Vehicle control device

Abstract

Provided, within assisted driving technology, is a vehicle control device with which an algorithm for calculating a fusion location of millimeter wave radar × millimeter wave radar enables highly precise and versatile sensing only with millimeter wave radar, and which takes into consideration a sensing error based on the principle of millimeter wave radar and at the same time can be applied in any system and to any scene, regardless of the millimeter wave radar characteristics or the installation location / angle / height. This invention has a first millimeter wave radar, and a second millimeter wave radar installed at a different location from that of the first millimeter wave radar. An object is sensed on the basis of: a first ranging location and a first measurement error of the object as sensed by the first millimeter wave radar; and a second ranging location and a second measurement error of the object as sensed by the second millimeter wave radar.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle control device. [Background technology]

[0002] In the field of driving assistance control for automobiles, systems that use forward sensors consisting of cameras and millimeter-wave radar to detect obstacles ahead and automatically apply the brakes to avoid a collision or mitigate damage if there is a risk of collision are becoming widely used.

[0003] In recent years, in order to further improve safety, there has been a need to be able to appropriately detect obstacles and apply the brakes even when an obstacle (pedestrian, bicycle, etc.) suddenly appears in front of the vehicle from outside the detection range of the forward sensor at intersections, crosswalks, etc. Automobile assessments around the world (for example, EuroNCAP, JNCAP, CNCAP, etc.) have introduced protocols such as intersection AEB forward pedestrian protocols that avoid collisions with pedestrians crossing the sidewalk in the same direction as the vehicle when turning at an intersection, and reverse AEB protocols that avoid collisions with pedestrians behind the vehicle when reversing.

[0004] These systems need to be able to detect obstacles well before a collision occurs, but detection using forward sensors consisting of cameras and millimeter-wave radar is insufficient for obstacles that suddenly appear in front of the vehicle from outside the detection range of the forward sensors.

[0005] Currently, due to cost considerations, cameras are not installed on the sides or rear of the vehicle, and in most cases sensing is done using millimeter-wave radar alone. However, while millimeter-wave radar is generally cheaper than cameras, it has lower detection accuracy, so there is a high risk of malfunction when controlling the vehicle based on the sensing results of only one millimeter-wave radar.

[0006] As a countermeasure, attention has been focused on millimeter-wave radar x millimeter-wave radar fusion technology, which uses two millimeter-wave radars to improve detection accuracy. For example, Patent Document 1 and the publicly known technology below are disclosed and well known.

[0007] Patent Document 1 discloses a technology in which two millimeter-wave radars with different near-far characteristics are installed facing the same direction, and the two detection points are combined using weights determined based on which millimeter-wave radar has the higher accuracy in terms of the distance range for the detection points of each millimeter-wave radar, the number of times the radar has been lost, etc., to be used as the fusion position.

[0008] In the prior art, a commonly known technique takes into account the characteristic of millimeter-wave radars that errors increase in the direction of the laser irradiation angle, defines error arcs for the detection points of each millimeter-wave radar, and then adopts the point where each error arc intersects as the fusion position. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0009] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-82973 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0010] In Patent Document 1, the detection error of the millimeter-wave radar is not taken into consideration, which may result in a decrease in the accuracy of the fusion position. In addition, since it is assumed that millimeter-wave radars with different characteristics are installed facing the same direction, there is also an issue that the applicable systems are limited.

[0011] The conventional technology assumes that there is no error in the laser irradiation direction, which deviates from reality, and there is a risk that the accuracy of the fusion position will decrease. Another issue is that the technology can only be used in scenes where each error arc has an intersection, which limits the scope of its application.

[0012] The object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle control device that is capable of highly accurate and versatile sensing using only millimeter-wave radar in driving assistance technology, by using an algorithm that calculates the fusion position of millimeter-wave radar x millimeter-wave radar, which takes into account detection errors based on the principles of millimeter-wave radar and is applicable to systems with any millimeter-wave radar characteristics, installation position / angle / height, and in any scene. [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] In order to solve the above problem, the vehicle control device of the present invention is a vehicle control device that detects objects around a vehicle and controls the vehicle, and is characterized in that it has a first millimeter-wave radar and a second millimeter-wave radar installed at a position different from the first millimeter-wave radar, and detects the object based on a first ranging position and a first measurement error of the object detected by the first millimeter-wave radar and a second ranging position and a second measurement error of the object detected by the second millimeter-wave radar. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle control device that is capable of sensing the sides, rear, etc. with high accuracy and versatility using only millimeter-wave radar.

