Vehicle

Abstract

To provide a vehicle that prevents excessive alarming from being raised during traveling such as continuously deviating from a lane.SOLUTION: A vehicle is characterized in that, when a time taken for an own vehicle (10) to deviate from a lane this time after raising an alarm about previous lane-deviation is within a predetermined time, an alarm about the current lane-deviation is not raised.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a technology that issues an alarm when a vehicle deviates from a lane has been known as a driving assistance technology for a vehicle (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In consideration of the fact that a vehicle may have no choice but to deviate from its lane when there is another parked vehicle in the vehicle's lane or when road construction is being carried out, Patent Document 1 proposes a technology that shifts the position for determining whether or not to issue an alarm to the oncoming lane when the vehicle's lane is effectively narrowed by an obstacle or the like. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5896505 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Depending on the driving environment, the vehicle may repeatedly deviate from its lane only momentarily and then immediately return to the lane, and an immediate warning may not be necessary. The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has an object to provide a vehicle in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes continuous lane departures. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The vehicle of the first aspect is characterized in that if the time elapsed between the time when the vehicle issued a warning for the previous lane departure and the time when the vehicle departs from the lane this time is within a predetermined time, no warning is issued for the current lane departure. The vehicle of the second aspect comprises a driving lane detection means for detecting the driving lane of the vehicle, a lane departure warning judgment means for determining whether to issue a warning when a lane departure warning issuance condition is met for the vehicle, and an alarm means for issuing an alarm based on the judgment result of the lane departure warning judgment means, and is characterized in that the alarm means does not issue an alarm if the lane departure warning issuance condition is met again within a predetermined time after the lane departure warning issuance condition is met. The vehicle of the third aspect comprises a lane detection means for detecting the lane in which the vehicle is traveling, a lane departure warning judgment means for judging whether a condition for issuing a lane departure warning has been met for the vehicle, and an alarm means for issuing an alarm based on the judgment result of the lane departure warning judgment means, and is characterized in that the condition for issuing the lane departure warning is determined based at least on whether or not the vehicle has departed from the lane, and whether or not the time elapsed between the issuance of the previous lane departure warning and the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time. Effect of the Invention

[0006] It is possible to provide a vehicle in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes continuous lane departures. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a right side view of a saddle-ride type vehicle according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] 1 is a front view of a saddle-ride type vehicle according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 3] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a saddle-ride type vehicle according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] 3 is an explanatory diagram of a lane departure warning determination unit and a forward collision warning determination unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 5] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the driving support device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the first embodiment. [Figure 7]10 is a flowchart showing an operation of a lane departure warning determination unit of a driving support device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing an operation of a forward collision warning determination unit of a driving support device according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the description, directions such as front, rear, left, right, up and down are the same as directions relative to the vehicle body unless otherwise specified. In addition, the symbol FR in each drawing indicates the front of the vehicle body, the symbol UP indicates the upper side of the vehicle body, and the symbol LH indicates the left side of the vehicle body.

[0009] [First embodiment] FIG. 1 is a right side view of a saddle-ride type vehicle 10 according to a first embodiment. The saddle-type vehicle 10 is a motorcycle that includes a body frame 11, a power unit 12 supported by the body frame 11, a front fork 14 that supports a front wheel 13 so as to be freely steerable, a rear swing arm (not shown) that supports a rear wheel 15, and a seat 17 for a passenger. The saddle-ride type vehicle 10 is a vehicle in which a rider sits astride a seat 17. The seat 17 is provided above the rear part of the body frame 11.

[0010] The body frame 11 has a pair of left and right main frames 21 extending in the front-rear direction. A head pipe 22 is provided at the front end of the main frame 21, which rotatably supports a steering shaft (not shown) turned by the handlebars 18. A pair of left and right pivot plates 23 is provided at the rear end of the main frame 21. The lower ends of the pivot plates 23 and the front end of the main frame 21 are connected by a pair of left and right lower arms (not shown). A pair of left and right seat rails (not shown) extending rearward are provided at the rear end of the main frame 21.

[0011] A front suspension mechanism 30 that supports the front wheel 13 is disposed at the front end of the main frame 21. The front suspension mechanism 30 has an upper link 31 and a lower link 32 that are disposed at a distance above and below the front end of the main frame 21. The rear ends of the upper link 31 and the lower link 32 are swingably connected to the front end of the main frame 21. The front ends of the upper link 31 and the lower link 32 are swingably connected to a fork support 33. The fork support 33 is cylindrical and inclined backward.

[0012] A steering shaft 36 is supported by the fork support 33 so as to be rotatable about its axis. The steering shaft 36 has an axle portion (not shown) that passes through the fork support 33. A bridge (not shown) is provided at the lower end of the steering shaft 36. A pair of left and right front forks 14 are supported by this bridge. A front wheel 13 is supported between the pair of left and right front forks 14 so as to be rotatable via an axle 13a. An upper end of the steering shaft 36 is connected via a link 37 to a steering shaft (not shown) that is rotated by the handlebars 18. The steering shaft 36 rotates when the handlebars 18 are steered, and the front wheel 13 is steered.

