JP7463151B2 - State detection device and state detection method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a state detection device and a state detection method.

Conventionally, there is technology that assists in parking by controlling the vehicle when reversing and parking in a parking lot, etc. One such technology is, for example, a technology that limits the accelerator pedal depression amount when it detects that the driver is shifting into reverse gear (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-096141 A

However, conventional technology only restricts the act of driving backwards when parking, and does not improve the driver's safety awareness. In particular, conventional technology does not ensure that, for example, when switching from forward to reverse, the driver is aware to thoroughly check the surroundings visually before starting to drive backwards. It is believed that the same issues arise when switching from reverse to forward.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a state detection device and a state detection method that can increase the driver's safety awareness.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the state detection device according to the present invention includes a first detection unit, a second detection unit, and a determination unit. The first detection unit detects a first time when a vehicle moving in one of the forward and reverse directions becomes stopped. The second detection unit detects a second time when the vehicle starts moving from the stopped state in the other direction. The determination unit determines that the vehicle is in a dangerous state when the elapsed time from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined danger threshold.

The present invention can increase the driver's safety awareness.

FIG. 1A is an explanatory diagram illustrating an overview of a state detection method according to an embodiment. FIG. 1B is an explanatory diagram illustrating an overview of a state detection method according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of a state detection system according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the state detection device according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of result information. FIG. 5A is a diagram showing the processing contents of the first detection unit. FIG. 5B is a diagram showing the processing contents of the first detection unit. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the processing executed by the state detection device according to the embodiment.

Below, embodiments of the state detection device and state detection method disclosed in the present application will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

First, an overview of the state detection method according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 1A and 1B. Figs. 1A and 1B are explanatory diagrams for explaining an overview of the state detection method according to the embodiment. Fig. 1A shows a vehicle C equipped with a state detection device 1 according to the embodiment. The state detection device 1 executes the state detection method according to the embodiment.

Figure 1A also shows a situation in which vehicle C is parking in parking space PS. Specifically, vehicle C moves forward, crosses in front of parking space PS, stops temporarily, and then reverses to park.

The state detection method according to the embodiment is executed under such circumstances. A specific example of the state detection method according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1B. In the state detection method according to the embodiment, first, a first time is detected, which is the time when the vehicle C moving forward becomes stopped. In the example shown in FIG. 1B, the first time is time t1. The stopped state is detected based on the vehicle speed and shift switching, and the detailed detection method will be described later.

Next, in the state detection method according to the embodiment, a second time is detected, which is the time when the vehicle starts moving backward from a stopped state. In the example shown in FIG. 1B, the second time is time t2. The start of movement of the vehicle C is detected based on the vehicle speed, and the detailed detection method will be described later.

Next, in the state detection method according to the embodiment, it is determined whether or not the vehicle C is in a dangerous state based on the elapsed time D from the first time t1 to the second time t2. Specifically, in the state detection method according to the embodiment, it is determined that the vehicle C is in a dangerous state when the elapsed time D is less than a predetermined danger threshold TH.

In other words, if the elapsed time D from when the vehicle C stops until it starts to reverse is less than the danger threshold TH, it is highly likely that the driver did not have enough time to check the safety of the parking space PS. In other words, the dangerous state that is the result of the judgment indicates a state in which the driver starts to reverse without fully checking the surroundings.

In the state detection method according to the embodiment, for example, the result of the dangerous state determination is uploaded to the server 100 (see FIG. 2) and stored. This makes it possible to provide safety awareness education to drivers of commercial vehicles such as taxis, buses, and trucks based on the determination results.

Alternatively, in the state detection method according to the embodiment, the result of the dangerous state determination can be notified to the driver directly by voice or display. As a result, for example, when parking in a parking space PS by changing the direction of travel multiple times, the driver can be made aware of the need to check for safety when changing direction from the second time onwards by notifying the driver of the dangerous state the first time.

In this way, according to the state detection method of the embodiment, by determining a dangerous state based on the elapsed time D, it is possible to increase the safety awareness of the driver, for example, by educating or notifying the driver.

