Vehicle danger notification control apparatus

• US 9,583,003 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2014
• Issued: 02/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Astemo Ltd. (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Automotive Systems Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Shimizu, Ryosuke
• Primary Examiner(s): File, Erin
• Application Number:
  US14/893,656
• Publication Number:
  US 20160121791A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,082 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/525 automatically indicating risk of collision between vehicles in traffic or with pedestrians, e.g. after risk assessment using the vehicle sensor data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

A pedestrian and a driver of a running vehicle that are in the vicinity of a stopped vehicle are notified of a danger of collision with a vehicle, without requiring the pedestrian to carry a communication terminal. A vehicle danger notification control apparatus includes an outside recognition arrangement for recognizing a running vehicle and/or a pedestrian as a moving object(s), a danger determination arrangement for determining whether there is a danger of collision(s) between the running vehicle and the pedestrian and/or between the running vehicles, and a danger notification arrangement for notifying, in a case in which the danger determination means determines that there is a collision danger, a driver of the running vehicle and/or the pedestrian of the collision danger.

Claims

1. A vehicle danger notification control apparatus for notifying a driver of a running vehicle and/or a pedestrian that are/is in a vicinity of an own vehicle, of danger(s) of collision(s) between the running vehicle and the pedestrian and/or between the running vehicle and a second running vehicle, the vehicle danger notification control apparatus comprising:

at least one camera configured to recognize the running vehicle, the second running vehicle, and/or the pedestrian as a moving object(s);

at least one processor for executing stored instructions to;

determine whether the own vehicle is in a stopped state based on data obtained from measurement sensors for measuring speed of the own vehicle;

determine whether the running vehicle is within the vicinity of the own vehicle;

determine whether the pedestrian is within the vicinity of the own vehicle;

determine, when the pedestrian is not within the vicinity of the own vehicle, whether the second running vehicle is within the vicinity of the own vehicle;

determine whether there is the danger(s) of collision(s) between the running vehicle and the pedestrian and/or between the running vehicle and the second running vehicle, wherein the determination is based on calculating moving directions and moving speeds of the pedestrian, the running vehicle, and/or the second running vehicle and further calculating whether positions of the pedestrian and the running vehicle and/or the positions of the running vehicle and the second running vehicle will at least partly overlap at a same relative position after a predetermined period of time; and

notify, based on the determination that there is the danger(s) of collision(s), the driver of the running vehicle, a driver of the second running vehicle, and/or the pedestrian of the danger(s) of collision(s) using one or more components of the own vehicle.

2. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the at least one camera sequentially captures relative positions of the moving objects with respect to the own vehicle.

3. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the at least one camera includes a first camera for recognizing the running vehicle, and a second camera for recognizing other moving objects, and

in a case in which the first camera recognizes the running vehicle, the second camera recognizes the other moving objects.

4. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one camera is a stereo camera mounted on the own vehicle.

5. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more components of the own vehicle used for the notification of the danger(s) of collision(s) includes one or more of:

(i) a headlight, (ii) a blinker, (iii) a brake lamp, (iv) a fog lamp, (v) a backup light, (vi) a horn, (vii) an antitheft alarm, and (viii) a speaker.

6. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein if the positions of the pedestrian and the running vehicle at least partly overlap at the same relative position after the predetermined period of time based on the calculated moving direction and the moving speeds of the pedestrian and the running vehicle, the determination is that there is the danger of collision.

7. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the running vehicle has a collision danger area that has a predetermined size and moves together with the running vehicle and the collision danger area is settable on a front side of the running vehicle in a traveling direction according to the moving speed of the running vehicle, and if a position of the collision danger area and the position of the pedestrian at least partly overlap with each other at the same relative position after the predetermined period of time, the determination is that there is the danger of collision.

8. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the running vehicle has a virtual collision danger area that includes the running vehicle and has a boundary settable outside the running vehicle, and if a position of the virtual collision danger area and the position of the pedestrian at least partly overlap with each other at the same relative position after the predetermined period of time, the determination is that there is the danger of collision.

9. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is configured to determine the danger of collision between the running vehicle and the pedestrian in preference to the danger of collision between the running vehicle and the second running vehicle.

10. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a radar and if the radar is configured to detect the running vehicle and the second running vehicle, the at least one camera is configured to detect the pedestrian, the running vehicle, and the second running vehicle, wherein the radar consumes less power than the at least one camera, and wherein use of the at least one camera is halted until the radar detects the running vehicle and the second running vehicle.

11. The vehicle danger notification control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a wireless device for receiving position information of the own vehicle transmitted by respective wireless devices of the running vehicle and the second running vehicle.