[0013] A cushion unit 34 is disposed between the main frame 21 and the lower link 32. The cushion unit 34 has a structure in which a shock absorber is inserted into a coil spring. An upper end of the cushion unit 34 is supported by the main frame 21 so as to be able to swing. A lower end of the cushion unit 34 is supported by the lower link 32 so as to be able to swing. The upper link 31, the lower link 32, the fork support 33, the cushion unit 34, and the pair of left and right front forks 14 constitute a front suspension mechanism 30 of this embodiment.

[0014] A front end of a rear swing arm (not shown) extending in the fore-and-aft direction is supported so as to be freely swingable on the pivot plate 23. The rear swing arm is capable of swinging in the vertical direction via a pivot shaft 24 extending horizontally in the vehicle width direction. The rear wheel 15 is supported on the rear end of the rear swing arm.

[0015] A power unit 12 is supported by the main frame 21 and the lower arm of the body frame 11. In this embodiment, the power unit 12 is an internal combustion engine. The power unit 12 includes a crankcase and a cylinder portion that houses a reciprocating piston. An exhaust device 40 is connected to an exhaust port of the cylinder portion. A muffler 41 of the exhaust device 40 is disposed below and to the side of the rear wheel 15, and extends in the front-to-rear direction. The output of the power unit 12 is transmitted to the rear wheels 15 by a driving force transmission member that connects the power unit 12 and the rear wheels 15 .

[0016] A fuel tank 42 and an air cleaner box (not shown) are disposed above the main frame 21. The seat 17 and the rear trunk 43 are supported by the seat rails. Below the rear trunk 43, left and right saddlebags 44 are provided.

[0017] The saddle-ride type vehicle 10 includes a front fender 45 that covers the front wheel 13 from above, a rear fender 46 that covers the rear wheel 15 from above, and a step 47 on which a rider places his or her feet. The front fender 45 is attached to the front fork 14. The rear fender 46 and the step 47 are provided below the seat 17.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a front view of the saddle type vehicle 10 according to the first embodiment. A headlight unit 51 that irradiates light forward of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10 is disposed at the front of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10. The headlight unit 51 of this embodiment is a twin-lens type headlight unit. The headlight unit 51 includes a left light irradiating portion 52 and a right light irradiating portion 52 that are symmetrical on the left and right. A pair of left and right side mirror units 53 are disposed on the outside rear and above the headlight unit 51 in the left-right direction. A side mirror (not shown) that allows the occupant to view the rear is supported by the side mirror unit 53.

[0019] The front part of the saddle type vehicle 10 is covered by a front cowl 60. The front side parts of the saddle type vehicle 10 are covered by a pair of left and right side cowls 61. A screen 62 is disposed above the front cowl 60. The screen 62 is a windshield that reduces wind pressure experienced by the occupant while traveling. The screen 62 is formed, for example, from a transparent resin member. Behind the screen 62 and in front of the fuel tank 5, a meter panel 54 equipped with an electronic image display device or the like that displays various information to the occupant is provided.

[0020] In this embodiment, the front cowl 60 is composed of cowl members 60a, 60b, and 60c, as shown in Fig. 2. The cowl member 60a extends in the left-right direction and constitutes the main body of the front cowl 60. The cowl member 60b constitutes an upper portion of the cowl member 60a. The cowl member 60c is disposed spaced downward from the cowl member 60a.

[0021] An opening for exposing the headlight unit 51 is formed between the cowl member 60a and the cowl member 60c and between the pair of left and right side cowls 61. The upper edge of this opening is defined by the cowl member 60a. The lower edge of this opening is defined by the cowl member 60c. The left and right side edges of this opening are defined by the side cowls 61.

[0022] A detection device that detects the situation in front of the saddle type vehicle 10 is disposed behind the front cowl 60. In this embodiment, the detection device is an imaging unit 131 and a radar 132.

[0023] The imaging unit 131 includes an imaging element such as a CCD image sensor or a CMOS image sensor, and an optical system such as a lens. The imaging unit 131 captures an image of the front of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10. The imaging unit 131 is disposed in the center in the left-right direction of the front cowl 60 when viewed from the front of the vehicle. The imaging unit 131 is disposed behind the cowl member 60b that constitutes the upper part of the front cowl 60. The cowl member 60b has an opening 60b1 that penetrates the cowl member 60b. The imaging unit 131 captures an image of the front of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10 through the opening 60b1.

[0024] The radar 132 is, for example, a millimeter wave radar. The radar 132 is disposed behind the cowl member 60a. The radar 132 is disposed in the center in the left-right direction of the front cowl 60 when seen from the front of the vehicle.

