Vehicle control device

Abstract

A collision can occur when the driver of an oncoming vehicle cannot see a vehicle that is hidden by a vehicle turning right from the same lane. This vehicle control device 600 warns the passengers of a vehicle to avoid collisions with other vehicles and is characterized by recognizing the external environment in front of a vehicle V1, inferring on the basis of the positional relationship between the vehicle and a preceding vehicle V2 whether the vehicle is in a blind angle Ab formed by the preceding vehicle (S112), inferring whether the vehicle will pass alongside the preceding vehicle (S114), and determining on the basis of the different determination results whether to issue a warning (S115).

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle control device that notifies a driver using blind spot information predicted based on external environment recognition information for the vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, with the automation of vehicle control and falling prices of sensors, technology has advanced to avoid or mitigate collision damage by detecting obstacles using radar and cameras and notifying the driver of an alert if there is a possibility of a collision.

[0003] However, many of the above functions are intended for vehicles with a large surface projection area, such as four-wheeled vehicles, and there are few functions that address the risk factors specific to small vehicles, such as motorcycles, so the functions need to be customized.

[0004] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle control device mounted on a vehicle. The vehicle control device in Patent Document 1 determines whether the vehicle is close enough to the preceding vehicle that there is a high possibility of collision based on an image captured by an external environment recognition device, and whether the driver of the preceding vehicle is aware of the presence of the vehicle based on the state of the driver of the preceding vehicle reflected in the mirror, and issues an alarm to the driver of the vehicle, urging the driver to avoid or reduce the damage of the collision. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2009-211309 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The following characteristics can be cited as causes of vehicle-to-vehicle right-turn accidents at intersections: (1) Small vehicles may be difficult for drivers of surrounding vehicles to see when traveling next to a tall vehicle. (2) There are cases where small vehicles are able to pass through narrow gaps between four-wheeled vehicles and the sidewalk, which is known as slipping through.

[0007] In such cases, small vehicles tend to be in blind spots and are not noticed by drivers of surrounding vehicles. The above factors are particularly prominent in the case of motorcycles such as two-wheelers and three-wheelers.

[0008] An example of a right-turn accident at an intersection is shown in Figure 1. In the example shown in Figure 1, the vehicle V1 traveling on a left-hand traffic road is hidden in a blind spot Ab behind the preceding vehicle V2 as seen by an oncoming vehicle V3. In this state, if the vehicle V1 passes through a narrow passage with poor visibility at high speed, that is, if the vehicle V1 slips between the preceding vehicle V2 and the sidewalk, the driver of the vehicle V1 may be late in taking evasive action even if he or she notices the oncoming vehicle V3 turning right, and may end up colliding with the right-turning vehicle V3.

[0009] In such risky cases, there is currently no mechanism that allows the driver of vehicle V1 to be aware that vehicle V1 is in the blind spot of oncoming vehicle V3 and to alert the driver of vehicle V1 and encourage him or her to slow down.

[0010] The conventional technology shown in Patent Document 1 is for informing the driver of the vehicle of the blind spot as seen by the preceding vehicle, but is not for informing the driver of the vehicle of the blind spot as seen by the oncoming vehicle. Therefore, it is desirable to develop a technology to avoid right-turn accidents. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] The vehicle control device of the present invention that solves the above-mentioned problems is a vehicle control device that issues an alarm to occupants of the vehicle to encourage them to avoid a collision with another vehicle, and is characterized in that it includes a blind spot determination unit that estimates whether the vehicle is in a blind spot formed by the preceding vehicle based on the relative position of the vehicle and the preceding vehicle recognized by an external environment recognition unit, a slip-through determination unit that estimates whether the vehicle will pass by the side of the preceding vehicle, and an alarm implementation determination unit that determines whether to issue an alarm based on the determination results of the blind spot determination unit and the slip-through determination unit. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, when the vehicle is passing a preceding vehicle, the driver of the vehicle is made aware of the high possibility of a collision with an oncoming vehicle, thereby preventing damage from a right-turn accident. Further features related to the present invention will become apparent from the description of this specification and the attached drawings. In addition, the problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiment. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram showing an example of a right-turn accident at an intersection. [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle control device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3] 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process for predicting a blind spot as seen by an oncoming vehicle at an intersection; [Figure 4] A schematic diagram showing an example of a right-turn accident near the entrance / exit of a parking lot in front of a store. [Diagram 5] A schematic diagram showing an example of a left-turn collision accident at an intersection. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart showing a control process of the vehicle control device. [Figure 7] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the blind spot determination in FIG. 6. [Figure 8] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of intersection passage determination in FIG. 6; [Figure 9] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the pass-through determination in FIG. 6; [Figure 10] 7 is a flowchart showing a modification of the blind spot determination in FIG. 6 . [Figure 11] 7 is a flowchart showing a modification of the intersection passage determination in FIG. 6; [Figure 12] 7 is a flowchart showing a modification of the intersection passage determination in FIG. 6; [Figure 13] 7 is a flowchart showing a modification of the pass-through determination in FIG. 6; [Figure 14] 7 is a flowchart showing a modification of the pass-through determination in FIG. 6; [Figure 15] 6 is a flowchart showing a blind spot determination process when a preceding vehicle makes a right or left turn. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A vehicle control device according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the traffic rules are in accordance with Japanese traffic laws and regulations, and the road is described as an example of left-hand traffic. However, the vehicle control device of the present invention is not limited to use on left-hand roads, and can be similarly applied to right-hand roads.

