Driving assistance system and driving assistance method

Abstract

To provide a travel support system and travel support method capable of performing changeover in accordance with a state between a rough travel support corresponding to a rough merging behavior of a merging vehicle and a travel support for avoiding a collision of an object vehicle with the merging vehicle.SOLUTION: A travel support system includes: a merging support section for supporting traveling of an object vehicle so as to obtain smooth traveling in merging based on a merging behavior prediction result; a collision avoidance support section for calculating a collision risk based on prediction results of movements of the object vehicle and a merging vehicle, and supporting traveling of the object vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; and a traveling support selection section for determining which one of the travel support of the merging support section and the travel support of the collision avoidance support section has to be performed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present application relates to a driving assistance system and a driving assistance method. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for predicting whether another vehicle will cut in based on the relative positions and lateral positions of the host vehicle and surrounding vehicles. Patent Document 1 also discloses, as a modified example, a method for predicting whether another vehicle will cut in based on road factors such as merging. Patent Document 2 also discloses a technology for changing between shortening and lengthening the inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and a vehicle ahead of the host vehicle depending on the state of the merging vehicle. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6494121 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2021-014175 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Incidentally, in order to provide driving assistance for a host vehicle to safely pass through a lane merging section, a prediction based on the situation of the merging vehicle is required. For example, when a merging vehicle is far from the end of the merging lane, a rough prediction of the merging behavior of the merging vehicle based on various factors such as regulations and yielding behavior, and rough driving assistance for the host vehicle are required. On the other hand, when a merging vehicle is approaching the merging point, the possibility of a collision between the host vehicle and the merging vehicle increases, so a relatively strict driving assistance is required that relatively accurately predicts the movement of the merging vehicle and the movement of the host vehicle and avoids a collision.

[0005] However, the technology of Patent Document 1 predicts the merging probability relatively accurately based on the longitudinal positional relationships between the merging vehicle, surrounding vehicles, and the virtual vehicle at the end of the merging lane, as well as the lateral position of the merging vehicle. However, as mentioned above, depending on the situation, rough merging behavior occurs due to factors such as regulations and yielding, and it is difficult to predict rough merging behavior using a technology that predicts relatively accurately, such as Patent Document 1.

[0006] Furthermore, the technology in Patent Document 2 shortens or lengthens the distance between the vehicle in front of or behind the vehicle depending on the state of the merging vehicle, but does not predict the general merging behavior that will depend on factors such as regulations and mutual yielding.

[0007] Therefore, the present application aims to provide a driving assistance system and a driving assistance method that can switch between general driving assistance that is in line with the merging behavior of a merging vehicle and driving assistance that avoids a collision between a target vehicle and a merging vehicle, depending on the situation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The driving assistance system according to the present application comprises: an information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether the driving support of the merging support unit or the driving support of the collision avoidance support unit is to be performed, and causes the determined merging support unit or the collision avoidance support unit to perform the driving support; Equipped with 、 the movement prediction unit predicts a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle at each future time point; The collision avoidance support unit calculates a distance between a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle at each future time point, calculates the collision risk at each future time point based on the distance at each future time point, and supports at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each future time point. It is something.

[0009] The driving assistance method according to the present application comprises: an information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with 、 In the movement prediction step, a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle are predicted at each future time point; In the collision avoidance assistance step, a distance between a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle is calculated at each future time point, the collision risk at each future time point is calculated based on the distance at each future time point, and travel of at least the target vehicle is supported so that the collision risk at each future time point is reduced. It is something. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the driving assistance system and driving assistance method of the present application, the merging behavior prediction unit predicts the merging behavior of a merging vehicle into a target lane, and the merging assistance unit supports the driving of at least the target vehicle so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the predicted result of the merging behavior. Therefore, the merging behavior prediction unit and the merging assistance unit provide rough driving assistance so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the rough predicted result of the merging behavior. Meanwhile, the movement prediction unit predicts the movement of the target vehicle and the movement of the merging vehicle, and the collision avoidance assistance unit calculates the collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on the predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle, and supports the driving of at least the target vehicle so that the collision risk is reduced. Therefore, the movement prediction unit and the collision avoidance assistance unit calculate the collision risk based on the movement of each vehicle, thereby providing driving assistance that more reliably avoids collisions. The assistance selection unit then decides whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit, and can appropriately switch between rough driving assistance that makes driving smoother when merging and driving assistance that reliably avoids collisions depending on the situation. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic block diagram of a vehicle control device and a driving assistance system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic hardware configuration diagram of a vehicle control device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a schematic hardware configuration diagram of a vehicle control device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a coordinate system of a host vehicle according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining merging onto an expressway or the like according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining merging due to travel restrictions according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining merging at an intersection according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the front-rear relationship when the angle between the own lane and the merging lane is small according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 9] 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the front-rear relationship when the angle between the own lane and the merging lane is large according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a prediction model using a boundary line according to the first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining calculation of a collision risk according to the first embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a plurality of movement patterns of a merging vehicle according to the first embodiment. [Figure 13] 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining switching of driving assistance depending on the distance from a merging vehicle to a merging point according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 14] 3 is a flowchart for explaining the processing of the driving assistance system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 15] 10 is a flowchart for explaining the processing of a driving assistance system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a vehicle control device and a driving assistance system according to a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] 1. First Embodiment A driving assistance system 1 according to a first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the driving assistance system 1 is provided in a target vehicle (host vehicle). The driving assistance system 1 is incorporated in a vehicle control device 50.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, the target vehicle (own vehicle) is equipped with a surroundings monitoring device 31, a position detection device 32, a vehicle state detection device 33, a map information database 34, a wireless communication device 35, a vehicle control device 50, a drive control device 36, a power plant 8, an electric steering device 7, an electric braking device 9, and a human interface device 37, etc.

[0014] The periphery monitoring device 31 is a device such as a camera or radar that monitors the periphery of the vehicle. The radar may be a millimeter wave radar, a laser radar, an ultrasonic radar, etc. The wireless communication device 35 performs wireless communication with a base station using a cellular wireless communication standard such as 4G or 5G.

[0015] The position detection device 32 is a device that detects the current position (latitude, longitude, altitude) of the vehicle, and uses a GPS antenna or the like that receives signals output from artificial satellites such as the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Note that various methods may be used to detect the current position of the vehicle, such as a method using the lane number of the vehicle, a map matching method, a dead reckoning method, or a method using detected information around the vehicle.

[0016] The map information database 34 stores road information such as road shapes (for example, the number of lanes, the position of each lane, the shape of each lane, the type of each lane, the road type, speed limits, etc.), signs, traffic lights, etc. The map information database 34 is mainly composed of a storage device. The map information database 34 may be provided in a server outside the vehicle connected to a network, and the vehicle control device 50 may obtain necessary road information from the server outside the vehicle via the wireless communication device 35.

[0017] The drive control device 36 includes a power control device, a brake control device, an automatic steering control device, a light control device, etc. The power control device controls the output of a power machine 8 such as an internal combustion engine or a motor. The brake control device controls the braking operation of an electric brake device 9. The automatic steering control device controls the electric steering device 7. The light control device controls turn signals, hazard lights, etc.

[0018] The vehicle state detection device 33 is a detection device that detects the state of the host vehicle, which is the driving state and running state of the host vehicle. In this embodiment, the vehicle state detection device 33 detects the speed, acceleration, yaw rate, steering angle, lateral acceleration, etc. of the host vehicle as the running state of the host vehicle. For example, the vehicle state detection device 33 may be provided with a speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, a steering angle sensor, etc. that detect the rotational speed of the wheels.

[0019] The driving state of the vehicle is detected by detecting acceleration / deceleration operations, steering angle operations, and lane change operations by the driver. For example, the vehicle state detection device 33 is provided with an accelerator position sensor, a brake position sensor, a steering angle sensor (handle angle sensor), a steering torque sensor, a turn signal position switch, and the like.

