Vehicle-surroundings monitoring apparatus

• US 5,654,715 A
• Filed: 12/15/1995
• Issued: 08/05/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Kato, Shigeki, Okada, Yasushi, Takebe, Katsuhiko, Hayashikura, Yuitsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Pihulic, Daniel T.
• Application Number:
  US08/573,114
• Time in Patent Office: 599 Days
• Field of Search: 342/70, 342/71, 342/72, 342/41, 342/127, 342/134, 342/142, 342/137, 348/116, 340/904
• US Class Current: 342/70
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/36 with phase comparison between the received signal and the contemporaneously transmitted signal
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/87 Combinations of radar systems, e.g. primary radar and secondary radar
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9314 Parking operations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9315 Monitoring blind spots
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9317 Driving backwards
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9318 Controlling the steering
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93185 Controlling the brakes
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9319 Controlling the accelerator
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/932 using own vehicle data, e.g. ground speed, steering wheel direction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9321 Velocity regulation, e.g. cruise control
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9325 for inter-vehicle distance regulation, e.g. navigating in platoons
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93272 in the back of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93274 on the side of the vehicles

Abstract

A plurality of radar devices are provided on and along the periphery of a vehicle for monitoring in different directions. While sequentially switching the radar device to be used for the monitoring operation in response to a transmission-enable signal, a processing device detects, for each direction, presence of and distance to an obstacle or object on the basis of a phase difference (time difference) between signals transmitted and received via the corresponding radar device. Thus, the processing device causes an image display device to show the detected conditions around the vehicle and also causes a sound synthesizer to output a sound message to call the vehicle operator'"'"'s attention.

Claims

1. A vehicle-surroundings monitoring apparatus comprising:

a plurality of transmitter and receiver means provided on and along a periphery of a vehicle, each of said transmitter means transmitting an electromagnetic wave, each of said receiver means receiving a reflected wave from an object;

processing means for determining current conditions around the vehicle on the basis of received signals obtained from respective reflected waives picked up by the plurality of said receiver means;

display means for informing an operator of the vehicle about the current conditions determined by said processing means; and

each of said transmitter means radiates the electromagnetic wave obtained by pulse-modulating or amplitude-modulating a carrier wave, and each of said receiver means demodulates the received signal to output a demodulated signal, and wherein said processing means determines a distance to the obstacle on the basis of a phase difference between a signal used for modulating the carrier wave and the demodulated signal.

2. A vehicle-surroundings monitoring apparatus comprising:

a plurality of transmitters and receivers provided on and along a periphery of a vehicle, each of said transmitters for transmitting an electromagnetic wave, and each of said receivers for receiving a reflected wave from an object;

a processor for determining current conditions around the vehicle on the basis of received signals obtained from respective reflected waves picked up by the plurality of said receivers;

a display for informing an operator of the vehicle about the current conditions determined by said processor; and

each of said transmitters radiates the electromagnetic wave obtained by pulse-modulating or amplitude-modulating a carrier wave, and each of said receivers demodulates the received signal to output a demodulated signal, and wherein said processor determines a distance to the obstacle on the basis of a phase difference between a signal used for modulating the carrier wave and the demodulated signal.

3. A vehicle-surroundings monitoring apparatus as defined in claim 2 wherein a modulating period of the carrier wave is varied in accordance with a velocity of the vehicle.