Driving assistance device, driving assistance method, and computer program

Abstract

To suppress unnecessary driving assistance for a driver.SOLUTION: A driving assistance device performs a driving assistance for the own vehicle when a predetermined target exists in a driving assistance area set in front of the own vehicle. The driving assistance device is capable of performing a setting change so as to expand the driving assistance area so that it extends outward from the vehicle, and the driving assistance device performs the setting change to reduce the driving assistance area when the driving assistance area is expanded, if a vehicle is detected to be traveling on an expressway secondary route and a main line.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a driving assistance device, a driving assistance method, and a computer program. Regarding. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a conventional obstacle detection device that detects obstacles within an obstacle detection area set in front of the vehicle. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-271766 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Expressways may be equipped with equipment not found on ordinary roads, and some of this equipment may be difficult to distinguish from pedestrians or motorcycles. The conventional obstacle detection devices described above did not distinguish between ordinary roads and expressways, so there was a risk that they would detect equipment installed on expressways as pedestrians or motorcycles on expressways, resulting in unnecessary driving assistance being provided.

[0005] The present invention has been made in light of these problems, and aims to prevent unnecessary driving assistance from being implemented on expressways. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, a driving assistance device according to one aspect of the present invention, which provides driving assistance to a vehicle when a specified target is present in a driving assistance area set in front of the vehicle, is capable of changing the setting to expand the area of ​​the driving assistance area so that it spreads outward from the vehicle, and is configured to change the setting to reduce the driving assistance area when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main line of a highway while the driving assistance area is expanded.

[0007] In addition, a driving assistance method according to one aspect of the present invention, which provides driving assistance to a vehicle when a specified target is present in a driving assistance area set in front of the vehicle, is capable of changing the setting to expand the area of ​​the driving assistance area so that it spreads outward from the vehicle, and when the driving assistance area is expanded and it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main line of a highway, a setting change is made to reduce the driving assistance area. Driving assistance methods.

[0008] Furthermore, a computer program according to one aspect of the present invention causes a computer to execute processing to provide driving assistance to a vehicle when a specified target is present in a driving assistance area set in front of the vehicle, and to change the setting to expand the area of ​​the driving assistance area so that it extends outward from the vehicle, and to change the setting to reduce the driving assistance area when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main line of a highway while the driving assistance area is expanded. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to these aspects of the present invention, when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main line of a highway, a setting change is made to reduce the driving assistance area, thereby preventing unnecessary driving assistance from being provided on the highway. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1]1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a driving assistance device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a driving assistance area set on the left front side of the vehicle; [Figure 2B] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a driving assistance area set on the right front side of the vehicle; [Figure 3A] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a state in which a warning light is installed at a branch point or the like on a main road of a highway. [Figure 3B] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of a state in which a warning light is installed at a branch point or the like on a main road of a highway. [Figure 3C] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of cones installed on an auxiliary route of a highway to prevent vehicles from turning around. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart illustrating setting control of a driving assistance area according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, like components are designated by like reference numerals.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a driving assistance device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0013] The driving assistance device 100 includes a surrounding sensor 1, a vehicle sensor 2, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 3, an actuator 4, and a control device 5. The surrounding sensor 1, the vehicle sensor 2, the HMI 3, the actuator 4, and the control device 5 are each communicatively connected via an in-vehicle network 7 that complies with a standard such as a controller area network.

[0014] The surrounding sensor 1 is a sensor for generating surrounding data that represents the situation around a vehicle (hereinafter referred to as "host vehicle") for which driving assistance is provided by the driving assistance device 100. In this embodiment, the surrounding sensor 1 includes one or more external cameras 11 for capturing images of the surroundings of the host vehicle, including the area ahead of the host vehicle.

[0015] The external camera 11 captures the surroundings of the vehicle at a predetermined frame rate (for example, 10 [Hz] to 40 [Hz]) and generates a surrounding image showing the surroundings of the vehicle. Every time the external camera 11 generates a surrounding image, it transmits the generated surrounding image to the control device 5 as surrounding data.

[0016] Instead of or in addition to the external camera 11, a distance measurement sensor that measures the distance to a target such as a vehicle or a pedestrian present around the vehicle may be provided as the surrounding sensor 1. Examples of distance measurement sensors include a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) that emits radar light and measures distance based on the reflected light, and a millimeter wave radar sensor that emits radio waves and measures distance based on the reflected waves.