[0020] The human interface device 37 is a device that receives input from the driver through a speaker, a display screen, an input device, etc., and transmits information to the driver.

[0021] 1-1. Vehicle control device 50 The vehicle control device 50 includes functional units such as an information acquisition unit 51, a merging behavior prediction unit 52, a merging support unit 53, a movement prediction unit 54, a collision avoidance support unit 55, a driving support selection unit 56, and a vehicle control unit 57. Each function of the vehicle control device 50 is realized by a processing circuit included in the vehicle control device 50. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, the vehicle control device 50 includes an arithmetic processing device 90 such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a storage device 91, an input / output device 92 that inputs and outputs external signals to the arithmetic processing device 90, and the like.

[0022] The arithmetic processing device 90 may be an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an IC (Integrated Circuit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), an AI (Artificial Intelligence) chip, various logic circuits, various signal processing circuits, etc. Furthermore, the arithmetic processing device 90 may be a plurality of the same or different types, and each process may be shared and executed. The storage device 91 may be a variety of storage devices, such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), a hard disk, etc.

[0023] The input / output device 92 is equipped with a communication device, an A / D converter, an input / output port, a drive circuit, etc. The input / output device 92 is connected to the surroundings monitoring device 31, the position detection device 32, the vehicle state detection device 33, the map information database 34, the wireless communication device 35, the drive control device 36, the human interface device 37, etc., and communicates with these devices.

[0024] The functions of the functional units 51 to 57 of the vehicle control device 50 are realized by the arithmetic processing device 90 executing software (programs) stored in the storage device 91 and cooperating with other hardware of the vehicle control device 50, such as the storage device 91 and the input / output device 92. Setting data such as parameters and thresholds of the prediction models used by the functional units 51 to 57 are stored in the storage device 91, such as an EEPROM.

[0025] Alternatively, the vehicle control device 50 may be provided with dedicated hardware 93 as a processing circuit, such as a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC, an FPGA, a GPU, an AI chip, or a circuit that combines these, as shown in Fig. 3. Each function of the vehicle control device 50 will be described in detail below.

[0026] 1-1-1. Information acquisition section 51 The information acquisition unit 51 acquires movement information of the host vehicle. In this embodiment, the information acquisition unit 51 acquires the position, movement direction, speed, acceleration, etc. of the host vehicle based on the position information of the host vehicle acquired from the position detection device 32 and the host vehicle state acquired from the vehicle state detection device 33.

[0027] The information acquisition unit 51 acquires movement information of surrounding vehicles present around the vehicle. The surrounding vehicles also include merging vehicles, which will be described later. In this embodiment, the information acquisition unit 51 acquires the positions, movement directions, speeds, accelerations, etc. of the surrounding vehicles based on the detection information acquired from the periphery monitoring device 31 and the position information of the vehicle acquired from the position detection device 32. In addition to the surrounding vehicles, the information acquisition unit 51 also acquires information on obstacles, pedestrians, signs, traffic regulations such as lane restrictions, etc.

[0028] The information acquisition unit 51 can acquire movement information of surrounding vehicles and lane information of surrounding vehicles through communication from outside the vehicle. Surrounding vehicles also include merging vehicles. For example, the information acquisition unit 51 may acquire movement information of surrounding vehicles (position, movement direction, speed, etc. of surrounding vehicles) from surrounding vehicles through wireless communication or the like. Furthermore, the information acquisition unit 51 may acquire movement information of surrounding vehicles present in a monitoring area (position, movement direction, speed, acceleration, etc. of surrounding vehicles), information on obstacles and pedestrians, road shape, traffic regulations, traffic conditions, etc., from roadside devices such as cameras that monitor road conditions, etc., through wireless communication or the like.

[0029] In this embodiment, the information acquisition unit 51 acquires the relative positions and relative speeds of surrounding vehicles and the like with respect to the host vehicle in a coordinate system of the host vehicle based on the current position of the host vehicle. As shown in FIG. 4, the host vehicle coordinate system is a coordinate system having axes in the longitudinal direction X of the current host vehicle and the lateral direction Y of the host vehicle. Note that the information acquisition unit 51 may also acquire the relative positions and relative speeds of surrounding vehicles in a coordinate system in the longitudinal and lateral directions of the host vehicle's lane (target lane) in which the host vehicle is traveling. The information acquisition unit 51 may also acquire the absolute position (latitude, longitude), absolute movement direction (orientation), absolute speed, absolute acceleration, etc. of each vehicle.

[0030] The information acquisition unit 51 acquires road information around the vehicle from the map information database 34 based on the vehicle's position information acquired from the position detection device 32. The acquired road information includes information such as the number of lanes, the position of each lane, the shape of each lane, the type of each lane, the road type, and the speed limit. The types of each lane include merging lanes, main lanes, etc. The information acquisition unit 51 also acquires information on traffic regulations such as lane restrictions due to construction work, etc. from an external server, etc.

[0031] The information acquisition unit 51 also detects the shape and type of road dividing lines, etc., based on detection information of dividing lines such as white lines and road shoulders acquired from the periphery monitoring device 31, and determines the shape and position of each lane, the number of lanes, and the type of each lane, etc., based on the detected shape and type of road dividing lines, etc. The type of each lane includes merging lanes, etc. The information acquisition unit 51 also determines whether or not there are traffic regulations, such as lane restrictions.

[0032] The information acquisition unit 51 acquires lane information corresponding to the lane in which the vehicle is traveling, based on the position of the vehicle. The information acquisition unit 51 also acquires lane information corresponding to the lane in which each of the surrounding vehicles is traveling, based on the positions of each of the surrounding vehicles. The acquired lane information includes the shape, position, and type of the lane, as well as lane information for the surrounding lanes.

[0033] <Definition of confluence, etc.> A merge refers to a road shape where lanes intersect, and includes merges on expressways (see Figure 5), merges from additional lanes, merges due to a reduction in the number of lanes, merges due to temporary travel restrictions such as construction (see Figure 6), and intersections (see Figure 7). The lane in which the subject vehicle (target vehicle) is traveling is defined as the subject lane (target lane), and the lane merging into the subject vehicle lane is defined as the merging lane. A merge point is a point where the merging lane and the subject vehicle lane merge. For example, the merge point may be set at the point where the center line of the subject vehicle lane intersects with the center line of the merging lane, or it may be set at a specific point before or after the intersection of the center lines. For example, the merge point may be set at the start of a tapered portion where the lane width of the merging lane gradually narrows. In the case of a temporary driving restriction, a virtual center line may be set in the driveable lane area of ​​the lane (merging lane) where the driving restriction is imposed, and the point where the center line of the restricted lane intersects with the center line of the merging lane may be set as the merging point, or the start point of the driving restriction may be set as the merging point.

[0034] The information acquisition unit 51 determines the merging lane that merges into the lane in which the vehicle is traveling (target lane), determines the merging vehicle traveling in the merging lane from the surrounding vehicles, and acquires the movement information of the merging vehicle and the lane information of the merging lane as described above.

[0035] 1-1-2. Vehicle control unit 57 When autonomous driving is performed, the vehicle control unit 57 determines a target driving trajectory that is suited to the state of surrounding vehicles, obstacles, and pedestrians detected by the information acquisition unit 51, as well as the shape of the road around the vehicle. The target driving trajectory is a time-series driving plan that includes the vehicle's position, vehicle's traveling direction, vehicle's speed, driving lane, and lane change positions at each future point in time. The vehicle control unit 57 generates a target driving trajectory that performs deceleration or acceleration, lane changes, etc. in accordance with driving assistance commands from the merging assistance unit 53 or the collision avoidance assistance unit 55.

[0036] The vehicle control unit 57 controls the vehicle so that it travels along a target travel trajectory of the vehicle. For example, the vehicle control unit 57 determines a target speed, a target steering angle, a turn signal operation command, etc., and transmits each determined command value to the drive control devices 36, such as a power control device, a brake control device, an automatic steering control device, and a light control device.

