Line detector for vehicle and method for detecting line for vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11100340-B2
Application number	US-201916448009-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 21, 2019
Priority date	Jun 29, 2018
Publication date	Aug 24, 2021
Grant date	Aug 24, 2021

Abstract

A line detector apparatus and method on a vehicle for detecting a line on a road with a higher degree of accuracy. The vehicle includes front, right-side and left-side image capturing sensors mounted on a vehicle and respectively capture an image, including a road surface, at the front and right and left sides of the vehicle to respectively generate front, right-side and left-side images. The line detector includes a processor that calculates a line on a road as a first line from the front image, the line on the road as a second line from the right-side image, and the line on the road as a third line from the left-side image. The processor selects one of multiple mutually-different algorithms based on the first to third lines, and calculates the line on the road based on the first to third lines by using the selected algorithm.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A line detector for a vehicle, the vehicle including a first image capturing sensor that is mounted on a vehicle and is configured to capture an image in front of the vehicle in a manner to include a road surface, so as to generate a front image, and a second image capturing sensor that is mounted on the vehicle and is configured to capture an image on one lateral side of the vehicle in the manner to include the road surface, so as to generate one lateral image, and the line detector comprising:
a control processor configured to
calculate a line marked on a road surface as a first line from the front image generated by the first image capturing sensor;
calculate the line marked on the road surface as a second line from the one lateral image generated by the second image capturing sensor; and
select one algorithm from multiple mutually-different algorithms for determining what is represented by the line marked on the road surface, responsive to the first and second lines respectively calculated, so as to calculate the line marked on the road surface using the first and second lines and the selected algorithm;

wherein the vehicle further includes a third image capturing sensor that is mounted on the vehicle and is configured to capture an image on an other lateral side of the vehicle in the manner to include the road surface, so as to generate an other lateral image; and
the control processor is further configured to
calculate the line marked on the road surface as a third line from the other lateral image generated by the third image capturing sensor; and
select the one algorithm from the multiple algorithms responsive to the first to third lines respectively calculated, and calculate the line marked on the road surface using the first to third lines and the selected algorithm;

wherein the lines marked on the road surface include a right and left pair of a primary lines representing boundaries of a lane; and a secondary line other than the right and left pair of the primary lines; and
the control processor is further configured to
calculate the right and left pair of the primary lines on the road as a right and left pair of the first lines from the front image captured by the first image capturing sensor; and
select one algorithm from the multiple algorithms responsive to the right and left pair of the first lines, the second line, and the third line, and calculate the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface using the right and left pair of the first lines, the second line, the third line, and the selected algorithm.

2. The line detector for the vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein
the multiple algorithms include a first algorithm that regards the second and third lines as the secondary lines, and sets the right and left pair of the first lines as the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface, so as to calculate the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface.

3. The line detector for the vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein
the secondary line includes a crosswalk line that represents a crosswalk and includes multiple lines marked based on a specified code, and
the first algorithm
calculates a first lane width of the lane using the right and left pair of the first lines,
calculates a second lane width of the lane using the second and third lines,
regards the second and third lines as the crosswalk lines in at least one of the following cases
where a difference between the first lane width and the second lane width falls within a specified first range according to the specified code,
where the second line is located on an inner side from one first line of the right and left pair of the first lines by a specified threshold value according to the specified code or greater, and
where the third line is located on an inner side from the other first line of the right and left pair of the first lines by the threshold value or greater; and

sets the right and left pair of the first lines as the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface, so as to finally calculate the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface.

4. The line detector for the vehicle according to claim 3 , wherein
the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface are a roadway center line and a lane boundary line or a pair of the lane boundary lines marked according to the specified code, and
the multiple algorithms include a second algorithm that calculates the first lane width of the lane based on the right and left pair of the first lines, calculates the second lane width of the lane using the second and third lines, and calculates the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface using the right and left pair of the first lines and the second and third lines in a case where the difference between the first lane width and the second lane width does not fall within a specified second range according to the specified code.

5. The line detector for the vehicle according to claim 3 , wherein
the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface are a roadway center line and a lane boundary line or a pair of the lane boundary lines marked according to the specified code,
the secondary line includes an auxiliary line that is parallel with the primary line and is marked at a specified distance from the primary line, and
the multiple algorithms include a third algorithm that calculates the first lane width of the lane using the right and left pair of the first lines, calculates the second lane width of the lane using the second and third lines, regards at least one of the second and third lines as the auxiliary line in a case where the calculated difference between the first lane width and the second lane width falls within a specified second range according to the specified code, estimates the primary line related to the at least one of the second and third lines, which is regarded as the auxiliary line, as an estimated line using the at least one of the second and third lines regarded as the auxiliary line and the specified distance, and calculates the right and left pair of the primary lines on the road using the right and left pair of the first lines and the estimated line related to the at least one of the second and third lines regarded as the auxiliary line.

6. The line detector for the vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein
the lines marked on the road surface include a right and left pair of the primary lines representing boundaries of a lane; and a secondary line other than the right and left pair of the primary lines,
the secondary line includes an auxiliary line that is parallel with the primary line and is marked at a specified distance from the primary line,
the control processor is further configured to calculate one of the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface as the first line from the front image captured by the first image capturing sensor, and
the multiple algorithms include a fourth algorithm that sets, of the second and third lines, the line corresponding to the one of the right and left pair of the primary lines marked on the road surface as a fourth line, regards the fourth line as the auxiliary line in a case where the fourth line is located on an inner side from the first line by a specified third range based on the specified code for a specified time or longer and in a case where the fourth line is located on the inner side from the first line by a specified fourth range according to the code, and estimates the one primary line as an estimated line using the fourth line and the specified distance, so as to calculate one of the right and left pai

Assignees

• Mazda Motor

Inventors

• Tamaru Junki
• Moritani Takayuki
• Ueda Hiroyuki
• Tamazumi Hideaki
• Yamamoto Yoshihiro

Classifications

• G06V10/147

  Details of sensors, e.g. sensor lenses (fingerprint or palmprint sensors G06V40/13; vascular sensors G06V40/145; eye sensors G06V40/19) · CPC title

• G06V10/809

  of classification results, e.g. where the classifiers operate on the same input data · CPC title

• G06F18/254

  of classification results, e.g. of results related to same input data · CPC title

• G06V20/588 Primary

  Recognition of the road, e.g. of lane markings; Recognition of the vehicle driving pattern in relation to the road · CPC title

• G01C11/08

  the pictures not being supported in the same relative position as when they were taken · CPC title