JP2008204281A - Object detection device and inter-vehicle communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To precisely discriminate a road side object from a vehicle such as a motorcycle in an object detection device for detecting an object around a vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: A support control ECU decides whether or not an object is a vehicle by comparing the moving speeds of objects detected by image processing based on a picked-up image by a plurality of side cameras and the difference of detection timing by a plurality of sonar, in vehicle detection processing. That is, the support control ECU compares the separately detected moving speeds of the objects to calculate the moving speed of the object with high precision, and to discriminate whether the object is the vehicle or a road side object on the basis of the moving speed of the object. Therefore, even when the shape of the road side object is similar to the shape of the vehicle, it is possible to highly precisely discriminate whether or not the object is the road side object or the vehicle without error. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an object detection device that detects an object that is mounted on a vehicle and exists around the vehicle, and a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system that includes the object detection device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an object detection device that can detect a surrounding vehicle using a radar and a camera is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In such an object detection device, this object is usually a vehicle (passenger car or two-wheeled vehicle) or a roadside object such as a roadside tree or a utility pole based on the size and shape of the detected object (so-called pattern matching). Are identified.
JP 2006-085285 A

  However, when a vehicle such as a two-wheeled vehicle is detected by the object detection device, it is difficult to identify these when the shape of a roadside object is similar to the shape of the vehicle by simply using a radar and a camera. There was a risk of becoming. For this reason, in the said object detection apparatus, there existed a problem of recognizing a roadside thing as a vehicle, or recognizing a vehicle as a roadside thing.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to enable an object detection device that detects an object present around a vehicle to accurately identify a roadside object and a vehicle such as a motorcycle.

  In the object detection device according to claim 1, which is configured to achieve the above object, the vehicle determination unit compares the moving speeds of the respective objects detected by the plurality of object speed detection units, so that the object is detected. It is determined whether it is a vehicle.

  That is, in the object detection device of the present invention, the movement speed of the object is obtained with high precision by comparing the movement speeds of the separately detected objects, and whether the object is a vehicle based on the movement speed of the object It is possible to identify whether it is a thing.

  Therefore, according to such an object detection device, even when the shape of the roadside object is similar to the shape of the vehicle, it is possible to accurately determine whether the object is a roadside object or a vehicle. Can be identified.

  In the present invention, since the vehicle determination means compares the detected moving speeds, for example, a speed equal to or higher than a predetermined speed (predetermined speed ratio) set in advance for each moving speed by this comparison. It is also possible to detect whether or not there is a difference and change the identification result as to whether the vehicle is a roadside object or not according to the detection result.

  By the way, in the object detection apparatus according to claim 1, the plurality of object speed detection means may detect each movement speed using the same method, but in order to improve the detection accuracy of each movement speed. May detect each moving speed using a plurality of different methods. In this case, for example, a configuration as described in claim 2 is conceivable.

  That is, as the plurality of object speed detection means, an image speed calculation means for calculating the moving speed of the object based on a temporal change of an image captured by the imaging means for imaging the surroundings of the vehicle, and a plurality of locations around the vehicle Distance measuring speed calculating means for calculating the moving speed of the object based on the temporal change of the detection result by the distance measuring means for transmitting sound waves or electromagnetic waves respectively from .

  According to such an object detection device, as a plurality of different methods, a method using sound waves or electromagnetic waves and a method using image processing are adopted, so compared with the case where a plurality of the same methods are used. It can be made less susceptible to the influence of the surrounding environment such as noise and weather. Therefore, the detection accuracy of the moving speed can be improved.

  Further, in the object detection device according to claim 2, as described in claim 3, the imaging means is arranged so that the side of the vehicle is in the imaging range, and the distance measuring means is arranged in front of and behind the vehicle. The vehicle may be arranged so that the side of the vehicle is the detection range.

  According to such an object detection device, since the imaging means and the distance measurement means use the side of the vehicle as a detection range, it is possible to detect a vehicle (especially a two-wheeled vehicle) that passes through the side of the vehicle.