[0025] By disposing the imaging unit 131 and the radar 132 in the center in the left-right direction of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10, a wider imaging range and detection range can be obtained on the left and right sides of the front of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10, and the situation in front of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10 can be detected more accurately. The presence of the cowl member 60a makes the radar 132 less noticeable when viewed from the front of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10, thereby preventing deterioration of the appearance of the saddle-ride type vehicle 10. The cowl member 60a is made of a material that is permeable to electromagnetic waves, such as resin.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of the saddle type vehicle 10 according to the first embodiment. The saddle type vehicle 10 includes a driving assistance device 100, a surrounding information acquisition unit 130 that acquires surrounding information of the saddle type vehicle 10, a GPS sensor 140, a communication device 150, and a map information database 160. In the following description, the saddle type vehicle 10 of this embodiment equipped with the travel assistance device 100 will also be referred to as "host vehicle 10."

[0027] The surrounding information acquisition unit (driving lane detection means, forward obstacle detection means) 130 includes a detection device that acquires information about the surroundings of the vehicle 10. The detection range of the detection device includes at least the area ahead of the vehicle 10. The detection device is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, at least one of a radar, a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), an ultrasonic sensor, and an imaging unit. In this embodiment, the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 includes an imaging unit 131 and a radar 132 as detection devices.

[0028] The surrounding information acquisition unit 130 constantly detects landmarks and road conditions around the vehicle 10. The surrounding information acquisition unit 130 detects the lane the vehicle 10 is traveling in. The surrounding information acquisition unit 130 detects obstacles ahead of the vehicle 10. Based on the detection results of the imaging unit 131 and the radar 132, the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 is able to recognize the lane the vehicle 10 is traveling in, the presence and position of the other vehicle 200, obstacles ahead, and the like.

[0029] The process of recognizing the presence of the other vehicle 200 from the detection result of the sensor device of the surrounding information acquisition unit 130, the process of recognizing the position of the other vehicle 200, and the process of recognizing an obstacle may be performed on the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 side or on the driving support device 100 side. For these processes, known processes can be appropriately applied.

[0030] The GPS (Global Positioning System) sensor 140 detects the current position of the host vehicle 10. The GPS sensor 140 transmits the current position of the host vehicle 10 to the driving assistance device 100.

[0031] The communication device 150 wirelessly communicates with a server that provides map information and traffic information to acquire such information. The communication device 150 transmits the acquired map information and traffic information to the driving assistance device 100.

[0032] The map information database DB can store highly accurate map information. Based on the map information in the map information database DB, the driving support device 100 can identify the shape of the road on which the vehicle 10 is traveling and the position of the vehicle 10 on the lane with high accuracy.

[0033] The driving support device 100 includes an information processing unit 101 that processes various types of information, and an alarm unit 102 that processes an alarm to the driver (passenger) of the host vehicle 10. The information processing unit 101 includes a calculation unit 110 and a storage unit 120. The calculation unit 110 is configured with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a microcomputer. The storage unit 120 includes memories such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a RAM (Random access memory). The calculation unit 110 executes a control program stored in the storage unit 120 to function as a lane departure warning determination unit 111 and a forward collision warning determination unit 112. The information processing unit 101 may be configured as a SoC (System-on-a-chip) that integrates the calculation unit 110 and the storage unit 120. The lane departure warning determination unit 111 and the forward collision warning determination unit 112 are not limited to being configured by software, and may be configured by hardware.

[0034] The driving support device 100 of this embodiment acquires detection results from the imaging unit 131 and the radar 132, and constantly recognizes targets and road conditions around the vehicle 10. In addition, the driving support device 100 acquires information from the GPS sensor 140, the communication device 150, and the map information database DB. The driving assistance device 100 issues a lane departure warning AL1 and a forward collision warning AL2 that are suppressed from being excessively issued when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes continuous lane departure. Hereinafter, the driving in which the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes continuous lane departure will be referred to as "predetermined driving".

[0035] Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the lane departure warning determination unit 111 and the forward collision warning determination unit 112 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 4 illustrates a two-lane road with lanes R1 and R2. In Fig. 4, a lane boundary line L2 is drawn between lanes R1 and R2. Lines L1 and L3 are drawn on the outer sides of lanes R1 and R2 in the vehicle width direction.

[0036] The lane departure warning determination unit (lane departure warning determination means) 111 determines whether or not to issue the lane departure warning AL1. The lane departure warning determination unit 111 in this embodiment determines whether or not to issue the lane departure warning AL1 so that excessive issuance of the lane departure warning AL1 during a predetermined driving is suppressed. In this embodiment, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines whether or not to issue the lane departure warning AL1 based on whether or not the issuance condition of the lane departure warning AL1 for the host vehicle 10 is satisfied and whether or not the issuance condition of the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied continuously for a predetermined period of time. In this specification, lane departure is used to mean that the host vehicle 10 is in a situation where there is a possibility that the host vehicle 10 will deviate from the lane. Specifically, a case where the distance δ between the position P10 of the host vehicle 10 and the warning line λ close to the host vehicle 10 is less than a predetermined threshold value is said to be lane departure.

