JP2006300534A - Vehicle periphery monitoring apparatus and drive support apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicle periphery monitoring apparatus capable of satisfactorily monitoring positions at which a vehicle is cruising on a road and provide a drive support apparatus capable of executing drive support related to a discriminated lane. <P>SOLUTION: A cruising lane discrimination part 45 discriminates a cruising lane for a vehicle 1 to cruise on the basis of the position of each road partition line on images detected by a detection part 40. A vehicle position acquisition part 47 acquires a current position of the vehicle 1, for example, on the basis of information transmitted from GPS satellites. By this, a display control part 50 and a speech guidance part 60 can provide a driver with concrete instructions based on both road data corresponding to current position data extracted from a database 16a of a large-capacity storage part 16 and the cruising lane for the vehicle 1 to cruise. The driver can therefore receive appropriate instructions according to a lane for the vehicle 1 to cruise on the basis of route guidance processing to a destination. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle periphery monitoring device and a driving support device mounted on a vehicle, and more particularly, to monitoring of a lane in which the vehicle travels and driving support processing related to an identified lane.

  Conventionally, route guidance to a destination is provided by combining the vehicle position information detected based on a transmission signal from a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite and map information stored in a large-capacity storage unit, etc. An in-vehicle system for assisting a vehicle driver is known.

  However, with this in-vehicle system, even if it is possible to detect the approximate position of the host vehicle, for example, when there are multiple lanes on the road, it is possible to identify which lane the host vehicle is driving. I could not. Therefore, the driving support process according to the lane in which the vehicle travels cannot be executed.

  Accordingly, a first object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle periphery monitoring device that can satisfactorily monitor the traveling position of a vehicle on a road.

  It is a second object of the present invention to provide a driving support device capable of executing driving support related to the identified lane.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the invention of claim 1 is provided in a vehicle and capable of imaging a road dividing line that divides a lane, and each road included in an image captured by the imaging unit. A detection unit that detects a position on the image of the lane marking; an identification unit that identifies a traveling lane in which the vehicle travels based on the position on the image of each road lane marking and the position of the vehicle on the image; It is characterized by providing.

  The invention according to claim 2 is capable of acquiring the vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1, a storage unit capable of storing a database that stores road data and position data in association with each other, and current position data of the vehicle. A vehicle position acquisition unit, and road assistance data corresponding to the current position data from the database, and driving support processing related to the lane based on the extracted road data and the travel lane identified by the identification unit And a processing unit for executing the above.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an imaging unit that is installed in a vehicle and that can image structures disposed along the road outside both sides of the road, and an image captured by the imaging unit. A detection unit for detecting a position on an image of each structure included in the vehicle, a storage unit capable of storing a database for storing road data and position data in association with each other, and a vehicle position from which the current position data of the vehicle can be acquired The road data corresponding to the current position data is extracted from the acquisition unit, the database, and based on the extracted road data, the position on the image of each structure, and the position of the vehicle on the image. And an identification unit that identifies a travel lane in which the vehicle travels.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, driving related to a lane based on the vehicle periphery monitoring device according to the third aspect, road data corresponding to the current position data, and a traveling lane identified by the identifying unit. And a processing unit that executes support processing.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the driving assistance device according to the second or fourth aspect, the processing unit is configured to perform the driving assistance processing on the extracted road data and the identified traveling lane. A route guidance process is executed based on the display based on the display.

  In the driving support apparatus according to claim 2 or 4, as the driving support process, the processing unit is configured to convert the extracted road data and the identified travel lane. Based on this, route guidance is executed by voice.

  According to the first and second aspects of the present invention, the traveling lane in which the vehicle travels can be identified from the detected position of each road marking line.

  In particular, according to the second aspect of the present invention, the driving support process can be executed based on the information related to the traveling lane identified by the identifying unit and the road data corresponding to the current position data. Therefore, the driver of the vehicle can receive an appropriate instruction according to the lane in which the vehicle travels for route guidance to the destination.

  According to the invention of claim 3 and claim 4, the vehicle is obtained from the road data corresponding to the current position data and the positions of the structures respectively arranged along the road on both sides outward of the road. The traveling lane in which the vehicle travels can be identified.