[0015] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle equipped with the vehicle control device of this embodiment. The vehicle control device 600 issues a warning to the vehicle occupants to encourage them to avoid a collision with another vehicle, and is mounted on the vehicle. The vehicle is a motorcycle such as a two-wheeled vehicle or a three-wheeled vehicle that is narrower in width than an automobile. The vehicle control device 600 is configured by an on-board ECU (Electronic Control Unit) such as a microcomputer equipped with a processor and a memory.

[0016] The vehicle control device 600 is connected to a stereo camera 100, a control switch 200, a meter control unit 300, a brake control unit 400, and a wheel speed sensor 500 via communication, for example, a Car Area Network (CAN).

[0017] The stereo camera 100 is an external environment recognition unit that recognizes the external environment in front of the vehicle. The stereo camera 100 is installed in front of the vehicle, and obtains parallax from images captured by multiple cameras, and measures the distance to an obstacle (including other vehicles such as a preceding vehicle and an oncoming vehicle) in front of the vehicle. Furthermore, the relative speed between the vehicle and the obstacle is measured by differentiating the measured distance according to the elapsed time. The lateral position of the captured obstacle with respect to the vehicle is measured. Furthermore, the relative lateral speed between the vehicle and the obstacle is measured by differentiating the lateral position according to the elapsed time. Furthermore, pattern matching is performed on the captured obstacle, and the obstacle is classified into a pedestrian, a bicycle, a vehicle, and other stopped obstacles, and the type of the obstacle is determined. Then, the height, width, and other dimensions of the obstacle are measured. Furthermore, image processing is performed to detect road signs and whether the brake lights of the preceding vehicle are on or not. In this embodiment, a stereo camera is used as an example of an external environment recognition device, but any sensor that can recognize the external environment can be applied to the present invention. For example, a monocular camera, a radar sensor, etc. may be used.

[0018] The control switch 200 is attached around the steering wheel of the vehicle and is operated by the driver. The control switch 200 can set and release, for example, an alarm or brake control. The meter control unit 300 is connected to a display device 310 and a buzzer 320 of the vehicle, and notifies the driver of the vehicle using audible and visual signals from the display device 310 and the buzzer 320. The brake control unit 400 performs brake control of the brake 410 based on a signal from the vehicle control device 600. For example, when the vehicle control device 600 determines that a collision with an oncoming vehicle is predicted, a process of activating the brakes and warning the driver is performed. The wheel speed sensor 500 measures the vehicle speed. The data of the vehicle speed is input to the vehicle control device 600 and used for the determination process of vehicle control.

[0019] The vehicle control device 600 calculates the deceleration to be applied to the vehicle based on information obtained from the stereo camera 100 and the wheel speed sensor 500, and controls the vehicle by determining the content of notification to the driver. When the ignition voltage of the vehicle drops, the vehicle control device 600 stops the operation of the microcomputer, and when the ignition voltage of the vehicle again becomes equal to or higher than the start-up voltage threshold, starts the microcomputer and performs processing. Therefore, when the ignition voltage is low, that is, when the engine is stopped, the processing is not performed.

[0020] Next, a description will be given of the specific processing carried out by the vehicle control device 600. An example of a vehicle running situation in which this processing is supposed to be carried out is shown in FIG.

[0021] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the control process of the vehicle control device. The vehicle control device 600 controls the vehicle by repeatedly executing the process shown in the flowchart of Fig. 6 at regular intervals, for example, at intervals of 10 ms. The contents of the process will be described below.

