Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Relative location – Collision avoidance
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-20
2002-10-01
Nguyen, Tan (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Relative location
Collision avoidance
C701S208000, C701S024000, C340S435000, C340S903000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06459991
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a collision in right/left turn prevention system which provides a driver of a vehicle with information for danger of a collision based on data concerning vehicles running in the counter direction, road surface conditions near a crossing, and road line form such as a shape of the crossing, and also which automatically stops the vehicle when deceleration by the driver is inadequate, for prevention of a collision with a vehicle running in the counter direction in the right or left turn. The expressions of right turn and left turn depend on whether a vehicle is running on the right or on the left, and causes for a collision in right or left turn with another vehicle in the counter direction and counter-measures for prevention thereof are not different for right turn and for left turn, so that the following description assumes turn to the right, and description for a case of turn to the left is omitted herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
For prevention of a collision of a vehicle with another vehicle running in the counter direction when turning to the right or to the left at a crossing, conventionally a driver of the vehicle visually checks situations on the crossing and then turns to the right or to the left after the driver determines that the right or left turn is possible. Further to insure higher safety, a traffic signal based on the time difference system or that indicating inhibition of turn to the left is provided, and each driver determines the possibility of right turn or left turn by visually checking the signal.
With the conventional system as described above, however, sometimes the traffic signal can not be seen because of a form of the road or because it is hid behind another vehicle running in the counter direction, and in that case the driver can not identify a vehicle running in the counter direction, and an actual velocity of the other vehicle running in the counter direction is higher than that estimated by the driver, which makes it difficult to accurately determine whether it is possible to turn to the right or to the left, and further makes it impossible to automatically stop the vehicles running in the counter directions for prevention on a collision between the vehicles in right or left turn of each vehicle.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To solve the problems as described above in prevention of a collision of a vehicle with another vehicle when the vehicle turns to the right or to the left, it is an object of the present invention to provide a collision in right turn prevention system which can prevent occurrence of a collision of the vehicle in its right turn with another vehicle running in the counter direction by evading a case where a driver of the vehicle can not accurately determine whether it is possible to turn to the right or to the left because the other vehicle running in the counter direction is not seen due to a form of the road or is hid behind other cars running in the counter directions, and a case where an actual velocity of the other vehicle is faster than that estimated by a driver of the vehicle.
To achieve the object as described above, the collision in right turn prevention system according to the present invention consists of road facilities including vehicle running in the counter direction detection means for detecting a state of a vehicle running in the counter direction on a crossing road, road surface conditions detection means for detecting conditions on a road surface, and on-road database means for storing therein information concerning a line form of a road; and a vehicle having vehicle position detection means for detecting a position of the vehicle, vehicle state detection means for detecting a state of the vehicle, determination processing means for selecting provision of information to a driver of the vehicle, generation of an alarm to the driver, or automatic control for the vehicle, and vehicle control means for providing control for running of the vehicle, wherein the determination processing means in the loaded on the vehicle comprises vehicle running in the counter direction detection means capable of reducing information on vehicles running in the counter direction by treating information concerning vehicles running in the counter direction as information concerning a group of vehicles running in the counter direction, and determination selection means for selecting provision of information to the driver, generation of an alarm, or automatic control over the vehicle based on the information concerning a group of vehicles running in the counter direction, while the road facilities further include on-road processing means for processing information concerning vehicles from the vehicle running in the counter direction detection means, road line form information from the road surface conditions detection means, and road line form information from the road surface database, and because of the features as described above, this system can prevent occurrence of a collision by determining the possibility of collision in right turn based on the information concerning vehicles running in the counter direction, road line form, and the vehicle itself collected by the on-road facilities and giving the information to the driver, and also which can automatically stop the vehicle when it is determined by the determination processing means that there is the possibility of a collision due to inadequate deceleration or for some other reasons.
The collision in right turn prevention system according to the present invention comprises vehicle running in the counter direction detection means for detecting a state of a vehicle in the counter direction on the opposite side of the road; road surface conditions detection means for detecting road surface conditions; on-road database means for storing therein information on line forms of the road; vehicle position detection means for detecting a position of the vehicle now in control; vehicle state detection means for detecting a state of the vehicle; determination processing means for selecting provision of information to a driver of the vehicle, generation of an alarm, or control for the vehicle just about to turn to the right based on the information concerning vehicles from the vehicle running in the counter direction detection means, information concerning road surface conditions from the road surface conditions detection means, information concerning the road line forms from the on-road database means, information concerning a position of the vehicle from the vehicle position detection means, and information concerning a state of the vehicle from the vehicle state detection means; an information output section for giving the information or the alarm to the driver; and vehicle control means for providing controls over running of the vehicle, and because of the features as described above, this system can prevent occurrence of a collision of the vehicle by determining the possibility of a collision based on the information concerning vehicles running in the counter direction collected by the on-road facilities, information concerning the road line forms, and information concerning a position of the vehicle itself and giving the information to the driver, and further can automatically stop the vehicle when it is determined by the determination processing means that there is the possibility of occurrence of a collision because of inadequate deceleration effected by the driver or for some other reasons.
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Ezure Hisashi
Inobe Takao
Kawahara Kazutaka
Kondo Tetsuaki
Kubota Koji
Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.
Nguyen Tan
Public Works Research Institute, Ministry of Construction
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