  In particular, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the driving support process can be executed based on the information on the traveling lane identified by the identifying unit and the road data corresponding to the current position data. Therefore, the driver of the vehicle can receive an appropriate instruction according to the lane in which the vehicle travels for route guidance to the destination.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<1. Configuration of Vehicle Perimeter Monitoring Device>
FIG. 1 is a top view showing an example of a vehicle 1 on which a vehicle periphery monitoring device 5 according to the present embodiment can be mounted. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the vehicle periphery monitoring device 5. In addition, in FIG. 1 and each subsequent figure, in order to clarify those directional relationships, the coordinate axis which shows the front-back direction and the left-right direction is attached | subjected as needed.

  The vehicle periphery monitoring device 5 is a device that identifies a traveling lane in which the vehicle 1 travels when the vehicle 1 travels on a road having a plurality of lanes. Further, the vehicle periphery monitoring device 5 can execute a driving support process related to the lane based on the identified traveling lane, and is also used as the driving support device 5.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vehicle periphery monitoring device 5 mainly includes a front camera 31, a rear camera 32, a detection unit 40, a large-capacity storage unit 16, a traveling lane identification unit 45, a vehicle position. The acquisition part 47, the display control part 50, and the audio guidance part 60 are provided.

  The front camera 31 and the rear camera 32 are imaging units attached to the front and rear of the vehicle 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the front camera 31 can image a predetermined wide imaging range 31 a in front of the vehicle 1. Similarly, the rear camera 32 can image a predetermined wide imaging range 32a behind the vehicle 1. The images captured by the cameras 31 and 32 are input to the image input unit 30 and displayed on the display unit 51 installed in the vehicle 1.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of an image captured by the front camera 31 when the vehicle 1 is traveling forward on a road having a plurality of (three in FIG. 3) lanes. A similar image can also be acquired by the rear camera 32. As shown in FIG. 3, in this image, lanes that separate roadside lines 71 (71a, 71b) indicating boundaries between the roads 70 and roadside belts 74 (74a, 74b) and lanes 73 (73a-73c). The dividing line 72 (72a, 72b) and the structure constituting the central separation band 75 and the soundproof wall 76 are included.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the roadside line 71 and the lane line 72 are provided on the road 70 and extend along the road 70. The median strip 75 and the soundproof wall 76 are structures that are respectively disposed along the road 70 outward from both sides of the road 70. In the present embodiment, the roadside line 71 and the lane line 72 are collectively referred to as a road line.

  The detection unit 40 performs image processing such as pattern matching, for example, so that the position of each road segment line (the roadside line 71 and the lane line 72) and each structure (the central separation band 75 and the soundproof wall 76) are detected from the image. Detect position. That is, the detection unit 40 can detect the position on the image with respect to each road dividing line and each structure.

  The travel lane identification unit 45 identifies the travel lane in which the vehicle 1 travels from the position on the image of each road segment line detected by the detection unit 40. That is, the driver can acquire information related to the travel lane of the vehicle 1 by the travel lane identification unit 45.

  Here, the front camera 31 and the rear camera 32 are provided at substantially the center in the width direction (left-right direction) of the vehicle 1 so that the optical axes of the cameras 31 and 32 are substantially parallel to the traveling direction of the vehicle 1. It is done. Further, each lane 73 is obtained as a region sandwiched between the corresponding roadside line 71 and lane marking line 72.

  Therefore, the traveling lane identification unit 45 is a traveling lane in which the vehicle 1 travels a lane that is located approximately in the center of the image when viewed from the left-right direction, among the lanes determined from the position of each road segment line on the image. Judgment can be made. That is, the traveling lane identifying unit 45 identifies the traveling lane in which the vehicle 1 travels based on the position of each road segment line on the image and the position of the vehicle on the image.

