Vehicle control device, vehicle control method, and program

Abstract

To assist in suppressing deviation of a vehicle from a road division line more suitably depending on an environment.SOLUTION: A vehicle control device comprises: a recognition unit for recognizing a road division line of a runway of a vehicle; a determination processing unit for determining that the possibility of the vehicle deviating from the road division line is high when the time that the vehicle reaches the road division line obtained on the basis of the position of the road division line with respect to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle is less than or equal to a threshold, and changing the threshold on the basis of the degree of change of a curvature of the runway; and a control unit for exercising control to assist in suppressing deviation of the vehicle from the road division line when it is determined that the possibility of the vehicle deviating from the road division line is high.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, efforts to provide access to sustainable transportation systems that take into consideration vulnerable traffic participants have been gaining momentum. To achieve this, efforts are being made to further improve traffic safety and convenience through research and development of preventive safety technologies. For example, a conventional device has been disclosed that includes a curvature change detection means for detecting changes in the curvature of a route, and the target deceleration calculation means increases the deceleration control amount when the change in curvature of the route is large (see, for example, claim 8 of Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-345505 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In conventional devices, assistance in preventing a vehicle from deviating from road markings has not been sufficiently considered.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program that can assist in preventing a vehicle from deviating from road markings more appropriately depending on the environment. As described above, the present invention contributes to improving preventive safety technology and ultimately to the development of a sustainable transportation system. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A vehicle control device, a vehicle control method, and a program according to the present invention employ the following configuration. (1): A vehicle device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a recognition unit that recognizes road dividing lines on the vehicle's roadway; a determination processing unit that determines that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the road dividing line if it determines that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, and that changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the roadway; and a control unit that, if it is determined that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the road dividing line, performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line.

[0007] (2) In the above aspect (1), the determination processing unit increases the threshold value as the degree of change in the degree of curvature increases.

[0008] (3): In the above aspect (1), the judgment processing unit sets the threshold to a first threshold when the degree of change in the curvature is equal to or greater than a first degree of change, and sets the threshold to a second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold when the degree of change in the curvature is less than the first degree of change.

[0009] (4): In the above aspect (1), when the degree of change in the degree of curvature is equal to or greater than the second degree of change, the judgment processing unit sets the threshold to a third threshold, and when the degree of change in the degree of curvature is less than the second degree of change and greater than the third degree of change, the judgment processing unit increases the threshold so that the greater the degree of change, the closer the threshold is to the third threshold from the fourth threshold, within a range between the third threshold and a fourth threshold that is less than the third threshold.

[0010] (5): In any of the above aspects (1) to (4), when the degree of change increases as the degree of curvature increases, the judgment processing unit executes a first change process in which the threshold value is increased as the degree of change in the degree of curvature increases, and when the degree of change increases as the degree of curvature decreases, the judgment processing unit executes a second change process different from the first change process.

[0011] (6): In any of the above aspects (5), the second change process is a process of setting a preset threshold value regardless of the degree of change in the turning condition, or a process of setting the threshold value to a second threshold value that is smaller than the first threshold value, and the first threshold value is a threshold value that is set larger the greater the degree of change in the turning condition when the degree of change becomes larger in the first change process, and the second threshold value is a threshold value that is set larger the greater the degree of change in the turning condition when the degree of change becomes larger in the second change process.

[0012] (7): In any of the above aspects (1) to (4), a control unit is provided that, when the judgment processing unit determines that there is a high possibility of deviation from the road dividing line, notifies the driver of the vehicle of the possibility of deviation using a notification unit, or assists in steering control so that the vehicle does not deviate from the road dividing line.

[0013] (8): In any of the above aspects (1) to (4), when the shape of the road is a curved road, the judgment processing unit sets a predetermined threshold value as the threshold for the road dividing line on the inside of the curved road, and sets a threshold value based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road for the road dividing line on the outside of the curved road.

[0014] (9): A vehicle control device according to another aspect of the present invention includes a recognition unit that recognizes road dividing lines on the vehicle's roadway, and a control unit that, when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is below a threshold, performs control to notify the driver of the vehicle so that the vehicle does not deviate from the road dividing line or performs assistance control to assist the driver in driving, and changes the timing of starting the assistance control based on the degree of change in the curvature of the vehicle's roadway.

[0015] (10): In any of the above aspects (9), the control unit advances the timing as the degree of change in the degree of bending increases.

[0016] (11): Another aspect of the present invention is a vehicle control method in which a computer recognizes road dividing lines on a vehicle's roadway, and if it determines that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, determines that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the road dividing line. The computer changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the roadway, and if it determines that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the road dividing line, it performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line.

[0017] (12): Another aspect of the present invention provides a program that causes a computer to recognize road dividing lines on a vehicle's path, and if it determines that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is below a threshold, determines that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the road dividing line. The program also causes the computer to change the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the path, and if it determines that the vehicle is likely to deviate from the road dividing line, performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] According to the aspects (1) to (12), it is possible to more appropriately prevent the vehicle from deviating from the road marking depending on the environment. For example, even if the driver is late in noticing the curve or misses it, it is possible to more appropriately (e.g., earlier) prevent the vehicle from deviating from the road marking.

[0019] According to the second aspect, the vehicle control device can more appropriately assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road marking in accordance with the degree of change in the curve. For example, the vehicle control device can assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road marking at an earlier stage.

[0020] According to the third aspect, the vehicle control device can more appropriately assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the lane markings in accordance with the degree of change in the turning condition. For example, the vehicle control device can assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the lane markings at an appropriate timing so as not to provide excessive assistance and not to delay the start of assistance.

[0021] According to the fifth or sixth aspect, the vehicle control device can more appropriately assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road markings depending on the position of the vehicle relative to the curved road. For example, at the exit of a curved road, assistance that the driver may find bothersome can be suppressed.