[0015] Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration explanatory diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a system including a controller (vehicle control device) according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 5 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of a fusion program executed by a controller (vehicle control device) in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 10 is a flowchart showing a detailed processing flow of step S5 in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 10 is a bird's-eye view showing an example of an assumed scene for explaining processing S5 in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of pair determination performed in process S51 in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of error arc calculation performed in step S52 in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 4 is a map showing an example of the relationship between the linear distance R to the detection representative point and the error circular arc angle θEA in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 1 is a map showing an example of the relationship between the angle θDP formed between the direction of the detection representative point and the millimeter-wave radar base axis and the error arc angle θEA in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the decomposition of error arcs performed in step S53 in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] 10 is an explanatory diagram of fusion position calculation on each coordinate axis performed in step S54 and step S55 in the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing a detailed processing flow of step S5 in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a bird's-eye view showing an example of an assumed scene for explaining processing S5 in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of pair determination performed in process S51 in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of calculation of a base error arc performed in step S52-1 in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of error arc calculation performed in step S52-2 in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a base error arc adjustment gain Gheight depending on the difference in installation height of each millimeter-wave radar in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a base error arc adjustment gain GSN due to a difference in the SNR of each millimeter wave radar in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18]FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a base error arc adjustment gain Gri based on a difference in laser reflection intensity between millimeter wave radars in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the decomposition of error arcs performed in step S53 in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of fusion position calculation on each coordinate axis performed in step S54 and step S55 in the second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0018] [Example 1] First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0019] In this embodiment, the vehicle coordinate system is set with the front-to-rear (length) direction of the vehicle as the X axis, the left-to-right (width) direction of the vehicle as the Y axis, the center point of the vehicle's front axle as the origin, and the angle in the forward direction of the vehicle as 0 degrees, with counterclockwise angles as positive.

[0020] 1 is a configuration explanatory diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a system including a controller (vehicle control device) according to a first embodiment of the present invention. This system is a system for executing driving assistance control that detects objects around a vehicle and controls the vehicle.

[0021] This system is comprised of an external information acquisition unit H1, which is composed of an FL millimeter wave radar H11 that detects the left front, an FR millimeter wave radar H12 that detects the right front, an RL millimeter wave radar H13 that detects the left rear, and an RR millimeter wave radar H14 that detects the right rear, etc. a vehicle information acquisition unit H2 including a speed sensor H21, a steering angle sensor H22, a yaw rate sensor H23, etc.; a controller H3 that calculates fusion target information that integrates the detection results of each millimeter wave radar based on the external environment information from the external environment information acquisition unit H1 and the host vehicle information acquired by the host vehicle information acquisition unit H2, and outputs, as necessary, a warning command to the driver to avoid a collision with the fusion target, a brake command to stop the host vehicle, a steering command to turn the host vehicle, etc.; The vehicle control unit H4 is composed of an alarm device H41 that performs alarm control based on an alarm command calculated by the controller H3, a brake system H42 that performs brake control based on a brake command calculated by the controller H3, and a steering system H43 that performs steering control based on a steering command calculated by the controller H3.

[0022] The millimeter-wave radars that make up the external environment information acquisition unit H1 are installed at different positions on the vehicle. For example, the FL millimeter-wave radar H11 is installed at the front left of the vehicle, the FR millimeter-wave radar H12 is installed at the front right of the vehicle, the RL millimeter-wave radar H13 is installed at the rear left of the vehicle, and the RR millimeter-wave radar H14 is installed at the rear right of the vehicle (see also Figures 4, 12, etc.). The millimeter-wave radars that make up the external environment information acquisition unit H1 may have the same characteristics or different characteristics.

[0023] FIG. 2 shows the processing flow of the fusion program executed by the controller H3.