[0017] The vehicle sensor 2 is a sensor for generating vehicle data representing the status of the vehicle. In this embodiment, the vehicle sensor 2 includes a speed sensor 21 that generates speed data indicating the traveling speed of the vehicle, and a positioning sensor 22 that generates current position data indicating the current position of the vehicle, such as latitude and longitude. However, the vehicle sensor 2 is not limited to these sensors. The vehicle sensor 2 transmits each acquired data to the control device 5 as vehicle data.

[0018] The HMI 3 is a user interface for exchanging information between the vehicle and its occupants. The HMI 3 includes an output device 31 for notifying the vehicle occupant through the vehicle occupant's bodily senses (for example, sight, hearing, touch, etc.), and an input device 32 for the vehicle occupant to perform input operations and response operations. In this embodiment, the output device 31 includes displays (for example, a meter display, a center display, a head-up display, etc.) 311 and a speaker 312, and the input device 32 includes a touch panel 321 and a microphone 322.

[0019] The HMI 3 displays information (e.g., text information or image information) corresponding to a display signal received from the control device 5 on a display 311, and outputs sound corresponding to a sound signal from a speaker 312. The HMI 3 also transmits data input by a vehicle occupant via a panel or voice input (hereinafter referred to as "occupant input data") to the control device 5 via the input device 32.

[0020] The HMI 3 may be pre-installed in the vehicle, or may be a terminal such as a smartphone owned by the vehicle occupant. In the latter case, for example, information may be exchanged between the vehicle and the vehicle occupant's terminal by short-range wireless communication, or information may be exchanged indirectly via communication between the vehicle occupant's terminal and an external server (not shown).

[0021] The actuator 4 is a device used for driving control of the host vehicle. In this embodiment, the actuator 4 includes an acceleration actuator 41 (for example, at least one of an engine and a motor) that controls acceleration of the host vehicle, a brake actuator 42 (for example, a hydraulic actuator) that controls braking of the host vehicle, and a steering actuator 43 (for example, a steering motor) that controls steering of the host vehicle.

[0022] The control device 5 is an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) including a communication unit 51, a storage unit 52, and a processing unit 53.

[0023] The communication unit 51 includes an interface circuit for connecting the control device 5 to the in-vehicle network 7. The communication unit 51 supplies various data received from the sensors 1 and 2, the HMI 3, etc. to the processing unit 53. The communication unit 51 also outputs various signals output from the processing unit 53 to the HMI 3, the actuator 4, etc.

[0024] The storage unit 52 has a storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid disk drive (SSD), or a semiconductor memory, and stores various computer programs and data used for processing by the processing unit 53.

[0025] The processing unit 53 has one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units) and their peripheral circuits, and executes various computer programs stored in the storage unit 52. The processing unit 53 is, for example, a processor. The processing unit 53 may further include other arithmetic circuits such as a logic operation unit, a numerical operation unit, or a graphics processing unit. The processing unit 53 executes processing in accordance with the computer programs, thereby functioning as a target detection unit 61 and a driving assistance unit 62, and operating as a functional unit (module) that realizes predetermined functions. In the following description, when processing is described using each of the functional units 61 to 62 as the subject, it indicates that the processing unit 53 is executing a program that realizes each of the functional units 61 to 62.

[0026] The following describes the specific processing carried out by the control device 5. That is, the details of the functional units 61 to 62 realized by the processing unit 53 executing processing according to a program will be described.

[0027] The target detection unit 61 detects targets present around the vehicle based on the surrounding data received from the surrounding sensor 1. For example, the target detection unit 61 sequentially inputs surrounding images received from the external camera 11 into a classifier to detect areas in the surrounding images where targets such as vehicles, motorcycles, pedestrians, traffic lights, signs, road facilities, and buildings are depicted, and the types of targets depicted in those areas. The classifier may be, for example, a convolutional neural network (CNN) having multiple convolution layers connected in series from the input side to the output side. The target detection unit 61 estimates the distance from the external camera 11 to the target using the standard target sizes stored in the memory unit 52 for each type of target and the size of the target detected in the surrounding images, and calculates the position and speed of the target by tracking the target detected in the surrounding images over time. Note that the target detection method is not limited to the above method, and various known detection methods may be used.

