Vehicle-to-vehicle communication device and method of controlling the same

• US 7,304,589 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2005
• Issued: 12/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Kagawa, Masakazu
• Primary Examiner(s): SWARTHOUT, BRENT
• Application Number:
  US11/094,267
• Publication Number:
  US 20050225457A1
• Time in Patent Office: 978 Days
• Field of Search: 340/988, 340/989, 340/990, 340/997, 340/975.1, 340/995.12, 340/995.13, 340/995.17, 340/995.24, 340/995.27, 340/905, 701/208, 701/211, 701/213, 701/300, 701/117
• US Class Current: 340/995.13
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0965 responding to signals from another vehicle, e.g. emergency vehicle

Abstract

A vehicle-to-vehicle communication device installed on a subject vehicle includes a detection function, a transmission function, a report function and a signal-processing function to display position information of surrounding vehicles as well as the subject vehicle. In a process of displaying the position information of the vehicles, the device communicates with the devices installed on other vehicles within a reach of the communication function to reflect the position information of the surrounding vehicles including vehicles not equipped with the device.

Claims

1. A vehicle-to-vehicle communication device installed on a subject vehicle and organized with one or more vehicle-to-vehicle communication devices as a system, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device comprising:

a detection means for detecting first information of the subject vehicle and each of surrounding vehicles around the subject vehicle;

a communication means for receiving second information of surrounding vehicles from another vehicle-to-vehicle communication device;

a report means for reporting various kinds of information;

a signal-processing means for processing the first information of the subject vehicle and of the another communication device and for making the report means report the information of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles; and

a map data retrieval means for retrieving map data;

wherein the detection means detects information of positions of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles,

wherein the report means includes a display means for displaying the various kinds of information as an image,

wherein the signal-processing means processes and determines the position of the subject vehicle and the positions of each of the surrounding vehicles based on the information from the detection means of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication devices on the subject vehicle and other vehicles,

wherein the signal-processing means controls the display means to display representation of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles in an image of the map data when the image is processed by the signal-processing means with the map data retrieved by the map data retrieval means, and

wherein the signal-processing means prioritizes the information of positions of the vehicles from plural information sources, when plural sources are available, with accuracy weighting of the sources in processes of position estimation of the vehicles.

2. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the detection means detects information of speed of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles, and

wherein the signal-processing means gives position estimations of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles based on the positions and the speeds of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles detected by the detection means so that the position estimations of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles reflect movement of the vehicles in a predetermined period of time from a moment of detection.

3. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the signal-processing means gives each position estimation of the vehicles solely with the information of the position of each vehicle having an error of less than a predetermined amount.

4. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the signal-processing means gives each position estimation of the vehicles exclusively with a specific source of information when the specific source of information has higher accuracy than a predetermined level.

5. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the signal-processing means controls the positions of the representation of the vehicles so that traveling directions of the representation of the vehicles follow traffic direction of a portion of the image of the map data where the representation of the vehicles are positioned.

6. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the signal-processing means controls the position of the representation of the vehicles so that the representation of each vehicle does not interfere with each other in the image of the map data.

7. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the communication means of the device communicates with the device installed on the other vehicle with an assistance of a roadside device that relays communication between the devices.

8. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein the communication means of a first vehicle-to-vehicle communication device on the subject vehicle communicates with a second vehicle-to-vehicle communication device installed on another vehicle with an assistance of a third vehicle-to-vehicle communication device on yet another vehicle that relays communication of the information.

9. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein a combination of plural devices implements a collected function of all of the means of the device.

10. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1,

wherein a combination of plural devices implements a whole function of the signal-processing means of the device.

11. The vehicle-to-vehicle communication device of claim 1, further comprising:

an image processing control unit for processing an image of the surrounding vehicles around the subject vehicle; and

a distance detection control unit for detecting an inter-vehicle distance between the subject vehicle and the each of the surrounding vehicles around the subject vehicle,

wherein the detection means detects the first information of the subject vehicle and the each of the surrounding vehicles around the subject vehicle at least based on information derived from the image processing control unit and the distance detection control unit.

12. A vehicle-to-vehicle communication device installed on a subject vehicle and organized with one or more vehicle-to-vehicle communication devices as a system, the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device comprising:

a detection means for detecting first information of the subject vehicle and each of surrounding vehicles around the subject vehicle;

a communication means for receiving second information of surrounding vehicles from another vehicle-to-vehicle communication device;

a report means for reporting various kinds of information;

a signal-processing means for processing the first information of the subject vehicle and of the another communication device and for making the report means report the information of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles; and

a map data retrieval means for retrieving map data;

wherein the detection means detects information of positions of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles,

wherein the report means includes a display means for displaying the various kinds of information as an image,

wherein the signal-processing means processes and determines the position of the subject vehicle and the positions of each of the surrounding vehicles based on the information from the detection means of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication devices on the subject vehicle and other vehicles,

wherein the signal-processing means controls the display means to display representation of the subject vehicle and each of the surrounding vehicles in an image of the map data when the image is processed by the signal-processing means with the map data retrieved by the map data retrieval means, and

wherein the signal-processing means determines a type of the representation of each vehicle in the image of the map data based on a condition whether or not each vehicle is equipped with the device.

13. A method of controlling a vehicle-to-vehicle communication comprising the steps of:

detecting first vehicle information by a first vehicle;

receiving second vehicle information detected by a second vehicle;

processing the first vehicle information with the second vehicle information to prepare a report;

making the report available to an operator of the first vehicle;

retrieving map data;

combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data; and

displaying the report by an image representing the map data, the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information,

wherein the first vehicle information includes vehicle position and related information of the first vehicle and each of surrounding vehicles around the first vehicle,

wherein the report includes each of the surrounding vehicles whether equipped with the device, and

wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises choosing representations of the vehicles based on an equipment of the device on the vehicles.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises reflecting movement of the first vehicle, the second vehicle and the surrounding vehicles in a specified period of time.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises determining positions of the vehicles by weighting accuracy of the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises determining positions of the vehicles with information having accuracy equal to or higher than a predetermined value.

17. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises determining positions of the vehicles exclusively with information having accuracy equal to or higher than a predetermined value.

18. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises arranging positions of the vehicles suitable to a portion of the map data where the positions of the vehicles indicate.

19. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of combining the first vehicle information and the second vehicle information with the map data comprises arranging positions of the vehicles suitably for distinguishing representation of the vehicles.

20. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of receiving the second vehicle information at the first vehicle is performed through a road side device when receiving the information.

21. The method of claim 13,

wherein the receiving the second vehicle information at the first vehicle is performed through at least one other communication device installed on at least one other vehicle that is different from the first vehicle and the second vehicle.

22. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of controlling a vehicle-to-vehicle communication is executed on the vehicles having required function for totally achieving control of the vehicle-to-vehicle communication.