In the state detection method according to the embodiment, the stopped state is detected based on the shift switching that changes the direction of travel and the vehicle speed. However, since there are individual differences in the timing of the shift switching, there are cases where the stopped state is detected by prioritizing the vehicle speed over the shift switching. This will be described later with reference to FIG. 5A.

In addition, although parking in a parking space PS has been given as an example of an application of the state detection method according to the above-described embodiment, the method is not limited to parking situations and can be applied to any situation in which the direction of travel is switched from forward to reverse.

In addition, the state detection method according to the embodiment is not limited to when the traveling direction is changed from forward to reverse, but may be when the traveling direction is changed from reverse to forward.

Next, a status detection system S including a status detection device 1 according to an embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the status detection system S according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the status detection system S includes a plurality of vehicle-mounted devices 1 (status detection devices 1) and a server 100. The vehicle-mounted devices 1 and the server 100 are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate bidirectionally via a predetermined communication network N. The communication network N is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network) such as the Internet.

The server 100 is a server that acquires and stores information on the results of dangerous state determinations from the in-vehicle device 1 (for example, result information 31, described later), and provides various information based on the stored information. The state detection system S can be connected to, for example, a terminal device of a commercial vehicle management company or a terminal device of a development company that develops programs related to vehicle control, and the server 100 provides such terminal devices with information on the determination results in response to requests.

The in-vehicle device 1 is, for example, a drive recorder or various ECUs (Electronic Control Units). Note that while FIG. 2 shows a case in which the state detection device 1 is configured as an in-vehicle device, the state detection device 1 may also be configured as a server (for example, server 100).

When the state detection device 1 is configured as a server, the server as the state detection device 1 acquires information for detecting a first time (shift switching and vehicle speed, described below) from the in-vehicle device and information for detecting a second time (vehicle speed, described below), and judges a dangerous state based on such information.

Next, the configuration of the state detection device 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the state detection device 1 according to the embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 3, the state detection device 1 according to the embodiment is connected to a vehicle speed sensor 10, a shift sensor 11, a server 100, and an output device 200.

The vehicle speed sensor 10 is a sensor that detects the speed (vehicle speed) of the vehicle C. For example, the vehicle speed sensor 10 outputs a pulse signal corresponding to the rotation speed of the axle of the vehicle C to the state detection device 1. The shift sensor 11 is a sensor that detects the shift state, specifically, the gear position. The shift states are drive (D), which indicates that the forward direction of travel is the forward direction, reverse (R), parking (P), neutral (N), etc.

The output device 200 is a device that has an audio output function such as a speaker and a display output function such as a display. The output device 200 outputs (notifies) various pieces of information to the driver, for example, based on the information output from the state detection device 1.

The state detection device 1 also includes a control unit 2 and a memory unit 3. The control unit 2 includes an acquisition unit 21, a first detection unit 22, a second detection unit 23, a determination unit 24, and an output unit 25. The memory unit 3 stores result information 31.

Here, the state detection device 1 includes, for example, a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit), ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), flash memory, input/output ports, etc., and various other circuits.

The computer's CPU functions as the acquisition unit 21, the first detection unit 22, the second detection unit 23, the determination unit 24, and the output unit 25 of the control unit 2, for example, by reading and executing a program stored in the ROM.

In addition, at least one or all of the acquisition unit 21, first detection unit 22, second detection unit 23, determination unit 24, and output unit 25 of the control unit 2 can be configured with hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

The storage unit 3 corresponds to, for example, a RAM or a flash memory. The RAM or the flash memory can store result information 31, information on various programs, and the like. The state detection device 1 may also acquire the above-mentioned programs and various information via other computers or portable recording media connected via a wired or wireless network.

The result information 31 stored in the memory unit 3 is information related to the judgment result of the judgment unit 24 described below. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the result information 31. As shown in FIG. 4, the result information 31 includes items such as "Result ID," "Time," "Location," and "Elapsed Time."