  Further, in the object detection device according to claim 3, as described in claim 4, the image pickup means is disposed between the distance measurement means on the side of the vehicle, and the image speed calculation means is When the object is detected by one of the distance measuring means, the moving speed calculation of the object based on the captured image by the image capturing means may be started.

  According to such an object detection apparatus, it is possible to predict in advance the detection timing at which an object is detected by the imaging means, and therefore it is possible to easily detect the object at this detection timing. Therefore, a vehicle (especially a two-wheeled vehicle) that passes through the side of the vehicle can be detected better.

  Furthermore, in the object detection device according to claim 4, the image speed calculation means ends the movement speed calculation when an object is detected by the other distance measurement means as described in claim 5. Also good.

  According to such an object detection device, it is possible to set a time at which the moving speed calculation is ended, and therefore it is possible to prevent unnecessary processing from being performed when the image speed calculating means cannot detect the object.

  Moreover, in order to achieve the said objective, you may comprise as a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system of Claim 6. That is, the inter-vehicle communication device constituting this system includes own vehicle information detection means for detecting information on the own vehicle including position information of the own vehicle on which the inter-vehicle communication device is mounted, and the inter-vehicle communication device. A peripheral vehicle information detecting means for detecting information of a surrounding vehicle including position information of a surrounding vehicle existing around the own vehicle on which the vehicle is mounted, and a communication means for communicating with another inter-vehicle communication device, The vehicle information detection means is configured as the object detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

  Therefore, according to such a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system, the configuration of the object detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is provided. Therefore, as in the case of claim 1, the detected object is a roadside object. It is possible to accurately identify whether the vehicle is a vehicle or a vehicle.

  Moreover, since the detected vehicle information can be transmitted to another vehicle (another inter-vehicle communication device), the other vehicle that has received the vehicle information can easily recognize the presence of the vehicle. Therefore, accidents due to oversight of the vehicle can be prevented.

Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
First, an outline of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a method for detecting a vehicle such as a motorcycle.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an oncoming vehicle that is stopped or running at a low speed due to a traffic jam or the like detects a vehicle such as a motorcycle that passes through the side of the oncoming vehicle from a roadside object such as a utility pole or a roadside tree, This vehicle information is transmitted to the right turn vehicle which is going to turn right at the intersection. In the right turn vehicle, the driving operation such as warning is supported based on the information of the vehicle information.

That is, in the inter-vehicle communication system of the present embodiment, by executing such processing, it is intended to avoid a collision between a vehicle that passes through the side of the oncoming vehicle and a right-turn vehicle.
A more detailed embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the inter-vehicle communication system 1 to which the present invention is applied.

The inter-vehicle communication system 1 includes a vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 10 (object detection device) that is mounted on each of a plurality of vehicles and is capable of wireless communication with each other.
As shown in FIG. 2, the inter-vehicle communication device 10 includes an assist control ECU 2 (ECU is an electronic control device), a brake ECU 3, a navigation ECU 4, an engine ECU 6, an object detection ECU 7, and a light ECU 8. Yes.

  Each ECU 2 to 8 is configured as a well-known microcomputer including a CPU, ROM, RAM, and the like, and configured to be communicable with other ECUs 2 to 8 using a predetermined communication protocol such as CAN via a communication line. Yes.

  The support control ECU 2 executes vehicle detection processing, driving support processing, and the like, which will be described later, and communicates with other inter-vehicle communication devices 10 via the radio device 20 (communication means) according to the execution results of these processing. In addition, the presence of a vehicle such as a two-wheeled vehicle is notified to the vehicle driver via the display device 21 and the speaker 22.

  Further, the support control ECU 2 receives various information received from the object detection ECU 7 (information on the shape and position of the object by image processing and information on the detection result by the sonar 72 (details will be described later)) for a predetermined time (for example, 2 seconds). Only in the internal memory (not shown) of the assist control ECU 2.

  The display device 21 is configured, for example, as an LCD (liquid crystal color display) that displays a map image or the like, or a HUD (head-up display) that displays an image superimposed on the windshield, The map information generated by the navigation ECU 4 is displayed.