[0037] Specifically, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 recognizes lines L1 to L3 as the boundaries between lanes R1 and R2, using the results of road condition detection by the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 and map information in the map information database DB. The lane departure warning determination unit 111 sets a virtual warning line λ, which is a reference position for warning activation, based on the lines L1 to L3. The lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines whether or not a condition for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied based on the position of the vehicle 10 and the warning line λ. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines whether or not a distance δ between the position P10 of the vehicle 10 and the warning line λ close to the vehicle 10 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, thereby determining whether or not a condition for issuing a warning is satisfied. The predetermined threshold value is set in advance by an experiment or the like.

[0038] When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the interval δ is equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold, it determines that the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are not met for the host vehicle 10. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the interval δ is not equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold, that is, is less than the predetermined threshold, it determines that the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met for the host vehicle 10. Note that in this embodiment, it is determined whether or not the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met as described above, but whether or not the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met can be determined by applying a conventionally known process for the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1.

[0039] When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are satisfied, it acquires the elapsed time from the time when the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 were satisfied last time. For example, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 acquires the elapsed time by calculating the difference between the time when the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 were satisfied last time and the current time. The lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines whether the elapsed time is equal to or longer than a predetermined time. In the present embodiment, the predetermined time is, for example, 3 seconds.

[0040] If the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the elapsed time is equal to or greater than a predetermined time, it determines to issue the lane departure warning AL1. If the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the elapsed time is not equal to or greater than the predetermined time, it determines not to issue the lane departure warning AL1.

[0041] In this embodiment, when the elapsed time is less than a predetermined time, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 sets a suppression flag FL1 indicating that the lane departure warning AL1 is not being issued, and obtains the current time as the time when the issuance condition is met. Also, when the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the elapsed time is more than the predetermined time, it sets the suppression flag FL1.

[0042] The forward collision warning determination unit (forward collision warning determination means) 112 determines whether or not to issue a forward collision warning AL2. In this embodiment, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines whether or not to issue a forward collision warning AL2 so as to suppress excessive issuance of the forward collision warning AL2 during a specified driving period. In this embodiment, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines whether or not the conditions for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 are met based on the detection result of the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 and a preset detection range DA. That is, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines whether or not the conditions for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 are met by determining whether or not there is an obstacle within the detection range D.

[0043] Specifically, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 acquires the detection result of the surrounding information acquisition unit 130. In addition, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines whether or not the suppression flag FL1 is set. When the suppression flag FL1 is set, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 narrows the width direction of the detection range DA. The amount by which the detection range DA is narrowed in the width direction is an amount by which the other vehicle 200 does not enter the detection range DA excessively during a predetermined driving. In other words, the amount by which the detection range DA is narrowed is an amount by which the other vehicle 200 that is not likely to collide does not enter the detection range DA during a predetermined driving. The amount by which the detection range DA is narrowed may be calculated each time based on the detection result of the surrounding information acquisition unit 130, the driving position and driving direction of the vehicle 10 by the GPS sensor 140, etc. However, in this embodiment, for example, a fixed value that is preset based on an experiment or the like is used. That is, in this embodiment, a preset normal detection range DA1 and a preset detection range DA2 during a predetermined driving that is narrower than the normal detection range DA1 in the vehicle width direction are stored.

[0044] When the suppression flag FL1 is set, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 uses the detection range DA2 during a predetermined driving state as the detection range DA. In this embodiment, the width direction of the detection range DA is thereby narrowed. When the suppression flag FL1 is not set, the forward collision warning determination unit 112 uses the normal detection range DA1 as the detection range DA.

[0045] The forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines whether or not there is an obstacle within the detection range DA based on the detection result of the surrounding information acquisition unit 130. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that there is an obstacle such as another vehicle 200, a pedestrian, or a fallen object within the detection range DA, it determines that the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is met and determines to issue the forward collision warning AL2. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that there is no obstacle within the detection range DA, it determines that the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is not met and determines not to issue the forward collision warning AL2.

[0046] The determination results of the lane departure warning determination unit 111 and the forward collision warning determination unit 112 are transmitted to the warning unit 102 .

[0047] The alarm unit (alarm means) 102 is a device that alerts the driver of the vehicle 10 of the risk of lane departure or a forward collision. The alarm unit 102 includes at least one of a display device and an audio output device provided in the vehicle 10. The alarm unit 102 issues a lane departure warning AL1 or a forward collision warning AL2 by at least one of a display and an audio. The alarm unit 102 in this embodiment includes a meter panel 54 and a speaker 55.