"Result ID" is identification information that identifies each judgment result. "Time" is information indicating the time when a dangerous state was judged. "Location" is information indicating the location when a dangerous state was judged. "Elapsed time" is information indicating the elapsed time D described above, and more specifically, the elapsed time D from the first time to the second time.

In this way, the state detection device 1 as an in-vehicle device stores the result information 31 in the memory unit 3, allowing the driver to check the contents of the judgment result at a later date.

Next, we will explain each function of the control unit 2 (acquisition unit 21, first detection unit 22, second detection unit 23, determination unit 24, and output unit 25).

The acquisition unit 21 acquires various types of information. For example, the acquisition unit 21 acquires vehicle speed information indicating the current vehicle speed of the vehicle C based on the detection result of the vehicle speed sensor 10. Also, for example, the acquisition unit 21 acquires shift information indicating the current shift state based on the detection result of the shift sensor 11.

The acquisition unit 21 is not limited to the vehicle speed sensor 10, and may acquire, for example, the vehicle speed calculated based on an image captured by a drive recorder or the like as vehicle speed information.

The first detection unit 22 detects a first time when the vehicle C is in a stopped state. The stopped state does not mean a state in which the engine is stopped, but a state in which the vehicle C is temporarily stopped with the engine running. In other words, the stopped state is a state in which the vehicle is stopped in a state in which it can be moved again immediately.

For example, the first detection unit 22 detects a stopped state when the vehicle speed information acquired by the acquisition unit 21 is less than a predetermined stopping threshold, and detects the time when the vehicle speed becomes less than the stopping threshold as the first time. The stopping threshold is a value determined in advance through experiments, etc., and is a vehicle speed at which the driver can check the surroundings. The first detection unit 22 may also detect a stopped state when the vehicle speed becomes zero.

The first detection unit 22 may also detect a shift switch (D→R, R→D) that switches the traveling direction based on the shift information acquired by the acquisition unit 21, and detect the time at which such a shift switch is detected as the first time.

In other words, the first detection unit 22 detects, as the first time, the time when it detects either a shift switch from one traveling direction to the other traveling direction or the vehicle speed being less than a predetermined stop threshold. This makes it possible to detect the first time with high accuracy.

Alternatively, the first detection unit 22 may detect a stopped state and detect the first time when it detects both a shift change and the vehicle speed being less than a predetermined stop threshold. In such a case, however, with regard to whether the first time should be detected as the time when the shift change is detected or the time when the vehicle speed is detected to be less than the predetermined stop threshold, it is preferable to set the time when the vehicle speed is detected to be less than the predetermined stop threshold as the first time. This is because the timing of the shift change varies from driver to driver, and may be immediately after the vehicle stops or immediately before starting to move backward (or forward). This point will be explained using Figures 5A and 5B.

Figures 5A and 5B are diagrams showing the processing contents of the first detection unit 22. Figure 5A shows a case where time t11 (shift time) at which a shift switch that switches the traveling direction (hereinafter simply referred to as shift switch) is detected is earlier than time t12 (vehicle speed time) at which a vehicle speed of zero (less than the stopping threshold) is detected. Also, Figure 5B shows a case where shift time t22 at which a shift switch is detected is later than vehicle speed time t21 at which a vehicle speed of zero (less than the stopping threshold) is detected. Also, time t13 shown in Figure 5A and time t23 shown in Figure 5B are the second times at which the vehicle C starts moving.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5A, if a shift change is detected earlier than the vehicle speed being zero, and if the time t11 of the shift change is taken as the first time, the elapsed time for determining whether a dangerous state exists is the time from time t11 to time t13.

However, during the time period Ds from time t11 to time t12, vehicle C is still moving and the driver is not able to check the surroundings. Therefore, the longer the time period Ds is, the greater the risk that the downstream judgment unit 24 will erroneously judge that a dangerous state is not present, when in fact it should be.

