Intersection Collision Alerts for Blind-Angle Right Turns
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Solution Overview
Problem
In-vehicle sensors struggle to detect traffic participants at blind angles, particularly when large vehicles obstruct the view, making it difficult to avoid collisions during right turns at intersections on left-hand traffic roads.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle notification system that utilizes road map storage, position specification, direction-change-intention detection, and notification issuance timing settings to alert drivers of potential collisions by sharing vehicle information between vehicles and issuing notifications based on relative positions and driving states.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If in-vehicle sensors (cameras or radars) are used to detect traffic participants, then detection capability is provided, but detection reliability deteriorates when traffic participants are present at blind angles behind obstacles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a third vehicle (vehicle C) as an intermediary to transmit position information about the oncoming vehicle (vehicle B) to the driver of the right-turning vehicle (vehicle A). Vehicle C acts as a mediator that can detect vehicle B at its location and communicate this information to vehicle A, solving the blind angle detection problem without requiring vehicle A to directly detect vehicle B.
Solution Approach 2:
The system establishes a feedback mechanism where vehicle C detects the presence and position of vehicle B, then feeds this information back to vehicle A through the communication unit. This feedback loop enables vehicle A to be alerted about the potential collision risk with vehicle B, improving detection reliability despite the blind angle created by vehicle C.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the vehicle that may become an obstacle is a large vehicle, then obstacle blocking is increased, but blind angle becomes wider making it more difficult to detect the oncoming vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses another vehicle (vehicle C) as an intermediary to overcome the detection difficulty created by large obstacles. Vehicle C can detect the oncoming vehicle (vehicle B) even when vehicle A's view is blocked by large vehicles, and communicates this information to vehicle A, effectively bypassing the detection limitation imposed by large obstacle vehicles.
3Reliability
If notification is issued earlier to allow sufficient reaction time, then safety is improved, but unnecessary notifications may increase causing driver annoyance
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection and calculation of collision risk before actual collision becomes imminent. By detecting vehicle B's position and calculating potential collision paths in advance, the system can issue notifications at appropriate early timings to allow driver reaction, while the continuous monitoring and condition-based triggering prevent unnecessary notifications.
Solution Approach 2:
The notification timing is made dynamic rather than static. The system continuously monitors the relative positions and speeds of vehicles A, B, and C, and adjusts notification timing based on the actual dynamic situation. This dynamic approach ensures notifications are issued only when collision risk is real and evolving, preventing both premature and unnecessary notifications while maintaining adequate reaction time.
Data Source
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AI summary
The vehicle notification system sets an intersection area ACS that overlaps a path where a right turning vehicle VA travels when the right turning vehicle VA passes the intersection CS and a predicted collision area ACP that includes a predicted collision point CPP in a traffic situation where a right turning vehicle VA and a straight traveling vehicle VB are approaching an intersection CS from opposite directions. The system sets a first notification issuance according to the relative position of the right turning vehicle VA with respect to the intersection area ACS and a second notification issuance timing when the right turning vehicle VA is traveling toward the predicted collision point CPP within the intersection area ACS or is located inside the predicted collision area ACP. At each of the first and second notification issuance timings, the system issue a notification to traffic participants in a predetermined mode under a condition that a notification issuance condition defined in advance in relation to a position Pb of the straight traveling vehicle VB is met. The predicted collision area ACP can be adjusted in size according to the actual driving state of the right turning vehicle VA in the intersection area ACS after the right turning vehicle VA enters the intersection area ACS.