阅读说明：本技术 驾驶辅助装置 (Driving support device ) 是由 高桥彻 神谷庆 松永昇悟 于 2020-03-02 设计创作，主要内容包括：驾驶辅助装置(10)实施针对在本车辆(100)前方的规定区域检测出的物体避免或者缓和与本车辆(100)的碰撞的驾驶辅助处理。驾驶辅助装置(10)判定本车辆(100)以及对面车辆(200)中的一方进入至另一方的前进道路的可能性是否高。驾驶辅助装置(10)在判定为本车辆(100)以及对面车辆(200)中的一方进入至另一方的前进道路的可能性低的情况下,限制驾驶辅助处理的工作,在判定为本车辆(100)以及对面车辆(200)中的一方进入至另一方的前进道路的可能性高的情况下,不限制驾驶辅助处理的工作。(A driving support device (10) performs a driving support process for avoiding or mitigating a collision with a host vehicle (100) with respect to an object detected in a predetermined area in front of the host vehicle (100). The driving assistance device (10) determines whether or not there is a high possibility that one of the host vehicle (100) and the oncoming vehicle (200) enters the other one of the routes. The driving assistance device (10) restricts the operation of the driving assistance process when determining that the possibility that one of the host vehicle (100) and the oncoming vehicle (200) enters the other one of the routes is low, and does not restrict the operation of the driving assistance process when determining that the possibility that one of the host vehicle (100) and the oncoming vehicle (200) enters the other one of the routes is high.)

1. A driving support device (10) that performs a driving support process for avoiding or mitigating a collision with a host vehicle with respect to an object detected in a predetermined area in front of the host vehicle, the driving support device comprising:

an oncoming vehicle determination unit that determines a vehicle traveling in opposition to the host vehicle as an oncoming vehicle;

an entrance determination unit that determines whether or not there is a high possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the forward roads, based on the forward road of the host vehicle and the forward road of the oncoming vehicle; and

and an operation control unit that restricts the operation of the driving assistance process when it is determined that the possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the lanes is low, and does not restrict the operation of the driving assistance process when it is determined that the possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the lanes is high.

2. The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 1,

the oncoming vehicle determination unit determines, as the oncoming vehicle, a vehicle traveling across from the host vehicle in an oncoming lane adjacent to a host vehicle traveling in the host vehicle.

3. The driving assistance apparatus according to claim 2,

the entry determination unit determines that the possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the forward roads is high when a lateral distance from the one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle to a dividing line that divides the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle decreases and a rate of decrease in the lateral distance is greater than a predetermined decrease determination value.

4. The driving assistance apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,

the driving assistance device includes a relative speed calculation unit that calculates a relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle,

the operation control unit restricts the operation of the driving assistance process when the relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle is greater than a predetermined determination value and it is determined that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle is about to enter the other one of the routes.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a driving assistance device that performs a driving assistance process for avoiding or mitigating a collision between a host vehicle and an object.

Background

Patent document 1 discloses a driving assistance device that performs a driving assistance process for avoiding or mitigating a collision with an object in the vicinity of a host vehicle when it is determined that the object is likely to collide with the host vehicle. When it is determined that there is a possibility of collision between the host vehicle and the object, the driving assistance device increases the warning to the driver and the braking force of the brake as the driving assistance processing.

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2017-114429

For example, in the driving assistance process, the timing for operating each device is calculated based on the relative speed of the object with respect to the host vehicle. Therefore, in a scene in which an opposing vehicle present in front of the host vehicle passes by rubbing against the host vehicle, it is conceivable that the relative speed of the opposing vehicle with respect to the host vehicle becomes high, and the driving assistance process is excessively performed. However, if there is a fear that the driving assistance process for the oncoming vehicle is unnecessarily performed and the driving assistance process is not uniformly performed for the oncoming vehicle, there is a fear that the oncoming vehicle may be in a dangerous state depending on the course of the oncoming vehicle.

Disclosure of Invention

The present disclosure has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a driving assistance device capable of appropriately performing a driving assistance process for a host vehicle with respect to an oncoming vehicle.

