JP2017114258A - Control device of winker - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a situation in which a winker is automatically operated unnecessarily, while performing an automatic operation of the winker.SOLUTION: It is predicted that a driver's own vehicle V is to drift out of its travelling lane 22 from a vehicle speed, a steering angle, a present position of the driver's own vehicle V, etc. It is determined whether or not the driver intends to change travelling lanes from steering torque and a steering speed, for example. On condition that it is predicted that the driver's own vehicle V is to drift out of its travelling lane 22, and that it is determined that the driver of his or her own vehicle V intends to change travelling lanes, a winker is automatically operated. When it is determined that the driver does not intend to change travelling lanes, and when it is determined that the driver is not in a wakeful state, it is preferable that lane maintaining control is executed automatically.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a winker control device.

  When the vehicle changes lanes, the driver operating the blinker on the side that changes lanes of the left and right turn signals (direction indicators) is performed. In Patent Document 1, in a forklift that is supposed to travel in a limited place such as a factory or a site, a winker is automatically operated when the rudder angle exceeds a predetermined value in preparation for forgetting to operate the winker by a driver. Is disclosed.

JP 2003-054313 A

  By the way, when driving at high speed on a highway or the like, changing the lane without operating the turn signal may cause the driver of the rear side vehicle located on the side where the lane is changed behind the host vehicle to be relieved. , There is a possibility that it will be a mess. For this reason, as described in Patent Document 1, when the steering angle is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, it is conceivable to automatically operate the winker in the steering direction.

  However, in a vehicle traveling on a road, if the turn signal is automatically activated when the steering angle is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the turn signal is unnecessarily operated even when traveling on a sharp curve or the like. Some measures are desired in this regard.

  The present invention has been made in view of the circumstances as described above, and the purpose of the present invention is to provide a winker control device capable of preventing a situation in which the winker is automatically operated unnecessarily while the winker is automatically operated. Is to provide.

In order to achieve the above object, the following solution is adopted in the present invention. That is, as described in claim 1,
Lane departure prediction means for predicting that the vehicle departs from the lane;
A change intention determination means for determining whether or not the driver intends to change lanes;
When the lane departure prediction means predicts that the vehicle will deviate from the lane, and the change intention determination means determines that the lane change is intended, a blinker control means that automatically operates the blinker;
It is supposed to be equipped with.

  According to the above solution, when a lane departure is predicted, a warning that the lane change will be made in advance to the driver of the rear side vehicle by the automatic operation of the blinker is preferable for safe driving. It will be a thing. Moreover, since the automatic operation of the turn signal is performed on the condition that the driver's intention to change the lane is confirmed, it is preferable to prevent a situation where the turn signal is operated unnecessarily.

A preferred mode based on the above solution is as described in claim 2 and the following. That is,
Lane maintenance control means for performing lane maintenance control so as to travel in the lane,
When it is predicted that the lane departure predicting means deviates from the lane and the change intention determination means determines that the lane change is not intended, the lane keeping control means is automatically operated to automatically operate the current lane. To maintain,
(Corresponding to claim 2). In this case, when it is determined that the driver does not intend to change lanes, lane keeping control can be performed to prevent lane departure.

  Even if the lane keeping control means is automatically operated, if the vehicle departs from the lane, the turn signal control means automatically operates the turn signal (corresponding to claim 3). In this case, when the lane departure control cannot avoid lane departure, the blinker can be automatically operated to warn the driver of the rear side vehicle that the lane will be changed.

It further comprises a driver state detecting means for detecting the driver state,
An automatic turn signal operation by the turn signal control means is executed on the condition that the driver state detection means detects that the driver is awake.
(Corresponding to claim 4). In this case, the blinker is automatically activated when the driver is in an awake state, that is, when the driver is concentrating on driving and the intention to change lanes becomes clearer. This is even more preferable in preventing the situation.

Lane maintenance control means for performing lane maintenance control so as to travel in the lane,
When it is predicted that the lane departure predicting means departs from the lane and the driver state detecting means detects that the driver is not in an awake state, the lane keeping control means is automatically operated to To maintain the lane of the
(Corresponding to claim 5). In this case, when the driver is not awake, that is, when there is a possibility that the driver is in a state of ambiguity or inadvertently deviates from the lane, lane keeping control is performed to prevent lane departure be able to.

  Even if the lane keeping control means is automatically actuated, if a lane departure occurs, the blinker is automatically actuated (corresponding to claim 6). In this case, when the lane departure control cannot avoid lane departure, the blinker can be automatically operated to warn the driver of the rear side vehicle that the lane will be changed.

  The change intention determination means determines that there is an intention to change lanes when at least one of the conditions when the steering torque is equal to or greater than a predetermined value or when the steering speed is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is satisfied ( Claim 7). In this case, it is preferable to determine the intention of changing the lane at the earliest possible timing.

  The automatic turn-on of the turn signal by the turn signal control means is executed on the condition that it is at or above a predetermined vehicle speed (corresponding to claim 8). In this case, the winker is automatically operated at a high vehicle speed with a high risk, and the winker is not automatically operated at a low vehicle speed with a low risk to achieve the effect corresponding to claim 1. This is preferable in order to fully exhibit.