Note that the display device 21 and the speaker 22 may be connected to the navigation ECU 4.
The brake ECU 3 controls a brake for braking (not shown) according to detection results by the steering sensor 31 that detects the steering angle and the yaw rate sensor 32 that detects the angular velocity. The brake ECU 3 detects the operating state of the parking brake 33.

  The navigation ECU 4 detects the current location of the host vehicle based on the detection result by the GPS antenna 41, reads map information stored in the HDD (hard disk drive) 42 according to the present location, and stores the current location of the host vehicle in the map information. Generate a map image with And navigation ECU4 displays a map image on the display apparatus 21 via assistance control ECU2 by transmitting map information and the produced | generated map image to assistance control ECU2.

  The engine ECU 6 controls the engine (an injection control device (not shown) or the like) according to the detection result by the vehicle speed sensor 61 that detects the vehicle speed of the host vehicle, and the detection result (vehicle speed information) by the vehicle speed sensor 61 is supported by the assist control ECU 2 and the navigation. It transmits to ECU4.

  The object detection ECU 7 can detect within the imaging range by the side camera 71 using the side camera 71 (imaging means) and the sonar 72 (ranging means) and by the sonar 72 at a preset time interval (for example, 100 ms). A process for detecting an object in the region is performed, and data such as the position and shape of the object are recorded in the internal memory for a predetermined time (for example, 2 seconds). When the object detection ECU 7 detects an object using the side camera 71, information on the shape / position of the object is detected from the image captured by the side camera 71 by image processing. However, the support control ECU 2 performs the process of identifying the type of the object (whether it is a vehicle or a roadside object) from the shape of the object.

  Here, the inter-vehicle communication device 10 includes a front left sonar 73 (see FIG. 1), a front right sonar (not shown), a rear left sonar 74 (see FIG. 1), and a rear right sonar (not shown) as sonars 72. Each sonar is arranged at four corners of the vehicle toward the outside of the vehicle. Each sonar (sonar 72) transmits ultrasonic waves intermittently and detects a reflected wave of the ultrasonic waves reflected by an object existing around the vehicle.

  With this configuration, the object detection ECU 7 uses the sonar 72 to measure the time until the reflected wave is detected, so that the presence or absence of an object such as a vehicle or roadside object around the vehicle is detected. The distance can be detected.

  In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the sonar 72 is used to detect a motorcycle passing through the side of the host vehicle, so that the sonar 72 has, for example, a detection distance: 3 m, a detection area width: 1 m, and an ultrasonic wave. The transmission interval time is set to 75 ms.

  In the present embodiment, when a two-wheeled vehicle is detected using such a sonar 72, the two-wheeled vehicle is detected using a sonar (a front left sonar 73 and a rear left sonar 74) arranged on the left side of the vehicle. That is, when the detection result by the sonar 72 changes in the order of “not detected”, “detected”, and “not detected”, the sonar ECU 5 determines that some object has been detected, and the detected result is sent to the support control ECU 2. Send.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the side camera 71 is mounted on a side mirror of the vehicle located between the front left sonar 73 and the rear left sonar 74, and the imaging range covers the entire side of the vehicle. It is set to be. The side camera 71 is also used as a camera that captures the vicinity of the left front wheel of the vehicle.

  Here, in the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 10 configured as described above, it is determined whether or not an object around the vehicle on which the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 10 is mounted is a vehicle, and when this object is a vehicle, The process which transmits this vehicle information to the other vehicle-to-vehicle communication apparatus 10 and the process which implements a warning based on the vehicle information received from the other vehicle-to-vehicle communication apparatus 10 are implemented.

  First, it will be described with reference to FIG. 3 how to determine whether or not a surrounding object is a vehicle and transmit this vehicle information to another inter-vehicle communication device 10 when this object is a vehicle. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a vehicle detection process (vehicle determination means, surrounding vehicle information detection means) executed by the support control ECU 2.

