Driving support device, vehicle, computer program, and recording medium

Abstract

The present invention safely performs merging without an occurrence of a collision with an obstacle or deviation into the opposing lane and also without remarkable movement of the line of sight. This drive assistance device, which assists in the driving of a vehicle when approaching a merging destination road by traveling from an entry road and making a turn at a crossroad or a T junction, sets a path for the vehicle such that, at a position where the driver of the vehicle becomes capable of viewing a region that was a blind spot for the driver while traveling on the entry road due to a blind-spot forming object present on the outside of the turn of the vehicle, the inclination of the view angle central line of the driver while viewing the region that was a blind spot forms a prescribed angle or smaller with respect to the front-rear direction of the vehicle.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a driving support device, a vehicle, a computer program, and a recording medium.

Background Art

[0002] Various techniques have been proposed to enable safe driving on roads with poor visibility. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a technique of indicating a position where the host vehicle does not contact the intersection angle and turning the steering wheel to the maximum steering angle at that position to pass through the intersection. Patent Document 2 describes a technique of preventing contact by separating the host vehicle position from the inner wall surface of the turn when the host vehicle trajectory is likely to contact the intersection angle, while suppressing swelling to the outside. Patent Document 3 describes a technique of controlling the stop position and posture of the host vehicle before merging so as to reduce the dead angle from the in-vehicle sensors generated by surrounding obstacles when turning at an intersection.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, while the technologies described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 attempt to achieve smooth passage by preventing collisions and bulges, they do not include the perspective of reducing blind spots. For this reason, especially when entering a merging destination road at a right angle to the direction of the vehicle, there is a risk that the pillar of the host vehicle may block the view and cause poor visibility. Further, in Patent Document 3, although the reduction of blind spots from the sensor is considered, as a result of attempting to minimize the blind spots from the sensor, the angle of the vehicle body becomes large with respect to the merging destination road at an intersection, and when confirming an approaching object during merging, the driver has to turn significantly to the right or twist the body. This neglects the confirmation of the front (travel direction), which may impede merging.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a driving support device, a vehicle, a computer program, and a recording medium that enable safe merging without causing collisions with obstacles or running off into oncoming lanes and without significantly increasing the amount of diversion of the line of sight.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, according to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a driving support device for assisting the driving of a vehicle when turning from an access road to a crossroads or a T-junction and proceeding to a merging destination road, the driving support device including one or more processors and one or more memories communicably connected to the one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors set the path of the vehicle such that the inclination of the center line of the driver's visual field angle for visually recognizing the area that was a blind spot for the driver of the vehicle traveling on the access road due to a blind spot forming object existing outside the turning of the vehicle becomes a predetermined angle or less at a position where the driver can visually recognize the area that was the blind spot. A driving support device and a vehicle equipped with the same are provided.

[0007] Also, in order to solve the above problems, according to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program applied to a driving assistance device that assists the driving of a vehicle when turning from an access road to an intersection or a T-junction and proceeding to a merging destination road. The computer program causes one or more processors to set the path of the vehicle so that, at a position where the driver can visually recognize an area that was a blind spot as viewed by the driver of the vehicle traveling on the access road due to a blind spot forming object existing outside the turning side of the vehicle, the inclination of the center line of the driver's visual field angle for visually recognizing the area that was the blind spot with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined angle. There is also provided a non-transitory tangible recording medium on which this computer program is recorded.

Advantages of the Invention

[0008] As described above, according to the present disclosure, it is possible to safely perform merging without causing a collision with an obstacle or protruding into an oncoming lane and without significantly increasing the amount of diverted line of sight.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

Figure 13

Figure 14

Figure 15

Figure 16

Figure 17

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail. In this specification and the drawings, for components having substantially the same functional configuration, the same reference numerals are given and redundant explanations are omitted.

[0011] <1. Overall Configuration of the Vehicle> FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a vehicle 1 equipped with a driving support device 50 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The vehicle 1 shown in FIG. 1 is configured as a four-wheel drive vehicle that transmits the driving torque output from a driving power source 9 that generates the driving torque of the vehicle 1 to the left front wheel 3LF, the right front wheel 3RF, the left rear wheel 3LR, and the right rear wheel 3RR (hereinafter, collectively referred to as "wheel 3" when no particular distinction is required). The driving power source 9 may be an internal combustion engine such as a gasoline engine or a diesel engine, may be a driving motor, or may include both an internal combustion engine and a driving motor.

