OBJECT DETECTION APPARATUS AND OBJECT DETECTION METHOD

• US 20110238309A1
• Filed: 12/09/2008
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Tsunekawa, Jun
• Granted Patent: US 9,283,910 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/301
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01259 Brakes
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/01265 Seat belts
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0134 responsive to imminent contact with an obstacle , e.g. using radar systems
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/165 for passive traffic, e.g. including static obstacles, trees
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

Provided is an object detection apparatus and an object detecting method for, with respect to an object detected by a radar, determining whether the object is an automobile and performing an appropriate collision determination based on a determination result. The apparatus comprises a radar device 1 which detects a target in a surrounding area of an own vehicle VM; a target processing section 21 which calculates, with respect to the detected target, information containing at least two of information indicating a position of presence, information indicating a moving direction, and information indicating a moving speed, of the target as target information; and a target determination section 23 which determines, based on the calculated target information, whether a target object is a bicycle depending on whether the target satisfies a predetermined condition, and which determines a risk of collision between the vehicle VM and the target object.

Claims

1. An object detection apparatus which is mounted in a vehicle and detects an object in a surrounding area of the vehicle, the apparatus comprising:

a detection part which detects an object in the surrounding area of the vehicle;

a processing part which calculates, with respect to the object detected by the detection part, information containing at least two of information indicating a position of presence of the object, information indicating a moving direction of the object, and information indicating a moving speed of the object, as target information; and

a determination part which determines, based on the target information calculated by the processing part, whether the object is a movable body other than an automobile depending on whether the object satisfies a predetermined condition; and

which determines, when a result of the determination is that the object is the movable body, a risk of collision between the movable body and the vehicle by using a criterion based on an assumption that the object is the movable body.

2. The object detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the processing part calculates, as the target information, the information containing at least the information indicating the position of presence of the object and the information indicating the moving direction of the object, and

the determination part determines, when the determination part has determined that the position of presence of the object indicated by the target information is within a set area to a side of the vehicle and the moving direction indicated by the target information is a direction toward the vehicle, that the object is the movable body.

3. The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the processing part further calculates the information indicating the moving speed of the object as the target information, and

the determination part determines, when the determination part has determined that the position of presence of the object indicated by the target information is within the set area to a side of the vehicle;

that the moving direction indicated by the target information is the direction toward the vehicle; and

that the moving speed indicated by the target information is smaller than or equal to a predetermined value, that the object is the movable body.

4. The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the set area is set to a left side of the vehicle when the vehicle is destined for a country where automobiles drive on the left-hand side of the road.

5. The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the set area is set to a right side of the vehicle when the vehicle is destined for a country where automobiles drive on the right-hand side of the road.

6. The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the set area is set a first distance apart from a side portion of the vehicle.

7. The object detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the determination part determines, when the determination part has determined that the object is the movable body based on the target information calculated by the processing part, a risk of collision between the movable body as a dot and the vehicle as a figure having a predetermined size.

8. The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the processing part further calculates a travelling direction of the vehicle based on vehicle information obtained from the vehicle, and

the determination part, when the determination part has determined that a straight line extended, based on the information indicating the moving direction contained in the target information, in the moving direction of the object does not intersect with a straight line extended in the travelling direction;

and that the position of presence of the object is within the set area based on the information indicating the position of presence contained in the target information, determines that the object having been determined to be the movable body does not collide with the vehicle.

9. The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the determination part determines, when the determination part has determined that the position of presence of the object is within a second distance from the side portion of the vehicle based on the target information which has been calculated by the processing part and which contains at least the information indicating the position of presence of the object, that there is a risk of collision between the movable body and the vehicle.

10. The object detection apparatus according to either claim 6 or claim 9, wherein

the first distance and the second distance are set in accordance with a width of the movable body.

11. The object detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the determination part accumulates, when the determination part has determined that the object is the movable body, the number of times when a determination is made that there is no risk of collision between the movable body and the vehicle by using the criterion and determines, when the accumulated number has reached a predetermined number, that the object having been determined to be the movable body does not collide with the vehicle.

12. The object detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the determination part transmits, when the determination part has determined that the object is the movable body and that there is a high risk of collision between the movable body and the vehicle, the target information to collision determination part which performs at least one of a collision risk prevention operation and a collision damage reduction operation, the target information being a criterion for determining to cause the collision determination part to perform, with respect to the movable body, at least one of the collision risk prevention operation and the collision damage reduction operation.

13. An object detection method which is provided in a vehicle and detects an object in a surrounding area of the vehicle, the method comprising:

a detection step of detecting an object in the surrounding area of the vehicle;

a processing step of calculating, with respect to the object detected in the detection step, information containing at least two of information indicating a position of presence of the object, information indicating a moving direction of the object, and information indicating a moving speed of the object as target information; and

a determination step of determining, based on the target information calculated in the processing step, whether the object is a movable body other than an automobile depending on whether the object satisfies a predetermined condition; and

of determining, when a result of the determination is that the object is the movable body, a risk of collision between the movable body and the vehicle by using a criterion based on an assumption that the object is the movable body.