[0024] First, in process S1, the detection point information (X position, Y position, radar) of each millimeter wave radar obtained from the external information acquisition unit H1 is The -reflection intensity, etc.)

[0025] Next, in process S2, the time axes of the detection point information of each millimeter wave radar acquired in process S1 are unified, and the detection point information of each millimeter wave radar at the same time is calculated.

[0026] Next, in step S3, the position coordinates of the detection point information of each millimeter wave radar at the same time obtained in step S2 are unified.

[0027] Next, in process S4, the detection point group detected by the same millimeter wave radar is grouped from the detection point information of each millimeter wave radar at the same time and coordinates obtained in process S3. This is a process in which, for example, detection points that are close to each other are regarded as the same target and made into one detection representative point.

[0028] Next, in step S5, the representative points detected by different millimeter wave radars are fused with each other for the representative point clouds detected by each millimeter wave radar obtained in step S4, and final fused target information is calculated.

[0029] FIG. 3 shows a detailed processing flow of the process S5.

[0030] First, in step S51, pairs of detection representative points to be fused are scanned. For example, when the detection representative points are located close to each other, they are determined to be a pair.

[0031] Next, in process S52, an error arc is defined for each of the two (paired) detection representative points obtained in process S51. An error arc is an existence probability distribution for a detection point, and generally has a shape that spreads in the direction perpendicular to the laser irradiation according to the detection principle of millimeter-wave radar. In other words, an error arc is the distribution of measurement errors in the direction perpendicular to the laser irradiation (direction perpendicular to the laser irradiation direction) for detection points that are the ranging positions of targets detected by millimeter-wave radar.

[0032] Next, in step S53, the error arc of each detection representative point is decomposed into error amounts in the X and Y directions. The decomposed error amounts can be referred to as the estimated error in the vehicle coordinate system of each detection representative point (the ranging position of the target detected by each millimeter-wave radar).

[0033] Next, in step S54, the fusion position in the X direction of each detection representative point is calculated. This is calculated so that the fusion position is located between each pair of detection representative points based on the ratio of the error amount (assumed error in the vehicle coordinate system) in the X direction of each detection representative point.

[0034] Next, in step S55, the fusion position in the Y direction of each detection representative point is calculated. This is calculated so that the fusion position is located between each pair of detection representative points based on the ratio of the error amount (assumed error in the vehicle coordinate system) in the Y direction of each detection representative point.

[0035] 4 shows an example of a hypothetical scene for explaining the process S5 in more detail. In this scene, the detection area A of the FL millimeter wave radar H11 FL and RL millimeter wave radar H13 detection area A RL In the overlapping area, pedestrian target O PED The process when there is a

[0036] 5 is a diagram illustrating the pair determination performed in the process S51. FL Position coordinates (X FL ,Y FL ) and the detection representative point DP of the RL millimeter wave radar H13 RL Position coordinates (X RL ,Y RL ) If the following judgment formula 1 is satisfied, the pair judgment is established.

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[0037] 6 is an explanatory diagram of the error arc calculation performed in step S52. However, to avoid the diagram becoming too complicated, only the information that is the process for defining the error arc related to the FL millimeter wave radar H11 is shown.

[0038] Error arc EA of FL millimeter wave radar H11 FL is the detection representative point DP FL Error arc angle θ EA_FL The shape is a circular arc that is spread out like a fan. FL is a pedestrian target O using FL millimeter wave radar H11 PED The error arc angle θ EA_FL The arc of the minute circle is the pedestrian target O by the FL millimeter wave radar H11.PED The error arc angle θ corresponds to the measurement error (perpendicular to the laser irradiation direction). EA_FL is the detection representative point DP FL Straight-line distance R to FL and the detection representative point DP FL Direction and millimeter wave radar axis BL FL The angle θ DP_FL It is set as a 3D map with the argument.

[0039] Figure 7 shows the linear distance R to the detection representative point and the error arc angle θ EA The error arc angle θ is larger for a more distant detection representative point than for a linear distance R to the detection representative point. EA This setting takes into account the characteristics of millimeter-wave radar, which means that the detection accuracy decreases the further away from the radar.

