Driving support system, driving support apparatus and driving support method

• US 7,010,428 B2
• Filed: 12/02/2003
• Issued: 03/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kanemitsu, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Broadhead, Brian J.
• Application Number:
  US10/724,883
• Publication Number:
  US 20040122587A1
• Time in Patent Office: 826 Days
• Field of Search: 701/300, 701/301, 701/117
• US Class Current: 701/300
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/04 Traffic conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0072 Transmission between mobile stations, e.g. anti-collision systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0294 Trajectory determination or predictive filtering, e.g. target tracking or Kalman filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking

Abstract

A driving support apparatus included in a vehicle in a system which uses running data on another vehicle, that is transmitted from the other vehicle, is provided with extracting means for preparing vector mapping data including plural running vectors based on positional information and speed information transmitted from at least one other vehicle, and for extracting a running path of the at least one other vehicle from the prepared vector mapping data.

Claims

1. A driving support system, comprising:

a first vehicle which can receive running data; and

at least one second vehicle which can transmit the running data to the first vehicle;

wherein, in the first vehicle, a running path of the second vehicle is estimated based on plural pieces of positional information included in the running data transmitted from the second vehicle, a possibility that a running vector of the second vehicle, which is prepared based on positional information and speed information on the second vehicle, will intersect with a running vector of the first vehicle is determined using the estimated running path, and the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected using velocity information on a third vehicle running ahead of the second vehicle.

2. The driving support system according to claim 1, wherein if it is estimated using velocity information on the third vehicle that a speed of the second vehicle will decrease, a length of the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected to decrease, and if it is estimated that the speed of the second vehicle will increase, the length of the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected to increase.

3. The driving support system according to claim 1, wherein the first vehicle is running on a running path and approaching an intersection, and the second vehicle is running on another running path which intersects with the running path of the first vehicle and approaching the intersection, and the third vehicle is running ahead of the second vehicle on the another running path and is moving away from the intersection.

4. A driving support apparatus which is provided in a first vehicle and which is used in a system that uses running data of at least one second vehicle, that is transmitted from the second vehicle, comprising:

a communication portion which receives positional information and speed information on the second vehicle,

an extracting portion which prepares vector mapping data including plural running vectors based on the plural pieces of positional information and speed information transmitted from the second vehicle, and which extracts a running path of the second vehicle from the prepared vector mapping data, and

a determining portion which determines a possibility that a running vector of the second vehicle, that is prepared based on positional information and speed information on the second vehicle, will intersect with a running vector of the first vehicle using the extracted running path,

wherein the determining portion determines the possibility that the running vector of the second vehicle will intersect with the running vector of the first vehicle, after correcting the running vector of the second vehicle using velocity information on a third vehicle running ahead of the second vehicle.

5. The driving support apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising:

an image capturing portion which captures an image of an area ahead of the first vehicle and which generates image information on the area ahead of the first vehicle,

wherein the determining portion determines the possibility that the running vector of the second vehicle will intersect with the running vector of the first vehicle using the extracted running path and the image information obtained by the image capturing portion.

6. The driving support apparatus according to claim 4, wherein if it is estimated using velocity information on the third vehicle that a speed of the second vehicle will decrease, a length of the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected to decrease, and if it is estimated that the speed of the second vehicle will increase, the length of the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected to increase.

7. The driving support apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the first vehicle is running on a running path and approaching an intersection, and the second vehicle is running on another running path which intersects with the running path of the first vehicle and approaching the intersection, and the third vehicle is running ahead of the second vehicle on the another running path and is moving away from the intersection.

8. A driving support apparatus which is provided in a first vehicle and which is used in a system that uses running data of at least one second vehicle, that is transmitted from the second vehicle, comprising:

a communication portion which receives positional information and speed information on the second vehicle,

extracting means for preparing vector mapping data including plural running vectors based on the plural pieces of positional information and speed information transmitted from the second vehicle, and for extracting a running path of the second vehicle from the prepared vector mapping data, and

determining means for determining a possibility that a running vector of the second vehicle, that is prepared based on positional information and speed information on the second vehicle, will intersect with a running vector of the first vehicle using the extracted running path,

wherein the determining means determines the possibility that the running vector of the second vehicle will intersect with the running vector of the first vehicle, after correcting the running vector of the second vehicle using velocity information on a third vehicle running ahead of the second vehicle.

9. The driving support apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising:

image capturing means for capturing an image of an area ahead of the first vehicle and for generating image information on the area ahead of the first vehicle,

wherein the determining means determines the possibility that the running vector of the second vehicle will intersect with the running vector of the first vehicle using the running path extracted by the extracting means and the image information on the area ahead of the first vehicle, obtained by the image capturing means.

10. The driving support apparatus according to claim 8, wherein if it is estimated using velocity information on the third vehicle that a speed of the second vehicle will decrease, a length of the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected to decrease, and if it is estimated that the speed of the second vehicle will increase, the length of the running vector of the second vehicle is corrected to increase.

11. The driving support apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first vehicle is running on a running path and approaching an intersection, and the second vehicle is running on another running path which intersects with the running path of the first vehicle and approaching the intersection, and the third vehicle is running ahead of the second vehicle on the another running path and is moving away from the intersection.

12. A driving support method in which a first vehicle uses running data of at least one second vehicle, that is transmitted from the second vehicle, comprising:

a first step of receiving positional information and speed information on the second vehicle;

a second step of preparing vector mapping data including plural running vectors based on the plural pieces of positional information and speed information transmitted from the second vehicle;

a third step of extracting a running path of the second vehicle from the prepared vector mapping data; and

a fourth step of determining a possibility that a running vector of the second vehicle, that is prepared based on positional information and speed information on the second vehicle, will intersect with a running vector of the first vehicle using the extracted running path,

wherein, in the fourth step, the possibility that that the running vector of the second vehicle will intersect with the running vector of the first vehicle is determined, after correcting the running vector of the second vehicle using velocity information on a third vehicle running ahead of the second vehicle.

13. The driving support method according to claim 12, further comprising:

a fifth step of capturing an image of an area ahead of the first vehicle and generating image information on the area ahead of the first vehicle, wherein, in the fourth step, the possibility that the running vector of the second vehicle will intersect with the running vector of the first vehicle is determined using the running path extracted in the third step and the image information on the area ahead of the first vehicle.

14. The driving support method according to claim 12, further comprising, if it is estimated using velocity information on the third vehicle that a speed of the second vehicle will decrease, correcting a length of the running vector of the second vehicle to decrease, and if it is estimated that the speed of the second vehicle will increase, correcting the length of the running vector of the second vehicle to increase.

15. The driving support method according to claim 12, wherein the first vehicle is running on a running path and approaching an intersection, and the second vehicle is running on another running path which intersects with the running path of the first vehicle and approaching the intersection, and the third vehicle is running ahead of the second vehicle on the another running path and is moving away from the intersection.