[0037] The power control device controls the output of a power machine 8 such as an internal combustion engine or a motor so that the speed of the vehicle follows a target speed. The brake control device controls the braking operation of an electric brake device 9 so that the speed of the vehicle follows a target speed. The automatic steering control device controls the electric steering device 7 so that the steering angle follows a target steering angle. The light control device controls the turn signal according to an operation command for the turn signal.

[0038] Alternatively, when the driver is driving manually or semi-automatically, the vehicle control unit 57 transmits commands to the power control device and the brake control device to decelerate or accelerate, etc., in accordance with a driving support command from the merging support unit 53 or the collision avoidance support unit 55, controls the output of the power machine 8, and controls the braking operation of the electric brake device 9. At this time, the steering angle may also be controlled by the electric steering device 7.

[0039] 1-1-3. Merging behavior prediction unit 52 The merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts the merging behavior of a merging vehicle into its own lane based on movement information of its own vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle, lane information of its own lane (target lane), and lane information of a merging lane.

[0040] The merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts the merging behavior of merging vehicles without calculating a collision risk based on the predicted results of the movement of each vehicle, as does the movement prediction unit 54. For example, a classification of the merging behavior is predicted.

[0041] For example, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts the merging behavior of a merging vehicle in front of or behind the host vehicle, such as whether the merging vehicle will merge in front of or behind the host vehicle. The prediction result includes at least qualitative merging positions in front of or behind the host vehicle, such as whether the merging vehicle will merge in front of or behind the host vehicle. Note that the prediction result may include the distance in front of or behind the host vehicle of the merging vehicle at the time of merging, and may also include the predicted merging time, such as how many seconds from now the merging vehicle will merge.

[0042] The merging behavior prediction unit 52 may predict qualitative merging positions before and after the vehicle, including the vehicles before and after the vehicle, such as merging between the vehicle and the vehicle in front of the vehicle, or merging between the vehicle and the vehicle behind the vehicle.

[0043] <Example of merging behavior prediction> As a simple method, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts that the merging vehicle will merge in front of the own vehicle if the merging vehicle is traveling ahead of the own vehicle, and predicts that the merging vehicle will merge behind the own vehicle if the merging vehicle is traveling behind the own vehicle.

[0044] Alternatively, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 may predict whether the merging vehicle will merge in front of or behind the host vehicle, assuming that the merging vehicle and the host vehicle will maintain their current speeds. Note that the accelerations of the merging vehicle and the host vehicle, the planned speed of the host vehicle, and the estimated planned speed of the merging vehicle may also be taken into consideration.

[0045] In addition, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 may assume that the host vehicle will maintain its current speed, calculate the speed change of the merging vehicle that occurs when the merging vehicle merges in front of the host vehicle, and the speed change of the merging vehicle that occurs when the merging vehicle merges behind the host vehicle, and predict that the merging vehicle will select the smaller absolute value of the speed change for the merging vehicle in front or the absolute value of the speed change for the merging vehicle in rear.

[0046] <Context definition> As shown in Fig. 8, when the angle between the own lane and the merging lane is small, the longitudinal relationship between the own vehicle and the merging vehicle is determined in the fore-and-aft direction X of the own vehicle or the own lane. If the own lane is curved, the curvature of the own lane may be taken into consideration. On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 9, when the angle between the own lane and the merging lane is large, such as at an intersection, the longitudinal relationship between the merging vehicle and the own vehicle is determined based on the distance relationship from the merging point. In either case, the longitudinal relationship between the merging vehicle and the own vehicle correlates with the distance relationship between the merging vehicle and the own vehicle from the merging point.

[0047] <Predicting merging behavior using a predictive model> For example, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts merging behavior using a prediction model that inputs at least one or both of the feature quantities of the position and speed of a merging vehicle and outputs a predicted result of the merging position of a merging vehicle in front of or behind the vehicle.

[0048] For example, a prediction model may be used that sets a boundary line in a two-dimensional coordinate system having axes of relative position Xr and relative speed Vr, and predicts whether a merging vehicle will merge in front of or behind the host vehicle based on the relative position relationship of the detected value Xrdet of the relative position and the detected value Vrdet of the relative speed of the merging vehicle with respect to the boundary line, as shown in Fig. 10. If the angle between the host lane and the merging lane is small, the relative position and relative speed are set for the host vehicle or the longitudinal direction of the host lane, and if the angle between the host lane and the merging lane is large, the difference in distance between each vehicle and the merging point is set as the relative position, and the difference in longitudinal speed between each vehicle is set as the relative speed.

[0049] A boundary line is set such that the relative position Xr decreases from 0 as the relative speed Vr increases from 0, and a boundary line is set such that the relative position Xr increases from 0 as the relative speed Vr decreases from 0. The boundary line may be designed and tuned using a statistical method, or a boundary line model learned by machine learning using past data may be used. The slope and shape of the boundary line may be changed based on the characteristics of the merging lane and the own vehicle lane (e.g., the speed difference between the merging lane and the own vehicle lane, the length of the merging lane). The slope and shape of the boundary line may be changed based on the distance from the merging vehicle to the end of the merging lane.

[0050] The merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts that the merging vehicle will merge in front of the own vehicle if the detected value Xrdet of the relative position and the detected value Vrdet of the relative speed of the merging vehicle are located on the increasing side of the relative position Xr and the relative speed Vr with respect to the boundary line, and predicts that the merging vehicle will merge behind the own vehicle if the detected value Xrdet of the relative position and the detected value Vrdet of the relative speed of the merging vehicle are located on the decreasing side of the relative position Xr and the relative speed Vr with respect to the boundary line.

[0051] The merging behavior prediction unit 52 may predict the distance in front of and behind the merging vehicle from the host vehicle at the time of merging based on the distance between the detected value Xrdet of the relative position of the merging vehicle and the boundary line and the detected value Vrdet of the relative speed of the merging vehicle. The merging position may also be predicted taking into consideration the relative positions of surrounding vehicles such as those in front of and behind the host vehicle.

[0052] Alternatively, a machine learning model such as a neural network may be used as the prediction model. The machine learning model learns in advance through machine learning the relationship between previously acquired input data and output data. The past input data for learning includes at least one or both of feature quantities of the position and speed of the merging vehicle, such as the relative position and relative speed of the merging vehicle with respect to the host vehicle, the distance from the merging vehicle to the end of the merging lane, and the relative positions of vehicles in front and behind the host vehicle. The past output data for learning includes at least the merging result of the merging vehicle in front or behind the host vehicle, and may also include the distance in front of and behind the merging vehicle with respect to the host vehicle at the time of merging.

[0053] Here, machine learning refers to a general term for methods of building predictive models based on past data, and also includes methods of adjusting boundary parameters, etc. based on past data.

[0054] Because it is difficult to formulate the behavior of merging vehicles based on various motivations, machine learning makes it possible to create a predictive model based on past data that would be difficult for humans to design. However, machine learning does not formulate physical phenomena to calculate collision risk, so using it alone can be dangerous. Even if a predictive model is configured to input information useful for calculating collision risk, such as the time to collision between the host vehicle and a merging vehicle, the predictive model only directly learns the relationship between input and output. Therefore, it does not explicitly calculate the physical collision risk between the host vehicle and a merging vehicle internally, and it may calculate a low collision risk even in situations where a collision is clearly imminent. Therefore, in this embodiment, safety can be ensured by providing a collision avoidance support unit 55 that calculates the collision risk and provides driving support, rather than providing driving support solely based on a machine learning predictive model.

[0055] It should be noted that various other known methods may be used to predict the merging behavior of a merging vehicle into the own lane.

[0056] 1-1-4. Merging Support Department 53 The merging support unit 53 supports at least the driving of the host vehicle so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the prediction result of the merging behavior of the merging vehicle. Note that the driving support of the merging support unit 53 is implemented when the driving support selection unit 56 determines that the merging support of the merging support unit 53 should be implemented.

