidance of the vehicle (1) on a road, - providing a hands-off operation during the automatic lateral guidance, wherein the driver can continuously remove his hands from the steering wheel of the vehicle (1), - receiving fatigue data, wherein the fatigue data describe the eyelids of the driver, - determining a fatigue level of the driver from the fatigue data, and - deactivating the hands-off operation if the fatigue level exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit, characterized in that the assistance system (2) is further designed for: - estimating a current glare of the driver, and - additionally performing the deactivation of the hands-off operation depending on the estimated glare.

2. The assistance system (2) according to claim 1, characterized in that The assistance system (2) is designed for adapting a duration between the recognition of an exceeding of the fatigue limit and the deactivation depending on the estimated glare.

3. The assistance system (2) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The assistance system (2) is designed for determining the fatigue level depending on the estimated glare.

4. The assistance system (2) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The assistance system (2) is designed for determining an orientation of the vehicle (1) with respect to the sun and / or a current sun position and for estimating the glare by means of the orientation and / or the sun position.

5. A vehicle (1), in particular a passenger car, comprising an assistance system (2) according to any one of the preceding claims.

6. A method for assisting a driver of a vehicle (1) when laterally guiding the vehicle (1), comprising the following steps: - performing an automatic lateral guidance of the vehicle (1) on a road, - providing a hands-off operation, wherein the driver can continuously remove his hands from the steering wheel of the vehicle (1), - receiving fatigue data during the automatic lateral guidance, wherein the fatigue data describe the eyelids of the driver, - determining a fatigue level of the driver by means of the fatigue data, and - deactivating the hands-off operation if the fatigue level exceeds a predetermined fatigue limit, characterized in that - a current glare of the driver is estimated, and - the deactivation of the hands-off operation is additionally performed depending on the estimated glare.

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