[0022] In process S111, information is acquired from the stereo camera 100, brake control unit 400, wheel speed sensor 500, and control switch 200, which are connected by communication, for example, CAN, and converted so that it can be used in the subsequent processes S112 to S116.

[0023] Next, a blind spot determination is performed in step S112. In step S112, a process is performed to estimate whether or not the vehicle is in a blind spot formed by the preceding vehicle based on the relative positions of the preceding vehicle and the vehicle itself recognized by the external environment recognition unit, and it is estimated whether or not the vehicle is in a blind spot as seen by an oncoming vehicle.

[0024] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process for predicting a blind spot as seen by an oncoming vehicle at an intersection. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the vehicle V1 is traveling in the travel lane 11a just before the intersection 12. In the intersection 12, a preceding vehicle V2 traveling in the travel lane 11a and an oncoming vehicle V3 traveling in the oncoming lane 11b are stopped to turn right. Here, the oncoming vehicle V3 can be defined as a vehicle that crosses in front of the vehicle V1 by turning right or left from the oncoming lane. The preceding vehicle V2 and the oncoming vehicle V3 are flashing their turn indicators in the direction of turning right. The vehicle V1 is traveling in the same lane as the preceding vehicle V2, but since the traffic light V4 is green and there is a width x' between the preceding vehicle V2 and the road edge of the travel lane 11a through which the vehicle V1 can pass, the vehicle V1 is going to go straight through the intersection 12 while maintaining its speed. The vehicle V1 is hidden behind the preceding vehicle V2 from the oncoming vehicle V3, and the vehicle V1 cannot be seen (blind spot). This traveling situation is particularly noticeable when traveling on a motorcycle.

[0025] The detailed processing content of the process S112 for estimating the blind spot is shown in the flow of FIG. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a control process for predicting a blind spot as seen by an oncoming vehicle at an intersection. In steps S112a to S112d, it is estimated whether the vehicle V1 is likely to be hidden behind the preceding vehicle V2 based on the size of the preceding vehicle and its relative position to the vehicle. The size and relative position of the preceding vehicle are detected by the stereo camera 100.

[0026] In step S112a, it is determined whether the height of the preceding vehicle V2 as seen from the host vehicle V1 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value. If the height of the preceding vehicle V2 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value (112a: YES), it is determined in the next step S112b whether the width of the preceding vehicle V2 as seen from the host vehicle V1 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value. If the width of the preceding vehicle V2 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value (112b: YES), it is determined by steps S112a to 112b that the preceding vehicle V2 is large enough to hide the host vehicle V1.

[0027] Next, in steps S112c and 112d, it is determined whether the host vehicle V1 is traveling in a position where it is likely to be hidden by the preceding vehicle V2. In step S112c, it is determined whether the vertical distance y between the host vehicle V1 and the preceding vehicle V2 (the distance in the longitudinal direction of the road in the travel lane 11a) is within a predetermined value. If the vertical distance y is within the predetermined value (112c: YES), then in step S112d, it is determined whether the lateral distance x between the host vehicle V1 and the preceding vehicle V2 (the distance in the width direction of the road in the travel lane 11a) is within a predetermined value.

[0028] Here, if the lateral distance x is within a predetermined value (112d: YES), it is estimated that the host vehicle V1 is in the blind spot Ab as seen by the oncoming vehicle V3, and the blind spot determination is turned ON in step S112e. In addition, in each of the steps 112a to 112d, when the respective conditions are not satisfied, the blind spot determination is turned OFF in step S112f. By making such a determination, it is possible to estimate that the host vehicle V1 is traveling in a position where it is likely to be hidden by the preceding vehicle V2. The determinations in these steps S112c to 112d are made based on information recognized by the stereo camera 100 of the host vehicle V1. However, information recognized by an external environment recognition device other than the stereo camera 100 may also be used. The process in step S112 corresponds to the blind spot determination unit described in the claims.

[0029] Next, in process S113, an intersection passing determination is performed (intersection passing determination unit). Here, it is determined whether the vehicle V1 is traveling before the intersection 12. For example, when the distance w between the traffic light V4 recognized by the stereo camera 100 and the vehicle V1 is within a predetermined value, it is determined that the vehicle V1 is traveling before the intersection 12. The contents of this process are shown in FIG.

