SYSTEM FOR PREDICTING A DRIVER'S INTENTION TO CHANGE LANES

• US 20130085976A1
• Filed: 06/18/2010
• Published: 04/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Winner, Hermann, Habenicht, Stefan, Goos, Jan-Christoph, Bone, Sven, Regh, Fabian
• Granted Patent: US 9,159,023 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 706/46
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/801 Lateral distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18163 Lane change; Overtaking manoeuvres
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/10 Interpretation of driver requests or demands
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/02 Knowledge representation; Symbolic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/167 Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection

Abstract

Provided is a system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes at a high accuracy involving a minimum amount of time delay. A driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes is predicted by a prediction unit (9) by comparing motivators and inhibitors (7, 8) which may be determined from the speed of the traffic in particular the vehicle traveling ahead of the vehicle and the traffic in the adjacent lanes in relation to the traveling speed of the ego vehicle by using an ego vehicle sensor (1) and an environmental sensor (3, 4, 5) that may comprise a radio wave, optical or acoustic radar. The criteria for the motivators and inhibitors may be empirically or statistically determined, preferably by conducting a large number of tests on roads. As they can be determined before the vehicle operator starts a lane changing maneuver, the prediction made by the prediction unit may be used on a real time basis in a warning system or steering/acceleration assist system.

Claims

1-6. -6. (canceled)

7. A system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes, comprising:

an ego vehicle sensor for detecting information on a motion of an ego vehicle;

an environment sensor for detecting information on a motion of a vehicle traveling within a prescribed distance ahead of the vehicle in a same lane as the ego vehicle and/or on a motion of a vehicle traveling within a prescribed distance from the ego vehicle in an adjacent lane;

a motivator computing unit for computing a motivator indicating a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane according to outputs of the ego vehicle sensor and environment sensor;

an inhibitor computing unit for computing an inhibitor indicating of a driver'"'"'s intention not to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane according to the outputs of the ego vehicle sensor and environment sensor; and

a prediction unit for predicting the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes by comparing outputs of the motivator computing unit and inhibitor computing unit;

wherein the motivator computing unit is configured to determine if any of a plurality of motivator criteria are met, and the inhibitor computing unit is configured to determine if any of a plurality of inhibitor criteria are met, the prediction unit predicting the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes by comparing a weight of the motivator criteria that are met with a weight of the inhibitor criteria that are met.

8. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes according to claim 7, further comprising an indicator computing unit for computing an indicator indicative of a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane from an output of the ego vehicle sensor, the prediction unit using an output of the indicator computing unit in predicting the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes.

9. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes according to claim 7, wherein the environment sensor comprises a radio wave, optical or acoustic radar.

10. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes according to claim 7, wherein the prediction unit uses a binary conjunction in comparing the weight of the motivator criteria that are met with the weight of the inhibitor criteria that are met.

11. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes according to claim 7, wherein the prediction unit uses a fuzzy logic conjunction in comparing the weight of the motivator criteria that are met with the weight of the inhibitor criteria that are met.

12. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes according to claim 7, wherein the output of the ego vehicle sensor comprises a traveling speed and or fore-and-aft acceleration of the ego vehicle.