Automatic travel guiding device for vehicle

• US 6,032,098 A
• Filed: 04/12/1996
• Issued: 02/29/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/1995
• 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: Takahashi, Tsuneo, Iiboshi, Akira, Hashimoto, Kenshirou, Nozaka, Toshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Application Number:
  US08/631,361
• Time in Patent Office: 1,418 Days
• Field of Search: 701/23, 701/25, 701/26, 701/27, 701/28, 701/209, 701/210, 701/301, 318/580, 318/587, 395/94
• US Class Current: 701/210
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/28 with correlation of data from several navigational instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0246 using a video camera in combination with image processing means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0257 using a radar radar systems designed for anti-collision purposes between land vehicles or between land vehicle and fixed obstacles G01S13/931
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0261 using magnetic plots
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0278 using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS

Abstract

An automatic travel guiding device is a combination of a navigation control unit and automatic travel control unit that judges the position of a vehicle on a travelling road on the basis of sensed circumstances of the road extending ahead of the vehicle and correcting a current position of the vehicle to a corresponding position on the road map. The device includes means for correcting road circumstances on the basis of road data read from map-information storage medium according to the current position of the vehicle to correlatively increase both the current position accuracy and the travel control accuracy according to travel guiding instruction for following a target course preset on a road map by sensing actual road conditions and to realize automatic travel control at an increased accuracy.

Claims

1. An automatic travel guiding device for use in a vehicle, which device is capable of automatically guiding the vehicle to follow a target course preset on a road map by searching a current position of the vehicle on the road map and, at the same time, of sensing road circumstances, recognizing a forward extending road on the basis of the obtained road circumstances and automatically controlling the vehicle to follow the recognized road, characterized in that the device is provided with means for judging a position of the vehicle on the travelling road from the sensed road circumstances and automatically correcting the current position of the vehicle on the road to be located at a corresponding point on the road map.

2. An automatic travel guiding device as defined in claim 1, characterized by sensing a branching point of a road as said road circumstances and automatically correcting a current position of the vehicle on the road to be located at a corresponding position on a road map with reference to the sensed branching point.

3. An automatic travel guiding device as defined in claim 1, characterized by sensing a road sign as said road circumstances, judging the road sign to relate to a highway only and automatically correcting a current position of the vehicle on the road to be located at a corresponding position on a road map with reference to the sensed road sign.

4. An automatic travel guiding device for use in a vehicle, which device is capable of automatically guiding the vehicle to follow a target course preset on a road map by searching a current position of the vehicle on the road map and, at the same time, of sensing road circumstances, recognizing a forward extending road on the basis of the obtained road circumstances and automatically controlling the vehicle to follow the recognized road, characterized in that the device is provided with means for correcting sensed road circumstances on the basis of road data read from a roadmap information storage medium according to the current position of the automatically controlled vehicle.

5. An automatic travel guiding device as defined in claim 4, characterized in that the road data is data on inclination angle of the road.

6. An automatic travel guiding device as defined in claim 4, characterized in that the road data is data on a curvature of the road.

7. An automatic travel guiding device for use in a vehicle, which device is capable of automatically guiding the vehicle to follow a target course preset on a road map by searching a current position of the vehicle on the road map and, at the same time, of sensing road circumstances, recognizing a forward extending road on the basis of the obtained road circumstances and automatically controlling the vehicle to follow the recognized road, characterized in that the device is provided with travel control means for sensing a moving obstruction on the road extending ahead of the vehicle and automatically controlling the vehicle to approach at a slow-speed or to stop, said travel control means also for sensing a static body on a road read from the road-map information medium, determining whether the static body corresponds to an existing installation on the basis of existing facilities data, and judging that a matter other than the existing facilities to be a moving body and automatically controlling the vehicle to approach at a slow speed and stop.

8. An automatic travel guiding device for use in a vehicle, which device has means for automatically guiding the vehicle to follow a target course preset on a road map by searching a current position of the vehicle on the road map, sensing road circumstances, recognizing a forward extending road on the basis of obtained road conditions, and automatically controlling the vehicle to follow the recognized road, an improvement comprising at least one of;

means for judging a position of the vehicle on the travelling road from the sensed road circumstances and automatically correcting the current position of the vehicle on the road to be located at a corresponding point on the road map,

means for correcting sensed road circumstances on the basis of road data read from a road-map information storage medium according to the current position of the automatically controlled vehicle, and

travel control means for sensing a moving obstruction on the road extending ahead of the vehicle and automatically controlling the vehicle to approach at a slow-speed or to stop, said travel control means also sensing a static body on a road read from the road-map, determining whether the static body corresponds to an existing installation on the basis of existing facilities data, and judging that a matter is other than the existing facilities to be a moving body and automatically controlling the vehicle to approach at a slow speed and stop.

9. An automatic travel guiding device for use in a vehicle, which device has means for automatically guiding the vehicle to follow a target course preset on a road map by searching a current position of the vehicle on the road map, sensing road circumstances, recognizing a forward extending road on the basis of obtained road conditions, and automatically controlling the vehicle to follow the recognized road, an improvement comprising;

means for judging a position of the vehicle on the travelling road from the sensed road circumstances and automatically correcting the current position of the vehicle on the road to be located at a corresponding point on the road map,

means for correcting sensed road circumstances on the basis of road data read from a road-map information storage medium according to the current position of the automatically controlled vehicle, and

travel control means for sensing a moving obstruction on the road extending ahead of the vehicle and automatically controlling the vehicle to approach at a slow-speed or to stop, and for sensing a static body on a road read from the road-map, determining whether the static body corresponds to an existing installation on the basis of existing facilities data, and judging that a matter is other than the existing facilities to be a moving body and then automatically controlling the vehicle to approach at a slow speed and stop.