Vehicle travel path generating apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9796378-B2
Application number	US-201414154561-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 14, 2014
Priority date	Jan 16, 2013
Publication date	Oct 24, 2017
Grant date	Oct 24, 2017

Abstract

When a travel path is to be generated for a vehicle, road surface lines (white lines, etc.) delimiting the traffic lane of the vehicle, and also external objects in the vehicle environment, are detected and registered as respective obstacles. Specific points are defined at appropriate locations on each obstacle, and the travel path is generated by connecting respective mid-point positions between opposed pairs of specific points, each pair defined on respective ones of an opposed (left-side, right-side) pair of the registered obstacles.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A travel path generation apparatus for installation on a host vehicle, comprising:
lane boundary line recognition means for identifying straight or curved lane boundary lines delimiting a traffic lane of the host vehicle;
object detecting means for detecting objects located in an environment of the host vehicle;
obstacle registering means for registering, as respective obstacles, the lane boundary lines identified by the lane boundary line recognition means and the objects detected by the object detecting means;
specific point setting means for defining specific points at respective positions on the registered obstacles, the specific points being located at positions which must be avoided by the host vehicle;
travel path generating means for generating travel path information expressing a travel path for the host vehicle, the travel path generating means outputting the travel path as driving support for a driver of the host vehicle or driving support for implementing autonomous or semi-autonomous control of the host vehicle;

wherein the travel path comprises a path connecting successive mid-point positions between opposed pairs of the specific points, each of the pairs being respectively located on mutually opposed ones of the registered obstacles;
impassable location specifying means for specifying an impassable location as a location that is within the traffic lane of the host vehicle and is between a pair of opposed registered obstacles, and which cannot be traversed by the host vehicle,
command receiving means for receiving a command from a user or from an autonomous or semi-autonomous control system of the host vehicle designating that the host vehicle is to follow a specific preceding vehicle, the specific preceding vehicle being a vehicle which avoids the at least one pair of opposed registered obstacles, and
obstacle registration contents alteration means for responding to the command from the user or autonomous or semi-autonomous control system by deleting a specific one of the at least one pair of opposing registered obstacles from registration in the obstacle registering means, the specific registered obstacle being selected as a closer one of the pair of opposed registered obstacles to the specific preceding vehicle.

2. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein:
the obstacle registering means registers, in place of each of the detected objects, a virtual object having external dimensions larger than external dimensions of the detected object, and registers the virtual object as an obstacle, and
an extent to which the external dimensions of the virtual object are increased, in relation to the corresponding detected object, is determined in accordance with a type of the corresponding detected object.

3. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 1
wherein
the command receiving means is further configured for receiving a second command from a user or from an autonomous or semi-autonomous control system of the host vehicle designating that a first one of the pair of opposed registered obstacles is to be driven over by the host vehicle, and
the obstacle registration contents alteration means is further configured for responding to the reception of the second command by deleting the first one of the pair of opposed registered obstacles from registration in the obstacle registering means.

4. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 3 , wherein the obstacle registration contents alteration means is further responsive to the reception of the second command for setting a virtual lane boundary line opposite a second one of the pair of opposed registered obstacles, the virtual lane boundary line being positioned for permitting the host vehicle to pass between the second one of the pair of opposed registered obstacles and the virtual lane boundary line.

5. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the obstacle registration contents alteration means sets the position of the virtual lane boundary line in accordance with a type of the second one of the pair of opposed registered obstacles.

6. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 4 , further comprising means for detecting a condition quantity of the host vehicle, wherein the obstacle registration contents alteration means sets the position of the virtual lane boundary line in accordance with a condition of the host vehicle as expressed by the condition quantity.

7. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 3 , wherein the impassable location specifying means specifies the impassable location as a location at which a separation distance between one of the at least one pair of opposed obstacles is less than a specific width value, the specific width value being a sum of a width of the host vehicle and a predetermined margin.

8. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the positions of the specific points constitute respective positions on a left-side boundary or a right-side boundary of the generated travel path, and wherein the specific point setting means determines the respective positions of the specific points in each of the opposed pairs of the specific points such as to maximize a separation between the left-side boundary and the right-side boundary.

9. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein both the lane boundary lines and the detected objects are considered to be obstacles to be avoided when generating the travel path for the host vehicle.

10. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 9 , wherein each of the obstacles specify regions which must not be entered by the host vehicle.

11. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 9 , wherein each of the obstacles are defined as solid objects.

12. The travel path generation apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the lane boundary lines are considered to be obstacles which define limits of regions which must not be entered by the host vehicle.

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Tsuruta Tomohiko
• Ueda Yusuke
• Hatoh Takeshi
• Kondoh Takayuki
• Inoue Naoya
• Niknejad Hossein Tehrani
• Mita Seiichi

Classifications

• B60W2554/00

  Input parameters relating to objects · CPC title

• B60W30/10

  Path keeping {(cruise control for automatically following a preceding vehicle B60W30/165)} · CPC title

• B60W30/08

  Active safety systems} predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision {or attempting to minimise its consequences · CPC title

• B60W30/00 Primary

  Purposes of road vehicle drive control systems not related to the control of a particular sub-unit, e.g. of systems using conjoint control of vehicle sub-units · CPC title

• B60W2555/00

  Input parameters relating to exterior conditions, not covered by groups B60W2552/00, B60W2554/00 · CPC title