[0022] According to the aspect (8), the vehicle control device sets an appropriate threshold value for each road dividing line, thereby preventing excessive assistance and more appropriately assisting in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0023] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle system 1 that uses a vehicle control device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2]1 is a diagram showing an example of a scene in which a vehicle M is traveling on a curved road. [Figure 3] 3 is a diagram showing the curvature and the degree of change in curvature at each position of the curved road in FIG. 2. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of operation timing. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining control when the degree of change in curvature is relatively small. [Figure 6] 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining control when the degree of change in curvature is relatively large. [Figure 7] 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing executed by the driving assistance device 100. [Figure 8] 2 is a diagram showing an example of a first area AR1 and a second area AR2. FIG. [Figure 9] 6 is a flowchart showing another example of the flow of the process executed by the driving assistance device 100. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the timing at which a first change process is executed and the timing at which a second change process is executed. [Figure 11] 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing executed by the driving assistance device 100. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the processing in scene 1. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the processing in scene 2. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an image captured by a camera 10. [Figure 15] This is a diagram showing the intersection and the vicinity of the intersection as seen from above. [Figure 16] 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing executed by the driving assistance device 100. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0024] First Embodiment [Overall configuration] 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle system 1 that uses a vehicle control device according to an embodiment. The vehicle on which the vehicle system 1 is mounted may be, for example, a two-wheeled, three-wheeled, or four-wheeled vehicle, and its drive source may be an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine or a gasoline engine, an electric motor, or a combination of these. The electric motor operates using power generated by a generator connected to the internal combustion engine, or discharged power from a secondary battery or a fuel cell.

[0025] The vehicle system 1 includes, for example, a camera 10, a radar device 12, a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) 14, an object recognition device 16, a communication device 20, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 30, vehicle sensors 40, a navigation device 50, an operation unit 80, a driving assistance device 100, a driving force output device 200, a braking device 210, and a steering device 220. These devices and equipment are connected to each other via multiple communication lines such as a CAN (Controller Area Network) communication line, serial communication lines, a wireless communication network, etc. The configuration shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and some of the configuration may be omitted, or other configurations may be added. The driving assistance device 100 is an example of a "vehicle control device."

[0026] The camera 10 is, for example, a digital camera using a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). The camera 10 is attached to any location of a vehicle (hereinafter referred to as vehicle M) in which the vehicle system 1 is installed. When capturing an image of the front, the camera 10 is attached to the top of the front windshield, the back of the rearview mirror, or the like. The camera 10, for example, periodically captures images of the periphery of the vehicle M. The camera 10 may be a stereo camera.

[0027] The radar device 12 emits radio waves such as millimeter waves around the vehicle M and detects radio waves reflected by an object (reflected waves) to detect at least the position (distance and direction) of the object. The radar device 12 is attached to any location on the vehicle M. The radar device 12 may detect the position and speed of an object using an FM-CW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) method.

[0028] The LIDAR 14 irradiates the surroundings of the vehicle M with light (or electromagnetic waves with wavelengths similar to light) and measures the scattered light. The LIDAR 14 detects the distance to the target based on the time between light emission and light reception. The irradiated light is, for example, pulsed laser light. The LIDAR 14 may be attached to any location on the vehicle M.

[0029] The object recognition device 16 performs sensor fusion processing on the detection results from some or all of the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 to recognize the position, type, speed, etc. of the object. The object recognition device 16 outputs the recognition results to the driving assistance device 100. The object recognition device 16 may output the detection results from the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 directly to the driving assistance device 100. The object recognition device 16 may be omitted from the vehicle system 1.

[0030] The communication device 20 communicates with other vehicles in the vicinity of the vehicle M, for example, using a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, Bluetooth (registered trademark), DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), etc., or communicates with various server devices via a wireless base station.

[0031] The HMI 30 presents various information to the occupants of the vehicle M and accepts input operations by the occupants. The HMI 30 includes various display devices, speakers, buzzers, touch panels, switches, keys, etc. The HMI 30 is equipped with a display device. The display device (display unit) is, for example, a display device, a so-called multi-information display, that is provided in the center of the instrument panel of the vehicle M and displays various information about the vehicle M, such as a speedometer that indicates the traveling speed of the vehicle M or a tachometer that indicates the rotation speed (rotational speed) of the internal combustion engine equipped in the vehicle M.

[0032] The vehicle sensor 40 includes a vehicle speed sensor that detects the speed of the vehicle M, an acceleration sensor that detects the acceleration, a yaw rate sensor that detects the angular velocity around a vertical axis, a direction sensor that detects the direction of the vehicle M, and the like.

[0033] The navigation device 50 includes, for example, a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver 51, a navigation HMI 52, and a route determination unit 53. The navigation device 50 stores map information 54 in a storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or flash memory. The GNSS receiver 51 identifies the position of the vehicle M based on signals received from GNSS satellites. The position of the vehicle M may be identified or supplemented by an inertial navigation system (INS) that uses the output of the vehicle sensors 40. The navigation HMI 52 includes a display device, a speaker, a touch panel, keys, etc. The navigation HMI 52 may share some or all of the components with the HMI 30 described above. The route determination unit 53 determines a route (hereinafter, a route on a map) from the position of the vehicle M identified by the GNSS receiver 51 (or any input position) to a destination input by the occupant using the navigation HMI 52, by referring to the map information 54. The map information 54 is information that represents road shapes using, for example, links that indicate roads and nodes connected by the links. The map information 54 may also include information such as road curvature and POI (Point of Interest) information. The map information 54 includes, for example, information that indicates a prescribed speed (e.g., speed limit, legal speed) for each link that indicates a road. The prescribed speed is, for example, information that indicates a speed limit or legal speed displayed on a sign or the like on the road or on a signboard provided on the road.