[0030] FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing an example of determining an intersection using traffic lights. First, in step S113a, it is determined whether the traffic light V4 is recognized by the stereo camera 100. If it is recognized (113a: YES), then in step S113b, it is determined whether the distance w between the vehicle V1 and the traffic light V4 is within a predetermined threshold, such as within a certain distance. Note that in this embodiment, the distance is to the traffic light V4, but it may be to the entrance or exit of the intersection 12.

[0031] If the distance w between the host vehicle V1 and the traffic light V4 is within a certain distance (intersection distance) (113b: YES), then in process S113c, it is determined whether the display color of the traffic light V4 is green. If it is determined that the traffic light is green (113c: YES), it is determined in process S113d that the host vehicle V1 will pass through the intersection 12 (intersection passage determination ON). If any of processes S113a to 113d is NO, it is determined in process S113e that the host vehicle V1 will not pass through the intersection 12 (intersection passage determination OFF). In other words, it is determined that the host vehicle V1 will pass through the intersection 12 when the host vehicle V1 is closer to the intersection 12 than a preset intersection distance and the traffic light V4 at the intersection 12 is indicating that passage is permitted.

[0032] By doing this, even if the vehicle V1 is hidden behind the leading vehicle V2 when seen from the oncoming vehicle V3, it can be determined that the vehicle V1 will not pass through the intersection 12, so it can be determined that there is no risk of collision with the oncoming vehicle V3, and an alarm can be prevented from being issued in unnecessary situations.

[0033] Next, in process S114, a pass-through determination is performed. Here, a process is performed to estimate whether the host vehicle V1 will pass by the side of the preceding vehicle V2 traveling in the same lane, that is, between the preceding vehicle V2 and the road shoulder. In particular, the situation where a motorcycle passes by the side of the preceding vehicle V2 is prominent. The contents of this process are shown in FIG.

[0034] FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for determining whether the host vehicle is passing by a preceding vehicle. First, it is assumed that the distance x' between the preceding vehicle V2 and the road shoulder is wider than the width of the host vehicle V1. Then, in process S114a, it is determined whether the vehicle speed of the host vehicle recognized by the stereo camera 100 is faster than the vehicle speed of the preceding vehicle by a predetermined threshold or more. If it is greater than the threshold (114a: YES), it is determined in process S114b that the host vehicle V1 will pass by the side of the preceding vehicle V2 (passing judgment ON). On the other hand, if the vehicle speed of the host vehicle V1 is slower than the vehicle speed of the preceding vehicle V2 by less than the predetermined threshold (114a: NO), it is determined in process S114c that the host vehicle V1 will not pass by the side of the preceding vehicle V2 (passing judgment OFF).

[0035] In this way, in a scene where the host vehicle V1 does not pass by the side of the preceding vehicle V2, it can be determined that the host vehicle V1 will not pass by, and therefore it can be determined that there is no risk of collision with the oncoming vehicle V3, and it is possible to avoid issuing a warning in an unnecessary scene. This process S114 corresponds to a pass-by determination unit in the claims.

[0036] Next, in process S115, a decision is made as to whether to issue a warning to alert the driver of the host vehicle V1. In this embodiment, if the results of the blind spot determination in S112, the intersection passing determination in S113, and the slip-through determination in S114 are all YES, it is decided that a warning will be issued. The warning implementation decision is made regardless of whether an oncoming vehicle V3 actually exists. This process S115 corresponds to the warning implementation decision unit in the claims.

[0037] Then, in step S116, the request for notifying the driver, which has been determined by the above steps, is output to each control unit such as the meter control unit 300 and the brake control unit 400.

[0038] The vehicle control device 600 transmits the determination result to the meter control unit 300, and notifies the driver visually by the display device 310. Also, the buzzer 320 notifies the driver audibly. Also, the determination result may be transmitted to the brake control unit 400, and notified to the driver by the brake 410. Also, although not shown, the determination result may be transmitted to a steering control unit, and the steering wheel may be vibrated to notify the driver. By using at least one of such multiple notification means to notify the driver by a method suitable for the vehicle, which is the vehicle on which the vehicle is installed, it is possible to notify the driver regardless of the vehicle model.

[0039] According to the vehicle control device of this embodiment, when the vehicle V1 attempts to pass the preceding vehicle V2, the driver of the vehicle V1 is made aware of the high possibility of being collided with by the oncoming vehicle V3, thereby preventing collision damage in a right-turn accident.