[0028] The driving assistance unit 62 provides driving assistance to the driver of the host vehicle when a predetermined target is present in a driving assistance area (see FIGS. 2A and 2B) set ahead of the host vehicle. The predetermined target may be, for example, a movable target such as a pedestrian or a motorcycle, i.e., a target that may come into contact with the host vehicle. The driving assistance unit 62 can provide various types of notifications to the driver as driving assistance, such as a warning notification or a notification to urge the driver to steer or decelerate, via the HMI 3. Furthermore, as driving assistance to the driver, the driving assistance unit 62 can also provide driving control of the host vehicle (e.g., steering avoidance, deceleration, etc.) via the actuator 4, in addition to or instead of the notification via the HMI 3.

[0029] The driving assistance provided by the driving assistance unit 62 will be described in further detail below with reference to FIGS. 2A to 3C.

[0030] 2A and 2B are diagrams showing examples of driving assistance areas set on the left front side and the right front side of the vehicle.

[0031] 2A and 2B, the driving assistance areas set on the left front side and the right front side of the vehicle are symmetrical in shape, and the area of ​​the areas can be changed in stages or continuously according to the driver's preference. In this embodiment, the driving assistance areas can be changed into three stages, namely, a first area, a second area, and a third area, in order of increasing area size.

[0032] The first area is a predetermined area on the right front side and the left front side of the host vehicle. The second area is an area obtained by expanding the first area outward from the host vehicle so as to encompass the entire first area. The third area is an area obtained by expanding the second area outward from the host vehicle so as to encompass the entire second area. Therefore, the smaller the area of ​​the driving assistance area, the more difficult it becomes to detect predetermined targets present on the left front side and the right front side of the host vehicle. In other words, the smaller the area of ​​the driving assistance area, the lower the detection sensitivity of predetermined targets present on the right front side and the left front side of the host vehicle. Note that the length of the cloud and smoke assistance area in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle may be variable depending on the speed of the host vehicle, for example, taking into account the time to collision (TTC), or may be a predetermined length.

[0033] Incidentally, expressways may be equipped with facilities not found on ordinary roads. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B , at junctions on the main line of an expressway, caution lights (blinker lights) 200 may be installed, which alternately light two lights aligned vertically to alert vehicle drivers of the presence of the junction. Because such caution lights 200 have a vertically elongated silhouette similar to that of a pedestrian, the target object detection unit 62 may erroneously detect the caution lights 200 as a pedestrian. Furthermore, the target object detection unit 62 may recognize the lights of the caution lights 200 as taillights or headlights of a motorcycle, resulting in erroneous detection of the caution lights 200 as a motorcycle.

[0034] Furthermore, near the entrances and exits of expressway toll gates, that is, on the ancillary routes of expressways such as interchanges that are installed to branch off from general roads to enter the expressway or to exit the expressway and merge onto a general road, cones 300 and poles to prevent vehicles from turning around, as shown in Fig. 3C, may be installed. Such cones 300 and poles also have a vertically elongated silhouette that resembles the silhouette of a pedestrian, and therefore the target detection unit 62 may erroneously detect the cones 300 and poles as pedestrians.

[0035] Therefore, if the driving assistance area is wide when traveling on an ancillary route or main lane of an expressway (i.e., if the detection sensitivity of predetermined targets present on the left front side and right front side of the vehicle is high), attention warning lights 200, cones 300, poles, etc. are more likely to enter the driving assistance area, which could increase the frequency of driving assistance due to erroneous detection. On the other hand, on expressways, unlike ordinary roads, there are no targets on the sidewalk that pose a collision risk, such as pedestrians, and therefore there is no risk of collision due to targets on the sidewalk moving toward the vehicle.

[0036] Therefore, in this embodiment, when traveling on an ancillary route or a main road of an expressway, the driving assistance area is set to the first area, which has the smallest area.

[0037] 4 is a flowchart illustrating the setting control of the driving assistance area according to this embodiment, which is performed by the driving assistance unit 62 and, in turn, the control device 5. The control device 5 repeatedly executes this routine at a predetermined calculation period ΔT.