[0057] For example, the merging support unit 53 supports at least the driving of the host vehicle so as to ensure a sufficient inter-vehicle distance between the host vehicle and the merging vehicle at the time of merging, based on the predicted merging behavior of the merging vehicle. Specifically, when it is predicted that the merging vehicle will merge in front of the host vehicle, the merging support unit 53 decelerates the host vehicle so as to ensure a sufficient inter-vehicle distance, and when it is predicted that the merging vehicle will merge behind the host vehicle, the merging support unit 53 accelerates the host vehicle so as to ensure a sufficient inter-vehicle distance.

[0058] The merging support unit 53 sets the target speed to a value that is an increase or decrease from the current speed of the host vehicle or the target speed, and changes one or both of the output of the powered machine 8 and the braking force of the brakes so that the speed of the host vehicle follows the target speed. The merging support unit 53 may also change the host vehicle to an adjacent lane based on the predicted merging behavior of the merging vehicle. In this way, the merging support unit 53 calculates a control value for the vehicle driving of the host vehicle as driving support for the host vehicle.

[0059] Various other known methods may be used to support at least the driving of the vehicle itself so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the predicted results of the merging behavior of the merging vehicle.

[0060] The merging support unit 53 may generate guidance information to prompt the driver of the vehicle to drive in a manner that corresponds to the driving support of the vehicle, and notify the driver of the guidance information. The guidance information includes information to prompt the driver to decelerate, accelerate, or change lanes to facilitate smooth driving when merging. The guidance information is output from the human interface device 37, such as a speaker or a display screen.

[0061] Furthermore, in addition to the driving of the own vehicle, the driving of merging vehicles may also be supported, or the driving of surrounding vehicles may also be supported.

[0062] 1-1-5. Movement prediction unit 54 and collision avoidance support unit 55 The movement prediction unit 54 predicts the movement of the own vehicle and the movement of the merging vehicle based on the movement information of the own vehicle, the movement information of the merging vehicle, the lane information of the own lane (target lane), and the lane information of the merging lane.

[0063] As a simple method, the movement prediction unit 54 predicts the time-series position of the host vehicle when the host vehicle travels along the host lane at its current speed. The movement prediction unit 54 predicts the time-series position of a merging vehicle when the merging vehicle travels along the merging lane at its current speed. The acceleration of each vehicle may be taken into consideration when making these predictions.

[0064] Alternatively, if the host vehicle is in autonomous driving and a time-series target driving trajectory is set, the movement prediction unit 54 may predict the target driving trajectory of the host vehicle as a time-series movement of the host vehicle. Also, the lateral speed and acceleration of the merging vehicle may be taken into consideration.

[0065] The collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates the collision risk between the host vehicle and the merging vehicle based on the predicted movement of the host vehicle and the predicted movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the driving of the host vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk. Note that the driving support of the collision avoidance support unit 55 is implemented when the driving support selection unit 56 determines that the collision avoidance support of the collision avoidance support unit 55 should be implemented.

[0066] For example, as shown in Fig. 11, the collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates the relative distance between the position of the host vehicle and the position of a merging vehicle at each time point, and calculates the collision risk at each time point based on the relative distance at each time point. As the relative distance becomes shorter, the collision risk increases. The collision avoidance support unit 55 at least supports the driving of the host vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each time point.

[0067] If the merging vehicle is located ahead of the host vehicle at the time when the collision risk is equal to or greater than the threshold, the collision avoidance support unit 55 decelerates the host vehicle until the collision risk becomes less than the threshold, and if the merging vehicle is located behind the host vehicle, the collision avoidance support unit 55 accelerates the host vehicle or maintains the speed of the host vehicle until the collision risk becomes less than the threshold. Alternatively, the collision avoidance support unit 55 may change the host vehicle to an adjacent lane. That is, the collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates a control value for driving the host vehicle as driving support for the host vehicle.

[0068] The movement prediction unit 54 may predict, at each time point, a range of movement positions in which the vehicle itself may be located and a range of movement positions in which a merging vehicle may be located. The range prediction takes into account uncertainty and error.

[0069] The collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates the degree of overlap or separation between the movement position range of the host vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle at each time point, and calculates the collision risk at each time point based on the degree of overlap or separation at each time point. As the degree of overlap increases or the degree of separation decreases, the collision risk increases. Similarly to the above, the collision avoidance support unit 55 at least supports the driving of the host vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each time point. For example, when the movement position range of the host vehicle overlaps with the movement position range of the merging vehicle, the degree of overlap is calculated according to the overlap distance between the movement position range of the host vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle. Furthermore, when the movement position range of the host vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle are separated, the degree of separation is calculated according to the separation distance between the movement position range of the host vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle.

[0070] Alternatively, as a simple method, the collision avoidance support unit 55 may calculate a time to collision (TTC) as a collision risk based on the relative distance and relative speed between the host vehicle and a merging vehicle. For example, the time to collision is calculated by dividing the relative distance by the relative speed. The collision avoidance support unit 55 at least supports the driving of the host vehicle so as to increase the time to collision.

[0071] <Select from multiple movement patterns> The movement prediction unit 54 may select a movement pattern with a high selection probability from among a plurality of movement patterns that the merging vehicle can take, and predict the movement of the merging vehicle based on the selected movement pattern.

[0072] For example, in the example shown in FIG. 12, movement pattern A, in which the vehicle merges in the middle of the merging lane, and movement pattern B, in which the vehicle merges near the end of the merging lane, are possible. In this situation, if the merging vehicle is already traveling faster than the vehicle, B may be more likely to allow safer merging while maintaining a sufficient inter-vehicle distance between the merging vehicle and the vehicle than A. In such a case, highly accurate assistance is possible by assuming that the merging vehicle will select B and predicting the movement of the merging vehicle at B. Conversely, if the merging vehicle merges with ample time to reach the end of the merging lane, it may be assumed that the merging vehicle will select A.

[0073] Note that various other known methods may be used to predict the movement of the host vehicle and the movement of a merging vehicle, to calculate the collision risk, or to assist at least the travel of the host vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk.

[0074] The collision avoidance support unit 55 may generate guidance information to prompt the driver of the vehicle to drive in a manner that corresponds to the driving support of the vehicle, and notify the driver of the guidance information. The guidance information includes information to prompt the driver to decelerate, accelerate, or change lanes to avoid a collision with a merging vehicle. The guidance information is output from the human interface device 37, such as a speaker or a display screen.

[0075] Furthermore, in addition to the driving of the own vehicle, the driving of merging vehicles may also be supported, or the driving of surrounding vehicles may also be supported.

[0076] 1-1-6. Driving support selection unit 56 The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to perform driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 or by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, and causes the determined merging assistance unit 53 or collision avoidance assistance unit 55 to perform driving assistance.

[0077] As described above, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts the merging behavior of a merging vehicle into the own lane, and the merging support unit 53 supports at least the driving of the own vehicle so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the predicted result of the merging behavior. Therefore, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 and the merging support unit 53 provide rough driving support so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the rough prediction result of the merging behavior. Meanwhile, the movement prediction unit 54 predicts the movement of the own vehicle and the movement of the merging vehicle, and the collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates the collision risk between the own vehicle and the merging vehicle based on the predicted result of the movement of the own vehicle and the merging vehicle, and supports at least the driving of the own vehicle so that the collision risk is reduced. Therefore, the movement prediction unit 54 and the collision avoidance support unit 55 calculate the collision risk based on the movement of each vehicle, thereby providing driving support that more reliably avoids collisions.

[0078] The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, and accordingly, it is possible to appropriately switch between rough driving assistance that makes driving smoother when merging and driving assistance that reliably avoids collisions, depending on the situation.