[0040] [Modification Example 1] (Blind spot detection of oncoming vehicles, lost) In this modification, whether the host vehicle V1 is in the blind spot as seen by the oncoming vehicle V3 is determined using the recognition state of the oncoming vehicle V3 by the stereo camera 100 of the host vehicle V1, rather than the distance between the preceding vehicle V2 and the host vehicle V1. In this modification, processes S112g, S112h and S112i shown in Fig. 10 may be added to process S112 in Fig. 7, or may be used instead of processes S112a to S112d.

[0041] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a modification of the blind spot determination in FIG. 6, that is, a flowchart showing a modification of the control process for predicting a blind spot as seen by an oncoming vehicle at an intersection. In process S112g, it is determined whether the oncoming vehicle V3 recognized by the stereo camera 100 of the host vehicle V1 was also recognized in the previous processing cycle. If the oncoming vehicle V3 was also recognized in the previous processing cycle (S112g: YES), it is determined in process S112h whether the oncoming vehicle V3 and the preceding vehicle V2 overlap and the host vehicle V1 has lost sight of the oncoming vehicle V3.

[0042] For example, when the positions of the preceding vehicle and the oncoming vehicle overlap in the imaging direction of the stereo camera 100, which is the recognition direction of the external environment recognition unit, the oncoming vehicle V3 is hidden in the shadow of the preceding vehicle V2 as seen from the host vehicle V1, and is determined to have been lost. If the host vehicle V1 has lost sight of the oncoming vehicle V3 (S112h: YES), the blind spot determination is turned ON in process S112e. Next, the blind spot determination is held for a predetermined time in process S112i. This holding time may be changed according to the relative speed between the host vehicle V1 and the oncoming vehicle V3.

[0043] This process makes it possible to determine that the host vehicle V1 is hidden behind the leading vehicle V2 when the oncoming vehicle V3 is present. This makes it possible to obtain more reliable information that the host vehicle V1 is in the blind spot as seen by the oncoming vehicle V3.

[0044] [Modification Example 2-1] (Judgment of Intersection (Sign)) FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a modification of the intersection passage determination in FIG. This modified example is characterized in that it is determined whether the host vehicle V1 will pass through the intersection 12 using recognition information of signs and paint on the road detected by the stereo camera 100. Here, when the stereo camera 100 recognizes a sign indicating an intersection on the road and recognizes that the distance between the host vehicle V1 and the intersection sign is within a certain distance, it is determined that the host vehicle V1 will pass through the intersection 12.

[0045] In this modification, the following steps S113f and S113g are added to the step S113 in FIG. In process S113f, it is determined whether the stereo camera 100 of the host vehicle V1 recognizes a sign (including paint on the road surface) indicating the intersection 12 on the road. Then, in process S113g, it is determined whether the distance between the host vehicle V1 and the intersection sign is within a certain distance. If the results of processes S113f and S113g are YES, it is determined in process S113d that the host vehicle V1 is traveling just before the intersection 12 and will soon pass through the intersection 12 (intersection passage determination ON). On the other hand, if at least one of processes S113f and S113g is NO, it is determined in process S113e that the host vehicle V1 will not pass through the intersection 12 (intersection passage determination OFF). By this intersection passage determination process shown in FIG. 11, it is possible to determine whether to issue a warning to the driver of the host vehicle V1 by recognizing signs on the road and paint on the road surface even at an intersection without traffic lights.

[0046] [Modification Example 2-2] (Intersection Determination (GPS)) FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a modification of the intersection passage determination in FIG. This modification is characterized in that it is determined whether the vehicle V1 passes through the intersection 12 by using a GPS (Satellite Positioning System).

[0047] In process S113h, positioning signals are received from multiple GPS positioning satellites to obtain position information of the host vehicle (position information acquisition unit). Then, it is determined whether the distance between the intersection 12 measured by GPS and the host vehicle V1 is within a certain value (intersection passage determination unit). Here, if the intersection 12 is found to exist within a certain distance in the traveling direction of the road on which the host vehicle V1 is traveling according to the GPS (S113h: YES), it is determined in process S113d that the host vehicle V1 is traveling just before the intersection 12 (intersection passage determination ON). On the other hand, if the intersection 12 is not found within a certain distance in the traveling direction of the road on which the host vehicle V1 is traveling (S113h: NO), it is determined in process S113e that the host vehicle V1 is not traveling just before the intersection 12 (intersection passage determination OFF).

[0048] This process makes it possible to determine with higher accuracy whether the host vehicle V1 is traveling before the intersection 12. In addition, even at an intersection that does not have traffic lights, signs, or road markings, the GPS can be used to determine whether to issue a warning to the driver of the host vehicle V1.

