OBSTACLE DETECTION DEVICE FOR DETECTING OBSTACLE

• US 20100074056A1
• Filed: 09/22/2009
• Published: 03/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: HARADA, Taketo, TAKEICHI, Masakazu, MATSUMOTO, Muneaki
• Application Number:
  US12/564,294
• Publication Number:
  US 20100074056A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 367/93
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2015/938 in the bumper area radar in bumper area G01S2013/93275; bumper with obstacle sensor of electric or electronic type B60R19/483
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/5345 Gain control of receivers for seismic signals G01V1/245
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/536 Extracting wanted echo signals

Abstract

An obstacle detection device for detecting an obstacle includes: a transmitting and receiving element for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic wave; an amplifier for amplifying a received signal corresponding to a received ultrasonic wave; and a gain controller for controlling a gain of the amplifier The gain controller increases the gain with time elapsed from a transmission time when the transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave. The gain controller starts to increase the gain at a rising time when reverberation caused by the transmitted ultrasonic wave is disappeared.

Claims

1. An obstacle detection device for detecting an obstacle comprising:

a transmitting and receiving element for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic wave;

an amplifier for amplifying a received signal corresponding to a received ultrasonic wave; and

a gain controller for controlling a gain of the amplifier,

wherein the gain controller increases the gain with time elapsed from a transmission time when the transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave, and

wherein the gain controller starts to increase the gain at a rising time when reverberation caused by the transmitted ultrasonic wave is disappeared.

2. The obstacle detection device according to claim 1,

wherein the transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave having multiple different transmission distances,

wherein the rising time depends on the transmission distance of the ultrasonic wave, and

wherein the rising time in case of a short transmission distance is faster than that in case of a long transmission distance.

3. The obstacle detection device according to claim 2,

wherein the transmitting and receiving element includes first and second transmitting and receiving elements,

wherein the first transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave having a first frequency, and the second transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave having a second frequency, which is higher than the first frequency, and

wherein the ultrasonic wave having the long transmission distance corresponds to the ultrasonic wave having the first frequency, and the ultrasonic wave having the short transmission distance corresponds to the ultrasonic wave having the second frequency.

4. The obstacle detection device according to claim 3,

wherein the amplifier includes first and second amplifiers,

wherein the first amplifier amplifies a received signal corresponding to the first transmitting and receiving element, and the second amplifier amplifies a received signal corresponding to the second transmitting and receiving element,

wherein the gain controller starts to increase the gain of the first amplifier at a first rising time, and increase the gain of the second amplifier at a second rising time, and

wherein an interval between the transmission time and the second rising time is smaller than an interval between the transmission time and the first rising time.

5. The obstacle detection device according to claim 1,

wherein the transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave having different frequencies,

wherein increase of the gain depends on the frequency of the ultrasonic wave, and

wherein the increase of the gain in case of a high frequency is larger than that in case of a low frequency.

6. The obstacle detection device according to claim 5,

wherein the transmitting and receiving element includes first and second transmitting and receiving elements,

wherein the first transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave having a first frequency, and the second transmitting and receiving element transmits the ultrasonic wave having a second frequency, which is higher than the first frequency, and

wherein the ultrasonic wave having the first frequency reaches a first transmission distance, and the ultrasonic wave having the second frequency reaches a second transmission distance, which is shorter than the first transmission distance.

7. The obstacle detection device according to claim 6,

wherein the amplifier includes first and second amplifiers,

wherein the first amplifier amplifies a received signal corresponding to the first transmitting and receiving element, and the second amplifier amplifies a received signal corresponding to the second transmitting and receiving element,

wherein the gain controller increases the gain of the first amplifier with a first rate, and increases the gain of the second amplifier with a second rate, and

wherein the first rate is smaller than the second rate.

8. The obstacle detection device according to claim 1,

wherein the gain controller includes a memory,

wherein the memory preliminary stores information about the rising time,

wherein the gain controller increases the gain along with a predetermined curve, which defines a relationship between elapsed time and the gain, and

wherein the memory further stores the predetermined curve.

9. The obstacle detection device according to claim 8,

wherein the amplifier is a sensitivity time control amplifier, and

wherein the predetermined curve is a sensitivity time control curve.