Object detecting device

• US 6,229,597 B1
• Filed: 07/14/1999
• Issued: 05/08/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/1998
• 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: Kikuchi, Hayato
• Primary Examiner(s): Buczinski, Stephen C.
• Application Number:
  US09/353,281
• Time in Patent Office: 664 Days
• Field of Search: 342/139, 342/140, 342/146, 342/94, 342/195, 342/136, 342/141, 356/4.01, 356/5.01, 356/5.15, 356/141.1-141.5, 180/169
• US Class Current: 356/4.01
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/04 Systems determining presence of a target based on relative movement of target G01S13/56
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/48 using multiple beams at emission or reception
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/42 Simultaneous measurement of distance and other co-ordinates indirect measurement G01S17/46
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/46 Indirect determination of position data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9321 Velocity regulation, e.g. cruise control
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/03 Details of HF subsystems specially adapted therefor, e.g. common to transmitter and receiver

Abstract

An area is divided by a plurality of parallel lines parallel to a vehicle body axis CL of a vehicle V, into fifteen detection areas K1 to K15 each having a width of 1.6 m, and each of the detection areas K1 to K15 is divided by a distance address at a distance of every 0.5 m to define a large number of measure-shaped regions. It is determined whether a target T exists in any of the regions, by adding together received reception level signals of laser beams reflected in the regions and comparing a value resulting from the adding with a threshold value. The widths of the detection areas K1 to K15 assume a constant value irrespective of distance to the target and hence, even when the target T exists at a point closer to the vehicle, the reception level signals of waves reflected from a wider area of the target T can be added together, leading to an enhanced detecting ability.

Claims

1. An object detecting device for detecting an object by transmitting an electromagnetic wave, and receiving a reflected wave produced by reflection of the transmitted electromagnetic wave from the object, said device comprising a transmitting and receiving means for transmitting an electromagnetic wave and receiving the reflected wave in each of a plurality of small areas into which an area for detecting the object has been divided, an adding means for adding signals indicative of reception levels of the reflected waves in a plurality of basic areas defined by grouping adjacent ones of said small areas each having a predetermined lateral width, in accordance with a time lag from the transmission to the reception of said waves, and object detecting means for detecting a distance from the object detecting device to the object, based on the result of the addition by said adding means.

2. An object detecting device according to claim 1, wherein said transmitting and receiving means transmits electromagnetic waves sequentially in a lateral direction, and said object detecting means detects a lateral position of the object based on the timing of the transmission of the electromagnetic waves to said small areas.

3. An object detecting device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plurality of detection areas are established by grouping adjacent ones of said plurality of basic areas together, and said adding means adds the signals indicative of reception levels of the reflected waves in the detection areas in accordance with the time lag from the transmission to the reception of said waves.

4. An object detecting device according to claim 3, wherein said object detecting means detects the lateral position of the object based upon the lateral position of a detection area in which the object has been detected.

5. An object detecting device according to claim 3, wherein said plurality of detection areas are formed in an overlapped pattern wherein each area is overlapped with the adjacent area by one half by sequentially grouping the adjacent two basic areas.

6. An object detecting device according to claim 3, wherein said object detecting device is mounted on a vehicle to detect an object existing ahead of the vehicle in the direction of movement of the vehicle, and wherein the lateral width of said detection area is set based on the lateral width of the vehicle.

7. An object detecting device according to claim 6, wherein the lateral width of said detection area is set to be substantially equal to the lateral width of the vehicle.

8. An object detecting device according to claim 3, wherein said object detecting device is mounted on a vehicle to detect an object existing ahead of the vehicle in the direction of movement of the vehicle, and wherein the lateral width of said detection area is set based on the lateral width of a lane of the road on which the vehicle is traveling.

9. An object detecting device according to claim 8, wherein the lateral width of said detection area is set to be substantially equal to the lateral width of the lane.