[0079] 1-1-6-1. Determining driving assistance based on the relative positions of merging vehicles and merging points The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point of the own lane and the merging lane.

[0080] There are several methods for determining whether to provide driving assistance based on the positional relationship between the merging vehicle and the merging point, as described below. Each method may be used independently, or multiple determination results from multiple methods may be evaluated comprehensively. Each method is described below.

[0081] <Determining driving assistance based on the distance between the merging vehicle and the merging point> The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 when the distance between the merging vehicle and the merging point is less than a threshold value, and otherwise determines to implement driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53. The threshold value may be changed based on the speed of the merging vehicle, the type of merging lane, etc.

[0082] 13, when the merging vehicle is further away from the merging point than the threshold, the merging support unit 53 can provide rough driving support to the merging point in advance to ensure smooth driving at the time of merging. On the other hand, when the merging vehicle approaches the merging point, if the merging vehicle cannot stop, it will be forced to merge, increasing the likelihood that the merging will actually occur. Therefore, when the distance between the merging vehicle and the merging point is less than the threshold, the collision avoidance support unit 55 can provide driving support to more reliably avoid a collision.

[0083] <Method of determining driving assistance based on predicted arrival time at merging point> The driving assistance selection unit 56 predicts the estimated arrival time of the merging vehicle to the merging point based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point, and determines whether to implement driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 based on the estimated arrival time. For example, the estimated arrival time is calculated by dividing the distance from the merging vehicle to the merging point by the speed of the merging vehicle or the legal speed limit of the merging lane. The acceleration of the merging vehicle may also be taken into consideration.

[0084] For example, the driving assistance selection unit 56 decides to implement driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 when the predicted arrival time of the merging vehicle is less than a threshold value, and otherwise decides to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53.

[0085] According to this configuration, when the predicted arrival time is equal to or greater than the threshold, the merging support unit 53 can provide rough driving support to the merging point in advance to ensure smooth driving when merging. On the other hand, when the predicted arrival time is short, the merging vehicle will be forced to merge if it cannot stop, increasing the likelihood that the merging will actually occur. Therefore, when the predicted arrival time is less than the threshold, the collision avoidance support unit 55 can provide driving support to more reliably avoid a collision.

[0086] <Determining driving assistance based on the possibility of stopping a merging vehicle> The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines the possibility of the merging vehicle being able to stop at the merging point based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point, and based on the possibility of stopping, decides whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55.

[0087] For example, the driving support selection unit 56 calculates the distance (stopping distance) that the merging vehicle will need to stop by taking a specific deceleration action based on the speed of the merging vehicle, and determines that the merging vehicle can stop if the stopping distance is less than the distance from the merging vehicle to the merging point, and otherwise determines that the merging vehicle cannot stop. The specific deceleration action is set to sudden braking to prevent a collision, etc.

[0088] For example, if the merging vehicle cannot stop, the driving assistance selection unit 56 decides to implement driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, and if the merging vehicle can stop, it decides to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53.

[0089] According to this configuration, if the merging vehicle cannot stop in the merging lane, even if there is a possibility of a collision, the merging vehicle is more likely to merge into the own lane without stopping in the merging lane. Therefore, when the merging vehicle cannot stop, the collision avoidance support unit 55 provides driving support to avoid the collision, thereby making it possible to avoid the collision. On the other hand, when the merging vehicle can stop in the merging lane, the merging vehicle can stop in the merging lane if there is a possibility of a collision. Therefore, it is not necessarily necessary for the collision avoidance support unit 55 to provide driving support to avoid the collision, and the merging support unit 53 can provide rough driving support in advance to the merging point to ensure smooth driving when merging.

[0090] 1-1-6-2. Determining driving assistance based on the relative positions of the vehicle and merging vehicles The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to perform driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the vehicle itself. Here, the positional relationship is not limited to a simple relationship between positions, but may also include information related to the relationship between positions, such as a change in the positional relationship over time, i.e., a speed relationship.

[0091] There are several methods for determining whether to provide cruise assistance based on the relative positions of the merging vehicle and the vehicle itself, as will be described below. Each method may be used independently, or multiple determination results from multiple methods may be evaluated comprehensively. Each method will be described below.

[0092] <Determining driving assistance based on the distance between the merging vehicle and the vehicle> The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 when the distance between the merging vehicle and the vehicle itself is less than a threshold value, and otherwise determines to implement driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53. The threshold value may be changed based on the relative speed, the type of merging lane, etc.

[0093] According to this configuration, when the distance between the merging vehicle and the host vehicle is equal to or greater than the threshold, the possibility of a collision between the merging vehicle and the host vehicle is low, and therefore the merging support unit 53 can provide rough driving support to ensure smooth driving when merging. On the other hand, when the distance between the merging vehicle and the host vehicle becomes close, there is a possibility of a collision between the merging vehicle and the host vehicle if merging is performed. Therefore, when the distance between the merging vehicle and the host vehicle becomes less than the threshold, the collision avoidance support unit 55 can provide driving support to more reliably avoid a collision.

[0094] <Method of determining driving assistance based on collision probability> The driving assistance selection unit 56 determines the possibility of a collision between the merging vehicle and the vehicle itself based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the vehicle itself, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 based on the possibility of collision.

[0095] For example, the driving assistance selection unit 56 calculates a time to collision as a collision possibility based on the relative distance and relative speed of the merging vehicle relative to the vehicle itself, and when the time to collision is less than a threshold, determines to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, and otherwise determines to implement driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53. For example, the time to collision is calculated by dividing the relative distance by the relative speed.

[0096] According to this configuration, when the time to collision is less than the threshold, the possibility of a collision is increasing, and the collision avoidance support unit 55 can provide driving support to avoid a collision. On the other hand, when the time to collision is equal to or greater than the threshold, the possibility of a collision is low, and the merging support unit 53 can provide rough driving support to ensure smooth driving when merging.

[0097] <Decision method for driving assistance based on mutual stopping possibility> Based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the subject vehicle, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines the possibility of the merging vehicle slowing down or stopping without colliding with the subject vehicle, or the possibility of the subject vehicle slowing down or stopping without colliding with the merging vehicle, and based on the possibility of deceleration and stopping, decides whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55.

[0098] For example, when the host vehicle travels at a constant speed and the merging vehicle decelerates, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether the merging vehicle can decelerate or stop without colliding with the host vehicle. When the merging vehicle travels at a constant speed and the host vehicle decelerates, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether the host vehicle can decelerate or stop without colliding with the merging vehicle. In either case, if it is determined that deceleration or stopping is impossible, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, and in either case, if it is not determined that deceleration or stopping is impossible, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines to implement driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53. The vehicle that travels at a constant speed and the vehicle that decelerates may be determined based on the front-to-back relationship between the merging vehicle and the host vehicle, or the vehicle that travels at a constant speed and the vehicle that decelerates may be determined based on the lane priority between the merging lane and the host vehicle's lane.

[0099] According to this configuration, if it is determined that deceleration or stopping is not possible, the possibility of a collision is high, and the collision avoidance support unit 55 can provide driving support to avoid the collision. On the other hand, if it is determined that deceleration or stopping is possible, the possibility of a collision is low, and the merging support unit 53 can provide rough driving support to ensure smooth driving when merging.

[0100] 1-1-6-3. Final driving assistance decision As described above, there are multiple possible methods for determining driving assistance. It is sufficient to execute one or more predetermined driving assistance determination methods among the multiple driving assistance determination methods. When multiple driving assistance determination methods are executed, the driving assistance selection unit 56 comprehensively evaluates the determination results of the multiple driving assistance determination methods and makes a final decision on whether to execute driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55.

[0101] For example, if priority is placed on collision avoidance, the driving assistance selection unit 56 may make a final decision to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 if there is at least one decision result to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 among the decision results obtained by multiple driving assistance decision methods, and may make a final decision to implement driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 in all other cases.