[0048] For example, the alarm unit 102 issues a lane departure warning AL1 or a forward collision warning AL2 by displaying predetermined image information on the meter panel 54. Also, for example, the alarm unit 102 issues a lane departure warning AL1 or a forward collision warning AL2 by outputting a predetermined warning sound or voice to the speaker 55. Note that the alarm unit 102 is not limited to a display device and a voice output device, and may be configured to transmit information to a device carried by the driver via communication and notify the driver from the device. A wide range of known notification devices can be applied to the alarm unit 102.

[0049] In this embodiment, the alarm unit 102 issues the lane departure alarm AL1 in a preset manner when it receives a transmission that the lane departure alarm determination unit 111 has determined to issue a lane departure alarm AL1. Also, in this embodiment, the alarm unit 102 issues the forward collision alarm AL2 in a preset manner when it receives a transmission that the forward collision alarm determination unit 112 has determined to issue a forward collision alarm AL2.

[0050] Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the driving support device 100 according to the first embodiment. The operation shown in Fig. 5 is started, for example, when the ignition on or engine start (power unit start) of the host vehicle 10 is detected. At this time, the suppression flag FL1 is set to a lowered state as an initial value. In addition, the current time is set as the establishment time, for example.

[0051] In step ST11, the driving support device 100 determines whether or not the lane departure warning AL1 is being suppressed by the forward collision warning determination unit 112. Specifically, the driving support device 100 determines whether or not the suppression flag FL1 is set by the forward collision warning determination unit 112. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that the lane departure warning AL1 is being suppressed (step ST11; YES), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST12. When the driving support device 100 determines by the forward collision warning determination unit 112 that the lane departure warning AL1 is not being suppressed (step ST11; NO), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST13.

[0052] In step ST12, the driving support device 100 narrows the detection range DA of the forward collision warning AL2 by the forward collision warning determination unit 112. In this embodiment, the driving support device 100 sets a detection range DA2 during a predetermined driving time by the forward collision warning determination unit 112. Then, the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST13.

[0053] In step ST13, the driving support device 100 determines, by the forward collision warning determination unit 112, whether or not a condition for issuing a forward collision warning AL2 is met. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is met (step ST13; YES), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST14. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is not satisfied (step ST13; NO), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST21.

[0054] In step ST14, the driving support device 100 issues a forward collision warning AL2 by the warning unit 102. Then, the driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST11.

[0055] In step ST21, the driving support device 100 determines, by the lane departure warning determination unit 111, whether or not a condition for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied (step ST21; YES), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST22. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is not satisfied (step ST21; NO), the driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST11.

[0056] In step ST22, the driving support device 100 acquires the time when the previous issuance condition of the lane departure warning AL1 was satisfied by the lane departure warning determination unit 111, and acquires the elapsed time by calculating the difference between the satisfaction time and the current time. Then, the driving support device 100 proceeds to step ST23.

[0057] In step ST23, the driving support device 100 determines, by the lane departure warning determination unit 111, whether or not the elapsed time is equal to or longer than a predetermined time. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the elapsed time is equal to or longer than the predetermined time (step ST23; YES), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST24. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 of the driving support device 100 determines that the elapsed time is not equal to or longer than the predetermined time (step ST23; NO), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST26.

[0058] In step ST24, the driving support device 100 clears the suppression flag FL1, which indicates that suppression is in progress, by the lane departure warning determination unit 111. Then, the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST25.

[0059] In step ST25, the driving support device 100 issues a lane departure warning AL1 by the warning unit 102. Then, the driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST11.

[0060] In step ST26, driving support device 100 sets suppression flag FL1 by lane departure warning determination unit 111 to suppress issuance of lane departure warning AL1. Also in step ST26, driving support device 100 acquires the current time as the time when the issuance condition of lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied by lane departure warning determination unit 111. Then, driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST11.

[0061] FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the first embodiment. When the power unit 12 of the host vehicle 10 starts, the driving support device 100 operates. In the driving support device 100, the operation of the lane departure warning determination unit 111 and the processing of the forward collision warning determination unit 112 are started.

[0062] In this embodiment, as shown by the dashed line in Fig. 4, when the vehicle 10 travels along the center of the lanes R1 and R2, the vehicle 10 is sufficiently separated from the warning line λ, so the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are not met. Therefore, the lane departure warning AL1 is not issued. The vehicle 10 travels while determining whether the conditions for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 are met based on the presence or absence of an obstacle within the normal detection range DA1.

[0063] On the other hand, when the vehicle 10 travels close to the edge of the lanes R1 and R2 and the distance δ between the alarm line λ and the vehicle 10 becomes less than a predetermined threshold, the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied. Therefore, the lane departure warning AL1 is issued. At this time, as shown in FIG. 6, if the vehicle 10 maintains a traveling state along the edge of the lanes R1 and R2 and travels a predetermined distance, the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied even after a predetermined time has elapsed. In this embodiment, if the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied even after a predetermined time has elapsed, the lane departure warning AL1 is not issued. Therefore, excessive lane departure warning AL1 during a predetermined distance of travel can be suppressed.