[0034] The navigation device 50 may provide route guidance using the navigation HMI 52 based on the route on the map. The navigation device 50 may be realized, for example, by the functions of a terminal device such as a smartphone or tablet device carried by the occupant. The navigation device 50 may transmit the current position and destination to a navigation server via the communication device 20 and obtain a route equivalent to the route on the map from the navigation server.

[0035] The operation unit 80 includes, for example, a turn signal switch, an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, a shift lever, and other operators (not shown). The operators are fitted with sensors that detect the amount of operation or whether or not an operation has been performed, and the detection results are output to the driving assistance device 100 or some or all of the driving force output device 200, the brake device 210, and the steering device 220. The steering wheel does not necessarily have to be circular, and may be in the form of an irregularly shaped steering wheel, a joystick, buttons, or the like. A steering grip sensor is fitted to the steering wheel.

[0036] In addition to the above, the operation unit 80 also includes a steering wheel 82 and a vibration unit 84. The vibration unit 84 vibrates the steering wheel 82. For example, the vibration unit 84 vibrates based on an instruction from the driving assistance device 100 to notify the driver that the vehicle M is approaching a road dividing line.

[0037] The driving assistance device 100 includes, for example, a recognition unit 110, a curve determination unit 120, a first determination unit 130, a second determination unit 140, and a control unit 150. Some or all of these functional units are realized by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or an SOC (System On Chip), or may be realized by a combination of software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device (a storage device having a non-transitory storage medium) such as an HDD or flash memory of the driving assistance device 100, or may be stored in a removable storage medium such as a DVD or CD-ROM, and installed in the HDD or flash memory of the driving assistance device 100 by inserting the storage medium (non-transitory storage medium) into a drive device. The second determination unit 140, or a functional unit combining the first determination unit 130 and the second determination unit 140, is an example of a "determination processing unit."

[0038] The recognition unit 110 recognizes the position, speed, acceleration, and other states of objects around the vehicle M based on information input from the camera 10, the radar device 12, and the LIDAR 14 via the object recognition device 16. The position of an object is recognized as a position on an absolute coordinate system with a representative point of the vehicle M (such as the center of gravity or the center of the drive shaft) as the origin, and is used for control. The position of an object may be represented by a representative point such as the center of gravity or a corner of the object, or may be represented by an area. The "state" of an object may include the acceleration or jerk of the object, or the "behavioral state" (for example, whether or not the object is changing lanes or is about to change lanes).

[0039] The recognition unit 110, for example, recognizes road dividing lines around the vehicle M and recognizes the driving lane based on the recognized road dividing lines. The recognition unit 110 may recognize road boundaries (road boundaries) including not only road dividing lines but also road dividing lines, shoulders, curbs, medians, guardrails, etc. to recognize the driving lane. This recognition may take into account the position of the vehicle M acquired from the navigation device 50 and the processing results by the INS. The recognition unit 110 recognizes stop lines, obstacles, red lights, toll booths, other road phenomena, markings on the road (speed limits), and road signs indicating speed limits.

[0040] When recognizing the driving lane, the recognition unit 110 recognizes the position and orientation of the vehicle M with respect to the driving lane. For example, the recognition unit 110 may recognize the deviation of the reference point of the vehicle M from the center of the lane and the angle it forms with a line connecting the centers of the lanes in the traveling direction of the vehicle M as the relative position and orientation of the vehicle M with respect to the driving lane. Alternatively, the recognition unit 110 may recognize the position of the reference point of the vehicle M with respect to either side edge of the driving lane (a road dividing line or a road boundary) as the relative position of the vehicle M with respect to the driving lane.

[0041] The curve determination unit 120 determines whether the curve road on which the vehicle M is traveling (or the curve road on which the vehicle M is scheduled to travel) is a target curve road. A target curve road is a curve road with a curvature radius equal to or less than a threshold (e.g., 1000 m or less). The curve determination unit 120 may determine the target curve road based on the recognition result of the recognition unit 110, or may determine the target curve road based on the position on which the vehicle M is traveling and information about the curve road (e.g., the curvature radius) included in the map information. The recognition result of the recognition unit 110 is, for example, the shape of the road, the shape of objects (e.g., curbs) provided on the road, and the shape of road markings (e.g., road dividing lines). For example, whether the curve road is a target curve road may be estimated based on the shape of a road dividing line at or near the entrance to the curve road, and whether the curve road is a target curve road may be determined based on the estimation result.

[0042] The first determination unit 130 changes the threshold value based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road on which the vehicle M is traveling. The curvature is, for example, an index indicating the curvature, such as curvature. The first determination unit 130 may obtain the curvature of the road using information indicating the curvature included in the map information, or may obtain it from the recognition results of the recognition unit 110. The recognition results of the recognition unit 110 include, for example, the shape of the road, the shapes of objects (such as curbs) provided on the road, and the shapes of road markings (such as road dividing lines). In the following description, it is assumed that the curvature is obtained using road dividing lines.

[0043] The second judgment unit 140 judges that there is a high possibility that vehicle M will deviate from the road dividing line if it determines that the time it takes for vehicle M to reach the road dividing line, obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to vehicle M and the state of vehicle M (e.g., position, direction of travel, speed, acceleration), is below a threshold.

[0044] The control unit 150 controls, for example, various functions and devices of the vehicle M. The control unit 150 controls the HMI 30, the vibration unit 84, and the steering device 220 to prevent the vehicle M from deviating from the road dividing line.

[0045] The control unit 150 executes road departure prevention control. When the vehicle M approaches a road dividing line around the vehicle M, the control unit 150 executes one or more of the controls (1) to (3) to prevent the vehicle M from approaching the road dividing line. (1) The control unit 150 uses the HMI to notify the vehicle M by means of an image, sound, or the like. (2) The control unit 150 uses the vibration unit 84 to vibrate the steering wheel 82. (3) The control unit 150 controls the steering device 220 so that the vehicle M returns to the center of the road (so that the vehicle moves away from the road dividing line). In addition to the above, the road departure prevention control may be any control that supports the vehicle or the driver so that the vehicle does not deviate from the road dividing line. For example, the control may be a control that vibrates the driver's seat belt or turns on an output unit that outputs light.