  The vehicle detection process is, for example, a process that starts when the parking brake 33 of the vehicle is released. As shown in FIG. 3, first, as shown in FIG. 3, is the object detected by the rear left sonar 74 via the object detection ECU 7? It is determined whether or not (S110). If no object is detected by the rear left sonar 74 (S110: NO), the process of S110 is repeated.

  Further, if an object is detected by the rear left sonar 74 (S110: YES), whether or not the object type (vehicle (four-wheeled vehicle or two-wheeled vehicle)) is determined based on the object shape information detected by the object detection ECU 7. ) Is analyzed (S120).

  Specifically, the support control ECU 2 collates the shape of the object obtained from the object detection ECU 7 with the shape pattern data recorded in advance in a memory such as a ROM of the support control ECU 2, and based on the matching rate, The type is calculated as to which type (four-wheeled vehicle, two-wheeled vehicle, utility pole, street tree, etc.) is highly likely.

  For each type of object, shape data representing how the shape in the captured image changes when the object moves is stored in the memory, and the change in the shape of the object obtained from the object detection ECU 7 is detected. The type of the object may be determined based on the degree of coincidence with the shape data.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the object is a vehicle (four-wheeled vehicle or two-wheeled vehicle) (S130). In this process, for example, it is determined whether or not the probability that the object detected in the process of S120 is a vehicle (four-wheeled vehicle or two-wheeled vehicle) is higher than a preset threshold value (for example, about 50%). However, if the probability that the object is a vehicle is higher than this threshold, it may be determined that the object is a vehicle.

  If the object is not a vehicle (S130: NO), it is determined whether a predetermined time (for example, about 1 second) set in advance from the process of S110 has passed (S140). If the specified time has not elapsed (S140: NO), the process returns to S120. If the specified time has elapsed (S140: YES), it is determined that a roadside object has been detected, and the process returns to S110.

  On the other hand, in the process of S130, if the object is a vehicle (S130: YES), the position information of the object (vehicle) in a predetermined time (for example, 200 ms before) stored in the internal memory, and the current position information of the object Based on the above, the moving speed of the vehicle is calculated by detecting the moving amount of the object (S150: object speed detecting means, image speed calculating means).

  Here, in this process (the same applies to the process of S180 described later), the detection result by the vehicle speed sensor 61 is acquired via the engine ECU 6, and the speed of the object obtained by the image process (relative speed with the host vehicle). The absolute speed (ground speed) of the object is calculated by adding or subtracting the vehicle speed of the host vehicle from the above. In this process, when the vehicle speed of the host vehicle is a speed that can be regarded as being stopped (for example, each moving speed is less than 5 km / h), the speed of the object obtained by the image processing is used as it is. It may be regarded as the absolute velocity of the object.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not an object is detected by the front left sonar 73 via the object detection ECU 7 (S160). If no object is detected by the front left sonar 73 (S160: NO), it is determined whether a predetermined time (for example, about 1 second) set in advance from the process of S150 has passed (S170). If the specified time has not elapsed (S170: NO), the process returns to S160. If the specified time has elapsed (S170: YES), the process returns to S110 as a roadside object has been detected.

  If an object is detected by the front left sonar 73 (S160: YES), the object is moved based on the difference in detection timing between the rear left sonar 74 and the front left sonar 73, and the distance between these attachment positions. The speed is calculated (S180: object speed detection means, distance measurement speed calculation means). Then, the moving speed detected by the image processing is compared with the moving speed detected by the sonars 73 and 74, and whether or not each moving speed is substantially equal (for example, the speed difference between the moving speeds is within ± 5 km / h). (S190).

  If the moving speeds are not almost equal (S190: NO), it is determined that a roadside object has been detected, and the process returns to S110. If the moving speeds are substantially equal (S190: YES), it is specified that the object is a vehicle, and information on the position and moving speed of the vehicle is recorded in the internal memory as vehicle information (S200).