In order to solve the above problem, the present disclosure provides a driving support device that performs a driving support process for avoiding or mitigating a collision with a host vehicle with respect to an object detected in a predetermined area in front of the host vehicle, the driving support device including: an oncoming vehicle determination unit that determines a vehicle traveling in opposition to the host vehicle as an oncoming vehicle; an entrance determination unit that determines whether or not there is a high possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the forward roads, based on the forward road of the host vehicle and the forward road of the oncoming vehicle; and an operation control unit that restricts operation of the driving assistance process when it is determined that the possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the lanes is low, and does not restrict operation of the driving assistance process when it is determined that the possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the lanes is high.

In the above configuration, it is determined whether one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle is highly likely to enter the other on the basis of the course of the host vehicle and the course of the oncoming vehicle. In a scene where there is a low possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle will enter the other one of the forward roads, the operation of the driving assistance processing is restricted, and thus unnecessary operations are suppressed with priority. On the other hand, in a scene in which there is a high possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the forward roads, the operation of the driving assistance process is not limited. In this way, by switching the presence or absence of the restriction on the operation of the driving assistance processing according to the degree of risk of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle on the course of the oncoming vehicle, the driving assistance processing in a scene in which the oncoming vehicle is present ahead of the host vehicle can be appropriately performed.

Drawings

The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings. The attached drawings are as follows:

fig. 1 is a configuration diagram of a driving assistance device.

Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating a work area set in front of the host vehicle.

Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating a facing vehicle entering the own lane.

Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating the limitation of the operation of the PCS control.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the procedure of PCS control.

Detailed Description

(first embodiment)

Embodiments of the driving assistance device will be described with reference to the drawings. The driving assistance device according to the present embodiment is mounted on a vehicle. When it is determined that there is a high possibility that an object located in a predetermined area in front of the host vehicle collides with the host vehicle, the driving support device performs PCS control (pre-collision safety control) on the host vehicle in order to avoid or mitigate the collision between the host vehicle and the object. In the present embodiment, the PCS control corresponds to the driving assistance process.

In fig. 1, the ECU10 as a driving assistance device is a computer having a CPU, ROM, RAM, I/O, and the like. The ECU10 realizes each function by the CPU executing a program installed in the ROM.

The millimeter wave radar 21 and the image sensor 22 are connected to the ECU10 as sensor devices for detecting the position of an object located in front of the vehicle.

The millimeter wave radar 21 transmits, for example, a high frequency signal in the millimeter wave band, receives a reflected wave generated by reflecting a millimeter wave by an object, and thereby detects the position of the object around the own vehicle as the first position. The millimeter-wave radar 21 is provided at the front end of the vehicle, and a region that enters a predetermined detection angle is defined as a detection region in which an object can be detected.

The image sensor 22 includes an imaging unit that acquires an image captured in front of the vehicle, and detects the position of an object included in the acquired image as a second position. The image sensor 22 is attached to a predetermined height at the center of the vehicle in the width direction (lateral direction) of the vehicle, and acquires an area extending in a predetermined angular range toward the front of the vehicle as a captured image. For example, the image sensor 22 extracts feature points of an object in a captured image, and detects the position and shape of the object using the extracted feature points. The imaging unit is, for example, a monocular camera or a compound-eye camera.

Various sensors 23 to 27 for detecting the driving state of the vehicle are connected to the ECU 10. The accelerator sensor 23 is provided at an accelerator pedal, and detects whether or not the driver operates the accelerator pedal and an operation amount thereof. The brake sensor 24 is provided on the brake pedal, and detects the presence or absence of the operation of the brake pedal by the driver and the operation amount thereof. The steering sensor 25 detects a steering amount θ according to a steering operation by the driver. The vehicle speed sensor 26 detects the own vehicle speed Vc based on the rotation speed of the wheels. The yaw rate sensor 27 detects a yaw rate ψ indicating a temporal change in the direction of the vehicle when the vehicle turns.

The warning device 31, the brake device 32, and the seatbelt device 33 are connected to the ECU 10. The warning device 31 is a speaker or a display provided in the vehicle cabin, and outputs a warning sound, a warning message, and the like in accordance with a control command from the ECU 10. The brake device 32 applies a braking force to the own vehicle. The seatbelt device 33 is a pretensioner that pulls in a seatbelt provided in each seat of the vehicle.