[0102] To balance collision avoidance and smooth merging, if there are N or more determination results from a plurality of driving support determination methods that result in the execution of driving support by the collision avoidance support unit 55, the driving support selection unit 56 makes a final determination to execute driving support by the collision avoidance support unit 55, and in all other cases, makes a final determination to execute driving support by the merging support unit 53. N is set to an integer equal to or greater than 2, and is adjusted depending on the degree of balance between the two.

[0103] 1-1-7. Flowchart 14 is a flowchart illustrating the processing of the driving assistance system 1 according to this embodiment. The processing of FIG. 14 is executed, for example, at predetermined calculation intervals.

[0104] In step S01, as described above, the information acquisition unit 51 acquires movement information of the subject vehicle (target vehicle), movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into the subject vehicle's lane (target lane) in which the subject vehicle is traveling, lane information of the subject vehicle's lane, and lane information of the merging lane.

[0105] In step S02, as described above, driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to implement driving assistance by merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance by collision avoidance assistance unit 55. If it is determined that driving assistance by merging assistance unit 53 is to be implemented, the process proceeds to step S03, where the merging assistance unit 53 is caused to implement driving assistance, and if it is determined that driving assistance by collision avoidance assistance unit 55 is to be implemented, the process proceeds to step S05, where the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 is caused to implement driving assistance. In the present embodiment, the method for determining driving assistance is the same as that described above, and a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0106] In step S03, as described above, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the own lane based on the movement information of the own vehicle, the movement information of the merging vehicle, the lane information of the own lane, and the lane information of the merging lane. In this embodiment, the merging behavior is predicted using the prediction method described above, and a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0107] In step S04, as described above, the merging support unit 53 supports at least the driving of the host vehicle so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the predicted result of the merging behavior of the merging vehicle.

[0108] On the other hand, in step S05, as described above, the movement prediction unit 54 predicts the movement of the own vehicle and the movement of the merging vehicle based on the movement information of the own vehicle, the movement information of the merging vehicle, the lane information of the own lane, and the lane information of the merging lane. In this embodiment, the prediction method described above is used to predict the movement of each vehicle, and a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0109] In step S06, as described above, the collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates the collision risk between the host vehicle and the merging vehicle based on the predicted results of the movement of the host vehicle and the predicted results of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the traveling of the host vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk. In this embodiment, the calculation method described above is used to calculate the collision risk, and a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0110] In step S07, the vehicle control unit 57 controls the driving of the vehicle in accordance with the driving assistance command from the merging assistance unit 53 or the collision avoidance assistance unit 55. When the driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 is guidance information that prompts the driver to drive in a manner that corresponds to the driving assistance, the guidance information is output by the human interface device 37, such as a speaker or a display screen.

[0111] 2. Second Embodiment Next, a driving assistance system 1 according to embodiment 2 will be described. Description of components similar to those of embodiment 1 will be omitted. The basic configuration of the driving assistance system 1 according to this embodiment is similar to that of embodiment 1, but differs from embodiment 1 in that the driving assistance selection unit 56 uses the prediction results of the movement of each vehicle by the movement prediction unit 54.

[0112] In this embodiment, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 based on the predicted results of the movement of the vehicle itself and the predicted results of the movement of the merging vehicle by the movement prediction unit 54.

[0113] With this configuration, based on the predicted movement of the vehicle itself and the merging vehicle, the collision avoidance support unit 55 can accurately determine whether the situation requires avoiding a collision, or whether the possibility of a collision is low and the merging support unit 53 can facilitate smooth driving when merging.

[0114] For example, similar to the collision avoidance support unit 55, the driving support selection unit 56 calculates the collision risk between the subject vehicle and a merging vehicle based on the predicted results of the movement of the subject vehicle and the predicted results of the movement of the merging vehicle, and determines, based on the collision risk, whether to implement driving support by the merging support unit 53 or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit 55. Specifically, if the collision risk is equal to or greater than a threshold, the driving support selection unit 56 determines to implement driving support by the collision avoidance support unit 55, and if the collision risk is less than the threshold, determines to implement driving support by the merging support unit 53.

[0115] The collision risk is calculated using the same method as that used by the collision avoidance support unit 55 described in the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. Note that the collision risk calculation process of the collision avoidance support unit 55 may be executed before the driving support selection unit 56 is executed, and the calculated collision risk may be used in the driving support selection unit 56.

[0116] 15 is a flowchart illustrating the processing of the driving assistance system 1 according to this embodiment. The processing of FIG. 15 is executed, for example, at predetermined calculation intervals.

[0117] In step S11, as described in embodiment 1, the information acquisition unit 51 acquires movement information of the subject vehicle (target vehicle), movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into the subject vehicle's lane (target lane) in which the subject vehicle is traveling, lane information of the subject vehicle's lane, and lane information of the merging lane.

[0118] In step S12, as described in embodiment 1, the movement prediction unit 54 predicts the movement of the vehicle itself and the movement of the merging vehicle based on the movement information of the vehicle itself, the movement information of the merging vehicle, the lane information of the vehicle itself, and the lane information of the merging lane.

[0119] In step S13, as described above, the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines whether to perform driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 or driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55, based on the prediction result of the movement of the host vehicle and the prediction result of the movement of the merging vehicle by the movement prediction unit 54. Then, if it is determined that driving assistance by the merging assistance unit 53 is to be performed, the process proceeds to step S14, where the merging assistance unit 53 is caused to perform driving assistance, and if it is determined that driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 is to be performed, the process proceeds to step S16, where the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 is caused to perform driving assistance.

[0120] In step S14, as described in embodiment 1, the merging behavior prediction unit 52 predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the own lane based on the movement information of the own vehicle, the movement information of the merging vehicle, the lane information of the own lane, and the lane information of the merging lane.

[0121] In step S15, as described in the first embodiment, the merging support unit 53 supports at least the driving of the host vehicle based on the predicted merging behavior of the merging vehicle so that driving at the time of merging will be smooth.

[0122] On the other hand, in step S16, as described in embodiment 1, the collision avoidance support unit 55 calculates the risk of collision between the vehicle and the merging vehicle based on the predicted movement of the vehicle and the predicted movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the driving of the vehicle so as to reduce the risk of collision.

[0123] In step S17, as described in the first embodiment, the vehicle control unit 57 controls the driving of the vehicle in accordance with the driving assistance command from the merging assistance unit 53 or the collision avoidance assistance unit 55. When the driving assistance from the merging assistance unit 53 or the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 is guidance information that prompts the driver to drive in a manner that corresponds to the driving assistance, the guidance information is output by the human interface device 37 such as a speaker or a display screen.

[0124] 3. Embodiment 3 Next, a driving assistance system 1 according to embodiment 3 will be described. Description of components that are the same as those in embodiment 1 will be omitted. The basic configuration of the driving assistance system 1 according to this embodiment is the same as that of embodiment 1, but the number of merging assistance units 53 and collision avoidance assistance units 55 differs from that of embodiment 1.

[0125] In this embodiment, a single merging support unit 53 or a plurality of merging support units 53 capable of performing different driving support functions, and a single collision avoidance support unit 55 or a plurality of collision avoidance support units 55 capable of performing different driving support functions are provided. The total number of merging support units 53 and collision avoidance support units 55 is set to 3 or more. Then, a driving support selection unit 56 determines which of the single or multiple merging support units 53 and the single or multiple collision avoidance support units 55 will perform driving support.

[0126] This configuration increases the types of driving assistance that can be selected, allowing for more flexible driving assistance.

[0127] 16, a case will be described in which first and second merging support units 53a and 53b and one collision avoidance support unit 55 are provided. Also, a first merging behavior prediction unit 52a for the first merging support unit 53a and a second merging behavior prediction unit 52b for the second merging support unit 53b are provided.