[0038] In step S1, the control device 5 determines whether the vehicle is traveling on an auxiliary route or a main lane of the expressway. The method for determining whether the vehicle is traveling on an auxiliary route or a main lane of the expressway is not particularly limited, and the determination may be made by various known methods.

[0039] In this embodiment, the control device 5 determines that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route and a main lane of the expressway when it can determine from the current position data of the vehicle and map information that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route and a main lane of the expressway, and can also determine from the surrounding image and the speed data of the vehicle received from the external camera 11 that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route and a main lane of the expressway. If the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route and a main lane of the expressway, the control device 5 proceeds to processing in step S2. On the other hand, if the vehicle is not traveling on an ancillary route and a main lane of the expressway, the control device 5 proceeds to processing in step S3.

[0040] In step S2, if the driving assistance area is set to an area other than area 1, the control device 5 sets the driving assistance area to area 1. That is, the detection sensitivity of predetermined targets present on the right front side and left front side of the host vehicle is lowered so as not to unnecessarily detect predetermined targets present on the right front side and left front side of the host vehicle.

[0041] In step S3, the control device 5 leaves the driving assistance area as it is. As a result, when the vehicle is not traveling on an ancillary route or a main line of an expressway, the driving assistance area can be set to an area preferred by the driver, and appropriate driving assistance can be provided according to the driver's preferences.

[0042] The driving assistance device 100 according to the present embodiment described above provides driving assistance for the vehicle when a predetermined target is present in a driving assistance area set ahead of the vehicle. The driving assistance device 100 is capable of changing the setting to expand the area of ​​the driving assistance area so that it widens outward from the vehicle, and is configured to change the setting to reduce the driving assistance area when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main lane of a highway while the driving assistance area is expanded. Specifically, according to the present embodiment, if the area of ​​the driving assistance area when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main lane of a highway is not the smallest of the settable area areas, the driving assistance device 100 is configured to reduce the area of ​​the driving assistance area to the smallest settable area.

[0043] As described above, according to this embodiment, when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route or main lane of an expressway, a setting change is implemented to reduce the driving assistance area, so that equipment that is mainly located on expressways and that the target detection unit 61 may easily mistake for a pedestrian or a motorcycle (for example, the caution lights 200 and the cones 300) is less likely to enter the driving assistance area. Therefore, it is possible to prevent such equipment from being mistaken for a pedestrian or a motorcycle on an expressway and resulting in the implementation of unnecessary driving assistance.

[0044] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above embodiments merely illustrate some of the application examples of the present invention, and it is not intended that the technical scope of the present invention be limited to the specific configurations of the above embodiments.

[0045] Furthermore, for example, in the above embodiment, the computer program executed in the control device 5 may be provided in a form recorded on a computer-readable portable recording medium such as a semiconductor memory, a magnetic recording medium, or an optical recording medium. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 100 Driving assistance device

Claims

1. A driving assistance device that performs driving assistance for a vehicle when a predetermined target is present in a driving assistance area set in front of the vehicle, The area of ​​the driving assistance area can be changed to expand outward from the vehicle, When the driving assistance area is expanded and it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an auxiliary route and a main route of an expressway, a setting change is implemented to reduce the driving assistance area. Driving assistance device.

2. When the area of ​​the driving assistance area when it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an auxiliary route and a main route of an expressway is not the smallest among the settable area areas, the area of ​​the driving assistance area is reduced to the smallest settable area area. The driving assistance device according to claim 1 .

3. A driving assistance method for performing driving assistance for a vehicle when a predetermined target is present in a driving assistance area set in front of the vehicle, comprising: The area of ​​the driving assistance area can be changed to expand outward from the vehicle, When the driving assistance area is expanded and it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an auxiliary route and a main route of an expressway, a setting change is made to reduce the driving assistance area. Driving assistance methods.

4. When a predetermined target is present in a driving assistance area set in front of the vehicle, driving assistance is performed for the vehicle; The area of ​​the driving assistance area can be changed so as to expand outward from the vehicle, A computer program that causes a computer to execute a process that, when the driving assistance area is expanded and it is detected that the vehicle is traveling on an ancillary route and a main route of a highway, changes the settings to reduce the driving assistance area.

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