[0012] Note that the vehicle 1 may be, for example, an electric vehicle equipped with two driving motors, a front-wheel driving motor and a rear-wheel driving motor, or an electric vehicle equipped with a driving motor corresponding to each wheel 3. Further, when the vehicle 1 is an electric vehicle or a hybrid electric vehicle, the vehicle 1 is equipped with a secondary battery that stores electric power supplied to the driving motor, and a generator such as a motor or a fuel cell that generates electric power to be charged into the battery.

[0013] The vehicle 1 includes a driving power source 9, an electric steering device 15, and a brake hydraulic control unit 20 as devices used for driving control of the vehicle 1. The driving power source 9 outputs a driving torque that is transmitted to the front-wheel drive shaft 5F and the rear-wheel drive shaft 5R via a transmission (not shown), a front-wheel differential mechanism 7F, and a rear-wheel differential mechanism 7R. The driving of the driving power source 9 and the transmission is controlled by a vehicle control device 41 configured to include one or more electronic control units (ECUs: Electronic Control Unit).

[0014] An electric power steering device 15 is provided on the front-wheel drive shaft 5F. The electric power steering device 15 includes an electric motor and a gear mechanism (not shown). The electric power steering device 15 adjusts the steering angles of the left front wheel 3LF and the right front wheel 3RF by being controlled by the vehicle control device 41. During manual driving, the vehicle control device 41 controls the electric power steering device 15 based on the steering angle of the steering wheel 13 by the driver. Also, during autonomous driving, the vehicle control device 41 controls the electric power steering device 15 based on the target steering angle set by the autonomous driving control function.

[0015] The braking system of the vehicle 1 is configured as a hydraulic braking system. The brake hydraulic control unit 20 adjusts the hydraulic pressure supplied to the brake calipers 17LF, 17RF, 17LR, 17RR (hereinafter collectively referred to as "brake caliper 17" when no particular distinction is required) provided on the front, rear, left, and right drive wheels 3LF, 3RF, 3LR, 3RR, respectively, to generate braking force. The drive of the brake hydraulic control unit 20 is controlled by the vehicle control device 41. When the vehicle 1 is an electric vehicle or a hybrid electric vehicle, the brake hydraulic control unit 20 is used in combination with the regenerative brake by the drive motor.

[0016] The vehicle control device 41 includes one or more electronic control devices that control the drive of the drive power source 9 that outputs the driving torque of the vehicle 1, the electric power steering device 15 that controls the steering angle of the steering wheel 13 or the steering wheels, and the brake hydraulic control unit 20 that controls the braking force of the vehicle 1. The vehicle control device 41 may have a function of controlling the drive of the transmission that shifts the output from the drive power source 9 and transmits it to the wheels 3. During manual driving of the vehicle 1, the vehicle control device 41 acquires information on the operation amount by the driver's operation, and controls the drive of the drive power source 9 that outputs the driving torque of the vehicle 1, the electric power steering device 15 that controls the steering angle of the steering wheel 13 or the steering wheels, and the brake hydraulic control unit 20 that controls the braking force of the vehicle 1. Also, the vehicle control device 41 is configured to be able to acquire the information transmitted from the driving support device 50 and is configured to be able to execute the autonomous driving control of the vehicle 1.

[0017] In addition, the vehicle 1 is equipped with front cameras 31LF and 31RF, a driver camera 33, and a vehicle state sensor 35. The front cameras 31LF and 31RF capture the front of the vehicle 1 and generate image data. The driver camera 33 captures the driver of the vehicle 1 and generates image data. The front cameras 31LF and 31RF and the driver camera 33 are equipped with image sensors such as CCD (Charged-Coupled Devices) or CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor), and transmit the generated image data to the driving support device 50.

[0018] In the vehicle 1 shown in FIG. 1, the front cameras 31LF and 31RF are configured as a stereo camera including a pair of left and right cameras, but may also be a monocular camera. In addition to the front cameras 31LF and 31RF, the vehicle 1 may be equipped with, for example, a rear camera provided at the rear of the vehicle 1 for capturing the rear, or cameras provided on the side mirrors 11L and 11R for capturing the left rear or right rear.

