System for predicting a driver's intention to change lanes

• US 9,159,023 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2010
• Issued: 10/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Bone, Sven, Winner, Hermann, Habenicht, Stefan, Goos, Jan-Christoph, Regh, Fabian
• Primary Examiner(s): CHANG, LI WU
• Application Number:
  US13/702,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20130085976A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,943 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2554/801 Lateral distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18163 Lane change; Overtaking manoeuvres
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/10 Interpretation of driver requests or demands
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/02 Knowledge representation; Symbolic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/167 Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection

Abstract

Provided is a system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes at a high accuracy involving a minimum amount of time delay. A driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes is predicted by a prediction unit (9) by comparing motivators and inhibitors (7, 8) which may be determined from the speed of the traffic in particular the vehicle traveling ahead of the vehicle and the traffic in the adjacent lanes in relation to the traveling speed of the ego vehicle by using an ego vehicle sensor (1) and an environmental sensor (3, 4, 5) that may comprise a radio wave, optical or acoustic radar. The criteria for the motivators and inhibitors may be empirically or statistically determined, preferably by conducting a large number of tests on roads. As they can be determined before the vehicle operator starts a lane changing maneuver, the prediction made by the prediction unit may be used on a real time basis in a warning system or steering/acceleration assist system.

Claims

1. A system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention of an ego vehicle to change lanes, comprising:

an ego vehicle sensor for detecting information on a motion of the ego vehicle;

an environment sensor for detecting information on at least one of;

a motion of a vehicle traveling within a prescribed distance ahead of the ego vehicle in a same lane as the ego vehicle, and

a motion of a vehicle traveling within a prescribed distance from the ego vehicle in an adjacent lane;

a motivator computing unit for computing a motivator indicating an intention of a driver of the ego vehicle to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane according to outputs of the ego vehicle sensor and environment sensor, wherein the driver is a human driving the ego vehicle;

an inhibitor computing unit for computing an inhibitor indicating an intention of the driver of the ego vehicle not to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane according to the outputs of the ego vehicle sensor and environment sensor; and

a prediction unit for predicting the driver'"'"'s intention of the ego vehicle to change lanes by comparing outputs of the motivator computing unit and inhibitor computing unit,

wherein the motivator computing unit is configured to determine if any of a plurality of motivator criteria for the intension of the driver of the ego vehicle are met, and the inhibitor computing unit is configured to determine if any of a plurality of inhibitor criteria for the intension of the driver of the ego vehicle are met, the prediction unit predicting the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes by comparing a number of the motivator criteria that are met with a number of the inhibitor criteria that are met, and

wherein the outputs of the ego vehicle sensor used in computing the motivator and the inhibitor include only the outputs indicating the motion of the ego vehicle in a longitudinal direction of the ego vehicle, including a traveling speed and a longitudinal acceleration of the ego vehicle.

2. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention of an ego vehicle to change lanes according to claim 1, further comprising an indicator computing unit for computing an indicator indicative of the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane from the outputs of the ego vehicle sensor, the prediction unit using an output of the indicator computing unit in predicting the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes.

3. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention of an ego vehicle to change lanes according to claim 1, wherein the environment sensor comprises a radio wave, optical or acoustic radar.

4. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention of an ego vehicle to change lanes according to claim 1, wherein the motivator includes a predicted period of uninfluenced driving of the ego vehicle and the inhibitor includes the predicted period of uninfluenced driving of the ego vehicle.

6. The system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention of an ego vehicle to change lanes according to claim 1, wherein the motivator and inhibitor are computed based on an average velocity of the current lane and an average velocity of the adjacent lane which are determined based on traffic on the current lane and the adjacent lane.

5. A system for predicting a driver'"'"'s intention of an ego vehicle to change lanes, comprising:

an ego vehicle sensor for detecting information on a motion of the ego vehicle;

an environment sensor for detecting information on at least one of;

a motion of a vehicle traveling within a prescribed distance ahead of the ego vehicle in a same lane as the ego vehicle, and

a motion of a vehicle traveling within a prescribed distance from the ego vehicle in an adjacent lane;

a motivator computing unit for computing a motivator indicating an intention of a driver of the ego vehicle to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane according to outputs of the ego vehicle sensor and environment sensor, wherein the driver is a human driving the ego vehicle;

an inhibitor computing unit for computing an inhibitor indicating an intention of the driver of the ego vehicle not to change lanes from the current lane to the adjacent lane according to the outputs of the ego vehicle sensor and environment sensor; and

a prediction unit for predicting the driver'"'"'s intention of the ego vehicle to change lanes by comparing outputs of the motivator computing unit and inhibitor computing unit,

wherein the motivator computing unit is configured to determine if any of a plurality of motivator criteria for the intension of the driver of the ego vehicle are met, and the inhibitor computing unit is configured to determine if any of a plurality of inhibitor criteria for the intension of the driver of the ego vehicle are met, the prediction unit predicting the driver'"'"'s intention to change lanes by comparing a number of the motivator criteria that are met with a number of the inhibitor criteria that are met, and

wherein the motivator and inhibitor are computed based on an average velocity of the current lane and an average velocity of the adjacent lane which are determined based on traffic on the current lane and the adjacent lane.