[0040] Figure 8 shows the angle θ between the direction of the detection representative point and the millimeter-wave radar base axis. DP and the error arc angle θ EA The angle θ between the direction of the detection representative point and the millimeter wave radar base axis is shown. DP The larger the FOV (sensible field of view) the larger the error arc angle θ EA This setting takes into account the characteristics of millimeter wave radar, which means that the further outside the FOV of the millimeter wave radar, the lower the detection accuracy becomes.

[0041] However, the error arc angle θ in Figures 7 and 8 EA The relationship between the above is an example, and can be set arbitrarily as long as the purpose of this embodiment can be reproduced. This map may be published as a catalog value by a millimeter-wave radar supplier, but the designer may also adjust it in advance through actual vehicle testing, etc. Furthermore, since each millimeter-wave radar can have its own unique map, it is possible to support not only fusion between the same millimeter-wave radars, but also fusion between millimeter-wave radars from different suppliers, for example.

[0042] 9 is an explanatory diagram of the decomposition of the error arcs performed in step S53. However, to avoid the diagram becoming too complicated, only the information that is used in the process of decomposing the error arcs related to the FL millimeter wave radar H11 is shown.

[0043] Error arc EA of FL millimeter wave radar H11 defined by processing S52 FL is decomposed into the X-axis and Y-axis directions by coordinate transformation based on Equation 2, and the XY coordinates of the end point on the counterclockwise side (X FL_CCW ,Y FL_CCW ) and the XY coordinates of the clockwise end point (X FL_CW ,Y FL_CW ) is calculated from the X and Y coordinates of each end point based on Equation 3. FL , Y-axis direction error amount ΔY FL Calculate the X-axis direction error amount ΔX FL is the representative point DP detected by the FL millimeter wave radar H11 FL ) is the estimated error in the X-axis direction in the vehicle coordinate system, and the error in the Y-axis direction ΔY FL is the representative point DP detected by the FL millimeter wave radar H11 FL ) is the expected error in the Y-axis direction in the vehicle coordinate system.

[0044] Similarly, the error arc EA of the RL millimeter wave radar H13 RL For the error arc EA, the coordinate transformation based on Equation 4 is performed RL The X and Y coordinates of the counterclockwise end point of RL_CCW ,Y RL_CCW ) and the XY coordinates of the clockwise end point (X RL_CW ,Y RL_CW ) and calculate the X-axis direction error ΔX based on Equation 5. RL and the Y-axis direction error amount ΔY RL Calculate the X-axis direction error amount ΔX RL is the representative point DP detected by the RL millimeter wave radar H13 RL ) is the estimated error in the X-axis direction in the vehicle coordinate system, and the error in the Y-axis direction ΔY RL is the representative point DP detected by the RL millimeter wave radar H13 RL ) is the expected error in the Y-axis direction in the vehicle coordinate system.

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[0045] 10 is an explanatory diagram of the calculation of the fusion position on each coordinate axis performed in the process S54 and the process S55. First, in the process S54, the X-axis fusion position X fusion Calculate the weight w X_FL is a parameter that determines the ratio between two detection representative points, and is determined by the ratio of the error amount (estimated error in the vehicle coordinate system) in the X-axis direction of each detection representative point obtained in process S53, as shown in Equation 7.

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[0046] Next, in step S55, the Y-axis fusion position Y is calculated based on the equations 8 and 9. fusion Calculate.

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[0047] This completes the process S5, and the final fusion position O fusion is set.

[0048] In this embodiment, by setting the fusion position based on the ratio of the error amount (the estimated error in the vehicle coordinate system), it is possible to estimate a position with a higher probability of existence while taking into account the error directivity of the millimeter-wave radar. Also, by having an individual error arc map for each millimeter-wave radar, it can be used for fusion between millimeter-wave radars from different suppliers, for example, and is highly applicable.