[0019] The vehicle state sensor 35 consists of one or more sensors that detect the operating state and behavior of the vehicle 1. The vehicle state sensor 35 includes, for example, at least one of a steering angle sensor, an accelerator position sensor, a brake stroke sensor, a brake pressure sensor, or an engine speed sensor. These sensors detect the operating state of the vehicle 1, such as the steering angle of the steering wheel 13 or the steering wheel, the accelerator opening, the brake operation amount, or the engine speed. In addition, the vehicle state sensor 35 includes, for example, at least one of a vehicle speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, or an angular velocity sensor. These sensors detect the behavior of the vehicle, such as vehicle speed, longitudinal acceleration, lateral acceleration, or yaw rate. The vehicle state sensor 35 may also include a sensor that detects the operation of the turn indicator. The vehicle state sensor 35 transmits a sensor signal including the detected information to the vehicle control device 41.

[0020] <2. Driving Support Device> (2-1. Configuration Example) FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the driving support device 50 in the example of FIG. 1. The driving support device 50 functions as a device that estimates the vehicle weight of surrounding vehicles by a processor such as one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units) executing a computer program. The computer program is a computer program for causing the processor to execute operations described later that the driving support device 50 should execute. The computer program executed by the processor may be recorded on a recording medium that functions as a storage unit (memory) 53 provided in the driving support device 50, or may be recorded on a recording medium built into the driving support device 50 or any recording medium externally attachable to the driving support device 50.

[0021] Examples of the recording medium for recording the computer program include magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tapes, optical recording media such as CD-ROMs (Compact Disk Read Only Memories), DVDs (Digital Versatile Disks), and Blu-ray (registered trademark), magneto-optical media such as floptical disks, storage elements such as RAMs (Random Access Memories) and ROMs (Read Only Memories), and flash memories such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) memories and SSDs (Solid State Drives), and other media capable of storing programs.

[0022] The driving support device 50 is connected to a front camera 31LF, 31RF (hereinafter collectively referred to as the front camera 31 unless otherwise distinguished), a driver camera 33, and a vehicle state sensor 35 via a dedicated line or communication means such as CAN (Controller Area Network) or LIN (Local Inter Net). Further, the driving support device 50 is connected to a vehicle control device 41 via a dedicated line or communication means such as CAN or LIN. Note that the driving support device 50 is not limited to an electronic control device mounted on the host vehicle 1, and may be a terminal device such as a smartphone or a wearable device.

[0023] The driving support device 50 includes a processing unit 51 and a storage unit 53. The processing unit 51 is configured to include one or more processors such as a CPU. Part or all of the processing unit 51 may be configured with updatable components such as firmware, or may be program modules executed according to instructions from a CPU or the like. The storage unit 53 is composed of a memory such as a RAM or a ROM. The storage unit 53 is communicably connected to the processing unit 51. However, the number and type of the storage unit 53 are not particularly limited. The storage unit 53 stores computer programs executed by the processing unit 51, various parameters used for arithmetic processing, detection data, calculation results, and other information.

[0024] (2-2. Functional Configuration) As shown in FIG. 2, the processing unit 51 of the driving support device 50 includes a route setting unit 61 and a driving support unit 63. Each of these units is a function realized by executing a computer program by a processor such as a CPU. However, a part of each of these units may be configured to include an analog circuit. Hereinafter, after briefly explaining the functions of each unit of the processing unit 51, specific processing operations will be described.

[0025] The route setting unit 61 uses the information acquired from devices within the vehicle 1 such as the front camera 31 via the communication means as described above, and the information acquired from devices outside the vehicle 1 via network communication or the like, to set the route of the vehicle 1 when entering an intersection (crossroads or T-junction) as described below.

[0026] The driving support unit 63 outputs information for guiding or guiding the vehicle 1 to an audio output device such as a speaker (not shown) or an image output device such as a head-up display so that the vehicle 1 can travel along the route set by the route setting unit 61. Alternatively, the driving support unit 63 may output information on the control target of autonomous driving to the vehicle control device 41 in order to automatically realize the route of the vehicle 1 set by the route setting unit 61.

[0027] Note that the operation of the route setting unit 61 in this embodiment will be described in detail below. However, since the operation of the driving support unit 63 for realizing the determined route can apply known technologies, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0028] <3. Specific Processing of Route Setting Unit> Hereinafter, taking a T-junction as an example of an intersection and a scene where a vehicle makes a left turn at a T-junction as an example, the specific processing of the driving support device will be described.