[0046] The driving assistance device 100 may perform the above-mentioned ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control), lane keeping control to keep the vehicle M in the center of the lane, and control to automatically change lanes (ALC; automatic lane change) when the driver instructs the vehicle M to change lanes.

[0047] The driving force output device 200 outputs a driving force (torque) for the vehicle to travel to the driving wheels. The driving force output device 200 includes, for example, a combination of an internal combustion engine, an electric motor, a transmission, etc., and an ECU that controls these. The ECU controls the above components according to information input from the driving assistance device 100 or information input from a driving operator.

[0048] The brake device 210 includes, for example, a brake caliper, a cylinder that transmits hydraulic pressure to the brake caliper, an electric motor that generates hydraulic pressure in the cylinder, and a brake ECU. The brake ECU controls the electric motor according to information input from the driving assistance device 100 or information input from a driving operator, so that a brake torque corresponding to the braking operation is output to each wheel.

[0049] The steering device 220 includes, for example, a steering ECU and an electric motor. The electric motor changes the direction of the steered wheels by applying a force to, for example, a rack and pinion mechanism. The steering ECU drives the electric motor to change the direction of the steered wheels in accordance with information input from the driving assistance device 100 or information input from a driving operator.

[0050] [overview] The driving assistance device 100 determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle M will deviate from the lane dividing line when it determines that the time it takes for the vehicle M to reach the lane dividing line, obtained based on the position of the lane dividing line relative to the vehicle M and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold. The driving assistance device 100 changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road on which the vehicle M is traveling. When it determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle M will deviate from the lane dividing line, the driving assistance device 100 performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle M from deviating from the lane dividing line.

[0051] When the driving assistance device 100 determines that the time it takes for the vehicle M to reach the lane dividing line, obtained based on the position of the lane dividing line relative to the vehicle M and the state of the vehicle M, is equal to or less than a threshold, the driving assistance device 100 performs control to notify the driver of the vehicle M so that the vehicle M does not deviate from the lane dividing line, or performs assistance control to assist the driver in driving. The driving assistance device 100 changes the timing to start assistance control based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road on which the vehicle M is traveling.

[0052] In each of the above processes, the driving assistance device 100 may start the assistance control earlier as the degree of change in the curvature of the road increases. These processes will be described below.

[0053] When vehicle M travels on a target curved road, driving assistance device 100 makes the above-mentioned determination and executes road departure suppression control. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a scene in which vehicle M travels on a target curved road. In the example shown, vehicle M passes through positions A, B, C, and D in this order. Position A is at or near the entrance to the curved road. Position B is a position a predetermined distance from the entrance. Position C is a position a predetermined distance from position B. Position D is at or near the exit of the curved road or the entrance / exit point.

[0054] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the curvature and the degree of change in curvature for each position on the curved road in FIG. 2. In the upper diagram of FIG. 3, the vertical axis represents curvature, and the horizontal axis represents position. In the lower diagram of FIG. 3, the vertical axis represents the degree of change, and the horizontal axis represents position. The curvature changes more significantly between positions A and B and between positions C and D than at other positions. Between positions A and B, the curvature tends to increase, and between positions C and D, the curvature tends to decrease. Between positions B and C, the curvature is larger than at other positions, but is constant or approximately constant. Therefore, the degree of change is zero or small.

[0055] As described above, on a curved road, the degree of change in curvature tends to fluctuate at the entrance (near the entrance) and the exit (near the exit). In this embodiment, the driving assistance device 100 controls the activation timing of the road departure prevention control depending on the degree of change in the road. For example, the driving assistance device 100 advances the activation timing as the degree of change increases.

[0056] When the degree of change in the curvature of the road is equal to or greater than a first degree of change, the driving assistance device 100 sets the threshold to a first threshold, and when the degree of change in the curvature of the road is less than the first degree of change, the driving assistance device 100 sets the threshold to a second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold. A threshold exceeding the activation timing OT2 or OT1 in Fig. 4 described later is an example of the "first threshold."

[0057] When the degree of change in the curvature of the road is equal to or greater than the second degree of change, the driving assistance device 100 sets the threshold to the third threshold, and when the degree of change in the curvature of the road is less than the second degree of change and exceeds the third degree of change, the driving assistance device 100 increases the threshold so that the greater the degree of change, the closer the threshold is to the third threshold, from the fourth threshold, which is less than the third threshold and smaller than the third threshold. The activation timing OT2 in FIG. 4 described later is an example of the "third threshold." The activation timing (or activation timing OT1) that exceeds the activation timing OT1 in FIG. 4 described later is an example of the "fourth threshold."

[0058] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of activation timing. The vertical axis of FIG. 4 indicates activation timing, and the horizontal axis indicates the degree of change. The degree of change is the absolute value of the degree of change. The activation timing is TTLC (Time to Line Crossing: the time it takes for vehicle M to reach a road dividing line). A smaller TTLC value indicates that vehicle M is closer to the road dividing line (the higher the possibility that vehicle M will deviate from the road). The longer (larger) the activation timing, the earlier road departure mitigation control will activate (it will activate at a position where vehicle M is farther away from the road dividing line (for example, closer to the center of the lane)).

[0059] For example, when the degree of change is up to degree of change C1, the road departure mitigation control is activated at activation timing OT1. For example, when the degree of change is equal to or greater than degree of change C2, the road departure mitigation control is activated at activation timing OT2. The activation timing OT2 is longer than the activation timing OT1. Between the degree of change exceeding degree C1 and the degree of change less than degree of change C2, the activation timing becomes longer as the degree of change increases. Between the degree of change exceeding degree C1 and the degree of change less than degree of change C2, the activation timing varies smoothly according to the degree of change, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, but the activation timing may also change in a stepped manner. For example, the activation timing OT2 is twice or approximately twice as long as the activation timing OT1. For example, the degree of change C2 is approximately twice, 2.4 times, or 2.5 times the degree of change C1.