[0128] In this embodiment, if the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines that the merging vehicle can stop by the merging point and the distance between the merging vehicle and the merging point is equal to or greater than a threshold, the driving assistance selection unit 56 decides to implement driving assistance by the first merging assistance unit 53a and causes the first merging assistance unit 53a to provide driving assistance. If the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines that the merging vehicle can stop by the merging point and the distance between the merging vehicle and the merging point is less than a threshold, the driving assistance selection unit 56 decides to implement driving assistance by the second merging assistance unit 53b and causes the second merging assistance unit 53b to provide driving assistance. On the other hand, if the driving assistance selection unit 56 determines that the merging vehicle cannot stop by the merging point, the driving assistance selection unit 56 decides to implement driving assistance by the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 and causes the collision avoidance assistance unit 55 to provide driving assistance. The method described in the first embodiment is used for making the determination in each case.

[0129] The first merging behavior prediction unit 52a predicts the merging behavior of a merging vehicle into the own lane using a prediction model. The prediction method using the prediction model is the same as in embodiment 1, so a description thereof will be omitted. The first merging support unit 53a supports at least the driving of the own vehicle so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the prediction result of the merging behavior by the first merging behavior prediction unit 52a. The content of the predictive driving support is the same as in embodiment 1, so a description thereof will be omitted.

[0130] The second merging behavior prediction unit 52b predicts that the merging vehicle will merge in front of the host vehicle when the merging vehicle is traveling ahead of the host vehicle, and predicts that the merging vehicle will merge behind the host vehicle when the merging vehicle is traveling behind the host vehicle. The second merging support unit 53b supports at least the driving of the host vehicle so that driving at the time of merging is smooth based on the prediction result of the merging behavior by the second merging behavior prediction unit 52b. Since the first merging behavior prediction unit 52a and the second merging behavior prediction unit 52b use different methods of predicting merging behavior, the results of driving support may differ between the first merging support unit 53a and the second merging support unit 53b.

[0131] The configurations of the movement prediction unit 54 and the collision avoidance support unit 55 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore description thereof will be omitted. Note that a plurality of collision avoidance support units 55 may be provided. Each of the plurality of collision avoidance support units 55 calculates the collision risk using a mutually different method. Since the collision risk calculation methods are different, the results of driving support may differ from one another.

[0132] 4. Embodiment 4 Next, a driving assistance system 1 according to embodiment 4 will be described. Description of components that are the same as those in embodiment 1 will be omitted. The basic configuration of the driving assistance system 1 according to this embodiment is the same as that of embodiment 1.

[0133] In the above-described embodiments, the driving assistance system 1 is provided in the subject vehicle (target vehicle). In the present embodiments, part or all of the driving assistance system 1 is provided in a server connected to a network.

[0134] For example, in autonomous driving in limited areas such as logistics centers and factories, vehicles within the area may be controlled by a control server, and even in such cases, the driving assistance system 1 can be used. Alternatively, in a vehicle that can travel on public roads, part or all of the driving assistance system 1 is provided in a server connected to a network in order to reduce the calculation processing load of the vehicle control device 50.

[0135] The target vehicle is set to each controlled vehicle that exists within the area controlled by the driving assistance system 1, and driving assistance similar to that in each of the above-described embodiments can be provided to each controlled vehicle.

[0136] The information acquisition unit 51 acquires, via communication, movement information of each target vehicle, movement information of each merging vehicle traveling in each merging lane merging into each target lane in which each target vehicle is traveling, lane information of each target lane, and lane information of each merging lane from each control target vehicle and a monitoring device monitoring the area. The merging behavior prediction unit 52, merging support unit 53, movement prediction unit 54, collision avoidance support unit 55, and driving support selection unit 56 then perform the same processing as in each embodiment for each target vehicle and a merging vehicle corresponding to each target vehicle, and provide driving support for at least each target vehicle. The details of driving support for each vehicle are transmitted to each vehicle via communication.

[0137] <Summary of various aspects of the present application> Various aspects of the present application will be summarized below as appendices. (Appendix 1) an information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether the driving support of the merging support unit or the driving support of the collision avoidance support unit is to be performed, and causes the determined merging support unit or the collision avoidance support unit to perform the driving support; A driving assistance system equipped with

[0138] (Appendix 2) 2. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the merging behavior prediction unit predicts the merging behavior without calculating the collision risk based on a predicted result of movement of each vehicle.

[0139] (Appendix 3) 3. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the merging behavior prediction unit predicts the merging behavior using a prediction model that receives as input at least one or both of feature quantities of the position and speed of the merging vehicle and outputs a prediction result of the merging position of the merging vehicle in front of or behind the target vehicle.

[0140] (Appendix 4) The driving assistance system according to any one of appendixes 1 to 3, wherein the merging assistance unit assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to ensure a sufficient inter-vehicle distance between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior.

[0141] (Appendix 5) 5. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the collision avoidance assistance unit calculates a distance between a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle at each time point, calculates the collision risk at each time point based on the distance at each time point, and assists the driving of at least the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each time point.

[0142] (Appendix 6) the movement prediction unit predicts, at each time point, a movement position range in which the target vehicle may be located and a movement position range in which the merging vehicle may be located; The driving assistance system according to any one of appendices 1 to 5, wherein the collision avoidance assistance unit calculates, at each time point, the degree of overlap or separation between the movement position range of the target vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle, calculates the collision risk at each time point based on the degree of overlap or the degree of separation at each time point, and assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each time point.

[0143] (Appendix 7) 7. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the movement prediction unit selects a movement pattern with a high probability of selection from a plurality of movement patterns that the merging vehicle can take, and predicts the movement of the merging vehicle based on the selected movement pattern.

[0144] (Appendix 8) The driving assistance system according to any one of appendixes 1 to 7, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the positions of the merging point of the target lane and the merging lane.

[0145] (Appendix 9) The driving assistance system described in Appendix 8, wherein the driving assistance selection unit predicts a predicted arrival time for the merging vehicle to arrive at the merging point based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the predicted arrival time.

[0146] (Appendix 10) The driving assistance system described in Appendix 8, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines a stopping possibility for the merging vehicle to stop at the merging point of the target lane and the merging lane based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the stopping possibility.

[0147] (Appendix 11) 10. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle.

[0148] (Appendix 12) The driving assistance system described in Appendix 11, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines a possibility of a collision between the merging vehicle and the target vehicle based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the possibility of collision.

[0149] (Appendix 13) The driving assistance system according to any one of appendixes 1 to 7, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines a deceleration and stopping possibility that the merging vehicle can decelerate or stop without colliding with the target vehicle, or a deceleration and stopping possibility that the target vehicle can decelerate or stop without colliding with the merging vehicle, based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the deceleration and stopping possibility.

[0150] (Appendix 14) The driving assistance system according to any one of appendixes 1 to 7, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the predicted movement of the target vehicle and the predicted movement of the merging vehicle by the movement prediction unit.

[0151] (Appendix 15) a single merging support unit or a plurality of merging support units capable of performing mutually different driving supports, and a single collision avoidance support unit or a plurality of collision avoidance support units capable of performing mutually different driving supports, 15. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines which of the merging assistance units or the collision avoidance assistance units to implement driving assistance.

[0152] (Appendix 16) 16. The driving assistance system according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein the merging assistance unit and the collision avoidance assistance unit calculate a control value for vehicle driving as driving assistance.

[0153] (Appendix 17) 16. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the merging assistance unit and the collision avoidance assistance unit generate guidance information that prompts a driver to drive in a manner that corresponds to the driving assistance, and notify the driver of the guidance information.

[0154] (Appendix 18) 18. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the information acquisition unit is capable of acquiring movement information of the merging vehicle and lane information of the merging lane via communication from outside the target vehicle.

[0155] (Appendix 19) 19. The driving assistance system according to any one of appendices 1 to 18, wherein a part or all of the driving assistance system is provided in a server.

[0156] (Appendix 20) The driving assistance system is a driving assistance system according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 18, which is provided in the target vehicle.