[0029] In this embodiment, the route setting unit 61 of the driving support device 50 tilts the vehicle body based on the viewing angle from the driver when entering an intersection (crossroads or T-junction) (stopping (waiting) position on the entering road), and presents the position and attitude of the vehicle 1 and the driving trajectory so that the amount of deviation of the line of sight for checking approaching obstacles does not increase during merging. More specifically, on the condition that the turning radius does not bulge, no collision with an obstacle or overrun into the oncoming lane occurs, and the upper limit of the vehicle tilt angle is such that the amount of deviation of the line of sight does not increase, the lateral position of the vehicle and the vehicle tilt angle at the time of entering the intersection are calculated.

[0030] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between the lateral position of the vehicle and the vehicle tilt angle at the time of entering the intersection, the turning center, and the turning radius. As shown in FIGS. 3(a) and (b), when entering the intersection (T-junction in the illustrated example), that is, at the stopping (waiting) position where the front end of the vehicle 1 traveling on the entering road Road1 touches the merging destination road Road2, the waiting position (l margin , θ) is determined. Assuming that the driving trajectory when merging from the entering road Road1 to the merging destination road Road2 draws an arc with a turning radius R, it is equivalent to determining the turning center (x0, y0) and the turning radius R in the two-dimensional plane including the intersection. That is, if the three parameters of the coordinates x0, y0 of the turning center and the turning radius R are obtained, the waiting position (l margin , θ) can be determined.

[0031] However, even in this case, when attempting to determine the coordinates x0 and y0 of the turning center so as to minimize the blind spot on the approach path while increasing the turning radius R, it becomes necessary to search for the optimal value on the three-dimensional parameter axis, which may result in an enormous amount of calculation. Also, it is necessary to determine in advance the priority between maximizing the turning radius R and minimizing the blind spot.

[0032] Therefore, in the present embodiment, the above problems are solved by determining parameters according to the following procedure. In the following description, the "lateral direction" is the direction in which the merging destination road Road2 extends, and the "longitudinal direction" is the direction in which the approach road Road1 extends. (1) Determination of the turning end position on the merging destination road Road2 and determination of the lateral position x0 of the turning center (2) Lateral position l at the standby position on the approach road Road1 margin and determination of the inclination angle θ

[0033] (1) Determination of the turning end position and the lateral position x0 of the turning center First, determine the turning end position, that is, the position where the steering angle of vehicle 1 returns to 0° on the merging destination road Road2 after merging. Assuming that the travel trajectory of vehicle 1 between the pre-merging standby position and the turning end position describes an arc, as shown in FIG. 4, the lateral position x0 of the turning center is specified by determining the distance α from the left end of the approach road Road1 to the rear end of vehicle 1 at the end of the turn.

[0034] The distance α is determined by the combination of the road width l of the merging destination road Road2 p , the road width l of the approach road Road1 all , and the vehicle width of vehicle 1. Therefore, a table is held in advance, associating the calculated value of the distance α with the values of the road width and the vehicle width. The larger the distance α, the farther the lateral position of the turning center is from the own vehicle, and the larger the turning radius becomes. Therefore, for example, to make the merging gentler, the calculated value of the distance α may be increased.

[0035] (2) Determination of the lateral position l at the standby position margin and determination of the inclination angle θ After the distance α indicating the turning end position is determined in the above (1), the lateral position l of the vehicle that maximizes the field of view while satisfying the constraint conditions is determined through the calculation process described below. margin And the tilt angle θ are determined. As described above, determining the lateral position l margin And the tilt angle θ is equivalent to specifying the longitudinal position y0 and the turning radius R of the turning center, which are the remaining parameters. Therefore, when the lateral position l margin And the tilt angle θ are determined, the turning radius R is automatically determined, but the tilt angle θ may be made larger to widen the field of view. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5, the longitudinal position y0 of the turning center is set farther from the vehicle 1 (y 01 →y 02 ), and accordingly the turning radius R also increases (R1→R2; R1<R2).