[0060] As described above, the greater the degree of change, the earlier the road departure mitigation control is activated. Specifically, the road departure mitigation control is activated earlier between positions A and B or between positions C and D in FIG. 3 described above than between positions B and C. In this way, when the degree of change exceeds degree of change C2 or is less than degree of change C1, the threshold is fixed, and when the degree of change exceeds degree of change C1 and is less than degree of change C2, the threshold is variable and is set according to the degree of change in the turning condition. In this way, an appropriate threshold is set according to the degree of change.

[0061] [Control when the degree of change is small] 5 is a diagram illustrating control when the degree of change in curvature is relatively small. When vehicle M travels through a section where the curvature has a first degree of change, a relatively short activation timing OT1 is set. In this case, when vehicle M is predicted to reach a road dividing line after OT1 seconds (for example, when vehicle M reaches a position at a distance d1 from the road dividing line), driving assistance device 100 activates road departure prevention control.

[0062] [Control when the degree of change is large] 6 is a diagram illustrating control when the degree of change in curvature is relatively large. When vehicle M travels through a section where the curvature has a second degree of change, a relatively long activation timing OT2 is set. The second degree of change is greater than the first degree of change. In this case, when vehicle M is predicted to reach a lane dividing line after OT2 seconds (for example, when vehicle M reaches a position at a distance d2 (>distance d1) from the lane dividing line), driving assistance device 100 activates road departure prevention control.

[0063] In this way, the driving assistance device 100 activates the road departure suppression control earlier when the degree of change is the second degree than when the degree of change is the first degree, thereby enabling the driving assistance device 100 to more appropriately support the vehicle in suppressing departure from the road dividing line depending on the environment.

[0064] For example, the driver may not control the vehicle M in accordance with the curve. For example, the driver may overlook the curve or misperceive the degree of change in the curve. If the above situation does not occur, the driver can control the vehicle M with ample leeway even if the road departure mitigation control is activated at the set activation timing. In contrast, if the above situation occurs, the driver may not be able to control the vehicle M with ample leeway if the control is activated at the set activation timing. If the driver overlooks the curve or misperceives the degree of change in the curve, even if the road departure mitigation control is activated at the set activation timing, the driver may take time to recognize the situation and may not have ample leeway to control the vehicle M. In this way, if the activation timing of the road departure mitigation control is made uniform, the assistance may be insufficient.

[0065] In contrast, in this embodiment, the activation timing of the road departure prevention control is changed according to the degree of change in curvature. For example, if the driver does not control the vehicle M according to the curve, if the driver misses the curve, or if the driver erroneously recognizes the degree of change in the curve (for example, if the vehicle M is traveling in an environment where the degree of change in curvature tends to be large), the driving assistance device 100 activates the road departure prevention control at an activation timing according to the degree of change. This allows the driver to recognize the situation with ample time to control the vehicle M. In other words, it is possible to assist in more appropriately preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line according to the environment.

[0066] [Flowchart (part 1)] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing executed by the driving assistance device 100. First, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the road departure mitigation control is in the ON state (step S100). For example, the driver can set the road departure mitigation control to the ON state or the OFF state by operating the HMI or a predetermined button.

[0067] When the road departure prevention control is in the ON state, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is a target curved road (step S102). If the road is a target curved road, the driving assistance device 100 acquires the curvature of a first region of the road (step S104) and acquires the curvature of a second region of the road (step S106).

[0068] 8 is a diagram showing an example of the first area AR1 and the second area AR2. The first area AR1 is, for example, an area ahead of the vehicle M. The first area AR1 is, for example, an area several meters or several tens of meters ahead of the vehicle M. The first area AR1 may change depending on the speed and acceleration of the vehicle M. The second area AR2 is, for example, an area to the side of the vehicle M or an area that the vehicle M has passed through.

[0069] Returning to the description of the flowchart, the driving assistance device 100 compares the curvature of the first area AR1 with the curvature of the second area AR2 to determine the degree of change in curvature (step S108). For example, the driving assistance device 100 determines the degree of change in curvature of the first area AR1 relative to the curvature of the second area AR2. The driving assistance device 100 may determine the degree of change in curvature based on the shape of the road-dividing line on one side, or may determine the degree of change in curvature based on the shapes of the road-dividing lines on both sides. The road-dividing line on one side may be the road-dividing line on the outside of the vehicle M (the side opposite to the direction in which the steering wheel is turned), or it may be the road-dividing line on the opposite side. When using the road-dividing lines on both sides, the driving assistance device 100 may perform statistical processing on the degree of change in curvature determined from each road-dividing line to determine the degree of change to be used for setting the threshold. When using the road-dividing lines on both sides, the larger degree of change in curvature may be preferentially adopted.

[0070] Next, the driving assistance device 100 calculates a threshold value (activation timing) based on the degree of change in curvature (step S110). For example, the threshold value is calculated as described above with reference to Fig. 4. This completes the processing of one routine of this flowchart.

[0071] [Flowchart (part 2)] 9 is a flowchart showing another example of the flow of processing executed by the driving assistance device 100. First, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is a target curved road (step S200). If the road is a target curved road, the driving assistance device 100 sets the threshold determined in the flowchart of FIG. 7 described above (step S210). Next, the driving assistance device 100 derives the time required for the vehicle M to reach the road dividing line (step S220).

[0072] Next, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the derived time is equal to or less than a threshold value (step S230). If the derived time is not equal to or less than the threshold value, the processing of step S240 is skipped. If the derived time is equal to or less than the threshold value, the driving assistance device 100 issues an alarm or controls the steering so that the vehicle M does not deviate from the road dividing line (step S240). This ends the processing of one routine of this flowchart.