  The automatic turn-on of the turn signal by the turn signal control means is executed on the condition that the turn signal is traveling on an expressway or a motorway (corresponding to claim 9). In this case, highways and exclusive roads generally have multiple traveling lanes on one side, so there is a high possibility that the vehicle will deviate from the lane and the vehicle is often driven at a relatively high vehicle speed. However, it is preferable to greatly reduce the possibility that the automatic operation of the turn signal is unnecessary while ensuring the safety by performing the automatic operation of the turn signal only in such an environment. It will be a thing.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the winker from automatically operating unnecessarily while performing the winker automatic operation.

The block diagram which shows the example of a control system of this invention. The figure which shows the condition which is performing the control by this invention. The flowchart which shows the example of control of this invention.

  In FIG. 1 showing an example of a control system of the present invention, U is a controller (control unit) configured using a microcomputer. Signals from various sensors or devices S1 to S11 are input to the controller U. S1 is a switch for selecting whether or not to perform lane keeping control by a driver's manual operation. S2 is a turn signal switch that is manually operated by the driver (there is a left / right use). S3 is a torque sensor that detects steering torque. S4 is a rudder angle sensor that detects the rudder angle, and the rudder angle speed is calculated by differentiating the rudder angle detected by the rudder angle sensor S4. S5 is a brake sensor that detects a brake operation amount. S6 is an accelerator sensor for detecting the accelerator opening.

  S7 is an in-vehicle camera that images the interior of the vehicle, and particularly for detecting whether the driver is awake by detecting the driver's facial expression (face) and the state of the pupil ( Driver state detection means). S8 is an out-of-vehicle camera that captures the situation in front of the host vehicle, and in particular detects the left and right white line positions that regulate the travel lane in which the host vehicle is traveling. S9 is a navigation device that detects the type of road on which the host vehicle is traveling and the position of the host vehicle. S10 is a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle speed. S11 is a rear side camera (with left and right) that captures the situation of the rear side, and detects a rear side vehicle that exists behind and behind the subject vehicle (instead of the camera). It can also be detected by radar). In order to detect whether or not the driver is awake, it is possible to detect the heartbeat or to detect the driver's skin resistance using a resistance sensor provided on the steering handle.

  The controller U controls the turn signal (switch) S21 for automatic operation of the turn signal (flashing turn signal light in the embodiment). Further, the controller U controls the power steering device S22 for lane keeping control.

  Next, an outline of the control of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, reference numerals 21 and 22 denote travel lanes for traveling in the same direction, which are two lanes on one side. A boundary line between the traveling lanes 21 and 22 is indicated by reference numeral 23, and a boundary line with the opposite lane not shown is indicated by reference numeral 24.

  The host vehicle V is traveling on the left traveling lane 21. Further, another vehicle VB is traveling in the right traveling lane 22. The other vehicle VB is a rear side vehicle located behind the host vehicle V and on the right side.

  In the state of FIG. 2, the host vehicle V is accompanied by a movement that changes the lane from the travel lane 21 to the lane 21 (the arrow Y <b> 1 indicating the traveling direction of the host vehicle V is a direction toward the travel lane 22. )

  For example, consider the case where it is predicted that the host vehicle V deviates from the travel lane 21 and changes to the travel lane 22 based on the vehicle speed, the steering angle, and the like. At this time, it is determined that the driver is in an awake state and the driver intends to change the lane based on the steering torque and the steering speed, and the winker is operated by the driver's manual operation. When there is not, the turn signal on the traveling lane 22 side is automatically operated, and this operated turn signal is indicated by the symbol α. As a result, the driver of the rear side vehicle VB clearly recognizes that the host vehicle V changes lanes, which is preferable for safe driving and the like.

  When it is predicted that the host vehicle V will change to the lane 22 and the driver of the host vehicle V is not in an awake state or when it is determined that the driver does not intend to change the lane, the lane keeping control is performed. Is automatically executed (activated) and controlled to travel on the current travel lane 21. When it is determined that the lane change from the traveling lane 21 to the traveling lane 22 is unavoidable by the lane keeping control, the blinker on the traveling lane 22 side is automatically activated.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a specific control example related to the automatic operation of the blinker described above, and this flowchart will be described below. In the following description, Q indicates a step. Further, the lane keeping control is in a paused state (manual switch S1 is off).

  First, in Q1, after signals from various sensors or devices S1 to S11 are input, a driver state is determined in Q2 (determination of whether or not an awake state). Thereafter, in Q3, it is determined whether or not the host vehicle V is predicted to deviate from the lane (for example, the lateral position, the vehicle speed, and the steering angle of the host vehicle V in the traveling lane 21 in FIG. 2). Judgment based on). If the determination in Q3 is NO, the process returns as it is.

  If the determination in Q3 is YES, it is determined in Q4 whether or not the driver is awake. When the determination in Q4 is YES, it is determined whether or not the predicted lane departure is intended by the driver. This determination of Q5 is, for example, determined that the lane change is intended when at least one of when the steering torque is equal to or greater than a predetermined value or when the steering speed is equal to or greater than the predetermined value is satisfied.

