Vehicle approach detection device and vehicle approach detection method

• US 9,925,984 B2
• Filed: 08/03/2016
• Issued: 03/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Kato, Yoichi, Aoyagi, Takahisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Dunn, Alex C
• Application Number:
  US15/227,078
• Publication Number:
  US 20170217440A1
• Time in Patent Office: 601 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/18 including control of braking systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/30 including control of auxiliary equipment, e.g. air-conditioning compressors or oil pumps
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/143 Alarm means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/54 Audio sensitive means, e.g. ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/18 Braking system
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/20 Steering systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/09 Taking automatic action to avoid collision, e.g. braking and steering
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/0956 the prediction being responsive to traffic or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18154 Approaching an intersection
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/584 of vehicle lights or traffic lights
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/04 using optical or ultrasonic detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

Provided are a vehicle approach detection device and a vehicle approach detection method that are capable of detecting an approach of another vehicle without installing a dedicated device on a road. At least one of a vehicle surrounding video for showing an observed area (for example, road surface) used to observe irradiation light (for example, headlight beam emitted from a headlight of another vehicle) from another vehicle and a vehicle surrounding environmental sound is detected as vehicle external information, and it is determined based on the detected vehicle external information whether or not another vehicle is approaching an own vehicle.

Claims

1. A vehicle approach detection device that is mounted on a first vehicle, the vehicle approach detection device comprising:

a vehicle external information detector configured to detect vehicle external information comprising a vehicle surrounding video that shows a road surface onto which light emitted from a second vehicle is incident and a vehicle surrounding environmental sound emitted from the second vehicle; and

a controller comprising a vehicle approach detector configured to determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on a temporal change in a luminance of the road surface onto which the light emitted from the second vehicle is incident and the vehicle surrounding environmental sound emitted from the second vehicle.

3. The vehicle approach detection device according to claim 1, wherein:

the vehicle external information detector comprises a camera configured to acquire the vehicle surrounding video that shows the road surface; and

the vehicle approach detector is configured to determine whether a symbol mark projected as the light emitted from the second vehicle based on the vehicle surrounding video input from the camera to determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle.

5. The vehicle approach detection device according to claim 1, wherein:

the vehicle external information detector comprises a microphone configured to acquire the vehicle surrounding environmental sound; and

the vehicle approach detector is configured to determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on a temporal change in an engine sound of the second vehicle included in the vehicle surrounding environmental sound input from the microphone.

6. The vehicle approach detection device according to claim 1, wherein the controller further comprises a startup controller configured to acquire startup information comprising at least one of a luminance of a surrounding environment of the first vehicle, current location of the first vehicle, and light emission of the first vehicle, and control a startup of the vehicle approach detection device based on the acquired startup information.

7. The vehicle approach detection device according to claim 1, wherein the controller further comprises a driving support controller configured to provide the first vehicle with driving support when the vehicle approach detector determines that the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle.

8. The vehicle approach detection device according to claim 7, wherein the driving support controller is configured to warn a driver of the first vehicle that the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle as the driving support.

9. The vehicle approach detection device according to claim 7, wherein the driving support controller is configured to reduce a speed of the first vehicle as the driving support.

2. A vehicle approach detection device that is mounted on a first vehicle, the vehicle approach detection device comprising:

a vehicle external information detector configured to detect vehicle external information that comprises at least one of a vehicle surrounding video that shows a target observation area that is used to observe light emitted from a second vehicle and a vehicle surrounding environmental sound;

a controller comprising a vehicle approach detector configured to determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on the detected vehicle external information; and

a radar configured to detect radar information comprising information about an obstruction around the first vehicle, wherein;

the controller further comprises a wall surface detector configured to generate information about a wall surface around the first vehicle as wall surface information, based on the radar information, determine whether a first target wall surface is located in a traveling direction of the first vehicle based on the wall surface information, and set the target observation area to any one of the first target wall surface and the road surface based on a results of the determination;

the vehicle external information detector comprises a camera configure to acquire the vehicle surrounding video that shows the target observation area set by the wall surface detector to output the acquired vehicle surrounding video as the vehicle external information; and

the vehicle approach detector is configured to determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on a temporal change in a luminance of the target observation area shown in the vehicle surrounding video input from the camera.

4. A vehicle approach detection device that is mounted on a first vehicle, the vehicle approach detection device comprising:

a vehicle external information detector configured to detect vehicle external information that comprises at least one of a vehicle surrounding video that shows a target observation area that is used to observe light emitted from a second vehicle and a vehicle surrounding environmental sound;

a controller comprising a vehicle approach detector configured to determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on the detected vehicle external information; and

a radar configured to detect radar information comprising information about an obstruction around the first vehicle; and

a symbol mark projector configured to project a symbol mark onto an illuminated area, wherein;

the controller is configured to generate wall surface information comprising information about a wall surface around the first vehicle, based on the radar information input from the radar, determine, as a first determination, whether a first target wall surface is located in a traveling direction of the first vehicle based on the wall surface information, set the target observation area to any one of the first target wall surface and a road surface based on the first determination, determine, as a second determination, whether a second target wall surface is located in the traveling direction of the first vehicle based on the wall surface information, and set the illuminated area to any one of the second target wall surface and the road surface based on the second determination;

the vehicle external information detector comprises a camera configured to acquire the vehicle surrounding video that shows the target observation area set by the wall surface detector to output the acquired vehicle surrounding video as the vehicle external information;

the symbol mark projector is configured to project the symbol mark onto the illuminated area set by the wall surface detector; and

the vehicle approach detector is configured to determine, as a third determination, whether the symbol mark is projected as the light emitted from the second vehicle based on the vehicle surrounding video input from the camera, and determine whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on the third determination.

10. A vehicle approach detection method to be executed by an controller mounted on a first vehicle, the vehicle approach detection method comprising:

acquiring vehicle external information from a vehicle external information detector configured to detect vehicle external information comprising a vehicle surrounding video that shows a road surface onto which light emitted from a second vehicle is incident and a vehicle surrounding environmental sound emitted from the second vehicle; and

determining whether the second vehicle is approaching the first vehicle based on a temporal change in a luminance of the road surface onto which the light emitted from the second vehicle is incident and the vehicle surrounding environmental sound emitted from the second vehicle.