Vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus and traveling control system incorporatingthe apparatus

• US 20040098196A1
• Filed: 08/29/2003
• Published: 05/20/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Subaru Corp.
• Original Assignee: Fuji Jukogyo KK (Subaru Corp.)
• Inventors: Sekiguchi, Hiroyuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,742,864 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/301
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 31/0008 including means for detecting potential obstacles in vehicle path
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/00 Input parameters relating to objects
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/4041 Position
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/4044 Direction of movement, e.g. backwards
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/802 Longitudinal distance
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/86 Combinations of lidar systems with systems other than lidar, radar or sonar, e.g. with direction finders
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles

Abstract

A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus inputs signals indicative of images from a stereoscopic camera, a vehicle speed, a steering wheel angle and a yaw rate and estimates a traveling path of an own vehicle according to vehicle forward information and traveling conditions of the own vehicle. The apparatus establishes a traveling region A according to this traveling path and further establishes a traveling region B based on at least either of the traveling region A and road information. It is judged whether a detected solid object is a preceding vehicle or a tentative preceding vehicle according to the state of existence of the object in the traveling regions A, B and the preceding vehicle is outputted to a traveling control unit.

Claims

1. A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus, comprising:

own vehicle traveling conditions detecting means for detecting traveling conditions of an own vehicle;

vehicle forward information detecting means for detecting a vehicle forward information including a solid object and a road information ahead of said own vehicle;

own vehicle traveling path estimating means for estimating a traveling path of said own vehicle according to at least either of said vehicle forward information and said traveling conditions;

first judgment region establishing means for establishing a first judgment region corresponding to said solid object detected based said traveling path of said own vehicle;

second judgment region establishing means for establishing a second judgment region corresponding to said solid object detected based on at least either of said first judgment region and said road information detected by said vehicle forward information detecting means; and

preceding vehicle judging means for judging whether said solid object is a preceding vehicle, a tentative preceding vehicle or other objects according to the state of existence of said solid object in said first judgment region and said second judgment region.

2. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said detected solid object is classified into three kinds of objects, a backward moving object moving toward said own vehicle, a still object in standstill and a forward moving object moving in the same direction as said own vehicle and is used for said establishment of regions in said first judgment region establishing means and said second judgment region establishing means and for said judgment in said preceding vehicle judging means.

3. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said preceding vehicle judging means extract said detected solid object as a preceding vehicle, when said detected solid object exists in said first judgment region and a duration of existence of said solid object in either said first judgment region or said second judgment region exceeds a specified time and said object is a forward moving object and is nearest to said own vehicle.

4. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said preceding vehicle judging means extract said detected solid object as a preceding vehicle, when said solid object exists within a specified distance and said solid object exists in said first judgment region and a duration time of existence of said solid object in either said first judgment region or said second judgment region exceeds a specified time and said solid object is nearest to said own vehicle.

5. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said specified distance is established according to a vehicle speed of said own vehicle.

6. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said preceding vehicle judging means vary a threshold value for evaluating said duration of existence of said solid object in either said first judgment region or said second judgment region according to whether said solid object exists in said first judgment region or in said second judgment region.

7. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the width of said first judgment region varies according to a vehicle speed of said own vehicle.

8. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the distance to said second judgment region established by said second judgment region establishing means is restricted according to a vehicle speed of said own vehicle.

9. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said preceding vehicle judging means reduce said second judgment region and reestablish said first judgment region, when said solid object is an object previously judged to be a preceding vehicle.

10. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said preceding vehicle judging means expand said first judgment region, when said solid object is not an object previously judged to be a preceding vehicle.

11. A traveling control system for controlling a traveling of an own vehicle at least based on said information about a preceding vehicle extracted by said vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1.

12. A traveling control system for controlling a traveling of an own vehicle at least based on said information about a preceding vehicle extracted by said vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 2.

13. A traveling control system for controlling a traveling of an own vehicle at least based on said information about a preceding vehicle extracted by said vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 3.

14. A traveling control system for controlling a traveling of an own vehicle at least based on said information about a preceding vehicle extracted by said vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 4.