[0064] Furthermore, during a predetermined travel, the vehicle often passes between the other vehicles 200 on the left and right. Therefore, an obstacle within the detection range DA is detected based on a detection range DA2 during a predetermined travel that is narrower in the vehicle width direction than the normal detection range DA1. As a result, when the vehicle 10 is traveling at a predetermined speed, detection of other vehicles 200 with which there is little risk of collision on the left or right is suppressed, and the establishment of the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is also suppressed. Therefore, excessive forward collision warning AL2 during a predetermined travel can be suppressed.

[0065] In general, a saddle-type vehicle 10 such as a two-wheeled vehicle may travel a predetermined distance by crossing multiple lanes. In conventional lane departure warning processing, a lane departure warning is issued every time a warning condition is met, which may cause the driver to lose confidence in the warning or feel annoyed during predetermined travel.

[0066] Moreover, during the predetermined driving, there is a possibility that excessive warnings may be issued for vehicles diagonally ahead on the left and right sides for which a forward collision warning is normally detected, which may cause the driver to lose confidence in the warnings or feel annoyed. In this embodiment, when the driving support device 100 observes a behavior that is assumed to be the predetermined driving, the driving support device 100 suppresses excessive issuance of the lane departure warning AL1 and the forward collision warning AL2, which is expected to reduce the driver's distrust of the warnings and to suppress a decrease in concentration while driving by making the driver less likely to feel annoyed.

[0067] As described above, according to the first embodiment to which the present invention is applied, the saddle type vehicle 10 does not issue an alarm for the current lane departure if the time elapsed between the issuance of the previous lane departure alarm by the vehicle 10 and the current lane departure is within a predetermined time. According to this configuration, a vehicle can be provided in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes the vehicle to repeatedly depart from its lane.

[0068] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment to which the present invention is applied, the saddle-type vehicle 10 is equipped with a surrounding information acquisition unit 130 that detects the lanes R1, R2 of the host vehicle 10, a lane departure warning judgment unit 111 that judges whether or not to issue a warning when the conditions for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 are met for the host vehicle 10, and an alarm unit 102 that issues a warning based on the judgment result of the lane departure warning judgment unit 111, and the alarm unit 102 does not issue an alarm if the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met again within a predetermined time after the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met. According to this configuration, an alarm is not issued when the vehicle crosses lanes R1 and R2 consecutively in a short period of time, so excessive alarms can be suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that is considered to be a predetermined traveling mode. Therefore, according to this configuration, a vehicle can be provided in which excessive alarms are suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes consecutive lane departures, i.e., during a predetermined traveling mode.

[0069] In this embodiment, the vehicle is equipped with a surrounding information acquisition unit 130 that detects obstacles in front of the vehicle 10, and a forward collision warning judgment unit 112 that judges whether or not an obstacle has been detected within a preset detection range DA based on the detection result of the surrounding information acquisition unit 130.If the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met again within a predetermined time after the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met, the length of the detection range DA in the vehicle width direction is shortened. According to this configuration, during a given driving state, excessive issuance of the lane departure warning AL1 can be suppressed, while excessive issuance of the forward collision warning AL2 can also be suppressed.

[0070] In this embodiment, when the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines not to issue a warning, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines whether or not to issue a warning. According to this configuration, the safety of the occupants can be improved by prioritizing the forward collision warning AL2 over the lane departure warning AL1.

[0071] [Second embodiment] A second embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described below. In this second embodiment, parts configured similarly to the above-described second embodiment will be given the same reference numerals and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0072] Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the lane departure warning determination unit 111 of the driving support device 100 according to the second embodiment. Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the forward collision warning determination unit 112 of the driving support device 100 according to the second embodiment. In the first embodiment, the processing of the forward collision warning determination unit 112 is executed with priority over the processing of the lane departure warning determination unit 111, but in the second embodiment, the processing of the forward collision warning determination unit 112 and the processing of the lane departure warning determination unit 111 are executed in parallel, which is different from the first embodiment. 7 and 8 have steps ST213, ST221, ST225, and ST226 instead of steps ST13, ST21, ST25, and ST26 in the first embodiment.

[0073] 7 and 8 are started when, for example, the ignition is turned on or the engine is started (power unit is started) of the vehicle 10. At this time, the suppression flag FL1 is set to a lowered state as an initial value. The establishment time is set to, for example, the current time.

[0074] In step ST213 of FIG. 7, the driving support device 100 causes the forward collision warning determination unit 112 to determine whether or not a condition for issuing a forward collision warning AL2 is met. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is met (step ST213; YES), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST15. When the forward collision warning determination unit 112 determines that the condition for issuing the forward collision warning AL2 is not satisfied (step ST213; NO), the driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST11.