[0049] [Example 2] Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0050] As a second embodiment of the present invention, the error arc calculated in step S52 of the first embodiment is defined as a base error arc, and the size of the base error arc (corresponding to the measurement error) is adjusted based on the installation height, SN ratio (signal-to-noise ratio), laser reflection intensity, etc. of each millimeter-wave radar to define the error arc that serves as input information for step S53. Also, as a different scene from the first embodiment, the process will be described using an example of a scene in which fusion is performed using RL millimeter-wave radar H13 and RR millimeter-wave radar H14. Note that the same parts and processes in the second embodiment and the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their description will not be repeated.

[0051] FIG. 11 shows a detailed flowchart of the process S5 in the second embodiment.

[0052] First, in step S51, pair determination between detected representative points is performed, and step S51 is the same as in the first embodiment.

[0053] Next, in step S52-1, a base error arc is defined for each of the two (paired) detection representative points obtained in step S51. The base error arc is synonymous with the error arc defined in step S52 of the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0054] Next, in step S52-2, the size of each base error arc obtained in step S52-1 is adjusted by a gain calculated based on the installation height, SN ratio, laser reflection intensity, etc. of each millimeter wave radar.

[0055] The subsequent steps S53, S54, and S55 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore the explanation thereof will be omitted.

[0056] FIG. 12 shows an explanatory diagram of an example of a scene assumed in this Example 2. In this scene, the detection area A of the RL millimeter wave radar H13 RL and RR millimeter wave radar H14 detection area A RR In the overlapping area, pedestrian target O PED The process when there is a

[0057] 13 is an explanatory diagram of the pair determination performed in the process S51. RL Position coordinates (X RL ,Y RL ) and the detection representative point DP of the RR millimeter wave radar H14 RR Position coordinates (X RR ,Y RR ) If the following judgment formula 10 is satisfied, the pair judgment is established.

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[0058] 14 is an explanatory diagram of the calculation of the base error arc performed in the process S52-1. However, to avoid the diagram becoming too complicated, only the information related to the RR millimeter wave radar H14 is shown as the process for defining the base error arc. As in the first embodiment, the base error arc angle θ is set in a three-dimensional map using the straight-line distance to the detection representative point and the angle formed by the direction of the detection representative point and the millimeter wave radar base axis as arguments. base_RR The representative point DP of the RR millimeter wave radar H14 is RR Base Error Arc EA base_RR is defined. The detection representative point DP of the RL millimeter wave radar H13 RL Base Error Arc EA base_RL is similarly defined.

[0059] Figure 15 is an explanatory diagram of the error arc calculation performed in step S52-2. However, to avoid cluttering the diagram, only the information for the RR millimeter-wave radar H14 that is the process for defining the error arc is shown. The error arc adjustment gain for adjusting the base error arc angle is calculated using Equation 11 based on the difference in installation height, SNR, and laser reflection intensity between the millimeter-wave radars. However, these gain items are merely examples, and gain items based on any parameters can be added as long as the spirit of this embodiment can be reproduced.

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[0060] Next, the detection representative point DP is calculated by Equation 12 based on the base error arc adjustment gain for each detection representative point calculated by Equation 11. RL Error arc angle θ RL and the detection representative point DP RR Error arc angle θ RR Calculate.

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[0061] The detection representative point DP of the RL millimeter wave radar H13 is calculated by each error arc angle calculated by Equation 12. RL Error Arc EA RL , RR millimeter wave radar H14 detection representative point DP RR Error Arc EA RR This allows the error arc to be defined by adjusting the size of the base error arc (corresponding to the measurement error) based on differences in the installation height, SN ratio (signal-to-noise ratio), laser reflection intensity, etc. of each millimeter-wave radar.

[0062] Figure 16 shows the base error arc adjustment gain G due to the difference in installation height of each millimeter-wave radar used in Equation 11. height This explains an example of the installation height H of the RL millimeter wave radar. RL The installation height H of the RR millimeter wave radar as seen from RRThe larger the difference between the base error and the arc adjustment gain G height This map takes into consideration the characteristics of millimeter-wave radar, which means that the higher the installation height of the millimeter-wave radar, the more the laser irradiation direction is directed towards the ground, making it easier to pick up reflected waves from the ground and reducing detection accuracy. However, the base error arc adjustment gain G due to differences in installation height in Figure 16 height The above relationship is an example, and can be set arbitrarily as long as the gist of this embodiment can be reproduced.

