Radar apparatus for vehicle

• US 6,323,802 B1
• Filed: 11/03/1999
• Issued: 11/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Tokoro, Setsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lobo, Ian J.
• Application Number:
  US09/433,788
• Time in Patent Office: 755 Days
• Field of Search: 342/70, 342/71, 340/903
• US Class Current: 342/70
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• 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 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/292 Extracting wanted echo-signals

Abstract

A radar apparatus for use on a vehicle has a radar beam scanning mechanism for scanning a scan area with a radar beam substantially in parallel to a road surface on which the vehicle is running, and an object detector for receiving reflected waves of the radar beam to create a detected object image, based on the reflected waves. The object detector is provided with a ghost determination device for determining whether a detected object image created is a ghost. Therefore, the radar apparatus can eliminate a detected object image determined as a ghost out of detected object images created.

Claims

1. A radar apparatus which is to be mounted on a vehicle, comprising:

radar beam scanning means for scanning a scan area with a radar beam substantially in parallel to a road surface on which said vehicle is running; and

object detecting means for receiving reflected waves of said radar beam to create a detected object image, based on the reflected waves;

wherein said object detecting means comprises ghost determination means for determining whether a detected object image created is a ghost, and

wherein said ghost determination means determines, based on a second detected object image, whether a first detected object image is a ghost, if there exists a predetermined spatial relation between said first detected object image and said second detected object image.

2. The radar apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said first detected object image is a detected object image appearing at a position assumed to be a position on a currently running lane, and

wherein said second detected object image is a detected object image appearing at a position assumed to be a position on an adjacent lane to said currently running lane.

4. The radar apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein said ghost determination means determines that said first detected object image is a ghost, based on a necessary condition that an angle between a direction indicated by said first detected object image and a direction indicated by said second detected object image is in a predetermined range.

7. The radar apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein said ghost determination means determines that said first detected object image is a ghost, based on a necessary condition that the distance indicated by said first detected object image is in a predetermined range.

9. The radar apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said object detecting means comprises a means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image indicating the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

12. The radar apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein said object detecting means is means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

15. The radar apparatus according to claim 7,

wherein said object detecting means is means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

3. A radar apparatus to be mounted on a vehicle comprising:

radar beam scanning means for scanning a scan area with a radar beam substantially in parallel to a road surface on which said vehicle is running; and

object detecting means for receiving reflected waves of said radar beam to create a detected object image, based on the reflected waves;

wherein said object detecting means comprises ghost determination means for determining whether a detected object image created is a ghost

wherein said ghost determination means comprises means for determining whether a first detected object image is a ghost, based on a second detected object image;

wherein said first detected object image is a detected object image appearing at a position assumed to be a position on a currently running lane, and

wherein said second detected object image is a detected object image appearing at a position assumed to be a position on an adjacent lane to said currently running lane; and

wherein said ghost determination means determines that said first detected object image is a ghost, based on a necessary condition that a distance and a relative velocity indicated by said first detected object image are substantially equal respectively to those indicated by said second detected object image.

5. The radar apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein said ghost determination means determines that said first detected object image is a ghost, based on a necessary condition that an angle between a direction indicated by said first detected object image and a direction indicated by said second detected object image is in a predetermined range.

6. The radar apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein said ghost determination means determines that said first detected object image is a ghost, based on a necessary condition that the distance indicated by said first detected object image is in a predetermined range.

8. The radar apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein said ghost determination means determines that said first detected object image is a ghost, based on a necessary condition that the distance indicated by said first detected object image is in a predetermined range.

11. The radar apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein said object detecting means is means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

13. The radar apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein said object detecting means is means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

14. The radar apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein said object detecting means is means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

16. The radar apparatus according to claim 8,

wherein said object detecting means is means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.

10. A radar apparatus to be mounted on a vehicle comprising:

radar beam scanning means for scanning a scan area with a radar beam substantially in parallel to a road surface on which said vehicle is running; and

object detecting means for receiving reflected waves of said radar beam to create a detected object image, based on the reflected waves;

wherein said object detecting means comprises ghost determination means for determining whether a detected object image created is a ghost

wherein said ghost determination means comprises means for determining whether a first detected object image is a ghost, based on a second detected object image;

wherein said first detected object image is a detected object image appearing at a position assumed to be a position on a currently running lane, and

wherein said second detected object image is a detected object image appearing at a position assumed to be a position on an adjacent lane to said currently running lane;

wherein said object detecting means comprises means for creating said detected object image every radar beam scan or every two or more radar beam scans by said radar beam scanning means, and

wherein said ghost determination means is adapted so that when it can be determined that a first detected object image created is an image to indicate the same object as a first detected object image created in a previous operation, the ghost determination means determines that the first detected object image is not a ghost, with a higher priority than other determination conditions.