[0073] As described above, the driving assistance device 100 can help prevent the vehicle from deviating from the road markings more appropriately depending on the environment by changing the activation timing depending on the curvature of the road.

[0074] In the above example, the activation timing is changed based on the absolute value of the degree of change of the curvature, but instead, the driving assistance device 100 may execute a first change process that changes the activation timing according to the degree of change when the degree of change of the curvature tends to increase (tends to move away from zero), and execute a second change process that is different from the first change process when the degree of change of the curvature tends to decrease (tends to approach zero).

[0075] For example, when the degree of change in the road increases as the curvature of the road increases, the driving assistance device 100 executes a first change process in which the threshold value is increased as the degree of change in the curvature increases, and when the degree of change increases as the curvature of the road decreases (approaching a straight line), the driving assistance device 100 executes a second change process that is different from the first change process.

[0076] The second change process is a process of setting a preset threshold value regardless of the degree of change in the curvature of the road (for example, a process of setting a threshold value for driving on a straight line), or a process of setting a threshold value to a second threshold value that is smaller than the first threshold value. The first threshold value is set to a larger value as the degree of change in the curvature increases in the first change process (see FIG. 4). The second threshold value is set to a larger value as the degree of change in the curvature increases in the second change process. The second threshold value is a threshold value that reduces the activation timing by a predetermined percentage for each of the activation timings for each degree of change from C1 to C2 in FIG. 4 described above, for example.

[0077] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the timing at which the first change process is executed and the timing at which the second change process is executed. The explanation will focus on the differences from FIG. 3. Between position A and position B (at or near the entrance to a curved road), the curvature of the road increases, resulting in a larger degree of change. At this timing, the degree of change is a positive value. If the degree of change is a positive value, the first change process is executed. Between position C and position D (at or near the exit of a curved road), the curvature of the road decreases (approaching a straight line), resulting in a larger degree of change. At this timing, the degree of change is a negative value. If the degree of change is a negative value, the second change process is executed.

[0078] As described above, when the degree of change is a positive value, the driving assistance device 100 executes a first change process that changes the activation timing according to the degree of change in the curvature of the road, and when the degree of change is a negative value, it executes a second change process that is different from the first change process, thereby assisting in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line more appropriately depending on the environment.

[0079] For example, at the exit of a curve, the driver may control the vehicle M so that the vehicle M approaches the road dividing line on the outside (or inside) of the curve. Even in such a case, the threshold value of the second change process is set to a time shorter than the threshold value of the first change process, so that the operation of the road departure prevention control is suppressed, which may be annoying to the driver.

[0080] At the entrance to a curve, the driver may overlook the curve or misperceive the degree of change in the curve. Even in such cases, the threshold value for the first change process appropriate for the above situation is set, thereby providing assistance in appropriately preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line.

[0081] In the above example, when the road is curved, the driving assistance device 100 may set a preset threshold value for the road dividing line on the inside of the curve (for example, set the threshold value to the threshold value for driving on a straight line), and may set a threshold value for the road dividing line on the outside of the curve based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road. Some drivers may recognize the curve and control the vehicle to approach the road dividing line on the inside of the curve. This process can prevent excessive assistance to the driver as described above.

[0082] According to the first embodiment described above, the driving assistance device 100 changes the threshold value based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road, and when it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle M will deviate from the road dividing line, it performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle M from deviating from the road dividing line, thereby assisting in more appropriately preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line depending on the environment.

[0083] Second Embodiment A second embodiment will be described below. In the first embodiment, the threshold value is changed depending on whether the road is a curved road. In the second embodiment, the driving assistance device 100 changes the timing of providing assistance based on the shape of the road when performing control to assist the vehicle M in preventing deviation from the road dividing line when the vehicle M approaches the road dividing line by a predetermined amount or more based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle M and the state of the vehicle M. Specifically, the driving assistance device 100 switches between a first process in which the threshold value is set to a first threshold value that is a preset fixed value and a second process in which the threshold value is set to a second threshold value that is a variable value (for example, a process in which the threshold value in the first embodiment is made variable) based on the shape of the road on which the vehicle M is traveling. The following mainly describes the differences from the first embodiment.

[0084] In principle, the driving assistance device 100 executes the first process when it determines that the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is not a curved road, and executes the second process when it determines that the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is a curved road. When the driving assistance device 100 determines that the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is a curved road, it sets a threshold value (second threshold value) based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road, as described in the first embodiment. However, even when it is determined that the road is a curved road, the first process is executed depending on the shape of the road. Note that another process may be executed instead of the first process. The other process is a process in which the threshold value is set to a smaller value than the threshold value of the second process, even if the threshold value is variable. In other words, in the second embodiment, it is sufficient that the process for setting the threshold value differs depending on the shape of the road.

[0085] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processing executed by the driving assistance device 100. The following mainly describes differences from FIG. 9. First, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is a target curved road (step S200). If the road is a target curved road, the threshold value is variable. The target curved road is, for example, a curved road with a curvature radius equal to or less than a threshold value (for example, equal to or less than 1000 m). If the road is a curved road and the curvature radius of the curve of the curved road exceeds a set threshold value, the driving assistance device 100 executes a first processing step, and if the road is a curved road and the curvature radius of the curve of the curved road is equal to or less than the set threshold value, the driving assistance device 100 executes a second processing step as follows.

[0086] If the road is a curved road, the driving assistance device 100 identifies the shape of the road (step S208). Next, the driving assistance device 100 sets a threshold value based on the shape of the road (step S210#). Next, the driving assistance device 100 derives the time required for the vehicle M to reach the road dividing line (step S220).

[0087] Next, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the derived time is equal to or less than a threshold value (step S230). If the derived time is not equal to or less than the threshold value, the processing of step S240 is skipped. If the derived time is equal to or less than the threshold value, the driving assistance device 100 issues an alarm or controls the steering so that the vehicle M does not deviate from the road dividing line (step S240). This ends the processing of one routine of this flowchart.