Next, each function of the ECU10 will be explained. The ECU10 acquires the object position p (i), which is the position of the object around the host vehicle, based on the detection results of the millimeter wave radar 21 and the image sensor 22. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 sets the object located in the vicinity as an object based on the same object, and associates the first position of the object detected by the millimeter wave radar 21 with the second position of the object detected by the image sensor 22. In the case where the second position exists in the vicinity of the first position, there is a high possibility that an object actually exists in the first position. A state in which the position of the object can be obtained with high accuracy by the millimeter wave radar 21 and the image sensor 22 is referred to as a fusion state. The ECU10 acquires a new object position p (i) for the object, for which the information included in the first position and the information included in the second position are fused with high accuracy, for the object determined to be in the fused state.

The ECU10 calculates the relative position of the object with respect to the own vehicle and the relative velocity of the object with respect to the own vehicle for each object that has acquired the object position p (i). In the present embodiment, the case where the relative speed of the object with respect to the host vehicle changes in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the host vehicle is assumed to be positive. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 corresponds to a relative speed calculation unit.

The ECU10 determines whether the possibility of collision of the own vehicle with the object is high based on the course of the object and the position of the own vehicle. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 calculates the course of the object based on the change in the object position p (i). When the calculated course of the object intersects a working area virtually set in front of the host vehicle, it is determined that the host vehicle collides with the object. The operation region is, for example, a region smaller than the detection region of the millimeter wave radar 21 or the image sensor 22. Further, the course of the host vehicle may be calculated based on the yaw rate ψ of the host vehicle and the host vehicle speed Vc, and when the calculated course of the host vehicle intersects with the course of the object, it may be determined that the host vehicle has a high possibility of colliding with the object.

When determining that the possibility of collision between the vehicle and the object is high, the ECU10 determines whether or not to operate each of the devices 31 to 33. Specifically, as shown in fig. 2, the ECU10 operates the devices 31 to 33 when it is determined that the object position p (i) of the object having a high possibility of colliding with the host vehicle 100 is located within the predetermined operation region B in front of the host vehicle and the predicted time to collision (hereinafter referred to as TTC) reaches the operation timing associated with the devices 31 to 33.

TTC is a predicted time until the host vehicle 100 collides with an object, and is calculated by dividing the inter-vehicle distance from the host vehicle 100 to the object by the relative speed of the object with respect to the host vehicle 100 in the present embodiment. The operation timing is a timing at which the operations of the devices 31 to 33 are started, and when the operation timing is early, the TTC at which the operations of the devices 31 to 33 are started becomes larger than when the operation timing is late.

The alarm device 31, the brake device 32, and the seatbelt device 33 are each defined with an operation timing. In the present embodiment, the operation timing TTC1 of the alarm device 31 among the operation timings of the devices 31 to 33 is determined to be the earliest timing.

When it is determined that the TTC is equal to or less than the operation timing TTC1 of the warning device 31 because an object colliding with the host vehicle 100 approaches the host vehicle 100, the ECU10 operates the warning device 31. Thereby, the risk of collision is reported to the driver through the warning device 31.

Thereafter, the ECU10 operates the brake device 32 when the TTC becomes equal to or less than the operation timing TTC2 of the brake device 32. The operation of the brake device 32 by the ECU10 includes automatic braking for operating the brake device 32 in a state where the driver does not step on the brake pedal, and brake assist for increasing the braking force of the brake device 32 in a state where the driver steps on the brake pedal. The operation timing TTC2 of the brake device 32 may be set differently for brake assist and automatic braking, respectively, or may be the same timing.

In the present embodiment, the operation timing of the seatbelt apparatus 33 is determined to be the same value as the operation timing TTC2 of the brake device 32. For example, a preparatory operation for pulling in the seat belt by the seat belt device 33 is performed in accordance with the start of the operation of the brake device 32.

In a scene in which an oncoming vehicle present ahead of the own vehicle passes by the own vehicle at the shoulder, the relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the own vehicle is likely to increase, resulting in excessive PCS control. Further, there is a possibility that a detection error of the millimeter wave radar 21 or the image sensor 22 becomes large due to a long distance from the host vehicle to the oncoming vehicle, or that the route of the host vehicle or the oncoming vehicle changes after the oncoming vehicle is detected. However, if there is a fear that the PCS control is unnecessarily operated for the oncoming vehicle and the PCS control is not operated for the oncoming vehicle at all, there is a fear that the oncoming vehicle may be in a dangerous state for the host vehicle depending on the course of the oncoming vehicle.