  In this process, the image processing result in S120 and the length of time for detecting objects by the sonars 73 and 74 (each sonar 73 and 74 has a long time for detecting an object depending on the size of the detected object. The vehicle is a four-wheeled vehicle or a two-wheeled vehicle, and is recorded as vehicle information. Further, position information of the own vehicle (detection result by the navigation ECU 4) and information on the speed of the own vehicle (detection result by the vehicle speed sensor 61) are also acquired and recorded in the internal memory (own vehicle information detection means).

  And this vehicle information is transmitted with respect to the other inter-vehicle communication apparatus 10 (S210). Finally, it is determined whether or not the driving support is to be ended (S220). In this process, when it is detected that the parking brake 33 of the vehicle is applied, or when a command to end the driving support is input through an operation unit (not shown), it is determined that the driving support is to be ended. To do.

When the driving support is to be ended (S220: YES), the vehicle detection process is ended. On the other hand, when the driving assistance is not terminated (S220: NO), the vehicle detection process is repeated from the beginning.
In addition, in the process of S190 of the vehicle detection process, when each moving speed is a speed that can be regarded as being stopped (for example, each moving speed is less than 5 km / h), it is assumed that the stopped vehicle is detected. (In other words, assuming that this object does not pose a danger to a right-turn vehicle), the process may return to S110 without performing the process of transmitting vehicle information (S200, S210). That is, in this case, the process may be performed assuming that an affirmative determination is made in S190.

  Next, a process in which each vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 10 issues a warning based on the obstacle information received from the other vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 10 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a driving support process performed by the support control ECU 2.

  This driving support process is, for example, a process that is started when the parking brake 33 of the vehicle is released, similar to the vehicle detection process described above, and is performed in parallel with the vehicle detection process described above.

  In this driving support process, it is determined whether or not the host vehicle is in a situation where the driving process should be performed in the processes of S310 to S350 (excluding S330). Specifically, first, whether or not the own vehicle is approaching a support intersection (S310), whether or not obstacle information is received from another inter-vehicle communication device 10 (S320), the right turn signal is activated. Whether the steering angle is equal to or greater than a certain angle (S350).

  Here, with respect to the process of determining whether or not the vehicle is approaching the support intersection in S310, the navigation ECU 4 requests the vehicle position information and map information based on the signal received via the GPS antenna 41, and the own vehicle It is determined whether the present location is within a predetermined distance (for example, about 100 m or a distance that can be communicated by specific low-power wireless communication) from a support intersection that is a target for driving support.

  Moreover, about the process which determines whether the right turn signal in S340 is operating, it implements by acquiring the operation state of the turn signal 81 (right turn signal) via light ECU8.

  Further, with regard to the process of determining whether or not the steering angle is greater than or equal to a certain angle in S350, the detection result of the steering angle by the steering sensor 31 is acquired via the brake ECU 3, and the acquisition result is set in advance. This is carried out by determining whether or not the steering threshold is exceeded.

  If a negative determination is made in any of the processes of S310, S340, and S350 (NO in any of S310, S340, and S350), the process proceeds to S370 to be described later without performing driving support. If a negative determination is made in the process of S320 (S320: NO), the driver of the vehicle is notified that the obstacle information has not been detected (S330), and the process proceeds to S370 to be described later.

  As a method of notifying the driver that the obstacle information has not been detected in the process of S330, for example, a message such as “no information” is displayed on the display device 21, or “obstacle” is displayed from the speaker. A message such as “Cannot receive information” may be notified by voice.

  Here, when the process simply shifts to S370 without performing the notification in S330, the driver reports whether the obstacle information is not detected because the obstacle information is not detected, or the obstacle information is detected but the obstacle is notified. Since it is not necessary, it cannot be determined whether notification is not given. Therefore, by performing the processing of S330, the driver can clearly recognize that the obstacle information has not been detected.

  Further, if an affirmative determination is made in all the processes of S310 to S350 (excluding S330) (YES in all of S310 to S350 (excluding S330)), a warning is given to the driver in the process of S360.

  As this warning, for example, by displaying an image including a mark (four-wheeled vehicle mark, two-wheeled vehicle mark, etc.) representing the specified vehicle on the display device 21, notification that appeals to the driver's vision is performed. do it. As a specific example in this case, the support control ECU 2 may display the position of the four-wheeled vehicle and the position of the two-wheeled vehicle on the display device 21 together with a schematic diagram based on the map data, as shown in FIG.