  If the determination in Q5 is YES, it is determined in Q6 whether or not the winker (the winker on the lane change side) is operating (confirmation of the operating status of the winker by a manual operation by the driver). If the determination in Q6 is YES, the process returns as it is.

  If the determination in Q6 is NO, the blinker in the direction of departing from the lane is automatically activated in Q7. Thereafter, in Q8, it is determined whether or not the lane change is completed (in FIG. 2, it is determined whether or not the transition from the travel lane 21 to the travel lane 22 is completed). If the determination in Q8 is NO, the process returns to Q7. If YES in Q8, the blinker operation is stopped in Q9 (the blinker is turned off).

  If NO in Q4 or NO in Q5, the process proceeds to Q10. In Q10, the lane keeping control is executed (activated) so as to continue traveling in the current traveling lane (lane maintaining control in FIG. 2 that continues traveling in the traveling lane 21). After Q10, at Q11, it is determined whether or not the vehicle departs from the lane even if the lane keeping control is performed. If the determination in Q11 is NO, the process is returned as it is. If YES in Q11, the process proceeds to Q6.

  Although the embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments, and appropriate modifications can be made within the scope of the claims. The following conditions may be added as conditions for automatically operating the turn signal. First, a condition that the rear side vehicle VB exists may be added (in FIG. 2, when the rear side vehicle VB exists behind the host vehicle V and in the travel lane 22 after the lane change, When automatic operation is performed and there is no rear side vehicle VB, there is no automatic operation of the blinker). The blinker may be automatically operated on the condition that the vehicle speed of the host vehicle V is a high vehicle speed equal to or higher than a predetermined vehicle speed (for example, 40 km / h) (the blinker is not automatically activated when the vehicle speed is low). Further, the winker may be automatically operated on the condition that the host vehicle V is traveling on an expressway or an automobile-only road (the winker is not automatically operated on a general road). As a condition for the automatic operation of the turn signal, the driver state (whether or not it is an awake state) may not be used. When it is determined that the driver does not intend to change lanes, or when it is determined that the driver is not in an awake state, automatic lane keeping control may not be performed. The determination of the intention to change the lane is determined by any one or a combination of two or more of the steering angle, the accelerator operation (acceleration or deceleration operation), the brake operation, etc. This can be done by an appropriate method. Each step or step group shown in the flowchart indicates the function of the controller U, and the name indicating the function can be attached to the name of the means so as to be grasped as a constituent requirement of the controller U. Of course, the object of the present invention is not limited to what is explicitly stated, but also implicitly includes providing what is substantially preferred or expressed as an advantage.

  The present invention is preferable in improving safe driving when the operation of the turn signal is forgotten.

U: Controller S3: Steering torque sensor (for lane change intention determination)
S7: In-vehicle camera (for driver status detection)
S8: Outside camera (for lane keeping control, lane departure prediction)
S9: Navigation device (for road type and vehicle position detection)
S10: Vehicle speed sensor S11: Rear side camera (for detection of rear side vehicle)
S21: Turn signal S22: Power steering device (for lane keeping control)

Claims (9)

Lane departure prediction means for predicting that the vehicle departs from the lane;
A change intention determination means for determining whether or not the driver intends to change lanes;
When the lane departure prediction means predicts that the vehicle will deviate from the lane, and the change intention determination means determines that the lane change is intended, a blinker control means that automatically operates the blinker;
A winker control device comprising: In claim 1,
Lane maintenance control means for performing lane maintenance control so as to travel in the lane,
When it is predicted that the lane departure predicting means deviates from the lane and the change intention determination means determines that the lane change is not intended, the lane keeping control means is automatically operated to automatically operate the current lane. To maintain,
A winker control device. In claim 2,
The winker control device, wherein if the lane keeping control means is automatically operated and the vehicle departs from the lane, the winker control means automatically operates the winker. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 3,
It further comprises a driver state detecting means for detecting the driver state,
An automatic turn signal operation by the turn signal control means is executed on the condition that the driver state detection means detects that the driver is awake.
A winker control device. In claim 4,
Lane maintenance control means for performing lane maintenance control so as to travel in the lane,
When it is predicted that the lane departure predicting means departs from the lane and the driver state detecting means detects that the driver is not in an awake state, the lane keeping control means is automatically operated to To maintain the lane of the
A winker control device. In claim 5,
A winker control device, wherein when the lane keeping control means is automatically operated, if the lane departure occurs, the winker is automatically operated. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 6,
The change intention determination means determines that there is an intention to change lanes when at least one of the conditions when the steering torque is equal to or greater than a predetermined value or when the steering speed is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is satisfied. Blinker control device. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 7,
The winker control device, wherein the winker automatic lighting by the winker control means is executed on condition that the turn signal is at or above a predetermined vehicle speed. In claim 8,
The winker control device, wherein the winker automatic lighting by the winker control means is executed on the condition that the winker is traveling on a highway or an automobile exclusive road.

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