  The vehicle position acquisition unit 47 can acquire current position data (longitude and latitude) of the vehicle 1 based on information transmitted from, for example, a GPS satellite. The large-capacity storage unit 16 stores a database that stores map information such as road data in association with the position data of the vehicle 1. Here, the road data is data relating to the shape of the road 70 at the corresponding position, and corresponds to, for example, the number of lanes and the road width of the road 70 at the position. Further, the road shape at the intersection (for example, the arrangement status of the right turn lane, the straight lane, and the left turn lane) is also stored in the database as road data.

  The display control unit 50 and the voice guidance unit 60 provide driving assistance related to the lane based on the road data corresponding to the current position data extracted from the database 16a and the travel lane on which the vehicle 1 travels. A processing unit that executes processing.

  For example, when the vehicle 1 is traveling in the central lane 73b of the road shown in FIG. 3, the lane is changed to the leftmost lane 73a in order to move to a predetermined facility (for example, an interchange or a service area) on the road. When it becomes necessary to do so, the display control unit 50 and the voice guidance unit 60 perform the following processing as the driving support processing related to the lane.

  That is, the display control unit 50 displays on the display unit 51 a display prompting that the currently traveling lane 73 is the central lane 73b and that the lane 73a is one left as viewed from the central lane 73b. . Also, the voice guidance unit 60 prompts by voice that the currently traveling lane 73 is the central lane 73b and that the lane is changed to the left lane 73a as viewed from the central lane 73b.

  Thereby, the display control unit 50 and the voice guidance unit 60 can give a specific instruction to the driver of the vehicle 1 based on the travel lane in which the vehicle 1 travels. Therefore, the driver can receive an appropriate instruction regarding the execution of the route guidance process to the destination by the display control unit 50 and the voice guidance unit 60.

  The RAM 13 is a readable / writable memory (storage unit). The mass storage unit 16 can read data recorded on a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) or a CD (Compact Disc). In the present embodiment, a database 16a that stores road data and position data of the vehicle 1 in association with each other is stored on the DVD or CD. The large-capacity storage unit 16 may be configured by an element having a large storage capacity such as a silicon disk drive or a hard disk drive.

  The ROM 12 is a read-only memory, and the MPU 11 executes control according to a program stored in the ROM 12. The MPU 11 is electrically connected to the ROM 12, the RAM 13, the large-capacity storage unit 16, the image input unit 30, the detection unit 40, the traveling lane identification unit 45, the vehicle position acquisition unit 47, the display control unit 50, and the like via the signal line 15. Connected. Therefore, the MPU 11 can execute the position detection process of each road marking line, the identification process of the lane in which the vehicle 1 travels, and the like according to this program at a predetermined timing.

<2. Advantages of Vehicle Perimeter Monitoring Device of Embodiment>
As described above, the vehicle periphery monitoring device (driving support device) 5 of the present embodiment can identify the traveling lane in which the vehicle 1 travels from the plurality of lanes 73 by the traveling lane identifying unit 45. Further, the current position of the vehicle 1 can be acquired by the vehicle position acquisition unit 47. Thereby, the display control part 50 and the audio | voice guidance part 60 can give the specific instruction | indication based on the travel lane in which the vehicle 1 drive | works. Therefore, the driver can receive an appropriate instruction according to the lane in which the vehicle 1 travels when performing route guidance to the destination.

<3. Modification>
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made.

  (1) In the present embodiment, the travel lane on which the vehicle 1 travels is identified based on the position of the road segment line on the image, but the travel lane identification process is not limited to this. The following procedure may be executed.

  That is, the position on the image of the structure arranged along the road outside the both sides of the road such as the median strip 75 and the soundproof wall 76 is detected from the image taken by the front camera 31 or the rear camera 32. Then, the portion of the road 70 on the image is extracted. Next, road data corresponding to the current position of the vehicle 1 is extracted from the database 16a, and the number of lanes of the road 70 at the current position is acquired.

  Then, the lane in which the vehicle 1 travels is determined from the extracted road data (number of lanes) and the position of the road 70 portion on the image. Specifically, the extracted road 70 portion is divided in the left-right direction according to the number of lanes. For example, when the number of lanes at the current position is three, the extracted road 70 portion is divided into three in the left-right direction. Subsequently, among the divided road portions (corresponding to lanes), the one located in the approximate center on the image when viewed from the left-right direction is determined as the traveling lane of the vehicle 1.