[0157] (Appendix 21) an information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; A driving assistance method comprising:

[0158] Although various exemplary embodiments and examples are described in this application, the various features, aspects, and functions described in one or more embodiments are not limited to the application of a particular embodiment, but may be applied to the embodiments alone or in various combinations. Therefore, countless variations not illustrated are contemplated within the scope of the technology disclosed in this specification. For example, this includes cases where at least one component is modified, added, or omitted, or where at least one component is extracted and combined with components of another embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0159] 1 Driving assistance system, 51 Information acquisition unit, 52 Merging behavior prediction unit, 53 Merging assistance unit, 54 Movement prediction unit, 55 Collision avoidance assistance unit, 56 Driving assistance selection unit

Claims

1. an information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether to perform driving support by the merging support unit or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit, and causes the determined merging support unit or collision avoidance support unit to perform driving support, the movement prediction unit predicts a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle at each future time point; The collision avoidance assistance unit calculates the distance between the position of the target vehicle and the position of the merging vehicle at each future point in time, calculates the collision risk at each future point in time based on the distance at each future point in time, and assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each future point in time.

2. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the merging behavior prediction unit predicts the merging behavior without calculating the collision risk based on a predicted result of movement of each vehicle.

3. 2. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the merging behavior prediction unit predicts the merging behavior using a prediction model that receives as input at least one or both of feature quantities of the position and speed of the merging vehicle and outputs a prediction result of the merging position of the merging vehicle ahead of or behind the target vehicle.

4. 2. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the merging assistance unit assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to ensure a sufficient inter-vehicle distance between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle when merging, based on the prediction result of the merging behavior.

5. An information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether to perform driving support by the merging support unit or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit, and causes the determined merging support unit or collision avoidance support unit to perform driving support, the movement prediction unit predicts a movement position range in which the target vehicle may be located and a movement position range in which the merging vehicle may be located at each future time point before and after the merging; The collision avoidance assistance unit calculates the degree of overlap or separation between the movement position range of the target vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle at each future point in time, calculates the collision risk at each future point in time based on the degree of overlap or separation at each future point in time, and assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each future point in time.

6. An information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether to perform driving support by the merging support unit or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit, and causes the determined merging support unit or collision avoidance support unit to perform driving support, The movement prediction unit selects a movement pattern with a high probability of selection from multiple movement patterns that the merging vehicle can take, and predicts the movement of the merging vehicle based on the selected movement pattern.

7. An information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether to perform driving support by the merging support unit or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit, and causes the determined merging support unit or collision avoidance support unit to perform driving support, The driving assistance selection unit determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point of the target lane and the merging lane.

8. 8. The driving assistance system according to claim 7, wherein the driving assistance selection unit predicts a predicted arrival time for the merging vehicle to arrive at the merging point based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the merging point, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the predicted arrival time.

9. 8. The driving assistance system according to claim 7, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines a stopping possibility that the merging vehicle can stop at the merging point between the target lane and the merging lane, based on a positional relationship between a position of the merging vehicle and a position of the merging point, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit, based on the stopping possibility.

10. 2. The driving assistance system according to claim 1, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle.

11. 11. The driving assistance system according to claim 10, wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines a possibility of a collision between the merging vehicle and the target vehicle based on a positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle, and determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the possibility of collision.

12. An information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether to perform driving support by the merging support unit or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit, and causes the determined merging support unit or collision avoidance support unit to perform driving support, The driving assistance selection unit determines the possibility of the merging vehicle slowing down or stopping without colliding with the target vehicle, or the possibility of the target vehicle slowing down or stopping without colliding with the merging vehicle, based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle, and decides whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the possibility of deceleration and stopping.

13. An information acquisition unit that acquires movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction unit that predicts the merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support unit that supports at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the prediction result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction unit that predicts movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support unit that calculates a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supports at least the travel of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving support selection unit that determines whether to perform driving support by the merging support unit or driving support by the collision avoidance support unit, and causes the determined merging support unit or collision avoidance support unit to perform driving support, The driving assistance selection unit determines whether to implement driving assistance from the merging assistance unit or driving assistance from the collision avoidance assistance unit based on the predicted movement of the target vehicle by the movement prediction unit and the predicted movement of the merging vehicle.

14. a single merging support unit or a plurality of merging support units capable of performing mutually different driving supports, and a single collision avoidance support unit or a plurality of collision avoidance support units capable of performing mutually different driving supports, The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the driving assistance selection unit determines whether driving assistance is to be provided by one or more of the merging assistance units or one or more of the collision avoidance assistance units.

15. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the merging assistance unit and the collision avoidance assistance unit calculate a control value for vehicle driving as driving assistance.

16. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the merging assistance unit and the collision avoidance assistance unit generate, as driving assistance, guidance information that prompts a driver to drive in a manner that corresponds to the driving assistance, and notify the driver of the guidance information.

17. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the information acquisition unit is capable of acquiring movement information of the merging vehicle and lane information of the merging lane from outside the target vehicle via communication.

18. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein a part or all of the driving assistance system is provided in a server.

19. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the driving assistance system is provided in the target vehicle.

20. an information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with In the movement prediction step, a position of the target vehicle and a position of the merging vehicle are predicted at each future time point; In the collision avoidance assistance step, the distance between the position of the target vehicle and the position of the merging vehicle is calculated at each future point in time, the collision risk at each future point in time is calculated based on the distance at each future point in time, and the driving assistance method assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each future point in time.

21. An information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with In the movement prediction step, a movement position range in which the target vehicle may be located and a movement position range in which the merging vehicle may be located are predicted at each future time point before and after the merging; In the collision avoidance assistance step, the degree of overlap or separation between the movement position range of the target vehicle and the movement position range of the merging vehicle is calculated at each future point in time, the collision risk at each future point in time is calculated based on the degree of overlap or the degree of separation at each future point in time, and the driving assistance method assists at least the driving of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk at each future point in time.

22. An information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with The movement prediction step is a driving assistance method in which a movement pattern with a high selection probability is selected from a plurality of movement patterns that the merging vehicle can take, and the movement of the merging vehicle is predicted based on the selected movement pattern.

23. An information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with In the driving assistance selection step, it is determined whether to implement driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the positions of the merging point of the target lane and the merging lane.

24. An information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with In the driving assistance selection step, a deceleration and stopping possibility that the merging vehicle can decelerate or stop without colliding with the target vehicle or a deceleration and stopping possibility that the target vehicle can decelerate or stop without colliding with the merging vehicle is determined based on the positional relationship between the position of the merging vehicle and the position of the target vehicle, and a driving assistance method is provided in which, based on the deceleration and stopping possibility, it is decided whether to implement driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step.

25. An information acquisition step of acquiring movement information of a target vehicle, movement information of a merging vehicle traveling in a merging lane that merges into a target lane in which the target vehicle is traveling, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging behavior prediction step of predicting a merging behavior of the merging vehicle into the target lane based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a merging support step of supporting at least the target vehicle's driving so that the target vehicle can smoothly drive at the time of merging based on the predicted result of the merging behavior; a movement prediction step of predicting movements of the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on movement information of the target vehicle, movement information of the merging vehicle, lane information of the target lane, and lane information of the merging lane; a collision avoidance support step of calculating a collision risk between the target vehicle and the merging vehicle based on a predicted result of the movement of the target vehicle and a predicted result of the movement of the merging vehicle, and supporting at least the traveling of the target vehicle so as to reduce the collision risk; a driving assistance selection step of determining whether to perform driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step, and causing the determined driving assistance to be performed in the merging assistance step or the collision avoidance assistance step; Equipped with In the driving assistance selection step, it is determined whether to implement driving assistance in the merging assistance step or driving assistance in the collision avoidance assistance step based on the predicted results of the movement of the target vehicle by the movement prediction step and the predicted results of the movement of the merging vehicle.

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