[0036] Regarding the lateral position l margin And the tilt angle θ, the first constraint condition is that the vehicle 1 does not contact the boundary between the approach road Road1 and the merging destination road Road2. More specifically, this condition means that the left rear corner of the vehicle 1 does not contact the boundary (the corner of the intersection) of the approach road Road1, and the right front corner of the vehicle 1 does not contact the opposite boundary of the merging destination road Road2, which is defined by an equation using the turning radius R. Also, the second constraint condition is that a distance of a predetermined value or more is ensured between the boundary of the approach road Road1 and the vehicle 1 so that the amount of deviation of the line of sight does not increase. As will be further described below, the field of view angle is calculated with the lateral position l margin And the tilt angle θ as variables, and the lateral position l margin And the tilt angle θ when the field of view angle is maximized are adopted.

[0037] Hereinafter, a method for calculating the field of view angle from the lateral position l margin And the tilt angle θ of the vehicle 1 at the standby position will be described. As a premise, it is assumed that the vehicle waits at a position where the front end is in contact with the boundary line with the merging destination road Road2 (that is, does not cross the boundary line) on the approach road Road1. In this case, the angle φ of the visible range shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 visible, that is, at the waiting position before merging, derive the formula for calculating the angle of the visible range between the areas that are dead zones due to the A-pillar (the pillars on both sides of the windshield) of vehicle 1 and the intersection angle (dead zone forming object) when viewed from the driver's position. Note that φ in the figure piller means the angle of the range where the A-pillar exists with respect to the left-right direction of the driver.

[0038] Note that the route setting unit 61 can calculate the driver's position based on the correlation between the position of the driver's head detected by the driver imaging camera 33 and the installation position of the driver imaging camera 33 on vehicle 1. For example, information on the installation position of the driver imaging camera 33 on a plane with the vehicle length direction and vehicle width direction as two axes is stored in the storage unit 55 in advance, and the route setting unit 61 can calculate the position of the driver's head based on the relationship between the position of the driver's head detected by the driver imaging camera 33 and the position of the driver imaging camera 33.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 8, the blind spot φ2 caused by the intersection angle on the right side of the driver is the distance x from the boundary line of the merging destination road Road2 to the driver total , the road width of the approach road Road1 is l all , then it is represented by the following formula (1). Here, the distance x total is represented by formula (2), and the angle β is represented by formula (3). Also, the distance from the driver to the left end of the approach road Road1 is l left、 the distance from the driver to the right end of the approach road Road1 is l right , then for the distances l left , l right , l all , formula (4) holds, and the blind spot φ2 is calculated by formula (5). Therefore, the angle φ of the visible range visible is calculated by formula (6). Note that h is the vehicle width of vehicle 1, d is the vehicle body length of vehicle 1, l is the distance from the front end of vehicle 1 to the driver, and w is the distance from the right side end of vehicle 1 to the driver.

[0040]

Equation

[0041] In the above description, the conditional expressions on the right side of the vehicle body have been explained. However, the angular range of the visible field can also be calculated using the same conditional expressions for the left side of the vehicle body.

[0042] On the other hand, the "condition that vehicle 1 does not contact the boundary between the access road Road1 and the merging destination road Road2" described above is explained as follows. In the case shown in FIG. 9, the condition that the left rear corner of the vehicle 1 does not contact the corner of the intersection during turning is represented by Equation (7). The distance l from the turning center to the corner corner Substituting Equation (8) representing into Equation (7) gives Equation (9). Since both sides of Equation (9) are positive numbers, squaring each side results in Equation (10). Summarizing this for the turning radius R of the left rear corner of vehicle 1 Rr,l gives Equation (11). When the inclination angle θ = 0, the turning radius R Rr,l is represented by Equation (12). In reality, to maintain a sufficient distance to avoid collision, a margin distance A is added to the condition of Equation (7) to obtain a condition like Equation (13).

[0043]

Number

[0044] Also, the condition that the right front corner of vehicle 1 does not contact the opposite boundary of the merging destination road Road2 during turning is represented by Equation (14). The turning radius R of the right front corner of vehicle 1 Ft,r is represented as in Equation (15) using the turning radius R of the left rear corner, the vehicle width h of vehicle 1, and the vehicle body length d. Substituting this into Equation (14) gives Equation (16). Further, solving Equation (16) for the turning radius R of the left rear corner Rr,l results in Equation (17). Rr,l

[0045]

Number

[0046] Combining the two conditions from Equation (11) and Equation (17) results in Equation (18). Here, the turning radius R of the left rear corner of Vehicle 1 Rr,l is expressed as Equation (19) using the lateral position l of Vehicle 1 in the standby position margin and the tilt angle θ, as well as the distance α. Therefore, the condition that "Vehicle 1 does not contact the boundary of the entry road Road1 and the merging road Road2" can be expressed by the lateral position l as in Equation (20) margin and the tilt angle θ. Using Equation (20), the combination of the tilt angle θ and the lateral position l margin that can draw a non - colliding trajectory with respect to the tilt angle θ is required.