[0049] [Change Example 3] (Thank you accident) The vehicle control device of this embodiment can also be applied to cases where there is a possibility of a collision with an oncoming vehicle at locations other than intersections.

[0050] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a right-turn accident near the entrance / exit of a parking lot in front of a store. 4 is a so-called "thank you accident" in which an oncoming vehicle that has been given the right of way by a preceding vehicle collides with the vehicle itself, which is passing by the side of the preceding vehicle. In this modified example, when the blind spot determination S112 estimates that the vehicle itself V1 is in the blind spot Ab as seen by the oncoming vehicle V3, and the passing-by determination S114 estimates that the vehicle itself V1 will pass by the side of the preceding vehicle V2, a determination is made to issue a warning.

[0051] In FIG. 4, the oncoming vehicle V3 is blinking its right turn signal to indicate its intention to enter the parking lot of the store 13. The preceding vehicle V2 stops on the travel lane 11a, and forms a space between it and the preceding vehicle V5 further ahead, through which the oncoming vehicle V3 can cross, and waits for the oncoming vehicle V3 to cross in front of the preceding vehicle V2 and enter the parking lot of the store 13. The vehicle V1 is traveling in the same lane as the preceding vehicle V2, and there is a width x' between the preceding vehicle V2 and the shoulder of the road through which the vehicle V1 can pass, so the vehicle V1 continues to go straight and is about to slip past the side of the preceding vehicle V2. The vehicle V1 is hidden behind the preceding vehicle V2 from the oncoming vehicle V3, and the vehicle V1 cannot be seen by sight. This situation is particularly noticeable when traveling on a two-wheeled vehicle.

[0052] To handle this case, the passing-through determination process S114 in Fig. 6 can be changed to the process shown in Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for determining whether the host vehicle will pass by the side of a preceding vehicle in order to prevent a right-turn accident (thank you accident) at a location other than an intersection.

[0053] In a situation where it is determined in process S113 of FIG. 6 that the vehicle is not traveling before an intersection (intersection passage determination OFF), if there is no other preceding vehicle V5 within a certain distance z ahead of the preceding vehicle V2 on the travel lane 11a (S114d: NO), it is determined in process S114d of FIG. 13 that there is space ahead of the preceding vehicle V2 for the oncoming vehicle V3 to cross (see FIG. 4).

[0054] Next, in step S114e, it is determined whether the brake lights of the preceding vehicle V2 are on. If they are on (S114e: YES), then in step S114f, it is determined whether the deceleration of the preceding vehicle V2 is equal to or greater than a certain value or whether the preceding vehicle V2 is stopped. If the deceleration of the preceding vehicle V2 is equal to or greater than a certain value or whether the preceding vehicle V2 is stopped (S114f: YES), it is determined that the preceding vehicle V2 is decelerating to give way to the oncoming vehicle V3 that is crossing in front of the host vehicle V1, and the pass-through determination is turned ON (S114b). If any of steps S114d to S114f is NO, the pass-through determination is turned OFF (S114c). In other words, when the stereo camera 100 recognizes that there is no other vehicle within a certain distance in front of the preceding vehicle V2, that the brake lights of the preceding vehicle V2 are on, and that the deceleration of the preceding vehicle V2 is equal to or greater than a threshold value, it is determined that the host vehicle V1 will pass by the side of the preceding vehicle V2. Through these processes, in cases where there is a risk of collision between the host vehicle V1 and an oncoming vehicle V3 crossing at a location other than an intersection, a warning can be issued to the driver of the host vehicle V1.

[0055] [Modification Example 4] (Specialized for passing through motorcycles) In order to adapt to road conditions where only motorcycles can pass through, the pass-through determination process in FIG. 13 can be changed to the process shown in FIG. In process S114g, when the distance x' in the road width direction between the preceding vehicle V2 and the road shoulder (or obstacle) measured by the stereo camera 100 is equal to or greater than a certain value (114g: YES), it is determined that the host vehicle V1 can pass through, and the pass-through determination is turned ON in process S114b. On the other hand, when the distance x' is smaller than the certain value (114g: NO), it is determined that the host vehicle V1 cannot pass through, and the pass-through determination is turned OFF in process S114c. When this embodiment is applied to a motorcycle, the process of this change limits the notification to the driver to environments where only motorcycles can pass through, and unnecessary notifications can be prevented.