  Further, as this warning, notifications appealing to the five senses other than vision (for example, notification by sound using a speaker, notification of vibrating a seat or a handle, notification of winding up a seat belt, etc.) may be performed.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the driving support is immediately ended (S370). Here, in the process of S370, as in the process of S220, when it is detected that the parking brake 33 of the vehicle has been applied, or a command to end the driving assistance is input via an operation unit (not shown). In such a case, it is determined that the driving support is finished.

When the driving support is to be ended (S370: YES), the driving support process is ended. On the other hand, when the driving support is not terminated (S370: NO), the driving support process is repeated from the beginning.
In the inter-vehicle communication device 10 constituting the inter-vehicle communication system 1 described in detail above, the navigation ECU 4 detects information on the own vehicle including the position information of the own vehicle, and the support control ECU 2 includes the object detection ECU 7, Information of surrounding vehicles including position information of surrounding vehicles existing around the host vehicle is detected using the camera 71, sonar 72, and the like.

  In particular, the support control ECU 2 compares the moving speeds of the detected objects using the image processing by the side camera 71 and the detection timing differences by the plural sonars 72 in the vehicle detection process, so that the object is a vehicle. It is determined whether or not there is.

  That is, the inter-vehicle communication device 10 obtains the moving speed of the object with high accuracy by comparing the moving speeds of the separately detected objects, and determines whether the object is a vehicle based on the moving speed of the object. So that it can be identified.

  Therefore, according to the inter-vehicle communication device 10 as described above, even if the shape of the roadside object is similar to the shape of the vehicle, it is not erroneously determined whether the object is a roadside object or a vehicle. It can be accurately identified.

  In the inter-vehicle communication device 10, the detected vehicle information can be wirelessly transmitted to another vehicle (another inter-vehicle communication device) via the wireless device 20. Can easily grasp the presence of the vehicle. Therefore, accidents due to oversight of the vehicle can be prevented.

  Further, since the assist control ECU 2 compares the detected movement speeds, for example, whether there is a speed difference equal to or greater than a predetermined speed (predetermined speed ratio) in each movement speed by the comparison. It is also possible to detect whether the vehicle is a roadside object or not based on the detection result. In particular, in this embodiment, when the speed difference is equal to or greater than a predetermined speed, it is determined that the detected object is a roadside object. Therefore, according to this configuration, the detection accuracy of the vehicle can be improved.

  Further, in the inter-vehicle communication device 10, the support control ECU 2 calculates a moving speed of an object based on a temporal change of an image captured by the side camera 71 that images the periphery of the vehicle, and a plurality of locations around the vehicle. A method is used in which a moving speed of an object is calculated based on a temporal change in a detection result by a sonar 72 that transmits a sound wave or an electromagnetic wave and receives the reflected wave.

  Therefore, according to the inter-vehicle communication apparatus 10 as described above, a method using sound waves or electromagnetic waves and a method using image processing are adopted as a plurality of different methods, and therefore, when any one of the same methods is used. Compared to the above, it can be made less susceptible to the influence of the surrounding environment such as noise and weather. Therefore, the detection accuracy of the moving speed can be improved.

  In the inter-vehicle communication device 10, the side camera 71 is arranged so that the side of the vehicle is the imaging range, and the sonar 72 is arranged so that the side of the vehicle is the detection range before and after the vehicle.

  Therefore, according to the inter-vehicle communication device 10 as described above, since the side camera 71 and the sonar 72 have a detection range on the side of the vehicle, it is possible to detect a vehicle (especially a two-wheeled vehicle) that passes through the side of the vehicle. it can.

  Further, in the inter-vehicle communication device 10, the side camera 71 is disposed between the sonars 72 (the rear left sonar 74 and the front left sonar 73) on the side of the vehicle, and the support control ECU 2 controls the one sonar 72. When the object is detected by the (rear left sonar 74), the calculation of the moving speed of the object based on the image captured by the side camera 71 is started.