[0047]

Number

[0048] Next, the amount of deviation of the line of sight for checking approaching obstacles during merging, that is, the turning angle φ B from the front will be explained. As shown in Figure 10, when the vehicle width of Vehicle 1 is h, the vehicle body length is d, the distance from the front end to the driver is l, the distance from the right side end to the driver is w, and the angle of the driver as seen from the front right corner is β, the states of the vehicle at the pre - merging standby position (the stop position when the front end of Vehicle 1 touches the merging road Road2) and the position during merging (the position where the driver reaches the boundary between the entry road Road1 and the merging road Road2) are modeled as shown in Figures 11 and 12.

[0049] In the above model, when the distance from the turning center to the driver (the turning radius of the driver) is Rd, from the state of Figure 11 to the state of Figure 12, the driver has moved vertically by x total only. So, the following Equation (21) holds. Solving Equation (21) for the tilt angle θ + θ B of Vehicle 1 in the state of Figure 12 results in Equation (22). Substituting the above Equation (19), and Equations (23), (24), (25) into Equation (22), the turning angle φ B is related to the tilt angles θ, θ B at the pre - merging standby position and the position during merging, and the one - side field - of - view angle φsight (Known value) and the lateral position l margin can be expressed as in formula (26) using these.

[0050] [Number]

[0051] In FIGS. 13 and 14, the turning angles φ', φ of the driver from the front in each of the states of FIGS. 11 and 12 described above B are shown. More specifically, FIG. 13 shows the turning angle φ' at the waiting position before merging, and FIG. 14 shows the turning angle φ B at the position during merging. The turning angles φ', φ B are both the angle between the center line C1 of the viewing angle (in the longitudinal direction of vehicle 1) when the driver is looking straight ahead and the center line C2 of the viewing angle when checking to the right, that is, the inclination of the center line C2 of the viewing angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of vehicle 1. In order not to increase the amount of gaze deviation, the turning angles φ', φ B become a predetermined angle, specifically, the vehicle path, specifically the lateral position l max and the inclination angle θ may be set so as to be below the upper limit value φ margin .

[0052] Since the turning angle φ' at the waiting position before merging is smaller than the turning angle φ B at the position during merging, substantially, the turning angle φ B calculated by the above formula (26) does not exceed the upper limit value φ max , and the lateral position l margin and the inclination angle θ may be determined. If there is no combination of the lateral position l margin and the inclination angle θ that satisfies the conditions, the upper limit value φ max is increased little by little (for example, by 2° each time) until a combination that satisfies the conditions appears, and the combination of the lateral position l margin and the inclination angle θ is recalculated.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 14, the turning angle φ Bis the inclination of the center line C2 of the driver's field of view, which views the blind spot area, with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle 1 at a position where the driver can visually recognize the blind spot area that was blind to the driver of the vehicle 1 traveling on the access road Road1 due to the blind spot forming object (the corner of the intersection) existing on the outside of the turn of the vehicle 1. The driving support device 50 has a turning angle φ B sets the vehicle path so that it is equal to or less than a predetermined angle (upper limit value φ max ).

[0054] Figs. 15 and 16 are diagrams for conceptually explaining how to determine the lateral position l margin and the inclination angle θ. First, as shown in the range Q in Fig. 15, the range of the lateral position l margin and the inclination angle θ (the first settable range) that satisfies the condition of "the vehicle 1 does not contact the boundary between the access road Road1 and the merging destination road Road2" is calculated using, for example, the above formula (20). Next, as shown in the range B in Fig. 16, the range of the lateral position l margin and the inclination angle θ (the second settable range) that satisfies the condition of "the amount of deviation of the line of sight does not increase" within the range Q is specified using the above formula (26) or the like. Further, within the range B, the combination of the lateral position l visible and the inclination angle θ that maximizes the angle φ margin of the visible range shown in Figs. 6 and 7 is selected using, for example, the above formula (6).

