TRAFFIC SIGNS RECOGNITION APPARATUS AND METHOD OF OUTPUTING SPEED LIMIT USING THE SAME

• US 20150302747A1
• Filed: 04/16/2015
• Published: 10/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Mando Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mando Corporation
• Inventors: RO, Dai Chang
• Application Number:
  US14/688,438
• Publication Number:
  US 20150302747A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0967 Systems involving transmission of highway information, e.g. weather, speed limits transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096783 where the origin of the information is a roadside individual element

Abstract

The present invention relates to a traffic sign recognition device configured to be capable of combining road information received from a navigation terminal with road information acquired through a camera so as to recognize and output a speed limit of a traffic sign to be suitable for a fluid road environment and travel environment on a road, and a method of outputting a speed limit using the traffic sign recognition device.

Claims

1. A traffic sign recognition device comprising:

a navigation terminal configured to store a road attribute; and

an electronic control unit configured to recognize a speed limit indicated on a traffic sign positioned on a travel road, on which a vehicle is traveling, through a camera and control outputting of the speed limit according to the road attribute.

2. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein the road attribute includes a branch road, a road at an intersection, a change road from an expressway to a national highway, a change road from a national highway to an expressway, or a road in a construction section.

3. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a branch road, the electronic control unit defers outputting of a speed limit recognized through a traffic sign until the vehicle reaches a junction, determines the travel road of the vehicle, which is branched from the junction, using GPS information of the vehicle, and outputs a speed limit of a traffic sign positioned on the determined travel road.

4. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein, when the road attribute is a branch road and a turn signal does not indicate a branch road direction, the electronic control unit does not output the speed limit recognized through the traffic sign.

5. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a road at an intersection, the electronic control unit determines whether a travel road, on which the vehicle is to travel, is a straight-advancing road, a left turning road, or a right turning road according to a heading angle of the vehicle, and when the travel road is determined, the electronic control unit outputs a speed limit of a traffic sign positioned on the determined travel road.

6. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a change road, the electronic control unit deletes a speed limit of a traffic sign recognized on the traffic road, on which the vehicle has traveled, and outputs a speed limit of a traffic sign recognized on a changed travel load, on which the vehicle is traveling.

7. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a road in a construction section, the electronic control unit recognizes a speed limit release sign of the road in the construction section, and then recognizes and outputs a speed limit of a travel road, on which the vehicle is traveling.

8. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 1, wherein the electronic control unit photographs a plurality of traffic signs as one image through the camera, recognizes a plurality of speed limit values through an analysis for the one image, and outputs only one speed limit among the plurality of speed limit values.

9. The traffic sign recognition device of claim 8, wherein the electronic control unit recognizes a lane, on which a vehicle is traveling, and outputs only a speed limit value of a traffic sign positioned in front of the vehicle on the lane.

10. A method of outputting a speed limit using a traffic sign recognition device which acquires and outputs a speed limit of a traffic sign on a road through a camera, the method comprising:

combining road information received from a navigation terminal and road information acquired through the camera; and

determining a travel road based on a road attribute and a travel route included in the road information received from the navigation terminal, and recognizing and outputting a speed limit of the determined travel road from the combined road information.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

generating and displaying the travel route by designating a starting place and a destination,

wherein the road information received from the navigation terminal is road information on the travel route.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a branch road, the outputting of a speed limit recognized through a traffic sign is deferred until the vehicle reaches a junction, the travel road of the vehicle, which is branched from the junction, is determined using GPS information of the vehicle, and a speed limit of a traffic sign positioned on the determined travel road is output.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a road at an intersection, it is determined whether a travel road, on which the vehicle is to travel, is a straight-advancing road, a left turning road, or a right turning road according to a heading angle of the vehicle, and when the travel road is determined, a speed limit of a traffic sign positioned on the determined travel road is output.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a change road, a speed limit of a traffic sign recognized on the traffic road, on which the vehicle has traveled, is deleted and a speed limit of a traffic sign recognized on a changed travel load, on which the vehicle is traveling, is output.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein, when the road attribute received from the navigation terminal is a road in a construction section, a speed limit release sign of the road in the construction section is recognized, and then, a speed limit of a travel road, on which a vehicle is traveling, is recognized and output.