[0075] In step ST221 of FIG. 8, the driving support device 100 determines, by the lane departure warning determination unit 111, whether or not a condition for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied (step ST221; YES), the driving support device 100 advances the process to step ST22. When the lane departure warning determination unit 111 determines that the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is not satisfied (step ST221; NO), the driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST221.

[0076] In step ST225, the driving support device 100 issues the lane departure warning AL1 by the warning means, and then returns the process to step ST221.

[0077] In step ST226, driving support device 100 sets suppression flag FL1 by lane departure warning determination unit 111. Also in step ST226, driving support device 100 acquires the current time as the time when the issuance condition of lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied by lane departure warning determination unit 111. Then, driving support device 100 returns the process to step ST221.

[0078] In the second embodiment as well, when the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 are met consecutively within a short period of time, the suppression flag FL1 is set and the detection range DA is narrowed. Thus, like the first embodiment, the second embodiment can provide a saddle type vehicle 10 in which excessive issuance of the warning during a predetermined travel is suppressed.

[0079] [Other embodiments] The above-described embodiment merely shows one aspect of the present invention, and any modification and application can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0080] In the above embodiment, the lane departure warning AL1 and the forward collision warning AL2 are issued by the same warning unit 102, but a dedicated warning means may be provided for each warning. This allows, for example, different warning locations to be changed, and the warnings to be used differently.

[0081] In the above embodiment, the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 corresponds to the driving lane detection means and the forward obstacle detection means, and the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 corresponds to the driving lane detection means and the forward obstacle detection means. That is, the surrounding information acquisition unit 130 detects the driving lane of the host vehicle 10 and detects obstacles in front of the host vehicle 10, but the surrounding information acquisition unit specialized for each purpose may be provided separately for the driving lane detection means and the forward obstacle detection means.

[0082] In the above-mentioned second embodiment, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 and the forward collision warning determination unit 112 are realized by one calculation unit 110 and storage unit 120, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 and the forward collision warning determination unit 112 may be realized by separate calculation units and storage units. For example, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 may be realized by one calculation unit and storage unit, and the function of the forward collision warning determination unit 112 may be realized by another calculation unit and storage unit capable of processing faster than the one calculation unit and storage unit. This makes it possible to prioritize the forward collision warning AL2 over the lane departure warning AL1.

[0083] In the above first and second embodiments, the lane departure warning judgment unit 111 is configured to determine that the conditions for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 for the host vehicle 10 are not met for the host vehicle 10 if it determines that the distance δ between the position P10 of the host vehicle 10 and the warning line λ closest to the host vehicle 10 is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold, and to determine that the conditions for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 for the host vehicle 10 are met for the host vehicle 10 if it determines that the distance δ is not greater than or equal to the predetermined threshold, i.e., is less than the predetermined threshold. However, the lane departure warning determination unit 111 may determine whether the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is satisfied based on at least whether the vehicle has departed from the lane and whether the time elapsed from the issuance of the previous lane departure warning to the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time.

[0084] That is, the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 may be based on at least whether lane departure has occurred and whether the time taken from the issuance of the previous lane departure warning to the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time. That is, the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 is established when lane departure has occurred and the time taken from the issuance of the previous lane departure warning to the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time, and the condition for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 can be established when lane departure has not occurred or when the time taken from the issuance of the previous lane departure warning to the current lane departure does not exceed the predetermined time.

[0085] Therefore, the vehicle is equipped with a surrounding information acquisition unit 130 that detects lanes R1, R2 of the vehicle 10, a lane departure warning judgment unit 111 that judges whether or not the conditions for issuing a lane departure warning AL1 have been met for the vehicle 10, and an alarm unit 102 that issues an alarm based on the judgment result of the lane departure warning judgment unit 111, and the conditions for issuing the lane departure warning AL1 may be determined based at least on whether or not the vehicle has departed from the lane, and whether or not the time taken from the issuance of the previous lane departure warning to the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time. According to this configuration, a vehicle can be provided in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes the vehicle to repeatedly depart from its lane.

[0086] In the above embodiment, the power unit 12 is an internal combustion engine, but the present invention is also applicable to an electric vehicle in which the power unit is an electric motor.

[0087] In the above embodiment, a motorcycle having a front wheel 13 and a rear wheel 15 has been used as an example of saddle-ride vehicle 10, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to a three-wheel saddle-ride vehicle having two front or two rear wheels, or a saddle-ride vehicle having four or more wheels.

[0088] [Configuration supported by the above embodiment] The above embodiment supports the following configurations.

[0089] (Configuration 1) A vehicle characterized in that if the time elapsed between the previous lane departure warning and the vehicle deviating from its lane this time is within a predetermined time, no warning is issued for the current lane departure. According to this configuration, a vehicle is provided in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes the vehicle to repeatedly deviate from its lane.