[0055] According to such a method, since the parameters are narrowed down step by step, it is possible to prevent the calculation amount from becoming enormous. Also, by applying the conditions step by step, the priority between the maximization of the turning radius R (the turning radius does not expand and there is no collision with an obstacle or overrun into the oncoming lane) and the minimization of the blind spot (the upper limit of the vehicle inclination angle so that the amount of deviation of the line of sight does not increase) becomes clear.

[0056] Fig. 17 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing of the driving support device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The following flowchart may be executed constantly during the driving of the vehicle 1, or may be executed while the operation switch of the support processing of the present embodiment is turned on.

[0057] First, the route setting unit 61 of the driving assistance device 50 judges whether or not the vehicle 1 approaches an intersection (a crossroads or a T-junction) during normal driving (step S11) (step S13). The approach to an intersection may be judged, for example, based on the navigation system, based on the position of the vehicle 1 approaching the position of the intersection on the map data, or based on a camera image. If it is not judged that the vehicle 1 has approached the intersection (S13 / No), the process returns to step S11 and the judgment of step S13 is repeated until the vehicle 1 approaches the intersection.

[0058] On the other hand, when it is determined that the vehicle 1 is approaching the intersection (S13 / Yes), the process is started. p The route setting unit 61 acquires road information including the road widths 1 and 2 of the approach road Road1 and the merging road Road2 by a known method. p For example, the route setting unit 61 may obtain road information including the road width from a server outside the vehicle as road information ahead in the traveling direction of the vehicle, or may obtain the road information including the road width from high-precision map data.

[0059] Next, the route setting unit 61 determines the turning end position on the merging road Road2, i.e., the position where the steering angle of the vehicle 1 returns to 0° on the merging road Road2 after merging (step S17). For example, as described above, the route setting unit 61 determines the distance α by referring to a table in which the value of the distance α from the left end of the entry road Road1 to the rear end of the vehicle 1 at the time of the turning end is stored in association with the road width and vehicle width.

[0060] Next, the route setting unit 61 determines the waiting position of the vehicle 1 when merging from the access road Road1 to the merging destination road Road2 based on the above-described expressions (20) and (26) (step S19). Specifically, the route setting unit 61 satisfies the conditions of "the condition that the vehicle 1 does not contact the boundary between the access road Road1 and the merging destination road Road2" and "the condition that the amount of line-of-sight diversion does not increase" based on the above-described expressions (20) and (26), and maximizes the angle φ visible of the visible range margin to determine the combination of the lateral position l

[0061] When the combination of the lateral position l margin and the tilt angle θ is determined by the route setting unit 61, the driving support unit 63 performs support to guide the vehicle 1 to the determined waiting position (step S21). For example, the driving support unit 63 may output the target trajectory of the vehicle 1 to the waiting position to an image output device such as a head-up display so that the driver has the attitude of the determined lateral position l margin and the tilt angle θ, or may output an instruction for a steering operation to an audio output device such as a speaker or an image output device.

[0062] Next, the driving support unit 63 determines whether or not the vehicle 1 has stopped at the waiting position (step S23). For example, the driving support unit 63 estimates the position and attitude of the vehicle 1 based on the history of the steering operation and the acceleration / deceleration operation of the vehicle 1 (self-position estimation process). Alternatively, the navigation system may estimate the position and attitude of the vehicle 1. When it is determined that the vehicle 1 has not stopped at the waiting position (S23 / No), the driving support unit 63 returns to step S21 and continues the driving support until the vehicle 1 stops at the waiting position.

[0063] On the other hand, when it is determined that the vehicle 1 has stopped at the waiting position (S23 / Yes), the driving support unit 63 uses the lateral position l in step S19 marginAnd guidance (instruction) is given to the driver so that the rudder angle is such that the turning radius R, which is the condition when the tilt angle θ is determined, is realized (step S25). The driving support unit 63 may output information for guiding the steering operation to an image output device such as a head-up display, or may output an instruction for the steering operation to an audio output device such as a speaker or an image output device. Alternatively, the driving support unit 63 may set a target steering angle and a target acceleration / deceleration and transmit them to the vehicle control device 41 so that the turning of the vehicle 1 along the target trajectory is realized by automatic driving.

[0064] Next, the driving support unit 63 presents the driving trajectory to the driver up to the turning end position (step S27). For example, the driving support unit 63 outputs information on the planned driving trajectory to an image output device such as a head-up display.