[0088] By performing the above process, the driving assistance device 100 can set a threshold value according to the shape of the road, and therefore can assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line more appropriately according to the environment. The process in a specific situation will be described below.

[0089] [Scene 1] When the road shape is a curved road, the driving assistance device 100 executes a first process for setting thresholds for road-dividing lines on the inside of the curved road, and executes a second process for setting thresholds for road-dividing lines on the outside of the curved road. This process is an example of switching between the first process and the second process based on the road shape.

[0090] 12 is a diagram illustrating the processing in scene 1. The driving assistance device 100 sets a threshold value for the road-dividing line on the outside of the curved road in accordance with the degree of change in curvature, and sets a preset threshold value for the road-dividing line on the inside of the curved road. Instead of the preset threshold value, a threshold value that is set in accordance with the degree of change in curvature and is smaller than the threshold value for the outside road-dividing line may be set.

[0091] By setting the threshold value as described above, even when the driver drives the vehicle M on the inside of a curve, the road departure prevention control operates appropriately and excessive operation of the road departure prevention control is suppressed.

[0092] [Scene 2] When the road is curved and the lane width of the road is equal to or less than a predetermined width (for example, 2.5 m), the driving assistance device 100 executes a first process when the lane width of the road exceeds the predetermined width. This process is another example of a process that switches between the first process and the second process based on the road shape.

[0093] Fig. 13 is a diagram for explaining the processing in scene 2. As shown in Fig. 12, when traveling on a curved road where the threshold value would normally vary depending on the degree of change in curvature, if the distance between road-dividing lines is equal to or less than a threshold value (equal to or less than Th), the driving assistance device 100 sets the threshold value for the road-dividing line to a preset threshold value.

[0094] By setting the threshold value as described above, excessive activation of the road departure prevention control due to vehicle swaying or the like is suppressed.

[0095] [Scene 3] FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image captured by the camera 10. When the vehicle M passes through an intersection, the camera 10 captures the image shown in FIG. 14. The recognition unit 110 recognizes the road dividing line D1 and the road dividing line D2 at or near the intersection. The road dividing line D1 is a road dividing line marked near the center of the road. The road dividing line D2 is a road dividing line marked at the widthwise edge of the road on which the vehicle M is traveling. The driving assistance device 100 derives the curvature of the road based on the recognition results of the recognition unit 110. For example, the driving assistance device 100 uses the curvature of the road dividing line D1 or the curvature of the road dividing line D2, whichever has the greater degree of change in curvature. In the example of FIG. 14, the degree of change in curvature of the road dividing line D2 is used.

[0096] FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a scene in which an intersection and its vicinity are viewed from above. For example, the recognition unit 110 can recognize the road dividing line D2 in area AR3 (at or near the entrance to the intersection) in FIG. 14, but cannot recognize the road dividing line D2 in area AR4 (the area beyond area AR3). The road dividing line D2 in area AR4 extends in the width direction of the vehicle M, and the recognition unit 110 may have low reliability in its recognition, or recognition may be obstructed by obstacles such as curbs (see FIG. 14). A low reliability refers to the driving assistance device 100 being unable to recognize the type of road dividing line (e.g., solid line, dashed line, double dashed line), or the low reliability of recognition. The reliability is derived by applying a predetermined algorithm for determining reliability. For example, if the score obtained by the algorithm is below a threshold, the reliability is determined to be low.

[0097] In the above situation, it is undesirable for the driving assistance device 100 to set the threshold based on the degree of change in curvature of the road-dividing line D2. The degree of change in curvature of the road-dividing line D2 in area AR3 is greater than the degree of change in curvature of the road-dividing line D1. If the driving assistance device 100 uses the results of recognizing the road-dividing line D2 in area AR3, the threshold would be made variable. However, because the road runs in the direction in which the road-dividing line D1 extends, not the direction in which the road-dividing line D2 extends, the decision on whether to make the threshold variable should be based on the degree of change in curvature of the road-dividing line D1. Therefore, to deal with the situation in scene 3, the processing shown in FIG. 16 is performed, and control is exercised so that a preset threshold is used instead of the degree of change in curvature of the road-dividing line D2.

[0098] The driving assistance device 100 executes the first process when one of the road-dividing lines on both sides of the lane cannot be recognized, and executes the second process when both of the road-dividing lines on both sides of the lane can be recognized. In the examples of Figures 14 and 15, the road-dividing line D1 is recognized, but the road-dividing line D2 in area AR4 is not recognized, so the first process is executed.

[0099] When one of the road-dividing lines on both sides of the lane cannot be recognized, the driving assistance device 100 executes the first process from a predetermined distance before the point where one of the road-dividing lines cannot be recognized. The predetermined distance before is, for example, a predetermined distance before the area AR3 or the area AR4 in FIG. 15. For example, it is at or near the position Px in FIG. 15.

[0100] [flowchart] The process of the flowchart of FIG. 16 may be executed instead of (or in addition to) the process of the flowchart of FIG. 11. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of processes executed by the driving assistance device 100. First, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the road on which the vehicle M is traveling is a target curved road (step S200). If the road is a target curved road, the driving assistance device 100 identifies the recognition state and reliability of the road-dividing lines (step S202). Based on the identification result of step S202, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the road-dividing lines on both sides can be recognized and whether the recognition reliability of the road-dividing lines on both sides is high (above or below a threshold) (step S204). If the road-dividing lines on both sides can be recognized and the recognition reliability of the road-dividing lines on both sides is high, the driving assistance device 100 sets the threshold to a preset value (step S206) and proceeds to the process of step S220.

[0101] If the lane markings on both sides cannot be recognized, or if the reliability of the recognition of either or both lane markings is low, the driving assistance device 100 identifies the shape of the road (step S208). Next, the driving assistance device 100 sets a threshold value based on the shape of the road (step S210#). For example, the threshold value may be set as described in Scene 1 and Scene 2, or as described in Scene 3 below.