  Thereby, even when the road segment line is not clearly drawn on the road 70 or when the road segment line cannot be visually recognized due to snow or the like, the travel lane in which the vehicle 1 travels can be well identified. .

  (2) The travel lane identification process may be executed according to the following procedure. That is, the position on the image of each road division line and the position on the image of the median strip 75 and the soundproof wall 76 are detected from the image captured by the front camera 31 or the rear camera 32. Next, road data corresponding to the current position of the vehicle 1 is extracted from the database 16a, and the number of lanes of the road 70 at the current position is acquired.

  Then, of the lanes determined from the position of each road segment line on the image, the lane located at the approximate center of the image when viewed from the left-right direction, the extracted road data (number of lanes), and the position of the road 70 portion on the image When the lane identified from the vehicle lanes coincides with each other, the traveling lane identifying unit 45 determines that the coincident lane is the traveling lane of the vehicle 1. Thereby, the traveling lane in which the vehicle 1 travels can be obtained with higher accuracy.

  (3) Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the database 16a has been described as being stored in the large-capacity storage unit 16, but is not limited thereto. When a sufficient storage capacity is secured in the RAM 13, the database 16 a may be stored in the RAM 13 instead of the large capacity storage unit 16.

It is a top view which shows an example of the vehicle which can mount the vehicle periphery monitoring apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which illustrates the functional composition of the vehicle periphery monitoring device. It is a figure which shows an example of the image displayed on the display part.

Explanation of symbols

1 Vehicle 5 Vehicle Perimeter Monitoring Device (Driving Support Device)
10 Control unit 13 RAM
16 Large-capacity storage unit 16a Database 31 Front camera 32 Rear camera 40 Detection unit 45 Traveling lane identification unit 47 Vehicle position acquisition unit 50 Display control unit 51 Display unit 60 Voice guidance unit 70 Road 71 (71a, 71b) Road side line 72 (72a , 72b) Lane marking 73 (73a-73c) Lane 74 (74a, 74b) Roadside zone 75 Center separation zone 76 Sound barrier

Claims (6)

(a) an imaging unit installed in a vehicle and capable of imaging a road dividing line that divides a lane;
(b) a detection unit that detects a position on the image of each road marking line included in the image captured by the imaging unit;
(c) an identification unit that identifies a traveling lane on which the vehicle travels based on a position on the image of each road segment line and a position of the vehicle on the image;
A vehicle periphery monitoring device comprising: (a) the vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1;
(b) a storage unit capable of storing a database for storing road data and position data in association with each other;
(c) a vehicle position acquisition unit capable of acquiring current position data of the vehicle;
(d) A process of extracting road data corresponding to the current position data from the database and executing a driving support process related to the lane based on the extracted road data and the travel lane identified by the identification unit And
A driving support apparatus comprising: (a) an imaging unit that is installed in a vehicle and capable of imaging structures respectively disposed along the road outside both sides of the road;
(b) a detection unit that detects a position on the image of each structure included in the image captured by the imaging unit;
(c) a storage unit capable of storing a database that stores road data and location data in association with each other;
(d) a vehicle position acquisition unit capable of acquiring current position data of the vehicle;
(e) extracting road data corresponding to the current position data from the database, and based on the extracted road data, the position of each structure on the image, and the position of the vehicle on the image An identification unit for identifying a traveling lane in which the vehicle travels;
A vehicle periphery monitoring device comprising: (a) the vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 3;
(b) a processing unit that executes driving support processing related to a lane based on road data corresponding to the current position data and a traveling lane identified by the identifying unit;
A driving support apparatus comprising: In the driving assistance device according to claim 2 or 4,
The said processing part performs a route guidance process by the display based on the said extracted road data and the identified travel lane as the said driving assistance process, The driving assistance apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In the driving assistance device according to claim 2 or 4,
The said processing part performs a route guidance process with a voice based on the said extracted road data and the identified travel lane as the said driving assistance process, The driving assistance apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.

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