  Therefore, according to the vehicle-to-vehicle communication device 10 as described above, the detection timing at which the object is detected by the side camera 71 can be predicted in advance, so that the object at this detection timing can be easily detected. Therefore, a vehicle (especially a two-wheeled vehicle) that passes through the side of the vehicle can be detected better.

  Further, in the inter-vehicle communication device 10, the support control ECU 2 may end the movement speed calculation when an object is detected by the other sonar 72 (front left sonar 73).

  Therefore, according to the inter-vehicle communication device 10 as described above, it is possible to set a time when the calculation of the moving speed is finished, so that it is possible to prevent unnecessary processing from being performed when the support control ECU 2 cannot detect the object. Can do.

The embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can take various forms as long as it belongs to the technical scope of the present invention.
For example, in the above embodiment, the detection area for detecting an object is set on the left side of the vehicle (oncoming vehicle) and the left sonar is used to detect the object, but the detection area is set on the right side of the vehicle, The right sonar may be used to detect the object. Alternatively, detection areas may be set on both sides of the vehicle, and an object may be detected using sonar on both sides.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the detection methods of vehicles, such as a two-wheeled vehicle. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system. It is a flowchart which shows a vehicle detection process. It is a flowchart which shows a driving assistance process.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Inter-vehicle communication system, 2 ... Support control ECU, 3 ... Brake ECU, 4 ... Navigation ECU, 6 ... Engine ECU, 7 ... Object detection ECU, 8 ... Light ECU, 10 ... Inter-vehicle communication device, 21 ... Display device , 22 ... speaker, 31 ... steering sensor, 32 ... yaw rate sensor, 33 ... parking brake, 41 ... GPS antenna, 61 ... vehicle speed sensor, 71 ... side camera, 72 ... sonar, 73 ... front left sonar, 74 ... rear left sonar 81 ... Winker.

Claims (6)

An object detection device that is mounted on a vehicle and detects an object existing around the vehicle,
A plurality of object speed detecting means for detecting a moving speed of an object existing around the vehicle;
Vehicle determining means for determining whether or not the object is a vehicle by comparing the moving speeds detected by the respective object speed detecting means;
An object detection apparatus comprising: As the plurality of object speed detection means,
An image speed calculating means for calculating a moving speed of the object based on a temporal change of an image captured by an image capturing means for capturing the periphery of the vehicle;
Ranging speed calculating means for calculating the moving speed of the object based on the temporal change of the detection result by the ranging means that transmits sound waves or electromagnetic waves from a plurality of locations around the vehicle and receives the reflected waves, respectively. ,
The object detection apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: The imaging means is arranged so that the side of the vehicle is an imaging range,
The object detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the distance measuring unit is arranged so that a side of the vehicle is a detection range before and after the vehicle. The imaging means is disposed between the distance measuring means on the side of the vehicle,
The object detection device according to claim 3, wherein the image speed calculation unit starts calculating the moving speed of the object based on the image captured by the imaging unit when the object is detected by one of the distance measurement units. . The object detection apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image speed calculation unit ends the movement speed calculation when an object is detected by the other distance measurement unit. A vehicle-to-vehicle communication system configured by a plurality of vehicle-to-vehicle communication devices that are mounted on a vehicle and communicate with each other,
Each inter-vehicle communication device is
Own vehicle information detection means for detecting information of the own vehicle including position information of the own vehicle on which the inter-vehicle communication device is mounted;
Surrounding vehicle information detection means for detecting information on surrounding vehicles including positional information on surrounding vehicles existing around the host vehicle on which the inter-vehicle communication device is mounted;
Information on surrounding vehicles detected by the surrounding vehicle information detecting means is transmitted to the inter-vehicle communication device mounted on the other vehicle, and the same kind of information transmitted from the inter-vehicle communication device mounted on the other vehicle is received. Communication means to
With
A vehicle-to-vehicle communication system comprising the object detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 as the surrounding vehicle information detection means.