Therefore, the ECU10 sets a restriction on the operation of the PCS control in a scene where there is an oncoming vehicle ahead of the host vehicle, in a scene where the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the course of the host vehicle is low, and sets no restriction on the operation of the PCS control in a scene where the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the course of the host vehicle is high.

The ECU10 determines a vehicle traveling across from the host vehicle among objects in front of the host vehicle as an oncoming vehicle. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 determines a vehicle traveling in a lane adjacent to the own lane in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the own vehicle as an oncoming vehicle. Specifically, the ECU10 sets, as the oncoming vehicle, a vehicle detected in an adjacent oncoming lane and having a relative distance to the host vehicle that changes in a direction approaching the host vehicle. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 corresponds to an oncoming vehicle determination unit.

The ECU10 determines whether the possibility of the oncoming vehicle entering from the oncoming lane into the own lane is high based on the course of the own vehicle and the change in the position of the oncoming vehicle. In the present embodiment, fig. 3 shows a scene in which the oncoming vehicle 200 ahead of the host vehicle enters the host vehicle from the oncoming lane as it goes from time t1 to t 3. As shown in fig. 3, the ECU10 determines that the oncoming vehicle 200 is about to enter the own lane when the lateral distance W, which indicates the lateral distance from the dividing line C that divides the own lane and the oncoming lane, to the oncoming vehicle 200 decreases and the rate of decrease in the lateral distance W is greater than a predetermined decrease determination value THW. In fig. 3, the oncoming vehicle 200 is traveling near the dividing line C, and the lateral distance W (t2) of the oncoming vehicle 200 at time t2 is smaller than the lateral distance W (t1) of the oncoming vehicle 200 at time t 1. Then, the slope Δ W indicating the speed of decrease in the lateral distance W is larger than the decrease determination value THW, and it can be determined that the oncoming vehicle 200 is highly likely to enter the own lane. Hereinafter, the determination of whether the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the own lane is high is referred to as lane departure determination. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 corresponds to an entry determination unit.

The ECU10 does not set any restriction on the operation of the PCS control when it is determined by the lane escape determination that the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the own lane is high. On the other hand, when it is determined by the lane escape determination that the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the own lane is low, the ECU10 sets a restriction on the operation of the PCS control. Specifically, the ECU10 reduces the operating region B, which is the position condition of the object for operating the devices 31 to 33, and delays the operation timing of the devices 31 to 33 as the operation restriction of the PCS control. In the present embodiment, the ECU10 corresponds to an operation control unit.

When the ECU10 sets a restriction on the operation of the PCS control, the operation region B is narrowed laterally with respect to the center of the vehicle 100 in the lateral direction as shown in fig. 4 (a). When the work area B is reduced, the devices 31 to 33 are difficult to operate because the oncoming vehicles that are the targets of the operating conditions for operating the devices 31 to 33 are restricted from among the oncoming vehicles ahead of the host vehicle, as compared with the case where the work area B is not reduced.

When the limitation is placed on the operation of the PCS control, the ECU10 delays the operation timing of each of the devices 31 to 33 as compared with the case where no limitation is placed, as shown in fig. 4 (b). In the example of fig. 4 (b), the operation timing of the brake device 32 is delayed from TTC2 to TTC 3. The operation timing of each device 31-33 is delayed, and each device 31-33 is difficult to operate.

The ECU10 may not delay the operation timing of each of the devices 31 to 33 after the start of the operation of each of the devices 31 to 33. This is to prevent the operation timing from being changed and the operation of each device 31 to 33 from being interrupted after the operation of each device 31 to 33.

Next, the processing sequence of PCS control will be described with reference to the flowchart of fig. 5. The process of fig. 5 is repeatedly executed by the ECU10 in a predetermined control cycle.

In step S11, the steering manipulated variable θ acquired by the steering sensor 25, the vehicle speed Vc detected by the vehicle speed sensor 26, and the yaw rate ψ detected by the yaw rate sensor 27 are acquired.

In step S12, an object position p (i) that is the position of an object in front of the host vehicle is detected. In step S13, it is determined that the object corresponding to the oncoming vehicle is included in the objects detected at the object position p (i) in step S12.