[0056] In addition, when adding a passing condition for motorcycles, for example, it is judged whether the vehicle is traveling in the same lane as the preceding vehicle. If the vehicle is traveling in the same lane, it is judged whether the distance between the preceding vehicle and the shoulder is equal to or less than a certain value. Here, by setting the distance between the preceding vehicle and the shoulder to a width that allows motorcycles to pass but does not allow four-wheeled vehicles to pass, it is possible to perform control specialized for passing motorcycles.

[0057] [Change Example 5] (Left turn collision) The process in Fig. 6 can also be applied to notifying the driver of the vehicle that the vehicle will be caught in the preceding vehicle V2 when the preceding vehicle V2 turns left at the intersection 12. An example of this is shown in Fig. 5. In this case, the blind spot determination process in Fig. 7 is changed to the process shown in Fig. 15.

[0058] In the example shown in FIG. 5, the vehicle V1 is traveling in the same lane 11a as the preceding vehicle V2. The preceding vehicle V2 flashes its left turn signal before the intersection 12 to indicate its intention to turn left at the intersection 12. That is, the turn signal of the preceding vehicle V2 is on on the side that crosses in front of the vehicle. If the preceding vehicle V2 turns left in this state, it will cross in front of the vehicle V1. The traffic light V4 at the intersection 12 is showing a green light, and there is a width x' between the preceding vehicle V2 and the shoulder that allows the vehicle V1 to pass, so the vehicle V1 continues to move straight ahead and tries to slip through the side of the preceding vehicle V2. The vehicle V1 is in a blind spot as seen from the preceding vehicle V2, and the driver of the preceding vehicle V2 cannot see the vehicle V1. This blind spot is also a blind spot formed by the preceding vehicle. In particular, such a case is noticeable when a two-wheeled vehicle is traveling.

[0059] In Fig. 15, the presence of a blind spot that occurs when the preceding vehicle V2 makes a right or left turn is determined. In process S121, it is determined whether the preceding vehicle V2 has its turn signal on based on the recognition information of the tail lamps of the preceding vehicle V2 recognized by the stereo camera 100 of the host vehicle V1. At this time, if the legally determined driving lane is to the left, it is determined that the left turn signal is on, and if the legally determined driving lane is to the right, it is determined that the right turn signal is on. If the above determination is met (S121: YES), it is determined that the preceding vehicle V2 is turning right or left.

[0060] Next, in step S122, it is determined whether the preceding vehicle V2 is decelerating. The preceding vehicle V2 is determined to be decelerating if the preceding vehicle V2 recognized by the stereo camera 100 of the host vehicle V1 is decelerating at a certain value or more (S122: YES).

[0061] Next, in step S123, if steps S121 and S122 are YES, the entrapment blind spot determination for the preceding vehicle V2 is turned ON in step S123. If any of the conditions in steps S121 and S122 are NO, the entrapment blind spot determination is turned OFF in step S124.

[0062] Thereafter, if the blind spot determination in step S122, the intersection determination in step S113, and the slip-through determination in step S114 are all ON, a notification is given to the driver in step S115. In this way, even if the host vehicle is involved in a preceding vehicle turning left or right, the driver of the host vehicle can be notified of the risk of collision.

[0063] [Change Example 6] (Threshold) The thresholds used in the above processing (vehicle distance threshold, relative speed threshold, obstacle area threshold, distance before intersection threshold, deceleration threshold) may be changed as follows to better adapt to the environment in which the vehicle is traveling.

[0064] The thresholds for the height of the preceding vehicle, the width of the preceding vehicle, the longitudinal distance between the preceding vehicle and the own vehicle, and the lateral distance between the preceding vehicle and the own vehicle are multiplied by an arbitrary gain value (for example, 0.5) to reduce the threshold value used for each judgment. This gain may be calculated by using the relative speed between the own vehicle and the preceding vehicle to look up a value from a pre-set database (table lookup), or by table lookup from multiple values ​​such as the relative speed between the own vehicle and the preceding vehicle and the acceleration of the own vehicle. Alternatively, each of the threshold values ​​may be reduced by subtracting an arbitrary value without multiplying it by a gain.

[0065] Alternatively, the relative speed between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle may be used to look up a value from a pre-set database (table lookup), or the relative speed between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle and multiple values ​​such as the host vehicle's acceleration may be looked up in a table.

[0066] In this way, the blind spot and notification determination results can be more suited to the driving environment.