The first detection unit 22 detects the vehicle speed time t12 as the first time when the time Ds (absolute value) that is the difference between the shift time t11 and the vehicle speed time t12 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. This allows the time during which the vehicle C is below the stop threshold, i.e., the time during which the driver can check the surroundings, to be calculated as the elapsed time D, thereby improving the judgment accuracy of the subsequent judgment unit 24.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5B, if the shift change is detected later than when the vehicle speed is zero, and if the time t22 of the shift change is set as the first time, the elapsed time for determining whether a dangerous state exists is the time from time t22 to time t23.

In other words, the time Ds from time t21 to time t22 is not taken into account as the elapsed time for determining a dangerous state, even though the vehicle C is stopped and the driver is actually checking the surroundings. Therefore, the longer the time Ds is, the more likely it is that the downstream determination unit 24 will erroneously determine that a dangerous state exists when in fact it should not.

The first detection unit 22 detects the vehicle speed time t21 as the first time when the time Ds (absolute value) that is the difference between the shift time t22 and the vehicle speed time t21 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. This allows the time during which the vehicle C is below the stop threshold, i.e., the time during which the driver can check the surroundings, to be calculated as the elapsed time D, thereby improving the judgment accuracy of the downstream judgment unit 24.

When the time Ds in FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B is less than a predetermined threshold, the first detection unit 22 detects, for example, a preset time from among the shift time and the vehicle speed time as the first time. Alternatively, when the time Ds is less than a predetermined threshold, the first detection unit 22 may set the average value of the shift time and the vehicle speed time as the first time.

The first detection unit 22 may also take into account whether or not the brake pedal is being operated when detecting a stopped state. For example, if the vehicle C is an automatic transmission (AT) vehicle, the first detection unit 22 detects a stopped state when there is a shift change, the vehicle speed is less than the stopping threshold, and the brake pedal is being operated (depressed). This makes it possible to prevent the time during which the vehicle C is moving due to creep and the driver is unable to check the surroundings from being taken into account as the elapsed time.

The second detection unit 23 detects a second time, which is the time when the vehicle starts moving from a stopped state in one traveling direction to the other traveling direction. Specifically, the second detection unit 23 detects the time when the vehicle speed becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined movement threshold as the second time. Note that the movement threshold is a threshold value that is set in advance.

The second detection unit 23 may detect the second time by taking into account the accelerator pedal depression amount in addition to the vehicle speed. For example, the second detection unit 23 detects, as the second time, the time when it detects that the vehicle speed is equal to or greater than the movement threshold and that the accelerator pedal depression amount is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount.

The determination unit 24 determines that the vehicle C is in a dangerous state when the elapsed time from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined danger threshold. Note that the danger threshold may be a predetermined fixed value, or may be, for example, a threshold value according to the driver's condition.

The driver's condition is, for example, information such as the driver's age and number of years driving (number of years actually driving or number of years since obtaining a license). For example, the judgment unit 24 sets the danger threshold to be longer the older the driver is and the shorter the number of years driving is. In other words, the danger threshold is set longer for drivers who are slow to judge the surrounding situation or who are expected to take time to check the surrounding situation, that is, for drivers who are expected to take longer than usual to elapse between the first time and the second time.

The driver's driving characteristics may also be taken into account as the driver's condition. For example, the determination unit 24 may increase the danger threshold for a driver who has driving characteristics that make it extremely short for the time between turning on a turn signal and changing lanes, that is, for a driver who is assumed to normally not adequately check the surrounding situation.

In this way, by setting a risk threshold according to the driver's condition, the accuracy of the judgment results for each driver can be improved.

When the determination unit 24 determines that a dangerous state exists, it notifies the output unit 25 of that fact, and generates result information 31 based on the determination result and stores it in the memory unit 3.

The output unit 25 outputs various information based on the judgment result of the judgment unit 24. For example, the output unit 25 transmits information on the judgment result (e.g., result information 31) to the server 100. The output unit 25 also notifies the driver via the output device 200 that a dangerous state exists.

Next, the processing procedure of the processing executed by the state detection device 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the processing executed by the state detection device 1 according to the embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 6, first, the first detection unit 22 determines whether the vehicle speed is less than a predetermined stop threshold (e.g., zero) and whether a shift switch that changes the traveling direction has been detected (step S101).