If the oncoming vehicle cannot be determined in the determination of the oncoming vehicle at step S12, a negative determination is made at step S14, and the process proceeds to step S19. In step S19, it is determined whether or not the possibility of collision between the host vehicle and the object is high by the intersection of the forward road of the object and the work area B set in front of the host vehicle. When the course of the object does not intersect the work area B, a negative determination is made at step S19, and the process of fig. 5 is once ended.

On the other hand, if the travel path through the object intersects the work area B and the affirmative determination is made in step S19, the process proceeds to step S20, where it is determined whether or not the current TTC has passed through the operation timing of each of the devices 31 to 33. If it is determined that the current TTC has not passed the operation timing of each of the devices 31 to 33, the processing of fig. 5 is once ended.

When it is determined in step S20 that the current TTC has passed through the operation timing of any of the devices 31 to 33, the routine proceeds to step S21. In step S21, the PCS control is performed by operating the devices 31 to 33 whose TTC is set to the operation timing. Then, the processing of fig. 5 is once ended.

If the object in front of the host vehicle is determined to be an oncoming vehicle in step S14, the process proceeds to step S15, where lane departure determination is performed for the oncoming vehicle. If it is determined in the lane departure determination at step S15 that the possibility of the oncoming vehicle entering the own lane is low, a negative determination is made at step S16, and the process proceeds to step S18. If a negative determination is made at step S16, the possibility that the oncoming vehicle will enter the own lane is low, and therefore the operating conditions for the PCS control are changed to the restricted side at step S18. Specifically, as described with reference to fig. 4, the operation region B is laterally narrowed to delay the operation timing of each of the devices 31 to 33.

If it is determined in the lane departure determination at step S15 that the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the own lane is high, an affirmative determination is made at step S16, and the process proceeds to step S17. When the relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle is low, there is a margin for the driver to perform the collision avoidance operation of the host vehicle even when the oncoming vehicle enters the host lane. In addition, in a scene where the oncoming vehicle turns left and right at the intersection, the relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the own vehicle becomes low. In such a case, the operation of the own vehicle is entrusted to the driver, so that unnecessary operation of the PCS control can be more appropriately suppressed. Therefore, in step S17, it is determined whether the relative speed V1 of the oncoming vehicle is greater than the speed determination value THV.

If it is determined in step S17 that the relative speed V1 of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle is equal to or less than the speed determination value THV, the routine proceeds to step S18, where a limit is placed on the operation of the PCS control. For example, the speed determination value THV is an upper limit value of a speed at which the driver of the host vehicle can perform the collision avoidance operation in a case where the oncoming vehicle enters the host lane.

In the case of proceeding to step S19 via step S18, in step S19, it is determined whether the oncoming vehicle is entering the work area B that is laterally narrowed by step S18. If an affirmative determination is made in step S19, it is determined in step S20 whether or not the current TTC has passed the operation timing delayed in step S18. When an affirmative determination is made in step S20, the process proceeds to step S21, and the PCS control is performed by operating the devices 31 to 33 that have reached the operation timing. Then, the processing of fig. 5 is once ended.

If it is determined in step S17 that the relative speed V1 of the oncoming vehicle is greater than the speed determination value THV, the oncoming vehicle enters the own lane, and therefore the possibility of collision between the own vehicle and the oncoming vehicle becomes high, and therefore no restriction is placed on the operation of the PCS control, and the process proceeds to step S19.

As described above, the present embodiment can provide the following effects.

The ECU10 determines whether the possibility of the oncoming vehicle entering the own lane is high based on the course of the own vehicle and the course of the oncoming vehicle. The ECU10 restricts the operation of the PCS in a scene where the possibility of the oncoming vehicle entering the own lane is low, and does not restrict the operation of the PCS in a scene where the possibility of the oncoming vehicle entering the own lane is high. Thus, by switching the presence or absence of the restriction on the operation of the PCS control according to the degree of risk of the oncoming vehicle on the course of the host vehicle, the PCS control in a scene in which the oncoming vehicle is present ahead of the host vehicle can be appropriately performed.

In a scene dividing the own lane and the oncoming lane, the speed of the own vehicle or the oncoming vehicle tends to increase. In such a scene, the possibility that the oncoming vehicle enters the own lane becomes high. The ECU10 determines a vehicle traveling across from the host vehicle in a lane adjacent to the host vehicle as an opposing vehicle. Thus, in a scene in which there is a high possibility that the oncoming vehicle will leave the lane and enter the own lane, the PCS control can be appropriately operated without restricting the operation of the PCS.