[0102] Next, the driving assistance device 100 derives the time until the vehicle M reaches the lane dividing line (step S220). Next, the driving assistance device 100 determines whether the derived time is equal to or less than a threshold (step S230). If the derived time is not equal to or less than the threshold, the processing of step S240 is skipped. If the derived time is equal to or less than the threshold, the driving assistance device 100 issues an alarm or controls the steering so that the vehicle M does not deviate from the lane dividing line (step S240). This completes the processing of one routine of this flowchart.

[0103] As described above, the driving assistance device 100 can set a threshold value based on the results of recognizing one of the road dividing lines D2, thereby assisting in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line more appropriately depending on the environment.

[0104] In the process of the flowchart in FIG. 16, when it is determined that the vehicle M will pass through the intersection, the first process may be performed.

[0105] Note that some of the processes in the above flowcharts (FIGS. 7, 9, 11, and 16) may be modified or omitted. For example, the process of step S200 in FIG. 16 may be omitted.

[0106] The above-described embodiment can be expressed as follows. a storage device storing a program; a hardware processor; The hardware processor executes the program stored in the storage device, Recognizes road markings on the vehicle's route, a determination processing unit that determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, which is obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, and that changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road; When it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line, a process is executed to perform control to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line. The control device is configured as follows.

[0107] The above-described embodiment can be expressed as follows. a storage device storing a program; a hardware processor; The hardware processor executes the program stored in the storage device, Recognizes road markings on the vehicle's route, determining that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, which is obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold; When it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line, control is performed to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line; execute a process of switching between a first process of setting the threshold to a first threshold which is a preset fixed value and a second process of setting the threshold to a second threshold which is a variable value based on the shape of a road on which the vehicle is traveling; The control device is configured as follows.

[0108] The above describes the form for carrying out the present invention using an embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0109] 1 Vehicle Systems 10 Camera 84 Vibration unit 100 Driving assistance device 110 Recognition part 120 Curve Judgment Unit 130 1st Judgment Section 140 Second Judgment Section 150 control section 220 Steering device

Claims

1. a recognition unit that recognizes road dividing lines on a vehicle's road; a determination processing unit that determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, which is obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, and that changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road; a control unit that, when it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line, performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line; Equipped with The determination processing unit If the degree of change in the degree of curvature is equal to or greater than the second degree of change, the threshold is set to a third threshold; When the degree of change in the degree of curvature is less than the second degree of change and exceeds the third degree of change, the threshold is increased between a fourth threshold that is less than the third threshold and smaller than the third threshold, so that the greater the degree of change, the closer the fourth threshold is to the third threshold. Vehicle control device.

2. a recognition unit that recognizes road dividing lines on a vehicle's road; a determination processing unit that determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, which is obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, and that changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road; a control unit that, when it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line, performs control to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line; Equipped with The determination processing unit When the shape of the road is a curved road, Regarding the setting of the threshold value for the road dividing line on the inside of the curved road, a preset threshold value is set as the threshold value; Regarding the setting of the threshold value for the outer road dividing line of the curved road, the threshold value is set based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road. Vehicle control device.

3. The determination processing unit increases the threshold value as the degree of change in the degree of bending increases. The vehicle control device according to claim 2.

4. The determination processing unit If the degree of change in the degree of curvature is equal to or greater than a first degree of change, the threshold is set to a first threshold; When the degree of change in the degree of curvature is less than a first degree of change, the threshold is set to a second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold. The vehicle control device according to claim 2.

5. The determination processing unit When the degree of change increases as the degree of turning increases, a first change process is executed to increase the threshold value as the degree of change of the degree of turning increases; When the degree of change increases as the degree of bending decreases, a second change process different from the first change process is executed. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The second change process includes: A process of setting a preset threshold value regardless of the degree of change in the degree of curvature; or a process of setting the threshold to a second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold, the first threshold is a threshold that is set to a larger value as the degree of change in the turning state increases in the case where the degree of change increases in the first change process, The second threshold value is a threshold value that is set to be larger as the degree of change in the degree of turning increases in the case where the degree of change increases in the second change process. The vehicle control device according to claim 5.

7. a control unit that, when the determination processing unit determines that there is a high possibility of deviation from the road dividing line, notifies the driver of the vehicle of the possibility of deviation using a notification unit, or assists in steering control so that the vehicle does not deviate from the road dividing line. The vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

8. The computer Recognizes road markings on the vehicle's route, a determination processing unit that determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, which is obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, and that changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road; When it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line, control is performed to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line; If the degree of change in the degree of curvature is equal to or greater than the second degree of change, the threshold is set to a third threshold; When the degree of change in the degree of curvature is less than the second degree of change and exceeds the third degree of change, the threshold is increased between a fourth threshold that is less than the third threshold and smaller than the third threshold, so that the greater the degree of change, the closer the fourth threshold is to the third threshold. Vehicle control method.

9. On the computer, Recognizes road dividing lines on the vehicle's route, a determination processing unit that determines that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line when it is determined that the time it takes for the vehicle to reach the road dividing line, which is obtained based on the position of the road dividing line relative to the vehicle and the state of the vehicle, is equal to or less than a threshold, and that changes the threshold based on the degree of change in the curvature of the road; When it is determined that there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the road dividing line, control is performed to assist in preventing the vehicle from deviating from the road dividing line; If the degree of change in the degree of curvature is equal to or greater than a second degree of change, the threshold is set to a third threshold; When the degree of change in the degree of curvature is less than the second degree of change and exceeds the third degree of change, the threshold is increased between a fourth threshold that is less than the third threshold and smaller than the third threshold, so that the greater the degree of change, the closer the fourth threshold is to the third threshold. program.

Images