[0063] Figure 17 shows the base error arc adjustment gain G due to the difference in the SNR of each millimeter wave radar used in Equation 11. SN The SN ratio is the ratio of the amount of effective signal components to the amount of noise components in signal processing, and the larger the SN ratio, the more noise is included, indicating that the detection accuracy of the millimeter wave radar is low. Therefore, the base error arc adjustment gain G due to the difference in SN ratio is set so that the error arc for the side with a larger SN ratio becomes larger. SN However, it is preferable to set the base error circular adjustment gain G SN The above relationship is an example, and can be set arbitrarily as long as the gist of this embodiment can be reproduced.

[0064] Figure 18 shows the base error arc adjustment gain G due to the difference in laser reflection intensity of each millimeter wave radar used in Equation 11. ri This is an example of the laser reflection intensity. The laser reflection intensity is a parameter that indicates how many laser waves reflected by the target have been received, and the higher the laser reflection intensity, the higher the detection accuracy of the millimeter wave radar. Therefore, the base error arc adjustment gain G due to the difference in laser reflection intensity is set so that the error arc becomes larger when the laser reflection intensity is small. ri However, it is preferable to set the base error circular adjustment gain G ri The above relationship is an example, and can be set arbitrarily as long as the gist of this embodiment can be reproduced.

[0065] 19 shows an explanatory diagram of the decomposition of the error arc performed in the process S53. The error arc EA of the RL millimeter wave radar H13 defined in the process S52-2 RL Similarly to the first embodiment, the X-axis error amount ΔX RL , Y-axis direction error amount ΔY RL Calculate.

[0066] Similarly, the error arc EA of the RR millimeter wave radar H14 RR For the error arc EA, the coordinate transformation based on Equation 13 is performed. RR The X and Y coordinates of the counterclockwise end point of RR_CCW ,Y RR_CCW ) and the XY coordinates of the clockwise end point (X RR_CW ,Y RR_CW ) and calculate the X-axis direction error amount ΔX based on Equation 14. RR and the Y-axis direction error amount ΔY RR Calculate.

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[0067] 20 is an explanatory diagram of the calculation of the fusion position on each coordinate axis performed in the process S54 and the process S55. First, in the process S54, the X-axis fusion position X is calculated based on the formula 15. fusion Calculate the weight w X_RL is a parameter that determines the ratio between two detection representative points, and is determined by the ratio of the error amount in the X-axis direction (estimated error in the vehicle coordinate system) of each detection representative point obtained in process S53, as shown in Equation 16.

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[0068] Next, in step S55, the Y-axis fusion position Y is calculated based on the equations 17 and 18. fusion Calculate.

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[0069] This completes the process S5, and the final fusion position O fusion is set.

[0070] In this embodiment, the size of the error arc (corresponding to the measurement error) can be adjusted based on the installation height, SN ratio (signal-to-noise ratio), laser reflection intensity, etc. of each millimeter-wave radar. Therefore, it is not only applicable to the fusion of millimeter-wave radars from different suppliers, but also highly versatile and applicable to changes in the vehicles equipped with the fusion system.

[0071] As described above, the controller (vehicle control device) H3 of this embodiment is a vehicle control device that detects objects around a vehicle and controls the vehicle, and has a first millimeter-wave radar and a second millimeter-wave radar installed at a position different from the first millimeter-wave radar, and detects the object based on a first ranging position and a first measurement error of the object detected by the first millimeter-wave radar and a second ranging position and a second measurement error of the object detected by the second millimeter-wave radar.

[0072] Furthermore, the first measurement error and the second measurement error (and thus the object detection error) each include a measurement error in the radio wave (laser) irradiation direction and a measurement error in the direction perpendicular to the radio wave (laser) irradiation direction.