Next, when the first detection unit 22 detects that the vehicle speed is less than a predetermined stop threshold and that a shift switch has occurred (step S101: Yes), it detects the detected time as the first time (step S102).

The first detection unit 22 ends the process if the vehicle speed is below the predetermined stopping threshold and the shift switch is not detected (step S101: No), for example, if the vehicle speed is below the predetermined stopping threshold and the shift is switched to parking or neutral.

Next, the second detection unit 23 determines whether the vehicle speed is equal to or greater than a predetermined movement threshold (step S103), and if the vehicle speed is less than the movement threshold (step S103: No), repeats step S103 until the vehicle speed becomes equal to or greater than the movement threshold.

If the vehicle speed is equal to or greater than the predetermined movement threshold (step S103: Yes), the second detection unit 23 detects the time when the vehicle speed becomes equal to or greater than the predetermined movement threshold as the second time (step S104).

Next, the determination unit 24 determines whether the elapsed time D from the first time to the second time is less than the danger threshold TH (step S105). If the elapsed time D is less than the danger threshold TH (step S105: Yes), the determination unit 24 determines that a danger state exists (step S106) and ends the process.

On the other hand, if the elapsed time D is equal to or greater than the danger threshold TH (step S105: No), the determination unit 24 determines that the state is not dangerous (step S107) and terminates the process.

As described above, the state detection device according to the embodiment includes a first detection unit 22, a second detection unit 23, and a determination unit 24. The first detection unit 22 detects a first time when the vehicle C moving in one of the forward and reverse directions becomes stopped. The second detection unit 23 detects a second time when the vehicle starts moving from a stopped state in the other direction. The determination unit 24 determines that the vehicle C is in a dangerous state when the elapsed time D from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined danger threshold TH. This can increase the driver's safety awareness.

Further advantages and modifications may readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described above. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Status detection device 2 Control unit 3 Storage unit 21 Acquisition unit 22 First detection unit 23 Second detection unit 24 Determination unit 25 Output unit 31 Result information 100 Server 200 Output device C Vehicle N Communication network PS Parking space S Status detection system

Claims (5)

if a time difference between a time when a vehicle moving in one of a forward and reverse directions is shifted to the other direction and a time when the vehicle is stopped and the vehicle speed is less than a predetermined threshold is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the time when the vehicle is stopped is detected as a first time,
detecting a time when the vehicle starts moving in the other traveling direction as a second time;
determining that the vehicle is in a dangerous state when the elapsed time from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined threshold;
Status detection device. detects the time when the vehicle moving in one of the forward and reverse directions is stopped as a first time when a time difference between the time when the vehicle moving in one of the forward and reverse directions is stopped and the time when the vehicle is shifted to the other direction is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value;
detecting a time when the vehicle starts moving in the other traveling direction as a second time;
determining that the vehicle is in a dangerous state when the elapsed time from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined threshold;
Status detection device. The threshold value of the elapsed time is a set value according to the state of the driver of the vehicle.
The state detection device according to claim 1 or 2. if a time difference between a time when a vehicle moving in one of a forward and reverse directions is shifted to the other direction and a time when the vehicle is stopped and the vehicle speed is less than a predetermined threshold is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, the time when the vehicle is stopped is detected as a first time,
detecting a time when the vehicle starts moving in the other traveling direction as a second time;
determining that the vehicle is in a dangerous state when an elapsed time from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined threshold;
A condition detection program that causes a computer to execute the above. detects the time when the vehicle moving in one of the forward and reverse directions is stopped as a first time when a time difference between the time when the vehicle moving in one of the forward and reverse directions is stopped and the time when the vehicle is shifted to the other direction is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value;
detecting a time when the vehicle starts moving in the other traveling direction as a second time;
determining that the vehicle is in a dangerous state when an elapsed time from the first time to the second time is less than a predetermined threshold;
A condition detection program that causes a computer to execute the above.

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