[0065] The driving support device 50 determines the target motion of the vehicle 1 at the intersection according to the physical laws by the above processing, and supports the driving of the vehicle 1. As a result, the driver of the vehicle 1 can safely merge from the approach road Road1 to the merging destination road Road2 without causing a collision with an obstacle or protruding into the oncoming lane and without significantly diverting the line of sight.

[0066] As described above, the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present disclosure is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that those having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present disclosure belongs can come up with various modification examples or correction examples within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims, and it is naturally understood that these also belong to the technical scope of the present disclosure.

[0067] For example, in the above embodiment, all the functions of the driving support device are mounted on the host vehicle, but the present disclosure is not limited to such an example. For example, part or all of the functions of the driving support device may be provided in a server device that can communicate via mobile communication means, and the driving support device may be configured to transmit and receive data to and from the server device.

Explanation of reference numerals

[0068] 1: Vehicle, 31·31LF·31RF: Front camera, 41: Vehicle control device, 50: Driving support device, 51: Processing unit, 53: Memory unit, 61: Route setting unit, 63: Driving support unit

Claims

1. In a driving support device that supports driving of a vehicle when turning from an access road to an intersection or a T-junction and proceeding to a merging destination road, comprising one or more processors and one or more memories communicably connected to the one or more processors, the one or more processors Based on information on the position of the head of the driver of the vehicle and information on the access road and the merging destination road, a merging position during which a region that was a blind spot as seen by the driver of the vehicle traveling on the access road due to a blind spot formation object existing on the outer side of the turning of the vehicle becomes visible to the driver is set, A driving support device that sets a path of the vehicle such that an inclination of a center line of a viewing angle of the driver who views the region that was the blind spot at the merging position is equal to or less than a predetermined angle in the vehicle longitudinal direction.

2. The one or more processors Calculate a first settable range of a vehicle lateral position and a vehicle tilt angle at a pre-merging standby position of the vehicle on the condition that the vehicle does not contact the boundary between the access road and the merging destination road, Within the first settable range, calculate a second settable range of the vehicle lateral position and the vehicle tilt angle on the condition that the inclination is equal to or less than the predetermined angle, The driving support device according to claim 1, wherein a path of the vehicle is set based on the vehicle lateral position and the vehicle tilt angle selected within the second settable range.

3. The one or more processors Determine a turning end position at which a steering angle of the vehicle returns to 0° on the merging destination road, The driving support device according to claim 2, wherein the first settable range is calculated assuming that a travel trajectory of the vehicle between the pre-merging standby position and the turning end position draws an arc.

4. The one or more processors Within the second settable range, select the vehicle lateral position and the vehicle tilt angle that maximize an angle of a visible range between regions that are blind spots due to a pillar and the blind spot formation object of the vehicle as seen by the driver at the pre-merging standby position. The driving support device according to claim 2.

5. The one or more processors The driving support device according to claim 2, wherein when the vehicle lateral position and the vehicle tilt angle included in the second settable range do not exist, the second settable range is recalculated by increasing the predetermined angle.

6. A vehicle equipped with the driving support device according to claim 1.

7. A computer program applied to a driving support device that supports the driving of a vehicle when turning from an access road to an intersection or a T-junction and proceeding to a merging destination road, the program causing one or more processors to Based on information on the position of the head of the driver of the vehicle and information on the access road and the merging destination road, set a merging intermediate position at which a region that was a blind spot as seen by the driver of the vehicle traveling on the access road due to a blind spot-forming object existing on the outside of the turning of the vehicle becomes visible to the driver, A computer program that executes a process of setting a path of the vehicle such that an inclination of a center line of a viewing angle of the driver who views the region that was the blind spot at the merging intermediate position with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined angle.

8. A computer program applied to a driving support device that supports the driving of a vehicle when turning from an access road to an intersection or a T-junction and proceeding to a merging destination road, the program causing one or more processors to Based on information on the position of the head of the driver of the vehicle and information on the access road and the merging destination road, set a merging intermediate position at which a region that was a blind spot as seen by the driver of the vehicle traveling on the access road due to a blind spot-forming object existing on the outside of the turning of the vehicle becomes visible to the driver, A non-transitory tangible recording medium on which is recorded the computer program that executes a process of setting a path of the vehicle such that an inclination of a center line of a viewing angle of the driver who views the region that was the blind spot at the merging intermediate position with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined angle.

Images