[0073] In addition, the first measurement error and the second measurement error are each decomposed into the fore-and-aft (length) direction of the vehicle and the left-and-right (width) direction of the vehicle to calculate the expected errors in the vehicle coordinate systems of the first millimeter-wave radar and the second millimeter-wave radar, and a composite position (fusion position) of the object in the fore-and-aft (length) direction of the vehicle and the left-and-right (width) direction of the vehicle is calculated (from the first ranging position and the second ranging position) based on a predetermined ratio determined based on the expected errors in the vehicle coordinate systems of the first millimeter-wave radar and the second millimeter-wave radar.

[0074] The predetermined ratio is determined based on a ratio between an estimated error in the vehicle coordinate system of the first millimeter wave radar and an estimated error in the vehicle coordinate system of the second millimeter wave radar.

[0075] That is, this embodiment targets a vehicle equipped with an external information acquisition device consisting of two or more millimeter-wave radars that acquires information on the vehicle's traveling position and traveling environment, etc., and provides a vehicle control device capable of highly accurate and versatile sensing by fusing the error arcs of each detection point based on the ratio of the error amount obtained by decomposing the error arcs of each detection point of the two millimeter-wave radars for the same target into the vehicle's traveling (front-to-back) direction and the vehicle's left-to-right direction in a scene where surrounding obstacles present to the side or rear of the vehicle are detected.

[0076] According to this embodiment, it is possible to provide a vehicle control device that is capable of sensing the sides, rear, etc. with high accuracy and versatility using only millimeter wave radar.

[0077] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and includes various modifications. For example, the above-described embodiment has been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to an embodiment having all of the described configurations.

[0078] Furthermore, the above-described configurations, functions, processing units, processing means, etc. may be partially or entirely implemented in hardware, for example, by designing them as integrated circuits. The above-described configurations, functions, etc. may also be implemented in software, with a processor interpreting and executing a program that implements each function. Information such as the programs, tables, and files that implement each function can be stored in a memory, a recording device such as a hard disk or SSD (Solid State Drive), or a recording medium such as an IC card, SD card, or DVD. [Explanation of symbols]

[0079] H1 External world information acquisition department H11 FL millimeter wave radar H12 FR millimeter wave radar H13 RL millimeter wave radar H14 RR millimeter wave radar H2 Vehicle information acquisition unit H3 Controller (Vehicle Control Device) H4 Vehicle control unit

Claims

1. A vehicle control device that detects objects around a vehicle and controls the vehicle, a first millimeter wave radar and a second millimeter wave radar installed at a position different from that of the first millimeter wave radar; detecting the object based on a first distance measurement position and a first measurement error of the object detected by the first millimeter wave radar and a second distance measurement position and a second measurement error of the object detected by the second millimeter wave radar; the first measurement error and the second measurement error include a measurement error in a radio wave irradiation direction and a measurement error in a direction perpendicular to the radio wave irradiation direction, respectively; a vehicle control device that calculates estimated errors in the vehicle coordinate systems of the first millimeter-wave radar and the second millimeter-wave radar by decomposing each of the first measurement error and the second measurement error into a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction of the vehicle, and calculates a combined position of the object in each of the longitudinal direction and the lateral direction of the vehicle based on a predetermined ratio that is determined based on the estimated errors in the vehicle coordinate systems of the first millimeter-wave radar and the second millimeter-wave radar.

2. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, The vehicle control device is characterized in that the predetermined ratio is determined based on a ratio between an estimated error in a vehicle coordinate system of the first millimeter wave radar and an estimated error in a vehicle coordinate system of the second millimeter wave radar.

3. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, 10. A vehicle control device, wherein the first millimeter wave radar and the second millimeter wave radar have the same characteristics.

4. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, 10. A vehicle control device, comprising: a vehicle control unit configured to adjust the first measurement error and the second measurement error by adjusting the difference in installation height between the first millimeter-wave radar and the second millimeter-wave radar;

5. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, 10. A vehicle control device, comprising: a vehicle control unit configured to adjust the first measurement error and the second measurement error by adjusting a difference in signal-to-noise ratio between the first millimeter-wave radar and the second millimeter-wave radar;

6. The vehicle control device according to claim 1, A vehicle control device, characterized in that the first measurement error and the second measurement error can be adjusted by a difference in laser reflection intensity between the first millimeter wave radar and the second millimeter wave radar.

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