When the lateral distance W from the oncoming vehicle to the dividing line that divides the own lane from the oncoming lane decreases and the rate of decrease in the lateral distance W is greater than a predetermined decrease determination value THW, the ECU10 determines that the oncoming vehicle is about to enter the own lane. Thus, the lane departure of the oncoming vehicle can be predicted before the oncoming vehicle actually enters the own lane, so that the presence or absence of the restriction on the operation of the PCS control can be switched as early as possible.

The ECU10 restricts the operation of the PCS control in the case where the relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle is greater than the speed determination value THV, and it is determined that the oncoming vehicle is about to enter the host lane. Thus, unnecessary operation of PCS control can be appropriately suppressed.

(modification of the first embodiment)

The ECU10 may not set any restriction on the operation of the PCS control when the possibility that the host vehicle enters the adjacent opposite lane from the host vehicle is high according to the course of the host vehicle. In this case, in the lane departure determination at step S15, when the lateral distance W from the host vehicle to the dividing line that divides the host vehicle and the adjacent opposite lane is decreased and the decrease speed Δ W of the lateral distance W is larger than the decrease determination value THW, it is determined that the host vehicle is about to enter the opposite lane from the host vehicle. The present embodiment described above can also provide the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

(other embodiments)

In a scenario where there is an oncoming vehicle ahead of the host vehicle, the ECU10 may restrict the PCS control operation if the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle travel straight and collide with each other thereafter. In this case, in step S15, the ECU10 determines whether or not the own vehicle width range defined by the vehicle width of the own vehicle and the oncoming vehicle width range defined by the vehicle width of the oncoming vehicle intersect in the vehicle width direction. Then, after determining that the host vehicle width range and the oncoming vehicle width range intersect each other in the vehicle width direction, if it is determined that there is a high possibility that the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle will travel straight as they are, the ECU10 may make an affirmative determination in step S16.

The oncoming vehicle may travel not only on the lane adjacent to the own lane but also on a road having a narrow lane width and not having the own lane and the oncoming lane divided by a dividing line. In this case, when the oncoming vehicle travels close to the course of the host vehicle, it may be determined that the oncoming vehicle is highly likely to enter the course of the host vehicle. Specifically, the ECU10 calculates the course of the host vehicle based on the yaw rate ψ of the host vehicle and the host vehicle speed Vc. Then, when the object position p (i) of the oncoming vehicle changes so as to approach the calculated own-vehicle course, it is determined that the oncoming vehicle is highly likely to enter the course of the own vehicle.

The PCS control may not be restricted from being operated when there is a high possibility that one of the host vehicle and the oncoming vehicle enters the other one of the forward roads, without depending on the relative speed of the oncoming vehicle with respect to the host vehicle. In this case, step S17 may be deleted, and if an affirmative determination is made at step S16, the process may proceed to step S19.

The driving support device is not limited to being provided with the millimeter wave radar 21 and the image sensor 22, and may be provided with either the millimeter wave radar 21 or the image sensor 22. In this case, the position of the object detected by the millimeter wave radar 21 or the image sensor 22 may be used as the object position p (i). The driving support device may include a laser scanner instead of the millimeter wave radar 21.

The driving assistance process is not limited to the PCS control.

The control device and the method thereof described in the present disclosure may be implemented by a dedicated computer provided by configuring a processor and a memory programmed to execute one or more functions embodied by a computer program. Alternatively, the control unit and the method thereof described in the present disclosure may be implemented by a dedicated computer provided with a processor constituted by one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the control unit and the method thereof described in the present disclosure may be implemented by one or more special purpose computers configured by a combination of a processor and a memory programmed to execute one or more functions and a processor configured by one or more hardware logic circuits. The computer program may be stored in a non-transitory tangible recording medium that can be read by a computer as instructions to be executed by the computer.

The present disclosure has been described in terms of embodiments, but it should be understood that the disclosure is not limited to such embodiments, constructions. The present disclosure also includes various modifications and modifications within an equivalent range. In addition, various combinations and forms, including only one element, more or less, and other combinations and forms are also included in the scope and the idea of the present disclosure.