[0067] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above in detail, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various design changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention described in the claims. For example, the above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those having all of the configurations described. In addition, it is possible to replace a part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another embodiment, and it is also possible to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. Furthermore, it is possible to add, delete, or replace a part of the configuration of each embodiment with another configuration. [Explanation of symbols]

[0068] 100....Stereo camera (external world recognition unit), 200....Control switch, 300....Meter control unit, 400....Brake control unit, 500....Wheel speed sensor, 600....Vehicle control device, Ab....Blind spot, V1....Own vehicle, V2....Preceding vehicle, V3....Oncoming vehicle, V4....Traffic light

Claims

1. A vehicle control device that issues a warning to occupants of a vehicle to encourage them to avoid a collision with another vehicle, a blind spot determination unit that estimates whether or not the host vehicle is in a blind spot formed by the preceding vehicle based on a relative position between the preceding vehicle and the host vehicle recognized by an external environment recognition unit; a pass-through determination unit that estimates whether the host vehicle will pass through the side of the preceding vehicle; a warning implementation determination unit that determines whether or not to implement the warning based on the determination results of the blind spot determination unit and the slip-through determination unit; Equipped with The blind spot is a blind spot as seen from an oncoming vehicle crossing in front of the host vehicle by turning right or left, The blind spot determination unit estimates whether the host vehicle is in the blind spot based on a size of the preceding vehicle and a relative position between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle.

2. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the blind spot determination unit estimates that the host vehicle is in the blind spot when the size of the preceding vehicle is equal to or larger than a threshold value and the host vehicle is in a predetermined position relative to the preceding vehicle.

3. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the blind spot determination unit estimates that the host vehicle is in the blind spot when the oncoming vehicle recognized by the external environment recognition unit is lost because the positions of the preceding vehicle and the oncoming vehicle overlap in a recognition direction of the external environment recognition unit.

4. an intersection passage determination unit that determines whether the vehicle passes through an intersection, The vehicle control device according to claim 1 , wherein the blind spot determination unit estimates the blind spot when the host vehicle passes through an intersection.

5. The vehicle control device according to claim 4, characterized in that the intersection passing determination unit determines that the vehicle will pass through the intersection when the vehicle is closer to the intersection than a predetermined intersection pre-distance and when the traffic light at the intersection indicates that passage is permitted.

6. a position information acquisition unit that receives positioning signals from a plurality of positioning satellites and acquires position information of the vehicle; The vehicle control device according to claim 4 , wherein the intersection passage determination unit determines whether or not the host vehicle is passing through an intersection based on the position information of the host vehicle.

7. The vehicle control device according to claim 4, characterized in that the intersection passage determination unit determines that the vehicle will pass through the intersection when the external environment recognition unit recognizes a sign indicating an intersection on a road and recognizes that a distance between the vehicle and the sign is within a certain distance.

8. 2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the pass-through determination unit determines that the host vehicle will pass by the side of the preceding vehicle when the external environment recognition unit recognizes that there is no other preceding vehicle within a certain distance ahead of the preceding vehicle, that the brake lights of the preceding vehicle are on, and that the deceleration of the preceding vehicle is equal to or greater than a threshold.

9. A vehicle control device that issues a warning to occupants of a vehicle to encourage them to avoid a collision with another vehicle, a blind spot determination unit that estimates whether or not the host vehicle is in a blind spot formed by the preceding vehicle based on a relative position between the preceding vehicle and the host vehicle recognized by an external environment recognition unit; a pass-through determination unit that estimates whether the host vehicle will pass through the side of the preceding vehicle; a warning implementation determination unit that determines whether or not to implement the warning based on the determination results of the blind spot determination unit and the slip-through determination unit; Equipped with The blind spot determination unit estimates that the vehicle is in the blind spot of the preceding vehicle when the external environment recognition unit recognizes that the turn signal of the preceding vehicle is on on the side crossing in front of the vehicle and that the preceding vehicle is decelerating at a deceleration rate equal to or greater than a certain value.

10. a threshold value for a relative position between the preceding vehicle and the host vehicle, which are used for estimating the blind spot, and a threshold value for a size of the preceding vehicle; a threshold value of a relative speed between the preceding vehicle and the host vehicle, which are used in the pass-through determination, and a threshold value of a distance between the preceding vehicle and a road shoulder; The distance before the intersection used in determining whether the vehicle is passing through the intersection is 6. The vehicle control device according to claim 5, wherein the speed is changed in response to a vehicle speed of the host vehicle or a relative speed between the host vehicle and the preceding vehicle.

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