[0090] (Configuration 2) A saddle-ride type vehicle comprising: a driving lane detection means for detecting the driving lane of the host vehicle; a lane departure warning judgment means for judging whether or not to issue a warning when a lane departure warning issuance condition is met for the host vehicle; and an alarm means for issuing a warning based on a judgment result of the lane departure warning judgment means, wherein the alarm means is configured not to issue an alarm if the lane departure warning issuance condition is met again within a predetermined time after the lane departure warning issuance condition is met. According to this configuration, a vehicle is provided in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes the vehicle to repeatedly deviate from its lane.

[0091] (Configuration 3) A saddle-type vehicle as described in Configuration 2, comprising a forward obstacle detection means for detecting an obstacle in front of the vehicle, and a forward collision warning judgment means for judging whether an obstacle has been detected within a preset detection range based on the detection result of the forward obstacle detection means, wherein if the lane departure warning issuance condition is satisfied again within a predetermined time after the lane departure warning issuance condition is satisfied, the length of the detection range in the vehicle width direction is shortened. According to this configuration, when the vehicle is traveling in a state where it repeatedly deviates from its lane, excessive issuance of lane departure warnings can be suppressed while excessive issuance of forward collision warnings can also be suppressed.

[0092] (Configuration 4) The saddle-ride type vehicle according to configuration 3, wherein the lane departure warning determination means determines whether or not to issue a warning when the forward collision warning determination means determines not to issue a warning. According to this configuration, the safety of the occupants can be improved by prioritizing the forward collision warning over the lane departure warning.

[0093] (Configuration 4) The saddle type vehicle according to configuration 2, wherein the lane departure warning determination means determines whether or not to issue a warning when the forward collision warning determination means determines not to issue a warning. According to this configuration, the safety of the occupants can be improved by prioritizing the forward collision warning over the lane departure warning.

[0094] (Configuration 5) A vehicle comprising: a lane detection means for detecting the lane in which the vehicle is traveling; a lane departure warning judgment means for judging whether a condition for issuing a lane departure warning has been met for the vehicle; and an alarm means for issuing an alarm based on the judgment result of the lane departure warning judgment means, wherein the condition for issuing the lane departure warning is determined based at least on whether the vehicle has departed from the lane, and whether the time taken from the issuance of the previous lane departure warning to the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time. According to this configuration, a vehicle is provided in which excessive issuance of alarms is suppressed when the vehicle is traveling in a manner that causes the vehicle to repeatedly deviate from its lane. [Explanation of symbols]

[0095] 10 Vehicle (saddle type vehicle) 102 Alarm section (alarm means) 111 Lane departure warning determination unit (lane departure warning determination means) 112 Forward collision warning judgment unit (forward collision warning judgment means) 130 Surrounding information acquisition unit (driving lane detection means, forward obstacle detection means) AL1 Lane Departure Warning DA detection range R1 Lane (Traveling Lane) R2 Lane (Traveling Lane)

Claims

1. If the time it takes for the vehicle (10) to depart from the lane this time after the previous lane departure warning is issued is within a predetermined time, a warning for the current lane departure is not issued. A vehicle characterized by:

2. A lane detection means (130) for detecting the lane (R1, R2) of the vehicle (10); lane departure warning determination means (111) for determining whether or not to issue a warning when a condition for issuing a lane departure warning (AL1) is satisfied for the host vehicle (10); and a warning means (102) for issuing a warning based on a result of the judgment by the lane departure warning judgment means (111), The warning means (102) does not issue a warning when the condition for issuing the lane departure warning (AL1) is satisfied again within a predetermined time after the condition for issuing the lane departure warning (AL1) is satisfied. A vehicle characterized by:

3. A forward obstacle detection means (130) for detecting an obstacle in front of the vehicle (10); and a forward collision warning determination means (112) for determining whether or not an obstacle has been detected within a preset detection range (DA) based on a detection result of the forward obstacle detection means (130), When the condition for issuing the lane departure warning (AL1) is satisfied again within a predetermined time after the condition for issuing the lane departure warning (AL1) is satisfied, the length of the detection range (DA) in the vehicle width direction is shortened.

3. The vehicle according to claim 2.

4. When the forward collision warning determination means (112) determines not to issue a warning, the lane departure warning determination means (111) determines whether to issue a warning.

4. The vehicle according to claim 3.

5. A lane detection means (130) for detecting the lane (R1, R2) of the vehicle (10); a lane departure warning determination means (111) for determining whether or not a condition for issuing a lane departure warning (AL1) is satisfied for the host vehicle (10); and a warning means (102) for issuing a warning based on a result of the judgment by the lane departure warning judgment means (111), The conditions for issuing the lane departure warning (AL1) are determined based on at least whether or not the vehicle has departed from the lane and whether or not the time elapsed between the issuance of the previous lane departure warning and the current lane departure exceeds a predetermined time. A vehicle characterized by:

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